Chapter 121: The Demon Dragon Descends

“Awsl, this is just too cute.”

“That embarrassed expression and awkward movements—are you sure she wasn’t just pulled at the last minute to be Aiweina’s backup dancer?”

“Why do you care so much? Just admit you love watching it.”

“Since you put it that way, what else can I say? Go ahead, kill me and cheer them on.”

“So passionate, brother.”

Ever since Iana appeared in her catgirl outfit, the chatter from the audience never stopped, all discussing her identity and praising her cuteness.

It was understandable.

Who wouldn’t steal a few extra glances at such an adorable backup dancer at a concert for the first time?

A little discussion afterward was only natural.

On the stage, Iana’s hands were slipped into a pair of soft cat paw gloves, her hands resting near her blushing cheeks, one toe lightly tapping the floor as she struck a cute cat pose.

“Meow~”

Aiweina accompanied her perfectly, playing the second song—a lively tune that paired beautifully with Iana’s dance.

The noise from the audience instantly died down, all eyes fixed on the stage, as if missing even a second would be a disrespect to the tickets they had bought.

***

Meanwhile, far from the concert hall, Elia stood solemnly on the city wall, listening to a report from a man clad in the standard armor of the Holy Knights.

“Honorable Saintess, according to the scouts, a pack of beasts has gathered not far from here. Judging by their posture, they seem intent on launching an attack.”

The knight’s voice was low and hesitant, unwilling to continue.

“They’re preparing to attack the Holy City, right?” Elia cut straight to the heart of the matter.

“Yes, Saintess.” The knight nodded, confirming Elia’s suspicion.

“By the signs, tonight will be the day of their siege.”

Elia frowned upon hearing this.

“You’re saying our intelligence system didn’t detect any of this and allowed those beasts to gather unnoticed?”

“And the moment we received the news was exactly when they were about to attack?”

“Please forgive me, Saintess. Many of our scouts sent out have not returned. Based on deductions, most have perished.”

The knight’s voice choked with emotion.

Many of those scouts were members of the Holy Knights, some even close friends.

“Enough, I understand. Go and prepare. Tonight will be a hard battle,” Elia said firmly.

“Yes, ma’am.”

As soon as the words left her mouth, the knight turned and left.

“It’s the time Aiweina’s holding her concert, yet this happens.”

Whether out of support for her childhood friend Aiweina or out of duty to protect the citizens of the Holy City, Elia would not allow those beasts to breach the walls.

By logic, the concert should be immediately stopped and rescheduled, but Elia believed the beasts’ initial assault wasn’t enough to break through the defenses.

What worried her most was that unusual creature, as if it came from beyond the heavens.

***

Back at the concert hall, on stage, Iana swayed her supple body like a real cat.

In the audience, Lilian’s face was flushed as she held a Magic Crystal Ball, recording Iana’s dance.

She believed this moment would be one worth remembering.

Sitting next to Lilian were several masked men.

If Iana had good eyesight, she would have recognized them.

They were the same group Iana had encountered when sneaking into Aiweina’s resting room —also infiltrators of the concert hall.

At the time, Iana thought they were just Aiweina’s die-hard fans, sneaking in early to catch a glimpse of her, but now it seemed there was more to it.

Time flew by, and the first half of the concert ended.

Iana and Aiweina both used the stage’s lift to return backstage, resting and preparing for the second half.

Mostly, it was Iana who needed rest.

Dancing was exhausting, and a slip-up on stage would be disastrous.

“I’m so tired… maybe I won’t perform in the second half, meow.” Iana’s face rested on the table, her expression weary as she complained to Aiweina beside her.

Aiweina responded first with a gentle laugh, “I don’t want you to be so exhausted either, but this is what Elia requested. I have no say in it.”

“If she agreed you didn’t have to perform in the second half, I’d fully support it.”

“Ah, that’s impossible,” Iana said resignedly.

All she wanted was to finish this embarrassing performance and go to sleep.

As she lay on the table, she caught a glimpse of Aiweina holding a Magic Crystal Ball, replaying Iana’s performance from moments ago.

“Eh?”

The sight made Iana’s hair stand on end, her cat tail stiffening like a real cat’s, the bell at its tip jingling crisply.

“What’s that, meow?” Iana questioned Aiweina.

“Are you talking about this?” Aiweina covered her mouth with her delicate hand, “Since Elia had something come up, she specially asked me to record your performance for her.”

“No way, this absolutely cannot happen, meow.”

Iana lunged to snatch the Magic Crystal Ball from Aiweina’s hands.

But it was all in vain—Aiweina simply moved it out of Iana’s reach with a graceful stretch of her hand.

“Ah, give it back! This kind of thing must never exist, meow.”

“It’s no use arguing with me. It’s Elia’s order.”

Elia having Iana dress as a catgirl was already mortifying enough; now she had recorded the performance.

Iana felt she’d be haunted by this forever.

***

While Iana and Aiweina were tangled up in their scuffle, chaos erupted in the audience.

The men sitting next to Lilian grimly raised a Black Stone, chanting as if performing some strange ritual.

The aura radiating from them matched exactly the wild, violent energy Lilian had sensed during her own berserk state.

Only this time, they hadn’t lost their sanity; instead, they looked devout, almost reverent.

“Knights! Someone get the knights here! There’s an infected person!”

“No use. All the security personnel have been withdrawn.”

“What?! You’re telling me there’s no security protecting our safety right now?”

“Mm.”

Seeing their actions, Lilian’s heart sank.

As a student of Saint Roland Magic Academy, she knew exactly what magic they were using: Summoning Magic.

From the aura they emitted, whatever they were summoning had to be the same special creature she and Iana had encountered in the forest.

“No, I can’t let them complete the summoning. I have to stop them.”

Just as Lilian moved to intervene, a pack of beasts stepped out from the summoning formation.

“Howl!”

Roars echoed, throwing the crowd into chaos.

Lilian, closest to the exit, found herself surrounded by the beasts.

“What’s happening?” Iana arrived late, standing on the stage and staring down at the chaos below.

She immediately spotted the figure trapped in the center of the beasts.

“That’s Lilian?” Panic flashed across Iana’s face.

She wanted to rush over with all her strength, but the distance was far.

Lilian was seated near the entrance, quite distant from the stage.

“What should I do?” Iana hesitated.

Running there by foot was impossible; the only way to get there quickly was to fly.

But if she spread her wings now, wouldn’t she expose her demonkin identity?

The demonkin aura she possessed was eerily similar to that of the special creature.

Even setting aside the feelings of people from five centuries ago, what would Lilian do if she discovered Iana’s true nature?

Lost in her thoughts, Iana suddenly saw Lilian being knocked to the ground, bloodied beasts’ jaws hovering near Lilian’s pure white neck, as if one bite would end her life.

“I can’t wait any longer.”

A fierce surge of magic erupted from Iana, her aura similar yet purer than that of the beasts.

Silver-white dragon horns sprouted from her head, and a pair of black wings unfurled behind her.

Now flying in midair, she looked like a queen of the night, gazing down upon everyone inside the venue.