Chapter 274: 3.31 TLOC (21)

The elven army handled the rest of the humans, as the magic using flank force and fighting flank force had nearly joined up in the middle, leaving thousands of human corpses scattered throughout the land.

The wolf also helped clear out and kill any remaining human fighters, and it was down to a 4v4 in the center.

"Sora, Mina! What are you two doing here? This is not your fight!" Xavier said.

"What the hell do you mean this isn't our fight? It's noble of you to try to take on 4 foes at once. Why don't we make the numbers even?" Sora said, with a huge grin on his face, his cloak now a crimson red from all the human blood he shed.

"Be careful, they have horses and you do not," Stefania warned, as she engaged one of the Commanders with her sword.

Mina decided to take one of the younger commanders, whose horse was quite large.

"Guess being such a small man, he's trying to overcompensate by the size of his horse," Mina thought.

Sora took a battle stance, long blades in hand, and chose the Commander who also had his helmet crowned with feathers.

"Be careful, he's the second in command. Do not underestimate him!" Xavier shouted as he exchanged sword blow after sword blow with the General, the man with scars all over his face and body.

"Do you wish to surrender now, human?" Xavier taunted as he managed to slice the General's left hand.

"It is you who should be worried. We are just the first force and didn't bring the hammer. I insisted we did, but the Emperor said my group must 'prove our worth to humanity's cause."

"Ha, so my sister was right, you are simply fodder," Xavier grinned as he noticed Mina backflipping, with a kick to protect his sister.

"Thanks Mina, I owe you one!" Stefania yelled as she quickly charged the Commander, who Mina successfully kicked off his horse.

The man tried to dodge the charging Belladeon, but was unable to, and Stefania cut his neck, deep enough for a quick, yet painful death.

Sora, on the other hand, continued to lure the second in command in by using his long blades, and when the commander least expected it, Sora drew his spear, and rather than latching it to his wrist, he simply threw the spear, as hard as he could. It pierced through the chest piece and the man rode on his horse for around 30 seconds before falling off.

"Ding! Congratulations. You have defeated a Commander of the Empire's army. You are now level 4!"

Sora quickly chased down the horse, and eventually got it to calm down.

"Easy baby, it's ok. I'm not here to hurt you, I'm here to help," he said as he finally managed to calm the horse down.

Rather than mounting it right away, Sora walked with him, back toward the two remaining fights, and watched his sister finish off her opponent using her new bow and endless quiver skill.

"Ding! You have defeated a Commander in the Empire's army. You are now level 5."

"Woah, so our shared system also shares whatever it takes to level up and we both level up together, that's awesome," the twins thought as they watched Xavier chase down the retreating General.

"So confident yet running home? I don't think so! "Entanglement!"

Vines tripped up the horse, bucking the General, who was now bleeding to the ground.

Xavier slowly walked over, removed his helmet and knelt down, at a safe distance, next to the General.

"Why do you wish to persecute us so badly?"

"We are bound to loyalty to the Emperor. We follow his every command or face death."

"Then why not be brave, refuse, and embrace the after life?"

The General laughed as he coughed up more blood. "I am embracing the afterlife, I had to lead my men into battle."

"Why not just bring the hammer and wipe us out right away?"

"Because the use of that hammer drives men mad. Beware, more will come after none of us return," the General said, as he took his last breath.

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Feeling great about their performance, Sora and Mina asked Stefania and Xavier if they could choose two of the horses for themselves.

"Of course you can. Great job today. Eden and the other gods truly blessed us with you two. Had you not taken the catapults out with ease, that battle may have ended in many elven deaths."

"Don't mention it, we're here to help and you and Stefania were the ones to train us in your bloodline magic. You didn't have to do that," Mina said with a bow.

"You were great out there Stefania! I've never seen a woman fight so beautifully aside from my sister!" Sora said, with a huge smile.

With a blushed face, she thanked him and asked him to choose his horse.

As Mina and Sora went to pick out horses, Mina whispered to Sora, "I think someone has a thing for the Princess."

"So what if I do? We might as well enjoy our time while we complete these quests." Sora said.

"I was just teasing but I'm shocked. 23 years and you finally have an eye for a woman. That woman happens to be an Elven princess." Mina teased.

They both walked back with their horses. Sora chose a larger brown horse and named him Blaze. Mina chose an all black horse and named her Aeris.

Xavier commanded Eric and another to take the other two horses and return them to their stables.

"Everyone, please, go wash up and rest. If you are wounded, please head to the medical bay in the Castle and we will get you healed up, good as new," Stefania said, and her voice seemed to project very loudly so that all could hear.

Mina and Sora returned to their rooms, washed up, skipped dinner and fell fast asleep.

It was weird for them, fighting against their own race, but they realized it wasn't about race. It was about being a good person. The Fang Family and Kingdom of Sanctuary were filled with good people. That's all that mattered.

After a great night's rest, Mina woke Sora up and they went for breakfast.

They talked about how awesome it felt to use their new skills and how the army suffered minimal casualties. Rumors quickly spread of the twins and their greatness.

People would come by and thank them, which was a great feeling for both.

Stefania finally entered the dining hall. She spotted Sora and Mina. Sora got up, pulled out the chair for Stefania and pushed it in for the Princess, who was blushing.

"Can I get you anything to eat, Princess?" Sora asked with a kind smile.

"No, thank you though. Also, you don't have to call me Princess. I'm actually here to invite you to the council meeting today regarding our next move. We would like to get you two up to speed on what happened over the last 40 years."

"That sounds great! It would be an honor to join your council meeting," Mina said with a smile.

"There are a few rules you should know. First, address my parents as King and Queen. Secondly, if you'd like to speak, raise your hand and wait to see if you're selected. Third, do not talk out of turn. Fourth, as you are not officially council members, your opinions will be heard and valued, but ultimately it's up to the council, unless my parents intervene."

"That's quite a lot. Will we be invited to join the council at some point?" Mina couldn't help but ask.

"My brother and I are putting it to a vote at today's meeting, so be punctual, dress nicely, and speak slowly and clearly. Some of the council members are over 150 years old."

"Thank you Stefania, for my sister and I, we cannot thank you enough for the warmth and hospitality your family has shown us," Sora said as he stood up.

"Where are you off to now, I haven't even told you the meeting time?" Stefania asked.

"I figured my sister and I could go train before the meeting. What time and where do we meet for the meeting?"

"Fourth floor, 5 PM. Take the left hallway to the third door on the right. Guards will be stationed outside," Stefania said, as she noticed Sora had pulled out her chair and offered his hand.

She took his hand, thanked him, gave him a kiss on the cheek and took her leave.

Mina waited for Stefania to leave before she burst out in laughter.

"What? Am I that dorky looking here?"

"Sort of, but no, in all honesty, it's nice to see you lighten up and actually have eyes for a woman."

The two went to train and noticed they were able to control magic much more easily.

It was nearly 4 PM, so the twins decided to head back to their room. When they entered, there were two sets of clothing laid out for them.

"Council attire. Please wear and look nice. Signed, Xavier."