Chapter 88: Back to Safety


    ASTHIA DARCK''S POV:


    My lungs burned, the air around me bing heavier as I concentrated more and more bind into my hand. The need to save the girl in front of me, the desire to see her breathing and alive before me once again, my wish to see Mia smile once again, all of these feelings pushed me forward endlessly as her shoulder began to glow.


    I gasped as a small condensed ball made out of a weird slime began morphing, slowly taking the shape of Mia''s missing limb. My hand began to tremble as I realized how much bind I was exerting to simply heal an arm, my mastery over holy bind nonexistent.


    My eyes widened as the golden slime consolidated its form, fitting into ce as it substituted the girl''s limb.


    I had done it!


    I groaned as I sat back against the interior of the bark of the tree; sweating profusely as I panted for air. I let out a small sigh, a minuscule smile appearing on my face.


    Earth, Fire, Infernal, and now Holy.


    It was true that Infernal and Fire were basically the same elements, but for boasting rights, I chose to separate them in my head. A small murmur echoed in front of me, snapping me out of my exhaustion as I scuttled over to Mia''s side.


    "Mia?" I asked, trying tomunicate with the girl, unaware of whether or not she was conscious.


    The girl''s eyelids uncovered her brown irises as she woke up slowly, smirking at me.


    "My arm feels better," she whispered, chuckling at her own joke.


    Iughed at thement, realizing the girl was still half-asleep.


    "Thank you, Mia," I said, brushing the girl''s head as she dropped into a peaceful slumber once again, her body automatically recovering and gaining control over the newly-created arm.


    The sudden snap of a twig rang in my ears like an rm, my body shooting up immediately as I eyed the entrance to the unusual underground cave Mia had somehow found. My arm reached out to the idle weapon beside me, its spotless ck surface shining with the zing rays of sunshine sparkling through the hole in the bark.


    I leaped into the light, analyzing my surroundings as I glided through the air with blinding speed.


    There was nobody?


    Inded calmly onto the fresh grass, remaining absolutely still. The snap of the twig hadn''t sounded natural, and even if it wasn''t an individual, there was definitely some kind of beast lurking around. I felt a familiar aura above me, my head tracking the source as Iy my eyes on a small ck wyvern.


    "A wyvern? What''s a child doing out here?" I muttered to myself, throwing my sword into the rift of my space bracelet as I opened my arms invitingly. The small beast jumped into my arms with a roar of excitement, seemingly unaware of the dangers thaty only a few thousand mels northward of our current position.


    I smiled as the wyvern nestledfortably in my arms, a small mark catching on its neck my eye. I brought my face closer, inspecting the little creature. I let out a sigh of defeat, smiling to myself as I identified the strange symbol.


    This wyvern was a trained partner of a member of the Shadows, a group of extremely powerful soldiers within the Dragon army that were tasked with delicate tasks that involved swiftly taking down key enemies.


    And this group was currently under the directmand of Jay.


    Always watching over us, huh? I thought to myself, my question echoing through the link. There was no certainty it would reach the boy in question, but I didn''t care. Even if I couldn''t feel him, his presence was always nearby, watching over us like a guardian angel hidden from sight.


    The ck wyvern leaped out of my arms and onto the floor, growling as it invited me to follow it. Even the native beasts of Lares understood my position as Princess, however, and I noticed the respectful nodding and hesitant steps the small monster was taking.


    I chuckled softly, honored by the beast''s attitude towards me.


    "I''ll go get my friend, then we''ll go together, okay?" I murmured, my voice delicate as if I was talking to a newborn toddler.


    I descended back into the bark of the towering tree, scooping up Mia''s body into my arms. I didn''t want to wake her and disturb her healing process, and I was shocked by how light the girl actually was. It felt like lifting a feather, the weight almost unnoticeable.


    I walked back into the glimmering sunshine, my white skin shining in the bright rays that illuminated the area. The faint memories of the battlefield shed in my mind once again, my face darkening as I nced into the distance where the battle against the Dwarves had taken ce, and where all the Dragons had died for my sole survival.


    "Thank you. I''ll make sure to honor all of you once this is all over," I whispered, turning around and following the purring wyvern deeper into the forest.


    --


    "There''s someone out there!" announced a figure in the distance, the hurried sound of footsteps and heavy armor banging my eardrums.


    A line of Dragon soldiers stood in front of me, spears at the ready as they remained in battle formation. I stood still, amused at the sight of their faces contorting in despair as they realized who the individual before them was.


    "P-Princess Asthia?!" eximed the captain, clearing his throat. The rest of the soldiers quickly backed away, agonizing over the fact that they had just pointed their weapons at the Royal Princess.


    "Captain Ry, it''s okay. I''m relieved to see you''re all prepared to fight if need be," Iforted, the men smiling at the soothing response. "That being said, I would like my friend to be taken to a healer. Tell them to check her right arm for any irregrities."


    "Right away, Princess," answered Ry, therge Dragon moving aside as one of his subordinates left the scene to go call a dedicated healer.


    Two dragons dressed in white robes approached me, gently taking Mia from my arms.


    "Thank you," I said, smiling. The healers bowed respectfully, escorting the unconscious girl to a location where she would be able to rest and undergo examinations. I faced Ry, the gentle warmth vanishing from my eyes.


    "Captain, the Dwarves have broken through the front lines. I expect them to arrive here in a few days at best," I announced confidently, showing no signs of fear. Making sure the morale of each and every soldier was high was my priority, and as long as I could calmly divulge the information, I hoped they''d be able to understand that not all was lost.


    "Were you two the only survivors?" he asked, remainingposed. I nodded, the captain''s eyes quivering ever so slightly.


    "The man leading the advance is also Ares Hearth, the S-rank adventurer contracted under the Dwarves," I continued, the news silencing the quiet murmurs amongst the ranks. "We''ll need to formte a n to deal with him effectively."


    "Understood."


    "How''s Mother doing?"


    "Empress Selena appears to have entered a stalemate with the Elven forces, halting their advance. We can''t expect any support from her battalions, but we''re now able to focus all of our attention onto the Western and Northern fronts."


    "I see," I murmured. Even against two S-ranks, Mother had been able to stall them long enough to create an evesting draw between both sides, an achievement only possible by my parents working together.


    I returned to our current problem. There was no way the current line of defense was sufficiently powerful to fend off the oing attackers, and we''d need to count on nks from exterior groups if we wanted any hope of winning this battle.


    "Let''s begin preparations," I said, moving into the camp as the soldiers followed my lead.