Chapter 22: The Crown Princess
“Eh? A teacher?”
Wendymia’s expression was one of pure astonishment; she seemed to have never imagined that Yier Meng was a teacher. Yier Meng looked to be about the same age as them, so just how talented must she be to become a teacher at such a young age?
Yier Meng, however, was thinking about something else entirely. She could sense that something was wrong with the warhorse. It had been tampered with.
“Yes, I’m your teacher. Please wait a moment while I handle this horse.”
To dare make a move on my student right in front of me… they’ve certainly got some nerve.
She unbuckled the saddle. The outer leather that contacted the rider was very soft, and the inner side that touched the horse’s fur felt perfectly normal at first touch. But upon undoing the clasps, one could see the fine, tiny spikes within.
The method of hiding the spikes was very discreet, and it looked as though the saddle had been made with them from the start.
“Ah!” Wendymia cried out in alarm.
As Yier Meng flipped it over, not just her, but everyone present could see that the horse had been secretly tampered with. Moreover, judging by the faint green glow, the spikes were also coated with some kind of poison.
“Lesser Toxin Dispel.”
Muttering the words under her breath, a dense white light appeared in Yier Meng’s hand. As the light touched the horse’s wound, it gradually forced out the green, venomous fluid from the rotting flesh, and the damaged tissue began to heal.
It seemed a simple Lesser Toxin Dispel was enough to cure it, so it wasn’t a particularly strange poison.
This person is certainly clever, Yier Meng thought. This kind of poison can be obtained by many people, making it impossible to trace from its source.
“Hee-hee!”
The warhorse, seeming to feel the pain in its wound subside, wanted to nuzzle Yier Meng affectionately. However, under Yier Meng’s gaze, it could only look at her with grateful eyes.
At that moment, Eirya, who had finally walked closer, let out a soft huff. “I say, Wendymia,” she said, her tone somewhat haughty, “in your human kingdom, someone actually dares to make a move on the Crown Princess?”
Her refusal to use the polite “student Wendymia” was certainly in character for the ice dragon princess. But the amount of information contained in that sentence took Yier Meng, who had been unaware of the girl’s identity, completely by surprise.
Crown Princess?
Yier Meng looked at Wendymia with a questioning gaze, and Wendymia seemed to realize something as well. She gave a slight curtsy, her hands held as if she were grasping the hem of a long skirt, performing a courtly bow so perfect it was beyond reproach.
“Teacher, please allow me to introduce myself. I am from the Kingdom of Alicia, and I am the current Crown Princess of the nation renowned as the Land of the Holy Dragon Knights, Wendymia Seru Belia.”
Yier Meng had a deep understanding of this kingdom. If one were to speak of a nation with profound ties to the Pope-ruled Holy Light Kingdom, it would have to be the Kingdom of Alicia.
If the foundation of the Holy Light Kingdom was its entire congregation, along with the bishops and clergy who formed the backbone of the church, then the backbone of the Kingdom of Alicia was the continent’s famous Holy Dragon Knights.
And “Holy Dragon Knight” was not a title just any country dared to claim for itself.
The scarcity of mages in human kingdoms was not a rare phenomenon on this continent. Compared to the Elven Kingdom, the only non-human nation renowned far and wide for its magic, there were actually many kingdoms that relied on knights as their core strength. But the only one that could be called the Land of the Holy Dragon Knights was the Kingdom of Alicia.
Not only did their territories border each other, but both were nations that served the Goddess of Light. However, the former worshiped the Goddess herself, which was why their clergy’s light-based magic was far more powerful than that of ordinary people. The latter, on the other hand, worshiped a bloodline that had separated from the dragon race—the bloodline of the ancient Light Dragons.
