Side Story 26: The Saintess and the Mother.

Side Story 26: The Saintess and the Mother.

The Folschreck Empire.

The empire of humans goes by many names: The Defenders of the East, The Bulwark of Light, The Eastern Empire, The Home of the Holy Emperor of Light, The Great Evida Empire, and so many more. Having either consolidated or vassalized all the human countries on the continent of Altrust, it goes without saying that the Folschreck Empire is the single greatest human-ruled land in the current era.

Despite being almost on the most western part of the continent, both of the remnants of the Leosfalt Kingdom the Kingdoms of Artorias and Atadoro have pledged themselves to the Emperor. As both kingdoms have not been merged completely into the empire just yet, the power to rule over these lands was left autonomous from the empire in exchange for routine tributes and a levy of soldiers for the continuous war against both the beastman alliance Carmaniate and the demonkin kingdom BoleTaria.

Even for Artorias, a human country ruled by arvisians, the decision to become a vassal was their only logical option. The newly-founded kingdom was still rebuilding after the War for the Faefolk and the civil war which divided the Leosfalt kingdom. Without an alliance with the elves, the dwarves, or the dragonewts, Artorias had no choice but to ally themselves with the other human countries and kingdoms. Otherwise, theyd be left surrounded by enemy and neutral countries.

After all, it would have been too easy for the Kingdom of Atadoro to persuade the Holy Capital Aureolis to denounce the young kingdom of Artorias. Although the arvisian king of Artorias was a [Prince], thus ensuring himself a legitimate claim by divine right, the divine authority of the Pope of the Church of Aurena and military prowess of the Holy Emperor of Light would have stomped Artorias if they hadnt bent the knee to Folschreck.

Thankfully, Artorias did not need to sacrifice much except for tributes in the form of wealth and soldiers. As the Folschreck Empire couldnt keep an iron hand over both their own lands and those of their vassals, countries and kingdoms not included in the initial lands conquered by the first and second Emperor were left to their own devices.

However, control and inspections were still needed to prevent sudden insurrections, for a giant like the Empire of Man was more prone to breaking apart internally than against its foes. To maintain the Emperors control, an order known as the Lycerepth was founded to send its agents, the Lycerepthors, to flush out potential coup detats or rebellions against the empire. Guarded by mighty Lycerittern and trained since their childhoods, Lycerepthors were usually the empires representatives in the land of its vassals.

And on this day, another Lycerepthor Judge has arrived in the western lands of Altrust.

The moon had shone snow-white during this night; hours passed and the darkness in the sky was banished by the dawn. Cold winds guided the wings of the seagulls as they flew over the ocean, while underneath them sailed a mighty carrack of the empire, redesigned from the levianewt version for human use.

Constructed with sturdy wood, this ship vessel was similar to an Earthen carrack, although it was longer and had two serpentine wood parts on the port and starboard sides of the ship, flowing from the stern to the figurehead. There was also a magic symbol etched on the port side of the ships hull, depicting the tentacles of a kraken swallowing an orb. This was Plesias symbol, a mark enchanted by a depths priest to ward off sea creatures.

Recreated using Caedhuls, the Maritime Republic of Plesias patron races, technology, this ship was now guided by the figurehead of a scarab, a creature native to the Great Evida desert inside the Folschreck Empire. Without a doubt, this ship belonged to the empire.

Land ho! the ships lookout cried out as the sight of a port came into view.

Seamen, members of the lowest ranking position in a crews hierarchy, were already awake and preparing the necessities to land the vessel. Some only wore simple, ragged clothing with just enough protection against the cold winds to keep them warm and able, while others had a large magic symbol covering their forehead. This symbol was a blue glowing runic tattoo, depicting an eye with a gavel and khopesh inside a cage. The mark of a slave belonging to the Lycerepth.

Regardless if they were freemen or slaves, a seaman was treated the same. With no time to dawdle under the sleepy eyes of the ships third mate, the crew was preparing for landing. Although a merchants ship, this vessel was not only transporting valuable spices and exotic ingredients, but also three prominent personages were currently preparing themselves for landing.

Knock. Knock. Knock. Three knocks were made against an ornamental door, reserved for rooms dedicated to VIP passengers. No answer was given to a man in an officers jacket, however, he stood there patiently, as if he knew what the noises behind the door were meant to be. Eventually, his patience was rewarded. The door opened, revealing a man dressed in an Arabic warriors garbs.

His armor shone with a magical aura, brimming with all the enchantments it could handle. An unsheathed khopesh was hanging from his waist, a shield was strapped on his left arm, and a bow with a quiver was strapped across his back. He was holding onto a two-handed scimitar with his face mostly covered up by a cowl, glaring at the officer with brown eyes.

Yes? the stoic warrior greeted the man. Nothing more, nothing less.

Gulping from the fighters presence, the officer kept his nerves together as he spoke. We will be making land soon. Please, prepare Saintess Eshe for the arrival. With a single nod, the warrior confirmed the information and closed the door before the officer after giving his thanks. With the door closed, he turned around towards the two women behind him.

One was a warrior just like him, clad in the same enchanted armor, although she wielded a spear in hand, with a pair of khopeshes sheathed at her sides as well as a bow across her back. Sitting on a chair next to her, the second woman had dark brown skin and was wearing a white-red robe with golden decorations, fit for only a white-robed shrine maiden of Aurena. Wearing both an ornamented amulet of Aurena and a gemstone headpiece with her sleek blond hair, she smiled as she looked at her two guards.

Saintess Eshe, we will arrive soon. I presume Lady Anivh has finished your preparations? the male warrior spoke to his mistress.

Yes, Sir Alikar. I have been anticipating our arrival since yesterday. I would not dare waste anybodys time, the woman named Eshe answered graciously, acting pleasantly but with a hint of impatience betraying her true feelings.

Shall we go to the deck, My Lady? Anivh, the warrior woman standing next to Eshe suggested.

Yes, my loyal knights. I wish to speak with the Imperial Alchemist and the Judge before we reach the port. We mustnt waste our time; our objective is Griffonpeak.

While the Empire was a wide land, its emperor was blessed by Aureoliss leaders. To protect this land, several orders of the Knights of Aurena were constructed through the land to serve the churchs and, by extension, the empires needs. Although the quality of knights guarding a church might differ, the ones guarding a saint or saintess would always be of high quality.

With the ornamented door opening, two knights and a saintess of Aurena departed to the deck. Cold winds greeted them as they witnessed the rising sun, to which Eshe gave a silent prayer. After wishing her goddess a good morning, her knights guided the priestess towards two quarreling men: one was a caucasian with a brown beard while the other had dark grey skin and long, sharp ears.

Ahh, Saintess Eshe, I wish you a beautiful DarkDay, My Lady. May my honored God, Marsven, guide you through the darkness today, let none of the shadows taint blight your white soul. An elven man in pristine garments greeted the saintess with a flamboyant bow, acting the very aspect of a gentleman in front of the soft smiling woman.

I wish you a wondrous DarkDay too, Imperial Alchemist Krymdar. May the gods protect us as we step foot on land once again. A follower of Marsven and a Saintess of Aurena were speaking, but neither of them showed any animosity during their greetings. On the other hand, the brown bearded man could only scoff at the elven man.

The egg did not have enough time to reinforce its shell. Without the aura it would oooh, my baby

Melloxtressa cave was once filled with trinkets and decorations she gained from her days outside Kargryx. Following her fathers footprints, she and her brother both traveled the world like the modern eras dragon adolescents. Although never too conspicuous, they still brought many treasures to her home. Her brother, especially, found the greatest treasure of his life in the form of his wife.

Nowadays, after the news, Melloxtressas cold, silvery scales had coated her lair in an icy, thick hide of sparkling ice. Like diamond dust, her home looked like a fortress of winter. Silver dragons were relatives of the more common white and ice dragons, and Melloxtressa inherited this very icy power from her relatives. With her evolution into an SS rank, Melloxtressa was a walking ice age, a natural calamity able to destroy any civilization on Altrust.

It was just unfortunate that in her current state, she was merely crumbling away. A husk of an over 3500-year-old dragon. It almost seemed like this would be her future going for-

[Empress Melloxtressa!] Telepathy. Draconic was commonly used by younger dragons to communicate, as it allowed them to fully express their explosive emotions. On the other hand, the majority of aged dragons preferred using [Telepathy], as it was faster and required less energy. In this very moment where Melloxtressa was trapped in a perpetual circle of depression, a telepathic message suddenly broke this monotony.

However, this silver dragon had little left to motivate herself. These words bounced off her. She did not register anybodys voice.

[Empress Melloxtressa!] A white-scaled dragonewt came rushing into the silver dragons lair, his wings flapping so rapidly he had trouble controlling his flight. In his hand was a single letter. [We found her! We found her! The clan has finally found your daughter! The princess was found!]

Her neck snapped towards the dragonewt with the speed of light, rocking her whole lair like thunder from the sound alone. Mana mist exploded from her body, diffusing into her whole home like a smokescreen. Once all of it disappeared, all that was left was a silver-haired elven woman dressed in a one-piece dress composed solely of her scales. Tears frozen into ice drops were dripping down her silky skin.

Hic. Hie-hic. Her eyes were unable to stop the flood of emotions going through her body, now reignited through the words she heard. [Please, do not lie to me, child.] She reached her hand forward, begging the young dragonewt that this glimmer of hope was not in vain. When she received the already opened letter, her hands trembled as she slowly took the piece of parchment from its envelope, uninterested that Yorshka was the sender.

Dear Lady Melloxtressa, I will jump right to the point, we have found the lost princess. She is safe and healthy in the continent of Altrust, surrounded by friends and allies. Although, there are more difficult details I will reveal later, I wish to reveal something important first. Your daughter, a beautiful mutant fire dragon with scales of crimson and scale powder similar to us Nordors, is alive. In the time she was gone, she has named herself in your stead. Her name is Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor.

Hestia! The wintery layers of diamond dust all shined simultaneously as this single name was uttered from Melloxtressas mouth. Without any other command, almost like magic, the powder shot back into Melloxtressas body. As if she was absorbing them, the snow in her lair quickly disappeared, revealing the beautiful decorations of her home once again.

Melloxtressas skin slowly regained a pinkish color as her scales shined so brightly again like a million polished blades. The ice drops, thawed by the beat of her heart, melted back into tears. Hestia. Hestia. Hestia, she kept repeating, causing her eyes to fully open the floodgates. Holding onto the letter, she lost all strength in her knees and collapsed on the ground.

She continued reading through all the tears. She learned of Hestias status as a reincarnator, as an otherworldly who retained most of her memories from a previous life. She read how she was more mature than a year-old dragon whelp due to her memories, wishing so desperately she could have been there for Hestia. She learned of the struggles Hestia had to face to become a B rank sunfang dragon, blaming herself for how Hestia had to face these trials despite the oath she made for herself.

Im sorry! Im sorry! I should have been there. Your mom should have been there! I should have been there to defend you! This was my duty!

She read through Yorshkas description of Saori, Tasianna, and Ellaine, and praised them for being there for her child, happy that her daughter had found valuable allies to protect her. She cackled in disappointment at how her daughter was learning how to fly and utilize her scale-dust without her supervision. She was conflicted. All of this was good news, but something in her heart was still yearning for more.

I wanted to be there when you did all of this!

Hurgh-hic-hic. Tears slowly created puddles under Melloxtressa, and her voice cracked as she tried to control her elven bodys continuous snot-producing functions. Her elven ears wiggled from joy. She couldnt remember the last time she was this happy. Was it when she reached S ranks maximum level? Or was it the day she gave birth to her egg?

It didnt matter.

When she finished Yorshkas letter, her tears were wiped away by her dragonewt attendant. [She is in Artorias. My precious everything is in Artorias. Where is it?] Nothing was stopping Melloxtressa anymore. No rules. No traditions. Nothing but physics itself.

The dragonewt nodded before giving out a type of call in Draconic. In responce to the call, two snow-white scaled wyverns appeared in her lair. [They know the way; these wyverns shall lead you, Empress Melloxtressa.]

Icicle gust created from her silver powder was created by Melloxtressa, helping her stand up. This powder then surrounded her like wings of ice, covering her up like a veil. She looked into the wyverns eyes, seeing the anxiety in them before they both bowed their heads. Their mouths opened up, releasing an amalgamation of cries.

We failed to bring the Princess back! We fought her and lost! We raised our claws against her! We-We- These were the snow wyverns who were once assigned to aid Astalos, the wyvern tasked by the God of Dragon, Kargrxymor, to bring Hestia before Kargrxmor. They were Hestias enemies due to a misunderstanding, but they were now tasked to safely bring Yorshkas letter to the matriarch of the Nordor clan.

Kriarh krashie kars kra klasha. (Enough, the trip will be long. Tell me everything during our flight, children.)

Melloxtressas emotions were in turmoil, but she was an old dragon of over 3500 years in the body of an elf. She was able to repress her emotions, staying cool-headed as she handled these wyvern children; at least, children relative her own age. She knew the situation with her daughter was special, something she needed a clear mind to deal with.

My daughter I wanted to name you myself but... Hestia, it is a wonderful name. Please, wait for me.

On that day, the SS rank [Diamond-Powder Fimbulvetr Dragon] unleashed her silvery wings once more for the sky to see. Her destination: The Human Kingdom, Artorias.

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Now, the question is, when did all of this happen?This chapter made its debut appearance via N0v3lB1n.