Chapter 1497: Chapter 1497

Lory returned to Cestine Palace after the interview with Alinna, her mind still humming with fragments of words and impressions she refused to lose.

She settled at her desk, the glow of her laptop casting a pale light across her face as her fingers flew across the keys. Every gesture, every tone, every fleeting glance from Alinna and Salvo De Rova, she captured them all, weaving them into her report with painstaking detail.

Later, she would share it with her brother and the others, but for now it was essential to set it down, to safeguard memory against the erosion of time.

When the last word was typed, she pressed save and let out a quiet breath, the tension leaving her shoulders in fragments. She reached for her cup of lemon tea, now cooled, and leaned back in her chair.

Her gaze drifted across her room, searching instinctively for the familiar presence that wasn’t there. Zhao Li Xin had been gone for two days now, vanished into the mystique realm. Once, such absences never troubled her.

Back in his world, she had lived in his manor, among his people, within the fortress of his power. There, his return was unquestionable; he belonged to that world as much as the air and the mountains did. His presence was woven into the very fabric of the Hei Shen Sect, unshakable and permanent.

But here, in her world, Zhao Li Xin had no roots. No palace, no sect, no people to tether him. Only her. And that small connection unsettled her more than she cared to admit. Each time he departed, the silence pressed heavier, whispering the possibility that he might not return.

She gave a soft, ironic smile at herself. He would never guess how little confidence she carried in her own heart. This was the man who had given up a life of comfort and unquestioned authority to follow her down a road filled with uncertainty.

He had faced danger, betrayal, and endless battles, all for the sake of staying by her side. So why, after everything, did anxiety still gnaw at her?

Perhaps this was what Zhao Li Xin once felt about her. A foreigner in the strange world that that could never truly belong to her, always with the gnawing fear that one day she might decide to leave when it become too unbearable, without a trace, without a word

She leaned back deeper into her chair, fingers curled loosely around the teacup, her smile softening into something tender. How ironic, that they mirrored each other so perfectly, two wanderers in each other’s worlds, always fearing the same loss, the same anxiety, regardless how deep their love is.

Maybe they just care each other too much.

As if the heavens had answered her thoughts, the air shimmered. A familiar presence cut through the silence, and Zhao Li Xin appeared from a thin air. His gaze found her instantly.

"Wife," his cold eyes brimmed with affection.

The cup was forgotten at once. Lory rose with long strides, her voice rushing out with relief, "Li Xin!" Only then did she notice his attire, her breath hitched with nostalgia. He wore the old black robes from the cultivator’s world, the ones that once seemed inseparable from him.

"What happened to your other clothes?" she asked, her eyes sweeping him up and down, caught between fondness and worry.

"They burned away," Zhao Li Xin sighed, the faintest trace of annoyance beneath his calm tone. "My cultivation advanced another stage. The immortal flame has grown stronger, almost back to the golden fire I once had. No fabric, no spell, nothing holds against it. They all burned."

A smile tugged at her lips despite herself. "Well, you still look good in this." She waved away the concern, because in truth, no matter what he wore, he always looked exceptionally good in her eyes.

"By the way, how many of your old robes are left in your ring?"

He pursed his lips in deep thought, "Quite a lot, I think. Most are packed in a chest in one of the rooms in my mansion in the mystique realm. Honestly, I don’t even know what else is in there. I used to throw things in without much thought."

Lory chuckled softly, shaking her head. "Then just wear those. You’ve never been comfortable in modern clothes anyway." She didn’t care what Zhao Li Xin wore anyway, he dotted the man so much too care what would they think seeing a man with an ancient robe walking around.

Zhao Li Xin smiled faintly, knowing her biased toward him. Even so, he wouldn’t wear these clothes outside the palace; he knew he had to keep up appearances for Lory’s sake.

"By the way, how was your meeting with that woman?" Zhao Li Xin asked about Alinna.

Lory tugged him toward the sofa, sinking beside him with a pillow hugged tightly against her chest. Her brows furrowed, her expression shadowed with thought. "It’s more complicated than I expected," she admitted quietly.

Without a word, Zhao Li Xin flick his wrist to summoned a bottle of wine. The faint clink of glass echoed softly in the stillness, and appear on the coffee table before them.

"Complicated how?" Zhao Li Xin asked as he poured himself a cup of wine.

Lory took a moment to gather her thoughts before speaking. "I feel there’s a tension between Alinna and Salvo... almost like the relationship between a superior and a subordinate. Salvo holds the reins, and Alinna follows."

"That’s not surprising," Zhao Li Xin replied lazily, leaning back into the couch. He raised the cup to his lips and took a slow sip. "She was always meant to be used as a pawn."

"Yeah..." Lory sighed, her shoulders slumping. "But I also sense something else. Alinna has this... rivalry toward me. I don’t understand it." Her lips curved into a pout, her tone tinged with frustration. "I already dead for so long so where this intense rivalry came from? It feels like she dying to proof she better than me."

Zhao Li Xin’s brows arched, his expression edged with mockery.

"Have you even followed the news these past few days?" he asked, chuckling under his breath. "Your name alone—just a name, without even your presence, was enough to erase everything ahe had worked for. All her posturing, her charities, her heroic moment facing the Bael... everything forgotten the moment you’re name mentioned."

He swirled the wine in his cup, his tone steeped in cynicism.

"And the cruelest part? You’re not even here. You’re just a memory, a story left behind. Yet she’s being crushed completely, under the weight of your name, and everything she built, suddenly earsed, forgotten just like that. Isn’t that pathetic? Worse still, they parade her before the world as the one who would surpass you, more beautiful, more kinder, more powerful. But the reality..." Dıscover more novels at 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝✶𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮✶𝓷𝓮𝓽

His lips curved into a thin, mocking smile as he lifted his wine and drank slowly.

"She has probably been groomed for a long time to surpass you, Princess Lorient. I can imagine the people behind her have piled every expectation upon her shoulders, pressing her to embody them all. Otherwise..." his gaze darkened, voice flattening into something cold, "...what is the point of her existance?"

Zhao Li Xin leaned back, eyes distant. He had seen too many like Alinna before, shaped, polished, and driven until they broke. The Imperial Palace had been full of them.

Lory fell silent. She didn’t know how to feel about it. Proud? No, not likely. Guilty? That didn’t fit either. The only word she could grasp was bitter-sour, a taste that clung no matter how she tried to swallow it down.

"What do you think they’ll do to Alinna now?" Lory asked at last, her voice low, uncertain.

Zhao Li Xin tilted his head slightly, the shadows in his gaze deepening though his tone remained almost casual.

"For now? Nothing. She’s still useful. This is only a setback. In my opinion, they’ll stage something big—something that can drag her reputation back into the light again."

As if by omen, the day after the Saint left Harland, the world was thrown into chaos.

There was a sudden surge of Bael attacks across the world. As if driven into a frenzy, the creatures struck without pattern or pause—trains derailed, ships sank in flames, and planes plummeted from the skies. The victims were beyond counting, lives snuffed out in waves of chaos. And still it worsened. The Bael began to ravage not only remote towns, but great cities themselves. Even the proud Eagle Rock City.

Newsrooms struggled to keep up. Footage flooded every screen: walls of fire, people fleeing in panic, the roars of Bael echoing through ruined streets.

Reporters’ voices cracked as they tried to narrate the unstoppable destruction. The world held its breath.

In the wake of disaster, the Paladins were mobilized, their banners raised alongside the Dragxtarn of Luxemborough. Even the Saintess herself was sent to the front lines, cast as humanity’s answer to the darkness.

As though fate had snapped its fingers, the spotlight returned to Alinna. Her name that once almost fading into obscurity, now suddenly blazed across every headline and broadcast, rising like fireworks against a night sky.

Lory sat frozen before the screen, the reflection of fire and ruin flickering across her wide eyes. Her lips parted, but for a moment no words came. Only the pounding of her own heartbeat filled her ears.

"This is crazy" Lory whispered, each word sharp as glass, "just to turn the light back to the Saintess."

Lucas watched the broadcast in silence, his expression hardening, shadows pooling in his gaze. At last, his voice broke the heavy air.

"Send the King’s Men. Tell Leon to fortify our borders."

Fargo gave a firm nod. "Yes, Your Majesty."

Fredhardt stepped forward, his tone brisk. "I suggest we dispatch a unit to inspect the Five Pillars. If their condition is compromised, the King’s Shield over our lands could weaken."

Lucas inclined his head in approval. "Do it."

Fredhardt bowed deeply before turning on his heel, his mind already racing with calculations for the teams he would need to assemble. Fargo followed close behind, leaving the chamber heavy with silence once their footsteps faded.

Only Zhao Li Xin, Lucas, and Lory remained.

Lory tilted her head, breaking the stillness. Her eyes caught the light, a glimmer of mischief flickering there despite the weight of the grim atmosphere.

"Wanna check the Crownheart?" she asked.

Lucas’s expression turned solemn, his voice low. "Yes."

"Crownheart?" Zhao Li Xin echoed, brows furrowed in curiosity.

Lory’s lips curved into a grin, light breaking through her seriousness. "Come on, honey," she grin, slipping her hand into his. "I’ll show you something cool."