novelraw Chapter 235
Chapter 235
Chapter 235
Flo lay on the table for a little while longer.
Slowly, as if something had come to mind, she tried lifting her small face from between her cherry-colored hair. Her crimson eyes, ringed with dark circles yet strangely radiant, looked toward Ailellek.
The Third True Ancestor of the Blood Clan, overcome by drowsiness, seemed to gather a bit of spirit at that moment.
“Phew... Before the vote, can I ask you a question?”
“A question? For me?”
“Yes.”
Flo smiled. It was a natural and expectant smile.
Yet, there was something inexplicably sorrowful about it.
“If I vote in favor of your Demon Clan, could I have a chance to meet with Sister Sheffy?”
Sheffy Moe War Final Four Character Card Illustration!
Eight-Winged Donut Form!
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65. Incomprehensible (Monthly ticket request at the start of the month!)
A rather abrupt question.
Even Ailellek—normally carefree and impatient to adjourn the meeting—was briefly stunned upon hearing it.
Why bring up Sheffy all of a sudden...?
This was such a formal setting, with representatives of all major powers gathered to decide the direction of the current situation.
Was this really the time for small talk?
Wow, if I say something wrong now, my royal brother will definitely beat me to death when I get back!
However...
That confusion didn’t last long.
The Demon Clan’s First Princess, the current Demon King’s younger sister, could be easygoing in daily life.
But when seated at the negotiation table, there was no lack of royal poise in her blood.
Brushing aside the scarlet hair that fell over her face, she clasped her hands in front of her on the table.
Ailellek spread her hands openly, replying without hesitation to the question posed by the Blood Clan’s Third True Ancestor, one of the current ruling figures of the clan.
“Come to think of it, Miss Flo, before you inherited the position of True Ancestor, didn’t you once meet my niece?”
“Yes, I did.” Flo’s voice was lazy, but when she brought this up, her tone clearly held a touch of joy. “Sister Sheffy and I were childhood friends. I really miss her.”
“I... is that so?”
“Yes. Haah... I’m starting to feel sleepy again...”
Ailellek wasn’t entirely sure whether they truly qualified as "childhood friends."
After all, Ailellek rarely stayed in the Demon King’s Castle. She had only heard that around ten years ago, a delegation from the Blood Clan had visited. That delegation included the then-candidate for True Ancestor, the youngest in Blood Clan history—a prodigy girl named Flo Yarl—who got along well with that rascal Sheffy.
The two shared similar interests and were often seen playing together outside the Demon King’s Castle.
Ailellek remembered her because of an incident that nearly caused a diplomatic clash between the two nations.
During one of their play sessions, that scoundrel Sheffy apparently threw Flo into a lake.
The Blood Clan’s delegation strongly condemned this act. Her royal brother was just as much of a scoundrel, refusing to apologize.
Fortunately, things didn’t escalate. Miss Flo herself claimed it was just a joke, and the matter was dropped.
They had met as children, but calling them "playmates" might be a stretch.
Flo’s delegation stayed in the Demon Domain for less than a week before returning, and she naturally left with them. That short span of time, especially in childhood—how much could really be remembered?
Recalling these troublesome past events, Ailellek responded to Flo’s question with measured care, drawing on her experiences across various nations, including the Blood Clan’s capital.
“If Miss Flo truly wishes to see her, I can try to make arrangements. But whether that meeting can actually take place still depends on the customs of your Blood Clan.”
“Ah... if it depends on Blood Clan customs, then I guess the chances are slim...?” Flo spoke slowly, but there was a hint of disappointment in her voice.
"Yes... The Third True Ancestor is stationed in the Far East Blood Region. It’s not exactly a place where you can just go and meet whoever you want..."
“Phew haah... So sleepy... That’s enough from me... I can’t keep going... You all continue talking. Good night...”
“......”
The topic had been brought up by her, and just as quickly, she dropped it.
Flo, like a soft, fluffy pink-haired big cat, drifted lightly back onto the table.
This scene left all the delegates present completely speechless.
Had it been anyone else pulling this stunt, they would’ve likely been thrown out—at the very least, publicly reprimanded on the spot.
But Flo was different.
This pink-haired Blood Clan girl, though young, was already the third most powerful figure in the Blood Clan, having succeeded the position of Third True Ancestor.
The Blood Clan's hierarchy of True Ancestors was strictly ranked by life-or-death combat prowess. She had slain the previous Third True Ancestor with her own hands to attain this role.
It was hard to imagine how this drowsy, not-yet-twenty-year-old bloodkin managed to kill a centuries-old primordial ancestor. But having achieved such a feat, not one of the people present dared to claim they could beat her one-on-one.
The Blood Clan’s continued standing among the higher races was thanks to the rule of the seven True Ancestors over the Blood Region, a dominion rivaling the authority of the Dragon Clan.
And among them, the top three held absolute power over their territories.
Unless absolutely necessary, even the Dragon Clan preferred not to provoke these batkin.
Though the Fire Dragon Prince Doromo was visibly displeased, he had no choice but to push the rigid meeting forward.
“Alright then. Since the Blood Clan’s Third True Ancestor did not raise her hand, and also didn’t abstain, by the rules of the Tower of Radiance, this will be counted as a vote against. Therefore, the proposal concerning the Holy Theocracy of Coreia will not pass—hm?”
He abruptly paused.
Flo appeared to be asleep.
But she swayed as she slowly raised her pale, bloodless hand and even gave the bat-shaped charm on her sleeve a little shake, just to ensure Doromo noticed her gesture.
A raised hand meant a vote in favor.
As the representative of the Thunder Dragon Clan, Karre clicked his tongue, stood up, and slammed his fist hard into the table in frustration—smashing the edge to pieces.
Doromo amended his statement.
“Three votes in favor, one against, and one abstention—the resolution is passed. Princess Ailellek, you are to deliver the physical evidence relating to the 【Firmament】 magic to the Tower of Radiance on an appointed date. Once we confirm this matter originated from the Theocracy, we will apply pressure on the Pope and demand a formal apology and compensation to the Demon Domain and other higher race territories.”
“Great, perfect! Phew... That’s more like it! If we’d passed it this easily earlier, we wouldn’t have had to drag it out this long. Alright, alright, now everyone can go get a good night’s sleep. The truth will always prevail! Honestly, we Demon Clan folks shouldn’t be the ones taking the blame in the first place.”
Haha, Sheffy, not bad, you little rascal. So you’ve got connections in the Blood Clan too?
Very good, very good! This time you’ve helped your auntie big-time without even knowing it. I’ll grill you a big fish when we get home!
"Utterly ridiculous...!"
With a roar, the Thunder Dragon Karre smashed the table in front of him completely.
Face twisted with fury, Karre stood and stormed out.
“I won’t stay here and humor you any longer! If you Fire Dragons, Elves, Blood Clan, and Human-God Clan want to help those lowly Demons ‘seek justice,’ then go ahead! And you still dare call yourselves higher races, wasting your breath on those Demons! The Thunder Dragon Clan will have no part in this!”
“Hey, Karre.” Doromo narrowed his eyes, making a token attempt to stop Karre’s heavy steps. “The Tower of Radiance demands solidarity among the higher races. Are you sure this represents the will of the Thunder Dragon Clan?”
“My will is the Thunder Dragon Clan’s will! I’m leaving. You lot do whatever you want.”
“As you please.”
Amid his rage, Karre smirked coldly. Unfurling his purple wings wreathed in lightning, he stood atop the hollowed edge of the tower.
Turning back, he cast a look of disdain at Ailellek.
It seemed he intended to hurl a final insult before departing to vent his anger.
But just before he could open his mouth, Ailellek raised her hand first.
At the same time—
Six black feathers unfurled to either side, casting the massive negotiation table in a shadow beneath the moonlight.
With that, Flo could now sleep even more soundly.
“Princess Ailellek?” Doromo rested his chin on both hands, calmly casting a sideways glance at the Six-Winged Demon seated diagonally across from him. “Do you have another proposal? If there are other matters, please apply to convene the next Tower of Radiance assembly. The representative of the Human-God Clan has already left—this session is no longer at full attendance, and we won’t be discussing any new proposals.”
“Not really. It’s not exactly a proposal either... Just wanted to offer all you great higher races a tiny—little—suggest—ion—”
“Oh?”
Ailellek deliberately dragged out the final syllables, her gaze filled with even greater contempt than Karre’s had been.
Karre didn’t rush to take off.
He was also curious what this lowly race thought it had to say.
Ailellek lowered her raised hand. Behind her, the wings—though not rippling with magic—still distorted the surrounding space.
She shaped her hand like a blade.
And gently chopped downward on the stone table before her.
At first, the stone table showed no reaction.
But as the Elven Governor Lovnarsen let out a quiet sigh—
—a faint crack appeared on the stone surface.
It didn’t destroy the table. The force had been perfectly controlled. The crack ran straight ahead, from the tabletop down to the floor, stretching all the way to the edge of the tower where Karre stood.
Karre looked down at the thin crack but said nothing.
Yet the sky was already filled with thunderclouds and lightning.
“There’s one thing about this meeting that I found very dissatisfying.”
Ailellek ignored the thunder rumbling across the sky. As if she hadn’t heard a thing, she continued speaking plainly, voicing her discontent.
“Some individuals—especially certain lizards—seem to show a consistent lack of respect toward us Demons. That saddens me... and also worries me.”
“Worries you? How so?” Doromo followed up, playing along.
“What worries me is that this time, I’m the one attending. But if someday, it’s my eldest niece who comes... I’m afraid she doesn’t have as good a temper as I do. You might not be able to keep your table intact.”
Doromo’s expression didn’t change in the slightest upon hearing this. It was hard to tell what he was thinking.
But the sleeping Flo twitched her ears slightly, as if she’d heard something worth looking forward to.
Karre clenched his fists tightly, the creak of bones audible.
“Damn Demon Clan... Don’t get too full of yourself...!” the furious Thunder Dragon spun around, roaring as though he might transform into a sky-blotting dragon at any moment. “It’s only been a few hundred years since the last war, and you lowly filth already forgot who drove you into the corner of this continent?!”
“Oh, we haven’t forgotten,” Ailellek replied, calm and cheerful. “But like you just said, it’s been a few hundred years, hasn’t it? The ones who drove us out... weren’t your generation, were they?”
“What... did you say...?”
“And the ones who were driven out... weren’t our generation of the Demon Clan either.”
“Hah?!”
“So, if your ancestors were the ones who defeated our ancestors, and we had nothing to do with that, and neither did you—then why is there some shameless lizard strutting around like he inherited their glory? I honestly don’t quite understand~?”
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66. Do You Believe That?
Even with the air so tense that a fight could break out at any moment, Karre ultimately chose to leave—at least for now.
No matter how hot-tempered he was, as the Chief Executive of the Thunder Dragon Clan Council and one of the clan’s 【Five Thunder Pillars】, Karre wouldn’t be the first to break the rules collectively set by the higher races when he didn’t have the moral high ground.
If he were to attack a member of the Demon royal family here, it wouldn’t just damage the Thunder Dragons’ reputation within the alliance of higher races—it would also hand the Demon Clan leverage. And beyond military matters, trade between the Thunder Dragon Clan and the Demon Domain was considerable. Acting on impulse would only cause greater complications down the line—an outcome with more loss than gain, and certainly not worth it.
Ailellek stood at the tower’s edge with hands on her hips. Her scarlet hair flowed in unison with the high-altitude winds. She stood proud and smiling, gazing up at the chaotic darkness of the sky above.
There, amidst lightning and thunder, the immense silhouette of a thunder dragon surged and twisted in the air. Its roar echoed across the heavens. The shadow it cast coiled around the clouds at the tower’s summit before gradually retreating with the thunderclouds, letting the previously clear night sky reveal the moonlight once more—restoring peace.
Karre’s transformation into his dragon form as a show of intimidation hadn’t caused Ailellek much trouble at all.