The Demon General

Ella’s Martial Pursuit

Somewhere in the estate…

“How are you doing, Mother? Sewing as usual, I see,” Ella said to her mother, Baroness Isabel, who was meticulously stitching a beautiful dress.

Baroness Isabel was a stunning woman. She stood at 5'8" with mesmerizing blue eyes, flowing blond hair, and a slim face. Her figure was enviable, even after giving birth to her children. Unmarried ladies often sighed in envy, for when placed side by side, Isabel's natural charm made everyone else look like they had just rolled out of bed.

She hailed from the Parker family, a viscount then but now a count, one of the few surrounding territorial lords close to the Kranes. Count Peter Parker had grand plans to marry his daughter to a direct successor of a count, hoping to climb the nobility ranks with ease. But fate had other plans. Isabel met a young man at a ball one fateful day and fell head over heels in love with him. That man was none other than Baron Ichabud Krane.

The then Viscount Parker was not pleased. He sought power above all else, and sending his daughter to a declining family did not align with his grand schemes. But Lady Luck was on Baron Ichabud Krane's side. The viscount discovered that his daughter had been sneaking out to meet her lover, but it was too late. The estate doctor informed him that Isabel was already expecting.

Furious, Viscount Parker claimed that young Baron Ichabud had stolen his daughter away, nearly sparking a fief war between the two families. However, they received a court summons. Attended by nobles of higher standing, the court found the young Baron guilty and reached a conclusion: Land Concession. He was ordered to compromise by giving some lands facing the then Viscount Peter Parker’s fief, which conveniently eased the ranking up of his count title.

Baroness Isabel smiled at her daughter and said, “As a young lady and a noblewoman, you are meant to act elegantly and gracefully, learn these and many other things essential in the maintenance of an estate. But no, you wouldn’t learn. You only know how to act like all those boorish men, picking up crude weapons and waving them about. Your coming of age is in four years' time. When suitable suitors are asking for your hand, I will see what will be said about you when you still pick up all those weapons.”

Ella clenched her fist and said, “How could you call my father and your husband, ‘the noble and handsome Baron Ichabud of the Krane family,’ a boorish man? Father must hear of this! And any of my suitors who dare to say trash to me once, I would stab him once with my sword. If they say it thrice, then I will stab them thrice. How dare they say that to a young noble lady? Can’t they save face for her?” She huffed indignantly. Mia, who was behind her young mistress, giggled at Ella's fiery words.

“Oh, now you know you are a ‘young noble lady’ and you want to save face?” Baroness Isabel teased her daughter.

“I am not going to talk to you anymore. I wanted to tell you something before, but forgot it. I can’t bear to look at your face right now.” She blushed as she ran out of the room, with Mia following closely behind.

“This girl just knows how to be mischievous at all times, unlike her scholar brother who knows nothing but burying his head in books all day,” Isabel said in a low voice, shaking her head.

Later in the evening…

During Ella’s practice with Sir Levi…

“That’s cheating, teacher! How do you expect me to counter that?” Ella asked, beads of sweat forming on her forehead as she panted heavily.

“You need to know one thing, Miss Ella. In a battle, there’s no fairness. Only winners and losers. Anything is acceptable. You can’t expect your enemy to fight you fairly during a life-and-death battle. Always remember that,” he said as he rushed toward Ella, striking her multiple times, which she blocked with determination.

His strikes kept getting faster, becoming a blur to the onlookers. Even Ella’s eyes couldn’t keep up with his sword strikes, but her body subconsciously managed to block them. Of course, he wasn’t using his full power. He had to bring down his strength to match Ella’s level 4 body refinement, but his experience gave him an advantage over her.

Seeing her reactions, Sir Levi’s eyes widened as he exclaimed in his heart, ‘Bloody genius… My young lady is a genius. Oh, how I wish my young master had this talent in martial arts. Then my Liege’s noble house would flourish.’

“Hit me with your best strike,” he said, stopping and giving her a challenging look.

Knowing that this was the end of their training, Ella gripped her sword tightly and struck with all her might. “Phoenix Cry!” she shouted.

Sir Levi blocked her strike with great difficulty, secretly raising his level to level 6 to avoid getting injured. Despite his efforts, he still felt part of his hand go numb.

“I can see you are getting better at using your family’s secret technique. Congratulations on attaining minor accomplishment, Young Miss,” he smiled and said as he sheathed his sword and bowed to Ella, who bowed in return.

“Thanks for today, Sir Levi,” she said to the retreating figure as Mia ran up to her and helped her young mistress wipe the sweat from her forehead.

“Young Miss, you are getting better by the day. You truly are a genius. A phoenix can’t beget a chicken. It’s just a pity that females aren’t accepted in the military… sigh…” Mia praised her little mistress.

“What do you mean by ‘a phoenix can’t beget a chicken’? Do I look like a chicken to you, or is that what you all refer to me as?” Ella inquired teasingly.

“Stop teasing me, Young Miss. You know you are a phoenix, so who dares refer to you as a chicken? I, Mia, would fight that person to death,” Mia vowed, her eyes fierce with loyalty.

“I know that. It’s alright. You don’t need to fight anyone to death. I can’t lose my sister over a trivial matter,” Ella nodded as she smiled. “Let’s go for a bath.”

“I will listen to Young Missy’s words,” Mia said, her tone filled with affection and respect.