Betras. Port town of Katraia.

The town where its denizens were always at the forefront of battles against the pirates and raiders which originate from Southern Islandia.

[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/404059426413084672/473851211217502208/Map_change.JPG]

((World map... Nomadic people, smaller islands, and civilizations aren't mapped here.))

If talking about Islandia, it was an island country strangely split in half by the middle and consisted of many volcanic mountains.

The corsairs from Betras helped defend the Afrian shores, sometimes even escorting the trading vessels if required.

Betras, the port town by Katraia's southern coast, had a huge slum sector inhabited by the slaves that were brought in.

It was just that kind of place... Go ahead and call it a slave merchant's safe zone haven at that rate.

Captured beastmen, elves, dwarves, and people of poor birth were all enslaved around these parts.

No one had any freedom to live for.

Corruption had long settled in place.

But as of recent, a turbulent wind of events had swept through the continent, and many things were about to change...

"It's one of our messengers, lift the gates... Looks like he's in a hurry to the palace!"

The gate cranked to a stop as a lone horseman with a feathered hat and metallic mouth-plate hurriedly galloped inside.

He galloped his horse restlessly towards the castle beyond the citadel curving up the hill that faced the cliff and ocean.

Waves splashed into the sharp rocks below as seagulls plunged downward to pluck worms out of the hollowed rocks.

From a bird's eye view, the citadel was built and shaped after the steep cliffside which followed the shoreline.

Obviously, the heavily fortified front of this certain citadel was meant purely for defending against naval attacks.

Built into the cliffside walls were also fortifications with ballistae pointing out towards the vast and endless ocean.

Not to mention the many portholes and defensive positions integrated on the cliff where the water couldn't reach.

Betras' shore and cliff line were formed over the centuries by the waves.

To sum it up, this town... It was immune to attacks coming from the seaward direction.

The last time was when a pirate fleet attacked Betras with the intent to plunder and loot was a few months ago.

Despite coming in with siege ships alongside massive numbers, the battle shortly ended with their armada in shambles.

Betras, on the other hand, lost just a few good men and some exposed ballistae positions during the full-scale confrontation.

The throne room came into view after going into a small window at the palace castle overlooking the ocean.

"King Gareth, it's a report!"

"Guh, I cannot read for shit so spout it out!"

King Gareth who sat towering on his seastone throne grumbled out.

Demon of the Betrasian Sea, or so, they had once called the old pirate drunk.

He was getting out of his prime yet seemed quite healthy for someone his age.

((King Gareth Memed, LOL.))

[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/404059426413084672/646019453360013333/King_Gareth_Visualized.PNG]

On the sides of his hips rested two strangely shaped dirks (long daggers).

Yes... There was just something with the Betrasians and weird weapons.

"Kuku... Well... Did our boys take Zyron by surprise?"

King Gareth grinned as he asked out to the adviser holding the letter, much to him shaking his head.

"The citizens fought back... The attack failed... The Elderian Emissary... She fell our commander in battle..."

"Amoth... died?"

"Unfortunately, yes... King Gareth."

He slammed his armrests, furiously springing up from the seastone throne.

"Guh-!? Fucking hell...!? Prepare the main army! We march there by tomorrow!"

WHAM.

Everyone in the throne room then looked towards the doors which flung open.

A palace guard clad in a swashbuckler attire clung onto the door as she panted.

"Haah... Your majesty!"

King Gareth's eyes burned with fury upon seeing that a lowly subordinate had interrupted them.

"Guh-!? Don't you see we're busy-!? Off to the cells with this whore! Fuck the shit out of her while you're at it!"

"W-Wait... Your majesty! You... Y-You might want to see this... It's-- Urgent."

The guard, seemingly unmoved by his fierce shouting, continued to speak.

Gareth approached the palace guard, taking note of the grim look in her eyes.

That face she put up wasn't probably just from the exhaustion of running here.

It was such a devastating look... As if Ragnarok had befallen upon all of them.

"Guh, this better be good..."

Gareth reluctantly followed the guard out.

"Quickly, your majesty... I don't know what's going on but it doesn't look good."

She warned out and ran in front of him who followed her onto the balcony garden area overlooking the town.

His advisor also hurriedly followed shortly after behind them to see what was going on... As they arrive, they saw it...

By the edge of town, beyond the outer walls, one could spot an army numbering a dozen hundred infantry and cavalry.

It was very quickly assembled just like the same one that Betras had sent to out attack Zyron a day ago. albeit bigger.

"Guh... Have our men turned against us-!? I thought we allowed free plunder and looting?"

Gareth, not understanding the situation, had sought the joined besiegers for deserters.

"N-No, sir... Look at their banners... It seems the enemy marched here... Overnight...!? I-Impossible... We're done for"

The adviser who stepped up beside him crumbled onto his knees, losing all sense of hope as he oversaw the scene.

"T-That's... No, we still have to put up a fight!"

King Gareth swished his pirate overcoat angrily as he spun around and to head back into the palace hallway.

"We're done for, you say-!? Take this bitch as an example! Get off your ass and assemble the defenses... NOW!"

...

After an hour or two, the attacking forces had already plummeted into the main sectors of the town thanks to them being unprepared.

The defenders, in an act of desperation, sent out waves of slaves of unarmed slaves to stall the attackers so they could regroup their men.

However, these slaves were unpredictable and later decided to turn their fists on the defenders, screwing up their predicament even further.

A triple frontier then broke out by the slum sectors as the slaves spread chaos like an unstoppable wildfire.

That chaos soon enveloped the whole enemy defense force and caused them to move their lines further back.

When the attacking force broke inside, they already had the most of their hard work handed to them.

Corsairs were being hunted and beaten to death in every corner... The slaves had liberated themselves.

The slaves who had their lives tormented.

The slaves had precious things taken away.

The beastmen, the elves, and the dwarves.

They all fought for what they believed in.

After the rioting slaves were able to break loose the more dangerous magic-sealed slaves...

Well, one could probably expect what happened... Their defense lines instantly broke apart.

Betras wasn't, or could never be, prepared for an inland attack... not to mention huge riots unless having prepared in advance.

The port town mainly relied on its neighbors if another nation were to invade via the land routes due to its sea-facing defenses.

It was because the nation of Katraia, even with its internal disputes, would unite to uphold their territories if an invasion came.

So to say, Betras had no siege weapons pointing into the land at all... In contrast to the rather well-prepared attacking force.

Despite advancing here rather quickly, the joint force from Zyron succeeded in building trebuchets by cutting trees on the way.

Although due to the lacking manpower and equipment, a standstill occurred by the citadel gates right before the palace.

During the final assault, King Clyde charged in on his horse and was cut off from his men.

Surrounded by trained Demon Hounds, his horse Morgan, threw him off and sacrificed itself.

Clyde tried to run back to help but was then quickly pulled back by his cavalrymen who later caught up.

Demon Hounds are magic beasts raised by Betrasian tamers... They were caught, bred, and used for combat.

Betras had sought this knowledge to tame them from an ancient cult that dispersed long ago during ancient times.

To be exact, it was probably one of Xiveall's companions who had specialized themselves in taming demon spawns.

"I swear the people I knew back then weren't just a bunch of powerful weirdos with a few screws loose here and there!"

...That is probably what he would say if he were to be still around, speculated the many historians and Great War researchers.

Upon regaining his senses after being brought back to camp, Clyde then ordered an all-out attack against the enemy.

It was very risky, and even after knowing that more friendly forces would arrive within a day, they decided to attack anyway.

This ineffective throwaway plan proved somewhat effective as the enemy wasn't ready for such a ferocious offensive.

The citadel gates were eventually overrun by allied forces as the Betrasians were cornered off right at their posts.

The main players of the attacking force then stormed the palace gates.

King Alderius rushed up the staircase and found himself in a long hallway.

He cut down one of the Palace Guards and found a courtyard area that connected to the throne room.

Alderius walked into the corridor but paused upon seeing three palace guards block his way together.

"Aye, and here I was planning to save strength for the fight against my bastard uncle-"

Suddenly a bucket-helmed paladin charged past him and collided with the three palace guards.

His sword... It was the one he was given upon being chosen as Zyron's Holy Legion Commander.

[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/404059426413084672/646029588593508373/REF_REF_Baron.png]

"My king, please go on ahead... I shall hold them off-!"

"Paladin Baron, I thank you for always fighting by my side!"

King Alderius shouted proudly as he ran past them.

One of the Palace Guards tried to chase after Alderius but was cut down by Baron.

"I was deeply honored by my king's words... So you all aren't going anywhere-!"

In the corridor just before the throne room... There were bloody corpses scattered everywhere.

Rangers, rogues, assassins, knights in armor, and even a few paladins... They were all dead.

An old veteran corsair with wavy daggers protruding from each hand rambled back into the throne room.

Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

"Guh! I'm getting a bit too old for this kind of shit..."

King Gareth's eyes widened upon sensing danger. He pivoted around as he threw one of his daggers at the entrance.

Vixella who stood there idly caught the spinning dagger by the hilt and took her time to inspect the fine ivory blade.

((RANDOM EDGY REFERENCE OF GARETH'S DAGGERS XD))

[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/244271683781787649/715659691073601636/118-1184191_drawn-dagger-kris-lord-of-the-rings-sword.png][https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/244271683781787649/715659691073601636/118-1184191_drawn-dagger-kris-lord-of-the-rings-sword.png]

"Yarrr! The Elderian Emmisary-!? How the dafuq did ye get in here-!?"

Gareth hissed out as he lowered his fighting stance with his other dagger.

"I climbed up the cliff wall."

"Bullshit, no way in pirate hell... while wearing that damned dress..."

A slight clank came by as she tossed back Gareth's dagger and shrugged.

Gareth raised an eyebrow upon realizing that she wasn't here to fight him.

"What are ye scheming-"

SWI-SWISH!

The strokes of a cutlass sounded twice.

Sparks flew about as Vixella's arm-blade extended out to intercept the thin blades thrusting at her from behind.

Sidestepping away, she let the palace guard twirl and slash past her before stopping in front of King Gareth.

"Your majesty... I am here to protect you!"

The palace guard raised both her cutlasses and frowned at Vixella who in return tilted her head, wondering what she did wrong.

"You're that bitch from before...!? Garr, why are you interrupting us-!?"

"Stand back, your majesty...! I won't let that garter-belt panty freak get her hands on you!"

"Aah, wait... This is a slight miscalculation on my part... I think it tore again while I was climbing the cliff wall."

In truth, Vixella could just wind-kick up here but she instead scaled the cliff using Earth magic for the sake of training her magic control.

"Y-Ye... That... What I thought...", Gareth seemed a bit weirded out, "She... Nah... She tore off her dress to move 'round easier!"

"Hm, finally a person who understands! And someone who doesn't... Seems like you're the odd one out, miss-"

Two magical formations of white and cyan color appeared and tracked after the palace guard who dashed to the side.

A small ice shard launched out as the wind magic coming out after swirled and tangled around the projectile.

The palace guard crossed her cutlasses and slashed at the icicle but the wind magic helped shift its position.

"...!?", the ice shard which weaved around her rather skillful slashes then pierced her through the chest, killing her instantly.

Upon seeing the palace guard collapse to the ground as her torso was frosted, Gareth picked up his other dagger.

"Guh, to use magic like that and have such agility... If ye aren't here to take meh life then what are ye here for!?"

"I still haven't shown you the 'strength' part yet.", Vixella crossed her arms, "And about that, I'm here to bet on you."

"Bet on me...?" Gareth seemed a bit bothered as he reluctantly looked around for any incoming dangers.

He soon raised his guard upon hearing heavy plated footsteps closing in from just outside the doorway.

King Alderius skidded around the doorway as he brandished his longsword and great shield whilst charging forth.

"You bastard...! Your damned tyranny ends today!"

His gallant charge missed completely as Gareth pivoted 180 degrees and whacked him in the helmet from behind.

"Argh! Enough with your dirty tricks, Gareth! Fight me honestly!"

The disoriented Alderius didn't let down his pressure upon Gareth and spun around to mow with his enchanted longsword.

Gleaming sunlight shone through the window as Gareth who got his beard shaved leaned back and flipped out of the way.

"Fight me with valor, you coward!"

He landed onto his two feet and then spat at the floor.

"Guh! Too bad for ye, I'm just built differently...!"

Alderius then took the fight at Gareth as he in return cautiously kept dodging and keeping the distance.

The Paladin King ran forth once again, throwing his great shield away at Gareth, who threw it aside.

But that opening was enough for Alderius... He was directly in front of Gareth, and raised his longsword-

"Yarr!! Too slow!"

Gareth's Kriss daggers pierced straight into Alderius, catching him in his overhead swing.

No reaction came from any of them as they both stood still on the spot.

Vixella who casually overlooked the scene from afar didn't react either.

"Too bad, uncle...", the spider-silk and chainmail underneath his breastplate saved his heart from being pierced.

The Paladin King then gripped his longsword tighter as Gareth slowly let go of his daggers and looked up at him.

"Alderius boy... I finally see what your father saw in you..."

"Uncle Gareth... Once, to me... You were once just like a second father."

And with that said, a single downward slash drew an end to their fight.

Upon seeing his body hit the floor, Vixella made an unsure face and walked over.

She kicked a few times at Gareth's body, "Seems dead to me...", before looking up.

Alderius had thrown off his helmet and fell onto his back to pant for breath.

He was very tired from running up the palace stairs and then fighting Gareth.

"Hm, that outcome was unexpected... I had betted on Gareth."

"Aye... Lass... Just whose side are you on-!? And what if he won?"

"I would've become a pirate, had some fun, and then kill all the good guys?"

"Hah! That's a lot, hearing it from you who has quite the good reputation!"

"People tend to misunderstand. I don't think of myself as a good person."

"Haha... Lass, what can define good or bad? In the end, it's just you being you."

"Maybe... You're right."

The two then exchanged slight smiles before looking up at the bright ocean sky outside the window.

...

The two were later idly seen watching the ocean view together as the sounds of fighting outside were slowly quieting down.

Alderius suddenly clapped Vixella's supple ass and grabbed it-!? This startled her a bit as she closed her eyes and sighed.

"...What is it now, old king?"

"Well, lass... You somewhat remind me of my late wife..."

He continued squeezing, much to Vixella's annoyed look.

"Late? What happened to her?"

"She died upon giving birth to Castor... And actually, I haven't touched a woman since-- Woah!"

Vixella took him by the gorget and pushed him against the window frame, making him sit upon it.

"Then~ You must've been quite the lonely man~ Want me to help~?"

Alderius then smiled and lifted her who spread her legs to mount him.

((Hey there! They are still fully clothed and not doing anything, okay-!?))

"Tehee~ Shall I also 'heal your spirit' while I'm at it~?"

"Aye, go ahead- Wait, why are you raising your fist-!? Oof---"

PUNCH!

Vixella gave an eye smile as she then held Alderius out even further through the window and punched his face again.

He weakly raised his flailing hands to block his face but to no avail as her heavy punches broke through his blocks.

"L-Lass-!? W-Wait... S-Stop! I-I... Oouf-!?"

PUnCh- pUnCH...! PuNCH!

"You better stop resisting unless you want to go swimming, yeah-!?"

Alderius grimaced at shallows filled with sharp rocks below him.

"W-Wait, n-not that...! OoOuf...!"

PuNCH----!!!

Vixella formed bubbly formations around Alderius to heal away his wounds.

She did all this meanwhile continuing to punch him repeatedly non-stop.

"OoW-- Why are you-- OOUF-!? Doing... T-This-!?"

"Listen up, old king! Only Alexei can sexually harass me like that---!!!"

"W-Who the hell is Alex--- oOOww... Elderia's Lord Protector--!?"

"Yes~ He's my future husband~ We just happen to be very loyal to each other~!"

Vixella began to laugh hysterically as she continued her relentless 'healing barrage'.

A CENTURY LATER

(Punch SFX Transition)

The battle of Betras concluded itself within the end of that day. There were many casualties on both sides of the fight.

The defenders quickly surrendered after the attacking force took over the city and liberated it from slavery in the process.

"Wait... Why are you all bringing me on stage again-!? H-Hey... I didn't do anything this time-!? Stop--------"

**CHEERING AND CELEBRATION EARRAPE NOISES**, Vixella was then granted political immunity in Katraia.

She had tried her best to shrug off the 'Maiden of Revolution' title that was decided for her by the Katraian people but failed.

After the battle was over, instead of prioritizing repairs, they ordered the construction of her monuments first across the country.

It seems like no matter where 'he' went, Xiveall wasn't able to avoid getting stupid titles, paintings, and sculptures of him made.

Fortunately for 'her', Vixella's appearance and tales weren't overly exaggerated in the various arts, crafts, and songs of this era.

From this day forth, the rural nation of Katraia would form strong ties with the rest of the continent and reunite its nation as one.

It happened so quickly under the course of a few days... This was thanks to Vixella and what she called her 'common sense'.

"Xenthur, do you think it's time I write a book?

"Ah... About what, my lady?"

"Hm, becoming famous unwillingly?"

...

The liberation process was also published in the newspaper... And if a scribe were to compare the similarities...

Vixella's quotes, manner of speaking, and way of handling things... It was very much like The Last Hero himself.

Somewhere in a tall and enclosed cylindrical room surrounded by articles of literature, a pair of deep blue eyes shone in the dark.

FLIP... FLIP... FLIP... The book below turned its last page, flew up, and slipped into one of the many shelves upon the cylindrical wall.

"Legendary Adventurer... Maiden of Revolution... no, perhaps you are... Dawnbreaker...", those deep blue eyes then closed shut.