The Aurora sisters didn’t stay long.
According to Ophina, this trip was mainly to see Vieya—to make sure she was still alive and safe. As for reminiscing, there would be plenty of ti for that in the future.
Still, Ophina did tell Vieya about what had been happening to her recently.
The Great Khan who commanded all the tribes of the Western Border was Ophina’s biological father. The Great Khan was the local emperor of the Western Border.
So, ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) just like in those picture-book stories where an emperor searches for the children he left behind during his romantic escapades, the Great Khan found her. Overnight, Ophina—who had previously only had Aurora as a younger sister—suddenly gained a huge number of brothers and sisters.
The Western Border Great Khan had many children. Including Ophina, there were still a full 118 of them alive... and their mothers were all different. So were ordinary won from small tribes, so were daughters of traveling rchants from other continents, and so were slaves.
In Vieya’s words, the man was basically a human-shaped breeding machine.
But!
In the coming months, all one hundred-plus of those offspring would compete for the position of the next Great Khan. There would be only one victor. This was the tradition of the Western Border.
Like raising poisonous insects in a jar—no matter what thods were used, the one who survived to the end would beco king.
The road ahead was brutal, destined to be climbed only by stepping on blood and white bones.
Vieya had told Ophina before: if you don’t want the throne, you don’t have to take it. Co to , I’ll protect you all. How about it?
But Ophina had only smiled gently and shaken her head. After taking a look at Jasmine sleeping soundly, she pulled along the reluctant Aurora and turned to leave.
“No,” Ophina said to Vieya with a smile. “Soone who can’t give anything up can’t change anything.”
At the mont she said those words, Ophina showed a kind of restrained resolve, like soone presenting a cherished collection to the person they admired.
Thinking of how Ophina had also grown up on this grassland, Vieya imdiately understood. That savage age—drinking goat’s milk and slling blood—had been Ophina’s childhood.
Even as tis changed, as the grasslands turned yellow and green again and again, in Ophina’s mories, she was still a child raised on this land.
Unlike Aurora, who was naturally lively, energetic, and physically strong, Ophina had never left this place.
Vieya watched them go. She didn’t try to keep them, nor did she stop them. She simply stood silently by the window, watching the Ophina sisters leave Aydin and head toward the vast, distant grasslands.
One walked ahead, the other behind. Beneath rolling black clouds and moonlight, they slowly made their way along Aydin City’s hundred-ter-high walls. The great banner of the Feathered Serpent Sky God and the twin-sword flag of the Human Alliance fluttered atop the walls like ocean waves.
They left just like that, never once looking back.
......
The next morning, the sky turned pale with dawn.
A gentle breeze swept in from grasslands spanning millions of square kiloters. The entire city of Aydin was bathed in a syrupy golden-red sunrise—dreamlike, tranquil, and warmly nostalgic.
Aislin woke up on ti. She pushed open the window, stretched toward the rising sun, and let the cool morning light fall on her hair, making her squint comfortably as her soft elven ears twitched slightly.
“I haven’t slept this happily in ages... mm. But it’s getting late. Ti to finish our preparations before departure. I hope Vieya will like our elven royal capital.”
After washing up and getting ready, Aislin went to the next rooms to wake Elliti and Jasmine, the two little brats. But to her surprise, Vieya was nowhere to be seen in either bedroom.
Where did the sli go?
Going downstairs, Aislin imdiately spotted Isabelle lying on the sofa, breathing evenly. But Vieya still wasn’t there.
“Elven sister, where did my mom go?” Jasmine rubbed her sleepy eyes, running around upstairs and downstairs early in the morning looking for her mother.
“Your mom went out to buy breakfast,” Aislin told a small lie. “She’ll be back once you’re done washing up. Rember to bring Elliti with you too.”
“Oh, okay.”
Jasmine nodded without a hint of doubt and turned to go wash up.
“No one’s here...”
Aislin kept scanning the room, but the only one she found was the blue-haired rmaid lady on the sofa.
Just then—
Isabelle’s eyelashes fluttered as she let out a cute little hum, then slowly opened her eyes. The noise in the room had woken her.
The unfamiliar ceiling and the fluffy, warm blanket over her body left her dazed for a mont.
After a while, she rembered that she had been bought by a white-haired big-loli, and that she now had a master who looked unapproachable at first glance, but was actually very easy to get along with.
“Miss rmaid, how are your injuries? Any signs of improvent?” Aislin walked over and asked.
“Ah... they’re better, thank you.” Isabelle jolted and hurriedly thanked her. She knew that the elf in front of her was her master’s friend—and also the doctor who had helped prepare dicine for her last night—so she felt genuinely grateful.
In the monster world, where strength was everything, even the smallest bit of pure kindness was priceless.
“That’s good.”
Letting out a small sigh of relief, Aislin glanced at the green dicine sared over Isabelle’s arm wound and asked curiously, “Did Vieya apply all of this for you yesterday?”
“Yes... Master helped apply it... I couldn’t lift the dicine jar myself.” Isabelle replied softly, sounding a little nervous.
“Hehe, it’s fine. I won’t hurt you.”
Aislin was already used to Vieya taking in monsters. She simply smiled and asked what she cared about most. “But do you know where your master went? I haven’t seen her all morning.”
“She’s gone...?” Isabelle looked around, scratching her cheek cautiously. “Maybe... she went out with friends to take care of sothing?”
Aislin frowned. “With friends?”
“Yes. Last night, Master received two very close friends.” Isabelle nodded.
“I see...”
Aislin froze for a mont before letting out a long sigh and lifting her beautiful eyes toward the window.
Damn it—she didn’t even leave a note!
......
Aydin City.
Unable to sleep the night before, Vieya left the inn early in the morning. The inn didn’t provide als, so she went out to eat.
Before dawn, sparks were already flying from the blacksmith shop at the street corner. Two burly n, bare-chested, swung their hamrs in rhythm as red-hot iron blocks glowed on the anvil.
The steady cadence of their hamring made the sli girl stand nearby and watch for quite a while.
In the sound of forging, Vieya felt like she heard sothing...
Mm. A long-lost sense of peace. As if the noise in her heart was being hamred away along with the iron.
The nearby tavern was noisy as well.
Plenty of burly locals from the Western Border and adventurers from all over the world were drinking together under a tea canopy, bragging about their exploits.
On the north-facing second floor, two scholars stood beneath a birch tree, arguing red-faced. Vaguely, she heard them talking about the Great Khan’s grave illness, the Alliance Empress recruiting new students, then shifting to the Northern War and the rise and fall of the world.
As the sun climbed higher, the streets grew crowded. The clamor of people drowned out the chirping of insects.
Watching the bustle of mortal life, Vieya found herself lost in thought.
Life in Aydin City was completely different from the southern regions. Most monsters here respawned near the Elven Forest, and monster attacks on cities were once-in-a-century events. The tribes constantly proclaid this as the blessing of the sky god Kulkan upon the Western Border.
After eating her fill, Vieya bought so cheese sticks and at pies to bring back for Jasmine and the others.
They should be awake by now, right?
Thinking that she would reach the Elven Forest today, learn more about the World Tree tomorrow, and perhaps revive Flaviel in just a few days, the sli girl couldn’t suppress her excitent.
Heaven knew how long she had waited for this day.
As she thought about it, she spared a bit of focus to check on the Golden City. A full pool of golden liquid ti, and off to the side, unmoving—the dragon horn, the Holy Sword, and a small white pearl.
Suddenly, a chill ran down Vieya’s spine. A wave of killing intent surged from behind her.
But when she glanced back, the sudden murderous aura vanished. Five or six people were gathered at a tea stall. At the lead, a horse-faced brute was whispering with a gaunt man beside him, as if plotting sothing.
All of a sudden, the horse-faced man’s expression changed.
For an instant, his gaze collided with Vieya’s.
The gaunt man clicked his tongue twice and muttered, “That’s right, it’s this little brat who bought the finale treasure yesterday. Tsk—feels like she’s noticed us.”
“Brother Horseface, this girl doesn’t look like she has much strength. The one behind the scenes probably tossed her out as bait. How about we deal with her first?”
The horse-faced brute snorted. “No rush. Let’s toy with her...”
As he spoke, the five or six n at the tea stall leaned together to discuss—but they didn’t expect—
A dazzling blaze of fire erupted before their eyes.
Boom!
The table exploded out of thin air, flas soaring skyward.
The five or six burly n at the tea stall were swallowed by fire and died on the spot.
Screams rang out across the entire street as chaos erupted.
Vieya frowned slightly. She had naturally noticed those ill-intentioned n—but the explosion at the tea stall was completely unexpected.
Soone else had acted from the shadows!
And she hadn’t caught even a trace of that person’s aura when they struck.
Troubleso.
Losing all interest in wandering around, Vieya took advantage of the chaos, slipped into the crowd, activated divine concealnt, and vanished from the street.
After a long while—
Behind a north-facing second-floor window, a hooded figure appeared. Watching the chaotic street below, she slowly covered the red ring on her finger and murmured,
“She vanished without a trace... interesting. So this is the little cutie that little Aislin wanted to invite to the Star Dew Festival?”
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