I wait for the sun to rise, have some breakfast, and then take off to complete the last leg of the journey. As soon as I gain some altitude I can start to see the city on the horizon. The first thing that I notice about the city is the towers, there are hundreds of them.

However, as I get closer to the city I start to get worried, a lot of them aren't towers. They are church steeples, there are dozens of churches all over the city. Hopefully, there aren't any avatars around, but the amount of churches is still worrying.

Before I can get a closer look, a group of giant eagles heads towards me. They are being ridden by imperial soldiers who take a look at me, salute, and then fly away. Seeing the eagles fly away, I notice the soldiers on the city walls also stand down.

It looks like I won't be getting shot at this time, at least not by the soldiers. The fact that the southern empire has air cavalry is rather surprising. From what Zachariah said they also have a strong mage core, I wonder why they haven't conquered the north?

They might have other considerations that I don't know about, I may ask while I am here. Although, I guess it will depend on the emperor's attitude towards me. If he is friendly I may ask about a few things, if he isn't then I won't bother.

After all, once I leave I doubt I will have any further dealings with the southern empire. So, this trip will entirely depend on the emperor's attitude and my mood. Of course, the main priority is still to get the elves safely out of here, anything else is a bonus.

As I am flying over the city I feel a sudden surge of divine power from one of the churches. I stop and hover as I wait to see if the avatar is going to be hostile or not. Lin isn't here, so unless it is a god I have pissed off before, they might be friendly.

However, what ends up coming out of the church isn't an avatar, it is an angel. The angel has four wings, so it should be fairly high ranked, and has feminine features. Although, with angels that isn't a guarantee that it is actually a female angel.

The angel has a sword in each hand, partial plate armor, and long silver hair. Based on the design of the armor I am going to assume that it is a female for now. She looks around until she spots me, then she flies up to my level and hovers in front of me.

"Do you need something, angel?"

Angel says "My mistress sensed a beast able to destroy the city, but for some reason she couldn't see you directly. So, she sent me to see what you want and protect the city if needed."

"I am here at the emperor's invitation to help him with a few things. I have no plan to destroy the city. However, that could change if I am attacked."

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Angel says "If you are here by invitation then that is fine. However, until I verify that I will be escorting you. Any sign of hostility will be met with violence."

"Haha, sure, whatever you say. So, do you have a name or should I just call you angel?"

Angel says "My name is Lyrica. What do you find so funny?"

"Just that you should grow another pair of wings at least before you think about threatening me."

Lyrica says "If you are right and I am not able to handle you, then my mistress would descend herself to deal with you."

"Well, luckily for you and your mistress, I am not here to cause trouble. By the way, who is your mistress?"

Lyrica says "My mistress is the goddess Strassi, The Protector."

"Oh, what does she protect?"

Lyrica says "The empire and the people in it. She also grants her powers to those who protect others."

"Oh, a goddess specifically dedicated to protection? I guess I can respect that. Is the empire under attack so often that it needs a dedicated protector?"

Lyrica says "Yes. The empire is constantly under threat."

"From what? I thought that things were rather peaceful in recent times?"

Lyrica says "It is not other humans that threaten the empire. It is the desert that my mistress protects against."

"The desert? That sounds ominous. Why is the desert such a threat?"

Lyrica says "The desert stretches out from the center of the continent and it is constantly trying to expand. If left alone it would swallow the entire continent."

"Why are you talking about it like it is alive?"

Lyrica says "As far as I know, it is. It is a ravenous beast that wants to consume the world."

"A living desert? Really? Now I am curious!"

Lyrica doesn't seem to know what to say to that, so she just stays silent. Since she isn't replying, I continue flying towards the center of the city and she follows me. The palace isn't hard to spot, but I notice some soldiers waving me down from a nearby building.

Shiro did say that the palace had already been cleared out, so I land before the soldiers. The building looks like a high end hotel and it is surrounded by guards. As Lyrica is landing behind me, I shapeshift into my human form.

Lyrica says "Wait, why can a beast take on human form?!"

Imperial Guard Captain says "Welcome, King Ash!"

Lyrica says "King?! What is going on?!"

Imperial Guard Captain says "King Ash, is she not with you?"

"Nope. She serves your protector goddess. Apparently, they were worried that I would destroy the city."

Imperial Guard Captain says "I see. If you will follow me, the emperor is excited to meet you."

The guard leads me into the building, which was probably a luxury hotel in the past. It is hard to tell since there are piles of crates all over and people doing paperwork on any available surface. It looks like this place is acting as a temporary palace, but it isn't big enough.

Luckily, the building has an elevator, which we take to the top floor where more guards are waiting. The guard captain stops here and other guards open the doors to what should be a suite. It was probably the most expensive suite in the hotel, but again it is just too small.

What would have been a living room is now acting as the throne room. Directly ahead of me are two chairs, the rest of the furniture has been removed. Even so, the room is crowded with all the standing nobles and guards.

The chairs are occupied by a young man and woman, who I am guessing are the emperor and empress. However, my attention is drawn to the woman standing beside the emperor. It is not her beauty that catches my attention, it is her aura since it isn't human.