Chapter 604 - Confrontation

Orcus glared at Anaemia, who clicked her tongue and looked away with her arms folded.

Orcus then turned his attention back towards Solomon and said, "I hope you can forgive her bold choice of words, General Solomon. Anaemia has spent most of her life in our family residence and is not yet used to the ways of the outside world."

Solomon's expression remained unchanged as he replied, "The internal affairs of your Jestal family are not of my concern."

Orcus inwardly nodded when he heard those words leave Solomon's mouth. Although his Jestal family did not show themselves much over the years, it appeared that their prestige and name still held a great amount of sway.

"Then-" As he began to speak, Orcus was swiftly interrupted.

"However, it involves a Commander and Captain under my command—and that is my concern," Solomon emphasized.

Orcus' facial expression darkened along with the other two Jestal family members.

"General Solomon, I believe I have been more than respectful in my choice of words. What is the fate of a Commander and Captain compared to preserving the relationship between our two kingdoms? Or, is it that you wish to be responsible for breaking an alliance that has lasted for over a century?" Orcus stated.

"That is not my intention. But, I will not permit you or anyone else to do whatever they please on my battlefield. I am exercising my right as the Head Command Officer of this sector and ordering you to the temporary command camp at the Rosentarus border. There, you will await my return, and then perhaps we can have a proper discussion." Solomon said calmly.

As the Head Command Officer of the Demilitarization Belt, if Solomon felt that someone was impeding an ongoing investigation, he could order them to be temporarily confined to the camp he commanded. As long as one was a part of the war effort and alliance, they must comply with this order.

This was rarely used, especially against individuals like the Jestal family, who were high ranking nobles. However, the circ.u.mstances this time around were different. Even if they were high ranking nobles, Solomon could not overlook Dolos' connection to the Nether Realm and the League of the Eidolon. For all he knew, the entirety of the Jestal family could be involved. If that was the case, wouldn't he be handing over their only clue to those plotting against the Mortal Realm?

"Don't push too far, Solomon. Otherwise, you can't blame me for what happens." Orcus said with a darkened expression. He no longer addressed Solomon by his title of General, as if reinforcing that it ultimately meant nothing to him.

"Is that a threat?" Solomon's gaze turned cold.

"Only the truth," Orcus replied without hesitation.

After that, a deathly calm encompassed the surrounding vicinity as the atmosphere became tense. It looked as though a fight would break out at any moment.

Tap.

Solomon took one step forward, and the instant he did this, he noticed an unusual fluctuation in the nearby space that caused him to halt his actions.

Solomon was not the only one who perceived this spatial fluctuation, as the Jestal family members immediately went on full alert.

Orcus, Anaemia, and Leuko gave each other meaningful looks as they instantly moved to encircle the spatial fluctuation!

Woosh! Woosh! Woosh!

When Solomon witnessed their brazen behavior, he wasted no time crushing the small golden orb he kept in the palm of his hand.

Boom!

Suddenly, a shockwave discharged from the hand Solomon held the golden orb. At the same time, a tiny fairy appeared lied down atop Solomon's head with a sleepy expression and released a light yawn. This fairy was no bigger than fifteen centimeters with four transparent wings, long golden hair that was twice as long as her, and bright yellow eyes.

Solomon lightly nudged the sleepy fairy with his finger and said, "Merdere, I need your assistance."

"..." Merdere sat up and rubbed her eyes as she levitated near Solomon's shoulder and leaned to whisper something into his ear.

"Hm? That's all?" Solomon asked.

"..." Merdere moved before Solomon and gave a slight nod.

"If only your sister were as easy to deal with as you... Very well, take it." Solomon said.

Merdere sat on Solomon's shoulder as a large quantity of mana was drawn out of his body and channeled into her. Simultaneously, mysterious golden-colored flames formed at Solomon's fingertips.

"I will only say this once. If you refuse to comply with the orders I have given, then you can't blame me for what happens." Solomon stated, throwing Orcus' words right back at him.

However, Orcus ignored Solomon's words. He could see that talking with that stubborn would get them nowhere. Besides, would he dare make a move against them and risk offending his Jestal family as well as potentially destroying the alliance between their two kingdoms? It was an obvious bluff!

Ooooom...! Zeeeut!

Not even half a breath later, a spatial vortex opened up less than two meters away from Orcus' position. When he saw this spatial vortex, it caused him to frown visibly. Their family's spatial magic had a unique energy signature, and the one being emitted by the spatial vortex did not match.

But, when Orcus saw who came out from the spatial vortex, his eyes widened in shock. Though when his eyes landed on the figure at the back of the group of new arrivals, his shock quickly shifted to a feeling of rage. The other two members of the Jestal family shared a similar reaction to Orcus.

"What have you done?!" Orcus roared.

"Hm? What is this loud insect? A friend of yours?" A familiar voice sounded as the spatial vortex closed.

"No, I don't know them." The person next to them replied indifferently.

These two individuals having a casual conversation in front of the outraged Jestal family members were Satoras and Izroth, who had just left the Netherly Swathe.

They were accompanied by Aurie and the unconscious Dolos Jestal, still in his transformed state with one arm missing. Naturally, when those from the Jestal family observed Dolos' condition, they saw nothing but red as they looked at the group with death glares.

"I don't know the identity of the other two, but the one who just spoke is Orcus Jestal. He has quite the standing in the Jestal family, from what I've heard. It's likely that he is here to sweep their family's mess under the rug." Aurie revealed.

Her gaze then drifted to the nearby distance to Solomon as she continued, "However, it seems someone else has already found them out."

Solomon was relieved when he saw that Aurie and Izroth did not suffer any critical injuries. But, he was curious as to the identity of the man with them. There was not a single drop of energy coming from their body, which was incredibly unusual. Though it did not seem that Aurie and Izroth were on guard around them, and so their intentions should not be bad.

"I warned you," Solomon said as he swiped his right hand at the air before him, leaving behind five streaks of golden flames.

Woosh! Woosh!

All of a sudden, a golden ribbon of flames shot out from each of the five streaks and rushed onward at incredible speeds towards the Jestal family members.

At a glance, these golden ribbons appeared fragile, but if one dared to underestimate them, they would not know how they died!

Of course, Solomon's aim was not to kill the members of the Jestal family. Even if they were suspicious, it did not automatically warrant their deaths. Not to mention, the political headache that would follow was something significant enough to permanently affect things on a grand scale in the Mortal Realm.

In the blink of an eye, each of the Jestal family members opened a spatial vortex of their own and entered inside to avoid the golden ribbons. A few moments later, they reappeared several meters away from their previous position.

However, the first thing that greeted them upon their exit from the spatial vortex was a golden ribbon! While the ribbons' speed was impressive, it was its flexibility and reaction time that made it a force to be reckoned with.

"We should have just dealt with this General instead of trying to talk sense to them!" Anaemia scowled as she waved her hand forward, sending out a pulse through the surrounding space.

This pulse halted the golden ribbons as they became frozen in midair. However, the flames around the ribbons erupted as it broke free of the restrictions and slipped past Anaemia's defenses.

In a flash, Anaemia became wrapped from head to toe in the golden ribbons and restrained.

"Graceful Ribbons: Ten Band Restriction."