**Earlier that day**
Somewhere far away at a Sub-Kingdom of the Valley, a beautiful girl with a sheer drape over her head traveled with three of her subordinates. It was midday as the four stood on the hot sands, a few miles away from the Desert Kingdom, their hometown.
This girl walked barefoot in the sand with her three golden knights. She chimed and clinked as she walked, her long head drape fluttered like a dramatic cape behind her—sheer and exposing her silhouette as she wore little to nothing behind it. Her skin, still effortless, glowed that soft, rosy color. The armor—or what little she had of it—covered only the edges of the off-white cloth that barely covered her chest, shining a rose gold color from it.
The other three knights wore sheer capes with the logo of a golden rose at their center. All of them were clad in golden armor. Following them was a big golden ring, and it was shaped like the sun as it floated behind them.
"Milady…" a girl with purple hair and a blonde ombre hoarsely said. Out of the other two subordinates whose armor matched, she wore only boots and armor on her breasts and waist. Her gloves were brown leather, but due to the heat, she took them off, revealing her pink, pointed nails.
"Milady… are we… are we almost…" She could barely finish her sentence.
"Love… why don't you ride the Sun Ring? That's why I brought it with us…" the pretty girl with the drape over her head recommended as she casually walked barefoot on the burning sand. "Apologies. Our usual mode of transportation has gone missing, so we must make do with walking back to the Desert Kingdom. There is no one else among us who can teleport great distances."
Love instantly perked as the pretty girl said this, feeling bad instantly that she had to apologize at all. "NO! Milady Belle, please! Never, never ever apologize for something that was not your fault! Let alone apologize to me, of all people, I am unworthy of such gestures. And look at you, milady, you lead by example! If you can walk on the sand barefoot and withstand the heat, then I can walk on it too! This is nothing! I can do this… I can do this… I can do this…"
She started to get hot as she said this and was sweating profusely, tears forming in her eyes as she closed them and repeated that last line over and over delusionally.
Captain Belle gave her a dismissive sigh and waved a hand. When she did this, the Sun Ring behind them hovered over and behind Love, bumping the back of her knees and flopping her onto it. Love passed out immediately from the heat as her back hit the golden ring, which was like a floating bed to her now.
"Speed, keep watch of your Vice Captain as she rests," Captain Belle casually ordered the golden knight in the back.
The knight, Speed, simply nodded and quickly made his way to Vice Captain Love on the Sun Ring, sleeping like a baby. As he did, he took his cape and used it to cover her to protect her from the sun. He then took his helmet off with one hand and placed it on the Sun Ring as well. He had dirty blond hair, and it was medium length, splitting down the middle and onto his face.
The other knight was also male, and his helmet was a half helmet, covering only his face from the nose and below. His hair was brunette and long, tied up in a ponytail all the way down to the back of his knees. He resembled that of a samurai in golden armor, the long sword on his hip a testament to that.
When she and her crew finally made it to the walls of the Desert Kingdom after their long journey back from the Valley, a guard at the Kingdom's South Gate shouted, "The Golden Rose Knights are here! Let them in!"
The large gate opened for them.
As they walked into this smaller Kingdom, the sand merged with the metal grounds. Despite being a smaller Kingdom, Sub to the Valley, the Desert Kingdom was just as advanced.
Tall buildings and skyscrapers were in view with the skies as you looked up, as well as flying vehicles that populated them. Overall, the city was a dark gray color with faint colorings of light and bustling with life. But regardless of its earth-tone colors, the barrier that surrounded the Kingdom was a temperature-regulating mana barrier made as a layer within the Zion Orb barrier. It made the whole Kingdom the same weather as the Valley and even emulated its skies. So even as the crew of four Golden Rose Knights came from harsh desert winds and the beating hot sun, when they entered the Desert Kingdom, they were met with beautiful blue skies and perfect weather conditions.
The main streets were filled with all types of people and races as they crowded over the Golden Rose Knights, who were like celebrities here.
Captain Belle daintily waved a hand to all the residents as they passed by and even gently held the hands of some of the children who reached out and walked along with her. Speed and the masked knight followed closely behind stoically, not interacting with any of the residents—their sole duty was being Captain Belle's protectors. Vice Captain Love, too, became on guard as she hopped off the Sun Ring after awakening from her beauty sleep, watching from the rear. Unlike the two other subordinates, she was a bit cheerier and at least acknowledged some of the people who reached out to her.
Only a few Guilds per main Kingdom got stationed to a Sub-Kingdom for renowned protection or for certain extended missions. Fewer get the right to govern them. The Golden Rose Knights didn't just live here, they basically owned the Desert Kingdom. Put under jurisdiction from the Arcane King of the Valley himself shortly after Captain Belle rose through the ranks and quickly made the Golden Rose Knights the number 1 Guild in all the Valley.
However, there was something amidst here, which is why Captain Belle's subordinates were on edge. The whole time, she remained calm, knowing her team was vigilant, while she tended to the residents so as not to worry them. Her smile alone and her gentleness with the children were enough to ease the Desert's citizens.
With all their previous obligations completed back at the Valley Kingdom, their duties now lay with the Desert.
When they got to the Desert Kingdom's main castle, the three Golden Rose subordinates kneeled as Captain Belle stood at the center of the golden throne room, speaking to the Queen.
"What's the ETA of its arrival?" Captain Belle asked, talking to her as if she were equal to the Queen—which she very well was.
"About thirty minutes. And it wreaked havoc on a subdistrict forty-two kilometers away yesterday just by passing by it. It's been traveling in this direction since then." The Queen responded, collecting herself before continuing, "I don't think our barrier will last if it's heading here and it attacks us…"
"Do you know where it is hailing from? It seems it's attracted to high mana-emitting cities, hence why it's direct path here to this Kingdom," Captain Belle asked again, more stern this time.
"I believe from the northeast. But other than that, we are unsure," the Queen guessed.
"You believe? I mean no disrespect, but I can't go off guesses, my Queen. I will cover the North and station each of my three subordinates here at an entrance; the rest will guard the citizens within the city with Head Guard Rok at their center. I would normally have 1st Vice Captain Lance and 3rd Vice Captain Viper with him, but I have them dealing with other missions for now. Are you okay with this decision?" It was almost like a command. Every word she spoke, regardless of her sweet voice, carried weight in it and demanded respect without asking for it. She let the Queen get the last word to convey her respect for her, even though she spoke the way she did.
"I confirm this not only as your Queen but as your equal. We are in your debt. Whatever you need from us, please let us know." The Queen, submissive even to her, respected her wholeheartedly.
"It is settled then. Speed to the West, Metal to the South, Love to the East," Captain Belle ordered.
Her three subordinates saluted in unison. "Yes, Captain." And without further question, they were off in a flash.
***
Twenty minutes passed by. The four Golden Rose Knights—Captain Belle, Love, Speed, and Metal—were stationed outside at each gate while the others were stationed within the Desert's walls, ready for whatever was coming. With her head drape fluttering with the desert wind, Captain Belle walked elegantly as her bare feet creased the sand below her, though it looked as if her feet were not even touching the ground at all. Her jewelry clinked and chimed each time she moved; the sound of the wind and her were the only things that could be heard throughout the whole desert on the Northside.
Twenty-five minutes.
Nothing out of the ordinary. No additional sounds, no shifting in the sand. Just her and the heat of the desert.
Thirty minutes. Still nothing. But then…
At this time, the desert itself shook. At each of the gates, the other three were stationed. Every one of them lost their balance—except Belle. Speed from the West gate phoned in through the earpiece they all wore.
"Captain… it showed up… my side," he said, yelling over the other end with a static voice.
"Heading?" Belle said calmly.
No response, only static left on the reception.
"Speed, report in."
Still no response.
Then another call in, this time from Metal, the knight with the half mask, "Captain—it—South…"
Another bad reception from his end.
Regardless of the bad communication, she had already assessed the situation and knew exactly where it was heading. She hopped in the air and floated, jetting at an intense speed upward. The aura from her mana alone was enough to let her fly without needing to use any of it or cast any spells to do so. Once she was high enough to look over the walls of the Desert Kingdom, the Sun Ring from earlier flew in from within the city and met her in the air. She grabbed it as it passed by at sonic speeds, blasting through the air toward the East gate.
As Belle flew in to where Love was, she witnessed huge mountain-like humps protruding from the sands. One after the other extended back to the South and West gates.
Below at the East Gate, Vice Captain Love was on the defensive, fending for herself as debris and sand covered the area she was in. The other two, she could only hope, were doing the same.
Belle, from the air, waited just before the large hump that was in front of Love, stopping mid-air with the big Sun Ring in her right hand. She looked like an angel floating in the sky as the drape over her head fluttered and looked like wings.
Just as expected, the front of the mountain moved inward, down into the sand, causing sandstorms as it dug itself into the dunes. The Desert Kingdom shook from behind its walls all the while.
Then, from directly below, a gigantic circular mouth emerged from under the sand. The mouth itself was the size of a quarter of the Desert Kingdom. It bore endless rows of jagged teeth, each row rotating in opposite directions. The sand below it was getting eaten up and swallowed into the endless dark pit that was its center.
This was what they were waiting for. The objective: dispose of the Grade 0 Colossal Sand Dragon.
The gigantic, gaping mouth shot up toward Belle. For something this big, its speeds were alarming. She flew up at equal speeds upward into the sky, and from the sides of the enormous beast, huge membranous wings arose violently out of the ground from the Southeast, just in between Metal and Love's station.
As the wings shot out, it was so enormous that you could stack three more Desert Kingdoms on top of it just to reach its height. Belle, witnessing this, continued to fly upward—acting as bait.
All Colossal Sand Dragons were blind and are hypersensitive to sensing mana aura, especially large amounts of it—mana that you could only typically find within a Kingdom itself. The Sand Dragons' diet included these highly condensed sources of mana… and in this case, the very core protection of any Kingdom—its Zion Orbs.
It followed her, flapping its colossal wings down. The left wing crashed onto the Desert Kingdom barrier, not causing collateral damage, but enough to cause a ripple that the residents saw from the inside—distorting the peaceful skies it emitted from within and alarming them as panic broke out inside the walls.
As it pulled itself out of the sand, its giant dragon claws and legs emerged, causing sinkholes from the West, South, and East gates at the same time. All three of Belle's subordinates made a run toward more stable ground, as they were at risk of falling in.
"If you can hear me, I want you to retreat into the Kingdom. Protecting the citizens is now priority number one." Belle said through the communicator in her ear, supercharging it with her mana to get any kind of signal through to her three subordinates.
There was no response for a few seconds as she continued to fly up at high speeds, waiting earnestly for any response at all. The winds and high pressure rushed past with each new height she attained. Then, from her earpiece…
The resonating echo of voices from her resolved subordinates sounded through simultaneously, "YES, CAPTAIN!"
Relief and a faint smile struck her, knowing they were all still alive. This was not only an order but an act of reassurance for her. She did not need to hold anything back now.
Both Belle and the Sand Dragon continued to fly upward, jetting higher and ever so higher into the sky. The beast's full body was so large that you could see it from miles and acres away—maybe even faintly from the Valley Kingdom. The closest view of it, perhaps, would be the garden of the Wolves Den…
They both flew so high that they were just barely above the troposphere and into the stratosphere. The beast followed her, twisting its long, gigantic body in all directions as it flew to heights it'd never reached before.
Belle stopped about half a mile away from it, still holding the Sun Ring in her right hand down the middle—her back faced upward into the faint stars in the distance behind her. The head drape she wore had flown off due to the high speeds, revealing her long platinum white hair that hid underneath. It shone as bright, if not brighter than the rays, as it reflected light off from it in a kaleidoscope of colors; like a crystal held up to the sun.
The beast closed in as she took the Sun Ring and held it in front of her in its direction. The Sun Ring reconfigured, clanging its golden mechanical parts intricately as it transformed into a large golden bow, infusing with her mana.
The cold air and high pressure gave her goosebumps that rippled throughout her perfect, exposed body. She inhaled and exhaled slowly, calming herself as the beast still vehemently raged toward her. A golden light formed like a string on her bow-shaped Sun Ring. She reeled it back as far as she could, concentrating all her mana into one spot.
The impeding Sand Dragon roared in the sky. Then Belle closed her eyes for a short moment and whispered to herself as if sending a prayer for the beast, "May the stars be your witness. If there is a place for your soul after this, may even the Keeper accept it. For here in this world, you no longer belong. Begone… and forever sleep in the ethers."
Her eyes opened gracefully, her deep blue eyes reflecting the blue of the world. She was it, and it was her.
"Holy Magic: Heavenly Arrow's Judgment."
With the Sun Ring fully charged, she let go of the golden light she had reeled back. At first, it was a flicker, and then a huge blast followed afterward.
FEEUUUUM!!!
The blast condensed into a thin beam that shot right into the Sand Dragon's mouth. It was so strong that the beast began to blow up from the inside out, causing a rippled set of explosions throughout its whole body, starting from its head. And the clouds that surrounded them opened up the sky with Belle at its center.
The beast contorted as it continued to explode from multiple areas, falling slowly from the sky as it did. By the time it fell back down to whence it came and the Desert Kingdom was in sight of it, the beast was already fading—bit by bit into the ether.
Its fallen debris looked like shooting stars during the day as it passed over the Desert Kingdom and away onto desert pastures. The crumbled pieces of the Colossal Sand Dragon disintegrated completely, leaving no trace of the beast's existence.
Beasts like this were on the extermination list due to the fact that they could make many other kinds go extinct. Colossal Sand Dragons all had the same magic ability: Disruption magic. It could cause interference with both magic items and magecraft when they came near enough. If it wasn't already hard to kill due to its size, it became nearly impossible for almost any magic to take it down. The last one of these beasts appeared years ago and was defeated by a group of twelve S rank mages. Today, it was defeated by one. It was the last of its kind, and Belle of the Golden Rose Knights was the one who exterminated it.
As she descended from the sky, many people below fell to their knees and bowed. Many even held out prayers to her, thanking her for saving them—tears of gratefulness in their eyes. She was their savior, and they worshiped her like she was a god. The sun shone just over her, radiating rays of light that touched her skin and onto the people of the Desert Kingdom, blessing each one of them with her existence alone.
After today, Belle's rank officially changed from S rank mage to SS rank. Next to the Arcane King, she was the second-strongest mage in the Valley Kingdom.
The following day, she and some of her crew arrived back to the Valley Kingdom. When she did, it wasn't just her promoted rank that garnered attention. There was something else brewing in the shadows of the Valley. This problem involved a certain male—one whom she could not stop thinking about.
Find me… her mind echoed.
***
**Present day. The Wolves Den**
I woke up late this morning. It was about 0715, but I didn't get up until fifteen minutes later.
I slept naked on the bed with Ophelia, who was the same way under my tatted arm and her slender hand on my chest. Under the bed sheets, Star was there too, as she had woken me up with her head under the covers—the only movement there, aided by the sounds of lips pressing on skin.
I didn't know how long she had been there, but after some moments, I held her horns down as she let me finish in her mouth. She took it, then curled up into a ball under the sheets, going back to sleep. I lay there for a bit before pushing Ophelia off me and getting dressed. A few minutes later, Ophelia had gotten up to use my master bathroom, saying nothing as she tried to stay asleep, lazily sashaying in. She was still in there when I finished getting dressed, and Star was still sleeping soundly under the covers.
It was almost 0800 when I left the room. Without saying a word, I proceeded out the door, leaving the two girls behind. Another normal day, it had seemed.
I continued my usual routine, though I was a bit behind this morning, and made my way to the front entrance to go train—even though it would be by myself at this point. But once I got there, I saw both Ryo and Havoc looking through the windows of the front entrance.
"There a problem here?" I said to them both, adjusting my wrist wrap.
"There just might actually…" Ryo said, slightly hesitant, and pointed out the window through the curtain.
There was a small rectangular eye hole in both the double doors of the entrance. I opened one of them and saw a group of mages that I would rather have gone and died than be forced to meet again.
"Open up! This is the W.M.A.!"