Chapter 64: THE PERSON IN ROBE
CHEN YU’S VILLA
Inside Chen Yu’s private study, the atmosphere was silent and heavy—tense enough to cut through. A warm fireplace crackled in the background, its flickering flames casting long shadows across the obsidian-black wood bookshelves and the jade-sculpted furnishings that lined the walls. The curtains were drawn tightly shut, drowning out the gentle golden light of the Earth Realm’s peaceful afternoon. Here, inside this sanctuary of silence and strategy, the fate of a kingdom was about to be rewritten.
Vornark stood near the far wall, arms crossed tightly over his chest, his towering frame still and statuesque. His sharp eyes, colder than usual, remained locked on Chen Yu. He wasn’t impatient. Just waiting—for truth, for orders, for a path forward. There was a beast behind those eyes, caged for too long.
Chen Yu stood beside the massive obsidian table at the center of the room. Above it floated a sprawling, three-dimensional map of the Beast Kingdom, glowing in hues of red, gold, and shadowy grey. The terrain shifted in real time, with markers and sigils pulsing across mountain ranges, rivers, and military checkpoints. Energy paths glowed like veins on a beating heart. It was more than a map. It was a war blueprint.
Chen Yu’s voice cut through the room like a blade—calm, low, and commanding.
"Vornark, this is how we take back what’s yours."
He extended his hand and gestured toward the western mountain range—a jagged region shrouded in darkness on the map. His fingers hovered above a faint red marker, which pulsed like a quiet scream.
"First... we need proof. The nobles won’t move just because we claim your uncle is a usurper. That accusation means nothing without blood-backed evidence. But if we bring your parents back alive from the Black Maw Prison..."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"...then the kingdom will have no choice but to listen. They are the only voices powerful enough to shake the throne."
Vornark’s jaw tightened. A storm flickered in his usually unreadable eyes.