arrival of older sister

After staring at the shards of bone and flesh before him for a moment, Orion sighed in disappointment.

"It seems this Cerberus won't be rising again like before. Truly disappointing," Orion muttered with dissatisfaction.

High above, Elara paled as she witnessed the earlier events. She couldn't believe that such cruelty could come from a human. "What kind of monster are we facing? The situation is worsening. I hope the government doesn't do anything rash against him," Elara whispered softly, praying that reinforcements wouldn't arrive. She feared that if help did come, it would result in a one-sided massacre without any chance of resistance.

Yet her worst fears came true. A loud rumble echoed in the air, accompanied by the roaring sound of a helicopter overhead.

"Ahhh... how foolish can they be? Do they not conduct satellite surveillance?!" Elara screamed in frustration. She couldn't bear to witness the impending disaster.

Elsewhere, Serafina had just finished her battle. "Hah...hah...hah, fighting three highly skilled knights simultaneously. What a hassle," Serafina panted, her voice trembling slightly.

"You wretch, this is excruciating...arghhhh..." Before he could finish speaking, Serafina incinerated one of the male knights, reducing him to ashes.

Moments later, the knight turned into a heap of dust. "The dead shouldn't speak. You should have known better and surrendered quickly," Serafina spat out in frustration.

"Please, have mercy on us..." The red-haired female knight from earlier begged, her voice trembling like that of a small child.

"'Us'... who do you think you are? How dare you ask for such a preposterous thing. Your life is hanging by a thread; you'd better beg for yourself alone, not for others!" Serafina screamed, glaring fiercely at the red-haired woman.

"I can't let you die just yet. The Master will decide your fate, so use the remaining time to reflect on your actions," Serafina declared, shaking the woman's psyche to its core.

Suddenly, Serafina's cellphone rang loudly. Startled, she glanced at the caller ID. "Your Highness!!"

Serafina hurriedly answered the call, "Hello, Your Highness, have you returned home?" she asked with utmost respect.

"Serafina, save the pleasantries for later. We'll talk as much as we want when you get home. By the way, has Rion... returned?" The woman's voice began to tremble as she mentioned Rion's name.

"Yes, Your Highness, the young Master returned home last night. However, we are currently facing some issues with the Riverstone family. Right now, a large armada has surrounded us," Serafina provided detailed and specific information.

Upon hearing this, the princess immediately screamed in anger. "How dare they do such a thing to Rion! Wait there, Sera. I'll be there in a few seconds!"

Serafina trembled slightly, feeling the immense rage from the princess. "Y-yes, Your Highness, I understand!" she responded firmly, trying to calm her nerves.

∆∆∆

Thirty minutes earlier, at the main mansion of the Solaria family.

The servants stood in orderly rows on the front terrace, awaiting someone's arrival. They appeared more formally dressed than usual. Moments later, a black sedan arrived at the gate.

The guards quickly opened the door and greeted the newcomer with utmost respect.

A servant opened the car door from the side. In the next moment, a beautiful woman, resembling a goddess, stepped out of the car.

"""Welcome, Princess Lysandra!!""" The maids bowed 90 degrees, greeting the woman with utmost politeness and warmth.

Lysandra Solaria was the first princess of the ancient sorcerer family, Solaria. She was the only ice witch in the world, renowned for her beauty and prowess.

Though she appeared refined and elegant on the outside, she was incredibly cold towards strangers. However, when it came to her family, especially her beloved younger brother, Orion, she was different.

Lysandra had a tall stature for a woman, with silver hair and amethyst-colored eyes.

She had straight, long hair, curled eyelashes, and snow-white skin. There was not a single flaw on her face; everything appeared perfect and meticulously sculpted.

Her attire was modest and formal, yet she maintained a high sense of fashion. Slowly, Lysandra entered the mansion and immediately headed to her room upstairs, accompanied by two servants.

Before entering her room, she went to another room right next to her private quarters. This room was prepared by her and the entire family for Orion's awaited return.

As she was about to open the door, a servant beside her spoke up. "Your Highness, did you know that the young Master Orion has returned..." Before he could finish, Lysandra grabbed the servant's shoulder.

"W-what did you say... r-repeat that once more," Lysandra's voice trembled as she squeezed the servant's shoulder, causing him to cry out in pain.

Realizing her excessive behavior, Lysandra sincerely apologized, gently stroking the servant's shoulder. She took a deep breath and asked again. "Where is Rion now?"

"The young Master left with the head servant earlier this afternoon. I don't know where they went, Your Highness," the servant explained, providing all the information he had.

Lysandra smiled broadly, then activated her phone and immediately called Serafina. After obtaining the necessary information, she quickly set off for Orion's location.

Lysandra swiftly exited the house, instantly creating a pair of ice wings on her back. She soared high into the sky, using Temporal Magic to accelerate her flight.

Within seconds, Lysandra arrived at her destination. She was slightly taken aback by the size of the military armada surrounding Orion.

Lysandra had received information from Serafina that Orion was surrounded by a military ground force. But she hadn't anticipated that the deployed armada would be large enough to conquer an entire city.

Lysandra glanced down and spotted a military tent, seemingly serving as a shelter for the senior officers in this operation.

She landed right in front of the tent and spoke loudly, "What do you intend to do by deploying such a large military force?"

Upon hearing Lysandra's voice, the commanders immediately turned their attention towards the source.

"What are you doing here? Ice Goddess! I beg you, please don't interfere in our affairs," an elderly man in military attire trembled in fear upon seeing Lysandra. He struggled to maintain his composure, speaking with a grim expression.

"Of course, this is my concern. This matter involves my brother's survival, so I won't let you act recklessly," Lysandra firmly declared her refusal.

"""W-what!?""" The commanders were utterly shocked by Lysandra's statement. They never expected that their target was the brother of the infamous and brutal Ice Goddess.

The elderly man slumped in his chair, gently massaging his head. "Damn it, the situation is getting worse! Everyone, contact the captains and order them to withdraw along with the entire force. We are aborting the operation," the old man commanded in a formal and stern tone.

The other senior officers responded respectfully and immediately carried out the given orders.

Moments later, the entire combat armada and armed troops gradually retreated from the encirclement area.

"Thank goodness everything went smoothly. I don't want any casualties at a time like this," Lysandra thought, glancing back.

"Thank you, old man. At least you're wise enough to make the right decision compared to those other fools."

"Hah, I don't want to engage in a futile fight. Better to retreat in shame than die foolishly. Well then, I take my leave," the elderly commander sighed heavily upon hearing Lysandra's words.

Once the situation was under control, Lysandra swiftly ran towards the Riverstone mansion. "Rion... I miss you so much!"

Lysandra shouted from a distance. On the other side, Orion was surprised to hear the familiar voice of a woman.

Orion turned around, then smiled broadly. "Sister!!!!" he exclaimed joyfully.

As they drew close, Lysandra leaped into Orion's arms.

With Orion's broad chest, Lysandra could comfortably rest her head.

"I missed you so much, Rion," Lysandra whispered softly, her words accompanied by emotional tears.