Youngest on Top - Chapter 247

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 247

Emotion washed across Terese’s face.

“Ah. It really is Saelika speaking and moving in person….”
“You know me?”
“Your real voice is even better, isn’t it? Is this what a heavenly voice truly sounds like?”
“Excuse me.”
“Oh, what do I do. It really is you, Saelika.”

Though Terese had rushed forward with both arms spread wide, she hesitated a step away from Saelika, uncertain what to do.
Her hands couldn’t quite bring themselves to touch, grasping only at empty air.

Ilay and Edmund, observing this quietly, nodded to each other.
Then they pushed Saelika forward.
Saelika reflexively caught Terese, who stood before her.

“…!”
“I’m sorry. Are you alright?”

Saelika paused mid-question.
Something was wrong with Terese, who now rested in her arms.
It was as if she’d heard an explosion sound….

“She’s gone rigid.”
“Did she faint?”
“I’ve never seen anything like this.”

Ilay, Edmund, and Dmitri murmured from beside her.
The young Dragon-kin let out a sigh and pressed his hand to his forehead.

‘What is this….’

Amelia watched the scene with a coldly hardened expression.

‘Why would the Dragon-kin abandon me for such a petty thief….’

Everything was unfolding in a direction that made no sense.

* * *

Princess Terese, who had gone rigid as stone in my arms, quickly came to her senses.
The Dragon Clan representative clicked his tongue and pulled Terese toward himself.

‘Judging by his demeanor, that man must be Prince Tarasius.’

I lowered my head.

“I apologize for intruding so suddenly.”
“A-apologize? No, no! Such an esteemed guest in such a humble place…. I’m truly honored.”
“Terese.”

Tarasius called out to Terese in a reproachful tone.
Then he spoke to me coldly.

“An uninvited guest without permission is clearly—.”
“Sae is not an uninvited guest! He’s my guest!”
“—Since a princess of the Five Palaces insists as such, I shall allow entry.”
“Of course!”

Terese snorted indignantly.
For a moment, weariness seemed to flicker across Tarasius’s face.

“He must be having a difficult time as well.”
“Tell me about it.”
“I feel a sense of kinship….”

The children murmured among themselves.

‘What do they mean by that?’

We were shown into a spacious hall.
There were chairs to sit in, but they were hard, and drinks were served, but only cold water.

‘So they’re allowing us inside out of respect for Princess Terese, but they’re certainly not welcoming us.’

“So then, what brings you all the way here?”

I was about to speak when Amelia beat me to it.
Amelia spoke first.

“You must be aware that a powerful high-ranking Demon has appeared beyond Akaman’s territory.”
“And?”
“If Demons run rampant in the human realm, it will bring calamity. So we hoped Akaman might…”
“That is not our concern.”

Tarasius cut her off sharply.
Amelia appealed to his emotions with eyes as deep as a lake.

“There are many wounded. Please, at least help us tend to them. I swear I will repay this debt.”
“Were you not granted healing powers by your god?”
“When we don’t know how the enemy will strike, we must preserve our divine power as much as possible.”
“So you’re asking us to lend you our strength because you’re insufficient? That’s what this amounts to.”

Tarasius’s eyes turned cold.

‘At this rate, he’ll send us away.’

I couldn’t let that happen.
I spoke up.

“That’s not what we meant—we’re not asking to borrow the Dragon Clan’s strength.”

Everyone’s gaze turned toward me.

“We simply wanted to change the location of the final battle.”
“Isn’t that the same as hiding beneath our wings?”
“We would never break the Dragon Clan’s laws.”
“…”

A glimmer of interest appeared in the Dragon Clan’s eyes.
Some of them even looked at me with genuine surprise.

“I didn’t expect to hear such words from a human.”
“It is only natural for a guest to respect the laws of their host.”

Tarasius Prince gestured toward Amelia and spoke.

“They just brazenly disregarded our laws. Whose words should we trust?”
“Were they our representative?”
“But I speak for the majority of the Sacred Maidens.”

Amelia spoke without backing down.

“Disregard? That was never my intention, Your Majesty.”

She quickly added, speaking to me as if to reason with me.

“Saelika, while I was dealing with the Demons, you used your schemes to escape here. And now you want to go back out and fight?”
“….”
“I understand pride, but think of the injured. Are you trying to drive those who aren’t your temple priests to their deaths?”
“Huh? You’re twisting my words.”

At that moment, a voice cut through with perfect timing.
It was Terese.

“Drive to their deaths? Sae saved you all from the brink of death.”
“…Princess Terese, you wouldn’t understand. So please don’t interfere with our conversation….”
“Mind your tongue.”

Boom!
A spear struck the ground.
In that instant, an overwhelming aura erupted from the Dragon-kin.

‘I should have expected this.’

Despite her appearance, Princess Terese was a formidable figure.
As the Palace Master overseeing five palaces, few matters of significance in Akaman escaped her involvement.
And more than that—

‘A High Priest.’

Vertically slit pupils.
The irises surrounding those pupils shimmered with a subtle silver gleam.
Anyone who judged her as a naive princess based on her casual demeanor and appearance would pay dearly for that mistake.

I spoke.

“I have committed an offense against the Master of the Five Palaces and a Priest.”
“…?!”
“…!”

A stir rippled through the Sacred Maidens around us.
But those more shocked were the dragon-kin themselves, the very subjects of this accusation.
Their gazes remained fixed upon my face.

Terese swayed, murmuring, “Ah, Sae knows of me… Sae remembers me…”
Tarasius regarded his younger sister with weary eyes before speaking.

“It seems clear whose words we should heed more carefully.”

Tarasius’s gaze passed over Amelia and turned toward me.

“What is it that you desire?”
“Simply open the land for us.”

For the first time, a flicker of doubt crossed Tarasius’s face, which had remained unmoved until now.

“Open the land? Yet seeing how you’ve led all these humans here, you could have gone anywhere you wished?”
“There is a difference between coming to another’s land and seeking permission, and seizing territory without a word and waging battle.”

Tarasius regarded me quietly.
I met his gaze with composure.
Slowly, the corners of his mouth began to rise.

“Indeed.”

Tarasius spoke with a strangely pleasant smile.

“I shall open the land for you, provided you make one promise with me.”

* * *

A pristine earth that had never been defiled, permitting not even the smallest intrusion of corruption.
The vast, open plain bloomed with wildflowers unseen in any other realm.
The flowers, luminous with inner light, seemed as though they belonged only to fantasy.

A handsome man stood alone upon that land.
Whether he had plucked wildflowers, his arms cradled an armful of blooms.

Even at this peaceful sight, the Sacred Maidens and priests tensed their bodies until their nerves stood on edge.

‘He’s doing nothing at all, yet this oppressive weight….’

The man who had been inhaling the fragrance of the bouquet lifted his head.

“Ah, you’ve come?”

His manner was as if greeting a date.
Despite the distance between them, his voice carried with crystalline clarity.

“I thought you’d come here since one of Akaman’s lands had opened.”
“….”
“How resourceful of you to obtain the Dragon Tribe’s permission?”

Then he extended the bouquet forward.
Of course, no one accepted the flowers.
They didn’t even take a single step, let alone reach for them.

The man tilted his head in confusion, then nodded as if understanding.

“Ah, that’s right. I told you to try capturing me.”

Kuuuuung!
The moment he finished speaking, the ground around the man began to blacken as if consumed by shadow.
In the blink of an eye, a realm of death crashed down like a tidal wave.

Kwang!
Amelia stepped forward and blocked the assault.

“Ugh….”
“Amelia!”

Amelia gripped her scepter firmly.
Having endured merely a single blow, her hands tingled with numbness.

‘But this time, I must be the one to stop it.’

Strange things kept happening.
It was because of Saelika.
I tried to intervene countless times, unable to simply stand by and watch, but Saelika’s serpentine, cunning tongue reduced everything to naught.

“That rat-like creature keeps stealing the banquet meant for you!”

Beatrix’s words were right.

‘But I won’t be defeated by the schemes of someone as treacherous as a thief.’

No.

‘I will grow stronger, using this crisis as fertile ground!’

This was the opportunity to set everything right.
Could there be a greater chance than defeating such a powerful Demon?

“My children, I command you—illuminate my land with your light!”

A brilliant radiance burst forth, dyeing the world in luminescence.
A sacred domain unfolded around Amelia.
Simultaneously, the sacred power of the subjugated Sacred Maidens flowed toward Amelia, brightening the sacred domain further.
At the same time, the divine power of the subjugated saints flowed toward Amelia, illuminating the sanctuary even brighter.

“This is…!”
“This is…!”

And the sacred domain Amelia had unfolded began to devour the darkness.
The faces of the Parmanase priests brightened.
The faces of the Pharisees brightened.

“At this rate, perhaps—.”
“Yes, we can win this!”
“Truly the mightiest Sacred Maiden!”
“Truly the strongest saint!”

Amelia shook her head.

“This alone isn’t enough.”

And I gazed upon the Sacred Maidens who had not yet submitted to me.
My eyes settled upon the formidable Sacred Maidens—Elizabeth, Dolores, and Anastasia.

“We’ve competed since childhood. But we’ve only ever strived toward a single purpose.”
“….”
“Peace and stability for this world. Isn’t that right?”
“….”
“To overcome this calamity, we must all join our strength together.”
“So?”

At Anastasia’s question, I smiled.

“People support the Sacred Maidens. And those Sacred Maidens in turn support the High Priestess.”
“….”
“That’s how power becomes unified.”
“There is no High Priestess here.”

It was Dolores who spoke.

“But the greatest number of Sacred Maidens support me.”

The words carried profound meaning.
A brief but weighty silence descended.
Soon, that silence broke.

“You speak truth.”

Elizabeth nodded and stepped forward.

“Competition, factional disputes—these are matters we must set aside for now. To face that Demon, we must all combine our strength.”
“….”
“To save the people.”

Her words carried weight.

“I never thought we’d see eye to eye like this.”

Anastasia took her place beside Elizabeth.
Then Dolores stepped forward.

“I think this is the first time my opinion has aligned with theirs.”

Three high-ranking Sacred Maidens with immense power stood in a line.
Amelia wore a satisfied smile.

‘Saelika truly is wonderful.’

Without what Saelika had orchestrated, this moment would never have come to pass.
How else could three such formidable Sacred Maidens have knelt before me so effortlessly?

‘Indeed, you were a tool the Divine arranged to elevate me to greater heights.’

I was deeply grateful for how perfectly she played her role.

“We swear our submission.”

With those words, the three Sacred Maidens knelt.

“Saelika, our Sacred Maiden.”

Toward Saelika.

“…!”

Amelia’s face drained of all color.

“You fools! Do you understand what you’ve just done?!”
“Yes, we swore submission to Saelika.”
“There are limits to pride! When we need to unite everyone’s strength—”
“That’s right, just as you said, we need to unite people’s support.”
“I will entrust the hearts of those who support me to the Sacred Maiden I trust most.”
“To the strongest and most beautiful Sacred Maiden.”

Dolores winked at Saelika.
At her playful demeanor, Amelia’s fury reached its peak.

‘How could these short-sighted fools call themselves Sacred Maidens!’

I alone was the Sacred Maiden who contemplated the greater good and realized justice!
That was when it happened.

“Sigh, I was carefully watching the timing, but I never thought I’d lose the initiative like this.”
“We made our decision long ago.”
“From the moment we met the Elves.”

Helene, Eyrene, and Zabelina stepped forward.
Saelika looked at the three of them and blurted out.

“That can’t be right, can it?”
“…You’re perceptive. Honestly, it wasn’t from that time.”
“But that incident became the catalyst for it.”
“Even we don’t know exactly when we made this decision.”

The three gazed at Saelika.
When we were young, we were certainly enemies.
I can’t even count how much we suffered because of her nature—repaying grievances twofold.
But.

“After that, spending time with you, these feelings came naturally.”
“We thought it would be good to go with you.”
“Unlike that oh-so-great someone, you’re one of us.”

Helene, Eyrene, and Zabelina knelt before Saelika.
Nelije, who had already taken her confident place beside Saelika, spoke with her arms crossed.

“Hmph! Don’t forget that I was first!”

Saelika gazed at the Sacred Maidens kneeling before her.

The three great Sacred Maidens that even Amelia had never obtained, across both before and after the regression.
The moment they fell into Saelika’s hands.

…Along with the three Sacred Maidens so tenacious that they clawed their way back up from the mud pit they’d been driven into by Saelika’s own hand.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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