“Tsk.
Looks like I can’t avoid this fight.”
She wouldn’t harm others, but she also wouldn’t allow others to harm her.
Calming herself, Fia quietly prepared her magic.
Although she wouldn’t use a nuclear explosion in the city, throwing out dozens of fireballs was not difficult for Fia.
In fact, she had already locked onto about twenty people who seemed tough to deal with.
If Fia wanted, she could make each fireball accurately hit each person’s face—like a missile launch system, which it essentially was.
Normally, people would be amazed by such incredible calculation ability, but Fia didn’t realize how unusual it was, as if it was something she had done countless times before, a routine task.
However, things didn’t go as Fia imagined, and a battle didn’t break out in the next moment.
“Ah, Lord Chris, long time no see, how have you been?” Claire’s appearance broke the stalemate, like a stone thrown into a deep pool.
In the vast night, Claire was like a silver moon descending to the earth—at least that’s what Fia thought.
To the soldiers, including the generals, they looked as if they had seen a terrifying monster, their bodies tense, especially the horses under the generals, which neighed and retreated uncontrollably.
“You… who are you? Sorry, we must have met before, but I can’t remember who you are.”
“Claire, I once healed your broken right hand.”
“So it’s Miss Claire, long time no see, I’m… I’m fine.”
In just a few words, the general who had been exuding a dangerous aura was now sweating and stammering.
The reaction was the same as when the cat-eared slave faced Claire.
Could this be the curse Claire mentioned? “I don’t think someone wrapped in bandages would say they’re ‘fine.’ Were you injured in battle? If Lord Chris feels the need, you can visit my clinic anytime.”
As if she didn’t see the fear on their faces, Claire took another step forward, and almost simultaneously, all the soldiers retreated together, forming a strange semicircle that no one dared to approach.
“Thank you, Miss Claire, I appreciate your kindness.
To my shame, I wasn’t injured in battle but was hurt by the ‘Gray Owls’ outside the city.
Before we could escort the prisoners into the city, a group of Gray Owls suddenly appeared in the forest and attacked us for no reason.”
“You encountered Gray Owls? Gray Owls only operate deep in the forest, why would they come to the outskirts? And Gray Owls always move in groups.
Without a magic chanter, a hundred-man team encountering them would be wiped out.
How did you escape, Lord Chris?”
“Well…” The general, wrapped in bandages, wiped his sweat again.
Fia couldn’t figure out who was the superior between them and Claire.
“These Gray Owls seemed to have been driven out of the forest by other stronger monsters.
When we encountered them, there were only a few, and they had burn marks on them.
We fought for a long time to drive them back, but even so, we lost thirty percent of our men.
Damn it.”
The general cursed under his breath, but he clearly had no intention of continuing the conversation with Claire, putting on a stiff smile as he spoke.
“If Miss Claire has nothing else, we’ll return to report to the bishop.” At this, the general glanced at Fia, “We heard from other teams that the elf princess is still alive.
Please be careful and don’t get too close to the elves.
They are always cunning.”
“I understand, thank you for the advice, Lord Chris.”
After leaving his “advice” to Claire, the general named Chris controlled his horse to return to the team, whispered a few words to others, and then commanded the team to set off again without looking back.
It’s worth mentioning that as the soldiers passed by Claire, they all acted as if they had seen something ominous, deliberately avoiding Claire, causing the team to form a strange curve.
Watching the team disappear around the corner, Fia secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Although those soldiers were unlikely to defeat her, Fia was a minimalist, preferring to avoid unnecessary trouble.
Not to mention that fighting in the streets could accidentally harm innocent people.
She straightened her black dress and turned to Claire, who was also watching the soldiers escorting the prisoners leave.
“Claire, thank you.”
Even though she could have handled the soldiers herself, Claire had helped her, and she had to express her gratitude.
“It’s nothing.
It’s not every day you meet a cute girl, so I had to protect you, right?” Claire replied with a smile.
Complimenting her on being cute again.
She had only just gotten a girl’s body, which was embarrassing.
No, she wanted to find a box to hide in.
Fia decided to change the subject, as this sudden compliment left her unsure of how to respond.
“Do you know what Gray Owls are, Claire?”
“They’re bird-like monsters about the size of a palm, with fierce eyes.
A single Gray Owl isn’t very strong, but they are social creatures.
The appearance of one often means there are hundreds or thousands more nearby.
Without a magic chanter, even a well-trained army would struggle to defeat them.
As for the Gray Owls in the Milcandis Great Forest, it’s said their groups number in the tens of thousands, which isn’t something a regular army can handle.
At least the Milcandis Holy Nation’s Inquisition would be needed to exterminate them.
No, that might not be clear enough.
To put it more specifically, if the Gray Owls in the Milcandis Great Forest attacked Aurora City without regard for cost, all people could do is pray that the magic array in the sky holds long enough for the nearby knight orders to come to the rescue.”
Claire calmly made a terrifying statement.
“After all, the hardest part about dealing with Gray Owls is their flying ability.
They’re small, fast, and hard to hit with arrows.
Without magic, people can’t do anything about them.
Do you know the Magic Chanter’s Guild, Fia? In the guild, Gray Owl groups are classified as monsters with a difficulty level over 150, comparable to half a dragon.
If you successfully hunt them, you can claim a bounty of a thousand Milcandis Holy Gold Coins at the Aurora City Adventurer’s Guild and be awarded an honorary title by the city’s bishop.”
“A thousand gold coins…” Fia couldn’t help but swallow.
In this world, although each country issues its own currency, the exchange rate is generally calculated as 1 gold coin = 10 silver coins = 100 iron coins = 10,000 inferior coins.
Additionally, above gold coins, there are more valuable white gold coins and even gem coins, which most people never encounter in their lifetime.
Among the gold coins of various countries, Milcandis Holy Gold Coins are relatively high in value.
In the Milcandis Holy Nation, one gold coin is enough for a family of five to live frugally for a month, and for a family of three, it can provide a rather affluent lifestyle.
To clarify, Fia wasn’t swallowing because she cared about the thousand gold coins, but because the Gray Owls Claire mentioned were the owls she had defeated with a triple explosion.
Although Fia had long suspected from the descriptions in “The Witch’s Secret History” that her combat power was quite high, she hadn’t expected it to be this high.
It’s worth noting that the remnants of the Gray Owls she scared off had just routed those knights.
One can imagine how powerful a fully intact Gray Owl group would be.
It’s amazing she had thought of the Gray Owls as weak monsters.
No, it’s not that they were too weak, but that she was too strong, yes.
Fia nodded in agreement with herself.
“Are you short on money, Fia?”
“Hmm?” When Fia came back to her senses, Claire’s beautiful face was right in front of her, so close that Fia was startled.
“No, I’m not.”
“That’s good.
Don’t do anything foolish because you’re short on money.
Gray Owl groups aren’t monsters that ordinary people can handle.
If you’re short on money, Fia, I can lend you some, of course, with a little interest.”
With a meaningful smile, Claire pinched her thumb and forefinger together, indicating a “small” amount.
If she weren’t the elf princess but the elf prince, she might have misunderstood it as something lewd and felt shy, but that wasn’t the case.
Claire must be talking about something else, and Fia didn’t think Claire was the type to “eat people.”
Of course, whether she had any wild thoughts is another matter.
Fia waved her hand, pretending to be calm.
“Got it, got it.
I’ll come find Claire when I’m short on money—does Claire live in Aurora City?”
“Just across the street.
Ask around for the clinic nearby, and the locals will tell you where I live.
Hmm… not just when you’re short on money, if you’re feeling bored or want some company, I’m always happy to have you visit me, Fia.” With a dazzling smile on her lovely face, Claire waved gently, “This time I’m really leaving.
Goodbye, little Fia.”
“Ah, I will.
Goodbye.”
Standing at the street corner, Fia watched as Claire’s moonlit figure gradually disappeared into the darkness.
Her lips curled up unconsciously.
“What a nice night.”
Fia couldn’t help but mutter to herself.
