China, Jiangxi Province, Mount Lushan—
At the towering summit of the mountain, a peerless beauty now stands against the wind.
Her face is as flawless as jade, her figure delicate like a mimosa plant, and her black hair, as smooth as silk, is braided neatly. She appears to be about seventeen or eighteen years old.
Her long sleeves and hem flow like a skirt, and she is wrapped in a white Hanfu, a traditional Chinese garment for women. Because it is a right-over-left style, it somewhat resembles a kimono.
Her surname is Luo, given name Cuilian, courtesy name Hao—this is the name of the beauty. Though she gives off the impression of a refined and modest young lady, her name carries the majesty and dominance of a supreme queen!
Pure and immaculate, with an ethereal grace, the beauty standing proudly against the wind no longer seems like a mortal woman but rather a goddess from the heavens. A faint, elegant curve lifts the corner of her lips as she gazes toward the distant horizon. In her beautiful eyes flicker a unique kind of hopeful anticipation.
"Master, haven't you stayed away from the world for decades? Shouldn't you reconsider?"
A young boy's voice broke the silence from behind Luo Hao, speaking respectfully.
His name was Lu Yinghua. As the disciple of the Chinese Demon King Luo Hao, he was a prodigy in the world of magic, renowned alongside Erica of the Copper-Black Cross and Liliana of the Bronze-Black Cross.
Though only about thirteen or fourteen years old, legend said his martial skills were unparalleled, with unmatched palm power. Among the seven godslayers of the era, he was said to surpass at least five!
"Yinghua, are you questioning your master's decision?"
With a cold and frosty expression, Luo Hao turned to look at Lu Yinghua. Her calm tone was filled with the unquestionable authority of a queen.
"Disciple dares not! It's just that I think Master is already the number one person under heaven and earth. There is no rival for Master in this world. Why would Master lower herself for those foolish mortals?"
Bowing respectfully, though feeling like a sycophant, Lu Yinghua had played this role so many times that he was now accustomed to it.
"That was before, but recently, my long-dormant fighting spirit has been stirred again. Someone who can become my opponent has appeared."
Her expression softened slightly. Luo Hao was a person of extreme confidence and pride, having reached the pinnacle of martial arts where she sought defeat despite being undefeated. She had no interest in anything in the world except for opponents worthy of fighting her.
"The Demon King of the Far East—is it truly that young godslayer? It makes sense. Only a king who rules with overwhelming power could possibly be my match."
Gazing eastward, Luo Hao murmured to herself, a strange sharp gleam flashing in her black eyes.
"Let's go, Yinghua."
Decisive and swift, once she made a decision, she never hesitated. Speaking to the boy behind her, Luo Hao leapt into the air, transforming into a streak of light that cut across the eastern horizon.
"Ha… what a pain."
Watching Luo Hao take off ahead, Lu Yinghua finally exhaled deeply, relaxing his whole body. His face showed a mixture of impatience and helplessness.
"How many lifetimes of bad luck have I had to end up with such a ruthless and domineering woman as my master? I really hope that legendary King Kusanagi can step up and suppress her!"
"Well, no matter how you look at it, that seems impossible…"
Muttering to himself, Lu Yinghua dared not linger. With a bound, he sprang up like a nimble swallow.
He arced through the air for dozens of feet, then with a tap of his toes, a miniature shockwave spread out, propelling his falling body upward again. Though he could not truly fly, the boy moved forward at high speed in this strange way.
As a world-renowned prodigy, Lu Yinghua not only had unmatched palm power but also exceptional lightness skills, having reached the level of walking on air!
…
In the park, Sora sat on a bench waiting for something. Metis and Athena sat on Sora's lap, happily licking their lollipops. The two little goddess girls squinted their eyes slightly, their faces full of bliss.
Originally, Metis used to disdain eating these kinds of things. As a goddess, she had no real sense or concept of hunger. But seeing Athena constantly eating all day long, she couldn't help but try it herself.
And so, the result was an uncontrollable addiction.
Moreover, because they became eating buddies, the relationship between the two actually quite a bit, developing a sense of mutual appreciation…
"Your Majesty, didn't you say someone was supposed to meet you? Who exactly is it?"
Standing behind the bench, gently massaging Sora's shoulders, Erica asked curiously.
"A quirky little girl. You'll see soon enough."
With a slight upward curve of her lips revealing a mysterious smile, Sora didn't directly answer Erica's question.
Seeing Sora remain silent, Erica's curiosity grew even stronger, but she couldn't help feeling a bit excited.
"Those two, aren't they a bit too energetic all day long…?"
Looking over at Ena and Liliana not far away, who were happily clashing swords with a clang-clang sound, Erica shook her head with a look of speechless disbelief.
Because last time they were harshly dealt with by some evil great demon king, the three girls had since resolved their differences and become inseparable close sisters. However, despite this, they never gave up competing with each other. As fellow prodigies, none of them would yield to the others.
Although Erica was talking about Ena and Liliana, she herself wasn't much better. It was just that the two girls were too busy fighting to pay attention to her. If anything, this crimson-golden, scheming knight was even more "energetic" than them!
Sora naturally wouldn't interfere or stop this healthy competition that helped the girls bond and grow. Instead, she watched with a mischievous look, thinking, "No matter how much they fight, in the end, the one who benefits the most is me, Sora, right? Tsk tsk tsk…"
"Sora-oniichan!"
After waiting a while longer, suddenly a clear, youthful voice came from the direction of the park entrance. A petite girl was running over, her face full of joy and excitement.
She wore a yellow top and a plaid skirt, her black hair cut just a bit above shoulder length, with a red headband tied around her forehead. Bouncing along with a pure and cute smile, she gave off a lively and energetic impression, looking about eleven or twelve years old.
The moment Erica saw this girl, a flicker of surprise passed through her cyan eyes. This girl looked so much like…
"Sora-oniichan, Hikari misses you so much!"
The girl ran up and threw herself onto Sora, her little head rubbing against Athena and Metis as they kept nuzzling Sora. The girl's expression was extremely affectionate.
"Hehehe… little girl, long time no see!"
Patting the girl's head, Sora smiled warmly.
That's right, the lively and energetic girl who had arranged to meet Sora was none other than Yuri's younger sister, the little miko Mariya Hikari.
"So it's Hikari. Little girl, what brings you to see His Majesty?"
Stopping their sparring, Ena walked over with Liliana, wiping the sweat from her forehead, and asked curiously.
"Hehehe, I do have something to ask. Hello, Sister Ena."
Turning back, the little miko greeted Ena with a bright smile.
"Are these the legendary knights and queens of Sora-oniichan, Sister Erica and Sister Liliana? Hello, sisters. I'm Mariya Hikari, but you can just call me Hikari. Nice to meet you."
Bowing politely to Erica and Liliana, the little miko introduced herself with courtesy.
"Hehehe, Hikari, huh? You really are an adorable little sister!"
Having already guessed the little miko's identity, Erica smiled with a look full of meaning.
"Mariya, could it be…"
Erica's brow furrowed slightly, and Liliana beside her obviously thought of something too.
"Sora-oniichan, are these two Athena-sama and Metis-sama? So cute…"
Looking at Metis and Athena, who were sitting on Sora and sucking on lollipops, the little miko's eyes sparkled with curiosity and a strange longing.
"Mm, do you want one? If you want, I'll give you one."
Sora nodded, amused by the little girl's eager expression, and lifted Athena up, handing her over to the little miko.
Although he wouldn't give away either of his two hugging bears, how could he refuse such a well-behaved and adorable little miko? Seeing how much she wanted it, he decided to lend her one for a hug.
"Thank you, Sora-oniichan!"
Excited, the little miko quickly hugged Athena tightly, rubbing her face against Athena's cheeks repeatedly, her expression full of happiness.
"Human, you are not allowed to… touch me!"
Seeing that the annoying Kusanagi Sora actually gave her away, Athena was furious. Moreover, this human miko's rubbing made her cheeks uncomfortable, and she couldn't even enjoy her lollipop properly!
"Hehehe… little girl, if you want this little loli to let you rub her peacefully, give her some of your treasured snacks."
Watching the little miko, who had just recently grown out of being a loli but was still not much bigger than Athena, rubbing against her, Sora chuckled and reminded her.
"Athena-sama, please have some."
With her big eyes blinking, the clever little miko quickly took out some treasured snacks from the spatial ring Sora had given her before and offered them to Athena with a pleasing look.
With shining eyes, Athena grabbed the snacks and stopped moving around. Since the other party had already offered tribute, she might as well let her rub…
Well, Athena, Athena, how could you be bribed by just a few snacks? Where is your steadfastness as the supreme goddess?!