Phantasia: The Princess Knight 178 Finding A Weakness Part Two

A strong stench of death filled the air as gloomy clouds covered the skies overhead. Fertile land that was once filled with food crops and green plains was now a dying wasteland. The sudden change to the landscape had only happened a day ago. It was as if something was sucking the life out of the surrounding area. The trees that were usually flushed with green leaves were nothing but barren branches that were withered. 

"What happened here!?" Alicia exclaimed. From what she was told this place was still normal. But now… 

"Princess, we do not know either. Yesterday for some unknown reason the land started to dry up and became like this." A knight who was standing next to Alicia replied.

"It's like the whole ecosystem was changed..." Alicia muttered to herself. She then turned around and looked at her unit. "We have an added mission now. We need to find the cause of this change. If things go on like this we will lose more than just a few lives we will lose the ability to sustain this kingdom!" 

Alicia knew very well, that these lands in the south were very important for the survival of the kingdom and its people. It was one of the most heavily guarded areas in the kingdom besides the capital itself. Alicia looked out over the now wasteland and frowned. The only good thing was the barrier around the area seemed to be holding whatever it was that was causing the land to go bad. 

Turning back to the knight who was in command of the area, Alicia asked: "Does this have any effect on humans?"

"Sadly, yes it does. The longer one is exposed the sicker they will feel. It seems to be something in the air that is breathed in that makes those who inhale it feel sick. But once they leave the area they will be fine again. We have had our doctors keep an eye on those who have been exposed to it and nothing seems amiss at this time." The knight answered.

Hearing this made Alicia realize that her mission had just gained another hurdle that they would need to deal with. "Everyone, stay here, I want to try something." Alicia said as she suddenly stepped through the barrier. 

A foul stench filled her nose, almost making her gag. She quickly casted wind magic around her body. Creating an area where the foul air was blown away. She had it start from the ground all the way up past the top of her head. As it swirled around her body pushing the foul air away, the ground beneath her feet seemed to be rejuvenated and came back to life almost instantly. The withered grass seemed to have sprung back to life going from brown back to a yellowish color until it finally was as green as it was a few days ago. 

This new discovery surprised Alicia since she was not expecting such a find. She was only concerned about pushing the foul air away from her body so she would not get sick. This discovery brought hope into Alicia's eyes that the lands were not as bad as they seemed and it was only the air that was causing the change. But she wasn't sure how long the land would last for if it was to be stuck under the influence of the foul air.

Alicia stepped back through the barrier with a smile. She turned to the Knight in charge and said: "It seems we are not completely out of luck yet. Have your mages push the barrier forward more as far as they can! We must reclaim as much land as we can today!" 

"But Princess, if we do that, we run a risk of being attacked by the Demonic Plagues in the thousands!" The knight's voice had a bit of worry to it.

"Hmm… You had pulled back way past the safe line already, just get as close as you can to whatever our safe line is. We will just need to defend more is all. This land is an important area for our Kingdom. We must reclaim as much of it as we can today!" Alicia handed down her orders. It might be a bit more difficult to defend but they had no choice now. In order to keep the people of the Alastine Kingdom from going through a famine they needed to sit on the edge of the defensive line and slowly push forward until they regain what was lost.

"I will make it happen, Princess!" A look of respect filled the knight's eyes. He found this princess cared more for the people of the kingdom than anything else. Even putting herself in a position where they might be attacked by demonic plague in droves. To her, it did not matter as long as the people would not suffer.

King Augustus was sitting in his office watching Alicia on his bronze mirror and never felt more proud of his daughter. Her decision was exactly what he would have done. Reclaim what you can without drawing too much attention. Up the defense to allow for a better future. He turned to Charles who was standing next to him with a smile on his face and said: "Charles, let the other camps know. Push forward as much as possible. Each area will get one thousand troops from our military to support the knight orders. Also, tell the camps how to ward off the foul air that appeared." 

"Yes! Your Majesty!"

***

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Chapter end