Reincarnated as a Phoenix

---Last chapter of the volume, should be an update at the end of every volume---

---Also, this chapter is a little serious and needs a slight gore warning, pretty sure this is the worst it'll ever get.

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"Focus on the prince Ikarus, that arrogant bitch is mine"

"Sure sure Petra"

Continuing on where we left of, the prince has just unsheathed his lavish looking sword and the princess has pulled out an ornamental looking dagger from somewhere under her dress, unsure if both can use magic but they have the stats for it so not going to take any chances here. As for the mage, she's just walked to an empty corner of this unused room and is watching what's about to happen, would be annoyed at the slight twist but she's not going to escape her fate either.

'Aesa, you know what to do'

[<Confirmed, -aspect of gigantomachy- has been activated>]

I'm fighting the prince while Petra is going to teach that princess a lesson, hopefully she can leave her barely alive but if it gets too risky, then instantly killing her is always an option.

"Stupid fucking bird, things would've gone much smoother if you weren't resistant"

The prince speaks while making a swing for me that I just barely manage to block it with my dagger, my counter to this is fire, lots and lots of fiery goodness.

(Alistair) "That won't work"

'Great, he's fucking resistant to fire'

The counter to his strike was to spray fire on him with my free hand, clearly that had no effect at all. This sucks, looks like I'm going to have to only fight him blade to blade and just try and land one hit against him, of course the royal prince of the empire is going to be excellent when it comes to sword fighting so all I need is just one hit, just need to make a scratch on him and aspect will activate.

He rapidly goes in for another that I have block and turn away, the weight on his attack would've collided into my shoulder or neck if I hadn't moved there, this guy is definitely going to prove a challenge.

As my fight's going on, I start to hear slight parts of the battle going down between those two without giving it any focus, my attention is not going to slip here.

"You fucking blind bitch! I'm going to rip out your hair!"

"..."

Not even worried about her, no chance Petra will fall from someone like that so makes sense to ignore it for now.

Unfortunately though, I can't seem to break this guy's defence, he has no opening so trying to stick my vampiric blade in anywhere would just easily get countered, blocked or disarmed, I've got to time this perfectly.

There is something I can do, I try to give him a kick but almost as if he has a second sense, he dodges it responding with another slash towards my face, this one I can't block with the momentum behind it so I have to duck and a part of my hair must've been cut off there.

This guy might be too much, should've got a sword out if I knew just how far his range is, I really wanted to charge into him and counter there but that still wouldn't have worked, Petra's teachings have shown me to wait for the perfect opportunity. Even if it wasn't obvious, she has taught me a lot about timings and also about being reckless, it does go against how I normally like to fight but survival is more important then just going in straight for the kill.

As I'm still in standstill against Alistair, more ramblings are coming from the other fight, I refuse to allow it to make me distracted but I'm still going to be able to hear it.

"Arghhhh!"

"..."

Black eyed Petra may be getting carried away by the sounds of it, that scream sounded pretty bloodcurdling after all, not that I'm complaining. Still not turning my head, the prince is the only one ahead of me so I don't get to witness how much she's suffering till after he's defeated.

The prince continuing his constant attacking approach goes in for another round of attacks, wave after wave I have to duck, dodge or block, this fucking fight is starting to piss me off now, if only my magic did something against him, at least I could use it as a slight counter, how is he even resistant to fire in the first place?

"I-I'm sorry!"

"No, we both know you're not"

Their fight sounds to be getting even more vocal, it sounds like the princess might even be crying a little now, Petra must be inflicting a lot of pain on her. However, the noise going on in the background has given me the perfect opportunity.

The prince only for a split second after colliding his longsword with my dagger glances away towards his sister's misery, that's all I needed, a slight moment and it's arrived. He really couldn't help himself and looks like his arrogance has finally gotten the better of him.

Unlike any of the other attacks previously, I dive towards but aim extremely low, the lowest part of one of his legs to be precise and this is an attack that must surprise him immensely, why would anyone lunge forward aiming for that part? Of course, I'm not anyone though.

And that's when I land a cut, not partially deep or precise, just one cut on his leg and he gets thrown away off to the side from the gigantomachy effect. Don't even need to have a look at the area he's been thrown to, that must've killed him. Huh... all I needed was an arrow and he could've been Achilles.

Now on the floor, I need to get myself up and check on the other two, there is a surprise in store for me though. The princess who was dressed up in a blood-red dress is now covered head to toe, every part of her body being the same colour, how the fuck did Petra managed to do that? She even looks to be on her knees and is crying her eyes out.

"W-Wahh, i-it h-hurts"

"..."

"Petra... the hell did you do to her?"

"Destroyed her meridians... If you know where to attack, it can cause constant pain and keep blood loss to a minimum... it hurts a lot more than it looks"

This is definitely the first time I've seen Petra like this, no remorse for what she's done and pure anger on her face, her blacked-out eyes don't help as well. I'd try and calm her but that would be hypocritical, I wanted the princess to be in agony before she died so Petra was only doing what I asked her do, no regrets or remorse here from both of us.

"K-Kill m-me..."

"Here... let me end it"

I make my way over to those two and my dagger then finds its way stabbing into the chest of the sobbing princess, I really can't say I feel any remorse for the women who basically admitted she wanted to torture me, at least that's the hobby this princess supposedly has.

Now that both of those two are dead, there's just one more, the first person of the lot I wanted to kill, the women who's 'punishments' basically boarded on abuse. Over in the corner of the room, she has slight smirk on her face and has something to say it seems.

"The brat is still alive phoenixes, trying to play dead won't work"

"*Spits blood*... fuck you witch... I'll be reserving you a seat down in hell"

'How the fuck is he still alive!? Status'

[Name: Alistair | Species: Human | Level: 292]

[Health 24/9,700]

[Stamina 8,593/9,800]

[Magicka 9,700/9,700]

'Bloody hell, his resistances are insane if he's able to still to be breathing, he can't survive this, right? That's got to be fatal'

[<Affirmative, target -Alistair- is losing blood at an uncontrollable level, -user- won't have to do anything to confirm his death>]

We should probably focus killing the mage next but the prince who's now sitting up against the wall covered in blood barely breathing still has something to say it seems. I make my way over to him to hear what he wants, not opposed to giving someone final words after all.

"*Cough cough*... you really have no idea, what you're doing Ikarus, you really are in for a shock"

"Really... do tell why then? Why would stopping your dragon crusade be a bad thing?"

I can't help but crouch down to the dying prince to hear his last ramblings, my reasoning is a bit more selfish than doing this for all dragons everywhere but at least I have a somewhat noble reason backing me up. If I'm being honest though, I just don't like them, this has nothing to do with enslavement anymore, I just simply want these people dead.

"That's the reason why!? *Cough cough*... forget it, you'll understand my reasoning someday... allow me to give you a warning before I depart this life..."

Even in the face of death, his face cannot stop that smile. It never stops being infuriating how fake it is, he should be in agony right now, I guess he's taking the expression dying with a smile on your face too literal.

"... The Gods will never accept this... been trying to prevent their inevitable wrath *Cough* for too, long..."

Then just like that, his life fades in front of my eyes... no time to reflect on what he just said. Two down, one more to go.

"Ikarus, might not want to see this"

Petra had been watching the mage while I was chatting with the dying prince, something has made Petra concerned. I get back up and turn to face the mage once again, this time around there's something disgusting going on with the mage's face and body.

Imagine someone rapidly aging in the course of minutes, we're talking years and years of age quickly descend down onto the mage's body, the fuck is happening? Even in the horrible state she's in, there are still a few words she can just about muster out.

"Hmph... to think it would be over this quick, I guess I'm no longer wanted even by the other child... apologies Ikarus, wish we could've been on better terms..."

Then just as the mage smiling was basically turning into standing corpse, she might look more zombified then human now, her last words are spoken to us.

"... Thank you..."

Then the standing pile of bones collapses, crashing all over onto the floor, is that seriously how she dies? By ageing that much in the space of a minute? I feel kinda grossed out seeing that, even more so than the other gory stuff that's just happened, blood is only blood after all. Seeing someone turn into a literal corpse before your eyes is not a fun experience.

'Did she seriously just say thank you? Even Petra looks a little more surprised than earlier, that scene was pretty fucking gruesome but I didn't expect a thank you'

Unfortunately, there was another realization about that, why did she have to die in that specific way?

"Fuck!"

"What is it Ikarus?"

"Bloody EXP, more wasted levels like the usual"

"Heh, at least you got the higher two"

"Yeah... fair enough"

There's no way I would've been rewarded EXP for that, not going to ask Aesa till later since level checking when inside a palace after killing multiple royals is a dumb idea.

At least that's kinda eased the serious mood between us from what's happened, I'm always pretty good at turning a serious thing into something alright, light-hearted and mostly stupid. Petra's eyes have started to fade back to the greyness of usual as well.

"What now though?"

"Unsure if you noticed but the door has been banging for a while, time for us to make our escapes..."

Ah yeah, the escaping portion of the plan, all three of these lot are dead so it's now time for our escape. This funnily enough was always going to be the easiest part of our plan, some abilities are perfectly suited for specific situations and this time, we both have something ideal.

"... Before we leave though, let's loiter around the party for a while longer"

We'll both be invisible so it's not like anyone can see us, I'm guessing she wants to watch the bastard's entrance so why not then? We've also got to head that way to escape anyways so let's stay a tiny bit longer.

'Aesa, activate undead fiend'

[<Confirmed, -user- now has invisibility until cancelled or fighting breaks out>]

And just like that, me and Petra completely disappear from sight, she made sure just to deactivate her barrier blocking the door beforehand and now that it's unlocked, three weapon drawn guards charge into the blood-soaked room shocked at what they can see. As for me and Petra, we're holding hands so we can know where both of us and leave together, this isn't even a romantic thing this time around, even though I'll never not like doing it.

"Dear God... they're dead, the royals... are dead"

"Where's the culprits? Where are they?"

"Must be long gone, there's nowhere to hide in here"

One of these guards, the last to speak in particular is Jekyll, I can't help but give him a little pat on the back as we leave the room as invisible ghosts, he definitely felt that but of course ignored it.

We both walk together holding hands to the party room we were at earlier and stop walking when arriving at the top of the staircase, the room already looks to be in slight disarray but news of what's happened clearly hasn't come up yet, at least on those three. Something else has happened though, Esmerelda is standing in the middle of the disorganized room and Desmond appears to be dragging something in right now, Petra did tell me the bastard would know the second our job was finished, this seems way too quick though.

"Here's my father's corpse, freshly killed... both Media and Alistair lay down in a puddle of blood upstairs too... I thereby declare complete control over the Sierran empire by right of blood"

"Thou claims full ownership over the human seat, one seeks to claim thou's birthright and destiny"

He actually sounds a little disheartened from doing such a thing, I guess killing your own father would do that to most. I'd also like to know if they shared words or anything like that beforehand but that's not a conversation I can realistically have. Esmerelda has now joined him by his side and I'm guessing she's here to support him on. That thing he's dragging along is definitely the old guy's body though, tonight has really become a bloody mess but this was always the way it was going to go down, even if it might be a little much now.

Going off everyone's reactions in the room though, things have turned into complete silence. Not a single word can be heard radiating throughout this entire room, it does take a second but finally some of the guards on duty or here as guests have finally reacted and have raised their swords to the bastard, not actually that many though.

"You're either with me or against me, make your decisions very quickly or reap the consequences... don't make me raise my blade for someone who doesn't deserve it"

Both him and Esmerelda don't even bother raising their weapons while he says that, it's clear he doesn't need to seeing that he's clearly the strongest in the room, well, the dragon might be but they don't know that after all.

'Hang on... that reaction... how many people does he have supporting him inside the palace? That can't be right'

Seriously, it appears half the royal guard in here have now bowed to him after saying that, some standing have no idea what's going on but have lowered their weapons and others have just joined their follow guards because what do you do in this situation? A man claiming to have murdered his entire family, shares the same bloodline and could easily kill every person in this room if he so wished. If they vow to protect this empire, then he's the last legitimate heir. Clearly some of these guards must've have known about the oldest brother, that's got to be the reason why.

Jekyll and the other two guards have now arrived in this room walking past both us invisible two and down the stairs, it seems he's about to confirm what Desmond says is true.

"I can confirm, the princess and prince have both been killed... Desmond Sierra is the last of the ruling Sierran empire's bloodline, his claim is absolute, even if most are unaware of their being a first born before the twin princes"

"Yeah... If a captain of the knights loyal to my brother is willing to confirm that, then all of you can have no reservations... they are all dead"

'Desmond Sierra... I know the empire we're named after the family name but actually hearing it used as a last name like that is kinda odd'

Honestly, the reaction from everyone else is still shocking to me, I at least expected some of the nobles in here to speak up but none have, there's just deafening silence after every statement, no one has a clue what to do. At least the anarchy hasn't started just yet.

My best guess is that the slyer ones aren't that stupid to go against someone claiming to be the last of the family, they might try their luck another day when the threat of being stabbed might not be so high. It doesn't matter now though, it's time for us to leave, Petra has just slightly tugged on my hand so it's time to sneak out, that'll be pretty easy as long as we don't bump into anyone.

'I really hope things go well for those two here...'

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As we were leaving the city, there were already murmurings of something happening within the palace, it won't be long before potential riots start and some of the nobles who were at the party try to gain power by picking sides. Unfortunately for all of them, there's only one side that can win this fight, you are fighting against the strongest in the family and a dragon no less who both already have support internally within the palace, the guards do clearly favour blood ties it seems. If Petra had taken the throne, shit would've gone ten times worse than what might happen now though. The more I think on it, the less realistic her taking over sounds.

Where we're heading, there's an entire vast world out there to explore, do have an idea but not setting anything in stone if my mind decided to wonder. As for Zeki and Ariza, they aren't children and can be left to their lonesome to do what they want, both wanted to remain in the capital for differing reasons anyway.

Before we fly off into the sunset though, or the midnight sky so to speak, there's words that need to be exchanged with Petra just outside the city, we've both cancelled the invisibility now since our parts are finished.

"Petra... did you know about the mage?"

The fact that she barely had any reaction to the mage refusing to fight, I bet she predicted that something like this might happen.

"Not completely, just a hunch that was in the back of my mind... the thing is, if you were to spend hundreds of years serving someone else but never being able to break free as well as it forcing you to become immortal as well, would that be an existence worth living? At that point, you're basically an immortal slave always fit to do your masters bidding"

"So... she was basically cursed to serve them forever? Shouldn't she still be alive then? If it's down to a bloodline thing since Desmond's taking the throne"

Still unsure how many generations the mage served under the empire but it must've been at least a few, she is supposed to be younger than Petra but it might not be a lot.

"In a way, yes but not completely sure on that... If what you say is true though, maybe it's more of a willingness thing? Desmond would never entertain the idea of having a slave to do his bidding, maybe that breaks it since he is technically the last living of their bloodline. Don't take this as fact though Ikarus, this is only speculation"

Even Petra doesn't have all the answers, I honestly feel a little bad for the mage if everything she's done has been at the orders of the prince, would that explain her twisted personality? Being stuck serving royal after royal, year after year with no end in sight, it's almost like a prison sentence.

I bet she was suicidal, that must've been the case with that thank you at the end. When me and Petra came around to end her suffering, she embraced it knowing we could defeat them, I feel a little shit now.

...

Forget this, it's supposed to be a happy experience! The dragon enslavers are now dead, this is supposed to be a massive thing yet all I feel slight pity for her... nah, she still treated me like shit and used me as a freaking chair, there's no remorse for her, pity is a slightly different feeling though that can go together.

Thinking back to that chair punishment incident, it says a lot that I'd let Petra sit on me, this isn't even a perve thing, just more of if she really needed a seat and there was no other left in the world, then I'd have to do it. I'm not doing myself any favours by actually thinking about it here.

"Anyways... what about the prince? Did his last words make any sense?"

'The Gods will never accept this' and 'been trying to prevent their inevitable wrath for so long', could he be talking about the prophecy in some way or something else?

"..."

Even Petra is unsure on anything he said, this really could end up bad if we've now pissed off a load of Gods, reminded of that guy Lyssa we came across who was basically immortal inside that dungeon. If they're all like that, then we are screwed. Even if there might be some that help, I very much doubt we're ready for an army of Gods coming down to kick our arses, Petra could hold her own but I'm still lacking...

Oh wait, that would've levelled me up a tonne, I'll need to check that out later... there was something else I promised to myself I would do once this was all over.

"Petra... could you close your eyes for a second?"

"Heh... why's that Ikarus?"

She's going to make me come out and say it, can she just let me off this once? She knows there's only one reason for such a thing, please Petra? It doesn't even matter that she would still be able to 'see' without closing her eyelids.

"Well... the thing is-"

I end up cutting myself off when she places one of her hands on my cheek from slight surprise, she definitely knows what's going through my head right now, her hand is working me up as well.

"Heh, you're turning red Ikarus, wonder what could be causing that"

"Well... you're also turning red! We haven't even done it yet! At least, a second time..."

Even she has a slight tint of red growing on her cheeks, how can she do this so well even if the thought causes her to become flustered too!?

"That because I'm looking forward to it, all you have to do is say and we can go ahead"

She wins, by dear God she always wins, I'm just going to come out and say it then.

"Urgh... fine then, you win... can we please kis-"

Before I even have the chance to finish speaking, she stops me by initiating the mouth-to-mouth action that we've done once before, I swear this is even better than the first time...

'I freaking love this woman...'

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---Volume 2 has now finished! Constant thanking can be a little annoying so if I just reserve it for these end of volume segments, then it should be fine, I think? Anyways, thanks for getting this far and continuing to support this novel! It should be continuing indefinitely, obviously if everyone gets bored of reading, then I'd struggle to keep motivated to continue but thankfully nothing like that has happened... yet (Got to add the yet otherwise I'll jinx it lol).

---Same thing is going to happen every volume unfortunately, short break then I'll return, this time around a week, the interval is releasing tomorrow (Map work has been pretty slow causing me to lose progress but have some more to release very soon) and a side chapter planned for the return (Not THAT sort of side chapter, Ikarus isn't ready just yet lol). Basically just assume a week, doubtful it'll be any longer but no guarantees.

---If you want a rough idea on the next volume, can't give too much away otherwise you wouldn't return but Ikarus should have a pretty new arsenal of abilities at her disposal, she has just gained an insane amount of EXP all at once (76 levels if you have a perfect memory of the prince and princess's level). Before you say anything, the curse dragon descendent was causing Ikarus's passing out and light headedness. Now that it's gone, it no longer has an effect when large amounts of EXP come about.

---That should be nearly everything, there might be a patreon announcement at some point but still for the life of me can't decide on it, got the advanced chapter thing ready but don't feel great about charging for content, even if it's more of a donation (You'll never have to worry about paying for this, even if a certain site is trying otherwise). This is just author-kun's ramblings though, forget this and hopefully you all stick around. Will always be reading and responding to comments even while on the volume break so any questions or things like that, I'll try to answer, bye then!