Chapter 38 : Chapter 38
Chapter 38. A Trump Card
The aftershocks of spatial distortion settled in a secluded back alley of Winter City, leaving behind a faint silver crack that soon faded into the frigid air.
Logaris West and Lilith stepped out first.
The black research robe on his body did not flutter in the slightest despite the freezing winds of the Northern Territory.
Alice came out right after them.
The moment she emerged, she wrapped her arms around herself and shivered, her teeth chattering as she said, “It is still so cold.”
“So this is Winter City?”
“It does not feel much warmer than the Dragon Mountain Range.”
Alectos Huiyin came out next.
Logaris' spell had perfectly concealed the dragon horns on his head and the dragon tail behind him, so at that moment he looked like nothing more than a tall, steady-tempered human youth.
He drew in a deep breath and felt the pulse of this unfamiliar city, his eyes filled with both unease and resolve.
“Let us go.”
“We are heading to the Duke’s Manor,” Logaris said, no longer paying any attention to her banter as he led the three of them toward the main road.
There were more people on Winter City’s streets than they had expected.
Although the faces of the commoners still bore the hardships carved into them by years of wind and snow, the numbness that had once defined them was gone.
The laughter of children, the cries of street vendors, and the faint roar of machinery drifting from the Heart of Winter Industrial Park in the distance all signaled that the city was being reborn.
Just as they turned a corner, a patrol unit dressed in standardized black armor approached them head-on.
At the front was a man in his fifties.
His back was ramrod straight, and his face was marked everywhere by the wear of wind and frost.
An old scar ran across his left eye, stretching from his brow to his cheek, giving him an especially grim appearance.
He was none other than General Victor, Chief of Staff of the Northern Legion.
Victor spotted Logaris in the crowd at once and was about to step forward in greeting, but his gaze suddenly froze and locked tightly onto Alectos behind him.
It was as if the air had frozen solid in that instant.
Victor had guarded the border for many years and had spent his entire life dealing with the Demi-Human Empire.
He was all too familiar with the demi-human nobility, especially the inborn bearing carried by members of the royal family.
Even with magical disguise, that unnaturally tall frame, those golden eyes that revealed themselves unintentionally, and that composure in the face of armed troops without the slightest trace of fear...
CLANG!
Victor’s expression changed.
His sword was drawn in an instant, and the sharp metallic scrape sounded especially jarring on the bustling street.
The soldiers behind Victor reacted at once.
They all drew their weapons in unison and surrounded Logaris and his group completely.
The civilians by the roadside let out startled cries and hurriedly backed away.
Alectos' muscles tightened all over.
His hand had already gripped the hilt of the greatsword on his back.
Alice’s face turned pale.
She muttered a curse under her breath, while her hand had already closed around a crimson crystal.
Lilith reacted the fastest.
WHOOSH—she darted behind Logaris in an instant, only poking half her head out as she watched the soldiers warily.
“General Victor, what is the meaning of this?” Logaris' voice remained calm.
He shifted sideways and placed himself between Alectos and Victor.
Victor’s lone eye remained fixed on Alectos as he spoke in a hoarse, heavy voice.
“Professor Logaris, I require an explanation.”
“The man behind you is a demi-human, and a member of the Huiyin family at that.”
Victor had guarded the border for many years and was familiar with portraits of every member of the imperial family of the Demi-Human Empire.
Although the dragon traits were gone from the man before him, Victor could still recognize him.
Logaris was slightly surprised inwardly.
He had not expected Victor’s eye to be so sharp.
“He is my guest,” Logaris said calmly.
His voice, devoid of waves, sounded especially clear amid the drawn-sword tension.
He deliberately stepped half a pace forward to shield Alectos and pushed up his glasses.
“General Victor, there is no need to be nervous.”
“This gentleman is an important ally who has come to seek the protection of Her Highness the Princess.”
“He concerns the future of the Northern Territory, and I was just about to bring him to meet Her Highness.”
General Victor’s lone eye was as sharp as a blade as it swept across Logaris before finally returning to Alectos.
“Professor, I have guarded the border for decades.”
“I will never mistake the bearing of a member of the Huiyin royal family.”
“Any member of the Huiyin bloodline may represent the threat of war.”
Though he had not drawn his sword again, his hand was clenched tightly around the hilt, and his stance did not waver in the slightest.
Logaris met the gaze of the battle-hardened general and added, “Your caution is correct, General, but my judgment has never been wrong either.”
“If you are still uneasy, you may assign men to monitor us the entire way.”
“Or better yet, you may escort us to the Duke’s Manor personally.”
Victor’s face shifted uncertainly.
He knew very well what position Logaris held in the princess' heart, and he understood even more clearly that everything Winter City had become now was inseparable from this young professor.
Logaris' words gave him a way to step back while still fulfilling his duty.
After several seconds of silence, Victor finally released his grip on the sword hilt.
“Stand down,” he ordered in a low voice.
Though the soldiers were puzzled, they still sheathed their weapons without hesitation.
“Professor, please come with me.”
Victor made a gesture of invitation, but he kept himself neither too near nor too far from Alectos' rear flank, and that lone eye never once left him.
Under a tense and oppressive atmosphere, the group crossed most of the city and arrived at the Duke’s Manor.
Inside the council chamber, it was warm as spring.
Sylvia sat at the head of the long table, buried in a mountain of documents.
She wore a simple riding outfit, and her moonlight-colored long hair was tied neatly behind her head.
Her silver-gray eyes were focused and sharp.
Hearing footsteps, she raised her head.
Her gaze passed over Victor and immediately landed on the disguised Alectos.
Logaris had already given her a brief explanation through a specially made Communication Crystal while they were on the way back.
“Logaris,” Sylvia said as she set down the quill pen in her hand, lightly tapping her knuckles against the table, “I suppose I should expect no less from you.”
“You really do come up with something new every so often.”
Her tone held a trace of teasing, but there was not the slightest hint of amusement in those silver-gray eyes.
There was only scrutiny.
“It cannot be helped.”
“My personal charm is simply too overwhelming.” Logaris shrugged without the slightest concern and pointed at Alectos beside him.
“Allow me to introduce him.”
“This is Alectos, the former prince of the Demi-Human Empire, and at present his uncle is hunting him across the world.”
Then he glanced at Alice beside him.
“As for this one, I picked her up on the way.”
“She is just a noisy extra.”
“You are the extra!”
“You bespectacled bookworm!” Alice exploded immediately.
Alectos paid no attention to their bickering.
He stepped forward and offered Sylvia a standard noble salute.
“Your Highness Princess Sylvia, Acting Governor of the Northern Territory.”
“I am Alectos Huiyin,” he said in a deep voice as he briefly recounted the full story of the coup within the Demi-Human Empire, Regent Remington’s usurpation and false accusations, and everything that had happened during the pursuit against him.
He spoke with complete sincerity.
He did not exaggerate in the slightest, merely stating the facts while clearly expressing his desire for peace and his opposition to war.
Sylvia listened quietly, her fingers unconsciously stroking the edge of the table.
Her mind was working at tremendous speed.
To shelter Alectos?
The risk was enormous.
That would amount to openly making an enemy of Remington, the current ruler of the Demi-Human Empire, and he could very well use that as an excuse to launch a full-scale war against the Northern Territory.
But the benefits were equally immense.
A living prince with legitimate succession rights in her hands would be, to the ambitious Regent Remington, a Sword of Damocles hanging above his head.
He would become a card.
A card capable of stirring up the internal situation of the Demi-Human Empire, restraining its strength, and perhaps at some point in the future serving as a decisive trump card.
Sylvia was also a person with ambition.
“So what you want is to seek shelter in the Northern Territory?” Sylvia interrupted Alectos' account.
Alectos nodded solemnly.
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“I hope to rely on your strength to expose Remington’s conspiracy and stop him from dragging the empire into the abyss of war.”