Chapter 226 - The Demon Warlord Vs Jennie ( Part 4 )

The victory came silently.

At first.

The dark portals located in various parts of Seraiya started collapsing. One by one. Like dying stars, their red edges shimmered and faded.

The dark portals that had caused so many disasters simply... disappeared.

The demons were retreating.

Some were retreating into portals, and their furious roars gradually turned into screams of fright. Others were dying under the attack of the Royal Knights, falling into ashes and disappearing. The once crowded with the noises of the battle streets fell silent.

The streets were in ruins. The walls of buildings were destroyed and cracked, the roofs fallen to pieces. The thick black columns of smoke were covering the sky and hiding the Sun from view. The blood of both humans and demons was staining the stone, creating dark stains which would stay for years to come.

But Seraiya was still standing.

The Kingdom had survived.

The Black Warlord was dead.

The enormous body of Draven was lying motionless in the crater in which Jennie defeated him. His armor was broken, his axe was laying next to him. The crimson eyes were staring at nothingness. The Third Demon General, the Black Warlord who was terrifying the Kingdoms for centuries, was only a lifeless corpse.

That was enough for the soldiers who were struggling for their lives in the morning.

A shout arose somewhere in the eastern district. It sounded hoarse and weary, but sincere.

Then another one.

"We survived!"

"Draven is dead!"

"The Demon General has fallen!"

The shouts of triumph spread among the surviving soldiers like wildfire. Some of them raised their swords and joined the shouting chorus, some dropped to the knees, exhausted, but still alive.

For the first time after the beginning of invasion people believed that they had won.

But Jennie did not celebrate. She did not even turn to look at the corpse of Draven.

The very moment when she understood that Lilia’s soul has left her body, she ran.

"Lilia!"

Her voice echoed in the ruins of the city. It sounded desperate and afraid—a voice which people who knew her had never heard before.

She was rushing to the palace. The ruins of buildings were appearing under her feet and she was jumping over them. Her silvery-white hair was flowing behind her, like banner of the moonlight, and her golden eyes were burning with something which could be neither anger, nor fear.

She ignored the calls of her name, the shouts of triumph, everything except the feeling that something was wrong, irremediably wrong.

Lucas saw her. His voice sounded worried.

"Raven!"

He immediately started running after her, his sword in his hand, his armor dented from the battle.

Roxy followed him. Her hair was disheveled, and her ears were laying flat on her head.

Snow ran next to them, keeping the pace. His nine tails were swinging behind him, and his divine eyes were searching the ruins of the city for possible threats.

Jennie reached the palace.

Or rather the place where it used to be.

The courtyard was destroyed. A part of the palace was collapsed, leaving nothing but the ruins of its magnificent towers. The blackened stone covered the ground, and the smell of smoke and death was floating in the air.

Jennie stopped, searching desperately with her eyes.

"Lilia!"

No answer.

She turned toward Lucas. Her voice was strained.

"Where is she?"

Lucas did not answer. He was looking around with a growing horror. There were some Palace Guards around her, some wounded and some unconscious, but no traces of the Queen.

Roxy caught up with them, panting.

"Jennie..."

Jennie shook her head. "No."

She refused to hear anything that Roxy wanted to say.

"She is here."

She was searching again, her eyes darting from shadow to shadow.

"Lilia!"

Snow stopped suddenly. His ears lowered, and his divine eyes were staring at the sky. His expression grew serious.

"She is gone."

Jennie stopped. For a moment she did not understand. Then she turned towards him.

"Who?"

Snow looked at her. His voice was low.

"Lilia."

That single word hit her harder than any attack Draven could throw at her. It hit her like physical blow, knocking out the breath from her lungs and stopping her heart.

Jennie’s eyes widened. "No."

She shook her head. "No, she isn’t."

She rushed farther into the ruined courtyard. Her voice was growing louder and breaking.

"Lilia!"

Nothing.

Only the wind was answering. It was whistling in the broken walls, carrying the smell of ashes and distant sounds of the aftermath of the battle.

Far away from Seraiya...

Beyond the mountains no human Kingdom ever conquered. Beyond the seas where even the most powerful ships disappeared. Beyond the lands where the light itself was afraid to shine.

A black portal appeared.

It was tearing apart the reality like wound, and the edges of it were burning with crimson flame. The air was screaming and the ground was blackening and dying.

Morgatha stepped through first. The Witch of Eternal Curses moved gracefully, having walked through the dimensions many times before. Her violet-black hair was flowing behind her, and her golden eyes were glowing with satisfaction.

Lokiar stepped through after her. The Lord of Illusions was silent, his silver mask reflecting the crimson glow of the portal.

In between them there was Lilia.

The black magical chains were wrapped around her arms, waist and legs. They were glowing with dark energy, tightening little by little. The chains were not physical; they were made of curse magic, meant to suppress divine powers and bind the will of kings.

She was bound. But she was not unconscious.

Her golden eyes were glowing with rage.

She was pulling herself free, and the chains were tightening, cutting into her skin.

"Let me go."

Morgatha kept walking. Her voice was calm.

"No."

Lilia was glaring at her. "Then kill me."

Morgatha stopped. A faint smile appeared on her lips.

"We have no intentions to kill you. Not yet."

The look on Lilia’s face changed. "What?"

Lokiar appeared at her side. His tone was gentle, even soft.

"You are one of the last two pieces."

"Ritual." Lilia narrowed her eyes.

Morgatha nodded. "Precisely."

She looked towards Lilia’s Divine Mark. The Sovereign of Dominion shimmered inside her skin, resisting the chains.

"The ritual needs seven bearers of Legendary Divine Marks."

"And five have already been caught," Lilia replied.

"Correct."

She continued talking. "And only two remain."

Lilia knew that one of the two was herself. Her tone was cold.

"Me..."

She stopped there.

"And Rudy," said Morgatha.

"Why haven’t you caught Rudy then?" Lilia strained at the chains.

"It’s not our goal," replied Lokiar.

He looked out into the distance. The sky above the horizon was dark, and the mountains cut into the dark red clouds like teeth.

"We have to prepare the ritual properly."

"There is one more thing," continued Morgatha.

Lilia narrowed her eyes. "The Divine Swords."

Morgatha smiled. "Yes, indeed. You understand quickly."

Lilia instantly got it. Jennie.

They didn’t want just Legendary Divine Marks. They wanted Jennie’s swords.

Five Divine Swords. Five weapons that could upset the balance in the ritual.

Lilia’s heart clenched. "I won’t let you have them."

"We don’t have to take them," said Morgatha.

Lilia blinked.

Morgatha smiled. "We just need to give Jennie a reason to come to us."

Silence.

The look on Lilia’s face turned cold. She got what Morgatha had meant.

Jennie was not only the wielder they needed, she was the bait.

Morgatha turned away. "Take her to the ritual chamber."

Lokiar nodded. "As you wish."

The chains dragged Lilia forward. She resisted each step, trying to dig her heels into the ground. But she was dragged into the portal regardless of that.

Before the portal closed, Lilia turned back.

She could see a glimpse of her kingdom—the world she had left behind—through the rapidly shrinking opening. Seraiya. Her kingdom. Her home.

Jennie.

The look on Lilia’s face softened for a moment. Her heart ached from an unfamiliar pain that had nothing to do with chains.

Morgatha noticed that. Her tone sounded almost curious.

"You really believe she’ll come."

Lilia smiled. This was not an arrogant or confident smile. It was a knowing smile.

"She will come."

Lokiar looked at her. "Even if she does not know where we are taking you?"

"She’ll find me," Lilia looked at him.

Morgatha studied the girl’s face. "But what if she won’t?"

Lilia’s smile did not change. It was a beautiful smile. Warm and confident and full of something the demons did not understand.

"She will."

The portal closed. The light from Seraiya was swallowed by the darkness of the Demon Continent.

Lilia looked back at her kingdom for the last time. Her voice sounded like a whisper.

"Jennie..."

The portal vanished.

Jennie found the spot where Lilia had disappeared.

She stopped. There was no portal, no enemies, no Lilia.

Only dark magic residues scattered across the ruins. The glow was faint—they were leftovers of the dimensional portal that had taken her away.

Jennie’s breathing became irregular. Her chest ached, and her hands trembled.

She cautiously moved forward, looking around. Her eyes searched the ground for any trace that would tell her where Lilia had gone.

Then she found something.

A fragment of golden stuff. It was lying on the ground, half-buried in ashes and dust. Jennie stopped.

She bent down. Her trembling fingers grabbed the golden fragment.

It was a part of Lilia’s accessory that she had lost—a hairpin she was wearing broken during the struggle.

For some time, Jennie just stared at it. The world around her faded, and the sounds of the soldiers became nothing. Even the ruined palace became a background for her.

Her hand clutched the fragment. Its sharp edges bit into her palm.

"Lilia..."

Roxy came closer. Her voice sounded uncertain.

"Jennie..."

Jennie did not respond.

Lucas stopped a few meters away from her. He understood. There was nothing he could say.

The queen was gone. The soldiers won the battle. But Jennie lost the most important person to her.

Snow came up from behind. His voice was quiet.

"They took her through the dimensional portal."

Jennie finally spoke. Her voice was monotonous.

"Can you track it?"

Snow shook his head. "From here, no."

Jennie clutched the golden fragment harder.

Roxy looked at her. "We’ll find her."

Jennie remained silent.

Lucas came closer. "Jennie, we need to regroup."

She straightened up. Her face had changed.

The playful girl who fought Draven with a smile was gone. Her confidence was gone.

All that remained was something cold and determined.

She looked out into the distance. Her voice was quiet, but harsh.

"How many?"

Lucss frowned. "What?"

"How many Demon Generals are left?"

Snow understood her question. His voice was heavy.

"Azrael. Morgatha. Lokiar. Grom. Noctis."

Jennie’s face hardened. "And Zuko."

Snow nodded. "Demon Emperor."

Jennie looked down at her five Divine Swords. Now everything suddenly became clear to her.

Draven was not the main target. He was a part of something bigger.

Morgatha and Lokiar had not attacked Lilia just like that. They had kidnapped her.

And the demons wanted the Divine Swords.

Jennie’s face hardened. "The ritual."

Roxy’s face changed. "You think that’s why they took Lilia?"

Jennie nodded. "Miasa said that Five Legendary Divine Marks have already been caught."

She looked at Excalibur. "They need the others."

Then she looked at the other four swords. "And they want those."

Gram shined with crimson light. Eclipse darkened. Tempest crackled. Leviathan trembled.

Jennie slowly drew Excalibur. The golden blade lit her face with its glow, casting dark shadows on her determined face.

"Then I’m going there."

Roxy stared at her. "Where are you going?"

Jennie looked out into the distance. Her voice was resolute.

"The Demon Continent."

Roxy’s eyes widened. "Are you serious?"

"They are holding Lilia."

Her voice was monotonous. Too monotonous.

"I don’t care how far I have to go."

She raised Excalibur. The blade shone with golden light.

"I’ll bring her back."

Snow came closer. His nine tails moved behind him.

"Then you are not going alone."

Jennie looked at him.

Lucas turned to the kingdom that was reduced to rubble. He frowned heavily.

"Seraiya will survive but it is severely damaged."

He tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword.

"We need to make sure that it survives whatever happens next."

He looked at Jennie, who smiled slightly.

"If you want to go hunting for those demons..."

He said calmly.

"...then we’ll be ready to help you return home safely."

Jennie relaxed. She smiled for the first time since Lilia had gone.

"Thank you."

In the meantime, On the Demon Continent

The sky was dark, the mountains huge. The ancient fortress was carved straight out of stone. Red runes were glowing on the walls of the structure and the red-colored towers were scratching the clouds as if they tried to reach for heavens.

Inside the fortress there was a huge ritual chamber. There were seven positions, marked with ancient symbols, surrounding the enormous black altar. Five positions already glowed – five symbols of Legendary Divine Marks were shining crimson.

Five bearers had already been captured, two positions were still empty.

One was meant for Lilia. The other one – for Rudy.

Lilia was dragged inside the ritual chamber. She took a look around, observing the ancient runes, pulsating crystals and the huge altar.

Morgatha was standing behind her and Lokiar was staying near the entrance.

Lilia stared at the ritual. And then she noticed something else.

On the altar, there were several empty slots shaped like weapons. She frowned.

"The Divine Swords..."

Morgatha smiled. "Exactly."

Lilia scowled. "I’ll never give them to you."

Morgatha went toward the altar. "We’ll see about that."

She raised one hand and the five captured Divine Mark symbols started glowing. The entire chamber shook from the power that suddenly appeared.

The ancient magic stirred underneath the floor and the air got heavier, the shadows darker.

Lilia looked at the empty positions. She knew.

The worst was yet to come.

Morgatha looked at the enormous altar. Her voice reverberated inside the chamber.

"The last stage has begun."

Somewhere Far Away.

Jennie stood in front of the ruins of the palace.

The night fell upon Seraiya. It was dark and the stars were hidden behind the clouds of smoke. The battlefield was quiet at last.

Jennie took a look at the five Divine Swords. Excalibur glowed faintly. Leviathan trembled with barely restrained force. Tempest whispered quietly in the air. Eclipse darkened everything around. Gram blazed in wrath.

Jennie closed her eyes. She thought about Lilia, her smile, her voice and how she looked at Jennie right before the battle.

The promise that they never needed to say aloud.

Jennie opened her eyes.

"Wait for me, Lilia."

Five Divine Swords answered and their powers formed a harmony of light and shadow, of storm and sea, of wrath and kingship.

Jennie looked at the darkness.

"I’ll be there."

Somewhere in the world... the Demon Continent was waiting for her.