In her True Eye’s vision, Velis could clearly see the trajectories of the three Magic Arrows.
Including how they had fired in that impossible manner just like the first Magic Arrow, all of it was laid bare before Velis’s eyes.
But…
The crossing attack formed by the three Magic Arrows had already sealed off any path of retreat.
And the black-robed figures beside her were watching hungrily!
Given her current state, she could at most use her Blade of Qi to intercept two arrows—that last one…
There was no time to think. Almost instinctively, Velis raised both hands to meet two of the Magic Arrows.
Ding!
Ding~!
The moment they touched, the light and fine explosions from surging mana bloomed like fireworks.
At this distance of less than a meter, Velis had almost no time to think.
So…
“Come on!”
Velis’s eyes turned fierce. Even though this was her own decision, fear was churning inside her heart.
But the Princess’s dignity meant she showed not a trace of that cowardice on her face!
Shluk!
The remaining Magic Arrow pierced clean through Velis’s shoulder, the immense force sending her entire body flying sideways.
The mana embedded in it kept burrowing through her flesh—ice-cold, piercing, stiffening her like death itself.
Finally, the arrow lodged against her shoulder blade, and patches of frost spread outward before being melted by the flames around Velis’s body.
Blood sprayed from the hole in her shoulder, dripping down like threads of rain…
The searing pain nearly made Velis scream, followed by a wave of dizziness.
But the crisis before her didn’t allow such luxury. Before she even landed, Velis could already see the three black-robed figures raising their blades, just waiting for her to impale herself on them.
If she fell onto those, she’d probably be skewered like a hedgehog.
Because her right shoulder was wounded, Velis could only raise her left hand’s Blade of Qi and slash downward with all her might.
“Shatter for me!”
The intense pain twisted her face, but it also unleashed even greater strength.
As her mana drained at a terrifying rate, Velis hacked through the blades the black-robed figures had raised.
Amidst cries of shock, Velis twisted her body and dropped into the middle of the black-robed figures, swinging her single-handed Blade of Qi in a full circle—another round of screams followed.
“Ah! My leg! My leg!”
Three black-robed figures howled, clutching their severed legs that gushed blood, but Velis didn’t even look at them. She discarded her Blade of Qi entirely and began gathering all her remaining mana.
The last black-robed figure was startled by the look in this wounded beast’s eyes. The more injured Velis became, the more an indescribable ferocity burst from her.
She hadn’t said a single word, yet just by fixing her icy gaze on each of them, a chill like being hung upside down crept into their hearts.
“Fire… Phoenix!”
Velis gritted her teeth, raising one hand. Mana formed a burning phoenix within the magic circle at her fingertips.
The Fire Phoenix spread its body—a form made entirely of flame mana, yet carrying terrifying power.
Ree——!
At the phoenix’s cry, Velis hurled it out. The Fire Phoenix screeched as it charged into the black-robed figures, unleashing a sky-full of flames.
The four black-robed figures had no room to dodge. They were instantly engulfed, screaming as they became human torches.
And that single strike drained the last of Velis’s remaining mana.
She clutched her shoulder, panting heavily, dropping to one knee. Then she looked up at Winnie Kanasha in the distance.
The other woman had already nocked her arrows again. As her lips moved slightly, mana gathered from her body into the three arrows in her hand.
This strike—she intended to kill Velis for good.
‘So that’s how it is?’
Velis let out a sigh. The thundering of hooves and battle cries reached her ears.
As long as she could endure this one strike, it would be over.
Velis gazed at Winnie Kanasha with complicated emotions. With her True Eye, she could know the trajectory of the Magic Arrows once they were fired.
So she could control which parts of her body got hit. As long as it wasn’t her chest, heart, throat, or brain—the vital spots—she could survive.
She was just about to offer her limbs as sacrifices when she saw Winnie Kanasha across the way gripping those Magic Arrows desperately, her whole body trembling slightly, staring at Velis with murderous eyes.
“I told you—I will kill you. I will!”
Velis didn’t know why she felt the need to emphasize that oath. She stared back at Winnie with an expressionless face, trying to read from her expression when the arrows would fly.
In her ears, the rumbling clamor grew closer, and the Magic Swordman fighting Xi’eryou was growing panicked.
“It’s the City Defense Force! Go, hurry, Winnie! This mission is a failure!” he shouted furiously.
“Leaving?” Xi’eryou saw the tide turning and pressed her attacks harder, crushing the Magic Swordman beneath her relentless assault.
“No! It hasn’t failed! As long as I fire these three arrows, she’ll die—she will definitely die!”
Tears streamed down Winnie Kanasha’s face. Blood was already dripping from the Magic Arrows she gripped so tightly, yet she didn’t even notice.
She just cried, like a bullied little child, glaring fixedly at Velis.
“Velis Egbert! I will kill you—and only I can kill you!”
The female elf was screaming across the wall of flames left by the Fire Phoenix’s explosion. Velis’s gaze grew even more complicated in that moment.
Women…
“Winnie! Let’s go! If we don’t leave now, it’ll be too late! Go!”
Just then, another black-robed figure burst out from the side of the street. Judging by his frivolous manner, he didn’t seem to be a cultivator.
A getaway man, it seemed.
He grabbed the female elf and dragged her into a pre-planned escape route, darting into an alley beside the street…
Velis hadn’t expected someone else to be hidden nearby. She didn’t dare make any rash moves.
The Magic Swordman fighting Xi’eryou seized the opportunity and hurled a short dagger at Velis, forcing Xi’eryou to pull back and shatter the projectile with her sword.
But when she looked again, the Magic Swordman who could use Sword Sea Waves had already fled with his companions.
At the same time, the thundering hooves and battle cries they’d heard earlier finally arrived. A hundred or so soldiers from the City Defense Force rushed to Velis’s side.
Seeing the two of them, the leading officer immediately dismounted and knelt to plead for forgiveness.
“Your Highness the Princess, the City Defense Force has arrived late to protect you. Please mete out punishment!”
In an instant, the soldiers behind him knelt in a dense wave, silent as cicadas in winter—though their faces carried resentment and schadenfreude.
Especially seeing the horrific wound on Velis’s shoulder, gushing blood—the more they saw it, the more satisfying it felt.
Even though the Bloody Princess had never had any grudge with them before, that didn’t stop these self-proclaimed righteous men from feeling pleased.
With blood loss and the grueling battle taking their toll, Velis spoke weakly: “It’s fine. You arrived in time. Go chase those villains.”
Hearing Velis’s order, everyone was stunned for a moment—including Xi’eryou beside her.
In their eyes, if Velis didn’t fly into a rage and execute half of them, that would already be a mercy.
Although Xi’eryou would never have let Velis do that, letting these negligent City Defense Force soldiers off with such a light sentence wasn’t like Velis at all!
And frankly, even Xi’eryou herself thought these soldiers—lazy on a normal day, giving those villains the opening they needed—deserved to be disciplined.
Even if not executed as a warning, at least their pay should be docked or their posts stripped.
“Yes! Thank you, Your Highness, for your mercy! We will surely capture those villains to atone for our crimes!”
With that, the officer hastily led his soldiers away, afraid Velis might change her mind.
He also showed no intention of leaving anyone behind to guard Velis.
“Sister, support me.” On the verge of collapse, Velis leaned against Xi’eryou.
The reason she’d made that decision was simple: Velis understood these were nothing but empty words…
If she actually tried to punish those City Defense soldiers, even if she killed this batch, she’d gain nothing but the enmity of the rest of the City Defense Force.
Her situation was already dire. Adding another enemy would hardly be a wise move.
Besides, could she even afford to do such a thing now?
Notorious and gravely wounded, punishment and killing might just drive these soldiers to take the risk of killing her instead.
After all, if she died, she died. Most would applaud her death rather than mourn.
Xi’eryou, however, was full of praise for Velis’s magnanimity this time, feeling that her daily teachings had finally taken root.
So, feeling quite pleased, Xi’eryou decided to carry Velis to the Royal Academy.
“Wh-what are you doing? Sister… put me down.” Velis said weakly.
“Don’t talk. The Royal Academy isn’t far from here. I’ll carry you and we’ll be there in no time. The academy’s Healer will treat you.”
As she spoke, ignoring Velis’s protests, Xi’eryou scooped her up in a princess carry and sprinted down the street with her.