Chapter 208: Beneath the Capital
The first snow of the season had begun to settle over Ashen Fortress, covering the blackened stones and broken walls with a thin layer of white that made the ruins appear almost peaceful from a distance.
Up close, however, there was no mistaking the scars left behind by General Sheng’s attack. Several sections of the outer wall remained unfinished, one of the watchtowers had collapsed completely, and the eastern castle still carried dark streaks of smoke across its stone walls.
Yet Ashen Fortress was alive again.
The courtyards rang with the sounds of construction and training from dawn until dusk, while soldiers carried timber toward the damaged gates and civilians worked alongside them to rebuild their homes.
The children who had once wandered through the ruined streets now had meals every day, and even though the fortress remained desperately short on supplies, there was something in the people that had not been there when Qingyue first arrived.
Hope.
Qingyue stood above the training grounds, watching the soldiers move through their formations. "Again," she called.
The soldiers immediately reset themselves.
"Your left flank is too slow. If the enemy breaks through the center, they’ll reach the supply stores before you can reinforce them."
One of the officers bowed. "Yes, Princess."
"Again."
The soldiers moved.
Kael stood several steps behind her, watching the formation with his arms folded. "You’re becoming a terrifying instructor," he remarked.
Qingyue didn’t turn around. "They need to survive."
"I wasn’t complaining."
Qingyue finally glanced at him, the younger boy was beginning to annoy her. "Then what are you doing here?"
"Watching."
"You could be helping."
"I’ve been helping."
"With what?"
Kael smiled faintly. "Keeping everyone alive long enough for you to rebuild this place."
Qingyue gave him a suspicious look but said nothing.
The training continued until the soldiers were exhausted, and only when the sun began descending toward the mountains did Qingyue finally dismiss them.
She turned toward Kael. "How many messages?"
"Three."
"From Yunhai?"
"The first two."
"And Baihe?"
"The third."
Qingyue frowned. "Did they agree to trade?"
"Not exactly."
Kael reached into his robes and produced the letters. "They’re willing to trade with us, but neither city wants to openly support a rebellion against the capital."
Qingyue took the letters. "We aren’t rebelling." Just taking what is rightfully ours.
Kael raised an eyebrow. "That’s what you should tell them."
Qingyue looked at him. "What would you tell them?"
"That Ashen Fortress is restoring an old military territory and reopening the northern trade routes."
"And would they believe you?"
"They don’t have to."
Kael shrugged. "They only need to believe that trading with us will make them money."
Qingyue almost smiled. "You sound like Han Shuying."
Kael’s expression changed slightly at the mention of her. "She left the capital for a reason."
Qingyue looked at him. "You know what that reason is?"
Kael’s gaze moved toward the mountains. "I have an idea." He didn’t elaborate. There were some things he could never explain to Qingyue. Especially not the truth about himself.
He had never belonged in this world.
Before his transmigration, Kael had read the novel from beginning to end. He remembered the characters, the kingdoms, the betrayals and, most importantly, the events that were supposed to happen.
Ashen Fortress was never supposed to survive. Qingyue was never supposed to rebuild it. And the relic buried beneath the capital wasn’t supposed to enter the story until much later.
Yet here they were. Everything was changing.
"Princess." Officer Liang’s voice interrupted his thoughts.
Qingyue turned.
The older officer approached carrying a weathered wooden box. "We found this beneath the eastern castle."
Qingyue frowned. "Where?"
"Under the foundation." He handed the box to her.
Kael’s attention immediately shifted toward it. The royal crest carved into the lid was faded, but he recognized it instantly. It made his stomach tighten.
No.
He had seen that crest before. Not in this world, but in the novel. His eyes remained on the box as Qingyue brushed the dirt from its surface.
There was no lock. No visible hinges. Only a circular indentation in the center of the lid. Kael’s heart began beating faster.
It can’t be.
Qingyue looked at him. "Do you recognize it?"
Kael forced his expression to remain neutral. "Not exactly."
It was a lie. He knew precisely what it was. The box contained a record left behind by the former Empress.
And if the story was already changing, then something that had once been impossible had just become possible.
Qingyue examined the indentation. "There’s no key."
Kael stepped closer. "Maybe there isn’t supposed to be one."
She looked at him. "What do you mean?"
Before he could answer, he noticed a small piece of jade hanging from his own belt. His breath caught. He remembered the original story.
A jade seal.
A hidden box.
A message from the former Empress.
His fingers closed around the jade. He had almost forgotten that he’d taken it from the ruined eastern castle days earlier.
Kael placed it into the indentation and the box clicked before the lid opened.
Qingyue stared at him. "How did you know?"
Kael looked down at the box. "Lucky guess."
She clearly didn’t believe him. Neither did he.
Inside the box was a scroll wrapped in faded red silk. Qingyue carefully lifted it. Kael watched her unfold it.
The first words immediately confirmed his fear.
To the daughter who will one day reclaim what was stolen.
Qingyue’s eyes widened. "What is this?"
Kael already knew.
The Heaven-Severing Crown.
The relic had been one of the most important treasures in the entire story, although its existence wasn’t revealed until much later. In the original plot, Qingyue never discovered the truth at Ashen Fortress because Ashen Fortress was supposed to fall before she could uncover her mother’s hidden inheritance.
Kael stared at the scroll.
So the story has already changed.
The realization sent an uncomfortable chill through him. He had always believed his knowledge of the novel gave him an advantage. Now he wasn’t so certain.
Qingyue continued reading. "The Heaven-Severing Crown was created during the founding of the dynasty and sealed beneath the ancient imperial temple. It recognizes the bloodline of the first sovereign and cannot be awakened through force."
Her fingers tightened around the parchment. It was just like Han Shuying said. Except...the cunning woman never told her its location.
Kael remained silent. He remembered what came next.
The Crown was not merely a symbol. It was connected to the spiritual formations beneath the capital. Whoever awakened it could potentially command the ancient defensive formations surrounding the imperial city. The current Empress knew the relic existed, but she had never been able to awaken it.
Qingyue looked up. "My mother knew about this."
"Yes," Kael answered carefully.
"Why would she hide something like this?"
"Because she knew someone might eventually try to use it."
Qingyue looked toward him, eyes narrowing with suspicion. "How do you know?"
Kael’s heart skipped. He quickly looked back at the scroll. "I don’t. It was just a guess." Another lie.
He remembered everything. The Crown would only answer someone who sought restoration rather than power for themselves.
Qingyue continued reading. Then her expression changed. "It’s beneath the capital."
Kael nodded. "Yes."
She looked at him sharply. "You knew."
Kael remained silent.
"I’ve seen that expression before," Qingyue said. "You know more than you’re telling me."
Kael finally met her eyes. "There are things you don’t need to know yet."
"That’s not your decision."
"No," he admitted. "It isn’t."
Qingyue stepped closer. "Then tell me."
Kael looked away.
How do I explain that I already read the story containing your entire life?
He couldn’t. Not yet.
Because if Qingyue discovered the truth, she would ask questions he couldn’t answer without exposing everything.
So instead, he pointed toward the scroll. "The Crown is damaged."
Qingyue’s expression hardened. "How badly?"
"I don’t know."
That part wasn’t a lie. The book had never explained exactly what happened to the Crown’s spiritual core. But it explained something else.
If the Crown was awakened while the Eclipse Relic was active, the two relics would react to one another. And that was the part Kael had never expected to matter.
Ru Yi.
His stomach tightened.
In the original novel, Ru Yi wasn’t supposed to obtain the Eclipse Relic. She certainly wasn’t supposed to be trained by General Sheng. She wasn’t supposed to have contacted Qingyue through the shadows.
If anything, she should be dead.
Kael looked toward the mountains and his expression darkened. If the story continued changing at this speed, his knowledge of the future would become useless.
Or worse. It could become a trap.
Qingyue rolled the scroll carefully. "I’m going to the capital."
Kael looked at her. "Do you understand what you’re saying?"
"Yes."
"The Empress will be watching for you."
"Then we’ll be careful."
"You could be walking into a trap."
Qingyue’s gaze hardened. "Then I’ll become strong enough to walk out."
Kael studied her. This was exactly how the original Qingyue had been written. Determined...Fearless. Willing to risk everything for the throne. But this Qingyue was different.
She had Ashen Fortress.
She had an army.
She had knowledge of the Crown far earlier than she should.
And somewhere beyond the mountains was Ru Yi, carrying a power that had never belonged in this part of the story.
Kael suddenly understood something that frightened him. He wasn’t watching the novel unfold anymore. He was watching an entirely new story being written.
And he had no idea how it would end.
Far away, beneath the capital, something ancient stirred beneath layers of stone. The Heaven-Severing Crown had remained dormant for centuries.
Until now.
A faint pulse traveled through the underground temple...Then another. And beneath another sky— Ru Yi suddenly opened her eyes.