Hyperion sat on the sofa before the low table in the center of the grand hall. She gazed at the Saintess before her and the murals behind her, lapsing into silence for a moment.
In this ethereal sanctuary, polished by over a millennium of devout faith, faint natural light filtered through the window lattices onto the white reliefs. The diverse depictions of deities seemed to shimmer, giving her the illusion that they were reenacting ancient legends.
"Efatia is my mother's name," Hyperion nodded in confirmation after a pause.
Although she had never heard the name Talia, her father had once told her that her mother's true name was Efatia.
Hyperion reasoned that since the Ice Snow Witch had asked, she already harbored a suspicion, so there was no point in deceiving her.
Besides, the Ice Snow Witch was someone who could help her right now; she ought to try trusting her.
"Just as I thought."
Across the table, the Ice Snow Witch's expression did not waver. She seemed to have known almost the moment she laid eyes on Hyperion.
"You are the last princess of the demon race."
"?"
Hyperion pointed at herself in astonishment and confusion.
"Both Princess Efatia and Princess Talia are unaccounted for. That leaves you as the last of demon royalty," the Ice Snow Witch explained calmly.
"This..."
Hyperion's mind struggled to process this all at once.
She had never imagined her mother possessed such an identity.
According to her father, her mother had mostly seemed like an innocent, carefree young woman. Though that was merely an act to blend in as a human, Duke Mikhail himself had ultimately lost track of how much of it was real and how much was pretense.
As for the demon named Talia, Hyperion had never heard of her at all.
"In the world today, there are only seven confirmed surviving great demons, including myself," the Ice Snow Witch continued in an even tone. "The warmongering great demons have all fought to the death. Those still living are the ones who refused to take part in the war back then. If they learn you are Efatia's daughter, they will more or less show you some deference."
"Is that because of my bloodline?"
"Not entirely. It is also because Efatia is terrifying when she seeks vengeance."
"..."
For a moment, Hyperion could not tell whether the Saintess was praising her mother or insulting her.
"So the surviving great demons in this world... are they all anti-war like you?" Hyperion asked.
She roughly understood. The Ice Snow Witch likely hoped she could help secure the aid of the other great demons.
Every cause has its effect; this could be seen as a natural filter. The other six great demons were probably the ones with the highest potential to coexist with humanity.
"I am anti-war; the two princesses refused the war; the three held in the imperial prison are conservatives; and one is a capitulationist."
The Ice Snow Witch stood up and walked over to a nearby bookshelf, her gaze trailing across the spines as she spoke with her back to Hyperion.
The floor was paved with clear water stone, every slab polished until smooth as glass. The faint grain across them seemed washed by the currents of time. As the Ice Snow Witch walked across it, her steps made scarcely a sound, as if she were treading within the embrace of the divine.
"..."
The factions were clearly divided.
The anti-war one had become a Saintess; those who refused the war had gone into exile; the conservatives were locked in prison; and whoever favored surrender was unaccounted for.
At present, aside from the Ice Snow Witch, the only ones whose whereabouts were known were the three in the prison.
"How can I help?"
If she could aid the Kingdom of Asethelan and the Church of the Goddess of Fate, it would undoubtedly earn her an unfathomable amount of merit. As a devotee of the Goddess of Fate, Hyperion felt bound by duty to assist.
Perhaps she could even help pay off all the merit Lanqi had squandered into the negative.
It might even be enough for him to squander for several more years.
"I wish to entrust you with an important mission: infiltrate the Empire, make contact with the three great demons in the prison, and try to bring one of them back—at least one of them will show you deference."
The Ice Snow Witch pulled a final atlas from the shelf, brought a stack of books back to the sofa, and spread them open on the table. Pointing to a location, she made a sincere request of Hyperion.
"Why would one of the great demons listen to me?"
Hyperion saw that the tip of the witch's finger rested directly upon the imperial capital of the Protos Empire. Then she looked back up at the Ice Snow Witch's face.
"Did you know that your mother, Efatia, actually had an elder sister named Talia?" The Ice Snow Witch sighed.
"My father never mentioned it."
Though Hyperion had already deduced the relationship between the two princesses from what was said earlier, she still shook her head.
Only today had she learned that she had an aunt who was likewise missing.
"One of the great demons in the prison was on very close terms with your aunt Talia. If she knows of your blood relation to Talia, she will not make things difficult for you; in fact, she will do her utmost to protect you. That is why she is the rescue target we must secure."
The Ice Snow Witch drew several drawings from between the book pages and laid them out on the table, each depicting one of the great demons.
"Most crucial of all are her abilities. She is an exceptional demon physician and coordinator. Once war breaks out, whether securing the rear lines or commanding logistics, her presence would be of irreplaceable importance."
Yet as Hyperion listened to the Ice Snow Witch, her eyes drifted over the drawings on the table, and the more she looked, the weirder they seemed.
She had seen photographs of her mother at home; they were nowhere near as abstract as these drawings.
Still, she did not dare ask who had drawn them. If the Ice Snow Witch had painted them herself, that would be terribly awkward.
"Unfortunately, Talia has vanished. Once this great demon is rescued, she will likely want to search for Talia right away. I can only ask you to help convince her to stay and aid the Kingdom of Asethelan first. In return, we will promise her that no matter how difficult it is, we will help her track down leads on Talia," the Ice Snow Witch said with a sigh of resignation.
If she had not seen a glimmer of hope in Hyperion for gaining this great demon's cooperation, she never would have contemplated making a move on the imperial prison.
"What about the other two great demons?"
Hyperion remembered the Ice Snow Witch mentioning that there were three great demons held in the prison.
To have been called a great demon and held significant power in the Demon Realm back then, one had to be at least Tier 8; every single one of them had held immense sway among the demon race.
"Forget about trying to control those two. They are loyal subjects of the demon race, merely conservative in nature."
The Ice Snow Witch seemed to have had little contact with those two demons; when mentioning them, her tone grew markedly distant.
To her, only the two princesses were old acquaintances she had been close with.
Although the other two great demons possessed unique innate magics comparable to a Blood Clan authority, they were unlikely to fight for another race and would only prove to be volatile wildcards on the battlefield.
Unless absolutely necessary, the Ice Snow Witch did not want to take the immense risk of releasing them as well.
Chapter 250