Why does this remind me so much of that time I got lectured by the cardinal when I first arrived in Aureolis? Oh, Hestia, why do you always get into trouble with the local religious establishment? … Okay, ignoring Crustacia’s church.

“A trial is unnecessary when it is this clear-cut. By my authority as the Abyssal Warden and high priestess of the Depth Goddess, the non-blessed closest to her Abyssal Dread, I, Ashana Jhorrsmugandr, sentenced those standing me: you are to be exiled from Lecullius until the conclusion of the Event Quest [Dance of the Leviathan Warlords].”

Cue dramatic lightning explosion… BAAAAANG! Okay, cue the end music.

“Haaa. Okay, the farce is finally over. Now, let us speak properly.” Slamming her staff on the ground, the Abyssal Warden stared at all of us as we stood inside the city’s basilica. With the main praying hall completely empty outside of my group, the Bole’Tarian camp—which unfortunately included our former ally Tehmrayn—and Master Kush’s party, we had the Abyssal Warden’s entire attention. “I have given you your punishment as needed, as the ruler of Lecullius. You have broken our laws: violence inside the Depth Goddess’s most religious sanctum is a sin. Haaa… this place was supposed to act as neutral grounds for the two factions to speak it out. Must all of you show your hostility this early, when it is already hard enough to herd schools of fish in the middle of the ocean?”

“It wasn’t our intention,” Wendriosa said as she turned to the Bole’Tarians, who the Depth Guards had rescued and “arrested” once the Abyssal Warden resolved the matter in the inner city. Only the Prince of Wrath and his first Warbringer were here, with his compatriots currently being hospitalized in the basilica’s medical ward. “As everything that occurs in the depths, it just happened.”

“‘It just happened…’” The Abyssal Warden sighed. “Yes, the most common excuse for any conflict. You compare this bloodshed and the loss of a young leviathan to a tavern brawl. It is a spark, Your Highness. First blood has been shed, and it was caused by an adamantoise belonging to your faction. ‘It just happened.’ Three infuriating words. The city allowed you to arrive, and you caused this headache.”

“Then I should be the one to apologize,” I raised my hand, still inside the subspace. I saw Vifi give me a worried look, but this was just my responsibility as her friend and party leader. “I didn’t… think we would meet all of them here.”

“‘A leader must accept the fault of their subordinate as their own,’” the Prince of Wrath suddenly replied. “It is what Her Highness, Princess Hestia, had mentioned. None of us expected to meet each other here at this time. Princess Wendriosa’s statement was accurate. Our two factions are—”

“Yes, I know this very well, General Astrol. I was the one who expedited the entry permissions for Princess Hestia’s retinue. My ears had heard that you snuck into the city with the support of a few leviathans and levianewts, but I only learned today that you were not just a mere human or somebody disguised as one. The Prince of Wrath, Bole’Taria’s highest military authority. Caedhul’s Tide Watchers have spoken much about the ongoing war between humans and demonkin,” she said, slightly snappy. “The Shakaie-Narn alliance has already made it clear to me that it isn’t Kargryx that is hostile towards Bole’Taria, it is their youngest daughter due to her status as the Light Goddess’s blessed. Hmph, although even with this information, merely excusing it as ‘It just happened’ is what I am infuriated with. No, sirs and madams, that battle had no reason to have happened if you had respected our hospitality.”

The levianewt woman winced, revealing that a flaring anger had melted the public mask she wore when she first greeted us. Yet, she didn’t gesture much, keeping her body upright to maintain an air of dignity before all of us. You could really see her years of etiquette barely holding back her ferocious dragonkin side.

Finally taking a breather after that lecture, she composed herself, returning to a more gentle tone. “However, that is why that farce of a punishment had to be done. I am a servant of Goddess Plesia first, before I am the ruler of Lecullius. That is the role ingrained in my position as the head of the church of Plesia. The Event Quest was created to resolve this imminent civil war in a more ‘controlled’ manner, instead of letting it blow up once it grew too hot to stop in a few years. You all are the actors in this theatre of battle. I can see it now that I have the necessary information.”

‘Actors?’ That is too innocent a term to call us that.

“If the leader of one faction wasn’t Quasdrakeen, I could foresee your two factions at least working together in an uneasy alliance, but she has fully committed herself to declaring Melloxtressa her enemy. That makes it impossible for Kargryx to side with Quasdrakeen, even if they wish to slay Kiedaceus.”

“Slay?” The second Warbringer raised an eyebrow, although he didn’t open his eyes. Vifi had told me he was blind.

“Our father talked with you, and you decided to reveal what was spoken in those meetings?” Neill growled, prompting the Abyssal Warden to raise a hand.

Although she wasn’t the one to refute her. Wendriosa did.

“They would have found out about it eventually. I am already heralding my supporters to fight back against that usurper, and having me do this only benefits Quasdrakeen’s faction. As Lady Ashana had said, if the opposing faction wasn’t so hell-bent on killing one of our mother-empresses, there would be room to discuss a possible partnership, even if it went against our siblings’ wishes.”

“I am not the type to dismiss diplomacy, Sister…” I said, sighing a bit at how dismissive that sounded.

“I know, but you aren’t the only one I am worried about. I saw for myself, with the way you glared at them, that you hold the people next to us in contempt. I heard when we were escorted here that, aside from their mercenary contract, they are here for your demonkin retainer. Would you accept people who might backstab you in your midst?”

“It would be ha—”

“Yes.” However, before I could speak, the Prince of Wrath answered for me. “That is what you must say in this situation. Yes. ‘It is better to keep your enemy at arm's length and to see them stab you from the front, than to worry for when they will cut you down from behind.’ Even if it is a lie, you must accept the alliance, for it benefits you to cease hostility between us for now.”

You’re telling a blessed of Kargryxmor to lie… I mean, not like I haven’t bluffed before or used subterfuge, but really? Guess Kramps not having a blessed before me meant there is just no standard.

“‘Hide your weaknesses in the pools of battle. Make them fear and need your blade,’ a quote on how a warlord must exude command before both ally and foe,” Vifi interjected. “Though ‘Remember that not every weapon will follow the path of orthodoxy’ might be a better quote for you to follow here, Lord Wrath.”

“You always acted as if you did not read much, but hearing you remember those mundane teachings assures me that our teachings worked,” the First Warbringer praised. “I do hope your new mistress is using you well, instead of an idiotic grunt. Otherwise, we might as well consider that an insult. To use one of our Warbringers as nothing more than a glorified royal guard would be worth our rage.”

“… I do use her well enough. Thank you for caring for her,” I snapped.

“Of course, we would. Her father taught her how to survive as an apprentice in warfare. We taught her the art of war and how to conduct herself as a Warbringer. She has no place living in a grassy plain away from the battlefield, for this age is a saga of strife and settlement. Her rapier is to be used to decide an outcome in these wars, or die holding it up as a proud demonkin of wrath!”

Fucking asshole.

“Those words do hold some truth to our matters, though. Bole’Taria’s mission in Caedhulen territory is the Event Quest, but we also came here knowing our employer’s fury,” the Prince of Wrath added. “To oppose Frozen Nest means to oppose the sixth empress and her daughter. That is my goal. Vifi, you are a traitor and deserter who has thrown away the kindness House Yok had shown you. Your father had wanted you to inherit his place, yet you work with our enemies instead. I understand why you turned now, but that does not absolve you of the crime of desertion.”

“I’ve made my peace with that, Lord Wrath. As such, you will have to bring me back as a corpse if you want me to be tried. This is the correct path for me, and I believe this would be what Father would have wanted me to do to fulfill his dream.” Vifi couldn’t have said it better. “And thus, our positions are made clear. Though something still nags on me, why exactly would Bole’Taria willingly put their warlord in danger for another nation? Mercenary work that coincides with our goals, like my mission in Gleisvale, is understandable, but what does Lord Greed gain from this?”

“Huh? Isn’t it obvious? They’re here to gain an ally,” Neill said, prompting Shay to nod. “Who best to throw at the dragons than our eternal rivals, the leviathans. Bole’Taria, strategically, can’t do anything to Hestia due to the threat of Empress-Mother Melloxtressa, but once they have an army of leviathans, adamantoises, and merfiend on their side, that dynamic changes. Furthermore, the Event Quest is perfectly timed for Quasdrakeen to become a rank SS.”

“This has been planned for a while,” Beth realized.

“Far longer, in fact,” the Abyssal Warden added. “The looming civil war had become a threat ever since Princess Wendriosa’s aunt was slain by the usurper Kiedaceus Scynthra. His adamant rally cry to claim the throne for her would ignite the flames of rivalry between land, sea, and sky, and that is what he is aiming for.”

“Scynthra? Would you mean the leader of the usurpers is a descendant of God Scynthra?” Tasianna blurted out before she snapped over to Wendriosa, frowning deeply as she tried to avoid her gaze.

“The same one, Tasianna,” Master confirmed. “The God of Merfiends and Sealife, known during his life to have courted the Goddess of Depths, Seas, and Merfolk, Ghenngarrath—Scynthra. A leviathan god who denounces the bloody path of the God of Tridents and Divers. Which… unfortunately, explains why our former ally is currently working with our enemies.”

Right, Tehmrayn is on the other team now. I looked over to him, but the naga’s expression didn’t change once he was talked about.

“The will of the gods drives us blessed. We gain their powers through faith, and we have an obligation to serve them, lest they strip us of those powers. A ‘traitor blessed’ will be hunted down with no pantheon willing to take on an abandoned, injured shark. This is simply how it is to be a blessed,” he explained. His expression remained unfazed despite how cruel that sounded.

“I can see that point of view. Shouldn’t be too far-fetched, considering how the church of Danterno hates you, Sis,” Neill said, hitting the nail on the head. “‘Traitor Saintess!’ Haa, I still remember how much they were shouting that. Those fire gods sent blessed at you, and if you weren’t, you know, you, those guys would have died. That explains things, right?”

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

Themrayn nodded. “Goddess Plesia wished for Karhalantheel to remain sealed since his existence would introduce a problem for the current balance of the sea. An ancient rank SS leviathan would, undoubtedly, topple the current hierarchy once he adapts to the Divine System, and that could lead him to be crowned the unofficial ruler of Caedhul. What he will do with that power, you may imagine yourself. Regardless, the plans of both his daughter and God Scynthra’s scion would be left in ruins, and that is what the Depth Goddess had wanted to protect. She wanted the current conflict to revolve around those two.”

“The ocean never truly had a ruler, until the Depth Goddess taught the abyssal horrors that there are beings even rank SSS dragonkin wouldn’t wish to meet,” the Warden stated. “And our goddess strives for ‘balance.’ The balance never required a true ruler to keep the leviathans, adamantoises, and merfiend in control, but their population has outgrown the status quo. The constant conflicts within her pantheon are also an issue, which is why this Event Quest was created—one large conflict to ease the battle ire of the ocean to bring in an age of hopeful control.”

“Nonsense,” Wendriosa snided. “The ocean cannot be tamed so easily. If it could, it would have been so once Goddess Plesia had taken over Peolynca as its head goddess. I do not wish to impose on your authority, Lady Abyssal Warden, but I very much disagree with how you interpret this Event Quest. If Goddess Plesia cared about balance, she wouldn’t have allowed her subordinate gods to rampage around.”

“It is good that we are friends, otherwise I would not ignore those heathenous words from a non-blessed, Princess Wendriosa. Disregarding what you believe to be the truth, does it matter to you? No. For you do not seek the resolution of the sea, but to fulfill your revenge on the usurper who slew your aunt and corrupted the faction you have created. Your movement risks a way between sky and sea, and your duty is to stop that. Restrain your opinion,” the Warden chastised. “Faith has no matter in this Event Quest. Do not question the Depth Goddess and perform what you must, for—ah, it seems the dragon prince has finally been caught.”

Just as she said that, the door to the praying hall opened wide. My green-feathered brother, Nong, came strutting in with multiple depth guards accompanying him like prison guards, all while he was dragging along what was practically the torso of the second Warbringer and an unconscious elf.

Doc… I recognized the latter to be my elven doctor, Illvenus.

Once Nong reached us, he threw the limbless warbringer to the demonkin’s side while Illvenus landed next to us. Seeing this, the Abyssal Warden waved at her guards, telling them to leave despite their protests. “The dragon prince’s bloodlust has not subsided, Your Eminence,” they said, and I could see that in how he was glaring at the demonkin. No kindness could be seen in that single-minded focus, to the point that the demonkin were both on guard for a potential surprise attack.

“Little scamp, could you check up on that piece of trash?” Surprisingly, though, what came out of his mouth was mercy.

“Pardon?” I let out, but I wasn’t the only one who was baffled at how it contrasted with his mood.

“I broke a few too many bones, and who knows how many organs. The depth guards managed to fix him up before he actually died, healing up the number of torn muscles, gashes, and nerve-piercing burns. Unfortunately for him, water clerics are still no holy clerics, and those guards didn’t want to use their more precious medicines on a foreigner. Who knows if he will bite the dust or not? I would rather not cause Sister Wendriosa even more trouble with me becoming a murderer here.”

Good enough of a reason to heal an enemy. Not like I would like him back up, though.

“Would you be so kind as to do that, my apprentice?” Master Kush added, although his and the saurians’ eyes were fixated on the second warbringer.

“Same, young scale. Mind giving us a chance to pay him back for what he did to Akasht?” Krim said in agreement with his green partner. “Seeing him turn into a vegetable after all he did in Aureolis would feel rather… hollow.”

Graz clicked his tongue. “Our steel has waited for this moment. Xohulotel be willing, let us not embarrass ourselves before somebody facing a fate worse than death.”

I raised an eyebrow before turning to Vifi, who gave me a nod as if to tell me she had no problem with these requests. “Then I guess I can, but I have to leave the subspace for that…” I said, since I did not want to give a master assassin access to my subspace for even a moment. All of them should know about my subspace, so I was afraid they might have something planned if they could enter my subspace. A bit paranoid, but so what?

“I’ll ask Father for forgiveness,” Nong said. “He’ll probably understand that this is just you cleaning up your older brother’s mess. Family protects family, and all that, right?”

Seeing how Wendriosa and Neill both agreed to this statement, I sighed and jumped out of the subspace before closing it. Picking up my runes, I then went over to the demonkin, finally able to stand before two of my future enemies, and one of them was one of the “Must Kill” targets Vifi told me I had to kill for my goal to work.

“Hiding your fiercesome forms while prioritizing characteristics that make humanoids let their guard down. The -nize skills are truly dangerous,” the Prince of Wrath said.

“This is just how I look, dude…” I replied, sighing as I didn’t want to explain my circumstances to him. He should know it well enough, but was trying to ragebait me. “Whatever. I’ll be… taking care of your comrade here.”

“Please, do. We cannot owe you a favor, though,” the first Warbringer admitted, but I waved his concerns away. I could, at least, hear some sense of honor in the way he said that.

I smiled uncomfortably, feeling like I really didn’t deserve any praise for this surgery. “I am a healer, just as much as I am an idol. Really, no need to thank me for this, especially since I didn’t want to do it before everyone requested it from me.”

After picking… no, after carrying him with [Unheiliger Engel] away to one of the nearby pews, Tasianna created an icicle dome around us to block their views of the demonkin, since I didn’t want to show them how [Miraculous Grace] worked. Tasianna, as always, knew me best.

[“The view is blocked, but Vifi whispered that we should be wary of the first Warbringer’s vision,”] Tasianna informed, prompting me to cast the spell [Room] for us to enter. Closing the entrance would stop any [Mana Eyes]-like shenanigans, even if the entrance was still visible for all to see.

“Haaa, always nice to have the normal [Room] spell for times like these.” I sighed before pulling out a table from my storage. “Let’s just get this over with. Tasianna, will you help me?”

“You need not ask, my lady.”

After a long time of limb regrowing, the second Warbringer transformed from a headed torso into a demonkin again. He was still unconscious, but I fixed up any organ problems he had, including removing a bunch of Nong’s feathers stuck inside his body, probably from an improper healing procedure. Nong was right. The water clerics had no intention of actually healing him. They only wanted to keep him alive.

It was like leaving a bullet inside while trying to close a gaping wound. Sure, you were “healed,” but these projectiles would only complicate your future health. If I had left them there, I would have left behind an incredible advantage for Master. I could have even left behind a poison capsule or so.

I might not have sworn the Hippocratic oath, but going that far would be beyond morally bankrupt.

After we left the room and Tasianna dispelled the dome, I handed the warbringer back to his comrades. “I fixed up a few of his past wounds, pro bono, but if you don’t trust me, you may appraise him later,” I said, prompting both to thank me without questioning it. They then gestured for Tehmrayn to follow them as they started to leave the room.

“Our need here is done, so we shall leave for now. You may have the elf. You earned your prize by defeating my subordinate, so I shall honor his commitment. The next time we meet,”—He turned around as the first Warbringer opened the door for them—“Let us not regret the paths we have taken as we wage war.”

War this, war that. How about you start being a Hippie and shout PEACE for once? Might help that scowl and those wrinkles.

“Is he always like that?” I asked Vifi, prompting her to, surprisingly, shake her head.

“Lord Wrath is a prominent noble within society. Away from the battlefield, he is a capable landowner whose talent for logistics shines. He has a wife and children. The warlord is responsible for everything concerning war, but that also means he has to understand the benefits of peace. He might look rough, but he has a kind side to him.”

Seeing Vifi smile softly told me enough about what her relationship with her former comrades was.

“You really miss them, huh?”

“Did I give you that sorta impression? Ha, I feel about them similar to when I met Sakrha in Aureolis. It’s complicated, and I definitely had some misgivings when I fought him today, but I still went for the kill. That told me enough that when the time comes, I will—we will win against them, Hestia. As he said, we can’t regret our choices. Mourning is the privilege of the living.”

“Yeah, right… and that includes HUGGING!” The moment the discussion ended, I stomped on the ground and dashed over to the saurians.

“Hest—” Master couldn’t even finish his words before I jumped at him, Krim, and Graz with widened arms. Seeing this, the latter two stepped behind Master to allow me to embrace all three of them at the same time. “Argck! Haha, haaaa… I apologize for not being there when you woke up.”

Master brushed his scaly hands on my back, gently caressing me, unlike Krim, who was holding onto me tightly, like a precious treasure. Graz was a bit more reserved, trying not to hurt me, but wasn’t as warm as Master. Still, I could feel their breath flowing down my neck, and that tickling feeling made my heart burst with joy.

“Honestly, it probably was better for you not to visit me with all those things happening on Miononbolax. Not to mention, I now have so much to tell you! I have so much material for us to catch up, and I am really excited to learn how all of you got into wearing all of this.” I pointed at their armor and Master’s robes. “I guess you aren’t part of the Tide Watchers any longer?”

“Krim and I are fully inducted in the Depth Guards now, and Kush was re-accepted into the Depth Priests. Roaming isn’t our priority now, and being in Caedhul allows us to visit the other saurians more often,” Graz said as the four of us stopped hugging. “We talked after we returned to tell everybody of Akasht’s death.”

“Got in pretty easily! Goes to show how much our training on Altrust has benefited us. And… haha, I think we should move before we continue,” Krim said, bowing his head, prompting me to turn around to see the Abyssal Warden smiling. “Apologies, Your Eminence.”

“No need. I… appreciate some more heartwarming news with everything that happened. Princess Hestia, as Sir Krim-Slak had mentioned, we ought to move to a more private room,” she said. “As you should be aware, the Shakaie-Narn meeting hasn’t ended yet. I presume you haven’t heard much, even from your father, but I would be willing to reveal a few topics. A change in focus, after today.”

“That would be really nice, Your Eminence. Thank you.” I curtsied. “And you’re probably right about changing the mood. Haa, if I’m already breaking Father’s trust just after we started getting along, then I will make good use of this! Lecullius sea air! Let’s go, everybody.”

“Already taking over the moment you arrive? Huhu, take the lead just like during the festival, Sister,” Wendriosa accepted my request, prompting Neill to pump her hand in the air before wrapping her arm around the still ill-mooded Nong. He hadn’t said much, even when the demonkin left.

“You really should lighten up, Bro,” Neill teased, causing Nong to sigh as he massaged his temples. “See? That’s much more you! Okay, little sis! Open the door for us!”

“Yes, yes, by your will, Your Majesty,” I replied as I skipped over to the doors.

Hmm? Weren’t there four guards? Six, huh? I noticed on my [Detection Sensor]. Guard shift, I guess, but shouldn’t there be eight, then? Well, whatever.

It would have been pretty dramatic to worry too much about a number problem, and I opened the door with that attitude. After all, today was supposed to be a city tour, but we got ourself in that trouble with Vifi’s former comrades. Hopefully, Apsala didn’t get hurt in all of that, but she did go away from the port so—Huh?

Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! [Foresight] and [Danger Perception]were hammering my head with such intensity that it made my body freeze. My eyes shot in the direction of the warning, noticing a green levianewt was looking at me as if she couldn’t believe I was here. Her mouth tur—Graack!

“Urrgk! Grrk!”

inflicted on [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]

Bones crushed in an instant, causing fragments to stab my skin and windpipe, only for my neck to crumble up as a hand squeezed blood, air, and, almost, my consciousness out of my body.

“SCAMP!”

“Ah, you’re Melloxtressa’s daughter. Be a dear and die.”

“Iiiiyyyyk!”

S-shit!