...
A few moments ago, more than half a kilometer away from the battlefield...
Ranazera was sprinting at full speed in the direction of the Gale's Eye outpost.
"That was a close call. If not for the life-saving magic treasure I always carry, it would have been difficult to escape unscathed." Ranazera thought to herself.
After successfully escaping from the battlefield, Ranazera used a high-ranked magic item called The Carrying Winds.
It allowed Ranazera to near instantaneously travel a distance of up to 500 meters. However, it had a drawback in that it required a brief channel time in order to work.
That's why Ranazera had to first create some distance between herself and her pursuers before using it. Otherwise, they would have potentially interrupted the magic item's cast.
Fortunately, everything had gone smoothly.
"I will return to the Gale's Eye and contact Duchess Glacia. With the protections around the carriage, it may still be possible to save the mages. As for those who attacked us..." Ranazera said as she tightly clenched her fist with a cold gaze.
"I'll ensure they can't leave Tempest in one piece...!" Ranazera scowled.
"I'm afraid you'll have to be disappointed." A voice suddenly sounded next to the sixth princess.
"?!" Ranazera was caught off guard by the abrupt sound of a stranger's voice.
However, the most frightening thing was that she did not hear this person approach her at all!
....Crrrrckle! BOOM!
Out of nowhere, a powerful shockwave spread out and slammed into Ranazera as a surge of the lightning element overwhelmed the surroundings.
Ranazera winced as she was forced backward. As she slid, the sixth princess twisted her body and adjusted her stance to face her assailant. But, when she saw the person who appeared in front of her, Ranazera's eyes widened in shock. Simultaneously, she felt her heart immediately sink as her expression darkened.
That's because the person before her was supposed to be fighting against Centurion Aloysius more than five hundred meters away from her location! This person was, of course, Izroth.
Ranazera instinctively took a step back as she watched the mantle of terrifying lightning flow freely. She could not see the face of her attacker; however, those glowing eyes of lightning hidden beneath the hooded covering set their gaze upon her. And, for some reason, Ranazera felt as though she were staring into an endless abyss.
Not too long after Izroth reached Ranazera, the mantle around him dissipated as he ended his Full Mantle state.
At the same time, he activated the skill Rapid Regeneration attached to his Apparel of Insatiable Transcendence to increase his HP Regeneration by 200% for one minute. This would be more than enough to replace HP he lost from utilizing Full Mantle and Compressed Lightning Movement.
The moment Izroth ended Full Mantle, he was hit with the backlash from the continuous stress of Compressed Lightning Movement.
As a result, Izroth felt as if his body was transformed into lead and had been abruptly dropped into a vat of quicksand.
Regardless of the unfavorable side effect, unlike last time when he used Flickering Steps with Compressed Lightning Movement, his skills were still available. Also, there was no stat reduction penalty placed upon him.
'Although there's no visible change to my stats or skills this time around, I feel incredibly sluggish. Can it be the work of a hidden effect? It's unfortunate that I'm still unable to use the Appraisal skill on myself. Otherwise, I may be able to find out the source of my sluggishness.'
Izroth knew that his sluggish state was directly tied to the strain produced by his movement skills; however, there was nothing in the system alerts or battle logs that showed any kind of side effects.
'Well, I suppose it's fine. Even in this condition, it shouldn't be an issue given her current state.'
From the moment he arrived, Izroth's gaze had not once left Ranazera. In turn, Ranazera had not taken her eyes off Izroth.
But, Izroth could clearly sense the sixth princess' uneasy state.
He also believed the fact that Ranazera had not attempted to escape yet meant that she was not absolutely confident in doing so. In fact, given his previous display of strength and how fast he caught up to her, it was likely that she saw no path of escape.
However, surprisingly, instead of spiraling into a further state of panic, Ranazera's expression changed to one of calmness as she seemed to have regained herself.
'Oh? As expected of a royal family member willing to brave the battlefield. Despite fearing the difference that exists between the two of us, she's managed to keep a level head. Or is it that she still has something up her sleeve?'
If Ranazera had a protection hidden within her that was similar to the one in Aloysius, then it would be rather troublesome. That being said, it was not impossible to deal with for Izroth. After all, he still had a few tricks up his sleeve to break through that dark ice that he was unwilling to use on Aloysius. But, Ranazera was a different case. He did not mind using some methods to shatter it.
"Who are you? No, I guess that question does not matter at this point. Let me pose to you a different question—what do you want? If your goal were to kill me, you would have already attacked by now. Since that is not the case, it must mean that you hope to acquire something from me of value." Ranazera stated as she broke the air of silence.
"You catch on quite fast. Then, since you already know your situation, how about coming along quietly? Of course, if you wish to resist or escape, I may have to rethink my stance on the value you bring." Izroth replied with a carefree smile and his hands behind his back.
At the same time, he released his Soul Pressure.
Seeing Izroth's smile, along with the pressure brought about by his Soul Pressure, Ranazera felt chills run down her back. Rethink the stance of the value she brings? It was obvious that he was threatening to eliminate her if she made the wrong move!
Ranazera furrowed her brows. Typically, there was someone higher behind these types of assailants. Because of this, they did not dare harm a person of her standing without first checking in with their superiors. But she got a different feeling from Izroth.
That expression on his face and his words—Ranazera could tell that he really would not hesitate to cut her down where she stood!
Still, how could she, a proud member and princess of the Tempest royal family, allow herself to shrink before another?
In the end, Ranazera still had her pride as the Sixth Princess of Tempest.
"Alright, I shall not resist. But know that no matter much you threaten me, I will not allow myself to be humiliated. I would rather die a thousand deaths!" Ranazera said with a resolute look in her eyes.
"As long as you cooperate and don't cause any trouble, no harm shall come to you. Much less something like being humiliated. On this, I give you my word." Izroth stated calmly.
Fortunately for Ranazera, she chose to retreat not long after revealing her identity. Otherwise, if she had recklessly proceeded to slaughter the members of the 9th Division, Izroth would not have given her his word. But, Izroth was not foolish and made sure to set some conditions in place just in case Ranazera tried to get bold. In this way, it was up to the sixth princess whether or not she remained safe.
As for Ranazera's thoughts on the matter, she could not help but feel regret at having exposed her identity one step too soon. If she had known of Izroth's strength beforehand, she would have never removed the item that concealed her. Though it was too late to regret now.
"To think I would end up being a political hostage. How shameful..!" Ranazera thought to herself as she secretly clenched her fists.
It was not uncommon for the nobles of kingdoms to be held as political hostages. As for the kingdom that captured them, they had several options at their disposal on how to handle the matter. However, under normal circumstances, the captured person would simply be traded for gold and treasures. There were even exchanges where a kingdom would trade the political hostage they captured for one of their own people being held in another kingdom.
It was an extreme rarity that a political hostage would be killed as they were worth more alive than dead. This was the sole reason why Ranazera was not willing to fight Izroth to the death or risk escaping and losing her life in the process.
"I have your word, but how can I trust someone I know nothing about? You have yet to tell me your identity. Or, should I say, the identity of the power behind you?" Ranazera said with a sharp gaze.
"First, put this on. Then, we can discuss a few things." Izroth said as he casually tossed a small object toward Ranazera.
