Ascension from Dual Professions

Chapter 304: Chapter 275: Interlude: Three Stories

Interlude I

Western Empire · Yasha County City.

Belina leaned back in the high-backed chair, her eyes gently closed. The unending cheers from just moments ago still seemed to echo in her ears.

She wore a crisp, black and gold military uniform that outlined a figure of both power and elegance. The discipline clasp was fastened just below her collarbone, and a golden rose emblem shone brightly on her left breast.

For her, the long speaking tour was not the least bit exhausting. Her strength as a Great Knight allowed her to face any difficult challenge without fear—whether on the battlefield or in the social arena.

This brief moment of rest was merely to prepare for the next "battle."

Just as Belina was briefly lost in thought, about to rise and order her Knights to the next stop on her tour, the Communication Crystal Stone at her waist began to hum without warning.

Her dark red eyes snapped open, and the last vestiges of her languor vanished in an instant.

She quickly removed the Crystal Stone and injected a trace of Magic Power into it.

"Your Highness—"

Stier’s low, clear report came from the Crystal Stone, with the faint sound of howling wind in the background.

"The situation in Heta County has been pacified. Red Crying Castle... no longer exists."

"The target, Jon Apollonia, was deeply involved throughout the entire incident. The abilities he demonstrated far exceeded our expectations."

The communication paused, as if he were carefully choosing his words.

"He... it was as if he were at the center of a storm, directing the course of all events."

"The center of a storm..."

Belina repeated in a low voice, a strange light igniting in the depths of her eyes, like a spark catching tinder.

"Good. I understand. Thank you for your hard work, Lord Stier."

"It is my honor to serve you, Your Highness. What are your orders? Should I bring Master Wood back to rendezvous with you?"

"Heh..."

The tall, gray-haired Princess let out a soft laugh and shot to her feet. Her black and gold epaulets traced a cold, hard arc with the movement.

"No... You stay in Heta County. I will come to you."

’I must meet this incredible man—’

Then, Belina deactivated the Crystal Stone, raised her voice, and called out to those outside the lounge.

"Relay my orders! Change of plans! Next destination—Heta County!"

The moment she finished speaking, an old advisor with meticulously combed white hair immediately entered the room.

He was dressed in a dark gray formal suit, his brow deeply furrowed.

"Your Highness, I must ask you to rescind that order!"

"The schedule for the selection ceremony is already tight! It’s a long journey to Heta County from here; we don’t have that much time!"

"Your speaking tour—!"

Belina didn’t even turn to look at him. She simply placed a hand on her hip, her fingertips tapping lightly against the surface of her iron belt, making a faint, crisp sound.

"No time?"

"No, Advisor Mutak. This matter is worth any amount of time—as long as he is truly as Lord Stier described!"

The corner of her lips curled into an almost sharp arc, radiating an unquestionable sense of control.

"This is my decision!"

The old advisor Mutak’s protests were choked back by an invisible aura of authority.

He opened his mouth, but seeing the unshakable resolve in Belina’s eyes, he could only let out a deep sigh.

At almost the same time, several much younger figures who had followed him into the lounge, also dressed in black and gold uniforms, immediately stepped forward.

Their eyes burned with an almost fanatical trust in and devotion to their leader.

"Wherever Your Highness points, that is where we will go!"

"Exactly! Why be constrained by the shackles of tradition?"

"If we can gain the help of that Mr. Jon, it will undoubtedly be worth it!"

Belina finally drew her gaze back from the empty space and slowly swept it across her young followers.

The light in their eyes gave her a sense of satisfaction—it was the sharp-edged spirit that longed to break with convention and embrace the storm.

’This was precisely why she had chosen them!’

’How could one who aspires to the throne be without loyal aides?’

She gave a slight nod. The movement was small, but it carried the finality of a gavel’s strike.

"Then, adjust the itinerary immediately. We depart in ten minutes!"

"Yes, Your Highness!"

The young aides responded in unison, then left with swift, efficient movements to prepare for departure.

Belina sat back down in her chair and closed her eyes again.

The lounge fell silent once more, leaving only the soft crackle of firewood in the hearth.

’Jon Apollonia... let me see for myself just what kind of person you are...’

—

Interlude II

In the depths of the Shery Mountain range in the Northern Empire, a bone-chilling Blizzard howled without end.

Within a secret stronghold chiseled into an ancient ice cliff, the Eternal Frost Sect had set the stage for a ritual.

Here, the air was stagnant and piercingly cold. The floor was not rock, but paved with the corpses of several Sub-dragons frozen in their death throes—their frost-covered scales were shattered, and their ice-blue Dragon Blood had long since frozen into vast, eerie, scarlet Ice Crystals that outlined their immense forms.

These creatures, once the overlords of the mountain range, were now merely the cold foundation for a malevolent altar.

At the core of the altar, an Ice Crystal Array carved from pure Ten-thousand-year-old Profound Ice and covered in blasphemous Runes radiated a faint blue light.

Three figures in deep blue, ice-patterned Priest Robes surrounded its edge. Their hoods were pulled low, obscuring their faces. Only their withered, frost-patterned hands extended from their sleeves, pressed against the cold edge of the Array.

Their chanting was low and monotonous, each syllable carrying the weight to freeze a soul.

"The Ice Age comes, all things fall silent..."

"The breath of our Lord calls to all living things..."

"The holy seed awakens in the snow..."

"Guide us back to the eternal frozen earth..."

As the chanting continued, the light from the Array grew steadily brighter. The faint blue became blinding, reflecting off the frozen Dragon Blood Ice Crystals on the ground and bathing the entire cavern in a bizarre, hellish mix of blue and red.