Becoming a wet nurse is not the end of the story.

"Okay, wait a moment. I'm writing a letter to Maca. Could you please give it to her while you're at it?"

Before Arya could reply, he hurriedly went to the study, wrote several dozen words, and put them into a magical envelope.

“Aria, you must deliver the letter to Maca in person. She will probably reply to me after she reads it, so don’t rush back.”

"Don't worry, I'll definitely deliver this letter to Maca personally. If not, you can come with me, can't you?"

"Me? I have a lot of things to do here, so I definitely can't go out with you. But please be careful on the road."

Looking at the somewhat exhausted Aria, who hadn't had a proper rest after rushing all the way, and was now being assigned to another mission, Lin Xueyin still felt guilty, even though it was to protect her safety.

"Okay, don't worry, I'll go pick them up right away."

Arya waved the letter in her hand and hurriedly walked out the door, rushing outside. Lin Xueyin watched her departing figure, her right hand tightly gripping the clothes on her chest.

"Aria, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry."

Arya, who had just arrived at the gate of the mansion, saw Princess Irabel approaching. Princess Irabel still had a cold expression and walked in without even acknowledging Arya. Although she was a little surprised, she shook her head. After all, Yukine had already assigned her a task, so she should hurry up and finish what she was told.

Looking back at the mansion, which was now completely protected by the royal guards, Aria shook her head with a wry smile. It seemed that the royal family also attached great importance to Yukine's safety; otherwise, why would they have arranged such a large-scale operation?

With this in mind, Aria stopped worrying about Lin Xueyin's safety and focused solely on quickly picking up the Kalier sisters and going to the Feather Tribe to bring them back to the capital.

Inside the hall, watching Aria leave and then Irabel enter, Lin Xueyin smiled wryly. It seemed these people really didn't want to delay anything. Fortunately, she had already made preparations.

"Snow...."

"Your Highness, have you come here to take my life?"

Without listening to anything the other person said, Lin Xueyin turned around and sat down in the chair she had been sitting in. Looking at her friend who looked guilty, she realized that from today onwards, the two of them would truly be strangers.

"No, Yukine, we... we just wanted you to stay in your own residence this time, and also... it's just..."

With trembling hands, he took out a metal wristband that gleamed with a dim light, its dark color seemingly absorbing all the surrounding light.

"Is this a magic-suppressing ring? It's a pair of shackles specifically designed to deal with criminal mages, right?"

"Yukine, I...I..."

She gently and without flinching took the magic-suppressing ring into her hand, playing with it lightly. Her eyes were calm and undisturbed, as if she were talking about someone else's affairs, not hers.

"Xueyin, you... why don't you leave? Leave this place quickly, go to the Feathered Clan, the Elf Clan, or the Dwarf Clan, leave the Human Clan, leave this place of trouble."

I thought I could protect you, but I never expected that my protection would become the original sin that others used against her. Looking at the girl's pretty face, which was expressionless, Irabell suddenly felt that she was really incompetent.

"Irabelle, I'm leaving. What will you do?"

One sentence left Irabel speechless. Lin Xueyin gave a wry smile and, without a second thought, slipped the magic-suppressing ring onto her wrist.

As if struck by a severe blow, Lin Xueyin's face turned deathly pale in an instant, before gradually regaining a sliver of color. The dim bracelet on her wrist seemed to be embedded in her hand, impossible to remove.

"Alright, you can go back and report now, but I have one request."

"Xueyin, tell me, I will do it even if it costs me my life."

She shook her head silently again, then gently looked out the window. "I came to the human realm to find someone, but I've searched for so long and haven't found her. If one day I'm gone, please send me back to the Hundred Thousand Mountains. I want to wait for her to come back there."

"Xueyin, you'll be alright, believe me, you'll definitely be alright."

Blinking, she stood up and came to Irabel, speaking in a calm and unwavering tone, "Do you think it's better for me to die at the hands of humans, or to be captured by demons?"

Stunned, Irabel never expected Lin Xueyin to ask such a question. Died among humans, or captured by demons? Why were you captured by demons?

"You should know how much damage my existence has caused to the demon race. Do you think the Demon King will let me go? What do you think my fate will be if I fall into the Demon King's hands?"

"Yukine, believe me, we will not hand you over to the Demon King. Believe me, I will make arrangements as soon as possible and will definitely clear your name."

His slightly pale lips seemed to be smiling, but he was just looking at the somewhat bewildered princess.

"This is the first time I've seen you like this. You've always been so confident. It's alright, Princess. I'll wait for you to clear my name."

Volume 8: The Demon King and the Priest: Chapter 3: A Visit

Inside the capital, Lin Xueyin's residence was surrounded by the Royal Guard. While it wasn't exactly impenetrable to mosquitoes, the guards were proceeding with extreme caution, as if they were imprisoning a super dangerous prisoner.

Irabel, carrying the snacks she had carefully prepared, slowly walked into the courtyard and followed the path step by step toward Lin Xueyin's bedroom.

At this time, she would usually rest there, and in the afternoon, she would go to the study to read the books that she had borrowed specifically from the college library.

Although she couldn't leave the mansion, she could still move freely in the courtyard, which was the last benefit that Irabell and Ikux managed to secure for Lin Xueyin.

"Irabelle, you're here so early today?"

As soon as I stepped out of the room and turned around, I saw Irabelle carrying a familiar food box, walking slowly towards me. Her figure was graceful and her steps elegant, but her face was still icy.

Her usually icy face, which only softened when she saw Lin Xueyin, now showed a faint smile.

"Xueyin, how have you been these past few days?"

"Well, it's alright. I'm eating and sleeping well here. I've been traveling around a lot before, so I can finally get a few days of rest."

A smile didn't reach her eyes. Irabel looked at the girl in front of her who was forcing a smile, a trace of guilt flashing in her eyes, but then she gently took her hands in hers.

With delicate, soft hands and jade-like, white fingers, Lin Xueyin looked at her guilty friend in front of her. Although she also felt a little wronged, she still hoped to alleviate her guilt with her actions.

"Yukine, I'm sorry."

The more lenient her friend was with her, the more guilty Irabel felt. She had always thought that her royal status could protect the girl, but in the end, she was utterly defeated.

"The Beastmen, the Beastmen have already allied with the Demons."

Unexpected yet reasonable, without the support of the human race, the only way for the beast race to preserve itself is to form an alliance with the demon race. During the days of being under house arrest, Lin Xueyin put herself in the position of an observer and reorganized her thoughts over the past few days.

He then realized that he had indeed made a huge mistake. He originally thought that as long as he thwarted the demons' conspiracy, he could restrain them. However, he did not expect that he had already fallen into the trap set by the demons.

Repeated tactical victories mired them in the quagmire of war, ultimately leading to strategic defeat.

It's really stupid. The demons exploited the conflicts between different races, stirred up people's ambitions and desires, and in the end, they gained the greatest benefits with the least amount of loss.

What should be done next? The girl who came to the study with Irabelle gently touched the human race's Sima Empire with her finger. Sure enough, the demon race will eventually turn its spear against the human race.

"Yukine, are you...?"

"Irabel, is the Empire still invading the Orcs?"

Completely baffled as to why Lin Xueyin would suddenly ask such a question, Irabel thought for a moment before replying, "Yes, the main force, together with the barbarians, has now forced the orcs to the vicinity of the capital's royal tent..."

"Just with the barbarians?" He frowned slightly, somewhat uncertainly, and said, "Just with the barbarians? But what about the vampires? I remember that the barbarians initially attacked the beastmen together with the rebels from the beastmen."

"Vampires? I'm not really sure. The intelligence reports only mention the barbarian army and our empire's army. It seems that neither the orc rebels nor the vampires have successfully joined forces."

They failed to rendezvous successfully? How could that be? If it were simply that the orc rebels lacked sufficient military strength to rendezvous successfully, that would be understandable. However, the vampires and barbarians were roughly equal in strength, and the vampires were also a race that could consume magic. How could their attack speed be slower than that of the barbarians?

No, there's definitely something wrong here. The vampires, barbarians, beastmen, demons, and humans will soon gather in the northern lands. At that time, one wrong step will lead to utter destruction.

"No, Irabel, the main force of the human race must return. We absolutely cannot allow ourselves to become bogged down in the north."

"Xueyin, what are you doing? Don't you know your current situation? You still want to go out. The nobles are all waiting for you to make a mistake. You must calm down."

He pulled Lin Xueyin onto his lap and held her tightly in his arms, clearly feeling the girl's slightly trembling body.

“Irabel, those are millions of soldiers, those are lives. You need to understand that if something goes wrong, the human race’s own military strength will suffer a devastating blow.”

Taking a deep breath and glancing at the girl in front of her, Irabel simply smiled faintly, "Little girl, those going to the north this time are all ordinary soldiers. Our high-end combat force is all inside the Empire, and none of the Saint-level soldiers have gone out, so there's nothing to worry about."

Ordinary soldiers? Lin Xueyin suddenly felt a sense of estrangement from the princess before her. Were the lives of ordinary soldiers really as worthless as weeds? They were willing to die for the empire, yet in the eyes of these people, they held no value whatsoever?

As soon as he said it, he cursed inwardly. Sure enough, he saw a fleeting look of displeasure in the depths of Lin Xueyin's eyes. He then gently tapped Lin Xueyin's delicate face with his finger.

"Xueyin, we humans don't have much time left. We must take over the north now. Only in this way can we gain a greater strategic initiative. Otherwise, we will face a large-scale invasion by the demons."

"So, you're going to send so many soldiers on such a risk?"

The girl, pinned tightly to the other's legs, uttered a muffled sound, "If you save the land but lose the people, you lose both; if you save the people but lose the land, you save both. I hope you've done the right thing."

Irabell ran her fingers through the girl's silky, smooth hair and gently pressed her head against her shoulder, savoring her sweet breath and delicate fragrance.

"Xueyin, no matter what, I will protect you. Believe me."

Although Irabel's firm voice reached her ears, it did not elicit any response from Lin Xueyin.

Once the demons invade, my fate will no longer be in my own hands. At that time, whether it is humans or demons, they will probably want to get rid of me as soon as possible.

Gently resting her head on the other person's shoulder, she felt their warmth and faint fragrance, but a slight bitterness appeared in a place out of their sight.

Fate can be truly unpredictable. One second you're a hero, the next you're a traitor everyone wants to get rid of.

I don't quite understand why there's such a huge argument. If the writing is bad, why not just delete the book? Why insist on arguing here, and so aggressively at that, to the point where the author's mentality is completely shattered and they might as well quit? The author has already said that if you're not satisfied, you can point it out. If there are genuinely bad points, point them out, and the author won't delete the post. But to just bluntly say, "Your writing is bad, I shouldn't have subscribed, I don't like it, what's the point of keeping it if I don't delete it? Are you just making other readers feel bad?" The author serves the community with their writing. If you don't like it, that's your freedom, but please also respect other readers. The author is responsible not only for one reader but also for all readers. And to the reader who called it an orphan and only deletes posts, take a look at the book review section. Have the author deleted any of those book reviews that sound like arguments? If you come with questions, the author will try their best to answer them. If you come with anger, the author will also listen. However, there seems to be a fundamental difference between meaningful comments and pure venting. Finally, if anyone hopes to get me banned through criticism, then I can only say sorry. I will continue to update diligently and finish the book. I remember a phrase from an app I often read: "Push yourself to the limit to bring joy to everyone," which really suits the lives of online writers like myself.

Volume 8: The Demon King and the Priest: Chapter 4: The War in the North

After seeing Irabelle off, Lin Xueyin returned to her study. Seeing the leftovers and snacks on the table, a faint smile of happiness appeared on her face.

Lin Xueyin opened the book she hadn't finished reading, but her eyes weren't on it. Her thoughts wandered, and she gazed dreamily through the window at the azure sky outside.

Calm, cloudless, without the slightest ripple, with the occasional bird whose name I don't know flashing by. Back when Nana and I were together, we often sat by the stream, looking at that sky.

No matter where they are, no matter how close or far apart they are, in the end, they are all under the same blue sky, looking at the same sky. Fate brought them together in this chaotic world, but in the end, they could only be defeated by their own destinies.

For some reason, Lin Xueyin had a feeling ever since she was with the beastmen that she would definitely be taken to the demons. For some reason, this idea had been rooted in her heart.

Pessimistic? Perhaps. Desperate? Maybe. But in the end, it all boils down to helplessness.

She gently tied her blonde hair into a cute ponytail, her attention returning to the open book. In this era where no one's future is certain, who knows what fate will bring next?

Nana, what would you do if it were you? You've always been more decisive than me. If only you were here with me right now.

Meanwhile, on the northern lands, the flames of war still raged. In front of the royal tent, the allied forces of humans and barbarians relentlessly attacked the orcs, who were on the verge of collapse.

The Saint-level warriors of the Orcs and the Saint-level warriors of the Barbarians had long been engaged in one evenly matched battle after another, with bloodshed, dismemberment, and death constantly unfolding on this vast plain.

The constant interplay of martial arts and magic paints a beautiful yet desolate picture of this vast world. The landscape is picturesque, yet it has caused countless ambitious people to bow down.

The land is beautiful, yet how many loyal souls are buried within it? Your blade, his sword, conspiracies, open schemes—all have now transformed into shouts of battle, extinguishing each other's lives in the siege of this city.

Nadakors looked at the enemies still surging towards him like a tide, and his battle axe flashed once more.

"As long as the city stands, we stand; as long as the city exists, we perish. We are determined to live and die with the royal court..."

As he watched the orc warriors on the city wall roar one after another, the human marshal, Marquis Joe Riben, wore a smug smile.

Back then, it was the orcs who forced the empire to attack. Now, we can finally avenge our defeat and wipe out these despicable green-skinned monsters. When that happens, we must enslave these orcs and ensure they can never rise again.

"For Sima, glory be with us..."