Heir to the Kingdom of 1.4 billion people

Chapter 148 The Pale Witch Joins the Team, Bea: I Can Finally See My Future Master!

Evening, Icefield Castle.

Beneath the main building, where the crack had been split open, lay many guards lying crookedly, and the deep blue blessing on that gruesome corpse was gradually dissipating due to its owner's death.

Lucas probably never dreamed that the moment he longed to break through to the New Moon rank would be the moment of his death.

"Master of the family, master of the family!"

An old man staggered to Lucas's body, completely ignoring Dorothy, whose blade was still stained with blood, and wailed loudly.

He was none other than the old butler, Holt.

Perhaps Lucas was not a qualified lord, but in any case, he was the head of the Icefield Clan, the place to which he devoted his entire life.

After gazing at the wailing old man before her for a moment, Dorothy unleashed a burst of magic, instantly spitting out the filthy blood from her sword. She then sheathed her sword and walked out of the castle.

She did not have a penchant for indiscriminately killing innocent people, especially an elderly person.

Moreover, as Uncle Ransen had instructed, she should return to Snow Sheep Village immediately after killing Lucas to avoid being captured by the Frostfang Knights.

Even as the murderer who killed the lord was about to leave, the guards had perfectly maintained their disguise as corpses.

The guards only cautiously got up from the ground long after the girl's figure had disappeared outside the castle gates.

"Lord Holt, please accept my condolences. The lord was always kind and generous, and he must be resting in peace in the underworld by now."

The captain of the guard tiptoed to the wailing old steward and, against his conscience, tried to comfort him.

Even Holt, who was in unbearable pain at the moment, couldn't help but pause in his sorrow upon hearing the word "merciful and generous."

This is so unrelated, it would be an understatement to say it's the complete opposite. After all, even the most greedy lord would not dare to withhold his guards' pay like Lucas did.

"Take a few guards and fetch Roman Icefield, the mayor of Ice River Town, to replace the lord. Also, keep one-third of the grain stored in the castle warehouse, and send the rest to the villages in the territory that are suffering from famine."

After a long silence, Holt spoke.

Lucas is so engrossed in cultivation that he has no children, so the new lord can only be found from the branch lineage. Roman is an excellent mayor, and once he takes over as lord, the Icefield Territory will surely gradually return to its former peaceful state.

"As you command, Master Steward." The captain of the guards dared not delay and immediately led the guards to get to work.

The old butler, carrying the mangled corpse on the ground, slowly walked towards the family cemetery of Icefield Castle.

After burying Lucas, he silently drew the longsword from his waist.

Clang!
When the new lord arrived in haste, he saw an old man kneeling before the tombstone, his neck wound revealing a bloodied corpse.

"Lord Holt, is it really necessary to go to such lengths for a villain?" the new lord said sadly.

However, he soon realized something was wrong, because the tombstone the old man was kneeling on was not Lucas's, but the tombstone of the previous Icefield Lord, who was also his lord.

The new lord's lips curled slightly upward as he bowed deeply toward the old man's corpse.

Lord Holt, you have found your home!
the other side.

After killing Lucas and avenging the starving people of her territory, Dorothy walked on the snow, feeling the gloom she had felt after witnessing the tragic scenes in those villages vanish, and her mood lifted considerably.

Thinking of the greatest contributor to this operation, she looked at the small, black-haired youth beside her with fervent eyes.

"Your Highness, thank you!"

A bright smile, more radiant than ever before, appeared on the girl's pretty face.

Her long hair was as blue as snow under the moonlight, swaying slightly in the biting wind, like the only flowing color on the icy plain.

Those emerald green eyes were as clear and cold as jade, reflecting the figure of the person she admired.

Even the usually composed Xia Mingyu was momentarily stunned upon seeing that smile.

Because it's just so beautiful!
The young girl often resembled a valiant knight, but the occasional glimpse of her tenderness revealed a charm that could captivate anyone, for she was truly a great beauty, even surpassing Lady Danielle, who was hailed as the Flower of the South.

If this were on Earth, a single live photo could easily attract millions of followers on social media.

“I only did what I could do, and you did what you could do,” Xia Mingyu said gently.

To save the starving people, a lone swordsman stormed into the castle, slew the unjust lord, and then left gracefully.

What a lovely girl, what a trustworthy companion!

"Your Highness, will you still be able to visit me often in the future?"

"Dorothy said softly, a glimmer of hope flashing in her emerald eyes."

"Of course, you are an important companion to me." Xia Mingyu smiled slightly.

"Goodnight, Dorothy." His figure gradually turned into a ball of torchlight and disappeared.

After he left, the girl lowered her head in disappointment.

“Just companions,” she murmured softly.

Wow!
Just as Dorothy was feeling lost, the fine snowflakes in the air suddenly became as sharp as knives, hurtling wildly in the howling wind.

Immediately afterwards, countless snowflakes gradually gathered in the air to form a human shape, revealing a beautiful woman with pale hair, who was looking at her with a half-smile.

"Who are you!"

Without the slightest hesitation, Dorothy immediately drew her Lionheart sword and questioned him warily.

Whether it was the way it came to her silently or the strange way it appeared, it set off alarm bells in her mind.

"It's polite to state your own name before asking someone else's," Dorothy said, looking at the girl in front of her with interest.

She's clearly a stunning beauty, no less so than her, yet she gives the first impression of a valiant knight—what a waste of her talent!

"Dorothy." After hesitating for a moment, Dorothy gave her name, of course, a modified pseudonym.

"Dorothy." The woman paused for a moment, then her smile deepened.

"It seems we're quite destined to meet. My name is Dorothy, though in the North, people usually call me the Pale Witch," the witch said gently.

Dorothy's expression changed drastically the moment she heard the name.

The Pale Witch is widely recognized as the most dangerous person in the North in recent years.

Legend has it that she is pale all over and has the power to control all ice and snow. Any caravan that encounters her is almost destined to be frozen into an ice sculpture. For a time, this even made the merchants of Sosia panic and dare not set foot in the northern territory again.

Ultimately, it was Morven Dean, the then Lord of the North, who, along with the merchants' protector, the Impaler, went to the North and engaged in a fierce battle with her, which finally forced the witch to withdraw her clutches. After that, her whereabouts became unknown.

This means that the Pale Witch definitely possesses power above the level of the Radiant Moon, a pillar of the nation!
Clang.

However, even when faced with such a dangerous person, Dorothy silently sheathed her sword.

Firstly, because against enemies of this level, being unarmed or wielding a sword is no longer of much use.

Secondly, although the Pale Witch was deeply hated by the lords and merchants of the North, she unexpectedly had a good reputation among the people of the North.

There are even absurd rumors that if you pray to the Pale Witch when you are about to starve to death, you will be "saved".

"Your Excellency, what brings you to me?" Dorothy asked solemnly.

She remained vigilant, after all, no matter what, the other party was a dangerous individual who could easily kill her.

"Miss Dorothy, it seems you've stolen my prey, which displeases me greatly." The smile on the witch's face gradually faded, and she spoke calmly.

The moment she finished speaking, the wind and snow in the air surged like a raging torrent.

At the same time, the surrounding temperature plummeted, and even Dorothy, the Crescent Knight, felt a bone-chilling cold. Could the prey be Lucas?
Dorothy immediately thought of the Icefield Lord she had killed earlier.

“Give me a reasonable explanation, and I will decide your punishment based on your answer,” the witch said.

For her, Lucas, who could evoke so much pain right after his birth, was a delicious feast.

She had traveled a long way to get here, only to be killed by the girl in front of her, which undoubtedly offended her.

"Don't even think of deceiving me, or you will face destruction in the cold night," the witch added.

She hates being deceived because she used to deceive people often and knows how unpleasant it feels.

“In the Icefield Territory, I saw too many people fall into hell because of Lucas’s greed. Parents were sold into slavery, and children were swollen and blind. As a knight, I chose to cut off his head and change all this darkness.”

Dorothy told him the truth.

As she answered, the witch stared intently into the girl's eyes, which, in her experience, were so clear as to be devoid of any malice.

Dorothy silently made her judgment in her heart: an upright female knight.

rustling.

The raging snowstorm gradually dissipated, and the temperature began to rise.

Seeing this, Dorothy breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that her answer should have satisfied this capricious witch.

"Knight, I am very pleased with your righteous act of fighting evil and promoting good. In return, I will reward you," the witch said softly.

"The reward is myself."

Dolowei: “???”

"I will join your journey and become your travel companion to accompany you through an unforgettable experience." Seeing the girl's surprised expression, the Pale Witch continued with a mischievous smile.

"No"

Just as Dorothy was about to refuse, the wind and snow, which had stopped, suddenly raged again.

"Welcome to the team! Your arrival will undoubtedly make my journey more exciting."

Forced by the witch's threat of violence, the girl could only swallow her anger and say this.

"Haha, that's what I think too!"

The pale witch floated over and hugged the female knight's arm tightly, smiling radiantly.

The next day.

Polar City, Ice Wolf Castle, Castle Hall.

A huge iron chandelier hangs from the towering ceiling, filled with candles that cast a soft glow.

The walls on both sides were covered with knives, swords and all kinds of weapons, showing the castle owner's fanaticism for force.

Above the main seat in the center hangs a huge banner painted with blue and white wolf heads—the banner of the Dean family, the overlords of the North.

With an upright posture and his silver-gray sideburns neatly combed back, the dignified and composed middle-aged man sat in the main seat, quietly listening to the reports from his attendants below.

It was none other than Morven Dean, Lord of the North.

"I never expected that Lucas, that wolf cub, would actually be killed. It's a pity, I had high hopes for him," Mo Wen sighed.

He had met Lucas once at the funeral of the previous Icefield Lord, and through his outward appearance, he deeply admired the man's determination to pursue power at all costs.

After receiving the portrait of the murderer from the servant, Mo Wen quickly began to look through it.

The young female knight, with blue hair and emerald eyes, wielded a sword that cleaved through tall buildings. She was quite a promising prospect.

Mo Wen fell into deep thought.

His lord had died, and as the ruler of the realm, he had a duty to avenge him.

But in his view, it is a self-evident truth that the weak are killed by the strong.

Isn't it foolish to seek revenge against the strong for the sake of the already dead weak?

"Kane."

"Yes, Father."

A young man with short silver-gray hair and a face with a rugged, chiseled appearance stepped forward.

"Go with Vice Commander Ariel. If this murderer can fight you to a draw, recruit her; if not, kill her," Mo Wen said calmly.

"Father, I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint you; all I'll bring back is her head."

The young man's lips curled up into a chilling smirk.

However, even if a mere woman managed to kill Lucas, who was at the peak of the Morning Star realm, she would still be no match for him.

He would make her understand that in this land of the North, only the most powerful Dean family has the right to kill at will.

Seeing this, Mo Wen smiled but said nothing.

With his discerning eye, he could tell that this would be a fierce battle, but with Ariel around, as long as his son could live, it would be his honor even if he lost an arm or a leg.

Southern Border, Twilight City.

At noon, crowds lined up in long queues, eager to enter the city.

Amidst envious glances, a carriage swaggered straight into the city gate, where even the extraordinary knights guarding the entrance bowed to it.

The reason was that a fox's head was carved on the carriage, symbolizing the owner of this land.

"That sage is truly remarkable; he actually managed to have the people of Twilight City erect a statue in his honor in the city square!"

The newly appointed lord of William's territory, Bea William, looked out the window at the Sage Statue under construction in the city square, standing alongside the Crimson Fire Statue, and couldn't help but sigh.

His resistance to the lord to whom his father had forced him to swear allegiance had inexplicably lessened.

The only thing that puzzled him was that the unfinished face of the statue always gave him a sense of déjà vu.

"Lord Karen, Lord Roy Roland, can you now tell me the true identity of this sage?"

Looking at the other three people in the carriage, Bea asked curiously.

Although he was not good at strategy, he had gained some knowledge under the influence of his father.

The fact that his father could command him to swear an oath of allegiance, and the expressions of the three people present at the time, all told him that the sage must have another, even more noble, identity, which was likely far superior to that of the Martha family, the overlords of the Southern Territory.

“You will understand once we report to that person and he grants you an audience,” Karen said calmly.

Knowing he couldn't get an answer from anyone else, Bea shrugged helplessly. He looked at the statue outside the window, a sense of anticipation welling up inside him.

What kind of important person could it be? Could it be a prince of a country with a population of over ten million?

Oh, Damien, I miss you so much~
I heard there was a disaster in Twilight City. Are you alright?
The man who ordered the servants to beat me up—I will find out his identity after I return from inheriting the title, and then I will prove to him that my love for Damien is absolutely true!

The carriage gradually entered Red Fox Castle. After the others reported, Bea was granted permission to be received by the sage.

He stepped into the reception room with great anticipation, eager to meet his future lord.

(End of this chapter)