Chapter 203

As expected of the Fire Dragon Clan’s physique.

【Extreme Dark Nova】—this was a grand magic spell released by Sheffy after compressing one percent of her own magic power.

Although the direction in which the magic was released had deliberately veered far away from Timani, and the explosion hadn’t even touched her—blasting over a hundred meters away—even the residual shockwaves from such a spell would have left an ordinary powerhouse half-paralyzed, burdened with an indelible trauma for the rest of their life.

Yet, despite the lingering fear and survival instinct in her eyes, Timani could still force a bitter smile and remain conscious.

That alone was truly an impressive feat.

Such a tremendous commotion caused the bustle within the Demon King’s Castle to gradually subside. No one dared to approach—most likely because Belith was holding the fort on that side.

Sylatrella squatted next to Timani, poking her collagen-rich cheek with a finger, grinning from ear to ear.

“Pff… Timani, why’d you get knocked down again?!”

“You…!”

“Don’t get all fierce now. I told you before—your Domain Magic is all flash and no bite. The range is wide, but it doesn’t pack much of a punch. If you really want to get stronger, you need me to teach you the true essence of magic!”

“I don’t need—”

“Ungrateful lizard! If you’re not going to learn, I’m not gonna bother teaching you anyway! Hmph!”

Sylatrella had seen Sheffy acting as a teacher recently and wanted to follow her mother’s example to make herself more useful.

Who would’ve thought this Fire Lizard would outright reject her!

Though Timani said she didn’t need it, what she truly thought inside might’ve been different.

For someone with arrogance running deep in their bones, the idea of bowing down to learn from another required a long inner struggle.

But for a powerhouse to suffer two consecutive defeats in such a short time—and both at the hands of girls who looked like children!

How could she not start wondering whether she should start learning magic all over again from scratch…

Xiarette noticed fresh tears rolling down Timani’s cheeks. It seemed they came from her frustrated realization that she couldn’t move at all, despite desperately trying to get up. A mix of shame and helplessness.

Sylatrella let out a huff and stood up. To avenge the rejection from earlier, she launched into her own theory.

“I can explain this phenomenon. For a strong person, losing isn’t the scariest thing. The scary part is getting defeated and being unable to quickly retreat from the battlefield. Like Timani, lying here motionless—sure, she’s got a blanket, but it’s no different than being naked in front of us while completely paralyzed. That’s the true sorrow of a powerhouse.”

“Can’t you shut up for once, you damn brat?!”

“Aw…! Lady Sheffy, look! She does still have strength!”

See? Just gritted her teeth and sat right up!

Uh… though hearing those crack crack sounds from her bones probably wasn’t a great sign…

Timani wrapped herself tighter in the blanket and sat up with her head lowered, too embarrassed to continue complaining.

A loser had to look the part. Who else could be like Sheffy, defeated in the Kingdom, and still so shameless about it?

Hmm…? Defeated in the Kingdom?

Timani stared blankly at Sheffy, eyes filled with confusion.

“Wait… If you’re this strong, why did you lose to Xiarette back then?”

“I was acting.”

“You were acting…?! You’re not even a dramatic artist! What are you acting for?!”

“My acting bothered you or something?! Why are you so nosy all the time?!”

Damn it all!

Timani’s previous judgment of the Demon Clan Princess’s strength was largely based on the fact that she had once been defeated by the Hero.

Timani could estimate Xiarette’s capabilities—slightly stronger than herself, but not by a wide margin.

That was why she had thought Sheffy wouldn’t be able to beat her.

Who could’ve known she was some sort of abstract performance artist?!

No—she should have known.

This girl had always been like this.

Watching Timani’s expression grow increasingly twisted, as if she might just throw herself into a river at any moment, Xiarette quickly shot Sheffy a “kind” look, signaling her to shut her mouth. That little mouth of hers was practically cursed by the Dragon Gods.

Once Sheffy folded in her wings and began whistling innocently to feign ignorance, Xiarette bent down with a wry smile and asked Timani the most fundamental question.

“I think I only just figured out the reason behind your fight. So, Miss Timani, can you now understand where Sheffy’s confidence in going to the Northern Flaming Lands comes from? Though it might sound like I’m bragging… Sheffy is absolutely someone with a sense of responsibility and sound judgment. She’d never attempt something beyond her capabilities.”

“I get your point… But why does praising Sheffy sound like you’re bragging?”

“Because praising my Sheffy is bragging! Tch, why is cross-species communication so hard?! Miss Timani, you really can’t spot the main issue here?!”

“The main issue…? Oh, I get it! You only just now figured out why we were fighting? You’re seriously dumb!”

“I swear I’m going to…!”

“Calm down, Hero! Please calm down! She’s an injured person!”

Sylatrella immediately leapt up and hugged Xiarette’s raised arm, stopping her from inflicting any secondary damage on the wounded.

If she actually beat her to death, Lady Sheffy would definitely side with Timani and accuse her of poking her face to death just earlier!

With the good-natured Xiarette now fuming off to the side, Timani finally collected herself enough to raise her eyes and meet Sheffy’s face. Though Sheffy was usually shorter, Timani still had to look up even while sitting.

“So… that move just now, was that your trump card—your full strength?”

“Well, not exac—”

“If that was it… Then yes, it could indeed rival the elders.

I admit, I was too short-sighted. Sheffy, you’re strong. You really don’t need me interfering with your journey to the Northern Flaming Lands. Still, I must advise you to plan ahead, seek reliable allies, and never lower your guard. Even in a fight between equals, one moment of carelessness can carry a heavy price.”

“Look… Can you let me finish before launching into a lecture? I never said that was my trump card, did I?”

“She… Sheffy?” Xiarette sensed something ominous. “You’re not thinking of…”

“Can’t help it. She’s just too stubborn. I really didn’t think that last move still wouldn’t make her understand. Oh well. Anyway—Fire Lizard—I’m only showing you this because I genuinely see you as a friend. Once you’ve seen it, don’t be ungrateful—and you must keep it secret.”

“Show…? Show me what?”

Oh no!

“Sister Sylatrella!”

“Got it! Hero, prepare to retreat!”

【Super Acceleration】【Teleportation】

Timani froze.

It was as if Sylatrella and Xiarette had foreseen some imminent danger—they vanished from the spot in an instant. When they reappeared, they were already standing at least five hundred meters away.

Wait… what just happened?

Sheffy crossed both arms in front of her chest.

Behind her, pitch-black magical particles surged forth once again.

Six black wings slowly unfurled amidst the vortex of magical turbulence.

And… the emergence didn’t stop at the sixth wing.

As the faint, almost illusory eighth wing began to take shape, Timani felt her stomach roil violently, a wave of dizziness crashing down on her.

And it only intensified.

Xiarette let out a breath of relief.

Whew… thank goodness—they’d run fast enough this time. That sensation of forced vomiting was just unbearable. Worse than those roller coasters from her past life—by far.

Though… she couldn’t shake the feeling that during their retreat, she might’ve forgotten something important?

Well, if she couldn’t remember, it probably wasn’t that important.

…Wait a second.

“Oh no!”

“What’s wrong, Hero? No need to shout—the magic vortex doesn’t reach this far.”

“It’s not that! Princess Livra is still lying over there!”

“!”

—

34. Report?

As it turned out, there really was such a thing as a fool’s fortune.

Faced with the sudden surge of magical vortex, Livra, quite miraculously, wasn’t affected much.

After all, one’s response to extremely high concentrations of magic depends greatly on their level of magical mastery.

It’s like the ocean—vast and boundless. The broader one’s heart, the more they’re able to appreciate its endless horizon.

Even someone completely devoid of romance would still utter a word or two of admiration at the sea view, however half-heartedly.

But…

There’s nothing to be done if a blind person tries to look at the ocean—they simply can’t see anything.

Livra was exactly like that. She was utterly clueless about magic and had a terribly poor sense for it.

Other than being surprised that Teacher Shaya had eight wings and feeling a slight wave of dizziness, she experienced no further discomfort. All she could do was blink her big eyes in a daze and continue crouching down for cover.

Fool’s fortune, indeed.

But the dumb dragon had no such luck.

All the strength Timani had just managed to recover was now spent entirely on forced vomiting.

“Sheffy, you…! What on earth are yo—ugh!”

“Alright, alright, just gag a little and get it over with, no need to overdo it—uh, can you still hold on?!”

“Ugh…!”

Even though every time they saw her wings they ended up vomiting—which she found deeply impolite—right now, saving the dragon took priority!

Sheffy suppressed her magical overflow and hurried to pat Timani’s back to help her breathe.

But her strength wasn’t exactly gentle—Timani had almost started to recover on her own, but Sheffy’s back-pats sent her spinning into another dizzy spell.

“Cough…! Enough… stop… stop hitting me! Are you trying to kill me?!”

“I didn’t… You’re the one who kept being so defiant…” Sheffy said, lacking conviction. She clearly wasn’t in the right, but still insisted on getting her words in. “So you see? This is what happens when your personality works against you…”

“You’re just…! No… I can’t anymore, I’m going to pass out. One last request… let me go back to my room and lie down for a bit. We can talk after I wake up… I’m seriously begging you…”

“……”

So this was the famed resilience of the Fire Dragon Clan.

When other people say they’re about to faint, they just drop without another word. Yet Timani actually managed to finish speaking before losing consciousness.

Before she collapsed, Sheffy gently steadied her by the shoulders.

Crimson strands of hair fell between her petite arms.

Fire rains upon the mortal realm, descending upon the endless snow.

Even if it looked delicate, it could still bear the weight of flame.

On Xiarette’s side, she had just helped Livra to her feet—only to look up and catch this exact scene.

“Princess Livra, are you alright—yikes!”

“Wah!”

No sooner had she steadied her than—thud—she dropped her back onto the ground.

“Uh… sorry, Your Highness, but… but maybe it’s better if you get up on your own!”

“Uugh… You shouldn’t have helped me at all! Huh? Is the battle over already?”

Bewildered, Livra could only see Lord Xiarette and Sister Sylatrella both dashing frantically toward Miss Shaya.

“Sheffy! Let me help bring her back! You don’t need to carry—cough!—you don’t need to tire yourself out!”

“That’s right! I’ve got a rope right here—let me tie her up and drag her back! Lady Sheffy, you just take a good rest!”

Ohhh…! You two showed up at just the right time!

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep