AKU was enjoying the look of surprise on Kiho and Lady Nystrom's face when all of a sudden, he saw an ice dagger flying towards him. It was an attack that he could easily dodge, esepcially since it didn't came from Kiho.

That ice dagger was created by Winter– the only ice user in the group aside from his father.

How adorable.

Winter and Julian lost consciousness a while ago. But the two children were already up. And since Elis Ripperton wasn't using his bloodlust anymore, both Winter and Julian regained their strength already.

And it seems like the witch with pink eyes healed them a while ago.

Anyway, Aku tried to melt the ice dagger with his nullification power but it didn't work. Even his Divine Protection seemed to have lost its effect. He had no choice but to catch the ice dagger with his hand. Avoiding it wasn't an option because he didn't want Nia, who stood behind him, to accidentally get hurt.

"It seems like your ability doesn't work on me, Your Majesty," Winter said haughtily. "Is it because I'm the Moon Serpent– the one destined to kill you?"

He smirked at the child's arrogance but to be honest, he was pissed.

How could I forget that the Moon Serpent is the one prophesied to kill me? Not the Supreme, not the Black Serpent. But I already killed it once. I can do it again, can't I?

Anyway, because of the scene Winter made, the tension disappeared.

Kiho and Lady Nystrom looked so proud of their youngest son, and so was Julian. Even Lord Wixx and the others were looking at Winter as if they were their hope. It seemed like everyone was reminded of the prophecy about the Moon Serpent.

"It was a lovely display of your ability, Winter," Aku said, then he crushed the ice dagger in his hand. He bled for a while. But since it was only a minor wound, it healed on its own. "Let's play again next time." He smiled "sweetly" at the child before he turned his back on him. "But the next time we play, one of us will surely end up dead."

***

TILLY was relieved when Aku Moonchester and Elis Ripperton finally left.

The only enemy left in the house was Nia Moonchester. But she already locked herself up in the room. As long as they were tied by the binding vow, she knew that she wouldn't so something reckless. But of course, they were still keeping an eye on the royal princess.

"I already covered the room with my Mana," Luna said. "Rest assured, Nia Moonchester wouldn't be able to eavesdrop on our conversation."

"We trust your ability, Luna," Tilly said. "Thank you."

Right now, they were having a meeting in the conference room.

She, Kiho, Julian, Winter, Solenn, Luna, Wixx, Ainsworth, and Lord Forrester were sharing a round table while having hot chocolate. They only brought out the tea for the royal twins. But now that the two weren't around, they went back to drinking hot chocolate.

Anyway…

Lord Denver and her Keepers were assigned to guard the area while they were having a meeting. Of course, they couldn't trust Aku Moonchester and Elis Ripperton. Even though the two already left, they were still half-expecting them to return and attack their "camp."

It's better to be safe than sorry.

"First of all, I'd like everyone in this room to know that Kiho and I won't be taking all of you to the land that drinks blood," Tilly said. Before they went there, she and her husband already talked a little about what to discuss with their allies. Kiho also told her the problem with Ainsworth and his spirit guardian. After that, they decided to hold that meeting. "We decided to only bring our children with us."

Their allies looked surprised, obviously.

"That's a good plan. It's not wise to bring a big party anyway," Wixx said while nodding his head. "But you need to bring me and Luna with you, Tilly. I will protect you, and you need Luna because she's good at healing and creating barriers."

"I agree with Lord Wixx," Luna said even though she could see the hesitation in her friend's eyes. "I'm your doctor, Tilly."

"I'd love to take you all with me but we can't because Kiho and I decided to give you different jobs instead," she continued. "Everyone, Nia Moonchester gave me a hint that implies Aku Moonchester already knows that the Fire Mage clan is hiding up in the sky."

Everyone looked shocked by that revelation, especially the Red Phoenix.

"How did that bastard find out?" Wixx asked angrily. "We did a good job hiding Solarium from the Moonchesters all these years."

"It's not confirmed yet," she told her brother. "Nia Moonchester doesn't know that Solarium is up in the sky. I didn't tell her anyway. I only concluded that Aku Moonchester already knows about it because Nia Moonchester told me that her brother asked for her winged-guardian. Apparently, Aku Moonchester wanted to check something in the sky and Elis Ripperton isn't available for the job."

"It's strange that Aku Moonchester would suddenly have the urge to fly that high when he didn't bother to do so in the past," Kiho added. "The fact that he allowed Nia Moonchester to join us alone is already suspicious. So Tilly and I think that Aku Moonchester will look for the floating island while we're on our way to the land that drinks blood."

"That makes sense," Lord Forrester said. "Aku Moonchester won't leave Nia Moonchester alone without a valid reason."

"Aunt Tilly, we should inform Father right away," Solenn said worriedly. "It's better if they prepare for a fight as early as now."

She nodded in agreement with the young princess. "But it's not enough that we inform them of what's going on," she said, then she turned to Wixx. "Brother, I want you to return to Solarium with Solenn and all the Keepers."

"What?!" Wixx and Solenn complained at the same time.

"You all have to return to Solarium and protect it with Solaris," she said firmly. "The Solarium needs the flame of the Keepers to keep it afloat. If the island gets attacked, the Keepers must be there to make sure that Solarium won't fall on the ground. And Brother, you must be there and stand as my representative. Solaris and the rest of the clan will feel safe if one of us will be there to lead them."

His brother couldn't refute that because as the Red Phoenix, he knew that he couldn't leave their clan again. "Fine," he said. "But I will leave Sentinel with you. If you have my spirit guardian, I can come to your rescue faster than normal means."

She smiled and nodded. It was a good compromise. When Solenn didn't complain, she moved on to the next topic of discussion. "Ainsworth," she said when she turned to the little tiger. "Kiho already told me about your situation. I will let you look for Faline."

Ainsworth looked surprised by what she said. "But I want to fight with you, Sister Tilly."

"You're getting weak because of whatever they're doing with your spirit guardian, Ainsworth," she said firmly. "It's better if you find Faline first. And if you happen to get a hold of Drake, it will benefit us."

"We can use Elis Ripperton's guardian against him," Kiho added. "So rescue Faline as soon as possible, little tiger."

Ainsworth looked at each one of them. When he realized that nobody was accusing him of backing down from a fight, he looked relieved. "Thank you, Sister Tilly and Black Serpent," he said with a firm nod. "I will find Faline and take care of Drake."

"Thank you," she said, then she turned to Luna and Lord Forrester. "Luna, Lord Forrester, I want you to return to the Royal Capital and keep an eye on Stella. If you can, please convince them to join our force. We can't trust her yet so don't tell anything important to her. I just want to keep her close to our side for now. After all, Aku Moonchester's enemy is a "friend" to us." She paused to sip her hot chocolate before she continued. "Please bring Lord Denver with you as well. I want him to keep an eye on the citizens. I don't want Aku Moonchester to use them as a shield once the divine war begins."

Luna nodded, and she looked relieved that she was assigned to keep an eye on her sister. "Thank you, Tilly."

"I will tell Lord Denver about the plan later," Lord Forrester said. "I'm sure he'd be glad to know that he'd be sent back to the Royal Capital."

She just nodded and was about to speak again when Julian raised his hand. "What is it, Julian?"

"Mother, I'm sorry but I have other plans," Julian said firmly, then he turned to Solenn. "Actually, Lady Solenn and I decided to do other things."

Solenn looked confused at first, then she nodded. "Ah, that's right. I can't return to Solarium," she said, then she turned to Julian. "Julian needs me after all."

Her oldest son turned red.

"Eww," Winter said. "What are you two talking about?"

"I won't allow it," Tilly said firmly. "It's dangerous."

"Mother, I'm sorry but we really have to go," Julian insisted in a stubborn voice. "If you don't give us your permission, I will run away with Lady Solenn."

***

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