The Chronicles of New Havens

Afterwards, Protector Avin walked into the tent where Freon was and upon seeing the state of the boy, he immediately frowned. Freon's injuries were bad, very bad. He was barely clinging on by a thread. Avin could not imagine how much he went through. It was a gamble if he could recover using ordinary techniques. The kingdom would probably be unable to heal him. In the White Healer's absence, the only one who could heal him was… Avin sighed. Had he not personally come here, then Freon would have succumbed to his wounds and died. How reckless! He chastised the boy in his mind, while his spell began. A brilliant surge of vitality filled the tent. Freon's complexion slowly, but surely relaxed. It would take some time for his body to fully recover.

As for his Core… This was shocking. Although the foundations were shaky, this was unmistakably Low Condensed Drop! The last time they saw each other, Freon was a High Gaseous Fog Arcanist. To climb from High Gaseous Fog to Low Condensed Drop in less than a year… Even those from esteemed Engelsheft Families, blessed with great Magic Potential and Bloodlines, would struggle to do the same. After all, to reach Condensed Drop was to reach the zenith of power in the Zino Kingdom! Only a handful of people could do it! Originally, Avin thought that Nassandra had inherited the Magic Potential, whereas Freon had inherited the Bloodline Ability, but he might have been mistaken. Freon absolutely had the potential too. Or maybe this was a result of his hard work and determination? Either way, Freon… could get stronger, much stronger! Avin was looking forward to seeing his growth.

"How long are you going to keep watching, Sword King?"

The man chuckled. "I was curious how you would heal him. I heard he was your nephew… and judging by your silence, I assume that's true?"

"Perhaps."

"Benedict, that boy over there, is my disciple."

"So, this is Benedict…" Avin looked at the knight curiously. Freon and Shirley spoke of Benedict and Elizabeth frequently, so he knew who he was. To become the Sword King's disciple meant that Benedict had a great deal of potential as well. How strange was it that fate brought everyone together.

"And you can consider that girl over there my half-disciple."

"You mean Shirley? When did she become your half-disciple?"

"You can thank Benedict for that. He decided to teach her my Cloud Sea Style, and how to use Martial Energy."

Despite saying that, the Sword King did not look angry. Shirley had proved herself through her extraordinary talent. In some ways, her raw instincts were even greater than Benedict! It was a shame that she was unteachable in swordsmanship. Otherwise, he might have taken her in as an official disciple. Pointing his index finger, two streams of Martial Energy shot out and entered Benedict and Shirley's bodies. An incredibly powerful burst of vitality followed. His recovery technique was evidently much stronger than Protector Avin's spell. This was hardly surprising. Martial Energy was akin to stamina or lifeforce. It could heal the body far better than Magic Energy could.

"Martial Energy…" Avin muttered.

"Hm? This is a simple trick. You could do this too."

"I'll have to disappoint you then. To be honest, I didn't even know this was called Martial Energy until recently." A dim glow swirled around his finger. From its awkward movements, it was clear that Protector Avin was inexperienced. He extinguished it with a breath. "As you can see, I can't use it very well."

"Interesting. It's like me with Magic Energy."

"You can use Magic Energy too?"

"Although I don't like to use it, I do have a Low Condensed Drop Core."

"Low Condensed Drop… And I'm a Perception Realm Novice…" Avin pondered silently. "Is it possible that a second source of energy is required to become an Instinct Realm or Blue Depth? For example, I had a breakthrough to Blue Depth Core when I grasped Martial Energy and reached Perception Realm. Was that the same for you?"

"I heard the Featherwind Sect refer to people like us as Rank 3 Kings," the Sword King replied. "If we consider Fundamental Realm and Gaseous Fog to be Rank 1, then Perception Realm and Condensed Drop would be Rank 2."

"Then Rank 3 would be Instinct Realm and Blue Depth."

"Like you said, grasping Magic Energy and forming a Condensed Drop Core were the keys to breaking into Instinct Realm. Perhaps, that might be the case for all Rank 3 Kings."

"…Is that really the case though? It seems too straightforward," Protector Avin had his doubts.

"We would have to ask the princess that question. She and the birds know more than they admit."

"I look forward to meeting her. I heard she's done a great deal of things."

"You haven't met her before?" the Sword King had a strange look on his face.

"No, I haven't. Is that a problem?" Protector Avin returned with a frown of his own.

"She's an Arcanist, so I was under the impression you were her master."

"Why would you think that?"

"I vaguely recall the Featherwind Sect mention it in passing, that Elizabeth's master was a formidable Rank 3 King, one strong enough to convince them into allying with the Alzar Kingdom. I thought that person might have been you."

"A Blue Depth Core Arcanist… There shouldn't be another one aside from me."

"I agree though the Featherwind Sect seems to think otherwise. There must be more than meets the eye."

"It seems we'll have to ask Her Highness more questions then."

"Let me know when she's ready to talk," the Sword King withdrew his technique and began to walk out. "We'll continue our spar another day." Whoosh. He vanished on the spot.

"It's like I heard. It won't be easy to handle the Sword King. What a difficult person." Protector Avin felt a headache. He looked towards Elizabeth's tent and smiled wryly. "I guess I have no choice. I'll heal her afterwards."

 The Conquestian arrived two hours later. He was originally close enough to sense Protector Avin's aura, but since the Jian and Jun Family retreated, he had to go the long way around their army. Thankfully, he could tell the battle was over, so he could take his time. There was no rush. General Petra greeted him, and they exchanged information. Upon hearing that reinforcements were arriving, the general was immediately relieved. They needed more manpower to secure their position. For the remainder of the afternoon and most of the evening, the kingdom's army gradually moved into Yongtein. There was resistance, of course, from the citizens and the city guard ranging everywhere between light harassment to small-scale skirmishes. Nobody welcomed the kingdom. In response, the soldiers snapped back. They had just finished a fierce battle, so their patience wore thin. No one was going to hold their anger back. The situation was very tense.

However, the kingdom was heavily outnumbered. Yongtein had millions of people living in it. If push came to shove, they could overwhelm the kingdom's meager numbers. General Petra understood this, so she forbade any fighting. They could not risk another conflict. The Imperial Princesses tried to pacify the people, but they had the opposite effect. Everyone viewed them as traitors for selling out the empire. The same went for Minister Daiyuu and the Shui Family. Ultimately, it required Elder Terus's unique calming spell and Protector Avin's power to project it over a large area for the unrest to settle. The city was too large to fully occupy; hence General Petra took control of the Inner City and the Emperor's City instead. Princess Xiuying and Ming were filled with emotions when they saw their old home, the Imperial Palace. So much happened since then. Their father died… Civil war broke out… And they allied with the Alzar Kingdom… After so long, they were finally returning home!

That night, hundreds, if not thousands, of messenger pigeons took flight to notify the world about the battle here. The news quickly reached every corner of the Xingyuu Empire. Naturally, everyone was shocked! The Shui Family defected! The Imperial Council fell! The Jian and Jun Families surrendered! Yongtein was captured! Every notice was bigger than the last. It was so absurd that many dismissed it as a bad joke, and others thought it was the kingdom's trick. Nobody believed it at first, but they soon realized it was not that simple. The messenger pigeons were unique, in that anyone could tell they came directly from the Imperial Court. It was very difficult to falsify. Furthermore, on every notice was a series of seals from esteemed individuals such as Princess Xiuying and Princess Ming, Imperian Qiang, Minister Daiyuu, Minister Chan, and even… Prime Minister Pon-Wai! It became impossible to deny. The Imperial Council had truly fallen! Fear, panic, and chaos spread. What would happen next? A dark shadow engulfed the empire, as everyone dreaded their fate.