Resistance (2)

"You tried to hurt her," Lucien was sitting under a tree. Midel was standing behind him just watching the drama unfold.

There was a beautiful man kneeling before Lucien. Midel learned from him that this was the thunder phoenix imprisoned in the staff that Yllana found in the cave. "Did Yllana tell you that this guy also caused a scene in our camp near Dimshade Valley? He burnt a hole through her tent one night that we almost got evicted from the valley that night." Lucien's face drew another shade darker. Midel was laughing inwardly as he gazed at the poor spirit almost crawling on the ground.

He was holding the thunder phoenix staff on his left hand. Veins started popping out of his hand. "As a spirit entrapped in a weapon, you are picky with your master's strength not knowing their real capabilities." Lucien released a thin wisp of black and red smoke. The two thin wisps curved and wrapped around the staff.

"I would never…ever…serve someone like her," He gritted between his breaths. Since he was just a spirit, his hands that Lucien broke earlier already looked normal. But Lucien's grip on the staff is bringing great pain to his spiritual body and making him weak. One would need special techniques to hurt a spirit like him.

"You refer to our new empress as if she had never defeated the demon king." Larika also chimed in. "Do you have a name?"

"Yllana did not give her one, since he tried to hurt her twice already," Midel remarked.

"Something is wrong in the barracks." She faced Lucien and Midel. "Yllana is there," she added. Midel walked to Larika, waiting for her to lead the way to the soldiers' camp. Lucien eyed the phoenix for him to follow them.

When they arrived, Yllana was already in front of the infantry. The soldiers' eyes were wary of her. They were measuring her up and down. Yllana felt their presence and raised her hand to stop them from interfering. One of the Holy Knights stepped forward.

"We already had a useless empress before, and now you, a High-Saint ranked reject is going to lead us? Do you think this is just a joke?"

"The Northern Kingdom's army is a small one and cannot be compared to the South. If you think that just because you were the highest Holy Knight there, you will also reap the same benefits here, you are wrong." Another one joined.

"We refuse to be led by a weak girl."

Yllana studied their faces. None looked familiar. She knew that she had given orders to all the soldiers who were with them in the north. The Holy Knights that Darion took with him are already dead too. None of the news about the 'new' ruler reached these camps. She smiled at her own thought. So, this is how Darion ruled them…showing power. Two can play at that game.

"Anybody who can't accept me as their new ruler, step forward." She summoned the Lightning Sword.

In her hands, it looked like just as ordinary as her sword of light from the northern army. When the knights saw the silver sword, they laughed at her.

The very first man who insulted her strode forward with his head held high. He was dragging a broad sword by his side. It has triple the width of an ordinary sword and small rings on the dull side. As he dragged the sword, the little rings made a clinking sound. All the other soldiers were scoffing at Yllana for challenging them. They look at her up and down. Some even deliberately talked about her 'lame' sword out in the open.

Midel's eyes narrowed at the soldier who were openly mocking his friend. He crossed his arms across his chest. When he looked at Lucien at his side, he saw the murderous aura around him. As Lucien's aura slowly amplified, his grip to the thunder phoenix staff also tightened.

The pretty man who was following them coughed out blood. He could feel a powerful hand clasping his neck. Was this a warning? A threat? That if he ever will do the same to her, he will slowly kill him with just his pure power? 'This is ridiculous!', he thought to himself. "She's just a High-Saint ranked dual-" his voice faded in the background as the battle in front of them commenced.

In one swift movement, Yllana disappeared before everyone's eyes. The knight in front of her was left dumbfounded. He could only see the dust that she left when she jumped from her position. The other soldiers checked the area. They all shook their heads. They started to sweat profusely.

Boom!

Dust flew everywhere as a hole suddenly sprung up below the knight! No, the hole didn't just appear. The knight was sucked into the hole until only his head was visible. He gasped and cried out, "You're unfair! I wasn't prepared! You cheated!"

"Yeah! Cheat-!"

Boom!

"She's ki-!"

Boom!

Two more knights followed. The soil swallowed their bodies and left only their heads to gasp for the air. After witnessing the scene, the other soldiers kept their mouths shut. In the middle of the crowd, her cold voice resounded.

"Agility and brains are the basics that a soldier should be equipped when going to battle." Since she was not a knight anymore, she was wearing a red robe with a gold flower on the side. The permanent red line on the corner of her eyes gave out a unique and simple allure on her plain face.

Midel glanced at Lucien. "Shadow serpents…below the ground," he explained as if reading the question on his mind. Midel saw the black shadows connected to Yllana's hand creeping to her dress and down to the ground.

Yllana continued, "You refuse to be under my command? Just because you see that I am a girl in the High-Saint rank? You are the ones who are unfair and unjust. I don't need soldiers who are not fast enough to evade any attacks nor have the brains to measure the circumstances before them." She frowned as she looked at the struggling soldiers. Just what was the emperor planning when he recruited these soldiers?

She commanded the shadow serpent to lift the soldiers up in the air. The army moved to the sides when she walked past them, giving way to her. Her shadow serpents held the three knights on their waists a few feet above the ground and hammered them back down with loud thuds!

Another set of three soldiers came up behind her and pointed their swords at her. "Flame shield…hell's berserker,"

A tornado of wind and fire instantly shot down from the sky and made the soldiers cover their eyes. Now, it wasn't just dust that flew everywhere, there was even flickers of fire lightly licking the three people who were about to sneak an attack on her. They all shuddered in fear. This girl is not just a knight from the North Kingdom! She has cultivated in more than one class! But what class would those be? Nobody heard the words she whispered before the techniques revealed themselves. And her life force? What a huge life core she must have to excel in more than one class.

She raised her sword and made a gap from her tornado. It was so small that only her sword could get through. Her eyes focused on her target. She moved the small hole around and waited for the exact spot. There! The knight's hand holding the sword! In one thrust, she managed to wound the knight in his hand and drop his sword. She repeated the same attack with the two more knights.

"We give up!"

"You can't even resist the same attack? How weak…" She sighed and retracted her berserker. When she looked back at the army, the soldiers could not meet her in the eye. They twitched and fiddled with their swords.

"You say that I am just a High-Saint ranked knight, but I easily defeated six knights right now. You say that I am just a weak girl, but you can't even get through my defense. If any of you still doubts me, you can walk away right now. But you can never come back to this army. It's your choice." Nobody made a sound. The wind blew her hair and robes softly giving her an ethereal appearance…like a war goddess.

The very first knight who refused to acknowledge her stood up from the ground. Thud! He kneeled on one knee before her. "I admit defeat and willingly submit under your command." The five more who were defeated followed suit until the whole army had their heads bowed before her.

"Well, I think you have made one wise choice for now." She raised her hand and made a beckoning signal. A few shadows from the small hill began walking to the camp. All ten shadows with straight backs and steady steps faced them. They lined up in front of Yllana and bowed their heads.

"They will be your superiors," she introduced them. Midel saw a woman's familiar figure. Her large blue eyes now appeared cold. And her chestnut brown hair tied in a messy bun. She already caught their attention the first time they saw her in the floating isles, but now that she was dressed in a violet uniform of a general, she looked more captivating than ever. Her smile was still there, but it now carried a more dignified and matured air about her. Yllana asked the soldiers to greet the

When the soldiers saw the young generals before them, their faces turned an even uglier shade. But they kept their mouths shut due to the mistake that they have committed earlier. Maybe there was something more to these young soldiers than what they can see, right?

"They are will be training you in the days to come. Those who will be able to advance in ranks the fastest will have the chance to challenge anyone in the higher ranks, but your main objective is growth. Keep that in mind." The soldiers' eyes lit up upon hearing her.

Fourteen swayed to the left a bit. When everyone saw her movement, she was already holding a sword pointed at her neck. She grinned at the bulky man who just attacked her.

Crack…crack…crack!