Chapter 251
Chapter 251
Chapter 251
Translator: True Detective
Chapter 251: Huperion’s Fateful Origins
Huperion sat on the sofa before the low table in the center of the great hall, silently gazing at the Saintess and the mural behind her.
In this ethereal sanctuary, forged by a thousand years of devotion, faint rays of natural light filtered through the lattice windows, falling upon white reliefs. The varied depictions of gods shimmered as if alive, giving her the illusion that They were reenacting ancient legends.
“Ifatia is my mother’s name.”
After a brief pause, Huperion nodded and admitted it.
Though she had never heard the name Talia, her father had once told her that her mother’s true name was Ifatia.
Since the Ice Witch had asked such a question, she clearly already had suspicions—there was no point in lying.
Besides, the Ice Witch was someone who could help her right now. She should at least try to trust her.
“As I thought.”
Across the table, the Ice Witch’s expression did not waver. It was as though she had already known the truth the moment she laid eyes on Huperion.“You are the last princess of the Demon Royal Clan.”
“?”
Huperion pointed at herself in shock and confusion.
“Ifatia and Talia, the two princesses, both vanished without a trace. That leaves only you, the last of the demon royal bloodline.”
The Ice Witch explained evenly.
“This…”
Huperion’s mind was in a whirl.
She had never imagined her mother possessed such a status.
According to her father, her mother had been a lively, innocent girl most of the time. Though it was just her performance when disguising herself as a human, she played the role so well that even Duke Migaya could no longer tell what was real and what was false.
As for this so-called demon named Talia—Huperion had never even heard of her.
“Today, among the great demons still alive—including myself—there are perhaps only seven.”
The Ice Witch continued in her calm tone:“All of the war-faction great demons perished in battle. Those who still live are the ones unwilling to fight. If they learn that you are Ifatia’s daughter, they will, more or less, show you some respect.”
“Because of my bloodline?”
“Not entirely. It is because Ifatia’s vengeance was terrifying.”
“…”
Huperion couldn’t tell whether the Saintess was praising or criticizing her mother.
“So the surviving great demons—are they all like you, part of the anti-war faction?”
Huperion asked again.
She had roughly guessed that the Ice Witch hoped she could gain the aid of these other great demons.
It made sense—cause and effect. This was like a filter. Those who had refused the war were the ones most likely to coexist with humans.
“I am of the anti-war faction. The two princesses were of the refusal-faction. The three in the imperial prison are conservatives. And there is one who is of the surrender-faction.”
The Ice Witch rose to her feet and walked toward a bookshelf. Her eyes glided across the spines of the books as she spoke with her back to Huperion.
The floor was paved with polished clearwater stone, each slab smooth, its faint veins like the flow of ancient rivers. When the Ice Witch walked upon it, her footsteps made no sound at all—it was as though she walked within the embrace of the divine.
“…”
So the factions were clear.
The anti-war had become the Saintess. The refusal-faction had gone into exile. The conservatives had been imprisoned. The surrender-faction’s whereabouts were unknown.
Of those known, only the Ice Witch and the three in prison remained.
“What can I do to help?”
If she could aid the Kingdom of Aetherthalan and the Church of the Goddess of Fate, it would be an unimaginable merit. As a follower of the Goddess of Fate, Huperion could not refuse.
Maybe she could even repay some of Lan Qi’s karmic debts—he owed far too much.
Enough perhaps to let him squander for several more years.
“I wish to entrust you with a great task: to infiltrate the Empire, reach the prison, and make contact with the three great demons there. At least one of them will respect you. Do your utmost to bring her back.”
The Ice Witch returned with a bundle of books, opened a map on the table, and pointed at a location as she spoke earnestly.
“Why would any great demon listen to me?”
Huperion’s eyes fell upon the map, where the Ice Witch’s finger rested—directly upon the Imperial Capital of Protos. She then lifted her gaze to the Saintess’s face.
“Do you know that your mother, Ifatia, actually had an elder sister named Talia?”
The Ice Witch sighed.
“My father never told me.”
Though she had guessed the two princesses’ relation from the words earlier, Huperion still shook her head.
Today was the first time she learned she had an aunt—another princess who had gone missing.
“One of the great demons in the prison was very close with your aunt Talia. If she learns you share her blood, she will not harm you—she will even protect you. That is why she is the one we must save.”
The Ice Witch laid out several sketches upon the table, each depicting a different great demon.
“Most important is her ability. She is an outstanding healer and coordinator among demons. Should war come, she would be indispensable, whether holding the rear lines or overseeing logistics. She has irreplaceable value.”
But as Huperion listened and looked over the sketches, she felt something was… off.
She had seen photos of her mother at home—none looked this abstract.
She dared not ask who drew these. If it turned out to be the Ice Witch herself… it would be far too awkward.
“Unfortunately, Talia is missing. If we rescue this great demon, she will surely want to search for Talia right away. I can only ask you to keep her here first, to aid the Kingdom of Aetherthalan. We, in turn, will promise that no matter the difficulty, we will help her seek out Talia’s trail.”
The Ice Witch spoke with helplessness.
If not for seeing hope of winning this great demon’s support through Huperion, she would never have risked stirring the Imperial prison.
“What about the other two great demons?”
Huperion remembered she had said there were three in total.
Anyone recognized as a great demon in the Demon Realm of old was at least at the eighth tier. Each was a figure of immense weight within demon kind.
“Do not even think of commanding those two. They were loyalists of the demon race—merely conservatives.”
The Ice Witch’s tone grew distant when mentioning the other two. Clearly, she had little connection to them.
To her, only the two princesses had been her true acquaintances.
The other two, while gifted with unique powers comparable to the vampiric Authorities, would not fight for the sake of another race. They would be unstable factors on the battlefield.
Unless absolutely necessary, she had no desire to risk releasing them as well.
(End of Chapter)