From Hogwarts to Strixhaven.

Chapter 656 Qiao Lan
Desna is the goddess of travelers, the goddess of stars, and the lady of dreams, while Elsa, as a succubus, is unable to roam in Desna's core domain, which sounds as strange as a follower of the god of arms being without arms.

“Dreams?” Ivy pondered for a moment. “This is an area I’ve never explored before. Usually, I transform humans into other kinds of small animals, and I haven’t collected any experimental data in this area. However, logically speaking, before my shapeshifting spell is lifted, you are a human being. As long as you sleep at night, I can answer your question.”

"Really? I never thought I would look forward to nightfall so much..." A blush of excitement appeared on Elusa's pretty face, making this beautiful lady even more attractive.

“Alright, Miss Elusare,” Ivy interrupted the succubus’s reverie. “The battle within Juanze City is still ongoing. Since you are also a righteous warrior serving the Holy War, you are naturally worthy of the title of Holy Army. However, I cannot allow you to move freely until your suspicion is completely cleared. For the sake of the Holy War, please stay by my side for now and serve in the recapture of Juanze City.”

Before the succubus Elusare, who was the main character, could answer, the old magician Ze, who was inside the snow sphere, spoke up disdainfully first: "Letting a demon join the Crusade, are you really a golden dragon known for your kindness and justice?"

"Ah, you're still thinking about having a lich lead the Fifth Holy War? What's wrong with that?" Ivy retorted sarcastically.

“That’s right, but I am a lich known for my evil and ruthlessness, while you are a righteous and kind golden dragon!” Zechariah cackled.

“This is for a greater good, and besides, no one has sacrificed themselves for her yet.” Ivy looked at the succubus lady with an inscrutable expression. “Don’t make me regret this, Miss Elusare.”

“I know it’s hard for succubi to gain trust, but I will never let an innocent person die because of me again.” Elusare nodded.

“Very good, it seems we have reached an agreement for now.” Ivy nodded slightly. “Regarding the situation inside the City of Favor, mainly the fortress, is there anything you can tell me? The Holy Army’s intelligence sources are mainly based on aerial reconnaissance, and they know almost nothing about the situation inside that fortress.”

“Why not ask the blacksmith in Juanze City? Jolan Weiheng certainly knows more than this succubus girl.” There was a deep hatred in Zecarius’s voice, but it didn’t seem to be directed at the name he had just mentioned. “He was working as a blacksmith here when Juanze City was first built.”

“Joran Weyhen?” Ivy looked at the dwarf who was waiting to die with his eyes closed. “Ah, I remember now, you are Stoutton Weyhen’s brother.”

"Don't ask me anything, I don't want to say anything." The stubborn dwarf kept his eyes closed, and even turned over, turning the back of his head towards Ivy.

“I was worried for a while when I heard you disappeared from the Ironguard’s Ambition Tavern,” Ivy said calmly, explaining how she knew the name. “Do you remember Quintor Kant? The little elephant who crossed Kanaburi and arrived at Ironguard’s Ambition? He was my student, and I learned about your brothers’ story from his journal. Staunton Weyhen has already died in the battle of the Grey Camp. Why did you leave Kanaburi for this city occupied by demons?”

"Did you kill Stoutton?" Joran Weyham opened his eyes, the whites of his eyes turning an unnatural yellow and filled with bloodshot veins, and asked menacingly.

However, it's clearly impossible to intimidate Ivy with just a murderous glare.

“That’s right.” Ivy nodded in agreement. “I used a spell to take away his life force and killed him outright.”

"Then you should burn his body while you're at it!" The dwarf in the cell sat up and suddenly began to wail. "Those demons used witchcraft to toy with his body, making him stand up again, and they even tricked me into coming here!"

“I didn’t realize anything was wrong at first! Everyone knows that Kanaburi has a noose of treason waiting for him, and I’ve told him countless times not to get involved with that shameless madwoman, but he never listens to me!”

“I thought Staunton was indeed quite capable in commanding battles, and that the City of Favor had no one else to rely on besides all sorts of nightmares. To others, he was a more hateful traitor than Arelu, but to me, he was my only brother. I wanted to make him change his mind, to make him see the light, but I was wrong. There was no Staunton here, only a demon inhabiting his body!”

Ivy understood. Stoutton's soul had been extracted by him with Death Grip, so it was impossible for him to be resurrected in the conventional way. If the dwarf was still in Favored City, he must have been affected by some kind of magic or special ability.

"How did you figure that out?" Ivy raised an eyebrow. "From the outside or from the inside?"

“...Appearance.” Jolan Weiheng’s voice was muffled, no longer filled with the rage of before. “At first, he seemed quite normal, and he was always by that Litu Demon’s side, but later, when I saw him again, he had become hideous. His skin had become withered, his body hunched over, damn it! He was practically a living corpse!”

"When I finally asked that question, the demon turned on me! He beat me half to death and told me that Staunton had been killed by the Crusaders. I either stayed in the City of Favor to serve the demon and avenge Staunton, or I died!"

"How novel, yet another villain's predicament?" Zechariah chuckled sinisterly. For a lich, compassion and empathy are perhaps the most lacking qualities.

"Where did this incessant chattering come from? Who is he?" Jolan Weiheng suddenly stood up from his cell, seemingly wanting to punch the person who had mocked him, but excessive blood loss and exhaustion took away his strength, causing him to fall to the ground again.

“I am Zechariah, one of the foolish Crusaders who lost their lives because of your brother’s foolish actions. But in some ways, perhaps I should thank him. If the demons hadn’t taken the city of Favor, I wouldn’t have made this decision.” The lich’s voice finally returned to calm. “We should extract information from him and then continue with one of the most important steps in this holy war.”

Jolan Weiheng nearly screamed upon hearing the name, and after a long pause, he asked breathlessly, "Zecarius... they all call you the Suicide Savior... By the Father of Creation, you... you're not dead?" "Master Zecarius, who once covered the rear of the Crusaders in the New Sanctuary, is dead. However, before facing death, he transformed himself into a lich and bound his lich self to the basement of the New Sanctuary with a magical oath, waiting to serve the Crusaders once more. The one who just spoke to you is my advisor, the lich Zecarius." Ivy answered the question for the old magician Zecarius; as a lich, he wouldn't consider the emotional needs of the living.

“For me, death is not the end. You should kill this traitor, and then I will use necromancy to interrogate the secrets of his soul. That would be more efficient.” Zecharias’s voice was still sinister, but emotionally he had calmed down considerably. “Or, you can do it yourself and see how much you have learned from our conversation.”

“I know far more than you suspect, Zecarius. Don’t test me. Always remember, before being my advisor, you were also my prisoner.” Ivy rejected the offer and instead coaxed the critically wounded dwarf, “You are different from your brother, Jolan. Although this is our first meeting, my disciple’s notes show you are an upright and reliable person. You still have a chance to return to our side and contribute to your former cause.”

“No.” The dwarf, more stubborn than stone, covered his face with his hands, large tears sliding through his fingers, dissolving the blood clots in his beard. “Stalton and I are no different… We accomplished nothing… He couldn’t earn his comrades’ forgiveness, and I couldn’t save his soul… We are both utter failures… But I will tell you everything I know, so ask whatever you want. After that, I hope to die quietly here… If you recapture the city of Jueze, scatter my ashes in the cemetery in the church district…”

The snow globe containing the magic of Old Ze floated up and down for a moment. Ivy knew he had something to say, probably something like using everything available to revive Jolan's corpse and fight again.

“Then I’ll get straight to the point. The Heroic Edge, do you know where the demons are hiding it? That artifact is crucial to the final outcome of this battle.” Ivy nodded and immediately began asking questions. The Crusaders didn’t have much time, and he needed to speed things up as well.

“That artifact has the power to stop demons from teleporting, and it was indeed the key to the entire battle.” Qiao Lan lowered her hand and wiped her face. “It is indeed still inside the fortress of Juanze City, but I don’t know where the demons moved it. There was a fake in the secret room where it was originally stored. Although I only saw it once, I know very well that it is not the real Hero’s Edge. However, I guess they might have put it underground, in a room specifically used to store spoils of war. That artifact is useless to the demons, so its collectible value is the only reason for the demons to keep it.”

“A basement? How deep is the underground structure of the Fortress of Favored City?” Ivy frowned. “The later we get the Heroic Edge, the more disadvantageous the battle will be for us.”

“Since its founding, Jueze City has been constantly expanding. Before it fell, we had already expanded downwards by an entire floor. As for how much the demons expanded, no one knows,” Jolan Weiheng said with some regret. “Unfortunately, I was unable to find out more information.”

"What do you know about the demon commander stationed in Juanze City?" Ivy asked again.

“Unlike the Crusaders, the demons don’t see Favor City as a particularly significant stronghold. The demon leader who was originally stationed here has already led his army south to attack Montevi’s border defenses. Now, the only one left here is a Balo Demon, Daranzand. He’s a mad and cruel demon; it’s said that he’ll even kill any friendly forces that stand in his way.” Jolan coughed and continued, “I’ve observed him a few times, and I always feel that he’s much stronger than ordinary demons, even compared to other Balo Demons. You must be careful. Besides him, the rest are some old friends: the Litu Demon Mingna Gu, and the demon that possessed my brother’s corpse.”

The dwarf gritted his teeth as he spoke of the Mina Gu and the demon that possessed Stoutton's corpse.

"You don't seem reconciled," Ivy probed indirectly. "Haven't you thought about avenging your brothers with your own hands?"

“Revenge? What revenge?” Joran Weyhen scoffed. “He died by your hand, by a Crusader… I’m not capable of killing you to avenge him, and even if I did, I couldn’t redeem his soul. I’m tired… And dying like this might allow me to meet Stoutton again in the court of Farasma, two good-for-nothing fools, perhaps we can be brothers again in the next life.”

"Is this... worth it?" After listening for a while, the succubus Elusare finally couldn't help but ask.

“You demons will never truly understand the feelings of us mortals… What’s the point of talking about whether it’s worth it or not? We’re brothers, that’s enough.” Jolan didn’t even look at Elusare.

“Okay, is there anything else you think is important?” Ivy nodded silently. Although this kind of brotherly affection is not common, it is still an understandable and regrettable emotion. If Irina were here, she might write a play about these two brothers.

No, she won't.

Ivy immediately rejected her idea, because there was no female lead in it, and Ilynica probably wouldn't want to write a play in which she couldn't be the lead.

“The demons have been transporting corpses and prisoners into the castle lately. I don’t know what their purpose is, but it’s certainly not a good thing.” Jolan Weiheng sighed and finally said, “Also, I’ve left a gift for the young woman who went to the Gray Army Camp. I think her name is Ilinica. It’s in a box next to the furnace in the City of Favor. It’s a sword sheath. If it’s convenient, please give it to the young woman.”

“It seems you know almost nothing about the current Crusaders…” Ivy wasn’t surprised. How much inside information could a dwarf who was tricked into blacksmithing by demons know? “Ilinica is the knight commander of the Fifth Holy War. She’s fighting in the city right now. If you didn’t hide your sword sheath properly, she might just find it herself.”

Ivy tilted her head and thought for a moment. Given Irina's attitude of wanting to strip the enemy of everything, even a sword sheath in a box wouldn't escape her looting.

“Is that so?” Jolan Weiheng smiled, a rare occurrence. “If she can kill a few more demons with that sword, then I won’t have accomplished nothing. Alright, I don’t have much more to say. Go and save this city, and those who deserve to be saved.”

Ivy gave him one last look before leaving, without saying a word.

(End of this chapter)