Despair Like a Snake, Anxiety Like Sand

At first, when Isabel saw Queen Sophia, she was genuinely happy.

It wasn't a utilitarian thought that "this ceremony will be easy to get through"... but simply that she felt incredibly fortunate to have the opportunity to see her deceased Grandmother again. It was like seeing an acquaintance or classmate in the newspaper; that would make her very happy.

Furthermore, Isabel noticed that the introductory storyline stated this was "the declaration of the destruction of the Avalon Kingdom," and that it would occur in the near future. Therefore, it might hold some relevance... As Queen Isabel of Avalon, she would have to take this Promotion Ritual seriously regardless.

Perhaps she can glean some information from it to help the real Avalon avoid this future.

But soon, Isabel saw her own cowardly and weak appearance.

She couldn't help but feel embarrassed, and wished she could rip her off and have her on top of her. It was also the first time she had seen from an outsider's perspective how immature she had been back then.

But after that, when Isabel realized that Queen Sophia was going to arrange Marriage Alliance for "herself", the smile on her face disappeared.

"Am I someone you can have?" Anger and resistance immediately sprouted in Isabel's heart, and her hostility towards Stibium Queen and the Prince instantly reached its peak.

Isabel was determined that she would not continue to play the role, even in her dreams.

But then, she saw her Grandmother poisoned by Minister Drost, herself framed, the contemptuous face of the wicked woman from Star Antimony, and the knights in the Round Table Hall killing each other...

When Isabel woke up, she instinctively clenched her fists and her whole body trembled uncontrollably.

It wasn't out of fear, but out of anger.

Isabel has a very good temper; she has never lost her temper since birth. She has never felt genuine anger, dislike, or hatred towards anyone.

But this time, she experienced what "anger" truly meant for the first time.

It was a feeling akin to breathing heavily into a pot of burning charcoal—the heart and lungs felt a scorching heat, the head throbbed, and there was a burning sensation in the eyes that made them sting and almost brought tears to the eyes.

She wasn't afraid or sad, but tears kept flowing as if stimulated, her chest heaved, and she trembled as she gasped for breath.

Isabel could feel a cool liquid flowing down her spine from the back of her head. Her body, held in Shafiya's arms, trembled as if it were burning up, curling up more and more as if she were turning back into a fetus, trying to compress herself like a cat.

The power emanating from the Path of Beauty amplified her turbulent emotions and ignited her inspiration. A bluish-green flame ignited in Isabel's pupils, and the power from her heart rippled through the air like waves, blurring the surrounding atmosphere.

If she possessed a devastating bomb right now, Isabel would practically want to rush back to the Silver and Tin Palace and explode alongside them! But then she quickly remembered that she still had Avalon to protect, and Iver was waiting for her...

Isabel gradually regained her rationality.

"... Don't be afraid, Isabel. They shouldn't be able to catch up."

Just then, Shafiya suddenly spoke up, whispering comforting words, "There will always be a way... I will protect you."

As she spoke, she put Isabel, whom she was holding, down on the ground and reached out to wipe away the tears that had been welling up in her eyes.

... So the import process was already finished? Isabel remained silent, belatedly realizing this.

This is the top of the largest Clock Tower in the Red Queen District, the place where Yanis overlooked the entire Glass Island when she left.

Isabel stood in the exact same spot as before, watching the dark clouds gradually spread outward from the Silver and Tin Palace, and hallucinating sounds of fighting and cursing in her ears.

The wrongly accused Isabel didn't sob with grievance, nor did she become hysterical due to fear and confusion, which comforted Shafiya somewhat. She simply crossed her arms, curled up into a ball, and stood silently and stubbornly motionless, her pupils staring blankly ahead, as if looking at some lingering phantom before her eyes... Only the tears on her face flowed silently.

The genuine and intense emotions were so infectious that even Shafiya, who witnessed it all, felt wronged and sad for her, and couldn't help but feel a lump in her throat just thinking about it.

... Little Isa is such a good child, and it's really not easy for her.

But what can I do...?

Shafiya sighed inwardly, feeling despair at the situation. She could only furrow her brow and gently wipe away Isabel's tears. But soon, she realized this probably wouldn't work, so she simply hugged Isabel and let her cry in her arms.

She didn't say anything.

Because Shafiya felt that even if she said a lot now, Isabel probably wouldn't understand.

Based on her knowledge and understanding of the little Princess... Isabel's mind was probably completely blank at this moment.

Her only relative and elder, the monarch of Avalon, was poisoned by Minister Drost, whom she and her Grandmother trusted. Meanwhile, her kind and gentle knightly elders mercilessly turned on each other, instantly transforming the once joyous Banquet Hall into a bloodbath and death. Some even stole the name and existence of "Isabel" from her, turning her into the assassin who murdered her Grandmother ...

Everything happened in the blink of an eye; from the moment the poisoned wine was ingested to their escape from the scene, the entire process took less than a minute.

Even if it weren't the timid Isabel, but anyone else... upon witnessing this series of smooth combos that unfolded like dominoes, leaving no time to react, their minds would probably freeze for a moment.

She must stay here to protect Isabel.

Such a thought popped into Shafiya's mind.

Now that the Queen has passed away and an imposter Isabel has appeared, the throne will likely fall into the hands of the Stibnite Person. Avalon will then be in great danger... The Iris People cannot be trusted at all. The living environment in the Eternal Frost Empire is too harsh, and it is impossible for them to cooperate with the cunning and dangerous goblins. Therefore, they only have one option left: to seek refuge with the elves of the Theocracy.

Although the Theocracy is currently in a state of turmoil, they have no other choice.

Isabel must be escorted to the Theocracy.

She could do it with absolute ease—even though she was Law Mage by training and didn't know how to ride. But if she found a purebred griffin, she could ride it and take Isabel with her and get away safely.

Strictly speaking, given the griffin's speed, it could easily carry Isabel directly to the Theocracy. But Shafiya certainly wouldn't feel at ease doing that.

Isabel had never left the Glass Island, or even the Red White Queen District. As the only Princess of the Avalon royal family, she had never lived on her own. She was so shy and stammering when communicating with the Avalon that she was practically speechless. Her Elven Language wasn't fluent enough for normal conversation. If she were sent directly to the still chaotic Theocracy, she would probably get lost... or perhaps be kidnapped by goblins.

Needless to say, the fact that Star Antimony dared to make such a bold move suggests that their army might already be on its way. Letting Isabel leave on her own would be tantamount to murder.

If Shafiya accompanies Isabel throughout, her safety issue can be resolved.

... But if that's the case, we won't be able to get Queen Sophia's body.

If death lasts too long, the blood of the corpse will deteriorate. Once the blood begins to putrefy, it loses its potential as a ritual ingredient—and the "Shadow of Avalon" ritual is only one step away from completion.

Prince Albert is suspected to have passed away, leaving only John and Isabel as the remaining members of the Du Lac Family bloodline. They are both only in their early twenties combined, and neither can be sacrificed to activate the ritual.

She must resurrect Lancelot.

Otherwise, Isabel alone would have had no chance of reclaiming Avalon from those people. The Stibnite Person even prepared a double identical to Isabel... who knows if it was just a trick by those necromancers and alchemists, or maybe she even Blood of Du Lac! Anyway, Isabel was a transcendent being on the Path of Beauty, and she couldn't activate the Avalon Scepter in the first place.

Whether she is real or not, the monarch of Avalon cannot exercise many of his privileges. And those traitors who betrayed Avalon and turned their blades against their colleagues are even less likely to turn back—since they will die anyway, they might as well stand there until they die.

Yanis has left Avalon, Meg, the pillar of the kingdom, has passed away, and the Grand Justice Arius has grown old.

She and George alone cannot accomplish anything.

Even among the traitors are descendants of the founders, and perhaps their guardian spirits were involved in this coup... After all, the Pope's orders to them were only to ensure the survival of these apostolic families, not that they had to stand on Du Lac's side.

Even if we manage to save Isabel, we might not be able to reclaim Avalon later. That would still be a failure... and Isabel might even need to sacrifice her life to complete the ritual in the future. In that case, the rescue at this moment would seem tantamount to futile efforts.

Therefore, if we want to take back Avalon from those despicable Stibnite Person, we must obtain Sofia's blood as soon as possible.

The Stibnite Person would certainly not know about the existence of the "Shadow of Avalon" ritual, so they would not value Sofia's body too much.

As long as I can secretly touch the corpse...

... But then Isabel can't just leave it there unattended.

Although those traitors didn't possess the "Eye of Avalon," making it impossible for them to directly target Isabel, and setting aside the possibility of not returning alive... if Isabel wasn't sent to the Theocracy, she would always be in danger. It wasn't just the Stibnite Person who wanted to kill her, but all the survivors of the Round Table Hall.

—That is to say, the entire Avalon.

Once Isabel is dead, her identity as a fake will be definitively confirmed. Then, she will be the one and only Du Lac, Queen of Avalon. The knights' loyalty to her and obedience to her commands will become justifiable... and all of Avalon will be in the hands of the Stibnite Person.

"Oh no, what should I do..."

Shafiya felt an unusual headache and grabbed her hair tightly, pulling and tearing at it.

She was so anxious her scalp felt like it was going to explode.

The dual pressure of saving Avalon and preserving the Du Lac Family fell entirely on her shoulders.

She has only given birth a few months ago... and her own daughter is still waiting for her at home! She can't speak yet, she's still drinking milk.

No time to delay. No time to expose. No time to fail. No time to die.

Shafiya gasped sharply, hugging Isabel tighter in her arms, as if trying to draw some reassurance and courage from the Princess.

—But all she felt was a series of blurry visions.

Despair is like a snake, anxiety is like sand.