1399 Peace Before The Storm

The journey to the Pala kingdom was different than expected.

Varian believed getting into the capital and into the royal quarters to live there for a while would be something he'd do with dread.

He's nervous, yes. Afraid of things going wrong, also yes.

But more than those emotions, he's reluctant.

It was something he did not anticipate. After the war with Abyssals, he thought he resolved himself to do whatever was necessary to fulfill the ultimate goal.

And he believed he stopped trying to be a hero. But as more and more time passed as the 'Ruler', his opinion seemed to have shifted.

In the end, when the time came to take the most important decision, his priorities finally became clear. 

In the spacious ship of the little princess, Varian, Sarah, Enigma, Sonya, and Reina began their journey.

Clad in exotic silken blue clothes that looked suitable for a festival, Sarah sat in one of the rooms and was having an intense discussion with Isadora who was in her spirit form.

Sarah was set to take on the role of Isadora's disciple—something she would've never done if not for the life-and-death situation.

The Queen of Radiants planned to stay behind and protect the empire until Varian returned. Due to his insistence, the plan was to be revamped.

As the disciple of the legendary princess, Sarah would have to be strong—which wasn't a problem.

Due to the acceleration of the legacy, she's already knocking on the doors of rank 8 and would hit it anytime soon. It was a ridiculous speed that caused even Isadora to feel envious.

But strength alone wouldn't be sufficient. If she's really the disciple, she'd have to act as if she knew Isadora well enough—the Isadora of 500 years ago.

It's not a simple matter to fake a deep bond that's built in 500 years. And to do so in a two-day journey? It's fucking hard!

The two continued to converse, trying to figure out a solution.

It was an interesting sight.

Sarah considered Isadora to be her only rival. And Isadora too begrudgingly acknowledged Sarah as a 'threat'.

These two were always at odds with each other.

Sarah still held a strong grudge over Isadora's actions and openly stated she wouldn't be sure of this woman not stabbing them in the back one day.

After learning about Isadora's past and spending some time with her, the friction smoothened but it'd be a mistake to assume their relationship was anything like that of Sarah's and Sia's or Sarah's and Enigma's.

Isadora held a grudge against Sarah for a different reason. Sarah…was a bit similar to her.

An unprecedented rate of progress, standing at the top of the dominion, and decisiveness to kill—these were the attributes of the legendary princess Isadora. But also those of Sarah.

But she was also different.

Sarah had everything she had…and she had even better things.

A loving husband who decided to risk the life of everyone else than risk hers.

A lively best friend to share little talks with.

A lovely home with a very warm atmosphere compared to the cold walls of the palace.

A strong bond with the people she considered—to the point she was ready to die for them. Even better? They too were ready to die for her.

Isadora pursed her lips and looked at Sarah contemplating deeply, trying to figure out the impression she needed to have for certain aspects of her master that were just discussed.

"I think you can do it."

"Huh? If you want to mock me, wait for a better time." Sarah glared at her. "I don't think I can get even 20% of it right."

"I mean what I say. You can do it, not alone, but you aren't alone, are you?" Isadora's gaze turned to a certain room.

The room with Sarah's husband.

"Yes! I could ask for Var's help! My husband is the best!" Sarah stood up with a relieved expression.

Isadora watched her glowing face and felt a sense of discomfort from deep within. The nameless envy towards this much younger woman didn't turn bitter. After all, she did not hate Sarah. But the whole thing was certainly annoying to watch.

'Will there come a day when I can also be as happy?'

The Princess shook her head and followed her into the room.

The training room of the spaceship was large.

Even though the ship itself seemed small from the outside—not much bigger than a private jet—the space inside was enough to cover a thousand football fields.

In that vast space, the training room in particular occupied the highest area. Not only that, everything here—from the materials on the wall to the tiles of the floor, the coating of the ceiling, and even the space of the particular location itself—was strengthened to withstand power in the realm of a rank 8.

As Sarah and Isadora were about to enter the training space, they encountered a pouting Sonya near the entrance. The little princess was rubbing her forehead with aggrieved, teary eyes.

"Sonya! What happened? Did that idiot say something mean?" Isadora immediately came to her little sister's rescue.

"Not-so-young-anymore lady, what happened? Did you do something mean for my man to chide you?" Sarah followed up without any hesitation.

Sonya wanted to glare at Sarah but the Queen's blue eyes were shining with a cold light that she'd rather not look at.

"I-I was just complaining that he destroyed my castle. Sister, you know how precious that castle is! It's my most precious possession!" Sonya said in a sobbing tone, not like a younger sister complaining to her elder sister but like a daughter complaining to her mother.

"And what did he do to you?"

"H-He…" Sonya bit her lip and hesitated.

"Yes?"

"He actually…"

"We're listening."

"You wouldn't believe what he di—"

"Bitch, spit it out or I'll beat you up too!"

Sia jumped out of nowhere and pointed a spear at the little princess.

"Huek!" Sonya hid behind her elder sister and grabbed her clothes for reassurance. Even in her spirit state, thanks to the strong soul power, they're still warm, providing the scared woman some much-needed courage.

"He sparred with me. And then beat me black and blue…I begged him to stop! But that man…no, brother-in-law, he kept healing me and beating me…Waah! That man is not a gentleman, he's a beast!"

And thus, Sonya showed her light but painful injuries to the audience of three.

"…"

"…"

"…"

The three of them were thoroughly unimpressed.

Looking at her so-called injuries, Varian had been very kind in dealing with her. He'd spar with them as well.

Though Varian was reluctant to truly fight them in a serious sense, if he got into the 'zone', then he'd not hesitate to inflict pain.

Of course, his consciousness still reigns supreme and there would be no deadly attacks. In that backdrop, what Sonya went through was a strong pat on the back.

Sia clicked her tongue at Sarah and walked away. "I'll need to focus on some training. It'd be a damn shame if the main wife is weaker than the concubine."

"But I'm the main wife!"

Ignoring Sarah's retort, the lady in fashionable white-and-black training clothes walked away.

Sarah snorted and opened the training space.