Michael was busy dealing with the aftermath of the Golden Port battle. At that Northguard, he was in a room filled with sacks of grain, artifacts, food, crates of potions and pills, and gold coins. Everything in front of him was his share of the Golden Port warehouse. Michael kept everything in the dark forest.

"My Lord," Azazel appeared behind Michael.

"What is it?" asked Michael without even turning around. His mind was occupied with future plans.

"Lady Alden has told Edith about you and her," Azazel's words brought Michael out of his thinking. He turned around with a frown.

Since Lailah wore the necklace given by Michael, Azazel watched everything that had transpired between Lailah and Edith. Unfortunately, Michael had no idea Zakari and Austin kidnapped the spirit child to threaten him.

"Why did she do that?" asked Michael. He followed Azazel behind to the surveillance room. With a flick of his wrist, Azazel replayed the recording of Lailah and Edith. Michael watched the scene without blinking an eye. Looking at Lailah argue with Edith, he was surprised. He never expected Lailah to slap Edith literally. This was the second time Michael had seen her lose her calm and composure. Truth be told, Michael didn't think he could hate Edith more. Anyone with half a brain could tell Lailah was not at fault with her father. It was obvious to Michael Norbert had done something to deserve Lailah's wrath. But her family matter was not Michael's concern. By telling Edith what had happened between him and her, Lailah had given something that could be used against both of them to Edith, a lackey of Victoria.

"Azazel, go to the rainbow island and make sure everything's fine," Michael immediately ordered Azazel.

"As you wish, my lord," Azazel knew the urgency of the matter. Hence, he quickly bowed and disappeared from Michael's sight.

While Azazel was on his way to the rainbow islands, Michael headed for the pocket dimension to meet Elidyr.

Meanwhile, Gaya was in the Southern continent in her Dark Queen armor. She met Corey to get a report of the Golden Port battle. Since they achieved an overwhelming victory, Gaya ordered all the crew to take a day and celebrate as they saw fit, except the crew of Big Bertha. They were allowed to do anything to enjoy their day except drinking. Michael was strict about the booze policy. If anyone in his crew got drunk, he would throw them overboard. Why? Because Michael wanted them sane and clear-headed all the time.

Gaya called Corey to the upper deck. She enjoyed the peace and calm of the sea around her. Winter had hit the entire world at the same time. However, The southern continent wasn't as cold as Ozer or Elon. Corey approached Gaya wearing a thick fur coat. The upper deck was empty since the crew was enjoying their day on the deck below them.

"How many ships have we lost?" asked Gaya.

"Thirty to the storm and twenty to the thusians,"

"Thirty to the storm? Seriously?' Gaya shook her head. She was disappointed in the pirates.

"We have taken control of almost four hundred thusian ships. But my lady, we lack the manpower to man those ships," said Corey.

"I took the initiative to recruit more pirates. It'd take some time, but we will have enough men in a month or two,"

"Good,"

If it wasn't for the storm and lack of crew, Corey could have captured more thusian ships. Using the raging storm to their advantage, many thusian ships escaped Golden Port. That was the reason they were only able to capture four hundred ships.

"Can I ask you something, my lady?" asked Corey.

"Hmm," Gaya nodded.

"Who were those people who fought that giant dragon? Are they our allies?"

"You could say that. Were you afraid? Afraid of dragons?" Gaya chuckled.

"Kinda," Corey nervously smiled.

"Then I hope you can overcome your fear sooner than later,"

After dealing with the things in the Southern continent, Gaya left for King Gunner's castle. When she arrived at the room where they planned everything, she saw Yagnar, Prince Davarius, and General Bryce waiting for her. Prince Davarius was trembling as his eyes were bloodshot. Judging by the look, Gaya could tell something had happened in Northguard.

"What happened?" asked Gaya.

"The farmlands and villages in Northgaurd," Yagnar hesitated to finish his sentence.

"They ravaged the places. Burnt many and took some villages hostage,"

"Then what are we waiting for? General Bryce, gather our men," Gaya ordered General Bryce. Prince Davarius felt somewhat relieved. A small part of his mind was expecting her to delay the attack on Northguard and focus on Thusia. But on the contrary, she immediately ordered General Bryce to gather the men.

"I need to know how many thusians were stationed at Northguard and who was responsible for the latest atrocities,"

Gaya said to Yagnar and then turned her gaze toward Davarius.

"We are not going to take back Northguard. We are going to destroy the thusians without mercy. You have a problem with that?" asked Gaya.

"I thought you would never ask," Davarius's eyes turned predatory. He followed Gaya outside to leave for Northguard.

Gaya didn't wait for General Bryce to finish gathering up the men. Instead, she shot toward the sky with Davarius. The two of them flew toward Northguard. Gaya had to fly slowly to keep up with Davarius. After continuously flying for almost an hour, Gaya and Davarius reached the outskirts of Kingdom Northguard.

Bordered between a mountain to the North, a wild ocean to the South, a river to the East, and lush grasslands to the West, the kingdom of Northguard mainly lived off farming, fishing, and crafting.

Northguard itself was mainly covered in hills and had a windy climate. The climate played a big role in farming. Although they didn't produce as much food as Suven, they produced enough to become a self-sustaining kingdom.

The kingdom's landscape was pleasant; calm lakes, silent mountains, and sapphire lakes were just a sliver of the hidden treasures Northguard had to offer, which was why the kingdom was admired among foreigners. Plus, the people of Northguard were loving towards foreigners and tend to welcome them with goodwill. They felt foreigners could empower the kingdom's well-being.

Despite the snowfall, Davarius could still see dark smoke coming from the village on the horizon. This was one of the villages Booth chose to burn to the ground.

"I am sorry for what happened there. But I'd suggest we strike the capital before the thusians cause more destruction," said Gaya.

It took Davarius a few moments to come out of his sorrow.

"I used to play here," Davarius said with a heavy heart. His voice stuttered because of the sadness in his heart.

"Why did they have to do this?" asked Davarius.

"Because the thusians wants to break your spirit. As long as you fight for freedom, they can't control the kingdom as they like. They sent a message, and now it's our turn to respond,"

"Let's head toward the capital," said Davarius. He didn't even bother to doubt Gaya whether she could fight an entire army or not. They were about to leave for the capital when she saw a group of thusian soldiers flying toward the village. This group contained six men. Since each of them was flying on a sword, Gaya was able to tell they weren't at the Core Formation stage yet.

"Bastards!" Davarius roared. He didn't even wait for Gaya's order as he dashed toward them.

Davarius's speed was several times faster than the rest. The thusians were startled by the sudden appearance of Davarius. The soldier who led the group lost his balance when he saw Davarius out of the blue.

"Fuck!"

"Holy!"

The soldiers panicked. The scream of their leader was still echoing through the air. Everything seemed tiny from their view, so anyone could imagine what would happen to their leader when he hit the ground. But Davarius was not in the mood for imagination. He grabbed two soldiers by their necks and squeezed them till their faces turned purple. The others were too shocked to react in time.

While Davarius was squeezing the life out of two soldiers, Gaya fired a normal iron arrow at a soldier who was trying to escape. The arrow penetrated his left thigh. Blood spurted out of his leg as the soldier screamed. Davarius didn't even blink an eye.

The light of life slowly left the soldiers' eyes. Among the six, one fell to death, two were losing their lives slowly, and one was barely keeping himself on the sword. This left two soldiers unscathed. They looked at each other with pale faces. They trembled. Unlike Booth's general, these six were just foot soldiers. They were trained to look for any survivors in the villages and not to fight people like Gaya or Davarius.

Finally, Davarius ended the two soldiers' suffering by snapping their necks. The two standing behind the dead soldiers panicked. Their minds went blank. They were about to turn around and leave when Davarius punched them with enough force to put a hole through their chests. Blood spattered on Davarius's face, painting it red.

Gaya grabbed the one with an arrow sticking out of his leg. She lifted him up in the air as the sword fell down. He frantically squirmed in her hand.

"You have five seconds to tell us who did this," Gaya pointed at the burnt village on the ground.

"One,"

"Two,"

"I don't know" the soldier cried.

"Three,"

"Four," Gaya continued to count. The moment the count reached five, Gaya let go of his collar.

"AHHHHHHHHH!" The soldier screamed, falling down from the sky.

Gaya dived down and caught the soldier in the mid-way. The soldier's face was drenched in sweat. Davarius could hear the soldier's heart pounding against his chest.

"Next time, I won't catch you," Gaya threatened the soldier.

"It's General Booth and his men!" The soldier screamed without a second thought.

"He ordered his men to burn some villages and take hostage a few. We were just sent here to look for any survivors. I swear I don't know anything else," The soldier cried.

"AHHHHHHH!" The soldier screamed as Gaya let go of his collar.