Chapter 33: Pride and Jealousy

I seriously didn't have an idea how to treat this girl.

Her arrogance was through the roof. Did she realize that she was losing the freaking money? And who the heck named their kid Sunshine?

"Oh stun by my name I guess," the girl nodded. "Of course you are stunned. My name was truly one of kind in this world. I think that it perfectly encapsulate me very well."

Yeah, how could that name meant anything. It basically just a bunch of word slapped together.

To my despair, the girl was not stopping.

"Speaking of which, what are you people doing here?" Melodina looked at us suspiciously. "Our shop dealt in high quality craft pieces that was incredibly niche. Our price, in a view of a normal plebeian, would be completely unmatched! Even if you were recommended from one of our costumers you would already know about the appointment system! I can be generous and took this a mile further and said you got lost but, given that there are maps given for free in the town, that idea by itself wouldn't fly at all! So what do you actually come here for?!"

Oh crap. She was way smarter than we expected. And what with that over the top speech pattern.

Melodina squinted suspiciously. Oh boy, she was sharper at reading people than Lux. When we recruited Lux, she was still clueless. But Melodina...I had a feeling she already work the story out in the amount of time Lux would take to develop suspicion.

"Your expression had already gave it out!" she shouted dramatically "It said that I won't like the answer! Someone must have sent you here?"

Cy's face twitched and Mel saw that. Crap. Subtlety was down now! This girl was way too smart and our almighty leader was bad at poker face. She got better lately but she still suck Amat it.

But against this girl it was not enough.

"I see!" Mel eyed us very dangerously. "Someone really did sent you here! But judging from your look, none of you are demons."

"Yes!" Cy shouted. "We are only here to meet some exile queen and a princess of..."

I face-palm. Yep, we really blew this up now.

"Princess!? So you do know my origin! Now laid down and let me punch you to save us the time!

Lux moved so fast I could barely track but Melodina's attack created a shock-wave that blasted me into the air and sent Cy sprawling.

As for Lux she was sent a few meters backward. Her sleeves was ripped and her skin was raw from the impact.

As for her attacker, Melodina's fist was smoking from the collision but she was nearly unharmed.

"Excellent!" Melodina grinned ear-to-ear. "You actually survived my serious punch. Normally, I would politely ask for a sparring match but, since you know about my secret, it appeared that I had no choice but to take certain measures."

"I don't want to fight." Lux said.

"Good!" she nodded enthusiastically. "Then knock yourself out and apologize to me in your sleep."

That line was something. I decided to bring out Ar'maskur and tried to fight but a fast punch literally send me flying up before landing down harsh. The sword dropped from my hand before I even swung it.

"Oh, that sword is pretty good," Mel picked Ar'maskur sword up and looked at it admiringly. "A bit of an overkill to compensate for your masculinity."

Cy got up and yelled.

"Hey, that was not fair. Let me explain something first! Scathach please do something. Rem! Lux! Stop letting her punch you guys around."

Melodina looked at her with dismissive eyes. Then looked at us.

"Is that your boss?"

I was too winded to answer but Lux nodded with painful face.

"Amazing," Melodina said with the flat face which defined boredom. "Unicorn's wing would be more useful than her and it didn't even exist."

Oww...this girl got some burn.

"Unicorn didn't have wings!" Cy walked into a minefield with that one. "What the heck are you talking about?"

For once, during the entire conversation, Melodina's overwhelming confidence faltered in the face of nativity beyond human's comprehension.

"Hey," Mel turned toward us as her composure try to reassemble itself. "Is she always like this?"

"What are you saying?" Cy raised her hand fist in frustration. "I am always like this you brute. And if you wanted to talk about winged Pegasus the official name is Pegacorn. I don't know where did that Alicorn's term come from (at this point Cy was frowning and Lux was blinking absent minded). But Pegacorn's wings was a pretty rare medicinal treatment in ancient Rios Continent's back treatment! It is not useless you idiot! Hell, Pegacorn was an endanger species list because people keep hunting it like brain craze zombies."

We were completely speechless. It appeared Cy managed to procure a metaphorical road-roller and flatten the verbal minefield. On the other corner, Melodina Majesty Sunshine Solarmaria was twitching like she was about to explode.

"I refused to believe such a thing exist!" Melodina got back her confidence. "Your imagination must be the only good thing about you. Sadly, imagination doesn't transfer into itself to your look or life. You are still way below my level!!!"

Cy huffed, pulled a book out of god know where and threw it at Melodina who caught it without flinching.

"Page 388," Cy said. "Grew a brain bimbo."

"Like you idiot can even read," Mel said dismissively flipping to that specific page. "What am I suppose..."

"Subsection five," Cy looked at her with the light of victory behind her cornea. "Read out-loud please."

"'Pegacorn was considered a rare breed of mythical creature once found all over the continent'" Mel face didn't look well. "It was thought to be a distant common ancestor of Unicorn and Pegasus, containing both wings and horn. Due to a change in environment and over-excessive hunting, it was now an endangered species.'"

Silence...

Time seemed to stop as a tumbleweed rolled across the ground. I, in a rare moment of admiration, would say this about my leader: she beat Mel.

Mel tossed the book away. Her face was sixty degree redder than before.

"Okay, " the succubus gave a demonic smile. "You got me. Take pride in that and die."

Yep, Mel lost it. She leaped at Cy full force but Lux, civilizations blessed her speed, slid under Mel and grabbed her ankle. Exploiting the lost balance, Lux slammed her to the ground hard enough to crack it.

"That was a cheap shot!" Mel said shrugging off the slam like it was a minor inconvenience. "You won't keep me down for long. You know that right?"

"Let about that, " Lux gritted her teeth. "Could you please slow down and listen? We are not her to do anything to you!"

"Wow, so cliche" Mel slowly get up on her free foot. "Okay, then bring me the miracle proofs that said you are coming with sunshine and rainbow. Maybe conjured up some helpless spirit puppies! An elf can do that right!"

"I can't use spirit magic!" Lux twisted her body into a cobra lock. Good gracious, Scathach must have taught her that one.

"Can't use it, " Mel looked incredulous barely affect by the wrestling moves. "Are you even an elf!"

Aww, crap that was one of Lux's button.

"Shut up!" She ran electricity into Melodina's body. It was a mana lined lighting more solid than Lux's original application. "That last one was the final straw. You are getting a roast. You monster cow hybrid!"

To be frank, Mel's chest was at least two size larger Lux who was slightly larger that Cy. Given that Cy was at least B, well that put Mel on the realm of E or a step into the legendary F. Oh crap, Lux just threw down the guantlet.

"Monster cow..." Cy was leaking malicious aura. "Lux! Tore offf her massive freaking breast! All cow had to die!"

"Heh, I understand your rage, " Mel nodded fighting through the electricity and grabbing Lux's wrist. "Because your underdeveloped body didn't give you more life asset, you can't help but feel jealous of my bountiful gift. Admire my bosom chest and swallow in this cruel reality. I will even gave you some tip then: GROW SOME PRIDE, YOU BUFFOON!"

"Lux, I am buffing you! Don't give up!"

"I won't, " Lux said with unquenchable determination. "I will never give up. Not anymore!"

I looked at the three natural disasters beating the crap out of each other and sigh.

Satholia really needed to task us to recruit more men. A wise man on the internet once said that once the ratio of women and men in a setting surpass 3:1, the poor guys would be stuck in the harem hell.

I don't want to be in a harem hell. My eyes wouldn't survive all the punching.

I left the girl's fights to see a sight that annoyed me completely.

The badger was having tea with a pink-hair succubus who resembled Melodina except for the fact her chest was far larger and she displayed no wings and tail. However her curved turn still identified her as an Demon.

"Seriously, Scathach, " I looked at the pair. "You knew her."

"Rem may I introduce you to Ebony Solarmaria, " Scathach said. "Originally famed as the former Chief Forge Master of Aztellic Dynasty, Diplomat of the Demonic Continent and the wife of Duke Majesty Aztellic who is once a former king-candidate to sit on Aztellic's throne."

So this was what Sathilia meant by exiled Queen.

"You knew her and said nothing?"

Instead of Scathach, Ebony answered that question.

"To be fair Scathach think I was dead."

"Ebony and I, met each other fifteen years ago during the reign of previous emperor. The Demonic Continent was suffering under a massive population drain from prolong war and they can barely administer all their area. So the previous emperor decided to appoint an ambassador to negotiate the armistice. "

"Yes, brainless expansion was not one of my country finest moment. Since my husband was dealing with the administration crisis and the rest of my peer was an idiotic tactless warmonger. I was the only suitable candidate left."

Ah, I see. So that why she kept her shop as far away from the main city center as possible. The obscured niche minimized the risk of discovery. All of this time she wanted to convince the world she was dead.

But why?

"So why are you doing this?" I looked at her daughter and an idea ran through my head. "Someone was hunting you?"

Ebony looked at the sky longingly.

"The Aztellic Royal's family," Ebony said. "Until the last blood of Majesty died out they would never live in peace. After all we are the only one could overturn the Demonic Continent hierarchy."