Crack
Sitting alone upon her throne as always, Renara suddenly clenched her small hands with such force as if she wished to grind sothing into dust, only to release them a mont later. That fleeting surge of emotion did not alter even the slightest fragnt of her aura or her expression... by now, she had mastered the art of controlling them flawlessly.
With the support of Darmic and a number of venerable elders and hall leaders, Renara inherited the final remnants of the Nine-Tailed Fox bloodline. She absorbed its evolution, her ninth tail sprouted, and most importantly... she had stepped into the exalted state of Nexus!
Yet the aura of innocence and nobility still clung around her like a veil, an image staged day and night in the grand throne hall, presented to anyone who wished to gaze upon the newly ascended Nexus of the empire.
Was she strong? Incredibly so. In terms of bloodline density and raw talent, she was in no way inferior to her father—it was only a matter of ti before she surpassed him entirely. But when it ca to authority... just as she had foreseen that very day, she had been installed as nothing more than a decorative vase.
The elders and hall leaders refused to acknowledge her as an absolute ruler. If she wished to make any decision, she was forced to persuade them first. If she dared inquire about the empire’s state, she was never given the true picture—so would answer with vague, empty phrases, while others bluntly told her there was no need for her to worry.
The only silver lining in this suffocating arrangent was that the Twilight Spectrum Empire had ceased launching direct assaults on the planets of the Nine Paths Empire, and had abandoned their attempts to temper the elder-protected worlds that safeguarded their lives.
They still kidnapped won—dozens each year, sotis even daily—but that cri was nothing compared to the outright annihilation campaigns they had once attempted in the past!
Why had they stopped? Did they truly believe the imperial uncle’s lie that his health remained intact? Or had they simply beco preoccupied with so other matter? ... It no longer mattered.
All Renara could do was remain seated upon her throne, conduct herself with dignity and strength, and preserve what little could still be preserved—for as long as fate allowed.
Creaaak
The monuntal gates of the throne hall opened slowly, and through them a swaying shadow erged.
"I have returned, Renara~"
"...?!" The calm expression on Renara’s face—serene like an isolated sumr lake—shattered in an instant. Her eyes widened fully. "Elinor!!" With a sudden whoosh she leapt down from her throne and rushed forward, embracing her sister with all her might. "You’re finally back?" Then, with a tone of half-reproach and shimring tears in her eyes, she whispered, "You left alone for far too long this ti..."
"I’m sorry. I was trying to fulfill my promise," Elinor laughed, then stepped back and spun gracefully in place. "Well? What do you think?"
"This...?" Renara gave her a full up-and-down look. "What’s with these revealing clothes? What have you left for the street girls to wear?" Her brows furrowed sharply, and then she suddenly shouted, "This aura... you—you’ve lost your purity?!" Instantly she slapped a hand over her mouth to silence herself, then demanded in a hushed voice, "Did you... did you get married? You are a princess—sothing like this cannot happen without an official ceremony!"
"Married? Pffft~ That is actually funny." Elinor burst into loud laughter, then swayed her nine tails again with playful pride. "If I were you, I would have noticed sothing far more important, Renara."
"...Nine tails? How...?!" Renara rushed closer and began examining the newly-grown ninth tail, her eyes widening further with disbelief. "Wait... are you actually a Nexus State now?!"
"This has everything to do with that question you just asked about marriage earlier," Elinor leaned in, tilting her body slightly, and whispered teasingly into her sister’s ear, "Do you still wish to know the truth?"
"What?" Renara’s face flushed crimson as she turned sharply, her steps retreating toward the throne as if seeking shelter. Her voice trembled yet carried defiance, "No, no—forget it, I don’t want to know, I don’t want to hear any of it!"
"Hehe, just as I expected," Elinor’s laughter rang softly, a teasing lody, yet there was weight behind her words. "Still... if you actually listened to , if you dared to walk the sa path I chose, you would beco stronger—far stronger. After all, your blood is already rich, pulsing with power waiting to be awakened." She drifted closer with feline grace, her hands clasped behind her back, circling her sister like a shadow. "Tell , don’t you crave it? Don’t you long to be strong enough to protect this empire without fear?"
"Not through such ans!" Renara’s voice cut sharply, though her shoulders trembled beneath the weight of her own doubts. She shook her head again and again, as though trying to shake off temptation. "...If I ever marry, then my husband must be a man of true authority and towering strength. Our wedding must be a grand event, a celebration that raises the Nine Paths Empire’s na higher than ever before, one that brings prosperity and glory to our people... not sothing shaful and hidden like this!"
"But you are the Empress," Elinor pressed with a sly smile, her eyes shimring like stars in mischief. "No one in our bloodline has more authority, more strength than you. Tell then—do you truly intend to take soone outside our kind? Marry an outsider?" She leaned in close, her whisper stinging with irony. "And what about all that talk of preserving the lineage, of your sacred duty to the bloodline? Was that nothing but empty chatter?" Then she raised her finger, her smirk deepening. "Throw aside those chains if you wish—I will support you. But at least choose wisely: pick soone wealthy, soone whose blood resonates with yours. You will grow stronger, and in the process, we’ll gain a powerful ally!"
"Preserving the purity of our bloodline—one that has endured, unbroken, for over six million years—is not so trivial nonsense, Elinor!" Renara’s brows knitted in iron resolve, though her heart raced beneath the weight of her own words. "And yet... perhaps I am dreaming too much. Perhaps I am asking for the impossible. I cannot, I must not, marry outside of our race. I will see what destiny decides later..."
Elinor suddenly burst into laughter, her voice bright and cruel at once, covering her mouth with a mocking flourish. "Oh, don’t tell you’ll beco like the rest of the pitiful girls in your position—marrying so pathetic human just to keep the family line crawling forward, haha."
"...A human?!" Renara froze where she stood, her eyes widening as though struck by lightning. The very idea made her blood boil. She waved her hand furiously, her voice rising with denial. "On second thought, there’s no need for marriage at all!" She grasped Elinor’s hand tightly, pulling her away as if to drag her from dangerous waters. Her tone softened, pleading yet firm, "Co—tell instead of your adventures, tell everything you’ve seen through all these years you’ve left alone!"
"Are you certain?" Elinor’s chuckle was light, but her gaze burned with hidden fire. "Those adventures are what tempered , what gave strength. If you followed the sa path even once or twice, you’d feel the power for yourself. You’d grow stronger beyond doubt. Don’t you want to hear? Don’t you even want to try?"
"No!" Renara’s refusal ca sharp, her grip tightening on her sister’s hand. "If that thod worked for you, then keep it to yourself. Continue as you wish, but I do not want to hear about it, not even a whisper." She shook her head fiercely, as though casting away a curse. "I don’t want my view of you—my beloved sister—to be stained or changed in any way..." Then she exhaled, her features softening into a smile, fragile yet bright. "Just tell anything else—anything but that subject."
For a fleeting mont, a strange light shimred in Elinor’s eyes—sorrow and fury entwined in silence. But she buried it swiftly, masking her heart with a playful grin. "Very well then. Co, let tell you about that ridiculous five-legged dog I once encountered, hehe."
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