525 Unexpected Defiance

Mia exhaled in relief. Baiyi's explanation convinced her that it was better to talk to the Emperor first, rather than rushing to Aegir alone.

The pair took a walk around the palace, and after some time, they found the Emperor's private study. Since the artists arrived at the Imperial Palace, the ruler of the Rohlserlian Empire had not been seen outside his private study. What had kept him in there?

Baiyi was in no mood to be polite. He barged into the private study and saw the Emperor seated at a table, grinning at some cards in his hands.

Baiyi's unexpected arrival sent the Emperor into a panic. He scrambled to put away the cards as quickly as he could, but a moment later, he remembered that he was not at Da Xue; thus, Baiyi could do nothing to him. The expression of panic vanished after a sigh of relief. The Emperor placed the cards in an exquisite box, which he then kept away, after which he looked up at Baiyi. "I suppose you also forgot how to knock as well, right?"

"Pardon me; I thought it was an emergency. Who would have thought you would be this relaxed..." Baiyi replied, his eyes focused on the spot the Emperor had hidden the box. When the Emperor noticed this, he quickly shielded the spot with his hands.

"Did I not teach you to be calm and graceful at all times?" The Emperor asked in protest.

Baiyi raised his hand, revealing a letter in his grasp. "What do you think we should do about this?"

"What should we do?" The Emperor asked, redirecting the question back at him.

Baiyi hesitated. He initially sought to rush over to site the attacks had taken place to conduct an investigation and, if possible, slay any intruders that remain. Now, however, that he was being questioned by the Emperor, Baiyi realized that he and the Emperor could not act personally because of their positions of authority.

Furthermore, these attacks were not meted out on just one or two border towns; several towns had been invaded simultaneously. The best course of action Baiyi could take was to deploy the troops stationed at forts and barracks close to the affected towns. A competent fort captain would have deployed his troops the instant he got wind of the attacks, without waiting for orders from the Emperor.

Although this situation needed urgent attention, no one in the study could act on their own. They could only wait for those below them to report back.

The Emperor wanted Baiyi's opinion on the matter. Who could have carried out these attacks? Who did the Empire have to attack in revenge? What could they do to allay their people's fears? What could the empire do to maximize its profits in a retaliatory war?

These were the type of questions that bothered the rulers of countries.

"Are those attacks another act of terror carried out by those demon-worshipping savages? Maybe it was revenge for their failed invasion of Highland City," Baiyi said, voicing his thoughts. an act of vengeance from those who had failed to capture Highland City," Baiyi wondered out loud. "These attacks are weaker than the attempt on Highland City, as the perpetrators targeted smaller border townes, avoiding important and well-guarded towns. I don't think the Mornserians are the culprits. You may have just invaded their country and humiliated them in Coninopolis, but because of the Path to Heaven's function, I highly doubt that the Mornserians would venerate the loathsome demons."

Baiyi's reasoning was sound, but the Emperor disagreed with it. "How are you so sure that the formation complex was built to summon an angel, not demons?"

Baiyi was about to reply when Mia, who had realized that Mr. Hope and her Royal Gramps did not plan to visit the affected towns, lost her patience. "But… Lulu! What about Lulu?"

"Lulu's a friend she recently made," Baiyi explained. "Mia cares for her a lot, and she has been asking to see her friend for some time now."

"How can you expect me to allow that?" The Emperor's refusal was swift and apathetic. "Mia, just have your master get someone to look for your little friend. Isn't that better?"

Little Mia did not look happy. "Oh…"

However, she raised her head moments later and said, "I guess you're right. Mr. Hope, Royal Gramps, I'm tired. Can I return to my room and rest?"

Baiyi and the Emperor exchanged a glance. They both wanted Mia to stay and offer her opinions, but if she said she was exhausted, then it was better they let her off.

Baiyi and the Emperor nodded, so Mia left the room, closing the door on the two men, who continued to discuss as though nothing had happened. What country has Rohlserl long sought to invade? Who could they frame for Rohlserl's attempt at conquest? If Rohlserl cited retaliation as a front for its attempt at conquest, then what part of the continent contained the most resources, making it ripe for invasion? They could be better off looking to capture some tribes to replace the manpower that the empire had just lost.

The longer the two discussed, the more inhumane their plans became. It was good that Mia had left when she did; she did not have to see the two people she respected the most descend to such lows.

After a lengthy discussion, Baiyi and the Emperor finally settled on a plan. The Empire retired for the night, and Baiyi, who did not need to sleep, decided to return to his office and flesh out the plan.

As he walked towards his office, his thoughts shifted to Mia, and he decided to pay her a visit. Mia looked pretty troubled earlier, and Baiyi was worried that she may be too upset to sleep.

With light steps, Baiyi crept into Mia's room and spotted a lump under the large comforter.

"It's much colder now. You should cover yourself better, you know?" Baiyi sighed and tiptoed over to the bed, intent on covering Mia up properly.

A thought entered Baiyi's mind, and he stopped. Then, instead of being gentle, Baiyi yanked the comforter away, revealing a trembling maid underneath.

"H-Her Highness… H-her Highness m-made me d-d-do this…" The maid trembled.

"Where is she?"

"I-I don't know, Sir. Her Highness only said she would r-r-return soon…"

Baiyi took a deep breath and forced down the anger bubbling within him. He had not foreseen the arrival of a day when his docile daughter would so brazenly go against his wishes. With one move, she had defied both the Emperor and Baiyi's rule. How unforgivable!

Baiyi activated a tracking spell he had placed on Mia's equipment, but the feedback was cut off a second later. The time had been too short for Baiyi to pinpoint her exact location. Mia had disabled the spell.

"I'm going to look for her. Inform His Majesty of this when he wakes up," Baiyi ordered. "I also want you to prepare as many sturdy feather dusters as you can find."

After that, Baiyi jumped out of the window and flew off, headed in the direction the tracking spell had indicated before it was disabled.

At a location far from the palace, Mia was flying in the cold night's sky. Suddenly, an unexplained feeling sent shivers down her spine. Her hands instinctively moved to protect her butt as though they were aware of the fate that would soon befall her.

"Owww…. I know Mr. Hope must be preparing a lot of feather dusters right now." Mia sighed in dismay.

She was still second-guessing her decision. Mia had felt nothing but determination when she pulled this stunt, but some time had passed since then, and the adrenaline had receded. Now, she was aware that this was the first time she had disobeyed Mr. Hope's orders.

Till she did this, Mia had been perfectly obedient. It was her hope that this fact, and her cuteness, would help lighten whatever punishment would be meted on her for this small act of defiance. Even if Baiyi decided to be difficult, Mia had Royal Gramps; she was sure that her beloved grandpa would help her!

When Mia's thoughts shifted to her best friend, Lulu, her fear was tossed to the back on her mind.

"Please be okay, Lulu," Mia whispered.

As Mia could not find other sorcerers to form a human transporter portal, she had to fly to Aegir. Mia flew all night, and when the sun reached its zenith in the sky, Mia spotted the outline of the familiar town on the horizon. From afar, Aegir looked just as it had when she left. This made Mia sigh in relief.

Mia was exhausted from flying all night, but the sight of the town kept her motivated. She gritted her teeth and flew a few miles forward.

When Mia was several miles away from the town, she came to an abrupt stop, gawking at the town in disbelief.

From afar, Aegir had looked fine, but when Mia flew closer, she realized that the town was in ruin. Half of the town had been charred. It was as though a sea of black ink had soiled the buildings in that area.

Only the buildings close to the town's entrance were still standing. Everything else was fone. The little cottage Baiyi and Mia had briefly stayed in, Lulu's house, and the pastry house that baked Mia's favorite confectionaries had all been reduced to rubble. The small haystack at the entrance of the town had been reduced to ash.

The destroyed town was not the only reason Mia was stunned silent; there was not a single corpse to be seen. The people that had survived the horrific attack were at the town center. They were all on their knees, kowtowing.

Hovering above the town square was a humanoid being. It was glowing so brightly that Mia could not make out its features. However, what Mia could see clearly was a pair of gigantic wings made of light behind the being.

"An angel." Mia sucked in a breath of cold air. She cast a vision-enhancing spell in order to get a better look at the angel through its aura.

The angel was a beautiful girl, who wore an ancient Rohlserlian robe. Holy light covered the angle's immaculate body; a white piece of cloth was tied around her head, covering her eyes; and her feet were bare. The town's people were kowtowing below her.

The expression on the angel's face was nothing like Mia had ever seen. The angel was relaxed and serene, but that seemed to be borne out of apathy rather than gentleness. As she looked down at the people, one could not be sure if her expression was one of sympathy or contempt. The angel's countenance could not be deciphered, but if there was one thing that was clear, it was her bearing — the bearing of a god.

What attracted Mia's attention was the kitty plush toy tied to the angel's waist.