*VOL.5 CH.286 ONE MORE DETOUR

"I thought you grown soft, Fennic. And this is exactly why the Guild will eventually fade into obscurity," Baron Zellin scolded him.

Fennic looked at the Dwarven Baron with shock. He always saw Zellin as a bit of a pushover. But here, the Dwarf was chastising him for not seeing the bigger picture.

"My Lord is right, Grand Master. Saintess Rya has unlocked so many mysteries that have been alluding to studies of the arcane for centuries," Mystic Laika stated.

"She's streamlined my casting techniques to a point where I can cast blue flame spells, Fennic. She's also improved everyone within my guild," Arch-Mage Hajdah said with a nod.

"But how can we trust her? She hasn't gone through the proper channels to become a mage," Balthazar complained while trying to defend his Guildmaster.

"Proper channels!? How did mages come to be without academies? So what if she didn't go through Fiafyrian standards to be recognized? She was born to be a mage, a healer, and the next Queen of Fiafyr. And if you are too stubborn to help her in her quest to protect us, then maybe you should leave, Grand Master," Baron Zellin said while staring down Fennic as best as he could.

Fennic glanced around at everyone while contemplating his choices.

"If Saintess Rya becomes the next Queen, then her first order will be to allow the Ironside Guild to become a recognized Academy and close down the academy in Duskwild," Arch-Mage Hajdah pointed out.

Duskwild was one city in the southeastern part of the Royal Domain, about an hour's ride southeast of Tairal. It wasn't the largest city within the entire kingdom, but it did have the biggest Mages academy in the whole kingdom, and it became the biggest academy during Fennic's tenure as the Head Guildmaster of all the Fiafyrian Mages Guilds.

Fennic was now feeling the pressure. And his pride was making him feel defensive.

"She has unlocked secrets of the arcane that have long eluded us," Laika said with a smile.

The old mage wanted them to worry about leaving, and he hoped that would make them more willing to compromise, but his bluff was called, and Fennic was now starting to sweat.

"She is a healer, and she helped me create this new spell that I've been working on for years. Don't make this mistake and judge her before you get a chance to meet her, Grand Master," Laika said with a smile that made the old man blush.

"Grrr... Fine! But the Crown Prince better apologize for insulting our Guild, and I want to meet her and judge her for myself. If I don't like her, then I will leave, and she won't be allowed into any of the Guild libraries under my jurisdiction," Fennic grumbled.

"The Crown Prince is a reasonable man... I'm unsure if I can say the same thing about you," Zellin muttered.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" Fennic said while leaning his head forward.

"Nothing, your ears must be playing tricks on you, Grand Master Fennic. Come this way," Lord Brice said with a chuckle.

Fennic glared at Lord Brice, and then he took the lead. He walked into the palace, and Lord Brice and the Royal knights followed close behind. The two dwarven mages and four human mages followed Baron Zellin and his father as they made their way inside the castle.

***

Princess Hilda was walking around the palace hallways with her maid, Dori. Her brother came to visit her again. And every time he came to visit her to chastise her for praying to a false deity and getting blessed by such a god.

"Hilda! You come back here and listen to me! Whatever games you are playing will result in nothing but damnation of your soul! This madness has to stop, and you must convince the Crown Prince to throw away that foul woman and his goddesses before it's too late! They're tricking him! Tricking you! And it will end up being our downfall! You need to stop this nonsense now, or we will be punished!"

Prince Zane grabbed his sister's arm and pulled her back towards him.

The normal servants who worked in the palace scurried away when the foreign Prince visited his sister with his own personal knights and Paladin. The Royal Guards didn't like these foreigners from the Alliance, but the Prime Minister ordered them not to interfere with them unless they made trouble with anyone who was a part of the royal family. Most of the staff were growing fond of the foreign Princess, even if they thought she was weird. But ever since Marquess Duval was able to get his allies to vote for a measure to allow Prince Zane visitation rights, the staff have been more cautious around the Prince and his retinue.

"Zane, stop! You're hurting me!"

"Shut your mouth! I am a prince, and I am not above slapping you, and I will if you don't start acting like the lady that you are. You're going to ruin everything that the Divine Three have planned for you if you keep this up. You are supposed to marry Prince Quinus and convince him to turn his back on these false goddesses and follow the only true gods of mankind. But I know you've been getting friendly with that older woman. She doesn't care about you, Hilda. All she's doing is using you for her own gain," Zane said, tightening his grip on Hilda's arm.

"Duchess Leandra Revelia is her name, brother! And she's the only one who seems to truly care about my well-being. And I never betrayed the Divine Three! You are too blind to realize that this is their plan!... All you are doing is getting in my way to accomplish my goal of winning him over! When I think I get some more alone time with him, you come along and take him away to go hunt monsters? Really? You're nothing but a nuisance that is driving him away from me!" Hilda snapped back at her half-brother.

Back in the Alliance territory, women would be purged if they ever spoke up against men like Zane. But ever since, she's come to Fiafyr and witnessed Rya making a fool out of many men who stood against her, which included Marquess Duval, Duke Alaric, Prince Terenthiel, and their Paladin, Sir Darius. Hilda realized that women were stronger than she knew in the world of men, and if she was going to free Quinus from the grasp of this foul woman, then she was going to need her own allies here in the Fiafyr Kingdom and, most important of all, she needed to use her own wit to defeat Rya. And since the only Fiafyrian noble who had been kind to her was Duchess Leandra, Hilda felt she could trust her, and her own confidence grew as she stood up for herself for the first time against Terenthiel and her half-brother.

Zane's patience was running thin, and he wished that he could have had his sword to teach this brat a lesson. But he and his men weren't allowed to carry their weapons into the palace as part of the measure that Lord Brice amended to the security measures to Duval's orders. The Marquess wasn't pleased that his allies agreed to this amendment, but he realized that he was pushing the Barons and Baroness away. So the Prime Minister and the Head of Fiafyr worked out the compromise. Prince Zane Stoneworthh didn't mind, but his Paladin and White Knights did.

"You have no proof of any such conspiracy, Princess. So, please stop spreading slanderous accusations," Zane told Hilda.

"Then why are you so offended, Prince Zane?" Hilda asked in a defiant tone as her purple eyes glared at him.

Zane gritted his teeth and clenched his fist. He was trying to come up with anything to put Hilda in her place. That's when he remembered what his father told him about women, "If a woman ever shows her disrespect, you make her submit or kill her. They need to learn obedience, and if you can't control a woman, then you kill her. Because there will be others who will follow her lead. Remember, a woman is not equal to a man, and we are ordained by the Three." Dreyand Stoneworthh's voice rings in Zane's head.

He looked at his half-sister with a cool demeanor while tightening his grip.

"It's simple, my dear sister. You're trying to deflect your guilt from your own treachery. Your only purpose in this kingdom is to be the wife to the Crown Prince, Quinus. Whatever this disillusion that you have about him liking you is a fantasy that I would advise you to drop. Or I will get physical and show you where your place is. Now, stop being a selfish, spoiled brat and do what is expected of you. It's bad enough that you've been nothing but a disappointment to the Alliance," Zane said as he saw Hilda's defiant face crumble.

"Let go of her! You're hurt—"

"Quiet, wench!" Sir Darius ordered the maid.

Dori quieted down, but she wished she could do more, but she felt helpless.

"Do we have an understanding?" Zane asked as his eyes narrowed.

Hilda glared at him as best as she could. Zane knew she needed to learn her place, so he raised his other hand and readied himself to slap her.

And just as he was about to slap some sense into Hilda. Sir Darius and his three white knights noticed an angry Crown Prince and an annoyed Dark Elf with their entourage standing right by them.

"She's here! Ready your—"

Out of second nature, Sir Darius and the three knights reached for their swords but forgot they were being held by the entrance Guards of the palace.

Zane stopped his hand in mid-air, and his head snapped in the direction of Quinus and Rya.

'Haah... I can't believe I detoured to here just to help this stupid redhead... She better be thankful that I brought everyone here,' Rya thought to herself as she looked at the Prince of the Divine Three, ready to slap his half-sister.

Once Rya left her laboratory with everyone, she headed to the throne room. Nieren and she could hear Zane and Hilda bickering from a far distance. Rya was enjoying listening to Hilda getting verbally abused by her half-brother, and she was going to steer clear of them so Hilda could be knocked down a peg. But when she heard Zane getting physical with Hilda, she sensed he was about to act. Sure, Rya despised Hilda for accusing her of corrupting Quin and actively trying to steal him away from her, but having a guy that was more detestable than Hilda hitting a woman. Rubbed her the wrong way, and Hilda had worked her natural charms enough on Quin that he was warming up to her. To such a point that, if she showed up with bruises all over her body, she could use it to get closer to him by making Quin feel guilty that he wasn't there to stop Zane.

It was an annoying balancing act that Rya had to navigate with Hilda. The foreign Princess was innocent and naive enough to get on Quin's good side. But at the same time, Rya knew that Hilda wasn't stupid. So, Rya needed to head this off before Hilda used this to her advantage. Plus, she wouldn't mind seeing Zane, Sir Darius, and his White Knights being publicly humiliated and beaten up in the process by her or Quin.

Rya and her entourage walked slowly and stopped once they were only a few meters away from the scene.

"Oh? Reaching for an imaginary sword, Sir Darius? That's cute," Rya said, and the Paladin gritted his teeth as if he could do nothing against her. The memory of fighting her in the Royal Garden came flashing back to him as she easily destroyed his body multiple times, and if it wasn't for his faith in the Three, then he would have been dead.

Zane looked at the Dark Elf and sneered, "What business do you have with me, Demon? You should be running and hiding somewhere from me, or do you think you can corrupt me like you have done to the Crown Prince."

Quinus and Sir George took offense to that jab at Rya, but she quickly grabbed Quin's forearm and gave it a gentle squeeze.

"First of all, ew... There's nothing worse than dealing with a boy who lacks any sort of manhood. It makes me want to gag just looking at you. Secondly, I think you want me to corrupt you. It must be disappointing praying to some Gods that don't listen to you because of how pathetic you are. If they don't want you, then why would I waste my time corrupting a worthless excuse of a human who can't win an argument with his half-sister?"

The hallway was silent as they waited for the Prince's response, but Hilda took Rya's insults to her Half-brother as proof that this Dark Elf did corrupt Quinus.

'I knew it! She's finally letting her mask down! I must save the Crown Prince before it's too late!' Hilda thought as her half-brother was still gripping her arm tightly.

Prince Zane had a hard time keeping a straight face at what Rya had just said, but he was the first one to react. "How dare you blaspheme the Three. I'm a worthy servant of the Divine Ones, you monster!"

"And yet your Gods ignored your prayers because you are such a useless weakling," Rya shot back. "But I know that you would enjoy being corrupted and used by someone superior to you. It's just a shame that you're so unappealing and repulsive. I don't know what kind of woman would ever find you attractive. But I think you're a pathetic, ugly little worm that can't even fight for himself and can only beat an untrained lady who didn't even have a weapon to feel better about yourself. Oh, but you're also a virgin, too. A 22-year-old virgin. That's truly sad.

"And if I was your sister, then I would be embarrassed to have a worthless brother like you, who can't even protect himself, who can't even fight his own battles. If it wasn't for this Paladin and the Marquess, you would have been cast aside years ago. But instead, you run away with your tail tucked between your legs and try to blame someone else for your weakness." Rya shook her head in disgust. "Your Gods must have seen how pathetic and weak you were. How worthless and cowardly. That's why they didn't answer your prayers."

Zane was so angry that he was squeezing Hilda's arm to the point where she let out a whimper of pain. This made Quinus' eyes go red, and he wanted to pull the prince's hand off his sister's arm.

"Zane! Let her go right now!" Quinus ordered and his voice sounded more like a roar.

"She's not your wife yet, Prince Quinus! And she's my responsibility, and she needs to learn a lesson. So stay out of my family's business!" Zane said as he raised his off-hand and readied himself to slap his sister with all his might. Quinus, Percy, and Sir George tried to step in, but Darius and his knights moved to block their way.

Rya's azure eyes glowed for a brief moment, and Zane addressed his sister, "This is for all the trouble you've caused the Divine Three, Hilda." Zane brought his hand down hard and fast, but it was stopped halfway to its target when a female hand grabbed Zane's forearm.

"GAH!?! Huh!?" Zane was surprised that he couldn't move his hand. He looked at the culprit and found that it was a clone of Rya with little clothing.

"What the!? Get off the Prince!" Darius roared as he channeled some of his Divinity into his gauntlet and punched the Rya clone.

The golem saw the incoming attack, grabbed Darius' forearm, and twisted it in a way to make the giant man flip over onto the floor.

*Smash! Crash!"

"AH! UNHAND ME!!! YOU DEMON!" Darius yelled out as his face was smashed into the carpet while R9 twisted his arm more so the Paladin couldn't get up without dislocating his shoulder.

"I'll make sure you are punished severely for this. I swear it on my Gods!" Zane screamed. He tried to wiggle his arm free for R9's grasp, but the golem's grip became tighter, and she pulled his arm back away from Hilda. It didn't take long for Zane to let go of his sister, so he started punching the golem with his off hand.

"AHHH! Let go, let go, let go!" Zane screamed, but his punches were having little effect. The three White Knights joined in as well and started raining ineffective attacks against the golem.

"Gah! I-I broke my hand," yelled one White Knight as his fist cracked after punching R9 in the face.

"You're gonna pay for this. All of you! Especially you, Prince Quinus! You let yourself be fooled by this foul woman!" Zane threatened as his knights were finally dragged away by the Royal Guards.

"No, Zane. You don't understand your situation. My fiancee and I are being very generous by letting you leave the capital alive. I don't care what Measure the Prime Minister passed to let you into my palace. If it was up to me, you would be rotting in the dungeon." Quinus said as he glared at Zane.

"We'll see about that. This is far from over—GAH!"

*Crack!*

Pain shot through Zane's forearm when R9 applied the slightest bit of pressure to his arm.

"Hey, Zane? You said that Hilda needed to be taught a lesson about where her place is, correct? So, if my golem slaps you so hard, you're an inch away from death. Will you know your place?" Rya asked with a mischievous tone.

Zane gulped. He didn't like the sound of that.

"That's what I thought... R9, please escort the Prince and his Paladin to the front gates. If they struggle, break their arms and toss them into the moat." Rya ordered.

"Yes... Mistress," the golem replied as she started dragging Zane and Darius away.

"I can walk myself, you damn demon," Darius growled.

"Shut up, Darius! Stop struggling! And then we can get out of here sooner. We'll figure something out. Don't give up just yet," Zane grunted out as his arm was in pain.

Everyone watched as the three White Knights, along with Prince Zane and Sir Darius, were taken outside by R9 and the Royal Guards.

Once they were gone. Quinus looked to his fiancee, "You know that Duval is going to have a field day with this."

Rya scoffed, "Better him being mad at me than you, Quin. I was worried that you were going to kill all of them if I didn't step in—"

"But, sis? We could have avoid—"

"LIKE I said, I was worried that you would get in trouble with the Prime Minister. You're already a target because you're marrying me," Rya said, glancing at Hilda, who was looking at Quin with a lovestruck gaze, but then she realized that Rya was staring at her and glared back.

Quinus nodded, "You have a point, Rya... Your ability to think ahead in heated moments amazes me. I don't know what I would do without you," he said as he looked at Rya with adoration and love.

"Hm, so will I get a reward?" Rya asked with a mischievous smile, which made Hilda panic. This Dark Elf was going to make the Crown Prince do something that he would regret.

'Th-This fiend! She's going to defile the Crown Prince in front of everyone!?' Hilda thought with a panicked expression on her face.

Quinus blushed a bit and then coughed into his fist, "Um, yes. How should I reward you, Love?"

"Oh, maybe with a kiss? On the lips... Maybe two or three." Rya said as she slowly wrapped her arms around the Prince's neck.

Hilda's face was red, and her mind was screaming, and she jumped in between them.

"This isn't the place to be doing such a thing, Your Highness!" Hilda cried out with a flushed face.

Everyone looked at Hilda like she was crazy except for Dori, who was getting secondhand embarrassment by what Hilda did, and Quinus, who was more surprised than anything.

"Ummm?... You shouldn't be doing such things. It's unhealthy to kiss someone like this, and especially in public," Hilda said nervously.

"Geez, is Red Hair dumb or something? Can't she smell Alpha's scent all over, Beta?" Dalia asked Nieren, who just sighed and shook her head.

"Stop calling me Red Hair! I'm a Princess, you demi-human!" Hilda snapped back at the Wolfkin, who didn't feel threatened at all.

"What's Red Hair's problem? All she does is watch Beta like a mouse. Can humans be mice?" Dalia asked Nieren, who just facepalmed.

"W-What is wrong with you—"

"Are you okay, Hilda," Quinus jumped in to stop Hilda from getting into an argument with Dalia, who was hoping to pick a fight with Hilda. But she couldn't start the fight unless Hilda struck first, so the Wolfkin was waiting for Hilda to do something rash.

"Huh!? Oh, W-Well, not really—huh!?"

Hilda was getting ready to show Quinus her bruised arm, but a pleasant, warm feeling coursed through her body, and the bruise began to fade away.

'I-I'm getting healed!? The Divine Three did choose me to save the Prince and his kingdom! This is the sign!... Or is it Goddess Iyomelka who's answering my prayers?... N-No! Don't think such things, Hilda. Sure, I started praying to Iyomelka this past week, but that doesn't mean she chose me as her prophet... But she did light up her idol during the ritual... No! Stop it! I need to get my head straight!' Hilda thought as she was distracted by her healing arm and the warmth from what she thought was the Three's power.

Rya glared at the back of Hilda's head. 'I knew she was going to use her being injured as an excuse to get his attention. Nice try, you sneaky bitch, but I healed you before you got a chance to guilt Quin into taking you somewhere.'

Rya smiled and walked around Hilda to Quinus' side.

"You seem more distracted than ever, Princess... Maybe you should go back to your room and have a rest," Rya said in a fake happy tone.

Hilda glared at the dark elf.

"Huh?... I'm not tired at all. And I have the gods on my side, and they are blessing me!"

Rya looked unamused while Quinus was confused, "But the both of you were blessed by the Goddess, Hilda," he pointed out.

Hilda blushed, "I-I mean... Well, yes... But my point is, the Three have spoken to me and told me I need to marry—"

"Nope!" Rya cut her off. This annoyed Hilda to no end. Anything she tried talking to Quinus outside of their mandatory tea time, Rya would always cut her off like this during dinner time, "Quin's had a long day, and he still has so much to do. Why don't you leave him alone for now."

Rya grabbed onto Quinus' right arm and cuddled his shoulder. The Dark Elf could see proverbial steam coming out of Hilda's ears.

Hilda was about to speak her mind when Quinus spoke up.

"Rya... Can you stop teasing her like this? Hilda's gone through enough stress today. I don't want her to be more stressed out."

Rya pouted, squeezing her large bosoms into his arm, "But Quin... I didn't get my reward for stopping those jerks. And Marquess Duval is going to come after me instead of you."

Quinus sighed and smirked at how Rya was acting. She knew just what to say and do to make him want to pamper her.

"All right, all right... I'll reward you later today, but we must get to the Throne room now. I'm sure Grand Master Fennic is waiting for me... Hopefully, he's in a better mood than last time."

Quinus looked at Hilda and smiled at her, "I'm sorry about what your brother did to you, Princess Hilda. I'm glad that we were here to save you."

Hilda's anger faded away as her heart skipped a beat when looking into Quinus' golden eyes. 'I'm breaking the spell that Rya—I mean, the foul one cast on him. Yes! Yes! This is a sign that I must do what the gods have commanded me. I must save Quinus from her and convince him to break off this marriage and marry me instead.'

"M-Maybe I should—"

"Quin? You go ahead and greet the Grand Master. I need to have a bit of girl talk with the Princess," Rya chimed in and cut Hilda again.

Quinus raises his brow and glances between the two of them, "Are you sure that's a good idea? I can stay if needed."

Quinus knew that Rya and Hilda didn't get along, and he was worried that Hilda might try to fight Rya and she would hurt the Princess by mistake.

"No, Quin... This is for women's ears only... Go on. I'll be right behind you. Just don't forget about your reward later. Okay?"

Rya stood up, pushing her massive chest into his right arm. Her dark blue silk dress hugged her upper torso, making it impossible for Quinus not to look at her massive, perky bosoms.

'Goddess be damned. I feel like Rya's tits have gotten bigger. I just want to put my face in between her breasts and get suffocated by them.'

Quinus had an image of Rya's massive melons smothering his face, which brought a small smile to his lips.

"Fine... But don't pick a fight with her, all right?"

Rya grinned and pecked his lips, "Don't worry about me, Quin... I'll behave as long as she does."

Rya winked and playfully pushed him back.

"Alright... Sir George, Percy... Let's go. I might need to apologize to a crusty old mage," Quinus smirked and shook his head.

"Aye, I never imagined the day that Fennic would return to the Palace after all this time, My Lord. If he doesn't accept your apology, I will make him accept it," Sir George smirked.

"Hmph. I doubt he'd accept any apology. The man has always been too stubborn for his own good. If he wasn't the Grand Master Mage of all Fiafyr, I'd have told him off myself," Percy huffed and crossed his arms.

"Come on, Percy. We'll need all the allies we can get, and Rya needs access to their library. You know how many enemies we have at court. I have a feeling things are going to change drastically in the coming weeks. So, I'll do what is needed to ensure our safety and future."

Quinus sighed, and the trio walked down the hallway. Leaving the women alone.

Once the men were gone, the room grew silent and tense. The ladies were now staring daggers at one another, which didn't help the tension.