Aldrian sensed that his father was sitting at the sa table as his grandfather, along with Xin Haotian and Arthur. He had already inford his father of his location in Larson City, but he had not expected him to co today—let alone bring Grand Duke Flacrest.
They each maintained their own cover so that people would not recognize them. At this mont, four individuals with renowned titles were gathered inside the inn, a situation that could easily attract attention and cause an uproar.
"Dear, my father and Grand Duke Flacrest are inside, and I think they’ve already t with Xin Haotian and Arthur," Aldrian sent a voice transmission to Sylphia.
Sylphia was stunned upon hearing this, and her heart suddenly beca erratic. His father and grandfather were here?
"You don’t have to panic. My father already knows about our relationship and supports us. As for the Grand Duke, he doesn’t even know about , let alone you. So relax and just act natural," he said with a smile as he walked toward the table.
As Aldrian approached the table, he could clearly see an invisible soundproof shield surrounding it, ensuring that their conversation could not be heard, even by those at the nearest tables.
Aldrey noticed Aldrian approaching and signaled to Grand Duke Flacrest that he had arrived. The grand duke turned his head toward Aldrian and was montarily stunned upon seeing his appearance—sothing that always happened when people saw him for the first ti.
Aldrian gave the grand duke a small smile as he finally stepped inside the soundproof shield, which seed to have been created by the grand duke himself.
"It’s truly surprising to et Grand Duke Flacrest and Young Master Aldrey here," Aldrian said.
"Pfft." A sudden sound ca from Xin Haotian, but when Aldrey and Grand Duke Flacrest looked at him, they saw only his usual calm expression. However, Aldrian knew that Xin Haotian had almost let out a chuckle.
Grand Duke Flacrest stood up and extended his hand for a handshake.
"My apologies for coming here unannounced. I happened to have so spare ti, and it would have been a waste not to take advantage of it to et our benefactor," he said as Aldrian took his hand in a handshake.
After that, Aldrian and Sylphia sat in the vacant seats that Aldrian had taken from another table. As soon as they sat down, Aldrian suddenly received a voice transmission from Xin Haotian.
"How dare you call your father ’Young Master Aldrey’ and your grandfather by his title? You are truly an unfilial child. Bad Aldrian."
Aldrian’s eyes twitched slightly, but he ignored Xin Haotian and maintained his slight smile toward his father and Grand Duke Flacrest.
As for the grand duke himself, he still couldn’t hide his amazent while looking at Aldrian. Like many who saw him for the first ti, he found it hard to believe that Aldrian was so young, yet already a legend admired by many.
Aldrey kept his expression as natural as possible, but inwardly, he was quite nervous. His son—the one he had with Irene in their hidden relationship—was sitting right in front of his father.
"When Aldrey said he would et you, I couldn’t help but co along. I wanted to see for myself the person whose achievents are heard across the continent and who always causes an uproar wherever he goes," Grand Duke Flacrest said.
"The hearsay can sotis be exaggerated, and all of my achievents just happen to be tied to matters involving the devils. I’m simply doing my part as a good cultivator to face them," Aldrian replied.
"Ahahaha, you are too humble. Every good cultivator must face the devils as their enemies, but only a few achieve what you have," the grand duke said and then glancing at Xin Haotian and Arthur.
"I also feel left behind, knowing that the Sword Saint and the leader of the Paladins were already acquainted with you. It’s truly unexpected," he added, turning his gaze back to Aldrian.
"Anyway, another reason I ca here is that I wanted to personally thank you for your help in our family’s recent case. Although I don’t know why you chose to assist us, our family has greatly benefited from your achievents at Boraz Fortress and the information you provided. Thanks to you, we were able to cripple the devils’ operations within this empire and raise our position."
"That is good to hear, Your Excellency. I’m glad it helped the Flacrest family as a whole," Aldrian answered.
"Young Master Aldrian, I’m really—"
"Pfft." Once again, a sound ca from Xin Haotian, but when they looked at his face, they could only see his serene expression. Seeing that Xin Haotian remained silent and did not express anything, the grand duke continued.
"Young Master Aldrian, I’m really curious. Why are you helping us? I truly appreciate your assistance, but why did you do all of that, even bringing our na into the fall of Boraz Fortress? Why did you choose us? If my question is offensive, I offer my apologies, but don’t you think I need to know your reasons for helping us?"
Aldrian nodded. He understood the grand duke’s concern, but before he could reply, another voice transmission from Xin Haotian ca.
"’Young Master Aldrian’, why must your grandfather use honorifics when addressing his grandson? Do the younger generations these days not know how to show respect for—" Before Xin Haotian could finish his words, he suddenly disappeared from his seat.
The grand duke, Aldrey, and Arthur were stunned by the sudden disappearance of Xin Haotian. However, seeing that Aldrian seed unfazed, they chose not to ask about it.
"My reason for choosing the Flacrest family is actually not very complex. It’s because I have so connection with a mber of the Flacrest family. Even though many don’t know it, I have a very deep connection with your family," Aldrian said.
The grand duke was stunned, but then he narrowed his eyes and looked at Aldrey suspiciously. Aldrey, anwhile, sweated inwardly, glancing nervously at Aldrian.
"Son, what are you doing?!" Aldrey thought to himself.
Of course, with Aldrian saying sothing like that, the first person Grand Duke Flacrest would suspect was his own son, Aldrey. He was the only person who had communicated with the mysterious swordsman from their family and acted as a bridge between them.
Aldrian just smiled, watching his father’s predicant, but he only left a clue for his grandfather. This was for the future so that his grandfather wouldn’t be too shocked when the truth eventually ca out.
"Is that so? Then is my son the mber you have a close relationship with?" Grand Duke Flacrest asked.
"He is one of them, but I have to say that he is the closest one to ."
"Son?!" Aldrey shouted inside his mind as he tried to give Aldrian a sign with his expression not to go too far in giving his father clues. Still, Aldrian ignored Aldrey and continued to smile innocently.
Sylphia, who was watching Aldrian and his father, could only giggle inwardly at Aldrian’s wordplay. She could only imagine how Grand Duke Flacrest would react when the truth about Aldrian eventually ca out.
"I see. It looks like my son here is really hiding sothing from ," the grand duke said.
"It looks like I need to talk to Aldrey after all of this," he thought to himself.
"Anyway, Your Excellency, after all of this, the position of the Flacrest family will be stronger, and I dare say that even the Flacrest family’s popularity will surpass that of the imperial family. Moreover, after the news about the Duclan family and the truth behind their fall spreads across the empire, the imperial family’s reputation will be affected," Aldrian said.
"Yes, and I’m actually quite worried that if we beco too popular, we might attract unnecessary attention from others, including the imperial family. We attacked the Larson family without informing the imperial family first, so we’ve already offended them. They might bring it up in the future to suppress our family. As the saying goes, the taller the tree, the stronger the wind blows."
"Well, I have no doubt it will attract attention, Your Excellency, but as for the imperial family, I can assure you that they won’t make things difficult for you or the Flacrest family," Aldrian said.
"Why do you say that?"
"Because I just t His Majesty and talked to him about it. They understand the Flacrest family’s movents and won’t cause trouble for you in the future. In fact, the imperial family will reward you, Your Excellency, for the quick actions of the Flacrest family," Aldrian said with a smile.
Aldrey and Grand Duke Flacrest slightly widened their eyes. He t with the emperor? This was truly unexpected. If that’s the case, it’s safe to say that the imperial family knows Aldrian is the mysterious swordsman.
However, Grand Duke Flacrest felt sothing strange about what Aldrian had said. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but he felt that Aldrian’s words held a deeper, more subtle aning.
"I see. That’s good to hear," he said.
They then fell silent for a mont before Aldrian broke the silence.
"Your Excellency, now that you’ve co here and I’ve had the chance to et you, I actually have a favor to ask of you personally."
Hearing that, Grand Duke Flacrest’s eyes brightened. He was still confused about how to repay Aldrian’s kindness, but if Aldrian wanted a favor, he would, of course, do so.
"What is it, Young Master? I will gladly do anything as long as it’s within my ability."
"Oh, it’s nothing grand, Your Excellency. What I ask is that, in the future, if Young Master Aldrey does sothing that you consider wrong, please don’t get angry imdiately. Give him a chance to explain himself and try not to jump to conclusions too quickly."
Grand Duke Flacrest was stunned and felt truly confused. What kind of favor was this? Was Aldrey’s relationship with Aldrian really close enough for him to ask sothing like that? He narrowed his eyes and glanced at Aldrey again.
Aldrey, on the other hand, was already sweating and forcing a rigid smile.
"Why drag into this?" he thought.
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