Chapter 1258: Chapter 1258

He was visiting today under his own name, Jenkins Williams, yet Dolores's sister, Angelina Stuart, recognized him in an instant. She had been waiting gracefully in the living room for the group. Just as she was about to greet Dolores, who was leading the way, her eyes locked onto Jenkins.

Angelina bore a strong resemblance to Dolores, though she was even shorter than Alexia. Her hair was very long, giving the princess the appearance of a large, life-sized doll.

Jenkins also noticed that the color of her eyes seemed different from Dolores's. Dıscover more novels at novel•fire.net

"Excuse me, are you Mr. Jenkins Williams?"

She blinked her wide eyes in astonishment and, upon receiving his confirmation, her enthusiasm grew to a puzzling degree.

"Am I really that popular?"

While Dolores and her sister complained to each other about their recent days living outside the palace, Jenkins shifted uncomfortably and whispered to Alexia.

"You really don't know?"

"Is there something I'm supposed to know?"

There was no need to reveal that Jenkins was an Enchanter; he was simply here as an escort. After confirming the location of the incident, Alexia and Dolores went upstairs, leaving Jenkins in the living room to talk with the young princess.

But Jenkins was not one for making conversation with strangers. So when the two women descended the stairs an hour later, carrying a small glass jar, followed by a maid with a worried expression, the atmosphere downstairs had become palpably awkward.

He turned his head and blinked desperately, hoping Alexia would understand his predicament. A faint smile touched her lips as she took the initiative to explain what had transpired upstairs.

The brief hour had been remarkably effective. Angelina Stuart thanked her sister for her help and then proposed moving into her manor.

"My place is just too small," she said, "and I don't have many reliable servants around."

The fourteen-year-old girl wheedled her older sister, and of course, Dolores couldn't refuse.

As they settled back into the carriage to head for the church, Jenkins was still marveling at how smoothly everything had gone. He then took the jar from Alexia's hands. Opening the lid, he saw a roiling black mist within and understood at once.

"So, she staged the whole thing," he mused. "I knew it. How could it be such a coincidence, encountering a supernatural event right after moving out?"

The black mist in the jar was a supernatural substance known among Enchanters as the Fog of Fear. It commonly appeared in abandoned graveyards or in the habitats of exotic creatures that possessed a fear aura or an intimidating presence.

The fog's only function was to induce terrifying hallucinations in those with a fragile state of mind. Beyond that, it was a common component in rituals. Jenkins recalled Alexia mentioning that the liquid produced by his B-03-1-8383, the Cup of Hidden Fear, was likely a highly concentrated and transmuted product of this very fog.

"But regardless, the Fog of Fear has no business appearing in a bustling city district," Jenkins reasoned aloud. "And if someone wanted to harm Dolores's sister, they wouldn't use such a simple trick. She must have gotten it herself, right? To create a reason to ask Dolores for help, and then ally herself with her... though 'ally' might be too strong a word."

He voiced his thoughts, and the ladies agreed with his assessment.

Angelina Stuart's actions were perfectly understandable. All the Stuart children knew that with their father gravely injured, certain realities could no longer be ignored.

In times like these, trying to remain neutral and wait for a new king to be crowned was the most foolish strategy, second only to being a turncoat. So, everyone was placing their bets. Considering the large number of Stuart children, even a seemingly weaker contender like Dolores was bound to have her share of supporters.

"Speaking of which, what has your father been doing in the palace recently?"

The thought of the situation in the Hamparvo Kingdom made Jenkins want to sigh. The current state of Ruen was even more chaotic than the other two kingdoms on the brink of war.

"I don't know," Dolores answered, a note of sorrow in her voice. "On the pretext of guarding against spies from Cheslan and the Fidektri Kingdom, Father has drastically changed the servants and guards within the palace. I don't think anyone knows what he does in his chambers each day."

It was hard not to imagine that His Majesty the King was contemplating some forbidden means to extend his life. At that thought, Jenkins glanced toward the palace perched on a low hill in the city's center, but he detected no abnormal spiritual glow.

"Still, it's definitely something to be wary of."

When the carriage reached a fork in the road ahead, Dolores and Julia switched to another carriage and, with their escort, headed toward Ruen City Hall. A single carriage then carried Jenkins and Alexia across the city to the Sage's Church on the outskirts of Ruen.

The moment Jenkins stepped out of the carriage, Father Fernando emerged from the church as if he had been expecting him. It seemed Jenkins's public movements were no secret. As it happened, Father Fernando had business with him as well, making his arrival incredibly timely.

Alexia waited in the carriage as Jenkins followed the priest inside. After a customary moment of prayer before the holy emblem, he was led down a corridor to the side of the main hall.

The church in the Ruen diocese was far larger than the one in Nolan. This was partly because Ruen was the royal capital and held greater significance, and partly because the church here was situated outside the city center, where there was less resistance to expansion.

After traversing corridors and stairways, the priest and a retinue of nuns led Jenkins to the second floor of a tower flanking the main church building.

This entire floor had been opened up into a single, vast space, like a small plaza. A blue light was confined in the center, emanating from an ice-blue heart.

"Regarding the monster you and the others defeated on your journey," the priest began, "we have consulted our records and conducted folkloric investigations, and we've found some traces. Its origins are lost to time, but it was indeed sealed by the Orthodox Churches. It's a story from a very ancient era. What we do know is that this heart is the source of the creature's power. If it isn't sealed, the monster will regenerate from it."

The priest finished his explanation, then gestured with his eyes for everyone but the Keeper of Secrets guarding the heart to leave the room. Ruen didn't have a Gate of All Things like Nolan did, so every item with unusual properties had to be stored in a carefully chosen location. That was why the heart was here, in a room within the church.

Jenkins's interest was immediately piqued. He eagerly wondered which of his abilities would be capable of completely destroying the heart.