Mermaid Country

Watching Neo sigh, Clara became more distrustful.

She seemed sure of her thoughts.

Neo was… weak.

Other than the aura of death, he had nothing on him that made him look strong.

The Divine Energy leaking from his body was incomparably weak and he had poor control over it.

Was he bluffing about his strength?

No, did they misunderstand him in the first place?

He never said he was a high ranked demigod, they thought he was one by themselves.

If it was true, there was no need to bring him to the Mermaid Country.

Clara looked at her spear.

Her fingers twitched.

She had only thought about grabbing it when she suddenly noticed Neo staring at her.

He shifted his gaze to the spear and scoffed.

'Did he detect my bloodlust?'

Clara got more confused.

It was clear Neo had a very high affinity with Death element, to the point he could detect even the faintest bloodlust directed at him, but his poor Divine Energy control said he was an Awakened Demigod at best.

'What is it?'

'Is he strong or is he weak?'

Clara decided against taking any immediate action.

She would watch him for now.

The Azure Dragon reached the Alaspa Sea.

Neo gasped inwardly when he saw hundreds of hurricanes, both small and giant, in every direction.

The sky was covered with clouds and the undersea was pitch black due to the absence of light.

Without the sunlight, one would not know they had entered a hurricane's range unless it was too late.

The Azure Dragon swiftly flew through the gaps of hurricanes.

It seemed to know the range and force of the sea devils, and managed to navigate like a professional bus driver.

The hurricanes disappeared after they travelled for half-a-day.

The clouds parted, the sunlight returned and a shore appeared in the distance.

"We are here," Amelia smiled.

She commanded the Azure Dragon to circle the shore and drop them in a secluded region.

Neo was breathing heavily when they got off the Azure Dragon's back.

He had dark circles underneath his eyes and his muscles were sore. 

Riding the Azure Dragon for a day without rest wrecked his weak constitution.

'Dammit, why am I so weak after reaching Awakened rank? Am I cursed or what?'

"You don't look good," Amelia noticed his condition.

Unlike Clara, who stayed quiet, she did not hesitate to speak right now.

"I know." Neo didn't let his face show the exhaustion. "I was using the Divine Water pond to heal myself."

"Is this the side effect from your fight? Who was your foe? Are you gathering Tremor-ranked Magic Spells to increase the chances of your victory for the next time?"

Her rapid fire questions and sparkling gaze made Neo take a step back.

"Princess, we should go," Clara interrupted her before she overwhelmed Neo.

He looked at her thankfully.

They left the shore and came across a carriage hidden next to the giant beach rocks. It was left there for occasions like today.

'A carriage? They are using carriages when the rest of the world has cars. Damn, am I in the boonies or what?' Neo thought.

He should not have expected much from a country that followed Monarchy in this day and age.

Amelia climbed the carriage first.

After entering, she noticed Neo breathing heavily and unable to move his body much due to soreness.

She gave her hand to help him climb.

Neo frowned.

But he was indeed feeling weak.

He was fighting sleep and exhaustion through sheer will.

Just when Amelia thought he did not need her help, Neo grabbed her hand and stepped into the carriage.

A smile blossomed on her face.

Clara took the reins of the carriage and drove.

While on the way, Neo decided to take a short nap.

He needed to be in his best condition before meeting the Tyrant Queen.

"Wake up, we are here."

A melodious voice woke him up.

Neo felt irritated.

He had fallen asleep for a few minutes before he was told the time was up.

Opening his eyes, he saw Clara at the door and Amelia in front of him.

"It's already been a few hours. We even delayed our meeting with the Queen to let you rest," Clara explained.

Neo did not feel he had slept at all.

Maybe the short nap was a bad idea.

He exited the carriage and saw an extravagant palace.

The Azure Spire Palace stood out as a breathtaking marvel.

Its massive structure adorned in rich shades of blue glistened like sapphires under the sun.

The rich history and the regal opulence meant to be showed through the palace were clear to Neo.

They entered the palace.

"Are we meeting the Queen immediately?" Neo asked.

"Yes. She is busy with the audience but she has asked to meet you as soon as possible," Amelia answered.

While the two conversed, Clara followed Amelia silently like a faithful shadow.

They reached the door of the audience chamber.

The guard bowed to them and stepped into the hall to announce their arrival.

…

The Audience hall

The Tyrant Queen, Elizabeth, sat on the throne.

Her silver hair cascaded like moonlight, and her crimson eyes, deep and enigmatic, glowed like rubies, exuding an aura of both allure and danger.

Her gaze held the coldness of a distant star, yet there was an undeniable charm that drew all eyes to her.

On both sides of the audience hall, there were dozens of ministers and citizens.

Today's audience had been abruptly halted by the Queen.

They did not know what was happening.

As they waited, a guard entered the hall.

"The Princess Amelia de Beaufort is arriving with an Esteemed Guest!"

Amelia and Clara stepped inside.

Immediately, the eyes of ministers were drawn to the doors, waiting for the Esteemed Guest, like hawks for prey.

It was an open secret that Amelia was looking for a Divine Water source to save the Queen.

However, most of them were against it.

So…

They had to be vigilant.

To know if the "Esteemed Guest" was truly capable of saving the Queen.

If he was, then he was an enemy.