Chapter 362: Walpurgis

When Ryan saw Irnina’s figure suddenly appear on the thick tree branch, his senses sharpened to their absolute limit. He immediately noticed, through his deep perception of his surroundings, how the energy of his companions inside the castle spiked abruptly.

He clearly sensed the women rushing through the castle, preparing to storm into the cold courtyard to defend their territory.

Without wasting a single second, Ryan raised his right hand and touched the small magical communication relic fitted to his ear.

"Alicia, stop everyone immediately and do not interfere. I will handle the situation from here," Ryan ordered in a firm, unwavering tone, keeping his gaze fixed on the pink-haired intruder.

"It is just one of the emissaries from the Ignis nation. It is not an enemy attack."

Receiving that calm reassurance, Alicia obeyed her king’s order without the slightest question.

The beastwoman stopped in the castle corridors and quickly informed the other warriors to lower their guard and stay out of it.

’Young master, is everything all right?’

Lise asked through their mental link, connecting directly with her leader’s thoughts.

The dragoness’s voice echoed in his head with immense urgency and clear concern for her beloved master’s safety.

’Yes, nothing is wrong. It must be about the Demon Kings’ meeting we were expecting.’

Ryan replied through the same telepathic channel, trying to calm his powerful subordinate’s territorial instincts.

’Understood, Master. I will do exactly as you command. But if I sense the slightest hostility toward you, I will go kill her immediately.’

Ryan ignored Lise’s violent promise of loyalty and focused all his attention on the visitor who was still sitting in the tree in front of them.

"I’m quite surprised you knew I would appear right here," Irnina said from above, while the strong, freezing mountain wind whipped her long, beautiful pink hair. She maintained a relaxed posture, swinging her legs in the air as if she were on a simple, peaceful stroll.

"I can’t say there are many people in this world who notice exactly where or when I will appear when I use my skills."

Ryan silently studied the strange reddish energy surrounding the woman’s body, trying to understand the exact nature of her magic.

"Is this teleportation, or some kind of spatial skill?" Ryan asked with genuine curiosity.

"Not exactly, actually," the fire emissary replied, leaning her face forward a bit to look at him with obvious amusement in her eyes.

"You can think of this skill like the sparkling dust butterflies leave behind when they fly."

Helen, who stood just a few steps away from Ryan, frowned in deep annoyance at such a cryptic and ridiculous explanation.

The swordswoman clenched her gauntlet-covered fists, never taking her eyes off the newcomer.

"I can easily return to a place where I’ve recently left some of my own energy scattered," Irnina added, flashing a slight, arrogant smile on her beautiful face.

"When I came to visit you at this castle a few days ago, I released that small amount of energy before leaving to use it as a return beacon."

Ryan nodded slowly, processing the utility and the great danger that magic represented if used against him carelessly.

"That is a rather strange power. It seems dragons tend to apply their magical abilities in very interesting ways," Ryan replied, keeping his expression neutral and evaluating every word of the conversation without showing surprise.

Irnina rested a hand against the tree trunk, looking quite comfortable despite the freezing temperature that chilled the courtyard stones.

"But I made absolutely sure not to show any hostility as I approached," Irnina said, looking down a bit further from her high perch on the thick branch. Her bright eyes scanned the human’s figure with extreme curiosity and an undeniable fascination that she didn’t try to hide in the slightest.

"It’s not at all common for someone to detect me in time, and yet, here you are waiting for me. Your Majesty."

She savored that last word with a hint of mockery, noticing the immense changes her interlocutor’s aura had undergone since their last encounter.

"You are so different now. I’m truly very impressed by your rapid growth."

Helen couldn’t stand the fire dragoness’s overly familiar and highly dismissive attitude for another second.

The warrior took a firm, heavy step forward, placing herself directly in the middle of Irnina’s inquisitive gaze to block her view of Ryan.

"Whatever. If you’re here, it’s because the official date for the meeting has already been set, hasn’t it?" Helen said in a rough, clipped tone, challenging the dragoness and trying to establish a hierarchy of power between them.

"Spit it out already. We’re very busy people, you know."

Irnina smiled broadly at the black-haired escort’s rude and impulsive attitude.

But the dragoness decided not to respond to Helen’s obvious provocation, ignoring her completely as if her harsh words meant nothing.

Then, after two tense seconds of absolute silence in the air, Irnina jumped down from the tree branch with flawless grace.

She landed softly on the courtyard’s hard, snow-covered ground, touching down just a couple of meters in front of the two humans.

"Yes, the exact date for the meeting has been set."

She lifted her pale face and locked her intense eyes directly on Ryan’s imposing figure.

"Or as the ancient Demon Kings call it, the Walpurgis."

The freezing wind blew harder, kicking up a bit of snow from the ground as she delivered the real message that had brought her there.

"It will take place in exactly eight days."

’Eight days...’

Ryan quickly processed this in his calculating mind, evaluating the timelines of all his current plans and the readiness of his allied troops.

’By then, William will have already returned from his trip with Edwin.’

He brought a hand to his chin, analyzing the logistics of leaving his own fortress unprotected during such a delicate timeframe.

’And I still haven’t received any news from the dryad. So... I suppose there won’t be any major issues if I leave.’

Ryan lowered his hand from his face and nodded slightly toward the attentive fire dragoness, confirming his attendance at the event.

"That’s fine. But are you the one in charge of notifying all the Demon Kings on the continent?" Ryan asked, genuinely doubting that a warrior of her caliber would be doing simple messenger work for the rest of the world.

"Not at all. I came all the way to this freezing place exclusively because it was you," Irnina replied quite naturally, tucking a thick lock of her pink hair behind her ear with a delicate movement.

"I wasn’t obligated to do this whatsoever, but I just wanted to make sure you weren’t caught off guard and unprepared."

She took another step toward the human king, slightly closing the distance between them over the thick layer of snow in the outer courtyard.

"In eight days, the lightning dragon will come to pick you up from this castle personally. He is one of Demon Queen Juba’s servant dragons."

Hearing that specific name and direct warning, Ryan narrowed his eyes in complete distrust. He knew very well from all his past experience that high-ranking dragons and demons did not do huge favors for free.

"And suddenly you care so much about my safety? Or what are you really playing at, Irnina?" Ryan asked, maintaining a rigid posture and an analytical gaze that tried to decipher the emissary’s true intentions.

Irnina let out a soft, melodic laugh upon noticing the new Demon King of Kowarre’s constant, justified suspicion.

"You make me rather curious," she confessed with a bright smile, opening her arms slightly to emphasize the absolute sincerity of her words in front of him.

"Your constantly growing power and the fearsome figure you’ve become... in a way, I find it highly entertaining to watch."

As Irnina uttered those final syllables with obvious enthusiasm, the empty space right behind her began to react violently.

A strange, bright scarlet distortion opened in the cold air, tearing through reality itself to create a massive dimensional rift.

"I can’t wait to see what kind of being you truly become and everything you will do in this world," she said with an incredibly sharp smile laced with dark anticipation, showing her clear enthusiasm for the warlike chaos he might unleash in the future.

The fire dragoness took a step back without looking away from him, letting the turbulent red energy completely surround her slender body.

Her figure began to fade rapidly inside the large magical distortion she had created. The scarlet portal snapped shut with a loud, sharp hum, disappearing without leaving a single trace of her presence behind.

And just before silence completely ruled the snowy mountain once again, a final sound lingered in the air.

"In eight days it will be the Walpurgis, don’t forget it. Your Majesty."