“Should have thought of that!”
In that instant, Velis felt her hair stand on end as a strange current surged through her body. The stench of death erupted from head to toe all at once.
Since Velis’s reputation was so terrible, she still insisted on taking a position at the Royal Academy.
To anyone, that was a fairly dangerous signal.
With no imperial princes left in the Empire and the two Imperial Princesses clearly unable to compete with Velis, she could be said to hold more than seventy percent certainty.
But until that certainty became one hundred percent, outsiders would never believe Velis would stop gathering more leverage.
After all, who inherited the throne was still entirely up to the current Emperor.
And rumored, the Emperor didn’t seem to like Velis?
So as the Bloody Princess, what Velis needed to do was secure more leverage!
The Royal Academy was one such prize!
Probably anyone would think the same. So before she could step into the Royal Academy, killing Velis and ensuring she could never claim that supreme position was the best choice!
If Velis took control of the Royal Academy and cultivated a large force of loyal followers, would this Empire still have any hope?
No!
The people would only live under the shadow of Velis’s terror!
Therefore, someone had to step forward at this moment and strangle this evil in its cradle!
Staring at the sword driving toward her heart, Velis felt everything around her slow to a crawl.
The True Eye, her combat-assist ability, activated!
Facing a life-or-death crisis, almost instinctively, she jerked her hand up as mana converged into her palm in an instant!
Blades of Qi wrapped around both hands, deflecting the thrusting sword in one motion!
At that moment, Velis’s instincts and muscle memory allowed the current Velis to dodge disaster!
Clang—!
When the attacker failed and struck again, Xi’eryou reacted, blocking the blow with the scabbard of her own sword.
And in that instant, Velis’s mind roared as mana churned through her entire body.
That familiar yet foreign mana made her feel uncomfortable.
As the Bloody Princess, she was a recently initiated Apprentice Mage who followed the path of a close-combat mage.
Her overall strength was naturally nothing to sneeze at—otherwise, she’d have been assassinated long ago.
But since Velis had only taken over this body recently, those counterattacks relied almost entirely on the body’s innate instincts.
When she came to her senses, Velis looked at the magic she had unleashed with a hint of surprise.
Just as Xi’eryou deflected the attacker’s blade with her scabbard, the assassin swung his sword horizontally, erupting in violent lightning around him.
The glow of magic blazed. In that moment, not only did Velis feel overwhelming pressure, but even Xi’eryou cried out in shock.
“Enchanted skill!?”
“Velis! Get out now!”
Xi’eryou shouted in alarm as lightning raged along the blade. While Velis was still dazed, Xi’eryou grabbed her and leaped clear.
Boom!
A violent explosion tore the carriage apart, the rampant lightning shredding even the horses to pieces.
“A Magic Swordman!”
Xi’eryou rolled with Velis across the ground to absorb the impact while the surrounding guards finally reacted.
“Assassin! Protect Her Highness! Move, move, move!”
In an instant, the orderly formation scattered as soldiers rushed away from the carriage, rallying around Xi’eryou and Velis in defense.
Magic Swordmen—they cultivated both mana and swordsmanship, training in both disciplines.
But such individuals required breathtaking talent and extraordinary willpower.
Cultivating both paths naturally meant their strength went without saying, but the pain and torment they endured were multiplied.
“Who are you?!”
Xi’eryou drew the sword at her waist, glaring at where the carriage once stood.
The longsword in her hand was a peerless weapon, suffused with a cold, dark blue gleam.
Velis naturally knew its name—Binglan.
Binglan’s hilt was carved with snow-white roses, and its blade was covered in thorn-like patterns—traces of an ice-element Magic Array.
And Xi’eryou herself was also a Magic Swordman!
Known as the Ice Sword Dancer, if she passed the knight examination at the end of this year, she would become a Guardian Knight of her dreams, waiting for a worthy target to extend an invitation.
“Tsk. Regret.” As the carriage exploded, a figure in black robes landed gracefully on the ground.
He held the very sword that had thrust toward Velis moments ago, letting out a faint sigh.
But from the aura and oppressive pressure he radiated, this man hadn’t expected to succeed with a single blow.
Then, a dozen more black-robed figures surged out of nearby shops and streets, surrounding Velis and her party.
Among them were the fruit shop owner and the blacksmith who had distributed the dozen or so hanging swords to the group.
Naturally, they had all now donned the black robes designed to conceal their figures and faces.
The robes were enchanted with dark magic, constantly interfering with sight and judgment, making it impossible to discern what lay beneath.
At the same time, Velis’s eyes flickered as the True Eye activated!
[A Hidden Cloak made with multiple layers of magic—a quality piece. It blocks detection and conceals your form, the perfect companion for murder and robbery. But it seems they’ve made you their target?]
[The host’s overall strength is insufficient to see through the heavy disguises. Please raise your level and the True Eye’s rank.]
Such information floated before her eyes, and then Xi’eryou spoke up.
“Velis, you’re a mage. Get behind me.”
Xi’eryou held her sword in a defensive stance, coldly surveying the scene. The other accompanying guards also readied their weapons.
Velis nodded. These people were clearly after her, so she didn’t hesitate, moving behind Xi’eryou within the protective circle of soldiers.
Then, Velis took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and gathered her mana according to the methods in her memory.
Flames erupted as Velis’s entire body was cloaked in a suit of Flame Armor formed from fire-element mana.
Blazing and majestic, yet the flames did not harm Velis or the others around her like Xi’eryou.
Although the Flame Armor provided a certain amount of defense, capable of blocking poison gas and ordinary blades, in practical combat, a low-level Flame Armor was far less effective.
But now, Velis had no other protective measures available.
At this point, between the Blades of Qi and the Flame Armor, she had already consumed nearly two hundred mana, and it was still draining at a rate of fifty mana per minute!
In other words, her Flame Armor and Blades of Qi could only last sixteen more minutes!
So they had to end the fight within sixteen minutes!
Although Velis, as a Princess, had deliberately trained in magic for self-defense, she had focused more on political maneuvering and seducing women, so her mastery of magic wasn’t particularly deep.
Her practical combat experience was almost laughably lacking.
[It seems that after today, I need to strengthen myself… especially my mana.]
Velis sighed inwardly, but she didn’t dare let her guard down for even a moment.
Having been attacked right after transmigrating only showed that her situation was quite precarious.
“Who are you people?! This is the capital of the Okam Empire! Do you realize the crime of attacking an Imperial Princess here?!”
Xi’eryou’s aura exploded outward, an invisible pressure suppressing the entire scene.
A Magic Swordman beyond the level of an ordinary swordsman—her strength was nothing to underestimate!
But the black-robed swordsman across from her was a Magic Swordman of similar caliber. In a real fight, keeping Xi’eryou occupied for sixteen minutes was entirely feasible.
“Grand Princess, this has nothing to do with you. Our target is that scum behind you!”
The Magic Swordman raised his sword hatefully, pointing it at Velis.
“The Bloody Princess, Velis!”
As if grinding his teeth to dust, beneath the black hood that hid his face, there seemed to be a pair of bloodshot, hate-filled eyes.
“Today, I’ll make you bleed right here!”
Normally, the best choice would be to hide behind Xi’eryou, keep quiet, and play dead.
But for some reason, Velis’s mouth moved before her brain could stop it.
She let out a cold sneer: “Just you lot? A bunch of worthless trash!”
Damn it! The original Velis’s personality is influencing me!
Velis cursed inwardly.
But she had to admit, not only did that line fit her utterly villainous image, it also maxed out the provocation.
Xi’eryou had been planning to stall for time, waiting for the city guard to arrive, but the moment Velis spoke, every black-robed figure turned red-faced with fury, looking ready to fight to the death.
“Could you not talk and get us killed?” Xi’eryou turned back with a wry smile.
Velis raised her Blade of Qi, letting out a cold snort: “Just a bunch of ants, dear sister. Kill them and be done with it.”
Her nonchalant expression made it seem as if she truly were crushing a nest of ants.
At that moment, the original Velis’s personality surfaced once more.
“Fine! Fine! Excellent! You really are scum! Get her! Tear her apart limb from limb!”
The Magic Swordman roared, charging forward first.
Xi’eryou immediately gripped Binglan with both hands, clashing with the Magic Swordman in an instant.
In a flash, the surrounding temperature dropped several degrees. The blade in Xi’eryou’s hands glowed with mana as layers of icy mist seeped from the sword, slowing her opponent’s attack speed and reaction time.
“Ice Sword Dancer, Binglan!”
The black-robed Magic Swordman shot a hateful glare at the sword in Xi’eryou’s hands, then struck with upward slashes, thrusts, and spinning cuts…
A flurry of sword techniques came one after another, the blade carving through the air and creating a massive wave that swallowed Xi’eryou’s icy mist.
At one moment, the surging wave crashed forward, directly shattering Xi’eryou’s defenses.
“Sword Sea Waves? What’s Sword Saint Klenis to you?!”
Xi’eryou gasped in shock as her icy mist was devoured entirely by the Sword Sea Waves.
“Hmph! No comment!”
The opponent sneered and attacked again, striking with viper-like techniques.
Angled viciously, brutally ruthless!
But since the attacker didn’t carry killing intent, Xi’eryou clearly sensed that his true target was Velis!
Seeing this, Xi’eryou’s fighting spirit ignited. Binglan trembled in her hand, and she herself, along with the sword, seemed to drift through the air like a single snowflake!
Fluttering like snow blown by the wind, she gracefully evaded every strike he made, like a celestial maiden!
Snow moves with the wind and rides the breeze.
It follows the wind’s path, yet remains unaffected by it!
Even against a raging sea of swords, Xi’eryou was like a snowflake, seeking the traces of the wind amidst the enemy’s dense attacks and naturally slipping past every killing blow!
That was how the Ice Sword Dancer earned her name!
Meanwhile, the fifteen accompanying soldiers had already clashed with the surrounding black-robed figures.
Three soldiers died in the opening moments, the spray of blood jarring Velis’s nerves.
“Ah! Protect Her Highness!”
“Heh! You imperial dogs, that vile woman deserves death anyway! Dying for her? You all deserve to die just as much!”
A black-robed figure gnashed out through clenched teeth as his sword thrust like a serpent, piercing straight through a soldier’s heart.
Beside her, two soldiers killed one black-robed figure together, but the moment he died, his robe ignited on its own, burning the body to erase all evidence!
How ruthless! Just what kind of desperadoes are these?!
Standing on this battlefield, there was no way Velis wasn’t panicking. Her legs even felt weak with fear, and the bloody scene churned her stomach.
But her dignity as a Princess kept her standing straight, her eyes scanning the battlefield like a hawk’s gaze.
“Blade of Qi!”
Seizing the moment when four soldiers were wounded, Velis struck!
The True Eye operated automatically, and overlapping afterimages appeared in the movement paths of the two black-robed figures before her.
Without knowing why, Velis grasped that strange phenomenon. Her Blade of Qi slashed, instantly cutting through both black-robed figures.
“What?! How is that possible?!”
One of them clutched his gushing wound in shock. His retreat path wasn’t backward but forward, then rolling to the side.
Yet somehow, this damned woman had seen through all of it!?
Having landed a hit, Velis didn’t press forward. Instead, she breathed heavily, chest heaving as she stepped back.
This was her first time fighting since transmigrating, and the scene before her left her mind teetering between excitement and terror.
As the battle raged on, noise began to gather from nearby, drawing more attention to the situation.
The black-robed figures grew more frantic, seemingly determined to kill Velis no matter the cost, trading wounds and lives with the soldiers…
These people had come prepared and were formidable. The soldiers quickly fell, scattered across the ground, leaving only Velis standing alone in a pool of blood, gasping for air.
And before her, four black-robed figures remained, watching her like venomous snakes!
Bound and determined to take her life!
Velis looked at one of the black-robed figures, and beneath the True Eye, her face slowly emerged.
[A familiar aura, a familiar feeling. The True Eye has seen through your essence, no need to break those layers of Magic Arrays. Oh! Winnie, it’s you!]
Can you be serious for once—Velis complained inwardly at the True Eye.
“Winnie Kanasha?”
“You can recognize me?” The other party’s surprise was tinged with an indescribable fury.
Velis smiled faintly: “I remember every inch of your body.”
“Hmph!” The elf woman stopped pretending, ripping off her disguise robe in one motion.
She raised her hand, a green bow strung with a gleaming, mana-charged arrow.
An elf! A magic arrow!
“In the name of the Elf King, I grant you death! Velis, I told you—I WILL kill you!”
Winnie Kanasha roared through clenched teeth. Even to this day, she still felt her body ache faintly from where Velis had violated her.
“Go! Ice Arrow!”
In an instant, the arrow, gleaming with cold light and dragging a trail of frigid mana, shot straight at Velis.
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.