Her Highness the Princess

"As for the number of people... judging from the size of the camp, there should be around 30,000. If we exclude some, there are at most a little over 10,000 who can enter the battlefield."

"As for the Banshees, if we gather all the Banshees in the city and recruit some more, we might be able to raise eight thousand..."

"It's not hopeless, there's still a chance..."

Lamaline gritted her teeth, her mind racing.

Maria, after carefully observing the situation, silently shook her head.

"More than two."

"Um?"

"Judging from the tire tracks on the ground, there should have been three warships here."

"Three ships?"

Lamaline was stunned for a moment, then she decisively turned her head away.

Something of this size is unlikely to be hidden, but there should only be two ships at the scene.

In other words...

"A warship has already launched a night attack on the royal city!"

Lamaline's face turned pale instantly.

She was about to turn around and go back to inform them, but her body stopped abruptly.

Maria's words were still echoing in her mind.

My mission... is to protect those who trust me...

This is what I should be doing...

Silently clenching her fists, Lamaline gritted her teeth and turned to look at the Allied Forces camp.

"It's just one ship; the Banshees can handle it..."

However, based on the enemy's preparations, the ship that attacked overnight could only be considered a harassment, depleting the Banshees' spirits in the middle of the night. The time for the remaining two ships to launch a formal attack would not be long.

If it were just a single warship, the Banshees could barely handle it.

But if the rest all come out...

No!

I have to do something.

After a moment's pause, Lamaline turned her head, placing her last hope in Maria.

Seeing Maria's calm expression, she almost pleaded as she spoke.

"Can you do me a favor?"

"..."

"The Banshees are currently preoccupied with internal affairs. The Allied Forces' attack will inevitably catch them off guard, so they must immediately regroup..."

Lamaline didn't even know what kind of expression she had when she said those words.

She knew that as the ruler of the Banshee Court, she neither needed nor should have shown weakness to anyone.

But the so-called dignity, the so-called pride, the so-called status are all empty words. She knows that if she doesn't do something, she will truly be failing her crown.

Someone absolutely must remind the Banshees.

"..."

Maria did not answer. She simply looked at the girl facing her, remained silent for a moment, and then shook her head.

"I don't want to get involved in your problems..."

Maria wouldn't mind if it were just something she mentioned casually on her way back, but she wasn't naive either; she was aware of the other person's special status and the special circumstances.

Even if she returned and found someone influential among the Banshees, how would she explain that the Banshee Court had run away with her in the middle of the night? How would she prove her safety?

Once they discover their leader has disappeared, what reason would they have not to suspect that Maria secretly took the King of the Royal Court away and then returned to report false information to them?

The more anxious and chaotic the situation, the more problems are likely to arise.

Maria really didn't want to get involved in these people's mess.

Her only opponents will be those Great Beasts.

As for wars between people... she wasn't interested, nor did she want to get involved.

So, despite her coldness, Maria calmly refused the girl's request.

"Is there anything you want? The Banshee Court can provide it..."

"I know you're anxious, girl, but I only have one answer... I don't care about any of that."

"..."

The girl fell silent.

Lamaline stared blankly at Maria in front of her, biting her lip tightly.

But a moment later, she let go of her hands.

"I see."

"But I still have one request..."

I would like to hear the details.

Maria turned her head slightly to look at the girl.

After taking a few deep breaths, Lamaline silently removed the ring from her delicate black silk sleeves, strung it together with a strand of hair, and tied it to Maria's wrist.

She knelt down facing Maria and gently kissed the ring.

"I understand your reluctance to participate in our affairs, but at least, please place this ring upon my crown..."

"This is my symbol. Leaving her there, even if the Banshees think I've run away... at least, it'll keep them on their guard..."

Lamaline raised her head, looked at Maria in front of her, pursed her lips, and spoke softly.

She didn't care if she was scorned by the Banshees, or if her name became a disgrace.

Some things simply must be done!

"May I?"

Chapter 263 Your Highness

Faced with this request, Maria remained silent for a moment before nodding quietly.

She can certainly do that.

After all, what Maria dislikes is unnecessary explanations and proofs.

But if it's just about getting something to a certain place, that's not a problem.

With her skills, she was confident she could enter any place without alerting anyone.

Lamaline to the side, finally smiled after seeing Maria nod in agreement.

She nodded, then slowly stood up, turned her head to look at the campfire-smoldering area, her gaze gradually hardening.

"What are your plans to do with these?"

"Attack!"

"... Are you all alone?"

"Um."

Lamaline took a deep breath.

Although Maria was quite surprised that her attempt to conceal her presence was completely ineffective when they first met.

But this doesn't mean she's weak.

On the contrary, it's just that Maria is too strong.

Under normal circumstances, even those who are also masters of Originium Arts would find it difficult to break the Banshees' spells.

So she decided to take advantage of this opportunity.

The situation is urgent; the Allied Forces could never have imagined that the current ruler of the Banshee Court would appear tonight and attack their camp.

This will inevitably lower their guard.

If we seize this opportunity, we can have her inscribe the Banshees' spells on those steel warships, and then delay the detonation.

Even if it cannot be completely destroyed, it can at least prevent the enemy from returning to the battlefield for a long time to come!

If we can achieve this, then everything will be meaningful!

"..."

Seeing that Lamaline was determined, Maria remained silent for a while, then turned her head slightly and ran back the way she came.

After watching Maria walk away, Lamaline also took a deep breath silently.

After a moment's pause, she ultimately couldn't overcome the pangs of conscience and bowed slightly to Maria's retreating figure.

"Sorry."

She knew Maria didn't want to get involved, but now she had to take responsibility for the Banshees' future.

So she deceived Maria.

Her real purpose was not to get Maria to return the ring.

Instead, it was to make the Banshees identify with Maria and thus believe Maria words.

That ring was more like a keepsake for her.

She wasn't sure if Maria had seen through her clumsy scheme... but she knew she had taken advantage of Maria's kindness.

She owed Maria a favor.

She may never be able to repay this favor in her lifetime.

But at least, she knew she didn't regret it.

This is something she has to do.

"Hopefully someone will find it."

With a sigh, Lamaline didn't hesitate any longer, turning her head to look at the camp in the distance.

Inside the Banshee Courtyard.

Mila wearily pushed open the door and walked out of the room with a worried expression.

She couldn't sleep at all.

As Lamaline's best friend, whom she grew up with, she has always admired Lamaline, who, despite being about the same age, has always been ahead of her peers.

She was also proud to be his maid... Their relationship remained the same, and she could share his burdens.

The problem is that the current situation is frustratingly bad.

Even though she had realized that the entire Banshee Court had been pushed to its limits, and all the Banshees were on edge, preparing for the upcoming war.

But everyone is pessimistic about the future trend.

They have a very low chance of winning this war...

Even though she had recently prepared herself mentally, she still tossed and turned every night, unable to fall asleep.

With her eyes closed, she could see Lamaline working at her desk.

She was genuinely worried about whether Lamaline could hold on if things continued like this.

After much deliberation, she decided to get up and check on the other person's condition.

But she had only been out the door a short while when she saw the Banshees guards moving quickly.

They looked anxious, as if they were preparing to carry out some mission.