The Duke's Unwanted Wife

Natalia dashed into the mansion, heading to the living room first. She found the butler and he told her she was in the office. She could finally calm herself and walk into the office.    

"Grandmother, you really came."    

"You have a very nice office, Natalia. This old woman is jealous."    

"I can make the exact one for you. I'm just curious. Why are you here?"    

"Sit, we need to talk."    

"I'm terrified. If this is about my marriage, you need to give me more time…"    

"This is not about that. It's about your inheritance."    

"You came all the way here for that? You could've just asked me to come to you. It must be more than that."    

"Yes. Why did you bring a hostage and ask the plan to be sped up? You know how sensitive the whole thing is! You didn't even tell anyone else about it and now you want to hasten it out of nowhere! What happened?"    

"The hostage is critical. I had to put her away so she wouldn't affect my plans. Two, there isn't much time left. Even after I went back in time two times, the darkness is still spreading and faster this time. Separating the two souls was just the first step. The souls cannot dissipate or disappear so I had to find their new vessels and I have finally found an ally who can make the resurrection easier. In three months, it will finally begin."    

Dame Violet sighed, placing a hand on her face.    

"I hoped I would at least be dead before the end of the world. I understand why you're doing this but aren't you scared? You could lose everything."    

"I trust in Nataroth. She has always had my back so I will do everything I can to fulfill my promise. The dungeon I placed Non in can only hold him for a short time. With Uriel's Saintess there, he will be less willing to leave. It's a short time to find the bodies of the other original gods but I know we can do it. Then…it'll be up to her."    

"I know this is the reason you keep resisting the idea of marriage but isn't it better to just do it and not regret it?"    

"If they find out all I've been doing behind their backs, they might not forgive me. If he's married to me, he might feel obligated to protect me no matter what and I can't have that. I will fight alone to the end, no matter what happens. Thank you for believing in me, Grandmother."    

"Your plan is crazy but it can only make sense to people like me. I really do hope you succeed."    

"I do too."    

In the heavenly court, each god went about minding their business. The palace of the god Ducroft was further from her palace but sending a fairy to sneak in wasn't that hard. She would've come in person with Quene but he was busy with Uriel. After sending a fairy inside, it was her turn to distract Ducroft.    

"Lord Ducroft, I want to declare martial law!" She said, loud enough for him and other gods around to hear. It quickly drew a curious crowd and was enough to bring Ducroft out. He left Adelie and came out with an annoyed look until he realized who challenged him.    

"Lady Madaline, why do you want to declare martial law?"    

"Well, I decided not to ignore the crimes your kingdom committed against my kind. I have come to challenge you on it."    

"Lady Madaline, I have nothing to do with those crimes. If you wish to punish those directly responsible, then we can set up a council for that."    

"Are you sure of this testimony, Lord Ducroft? Because I happen to chance on several of your books and there are extensive methods on how to capture a fairy, how to perform a ritual with parts of a fairy and why fairies are the best diet for dragons. There are other pieces of evidence I have. Do you still wish to deny it?"    

"Lady Madaline, those books were published thousands of years ago."    

"And thankfully, they are evidence today. I couldn't be happier to get my hands on these books. So, which will it be? A civil fight or a martial fight?"    

While they contested in front of his palace, the fairy zipped through the palace, slipping through formations meant to confuse intruders and finally finding the room that had a dying soul. She landed on one of the ropes that held Adelie bound, stirring the bound Saintess.    

"Did she send you? She shouldn't have. Be careful about those. They're…."    

A giant maw opened behind the fairy swooping down to swallow her. She dodged the maw, quickly accessing the danger.    

"There's no need to fight. You can just leave."    

The fairy shook her head and closed her eyes. Waves of light emanated from her forehead and she began to replicate in visible speed. The same time she spawned copies of herself, several golden snakes slithered out of crevices, heading straight for her. The several copies were just as quick, battling the snakes. There were more than enough there to pick her up and sprinkle fairy dust on her. She visibly downsized and the fairies began carrying her out.    

She looked back at the other copies trapped in the midst of the snakes and flinched when she saw them become snake food.    

{Copies disappear. It's fine.}    

Adelie sighed and relaxed. She has suffered in the past few days and her soul was really dissipating. Just as they were about to come out of the palace, a giant serpent blocked the way. It hissed at them, eyes locked on Adelie.    

"Why must you insist on causing so much trouble, Madaline?"    

"What do you mean, Uriel? So you're saying if my children kept dying, I shouldn't avenge them? Oh, I know. Maybe I should just wipe Berinda off the map! You won't mind, right?"    

The look in Madaline's eyes convinced Uriel that she would really do it. None of the other gods dared to oppose Madaline after that and they set up a martial court and a civil court due to the severity of the crimes.    

"You're known for your great magic but you're a war lord as well, Lord Ducroft. I look forward to sparring with you," she smiled. He picked up a halberd burning with green flames. She picked up a rapier, making a beautiful arc with it when she swung it once. Nearby, an angel statue was sliced into two, gold blood running down the sides.    

"There was no need to do that, Madaline," Uriel commented.    

"Shut up already, Uriel or you're next."    

"Who do you think would win?" A god whispered to the one next to him.    

"It's hard to tell. War gods are hard to win against because of experience but if we rank based solely on experience, then Lady Madaline has him beat by far. It's hard to tell who would win because Lady Madaline isn't who she used to be but she had a fearsome reputation in the past."    

"Oh, you mean soul eater? It was terrifying to see that technique. I don't think Lord Ducroft would be able to guard against that."    

Ducroft went first, raising his halberd with the intent to slice her in half. She raised her rapier to meet his charge.    

The giant snake wasn't letting them go. It didn't matter the amount of copies she spawned or how hard she tried to avoid him, he wasn't letting them pass. It was an exhausting battle of wills. That was…until a gentle breeze came in from above. They looked up and saw the spirit of wind, Sylph descend from nowhere.    

{Need help?}    

A gale of wind cut the giant serpent in two. It started visibly regenerating but it gave them enough time to get past. Several giant snakes appeared on their path but their backs were covered by Sylph. They did this until they finally found the exit out of the palace, fleeing to Madaline's palace.    

In the center of the heavenly court, the fight was escalating. None of them had been able to land a hit on the other and they were visibly getting faster. The way the rapier moved, it was like she was dancing. The halberd struck like lightning but it couldn't harm the fairy.    

"Do you think Madaline would win?"    

"Undoubtedly. She's insane," Uriel replied to Thiton. He kept watching the match and realized what Madaline was doing. From the beginning, she had been using her soul eater spell. With every move he made his magic and a piece of his soul was being consumed. It was a spell one couldn't escape unless you knew the activation. You had to attack her first to activate the passive spell.    

"But if she can easily defeat him, then why is she doing this? She's clearly up to something."    

"I don't know what it is but we just have to keep an eye on her. I have a bad feeling about this."    

At some point in their duel, Madaline and Ducroft were pushed back. The god looked exhausted, using his halberd to stand. He was also covered in cuts, his golden blood forming a puddle on the floor. Madaline raised her rapier and licked the blood off it.    

"Don't tell me that's all a war god can do?" She provoked, extending her rapier to him.    

"Dear me, it's a one-sided beat down. I can't even bear to watch anymore."    

Just before she could finish the duel, an elder god floated down from the stands and stood over Ducroft. He picked up the halberd and extended it to Madaline.    

"I will fight in his stead since he's too weak to continue. Is that okay with you, Lady Madaline?"    

"Clench your teeth, Thiton," she went up in the air, her rapier coming straight down, aimed at his heart.