Chapter 180: Enfeoffing Dolove, Awakening the Gift of a Fantasy Hero

Dusk deepened, and a biting north wind swept fine snowflakes across the wasteland.

On the yellowed earth, cleared of surface snow, a bonfire blazed abruptly, casting flickering shadows around it.

Four figures—three adults and one child—sat on a felled tree stump around the fire: Dolove, Xia Mingyu, Aelier, and Kain.

It was hard to imagine that former enemies, who had just fought to the death, could now sit together so peacefully—all because of that overwhelmingly powerful deputy leader who had voluntarily shown goodwill.

“What do you want to say?”

Dolove watched the middle-aged knight across from her, who calmly extended his hands toward the fire and bandaged Kain’s wounds, her expression still wary.

Or rather, that snowflake had never left her palm.

“Lord Mo Wen, Lord of the North, gave me this task: if you could match or defeat Young Master Kain, I was to recruit you and bring you back to Polar City, so there is no need for us to fight,” Aelier said slowly.

“I could never accept Mo Wen Dean’s recruitment,” Dolove’s expression turned cold, and she refused at once.

She was the last bloodline of the Mason family, the youngest daughter of the Lion King, and the sovereign of a group of loyal knights—how could she ever submit to another’s command?

Even if she must, she should pledge loyalty to the Prince with fourteen hundred million blessings—not to that beast-like, heartless Lord of the North.

With her refusal, the atmosphere, which had just softened, turned tense once more.

Kain silently shifted a little closer to Aelier’s position—he feared this woman, even wilder than him, might draw her sword again; he was truly terrified of her!

“Knight of Jade, do you and the Feast Sprite not share the goal of improving the current plight of the North’s people?” After a moment of silence, Aelier spoke again.

Dolove and Xia Mingyu exchanged a glance, then nodded.

“By the God of Storms and the Hunt, you are the noblest people I have ever met in my life—please accept my deepest respect,” Aelier said with emotion.

Then, before Kain’s astonished eyes, the deputy leader of the Frostfang Knights knelt on one knee and bowed deeply before the one human and the one sprite.

He knelt to thank them for the stirring he felt seeing villagers and children, once starved and broken, now smiling again—for his heart had not beaten so vividly in a long time.

Looking at the knight’s neck so close at hand, Dolove’s expression hardened; she was certain that if she drew her sword now, in this proximity and posture, even a powerful Crescent Knight would die on the spot.

But since he was still a knight who carried compassion, she would naturally uphold the etiquette between knights and never commit the dishonorable act of ambush.

Thinking this, the girl quietly moved her right hand away from her sword hilt.

“Knight of Jade, Feast Sprite, your actions have brought happiness to many, but the North is vast—alone, even if you spent a full year, you might not traverse it all. And even if I lay down my arms, Lord Mo Wen will send someone stronger to capture you. So I have a proposal.”

After rising again, Aelier said earnestly.

“As I understand, Lord Mo Wen is preparing the largest martial tournament in all the North—anyone from the North, regardless of status, past, or sins, may enter.”

“The victor may claim one wish, provided it does not threaten the Dean family’s rule over the North—a point Young Master Kain can confirm for me.”

Meeting Aelier’s gaze, Kain hesitated, then nodded.

“You mean I should win the championship and use that wish to improve the North’s dark conditions?”

Dolove immediately understood his proposal.

“Precisely. Demanding a lord treat his people well will not endanger his rule,” Aelier nodded calmly.

But at that moment, the silver-haired youth’s face showed surprise.

“Hey, are you joking, Aelier? This woman may be stronger than me, but she’s still at the New Moon stage—how could she possibly defeat that ‘monster’?” Kain blurted out.

At this, Dolove and Aelier’s expressions turned grave; only Xia Mingyu looked confused.

What monster?

Seeing his confusion, the girl beside him explained the “monster” to him.

The so-called monster was actually the current leader of the Frostfang Knights, the knight known as “Frostheart,” Renard.

In the North, tales of him were countless, but the most famous were his strength and his cruelty.

Legend said he possessed a blessing that grew stronger with every battle—he became a knight apprentice at six, achieved transcendence at eleven, became a Morning Star at fifteen, a New Moon at twenty-two, a Crescent at twenty-seven, fought a thousand battles without a single defeat, and now, barely thirty, he was already whispered to be the strongest beneath the Lord of the North.

That was his strength. His cruelty lay in the year he became a New Moon at twenty-two, when he suddenly went mad and slaughtered every last member of his own castle—his parents, his wife, his infant son, his brothers.

This bloody massacre shocked the entire North. The Frostfang Knights mobilized en masse and, after heavy casualties, finally captured him and brought him before Lord Mo Wen.

When Mo Wen asked why he committed such a crime, he replied coldly:

“Because they blocked my path to strength. My parents always demanded I handle castle affairs. My wife always wanted me to spend more time with the child. My brother always dragged me out hunting.”

“Even when I refused, they kept repeating themselves endlessly—it wasted too much time, so I killed them all.”

At these words, even the Frostfang Knights, whose first principle was survival of the fittest, found him too extreme.

Isn’t gaining strength meant to live better?

Who would kill their own entire family just to become stronger?

On his throne, Mo Wen fell silent for a long time, then suddenly burst into laughter, descended from his dais, untied him, praised him as the true Frostfang Knight, and, amid everyone’s terrified expressions, appointed Renard as leader of the Frostfang Knights.

Afterward, strange rumors began circulating in Polar City about the Lord of the North having gone mad.

As leader, Renard was shunned and isolated by all the knights, who secretly called him “monster”—though to his face, they still respectfully addressed him as “Frostheart.”

Meaning: the knight without a heart.

Hiss.

“That’s way too human!”

After hearing Dolove’s tale, Xia Mingyu drew in a sharp breath and exclaimed.

The other three by the fire nodded in deep agreement; on this point, even former mortal enemies could reach consensus.

“My companion, the Knight of Jade, is still at the New Moon stage—how can you be certain she can stand against ‘Frostheart’?”

Xia Mingyu could not help but question; crossing a major realm to fight was no trivial matter—not everyone was Tamellar!

Had Aelier not shown such genuine sincerity, he might have suspected the man was luring Dolove into a trap.

“I cannot be certain,” Aelier shook his head.

“But it is truly the only way. And if the Knight of Jade enters the tournament, I believe Lord Mo Wen’s nature will overlook her past killings of those lords.”

“Of course! My father couldn’t care less about the deaths of those useless lords—he only wants the tournament to be more exciting,” Kain added.

“I need one day to consider.”

After a long silence, Dolove suddenly spoke.

“Fine. Until dusk tomorrow, I will wait for you beneath the great tree at the entrance of the village we passed.”

Aelier spoke calmly, then seized Kain, who was still trying to say something, and transformed into a golden streak, vanishing from their sight within a few breaths.

The yellow sky gradually turned to night, the bright moon hanging high.

On a vast, dark, deep snowfield, only a single bonfire emitted warm, soft light.

Dolove and Xia Mingyu sat on the tree trunk; their shadows, cast by the fire behind them, were large and small—and the larger shadow slowly drew closer to the smaller, nearly touching it.

“Your Highness, I have a request.”

“Dolove, I have a small…”

After long silence by the fire, both spoke at once.

Realizing their words overlapped, they fell silent again; finally, Xia Mingyu spoke first.

“You go first. What is your request?” the black-haired youth said softly.

The girl who had spoken first now wore a look of nervousness and shame on her delicate face; after much hesitation, she finally gathered the courage to speak.

“Your Highness, may I beg you to enfeoff me as your companion? I swear before the gods that I shall be your knight for life, offering you my sword and soul.”

Dolove turned, her emerald eyes fixed on the tiny black-haired youth before her, her voice trembling slightly.

Having spoken, her shame deepened; she dared not look at Xia Mingyu’s reaction and bowed her head deeply.

She felt she was being shamelessly bold—she had only known His Highness for such a short time, yet already dared to ask him to enfeoff her as a companion.

And under these circumstances, it might seem as if she were using the North’s suffering to pressure him into agreeing—even though she had no such intention.

Thinking this, she bowed her head even lower, her shoulders trembling slightly.

At this moment, the girl bore none of the proud, spirited bearing she had shown at their first meeting—she looked like an ordinary, fragile maiden.

“Your Highness, I swear before the great Seven Gods that even if you refuse me, my reverence and admiration for you will not wane one bit.”

As Dolove, head bowed, tried to say more, she felt a warm hand gently rest upon her head.

“You’ve been tired, haven’t you?”

With those gentle words, the girl’s hand clenched tightly; memories long buried surged into her mind.

The burning castle in childhood, the desolate village empty but for bones, the despair upon learning of her father’s death, her hands frostbitten and cracked by the wind.

Am I… tired?

Dolove tried to ask herself—but before she could answer, two warm trails spilled from her eyes, tracing down her cheeks and landing on her thighs.

I… am crying?!

She tried to stop this first tearful outburst in ten years—but for some reason, the tears only grew more, soaking her clothes.

So… I really am tired…

The girl who had always pretended to be a knight finally received the answer from within.

At that moment, the warm hand returned, gently wiping away her tears; she opened her blurred, tear-filled eyes and saw the tiny black-haired youth floating before her, gazing at her tenderly.

“Dolove, I accept your request—but I hope you remember,” Xia Mingyu said softly.

“I enfeoff you as my companion not because I want your sword and soul, nor merely to save the people of the North.”

“Most of all, I want to help you—to help a girl who has worked tirelessly for ten years, swinging her sword against snow and wind.”

“I want to be your support, and I want to rely on you too.”

“So… feel no guilt, feel no shame—accept my blessing with pride, and laugh out loud!”

With that, Xia Mingyu took off his shrunken coat and draped it over Dolove’s head like a hood.

The girl finally came to herself; she leapt to her feet and knelt on one knee before the tiny floating figure.

“I, Dolove Mason, swear before the Creator, the Seven Gods, and the ancestral spirits of the Mason family: from this moment forth, I shall serve His Highness Xia Mingyu as my lord.”

“From this instant, my loyalty shall be as steadfast as bedrock, and my blade shall forever swing for you.”

"Even if the world abandons you, I will fight beside you until the last drop of my blood is spilled."

Dolovei swore with a solemn voice, her expression utterly resolute, her emerald eyes reflecting only that tiny figure—as if it were the entirety of her world.

"Dolovei Mason, I accept your oath with deep gratitude; I swear to you in return that no matter how much blood and sweat you sacrifice for me, I will repay you tenfold."

"Who says we lack clothing? I share my robe with you. When the king raises his army, we mend our spears and lances—together we face our foe!"

When Xia Mingyu finished speaking, the small coat atop the girl’s head dissolved into specks of light and merged into her body, while a piece of information appeared in her mind.

Fantasy Hero: You shall become the figure all trust; upon lands where people harbor illusions of you, you shall prevail like the hero of a ballad.

(Note: This blessing carries a risk of eventual loss of consciousness—use with caution.)

The girl’s expression froze slightly, a detail Xia Mingyu noticed.

"What’s wrong? Is the awakened blessing not strong enough?" he asked with concern.

"No, my sovereign, I have awakened the blessing most suited to me."

Dolovei shook her head, omitting the first line and the note, and told Xia Mingyu only the central phrase of the blessing.

"Prevailing like a hero—that does sound like an excellent blessing." Xia Mingyu’s tense expression eased, and he exhaled deeply.

"Yes, there is no blessing better than this."

The girl gently embraced Xia Mingyu and lightly kissed his forehead, then a smile as poetic and enchanting as a painting graced her exquisite face.

"Your Highness, will you laugh with me?"

"It would be my honor."

"Hahahahaha!"

The laughter echoed long across the lonely snowfield, only fading when the tiny figure dissolved.

"I will become a hero—to protect everyone, and to protect you."

Beneath the night, in sleep, someone’s whisper stirred ripples among a few fairies in the dream world.

(End of Chapter)