Chapter: 3. Border Town
As playful as it seemed moments ago, the laughter in the carriage turned serious when it came to a situation at hand, with everyone sitting upright.
Except for Belis.
She sat upright because she was reflecting on her mistakes, insisting on enduring it to the end.
Xue Fei lifted a small corner of the carriage curtain, allowing her to observe the outside environment.
— An icy world, devoid of life.
This was the Demon Race’s border fortress, Lide Qidu, a town buried under snow and wind all year round.
With almost no residents, only the Third Legion of the Demon King’s Army was stationed here to guard the borders, resulting in a significant military presence, hence the title “fortress.”
At that moment, blocking their way and demanding a search was a middle-aged soldier of the Demon Race, with a face weathered by years of snow and wind, holding a spear.
From the lone black wing on his back, it could be deduced that he was a sentry, technically not part of the formal structure of the Demon King’s Army.
Without formal ties, there was naturally more leniency.
Seeing the carriage passengers not responding, the sentry seemed to understand; he had seen such situations many times before.
“Oh, oh… another bunch of unlicensed black traders trying to sneak into the Demon Territory to sell their goods, huh? Get out of the carriage! Do you think hiding from me will let you pass? Without a permit, pay a toll, and I’ll pretend I didn’t see you. It’s tough for you to do business, and it’s not like I’m standing guard for nothing either. Let’s not make it hard for each other, okay?”
“……”
Belis stopped pondering her mistakes at that moment.
A hint of killing intent surfaced in her eyes.
As a sentry, neglecting his duties was already a capital crime, and he thought he could privately collect a toll?
What a disgrace to the Demon Race…
During Xue Fei’s absence from the Demon Race, Belis had managed the order in the capital, Canbino, where the Demon King’s Castle was located, and her own command, the Fifth Legion of the Demon King’s Army, had seen significant enhancements in combat readiness and military management, just waiting to return and present her achievements to the Queen Sister.
But who would have thought… at this remote border, she would face such an insufferable lowlife.
With a cold gaze, Belis unleashed a flash of purple light in her hands.
But before she could act, Xue Fei had already opened the carriage curtain.
Some words.
Were more aggressive than magic.
“You must be blind! What a pathetic thing, trying to collect money here in the snowy mountains. Have you gone mad thinking about money? Or are you eager to bury your dead horse? You’re the shameful thing here; get lost!”
The childish reprimand made the three horses pulling the carriage neigh in protest, as if they were defending against the suggestion that “the horse was dead,” proving they were very much alive.
The sentry, clearly stunned by the sudden verbal assault, paused.
He was just an ordinary sentry on the border, how would he know a figure like the Demon Princess?
Seeing this little girl so unabashedly bold, the sentry’s face, already red from the cold, turned even redder with anger!
“How dare you…! Who do you think you are?! Do you even know where this is… uh?”
Before he could finish, the snow was already drenched in blood.
The sentry had just raised his spear to aim for Xue Fei’s face, but before he could complete the action, he saw the snow in front of him suddenly stained red.
Then… the spear fell from his hand as pain suddenly registered.
Covering his shoulder, he became aware of the source of the blood flowing down.
An invisible slash had carved a non-fatal wound into his shoulder.
“Ahhh…!! What… enemy attack! Enemy attack!!”
Inside the carriage, a terrifying, cold, deep purple eye flickered behind Xue Fei.
Amidst the sentry’s screams, her voice remained clear and powerful, indisputable.
“Listen… go tell the lord of Lide Qidu to open the city gates, and say that the Second Princess of the Demon Race, Belis Halder, needs to pass through this area, and any delay in the carriage’s progress will be the responsibility of the entire city’s army.”
“Princess…?! This…”
“Scram.”
“!”
In the snowstorm, the sentry had no time to pick up the spear on the ground and, scared pale by the overwhelming aura of those eyes, stumbled away toward the sentry’s camp, presumably to report what had happened accurately.
It was unrealistic to expect to let the border pass with just a single command.
Belis stepped down from the carriage, standing in the snow for a moment, then controlled her silver hair blowing in the wind as she elegantly returned to the carriage.
That was enough.
Not everyone was ignorant of the Demon Princess; the soldiers of the Third Legion standing armored on the city walls, upon seeing the silver hair symbolizing the royal family fluttering in the snow, immediately fell into chaos.
As expected, not long after the sentry returned to the camp, the heavy gates of the border town slowly opened, pulled by a group of Demon soldiers.
The gates opened wide, welcoming the seemingly small carriage arriving from the vast snowy plains.
Belis returned to the carriage, sitting beside Xue Fei with a displeased expression, feeling extremely irritated.
“No one in this world can use weapons against my Queen Sister. That damned thing… I wouldn’t kill him for collecting a toll, but to offend the Queen Sister is an absolute death sentence.”
Belis sparing his life was not out of mercy; she simply needed him to deliver the message.
Otherwise, anyone who dared to offend the Queen Sister, regardless of knowledge, would be an enemy of Belis.
“You’re still so extreme…” Xue Fei remarked, though not particularly bothered, “Just look at everyone; they’re not like you. When faced with a situation, you need to learn to stay calm. Look how composed they are… Tsk, aren’t you all a bit too restless?!”
Xiya had just sheathed the unused Holy Sword, clearly having been ready to draw it earlier.
Timani pretended nothing happened, leisurely watching the scenery outside, her palm emitting fleeting sparks of fire.
The combat-inept Livra remained silent but seemed ready to join the fight with her clenched tiny fists!
You guys… why are you all in such a hurry to cultivate calmness?!
Well, although Xue Fei herself was ready to use Storm to blow that sentry away just now, let’s not mention that for now.
The city gate was open, and the three horses continued to march forward proudly.
Soldiers on both sides stood straight, performing the ritual of bringing their fists to their hearts as they welcomed the royalty into the city.
Xiya let down a corner of the carriage curtain; seeing no sign of slowing down, she asked.
“Xue Fei, aren’t we stopping? Didn’t Belis say to send the sentry to notify the lord? Once they know you’re here, the lord will definitely come to greet you personally, right?”
“That’s why we need to move quickly.” Xue Fei waved her hand dismissively, clearly not wanting any troubles, “If we wait for the lord to come, we’ll be stuck. He’ll definitely throw a banquet, wasting a lot of time. We should hurry and pass through the fortress before he arrives. From here to the Demon King’s Castle, we have to go through several towns, can’t stop for every local lord saying they want to host a feast… Hey? Eating as we go sounds nice too?!”
That said, Xue Fei still didn’t plan to stop.
Food outside could not compare to home; she was eager to reach the lake near the Demon King’s Castle, craving the taste of big fish.
To eat fish, you still had to eat the ones from home.
Leaning against her seat, Xue Fei casually offered a comment.
“By the way, it seems the military management here at the border isn’t very strict…? I noticed earlier that the soldiers seem to be stationed in the town, some coming out of houses like they just woke up, instead of guarding outside the border. Other Demon legions don’t seem to be as lax as the Third Legion… By the way, Belis, who is the commander of the Third Legion?”
“It’s Ailer, my aunt.”
“Oh, that makes sense then.”
With a commander wandering about, how could one expect her army to be disciplined?
It’s already commendable that they could hold the line at the border!
