Royal Princess of Blood

A hooded figure wearing a cloak arrived in the library. His feet did not touch the floor as he was floating a little. Beneath the hood there was nothing but darkness, no face to see at all. He radiated an eerie presence that even demons were slightly disturbed by. Bakin had no idea what he truly was, aside from what was commonly known about him. But to be brief, the Administrator had basically been leading the demon kind in the demon god’s absence.

Although it was unknown if the Administrator was a legit demon in the first place. Everyone just assumed he was one. If it ever turned out that he was not, that wouldn’t matter really. The Administrator had been there from the beginning, and had been striving for the demon god’s release. He was the only one keeping the demons in order. Besides, rumor suggested that he was stronger than any of the Dread Lords, so it would be pretty stupid to try to fight him.

Upon his arrival, Bakin conveyed his report about the situation. Upon finishing, it seemed that the Administrator’s mood changed. In deep thought, he fell silent as he floated towards the window and stared outside.

“... Hm… No normal human could have escaped an imp…” he spoke in a cold and hollow voice. “It is certain now. That girl is the reincarnation of the goddess’s daughter.”

“Then this is good, right?” Arin asked. “There is no doubt. After countless years of waiting and attempts, we finally found the one.” A sign of excitement showed on her face.

“Yes, this is good news. If she escaped an elite like Rytus and his team, that might mean she has access to powerful magic.”

Arin nodded. “Or someone helped her.” There have been other factions present at Wisteria, after all.

“... All that matters is that she is alive.” That was most important for them. As long as she was alive, they had hope.

“But Administrator, why is she going to Nishinoa?”

He was silent for a moment. “... How did she even know?” the administrator muttered. “No, she shouldn’t have… Someone is currently helping her, someone who knows.”

“Administrator?” Arin tilted her head.

“Are you all aware that the goddess of blood perished on Shinoroa?”

Everyone nodded.

They all knew about it. Bakin heard stories about it. But not like he personally saw it all happen. Truth be told, the demons were caught off guard by such news. Learning about her demise was agonizing for the demons, as she was the only one who could have freed their god. They were enemies, but the goddess dying was not in their desires at all.

“But do you know precisely where?”

At that, Bakin was not sure.

Then, the administrator continued, “She died somewhere in Nishinoa.”

“Somewhere? Even you do not know?” Trigel was a bit surprised about that.

“You only heard stories about her demise. I know what happened, but not all of it.” He held out his palm, and azure light emerged, shaping into figures with wings. “The Goddess of Blood’s influence had grown too strong, her being unrestrained in her actions worried the other gods.”

“What the hell has she been doing anyway that offended them?” Bakin asked, purely out of curiosity.

“Her personally stepping in to seal our Lord is part of it. But most of it… is her involvement in protecting humans. She would not follow the other gods’ wishes. And you know what is done to those who do not fall in line?”

“... Disposed of.”

Those in absolute power would definitely take out those who threaten their position. The same thing would not be strange coming from the gods. In fact, Bakin wouldn’t be surprised if the gods casually did such a thing, punishing those who went against their wishes. Even demons would absolutely do the same. Bakin would.

“And therefore, the gods first sent hundreds of angels.” The winged figures cast by the Administrator were angels. “However, mere angels could never defeat a Ruler. Their purpose was to weaken her, nothing more.” And the golden figures shattered. They were sacrifices, disposable beings. “When the angels were wiped out, the gods descended, and at last battled her to the death.” Points of light appeared and smashed against a single light. “Their battle happened in Nishinoa, and it ended there. Where precisely is unknown to me.” The lights vanished, and the Administrator lowered his hand. “Closely following the battle of the gods is no easy feat.”

“Is the princess going to search where the goddess died or something?” Trigel asked.

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“... When gods die, they leave a well of divine power. A power that can be taken only by someone divine. And the princess will be most compatible with this power as the goddess’s daughter. Given that she was born in human flesh, her body cannot sustain her divinity.”

“Meaning?”

“Her time is limited. However, if she inherits the Goddess of Blood’s power, she will ascend into true godhood. Finally rid of her mortal vessel.”

Bakin’s eyes widened as a wave of apprehension surged through his body. “Ain’t that bad?! If she becomes a legit god, there’s no way we can go and just snatch her.”

“A fledgling god… Demons will stand no chance.”

Divinity was their weakness. If the princess becomes a god, she’d basically be a source of that divinity. She’d be oozing with it. No demon might even be able to get too close to her at all. If she deemed any demon a threat, she could easily take them out.

“No, wait, there’s a good side to this, right?” Trigel said. “She’d still need to find the exact place where the goddess died. That’s a lot of land to search on.”

“Unless they already know where to find it,” Arin responded. “The Cursed Children could have been the ones to tell her about the well of power. They might have helped her escape from Rytus. However, from what I understand, even the Cursed Children should have no holy magic whatsoever. If Rytus has not sent us a message…”

“It wouldn’t be a surprise if the princess had access to holy power,” said the administrator. “It’s in her blood.”

Arin nodded. “The Cursed Children are desperate. They have countless years to search for the goddess’s grave. They must know where it is.”

“Great, the princess knows where to go,” Bakin scratched the back of his head.

That made things more troubling for the demons.

“There will be plenty of time and plenty of opportunities.” The Administrator turned towards them. “Do not rush and do not be impatient. To retrieve the princess, be careful with your approach. Do not brute-force it. No room for mistakes. We must prepare our forces accordingly.” He then turned to Trigel. “Trigel, you will lead the retrieval forces. Bring Ongrus and the ravagers with you.”

“Bringing those big guys to the islands? Won’t exactly be subtle.”

“That is fine. The ravagers are brutes, you shall rein them in. But they shall prove to be most effective in direct confrontations.”

Trigel nodded. “Understood. I’ll go and find Ongrus.”

***

While he had the chance, Bakin went on to rest to regain his strength. He was given a guest room at the castle. Meanwhile, Trigel left the castle and flew towards the corner of the city where the ravagers’ territory was.

It was at the side of the city where there was an open field, and where a colosseum stood. The colosseum was decrepit, its stones and bricks were worn and cracked, and a lot of them had already fallen off its walls. Even so, it was still being used for duels or whatever whims the ravagers had.

Ravagers were beasts of battle and violence. Fighting and wreaking havoc were part of their nature. And that was why they were put in a place away from the city center. Not only would their size be a problem, but their behavior would cause damage to the buildings and might cause casualties that could have been avoided. That being said, a policy was made that when the ravagers duel, no killing their own. It would be in bad taste and a waste if they just kept killing their own kin without a good reason. They were more useful alive than dead. Although there were instances of accidents.

That policy was a bit of an annoyance and frustration for the giant beasts. Gore and mayhem were a sort of need for them. Therefore, substitutes were needed.

As Trigel approached the colosseum, on the open field there were ravagers battling. They violently swung their fists at each other. When they hit, a small shockwave occurred, blowing dust into the air. Their stomping steps as they ran were heavy, leaving small craters on the ground, crushing the stones beneath them.

“Hahaha!” one of them laughed as he took a hit. “That all you got?!” He got punched in the gut, then to the face. However, a smirk remained on his face, unfazed by all those attacks. “I felt nothing!” He just tanked all of those hits like nothing.

Trigel proceeded to the arena of the Colosseum, where, as he had expected, the dread lord of the ravagers was. But he was not alone, along with other ravagers, there was a group of humans standing at the center of the arena. Trigel landed to the side as he walked towards Ongrus. Meanwhile, the dirty humans were trembling in terror, frozen in place, compelled to stand still and not move.

Behind the ravagers that were facing the humans a distance away was a pile of stones. One of the ravagers picked up a stone, chuckling as he glared at one of the humans. The humans were sobbing as they watched the demon shift his hand, their fear growing as they stared at him. The humans knew their fate now. And there was no escaping it. They were at the complete mercy of these monsters.

The ravager chuckled. “Better not move, human.” After shifting his arm backward, he violently threw the stone towards the human. The stone quickly pierced through the air until it hit its target in the chest.

Upon impact, the human was flung several meters away, his chest was crushed. But he was still twitching, choking on his own blood, bleeding heavily on the chest, suffering agonizing pain as instant death evaded him. An instant death would have been a blessing for him. But as he survived, the demons would not grant him that easily.

“Aaw, he’s still alive. Well, let’s leave it at that. Guess I threw it a bit too weak.”

“My turn then.” Another ravager stepped in.

There were enough humans for all of them.

As the stone-throwing event continued, Trigel walked up to Ongrus.

“Ongrus.”

The giant beast turned his head at him. “What are you doing here? Want to participate?” He had a sharp, scowling face, but truth be told, it was basically a normal expression for them.

“... Thanks for the invite, but I’m not quite fond of such sport.”

“Hm, your loss. So, what are you here for?”

“I’m here to tell you to mobilize.”

At that, Ongrus completely turned to face Trigel, his face stern. “To where?”

“To Shinoroa. Rejoice, your forces will finally get to use their strength for a meaningful purpose.”

Ongrus grinned, chuckling in a low, grim voice. “Finally. What’s the goal? Finally wrecking some humans?”

“Maybe we’ll get to do that. But our primary purpose is to retrieve a young goddess. One that you know of. You guys will be our muscles.”

“Hehehe…” He clenched his fists. “I’m looking forward to it.”