After taking care of the greatest enemy, the Moon Dragon, everything else went pretty smoothly.
The paladins in the square acted like they didn’t even see the Moon Dragon and Fia nearby, rushing straight into the ruined temple to rescue people.
Anastasia met up with the members of the royal guard who had arrived after hearing the commotion, and Claire put away her weapon, standing quietly behind Fia.
As for Fia herself, she focused her attention on the unconscious gray-haired girl.
“There, that should do it.”
Fia carefully separated the chaos from the gray-haired girl’s chest using the silver dagger she’d gotten from the desert cabin, then healed the wound left by the dagger with a “Basic Healing Water” spell, and finally covered the girl’s chest with a handkerchief.
“Thank you, Elf Princess.” The Moon Dragon standing behind Fia lowered his head.
Because Fia’s last punch had been so strong, even after using healing magic on himself, his speech was still a bit off.
“I apologize for what happened today.
If not for you, both I and Tilulu would have perished here.”
“It’s fine, none of my people were hurt.
The ones who should apologize are those paladins over there.” Fia waved it off, unconcerned.
“Besides, you were being controlled by chaos.
Hurting others wasn’t your intention.”
“Weaklings don’t deserve my respect.
Humans are nothing—if they die, so be it.
We originally planned to go underground, rescue the third princess of the Elf Kingdom, and sell you a favor.
At the same time, we wanted to plant the seed Absolute Evil gave us.
But that seed turned out to be chaos, and before we realized it, the chaos had taken over our minds.
When we get back, we’ll definitely settle the score with Absolute Evil.
Thank you again, Elf Princess.”
As he spoke, the Moon Dragon reached out a single claw toward Fia.
Is this a handshake? Fia wasn’t really sure about the etiquette on the World Tree Continent, but just standing there felt awkward, so after a moment’s thought, she gripped the Moon Dragon’s sharp claw with her right hand.
The dragon made a satisfied sound, withdrew his claw, and then picked up the unconscious gray-haired girl from the ground.
“With this, the contract is sealed.
We—Moon Dragon Radric and Tilulu of the Cold Moon—owe you a favor.
If you ever need us, don’t forget.
Also,” the Moon Dragon tilted his head slightly, his wise blue eyes fixed on the short dagger in Fia’s hand, “if I’m not mistaken, that’s a personal item of the previous Miracle Witch, the ‘Witch of Hope.’ Are you a member of the Witch Hall?”
Witch Hall? The “Witch Secret History” described the Witch Hall in detail.
It was a loosely organized group, but they helped each other.
Only witches of the ninth rank could be called “Miracle Witches,” and only Miracle Witches could command other witches on their own.
The corpse she cremated in the desert—could that have been a Miracle Witch? As she thought about this, Fia shrugged.
“I just happened to get this.
If you know its owner, you can return it for me.”
“The ‘Witch of Hope’ hasn’t been seen in a hundred years.
Who knows if she had any descendants? That her relic ended up with you is fate.
Just treat it as your own and keep it.
Now I’ll take Tilulu back to the Cold Moon to recover.
As for my dragon horn, I’ll give it to you as an apology.”
Pushing the broken dragon horn in front of Fia, the Moon Dragon named Radric gently flapped his wings, and the gust of wind from his massive wings made everyone squint.
Before leaving, the Moon Dragon seemed to remember something and suddenly lowered his head.
“By the way, the magic and power you showed are in no way inferior to mine—far beyond what people say about you being ‘seventh rank.’ Especially that ‘Soul Shock’ that interrupted my magic, you could cast it repeatedly without chanting.
Even Miracle Witches don’t have that kind of power.
I have a question—would you answer it, Elf Princess?”
Fia nodded lightly, indicating she would.
The Moon Dragon thought for a moment.
“I want to ask, was the magical disaster in the parched desert the other day your doing?”
Fia couldn’t help but smile.
“If you mean that huge explosion a few days ago, then yeah, that was probably me.”
The Moon Dragon fell silent, then threw his head back and let out a thunderous laugh.
“Hahaha! Interesting, very interesting! In that case, I have no regrets.
Losing to someone far beyond a Miracle Witch is no shame—no, being able to fight someone like you, a messenger of the gods, is an honor for us.
Thank you for giving us the chance to face a true powerhouse.
I’ll treasure it.
One day, we’ll come to the Elf Kingdom to thank you in person.
We’ll meet again!”
“Yeah, and next time we can sit down and have a proper chat.”
Hopefully, you’ll teach me dragon magic—especially that purple shield that weakens magic damage.
As she thought this, Fia waved lightly, watching as Moon Dragon Radric disappeared.
In the ruined square, only Fia’s group and the busy paladins remained.
Because Fia’s power was so terrifying, the paladins chose to ignore her and focused on rescuing people.
This sensible behavior, plus the paladin who’d acted as commander underground, made Fia’s opinion of the church a little less negative.
The church had its flaws, but most of them came from the limitations of the times.
On one hand, the church executed those with the Darkspawn disease to strengthen its rule; on the other, it protected the poor and refugees, giving them fair treatment.
It was hard to say if it was good or bad.
Of course, as an elf, you always had to be wary of the church.
Since Liti had heard from the paladins that the church wanted to negotiate with her, Fia decided to stay in Aurora City for another day and try to talk with them.
The best strategy was to use diplomacy rather than force—violence was the last resort of the incompetent.
Not to mention, she’d just done the church a huge favor, and her strength far outclassed theirs.
In negotiations, she’d definitely have the upper hand.
Right now, the church needed her, not the other way around.
She’d actually done something for the Elf Kingdom, from the perspective of the elf princess.
“Your Highness, you’re just going to let him go?”
Seeing the Moon Dragon leave, Count Elvin, who’d been standing at a distance, finally came over, pointing in the direction the dragon had disappeared, looking completely stunned.
Fia turned around—her gaze lingering for a second on Claire’s beautiful face before she awkwardly but politely looked at Count Elvin.
“He was just being controlled by chaos.
He didn’t mean any harm.
He actually wanted to rescue Liti and you, Count Elvin, to sell me a favor.”
“But a dragon is a treasure trove, not to mention a Moon Dragon.
Just the high-grade magic core is a priceless treasure, not to mention the dragon skin, bones, claws…”
Count Elvin wasn’t joking—he looked dead serious, counting the benefits on his fingers.
You want to skin and dissect someone right off the bat, huh.
Fia couldn’t agree with Count Elvin’s way of thinking.
Of course, she didn’t look down on him either.
Fia maintained the dignity expected of an elf princess and gestured with her mouth for Count Elvin to look at the ground.
The Moon Dragon’s two horns were still there, each one four or five meters long and as intimidating as a mountain goat’s.
Count Elvin’s eyes immediately lit up, as if he’d seen his lover, and he hurried over to examine them closely.
“So… so that’s it.
Leaving the horns as a life-saving token isn’t so bad.
Such perfect dragon horns—whether made into a magic staff or a melee weapon—are priceless treasures.
And since they’re from a Moon Dragon, even if someone offered a price, no one would sell them.”
“My lord, we should be thanking Her Highness for saving our lives.”
Alfred, who had been standing back, stepped forward to correct him.
Although he, too, kept glancing at the horns, he was much more restrained than Count Elvin.
“Her Highness defeated the Moon Dragon in single combat.
When word of this gets back home, those who covet your claim to the throne will have no choice but to curry favor with you.
Plus, with the achievement of destroying the Unsinkable Moon, I’m sure you’ll be respected and loved by all when you return.”
With Alfred’s reminder, Count Elvin snapped out of it, quickly leaving the horns and turning to Fia.
“Your Highness, the Unsinkable Moon is gone.
Shouldn’t we head back? Negotiations can wait—they’re not urgent.”
“Hmm…” Fia couldn’t help but sneak a glance at Claire beside her.
Claire still looked like a demon, with horns and a tail, her deep red eyes unreadable.
“I have some personal matters and want to stay in Aurora City a bit longer.
Count Elvin and Lord Alfred, you two should return home first and tell my father I’m safe.
I’ll order the royal guard to make sure you’re safe on the road.
Oh, and Liti—”
“I want to stay with my sister!”
When Fia mentioned Liti, Liti spoke up in an especially serious tone, her cute, childish face full of determination.
She’d been so scared of Fia at first, but now she was acting so close.
Hard to figure out.
“Liti, going back to the country with Count Aiwen is the safest choice.”
Anastasia, cheeks flushed, squatted down and tried to comfort Liti like coaxing a child.
But Liti stubbornly argued back.
“Anastasia, are you saying it’s not safe to stay with my sister? You’re going to stay with her too, right?”
“Well… yes.
I’m your Highness’s personal attendant, so I should always be by your side.”
“So I’m her little sister, which means I have even more reason to stay with her.
Besides, my sister isn’t even afraid of a moon dragon.
If I’m with her, nothing dangerous will happen.
It’s fine if I go back to Father a few days later.”
Emphasizing her point in a childish tone, Liti shook her long purple hair, jumped to Fia’s side, and hugged Fia’s arm tightly.
If Liti were an adult woman, her chest would probably make a “squish” sound right now.
But for some reason, Fia felt a strange sense of incongruity from Liti.
Earlier, she’d managed to get information out of the paladins and nuns, but now she was acting like an innocent child.
The contrast was surprising.
Still, a clingy and adorable little sister was hard for Fia—who’d never had a sister before—to refuse.
And this wasn’t just an adopted sister, but her real sister, sharing the same blood.
Maybe she should use this chance to get closer to Liti, at least not be so distant.
If she could earn Liti’s approval, that would be even better.
Fia couldn’t help but imagine those warm, loving family scenes from manga.
How nice.
“This won’t do, Liti.
This is too reckless.
The Princess is acting for the sake of Silvar, this isn’t child’s play!” Alfred warned sternly.
According to Anastasia, Alfred was the second prince’s tutor.
That might make you think of palace faction struggles, but in reality, Fia was so outstanding that her peers had given up trying to compete.
So neither Liti nor the second prince saw Fia as a rival, and there was no conflict between Liti and the second prince either.
That’s also why Alfred, despite being the second prince’s tutor, had come to rescue Liti.
Instead of arguing with Alfred, Liti widened her eyes and looked up at Fia with a pitiful expression, her voice trembling.
“Sis… can’t I stay with you? I really missed you.”
Her big purple-red eyes shimmered with tears, and her pleading look made Fia freeze.
How could anyone say no to that?
Fia patted Liti’s head to comfort her, then cleared her throat and put on a serious face.
“Ahem.
Let Liti stay with me.
I won’t be out for long, and I’ll be back in Silvar soon.
You two should set out now, so Father doesn’t expand the war because you’re missing.
I’ll need one of the dragon horns just in case, and you two can take the other back to Father.”
Hearing he could take the dragon horn back, Alfred’s face lit up.
Even if he couldn’t claim the credit, just bringing it back would earn him a reward from the king.
He was just a tutor, not a noble with his own lands like Count Aiwen, so he needed the money.
“If even the Princess says so… fine, the Count and I will set out now.
But from your tone, are you planning to negotiate with the church? If you do that without the king’s approval, others in the country might be unhappy, and the king might blame you.”
“I’ll handle it.
I’ll have the church send an envoy to Father, and I’ll make sure they offer reasonable compensation.
Please pass that on to Father for me, Lord Alfred and Count Aiwen.”
Alfred’s eyes showed approval.
He stepped back and bowed to Fia.
“Understood.
Then the Count and I will return first.
Please take care, Princess, and you too, Liti.”
“Take care, your Highnesses.”
“Yeah, take care.”
Fia nodded lightly and looked at Anastasia, whose cheeks were still red.
Ever since Fia had put her down from her shoulder, Anastasia had been acting shy and awkward.
Fia could understand—being carried on someone’s shoulder by someone younger in front of everyone would make anyone want to crawl into a hole from embarrassment.
But at the time, she’d had no choice; she couldn’t just blast Anastasia away with “Torrent.” Fia gave her order in a less commanding tone.
“Anastasia, have the others escort Count Aiwen and Lord Alfred back.
I only need you with me.”
“J-just me…”
“Are you going back to the country?”
“Ah, no!” Fia’s question snapped Anastasia back to attention.
She straightened up and put on her usual serious face.
“Understood.
While I’m gone, listen to Kirill and follow her orders.
The Princess and I will return to Silvar soon.”
“Yes!”
After the moon dragon, Count Aiwen and the royal guards also left the ruins.
It’s worth mentioning that Kirill put the dragon horn in a storage item instead of carrying it around in the open.
Other than the paladins watching from a distance, only Fia, Anastasia, Claire, and Liti were left among the ruins.
Liti clung to Fia’s arm, while Anastasia stayed silent.
Fia quietly looked up at Claire, whose skin shimmered with a faint silver light, looking just like a moon demon.
Sensing Fia’s hesitant gaze, Claire turned around.
Her serious expression softened, and she gave Fia her usual wry smile—except now, she had black, curved horns on her head and a thin, long tail poking out from under her skirt.
“Can we talk back at the house? Looks like the paladins won’t bother us for a while.
I think I did something unnecessary in my rush earlier…”
