Earlier tonight, there was still some distance from the Marston Kingdom's border. Positioned at the top of the troposphere, under the vast expanse of stars above and the serene sea of clouds below, Tiran couldn't muster any appreciation for this rare beauty that ordinary people rarely see.

The princess sat cross-legged on Aya's back, near the base of her neck, gazing at the Magic communication device shaped like a handheld mirror in her hands. Impatiently tapping the joints of her right index finger on Aya's scales, it had been half an hour since she last received communication from her father and his staff. The latest information she had was that the battle had already begun, and the enemy's heavy armored cavalry had breached the Milanía army's formation. Since then, the staff seemed to be in a flurry of activity, and when Tiran tried to contact them again via the handheld mirror, there was no response. She had no idea how things were going now.

In a normal war, Tiran absolutely trusted her father's abilities, but if that dragon swordsman who wielded the rule of 【Thunder】 made a move, Granzon probably wouldn't be a match for him.

-Of course, from a macro strategic perspective, Milanía was actually in an unbeatable position. After Aya and Tiran defeated the still hanging Hazel on the dragon's claw, the balance of power in terms of Holy Rank strength had been broken. If Marston continued the war, they would easily be outperformed by the dragon knights on this side.

For Marston, the only way to minimize losses now was to take advantage of the time difference and eliminate Granzon, who was the core of the military and the nation, at the same time as Marston's capital was under attack. Only then would there be a chance to bring Milanía to the negotiating table.

The war between Milanía and Marston was built on the foundation that neither side could completely annihilate the other. Just as it was for Marston, it was the same for Milanía. Even with the advantage of Holy Rank strength, Milanía found it difficult to make a decision to annex Marston's territory.

With both sides having similar populations and power, it was a joke to think that a large country with millions of people could simply swallow the other. Not to mention the chain reactions caused by changes in the balance of power in certain regions of the continent, the domestic unrest that could threaten the foundation of governance at any time was a crisis in itself.

Therefore, the greater likelihood of ending the war was for one side to gain an advantage and benefit from the other's concessions at the negotiating table.

And when the situation came to this point, exchanging Granzon for a Holy Rank individual from Milanía would give them a significant advantage.

After all, Milanía still had Tiran as a successor, and Marston would find it difficult to find another Holy Rank individual to balance against Milanía's Holy Rank power in the short term.

Though it may sound exaggerated, at that point, it was like having a negotiation between a nuclear-armed nation and a non-nuclear one. The outcome would clearly lean towards one side, wouldn't it?

But…

Are you kidding me? How could such a thing be allowed to happen?

For Tiran, even with memories from her past life, she still believed that this man named Granzon was her father, and there was no way she could weigh the pros and cons with any kind of detached objectivity.

To hell with macro strategies - victory and that guy, her father, were all she wanted!

Although she had already communicated with Xiang Ling before, Tiran couldn't guarantee she would arrive in time. The safest and most reliable way was for her and Aya to quickly reach the battlefield themselves.

Just then, the communication device in Tiran's hand finally responded to her continuous calls.

"Princess Tiran? Are you still there? The enemy has sent a Holy Rank, His Majesty is in great danger, where are you?!"

Appearing on the communication screen of the handheld mirror seemed to be a staff member, and the background was no longer inside a tent but already the pitch-black night sky - illuminated by repeated flashes of pale lightning.

Having battled that Thunder Swordsman before, Tiran and Aya were all too familiar with that lightning.

"It will take at least another half an hour to reach Mount Kent. It's too late to fly back," considering the speed of flight, Aya concluded, "Even at the maximum speed, we can't make it in time."

"What a pity, Silver War Maiden. Miss Swordswoman seems different from me. If War King's strength is really only at the Holy Rank or below, she probably won't last more than ten swords - if she's interested in a sword duel with War King - hah!"

"How long?"

Tiran, who had always disliked this guy, casually threw an ice ball that hit Hazel on the head, giving him a big bump.

"Um, around ten minutes?"

"It's still not enough?" Tiran sighed, flipping her wrist and taking out a paper charm from her storage bracelet.

Similar to the cooking pot she received from Xiang Ling before leaving the Eastern Continent, this long-distance teleportation item was one of the dowries Xiang Ling gave Tiran. Known as the Thousand-Mile Pursuit Charm, it was used for long-distance teleportation. However, it seemed too precious, as even Xiang Ling didn’t have many of these charms, using only two on the last trip from the border to Luojing.

And now, Tiran only had one in her hand, just enough for one person to use.

The problem was that either she or Aya alone would find it difficult to win against the dragonman without being able to use the 【Vibration】rule together, let alone fighting alone. She couldn't expect Hazel to betray him on the spot.

"I'll go back first, Aya, hurry up."

That was the best option. After all, in terms of flight speed, creatures like Aya, with wings naturally long, had the advantage. It was best for Tiran to intercept the guy first and then have Aya arrive as soon as possible.

"Don't collapse before I get there."

"Tch, who do you think I am? Instead of worrying about me, you should consider the possibility of me resolving the fight before you arrive."

Tiran stood up, infused the charm with Chi and placed her right hand on the sword hilt while focusing her mind.

She bound the Thousand-Mile Pursuit Charm's position to her father, so there was a high chance of directly entering the battle when she teleported over. If there was an opportunity to catch the opponent off guard, it would be best.

Just like the previous time she used it, the scene in front of her gradually blurred, unable to be recognized, and then a strong sense of dizziness followed by a sudden clarity in a moment.

When Tiran teleported to Luojing, she wasn't prepared and almost vomited, so this time she had to summon all her willpower to suppress the dizziness.

"Xi…!"

The moment her eyesight cleared, Tiran drew her sword and slashed towards the figure in front of her.

Huh?

The sword was only halfway out, but Tiran froze in place before she could raise it, feeling a frustrating sense of having the power but not being able to use it against the princess who had just been preparing to unleash her power for a while.

But that wasn't the most important thing. What left her bewildered was the scene before her.

As the one bound by the Pursuit Charm, the king was naturally present on the scene. However, he was completely different from what she had imagined, being chased around by the lightning summoned by the dragonman…

"Father, can you explain why you're holding a pot in your arms! And this pot looks somewhat familiar?!"

And right in front of her father, a certain general… now the queen, seemed a little uneasy as she interlaced her fingers in front of her chest, glancing somewhat expectantly at Granzon.

"My lord, how do you like this Fire Pot King 9.0? Of course, this is just one of the dowries, but since I like it the most, I decided to give it to you first. There will be a more detailed list of other items I carefully selected from the Imperial Treasury, which is sure to not disappoint you."

"...So, you're saying this pot you gave me actually has a name? What kind of name is Fire Pot King! Also, why do you have a preference for cooking pots? Come on, don't call it a dowry without my consent!! I never agreed to marry you!"

The princess was simply astounded, ignoring the title of "my lord" outright.

"Tiran? How did you…? The Thousand-Mile Pursuit Charm? The gift I gave you actually came in handy, that's great."

Tiran's sarcasm made the two on the other side also notice her. Xiang Ling's lips almost involuntarily curved upwards as she took three steps forward and held Tiran's hands - wait, weren't you supposed to be the dominant CEO style, why are you breaking character like this out of nowhere!

This was due to the relatively conservative culture of the East, where even someone like Xiang Ling, who was usually not bound by conventions, would inevitably be influenced by such norms and only held hands.

...if this person were from the West, they might have already lost control of their lips when seeing Aya's lips.

"I… what are you…?"

The princess's mind was in chaos, subconsciously turning her face and signaling for help to the king on the other side, but she ended up meeting the same perplexed gaze from His Majesty, directly causing a scene of mutual confusion (father-daughter duo exclusive).jpg

What's going on? Weren't you close to dying just now?

I was close to dying, and then this child saved me. Is she the new empress who ascended the throne recently? By the way, why did she address me as 'my lord' right after meeting me?

Cough cough! That was... purely accidental, an accident.

Say, aren't you being irresponsible after flirting with someone then getting them to come to your door?

It was she who flirted with me first. I'm not some kind of lecherous person; I'd at least pick my suitors, wouldn't I? This move was clearly me sacrificing my looks to bring reinforcements to Milanía.

... Thinking about it, this deal seemed quite profitable. She's the new empress of West Chu, dominating at Holy Rank, and separated by a vast sea, even if West Chu was strong, it would be hard to influence Milanía. Your marriage would bring only benefits and no harm.

So are you planning to sell me off?

Eh, don't use that harsh term. Political marriages are also a duty of a princess... but if it's just us two girls, the issue of the heiress would indeed be a problem. It's now impossible for that brat Brad to inherit, so that mission will ultimately fall on you.

Hehe, why don't you try harder with my mother again! You're not exactly at that age yet, right? And there are many true old treasures in the capital who seem to defy aging.

By the way, the way you talk like that would get you beaten up by boxers in certain places.

The father and daughter exchanged crazy glances.