{Month: Sunflare}
{Date: 1/5}
{Time: Evening}
A few days went by since we seized Wadataka, we began planning our next steps for my conquest. We sat in the meeting room inside Wadataka Palace, looking over the map to see what the next best place strike was.
"Lunia rests at the center of the Cynthian Border so it's easier for us all to cross to any of the neighboring kingdoms, but since we marched to Wadataka first, we have to move at a set path," I said, my finger trailing along the map.
Jin looked at the map as well, crossing his arms then pointed at the kingdom neighboring his. "Sylvannia is the closest. The Kingdom of the Elves. High-Elves at that. According to some known information, the elves only use the Light, Wind, and Water Elements so we don't need to worry too much about lots of versatility."
"Is that so? Well, it looks like our next destination is Sylvannia. We will take off tomorrow, have Ren and Hayate recon the kingdom first. We strike when they least expect it and when we are the most prepared," I said, tapping my finger against the map slowly.
Everyone nodded in agreement and soon, the meeting ended. We all stood up and left the meeting room to prepare for the march ahead. Each of us took off in a different direction with Victoria following closely behind me with her clipboard.
"Your Highness, is there any specific target you would like to focus up on?" Victoria asked, keeping up with my steps as she looked through her clipboard.
"Who are the possible targets?" I asked, looking ahead as I traversed down the halls to my temporary chambers.
"We have...Ainanna, the Princess of East Sylvannia. Next, we have Helene, the Princess of West Sylvannia. And finally, we have Sophia, the Princess of North Sylvannia. All three control one of the three elements: Ainanna controls the Light Element, Helene controls the Wind Element, and finally Sophia controls the Water Element," Victoria explained, reading over the known information about Sylvannia.
"Who's the strongest of the three?" I asked, genuinely curious and intrigued by the three.
"Of the three Princesses, it would technically be Ainanna due to her having the most potent Royal Blood," Victoria answered, looking up and noticed me stopping in my tracks.
"Ainanna... alright. Go let Ren and Hayate know that we should focus on East Sylvannia for Ainanna," I said, glancing at Victoria.
Victoria nodded, bowing to be before hurrying off. I continued forward, my mind occasionally drifting to that day my parents were killed by Zhang Li. I knew I was on this conquest for them, to avenge them and all of their glory.
I made it to my chambers, walking inside and closing the door then sat down on the bed, summoning my magic device to look at the time. I knew we had a long time before the plan could go into motion, but at this time, patience was my greatest ally.
As I prepared myself, I heard a knock at the door. "Come in!"
The door slowly opened, Leo poking his head inside the room and looked at me. "Sis?"
I turned around to see Leo at the door, smiling at him while I was getting changed for bed. "Come in, Leo. I'm not gonna bite you."
Leo stepped inside my room and closed the door, clearly nervous about something. He looked at me and parted his lips to speak, but was hesitant. "I uhm...just want to talk to you about the plans you made. Are you sure about this? I mean, High-Elves are insanely powerful magically compared to others and I'm worried about Izumi since she still has little experience..."
"Mmm...so you want to talk battle tactics privately?" I asked, adjusting my bra and removed the padding I had inside to protect my chest in battle.
"Precisely..." Leo said, walking over to the bed and sitting down on it with a soft sigh.
I put on my night gown and smoothed it out then sat down beside Leo. "What do you want to discuss. You know you could've interrupted me if you needed during the planning."
"I know, but you seemed engrossed in this and I'm proud to stand beside you during this entire process, it's just that I want Izumi safe. We kinda just made her our retainer without thinking because we needed allies and officers since our old ones were killed at the festival," Leo began, leaning towards me and laying his head on my shoulder.
"Yeah...I know she's no Victoria, but she's pretty good at her craft taken what she knows about magic when using her Talismans. But...I do understand your concerns since we are heading to a place where magic is more prominent than Kingdoms like Aurora and Elysium," I said, gently wrapping my arm around Leo's waist.
"But, for now, let's keep doing what we are doing now. We train when we have down time and when the battles happen, we let her gain experience by letting her use what she knows. As Mom says a lot, there's no greater teacher than life itself," I continued, looking down at Leo with a smile.
Leo nodded, looking up at me with a smile as well. "You're right..."
"I know I am...now if you're that concerned about Izumi, go train with her for a while longer. Maybe she'll reward you..~" I teased, poking Leo's side.
Leo blushed at my tease and got off me, unable to hide his laughs. "Whatever, sis! I'll see you in the morning.."
I nodded at Leo, watching him leave my room then let out a soft giggle before pulling myself into bed to get some rest. Before I could fall asleep, I heard another knock at the door and before I could say come in, the door opened.
"Your Highness, my task is done," Victoria said, closing the door behind her.
"Mmm...good. Now get some rest, Victoria. We have a very long day and trust me, we are gonna need it," I mumbled softly against my pillow, closing my eyes.
Victoria nodded and began getting herself ready for bed then crawled in the other bed next to mine. She turned off the lamp and closed her eyes, drifting off to sleep.
{Month: Sunflare}
{Date: 1/6}
{Time: Morning}
The next morning arrived, the seven suns rising over the horizon and casting multiple hues of orange and gold upon the lands. Everyone was already awake and ready to start the day, the only person they were waiting for was me.
Soon, I stepped outside in my battle dress with Victoria at my side. Leo, Izumi, and Mira looked back, hearing me walk outside and smiled at me. I smiled back at them then noticed them pointing at Jin, who was waiting for me at watchtower.
I nodded at the three, making my way toward Jin and held my hands together in from of me. "Lord Jin..."
Jin had his arms crossed, looking out into the distance then turned to face me, his expression its usual seriousness. "Lady Stella, you surely took your sweet time getting ready..."
I let out a soft scoff, rolling my eyes and crossed my arms. "I'm here now. My family told me that you wanted to speak to me?"
Jin closed his eyes and turned toward the horizon once again. "Ren and Hayate came back with their report last night. They said they spotted a Faction in white marching toward our Border. Based on their path, they seem to be marching toward Lunia since... y'know."
I closed my eyes and sighed softly, taking a moment to digest this information. I opened my eyes, my gaze falling upon Jin. "Did they say what they looked like?"
"Yeah, they wear white armor with a Divine Emblem engraved into their armor and capes. Their leader is a noble warrior, a well known one named Zain Alrean," Jin began.
My eyes widened as I heard Zain's name, a distant memory flashing in my mind of when I first saved Victoria from the Solarium Borders of Arcania. I looked at Jin with a raised eyebrow. "Zain..? Does he happen to go by the title of The Light Leading The World?"
Jin glanced back at me, a bit surprised that I knew of Zain. "He does. From what Ren and Hayate gathered, they go by the Holy Order, a Faction of Heroes made with Seven Commanders each hailing from our sister continent, Eyica and their Seven Nations. Zain happens to hail from Alrean."
I rose an eyebrow, unknown about Eyica and its seven countries. I didn't read about them in my books, granted I am a native to Arcania, so I wouldn't know. "Interesting..."
Victoria looked visibly tense from hearing the name Holy Order. She pushed aside her feelings, however, remaining her strong front. "So what does this mean for us? We will have to take a detour to stop them?"
"Most likely. We can't have them seizing Lunia or else the entire border will fall victim to the Solarium Borders. Before we get to Sylvannia, we would need to take a separate path to seize Fort Gibbous and meet the Holy Order half way," Jin answered, his tone serious and steady.
I nodded then looked at Victoria, gently placing a hand on her shoulder. "Go tell the others that plans have temporarily changed..."
Victoria nodded, hurrying off to inform Leo, Mira, and Izumi about the change in plans. I stayed with Jin to come up with a new strategy since now we have to worry about the Holy Order slowing us down.
"This is a problem...The longer you take in your conquest...the stronger Zhang Li becomes. If possible...you would need to kill these meddling Holy Order members," The voice said to me, urging me on the path of destruction.
I nodded to myself, my eyes glowing faintly as I listened to the voice in my head. 'Don't worry, I'll dispose of them...'
After a moment of strategizing, Jin and I decided it was time to head out and put our plans into motion. Gathering everyone up, we began to prepare to make our way toward Fort Gibbous to deal with the Holy Order.
I mounted my steed and pet her mane, looking back at everyone else. "Onward! To Fort Gibbous! All troops march ahead!"
The soldiers and low ranking knights began to march forward taking the front lines, the rest of us following behind them. I kept my gaze ahead and focused, knowing that the battle ahead was going to be a tough one. It's been three years since I last encountered the Holy Order, three years since I haved Victoria from their clutches.
"Your Highness," Victoria called to me, her horse trotting ahead to walk next to mine.
I glanced over at Victoria, smiling at her. "Yes, Victoria?"
Victoria looked down a bit, trying to find the right words to say to me. After a big of digging in her mind, she finally found the words. "It's been a while since we last dealt with the Holy Order...and just like us, I know they've gotten stronger. No one else but us really know what they are capable of.."
I closed my eyes for a moment, turning back ahead and let out a soft exhale. Opening my eyes, I began to gaze out into the distance. "That is true...no one knows them like we do...after all, when we were 16, they were still just up and coming I guess. We still don't know what their goal is really, but I'm hoping to find it out today..."
Victoria nodded, gazing out into the distance as well. "If it's not too much to ask, I would like to be at your side for this. We deserve to stick together for this, just as we've done three years ago."
I smiled at her words, my mind shifting from listening to the voice in my head to now focusing on protecting Victoria and the others from falling victim to the Holy Order. "Right...let us stick together."
With that we continued forward, Victoria's moral boosted from our conversation and rearing to go. With our heads held high, we marched onward to the fort, making sure we were prepared for the battle ahead.
Soon, we made it to the fort, my soldiers spreading across the fort to keep an eye out for the Holy Order since we knew they would have to cross down this path to get to Lunia. Jin, Ren, and Hayate helped the soldiers keep watch using the watchtowers around the fort while I stayed inside with Leo, Mira, Izumi, and Victoria.
"Alright, you three have never met the Holy Order before, so Victoria and I will explain while we still have the time," I said, leaning back into my seat with my arms crossed.
Mira looked at me, raising an eyebrow as she gazed at me. "You mean that faction from Uphelia? The faction you saved Victoria from three years ago?"
"Yes. From what I know about the Holy Guard due to me being a native of Uphelia three years ago, they are a group of Commanders and Nobles that came from a neighboring continent to join the Uphelian Ranks. There are seven Regiments with the Seventh being the strongest," Victoria explained.
"We encountered the Seventh three years ago and the Holy Order Regiment that's marching now happens to be the Seventh. That means we have to be very careful and methodical about how we approach them," I added, my gaze shifting between Leo, Mira, and Izumi.
Leo closed his eyes, rubbing the back of his neck and let out a soft exhale. "Mmm...so this is what you meant by 'taking a small detour'. I really should've expected that something came up, but I never thought it'll be this serious.."
"Yeah, this all sounds very intense. I mean...I've only been in one actual battle and that was against Wadataka. I don't think I'm ready for this level of battle yet..." Izumi said softly, her voice shying away at the thought of battling against the Holy Order.
"I know it sounds scary right now, but if you just follow my commands, you will live to see another day. Luckily for us, each Regiment only carries three main members, the Commander, Vice Commander, and their Leading Officer. Once we defeat those three, they will be forced to retreat," I said, looking at Izumi with a reassuring gaze.
Izumi, still feeling nervous and jittery, nodded at my words, finding a bit of hope within them. "Alright...I believe you..."
Suddenly, a soldier hurried into the base, coming in with a report. "Queen Stella, they have arrived!"
I looked at the soldier, nodding at him. "Right. Go get ready with the others, we will be our shortly."
The soldier saluted toward me and stood up, hurrying out of the fort to get ready with the others. I stood up and grabbed my main sword from against the wall then turned toward the door.
"There's no time for hesitation. I will still be here to save you if needed, but before you can believe in me, you need to believe in yourself," I said, making my way out of the room, the blade of my Vesper Argentum emitting a soft, radiant glow.
The others followed suit, mentally preparing themselves for the battle ahead. As planned, Victoria stood as my secondary in this battle instead of Leo. I commanded Leo and Izumi to protect the west stronghold of the fort while Mira scouted the skies via her Pegasus.
"It's time, Victoria..." I said, looking ahead with a determined gaze.
"Right..." Victoria nodded, summoning her twin katanas.
The Holy Order began to march into sight, the front lines noticing my troops and immediately knew they had a confrontation on their hands. At my command, my soldiers charged forward, clashing with the Holy Order soldiers.
"Lord Zain, it looks to be the Lunian Army ahead. Shall Lady Kanon and I march in and defeat their leading commanders?" A male asked, placing his hands upon the handles of his twin daggers.
Zain looked ahead, scanning the battlefield and began to try to sense the auras of the most important members of my army. "Kanon, you go take on the West Stronghold. Bash, you stay with me."
Kanon smiled brightly at Zain, nodding enthusiastically. "Right!~ I'll make you proud as you Apprentice, big brother!"
Zain smiled at her, watching as she dashed toward the West Stronghold. Kanon surrounded herself with light energy, slicing through multiple soldiers and paving a path toward the stronghold. Once she finally reached the stronghold, she gained the attention of Leo and Izumi.
"L-Leo..! Who is she?" Izumi asked, immediately readying her Talismans and aimed it at Kanon.
"I don't know, but based on her aura...she feels insanely strong. Stand back and cover me, Izumi," Leo said, unsheathing his Tsukinoma and getting into his stance.
Kanon smirked at Leo, her eyes shimmering with excitement as she prepared to duel Leo. "My name is Kanon Alrean and I am here to strike you down due to my brother's command! Prepare yourself to be defeated!"
Leo stared at Kanon, watching her closely and getting into his stance. 'She looks no older than me and Izumi, but somehow she seems to have a lot of experience in battle from her confidence.'
Kanon lowered her posture then lunged forward with a powerful slash, but Leo quickly blocked her attack, using his strength to push her back. Placing his palm against the bottom of his sword, he slashed in a wide arc, but Kanon ducked under his slice and rushed forward. She landed a powerful slash upon Leo's midsection, knocking him back and smirked.
Kanon's sword began emitting a lustrous glow of light energy, her aura pulsating around her body powerfully. "Holy Arts: Sanctum Burst!"
Slashing downward, she released a powerful blast of light energy toward Leo. Leo grunted and got into a defensive stance then noticed a barrier appear around him, blocking the attack for him. Although the barrier blocked the attack, the defensive orb shattered after one attack.
Izumi grunted softly, surprised by the sheer strength behind Kanon's attack. "My defenses can't keep up with her power!"
Leo grunted softly, getting into his stance again. 'So this is the power of the Seventh Regiment. In just a few moments time, Kanon has proven to be evenly matched to me and leagues above Izumi. I have to be very careful with how I proceed now...or else we could get seriously hurt...'
Kanon hummed softly, keeping her battle ready stance. "I'm ready when you are! But, be warned...I still have a few tricks up my sleeve..."
"Me too... I'm just gauging where you stand. Now that I know, it's time for me to get serious," Leo said, his voice low and determined, dark energy emitting from his body and sword.
Kanon smiled, light energy flowing around her body. "Let's get this duel truly started then..."