338. Lonely Princess

Rana Alyras hung her head in defeat as the weird woman sat down at her table. Sevika wasn’t going to be returning anytime soon— the maid had said she was going to acquire food, but that clearly was a lie. Otherwise, she’d be back by now.

And now, the princess was trapped. She fidgeted in her seat, casting nervous glances at the weird woman. Please don’t talk to me. Please don’t talk to me. Please don’t talk to—

“Hi! I’m Salvos, what’s your name?”

…why?!

I faced the other girl who was sitting at the table. She had long black locks that were tied into various different braids. Her skin was tanned— dark like most of the people I’d seen from the Helbir Plains. And Ivonne Vigil. That [Merchant] who held the auction for the Fruits of Y’gdrazil at Mavos Academy.

Obviously, they didn’t look related. I could tell that this girl sitting across from me had a different… everything from Ivonne. So I wasn’t going to stupidly lean forward and ask if she knew Ivonne just from that.

Instead, I happily introduced myself to her.

“Hi! I’m Salvos, what’s your name?”

The girl froze. Her entire body tensed. I watched as she slowly turned to face me, tilting her head.

“A-are you talking to me?”

She asked, and I nodded.

“Yep!”

I watched as she bit her lower lip. She tried to work her mouth, but nothing came out. I tapped a finger on the table patiently.

“Um, hello? I am talking to you.”

I waved a hand in front of her head. Her face turned crimson red, and behind me, Willy snorted.

“She heard you.”

“Well, why isn’t she replying then?”

I posed the question to the [Will O’ Wisp]. He flitted up in front of my head, speaking simply.

“Because annoying.”

“I’m not annoying!”

I raised a fist. He just laughed as I swatted at him. My face twisted into a scowl. I sat back into the chair while Willy continued to fly around me. Then I noticed the way the girl’s eyes widened. She stared up at the floating piece of flame.

“That’s… a Grand Spirit?!”

The princess couldn’t believe her eyes. She’d never seen a Grand Spirit before. There weren’t very many [Summoners] in the Helbir Plains. The Sanctum of Elements and the Sanctuary of Fauna didn’t extend to this part of the Human lands. And while the Den of Souls was prevalent here, they didn’t exactly encourage summoning. Not in the same way the Sanctum of Elements and the Sanctuary of Fauna did.

The Den of Souls still looked at Spirits as hallowed creatures. They were the servants of the Spirit Lord, and thus, were to be treated with respect and dignity. To be summoned at the beck and call of any individual Human and fight and die for them.

No— Spirits were summoned in a ritual with numerous [Priests] providing offerings to them in exchange for the completion of a task. It reminded Rana of what she read about [Cultists] and Demon summonings, but she never once voiced her comparisons since she knew the Den of Souls would be gravely affronted at that.

Anyway, all this just meant that there were even fewer Spirits in the Helbir Plains in comparison to other parts of the Human lands. To see a Spirit was already a very rare sight. And to see a Grand Spirit?

Rana’s jaw dropped as she just stared. The [Will O’ Wisp]’s fire blazed.

“I am.”

It took the princess a moment to realize he was answering her question. She lost all sense of her decorum and poise. There were so many questions she wanted to ask him. Like what was his level? Why was he here? Or what even was he a Grand Spirit of?

But before she could continue, the weird woman— Salvos— interrupted the Grand Spirit.

“Nope. Willy’s lying. He’s a Stupid Spirit.”

Salvos clearly emphasized the second last word. Rana blinked a few times.

“...pardon?”

But neither the weird woman nor the Grand Spirit paid attention to her confusion. Instead, they bickered. Almost like children.

“Shut up. You stupid.”

“No you!”

Salvos stuck her tongue out at the [Will O’ Wisp]. He giggled. The princess was at a loss for words. It took her a moment to realize they were just messing with each other. Almost in the same way Sevika would with Rana. And judging by the odd way that the weird woman was dressed, it must’ve meant one thing.

“Are you a [Summoner]? An adventurer?”

“Yep.”

The weird woman nodded eagerly, swatting the [Will O’ Wisp] away.

“I’m Salvos, Secely’s Sentinel. Liberator of the Plaguelands. Death of the Destroyer. Diamond Ranked adventurer.”

She listed out a long list of Titles. Rana’s eyes went round at that. Titles were a rare thing. And it was even rarer to cycle through so many Titles. Also—

“Wait, you’re the Liberator of the Plaguelands? As in one of the three adventurers who killed the Lich?”

“That’s me!”

Salvos beamed. The Grand Spirit groaned in the back.

Rana was in complete awe. The princess just sat there in a daze, trying to parse this. She’d heard news of the Lich’s death. Of the three adventurers who traveled deep into the Plaguelands and slayed it once and for all.

A [Warrior]. A [Rogue]. And a [Mage].

But wait… Rana furrowed her brows.

“I don’t recall there being a [Summoner] amongst the Liberators of the Plaguelands.”

The silver-haired woman cocked her head, in thought.

“Well, there was Edithe? But she’s not a [Summoner] anymore.”

Rana was certain there was some kind of a misunderstanding here. But it’d have been too awkward to explain, so she just bit her lips and tried to move on.

“I have never met such a high-leveled adventurer before. Or a Grand Spirit. I’m sorry if I was rude, I am usually less flustered—”

The princess paused mid-lie. She realized that she’d made another blunder. One far worse than anything else she could’ve committed.

“Oh, I haven’t introduced myself…”

“Yep. You haven’t.”

The princess felt her face burning at that. Salvos and Willy both exchanged a glance. Rana hurried to her feet, managing an unrefined bow.

“My name is Rana Alyras. I am the sole princess of Alyras. I am so sorry for my rudeness.”

There was a pause. Rana could hear the feast continue on around them. The room was bustling, filled with ambient music put on by an orchestra Artik had gotten to entertain the guests. And the awkward silence dragged on for a moment longer.

Rana wanted to cry as she felt Salvos’ gaze bore into her.

I messed up didn’t I? She hates me now—

“You’re the princess of Alyras?!”

Salvos finally exclaimed.

Rana blinked. That wasn’t the reaction she was expecting. She glanced up in bewilderment at the adventurer, speaking hesitantly.

“I… am.”

“Woah! You’re really the princess, aren’t you? Just look at the way you’re dressed!”

Salvos got to her feet, gesturing at Rana’s long silk dress decorated in jewelry. The princess flushed.

“I-is it that bad?”

“It’s amazing! You look so rich and fancy!”

There were many things racing through Rana’s mind. But all she could do was watch as Salvos circled around her excitedly. Then the adventurer turned to her Grand Spirit companion.

“Look at her, Willy! She’s the princess of Alyras! I’m actually talking to the princess of Alyras!”

That felt like something Rana should be saying for meeting Salvos. In fact, it was the same excitement that Rana knew she was feeling underneath her gaping and staring. The only difference was that she was too embarrassed to actually vocalize her thoughts.

The Grand Spirit just laughed at Salvos.

“Fool.”

“I am not making a fool of myself!”

“Are.”

“Nope!”

They bickered as Rana stood to the side. She felt her face heat up as they continued their argument. Like children. But also like friends. Sevika and Rana openly traded jibes no different than they did. The only difference was that Rana did it in secret.

But Willy and Salvos did it so freely. Without care in the world. Even if there were dozens of nobles— ladies and lords— giving them judging looks. They continued. And Rana’s lips quivered. She tried to hold it back, but couldn’t.

The princess broke out laughing.

Salvos and Willy paused their argument, turning to face her curiously. Rana tried to cover her face as she continued laughing.

“I’m so sorry. I’m not laughing because it’s— I’m…”

No matter what Rana did, she couldn’t hold herself back. Perhaps it was just the way the pair were acting so freely, it rubbed off on her. And for a moment, she thought they’d have looked at her with disdain for her reaction.

But Salvos laughed too. Before the [Will O’ Wisp] joined. When Sevika left, the table had been empty. Only Rana sat there. Alone, quiet and by herself. But when the maid returned, their table was full of life. Now, the princess had someone to talk to.

The maid smiled.

“Hey, uh, Saffron, was it?”

Saffron Merryster glanced back at the mention of her name. She faced a young man with black hair— one who was just as improperly dressed for this event as Salvos was. Daniel Song. He was accompanied by Amanda who was cross-armed standing behind his right shoulder.

The young Vampire raised a brow.

“Did you need something, Daniel?”

“I was actually looking for Salvos. I haven’t seen her around since the start of the feast.”

He scratched at his cheek, speaking nervously.

“You don’t think she’s going around causing trouble, is she?”

Oh, so that was what he wanted to talk about. Saffron sighed as she remembered the incident just earlier.

“Well, Salvos has already caused trouble.”

“...are you serious?”

Daniel had the same resigned look on Saffron’s face. She nodded.

“And I already spoke with her. But I’m not sure whether she’ll actually listen to me. She’s been acting… weird recently.”

He pursed his lips as he exchanged a glance with the Vampire. They both had the same thought.

“I think we should go check on her.”

They spoke at the same time. The pair immediately marched through the large hall, followed by the bored trailing Amanda, until they finally got to where Saffron had left Salvos. They came to a halt when they saw Salvos… talking.

She spoke normally at a table as Willy floated beside her. Daniel exhaled in relief, placing a hand on his chest.

“That’s good. She isn’t—”

He looked over at Saffron, but she was still stiff. She stared at the two people Salvos was chatting with. Across from the silver-haired woman was the princess of Alyras. A black-haired woman wearing a glamorous silk robe. And next to her was her father.

King Artik Alyras sat with them, laughing and eating as a maid came to serve them a platter of food.

Daniel gave Saffron a confused look.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

She just pinched the bridge of her nose.

“Salvos really just befriended the king and princess of Alyras, didn’t she?”

“Oh.”

Daniel shrugged.

“Well, as long as she’s feeling better, right?”

“I guess.”

Some time after Rana had warmed up to us, her father joined us in our meal. Their maid— a woman named Sevika— offered me a platter of dishes to choose from, and I picked out the lobster because it was the only thing I could eat without seeming rude. I was less upset now compared with before. I could distract my mind with something.

Princess Rana was fun to talk to. She was a princess just like Faith and Hope, but the way she behaved was completely different. In fact, she told me about the things she learned as princess, and it sounded nothing like what Faith had undergone.

Maybe it was because Rana was the sole daughter. The only princess. So she didn’t have to compete for power. Or maybe it was just because of how Artik was as the king and her father. Either way, I found them fascinating. I was certain we could’ve continued chatting into the night, if not for the one interruption that ground the entire feast to a halt.

A man dressed in robes rushed his way through the hall. Heads turned, facing his way as he made his way to the king. At first, I didn’t notice him. But then I glanced up because I heard the ruckus caused by his escort— a group of armored guards clanking their way through the party.

“Your majesty. I bring an urgent missive from Shedos.””

The robed man kneeled before the king. Artik rose to his feet, frowning.

“What is it?”

“The Primeval Demon—”

I didn’t let the robed man finish. My head snapped up as I caught sight of a flash. No— not in the hall. I was looking through my clone’s eyes. Smoke. Blood. Death. Destruction.

And I spoke for everyone to hear.

“Belzu has reached the Helbir Plains.”