Devouring Monarch: Rebirth of the Profane Phoenix

He held three pieces of paper, one of Asura's first place confirmation and the benefits the kingdom would give to the territory because of his achievements signed by the queen herself.

The next, a magically laminated letter telling of Asura's acceptance and love for his family and mother, brought more pride to Garret's heart than his son could ever know.

However, the last letter... A distress letter from the fortress in Lyndwrym Valley

"My pride and joy, you were born cursed and doomed to achieve nothing..."

"Yet here you are. No matter what brought your change, my son. Know your father will always support you."

He stood in darkness, wearing black fur armour like a bandit war chief. Huge iron pauldrons covered his shoulders, with twin wolves engraved on both sides.

'To think that the enemy would move so swiftly, are they from the east or dogs from the south?'

Garret doubted the North would attack with their princess now in the academy and from the letters of his son and his best friends' words...

His son had already made that little princess his woman.

He turned to his sleeping wife with a soft gaze. She looked like an angel wrapped inside the pure white sheets.

After a week of unrelenting battles, she finally surrendered, and soon, his child would grow within her stomach.

'How her light magic can detect pregnancy so early is scary...'

"I must go, my love. For our children out there fighting and the future of this little one."

His hand gently stroked her belly while covering her in a fur blanket to avoid the cold and kissing her cheek, almost waking her as his red beard tickled her face.

"..."

Once he took a last peek at her beautiful face, he left the room and swaggered towards the main entrance, where his most trusted knights awaited him in the same armour style.

Because he was a son-in-law, they did not allow him to use the Fenix emblem in battle. Only Asura and Amalia could use the family emblem in battle.

So he selected one representing him and outfitted all his knights in dire wolf armour.

He carved the Stage Five wolf fur and hides into the most protective armour he could afford, mixing their bones with iron to form the Dire wolf pauldrons. 'I still remember the day Asura said, 'Dad's armour is so much cooler—I want to be like dad when I grow up!'

His knights watched him while lost in that nostalgic thought... "Now you can finally wear the armour I had made for you, my son."

"Lord!"

"My Lord!"

"My dear brothers. The enemy approaches Lyndwrym again, our fortress never broken in the four thousand year Fenix history." His lips curled into a wicked smile. "We shall not let those bastards judge us for being outsiders and let them breech those stone walls this time, either!"

The five men were his longest-serving knights and friends. He looked at the leader with slight grey flicks in his beard.

"Glade Estan! It is time you release your penance. The Fenix needs your untamed blade once more."

The knight who laid down his sword. A man who helped protect Asura from harm over the past decade. Only Garret himself could beat him in combat.

The strongest knight in Fenix.

Glade Estan - Rank Five Blade Knight

Beside him was his wife.

Agatha Estan - Rank Four Witch

The two were once enemies, fighting in arenas and battlefields as enemies. Agatha was a mercenary for many forces. However, in a strange twist of fate, she and Glade became stranded on a small island for some time...

Upon their return, Agatha's swollen stomach caught people's attention, and she made a solemn oath to serve Garret Fenix.

However, someone abducted their young daughter. The only thing they could use to trace her was the rare darkness element and her extremely talented ability in close combat.

To this day, they search for her, even over two decades later.

"My Sword is yours, my lord!"

The moment he spoke for the first time since losing his beloved daughter Lucia and fighting the ones that stole her, his sword glowed with a blazing light.

All the knights knew his oath, loss and determination as they drew their swords in admiration and brotherhood.

"It is time, my brothers! Late is the time our power begins to be doubted. Let us show our future leader what power we old men still possess!"

"For the Earl!"

"For Garret!"

"For Asura!"

"With brothers like you, who need to ask the world for anything more? Let me join you all like old times. I, too, wish to show my son who his father truly is! The Red Storm shall rage once more!"

The knights then arranged their horses—they departed with over fifty knights and one hundred warriors. The town cheered as the knights departed, enjoying the nostalgic scene.

Their Lord was riding out to protect them once again!

Once more, the Fenix Territory would rise from the ashes!

***

⁜ Ophelia POV

"My love, once again, you go to battle without me..." Ophelia sobbed while rubbing her stomach, feeling the life force of the insignificant life trying to form inside her.

All light elemental mages can feel the tiniest of traces of life, from the dying still with a last breath to the instant a sperm breeches an egg.

They normally had limited offensive magic, but their healing abilities surpassed all other elements, making them perfect doctors, nurses, or healers for mercenaries.

However, Ophelia learned to fight and imbue her fists with enough light magic to cause significant damage, and this was how she caught Garret's attention.

Because she beat him in a duel!

'I won't allow you to be in danger, even if my father is but a baron. He listens to anything I ask!'

Ophelia rushed to a large metallic contraption with several glass bulbs and strange runes before sitting down and pressing several buttons; there was a long period of bleeping before an exquisite woman answered in her nightgown.

She looked like a mature and older version of Ophelia.

"Mother!"

"Ophelia, what is wrong, my darling daughter?" She yawned while rubbing her beautiful blonde hair, slightly different to her daughter's, showing age.

"I request reinforcements to help the father of your first grandchild!"

"You know I am not strong enough to do that, right, darling?"

"W-Wait... you said grandchild!?"

"..."

"Mother, I beg you. Garret is heading to Lyndwrym again —let me help him! His family finally accepted me and welcomed me. I don't want them to lose their father!"

Ophelia pleaded through the screen, tears streaming down her face while thinking about Garret Fenix.

"..."

"..."

"Please, Mother!"

"Very well, my daughter. But you will owe me a favour, understood?"

"Yes! Thank you, Mother!"

"Good, I will have your father send fifty of our best knights. They should arrive in half a day... I heard that his son, Asura, managed to use magic?"

Ophelia nodded before speaking about the letter Asura sent to her. She always knew her mother cared deeply for him, even though she lacked any blood. Her mother's youngest brother was a No-Mag who couldn't bear the pressure of being nobility and unable to use magic and took his own life.

This caused her mother to show more affection to Asura than Ophelia herself.

'If Asura hadn't protected Ophelia and his friends from the nobles bullying them... her mother feared that her beloved niece would have followed her uncle's path...'

"Garret Fenix finally has a mage in his lineage again! Oh, my goodness. I must go, Ophelia. Your Grandfather and father will not ignore the news of your pregnancy. You know how much your father misses fighting beside Garret. He was like his idol in the past."

"Mother?"

"Well, he is also the man you love. He could never be useless."

"..." Ophelia blushed while covering her stomach before speaking to her mother. "Thank you!"

"Take care of your body and rest. Then, bring my first grandchild to see their grandmother and promise to bring Asura to me soon, too."

The call ended abruptly, leaving Ophelia alone, who rushed to her bed and rolled around in the comfortable sheets; although she felt jealous towards Asura, who seemed to make her mother strange, everyone knew about her uncle's fate.

'Your parents and siblings will protect you, my little girl.'

Ophelia fell asleep while stroking her stomach, the power of her magic so intense she knew the child's gender—from that moment on, her light magic would protect the baby and ensure she was born in perfect health.

Normally, a midwife would be called; thankfully, when the mother was a light elemental, there was a 99.99% chance of safe birth.

***

Meanwhile, over one hundred miles away from Lyndwrym Fortress.

A male with strange features, green skin, twisted nose and fangs from the lower teeth poking out of his lips... This man was an orc. Monsters that lived like nomads or settled down in the hidden forests of forgotten human kingdoms or realms.

He was unique from orcs as he wore tight leather armour, displaying his bulging muscles and wielding a strange gauntlet holding a flintlock pistol.

Orcs normally lived like barbarians or warlords, seeking women to strengthen their bloodlines and enjoy battle.

This orc, however, was commanding over one thousand monsters of all kinds. The one behind him was a Cyclops, a giant over ten feet tall with a terrifying great axe dripping in blood. The army contained mostly orcs with primitive armour and weapons, but other races followed as if this was some monster uprising.

Humans with rotten faces and grotesque features followed, wearing tribal armour and wielding various weapons.

Fallen or turned humans used ancient necromancer magic from the legendary undead races, bringing themselves back to life after centuries of slumber.

"Hod, you better succeed this time and break Lyndwrym."

The orc spoke with a deep voice, almost like growling, as he pointed to the fortress over one hundred miles away, causing the Cyclops to roar.

"Kill, Break Lyndwrym walls. Hod smash Fenix's head! King praise Hod and Cyclops!"

"Good, remember, Asura Fenix will be there this time. We capture him, and the King shall give us our honour back. The divine son of our arch nemesis, those disgusting cultists."

"Capture boy! Kill men!"

"Good, Hod Cyclops clever!"

The orc smiled before laughing wickedly, turning towards Lyndwrym Fortress, where he knew a glorious battle awaited them. Unlike other orcs, he could read and was gifted the name Asran.

The two targets he was after were Garret Fenix and Glade Estan.

'King Stiger shall praise us even if we must break Lyndwrym with our bodies! Such a delicious source of honour, blood and children to strengthen our ranks!'

"We march!"

"Kill Fenix scum!"

"Honour back, Hod Cyclops! Children, many women!"

The orcs roared while preparing to march towards Lyndwrym Fortress while Asran enjoyed the moment, looking into the distance and spotting a large airship with the royal emblem.

'So, that insane queen returns... The king's timing was perfect! Now, she cannot send reinforcements!'