NOVPUB"Yeah, I didn’t exactly go all out."
Talia simply wanted to dig a hole in the ground and crawl into it.
Her gaze shifted warily.
Lanci sat next to her, hands interlocked and placed before him, his expression unchanging as he pondered.
Talia breathed a sigh of relief.
Good, Lanci wasn’t laughing at her.
Unexpectedly, he knew to be serious at a time like this.
Wait a second.
She leaned her side on the table.
She saw the corner of Lanci’s mouth, hidden beneath his hands, was trembling uncontrollably.
"Lanci!"
Talia immediately stood up, hooked her arm around Lanci’s neck from behind, and yanked him backward.
"Ah, help, Cat Boss, save me! Tata! Miss Isatia is watching us!"
Lanci yelled desperately.
"Meow... I agree to the donation, meow."
Cat Boss didn’t want to interrupt these two’s play.
If Tata wanted to hit Lanci, let her hit; if Lanci wanted to be hit, let him be hit; after all, both were willing.
Isatia’s heart fluttered as she touched her chest, watching her sister and Lanci interact.
Every time she saw her sister act with such contrast, she found the sister in her memory even more adorable.
"So Cat Boss, if my sister and Lanci are this close, and they’re not yet together, are there other competitors?"
Isatia tapped the cat’s ear and whispered inquiries beside it.
A man whom her sister would fancy must indeed be exceptional. It wasn’t strange for other girls to fall for him as well.
"This, this, meow."
Suddenly, even the Cat Boss had trouble speaking.
"So there are?"
Isatia somewhat guessed,
"How many?"
She pressed on with a gossip-fueled smile, interrogating Cat Boss.
"Two, meow."
The Cat Boss, after all, was an honest cat, and so replied.
"Wow, then there will be quite the show back in Ichrite."
Isatia laughed and leaned back, pointing at the two people across the table.
While she hoped her sister could win, she always enjoyed watching women fight the most.
"..."
Cat Boss used its ability to round up.
Black bread, able to perform only simple life activities.
Everything else was none of its concern.
Not until Talia and Lanci finished their exchange did she finally let go of Lanci and returned to her seat.
"Do you have any other questions you want to ask us?"
Talia asked Isatia as if nothing had just happened.
"Not for the moment."
Isatia answered with a naive smile tilting her head.
"Then I have a question for you, Isatia, what happened with your injuries?"
Talia’s gaze became much more serious, with a trace of heartache as she observed the scars on Isatia’s body.
Starting from Isatia’s neck, there were branch-like crimson cracks, with lava-like magic power pathways spreading downward, likely searing her constantly, causing her to bear unhealing pain.
"This goes back to my last visit to Blood Moon City, I sneaked in during the time I was sure the Blood Clan Duke was not there, but there were still Blood Clan Marquises left in the Blood King Palace, not only did I fail to rescue Migaya but I also got injured by the Blood Clan Barrier in Blood Moon City."
Isatia’s smile turned bittersweet,
"With it there, the Blood Clan can track me, and I need a large amount of healing to survive."
Back then, she was too arrogant and a bit too hasty, thinking she could steal Migaya away.
Little did she know it would lead her to a near deadlock situation.
The only chance she had of overcoming the Blood Clan now was to train to become invincible before taking them on, but she knew all too well how difficult that would be.
"This ’Blood King’s Divine Fire’ cannot be healed after being scorched by it, only the Blood Clan are unaffected. If one doesn’t maneuver correctly within the Blood King Palace, it will trigger, and since it is a large-scale barrier spell that consumes the core of Blood Moon City, the Blood Clan can’t afford to trigger it frequently either."
Lanci reminded.
"Brother, you know all this too?"
Isatia looked up in amazement.
She had heard that Professor Landry was quite exceptional in Brilda, an Empire person with far-reaching insights, but she didn’t expect him to be so knowledgeable.
"I have to understand Blood Moon City, otherwise, I wouldn’t think of creating the Magic Energy Fission bomb."
Lanci answered with confidence.
He was quite pleased with the news of Isatia’s trip to Blood Moon City, since Isatia had attempted it once, which meant she must know the coordinates of Blood Moon City and had accomplices to help her in and out.
"No wonder... no wonder..."
Miss Isatia suddenly realized, feeling like everything fit into place.
She knew there was a reason she so desperately needed Professor Landry’s research topic—it wasn’t a coincidence, they were meant to accomplish the same task.
"I promised Hyperion I would save Duke Migaya."
Lanci also assured Miss Isatia.
Now that they had found Miss Isatia, the mission to find people was down to the last one.
"Really? Really?"
Miss Isatia asked with a fragile voice.
She had never imagined hearing anyone state so decisively that they would help find Migaya for her,—not with any intent to deceive or comfort her, but with a clear declaration that this task, almost impossible to complete, was his long-promised mission.
"I’ve always spoken my mind and kept my word."
Lanci had never forgotten the promise he made to Hyperion long ago.
"Don’t worry, Miss Isatia, I didn’t believe in this guy’s ability to find people at first, but now I realize it’s really something special. If they’re alive, he can find them. If he ever brings the dead back to life, then I’ll be truly impressed."
Talia, not often one to praise, patted Lanci on the shoulder with admiration.
As promised, Lanci had helped her find her sister, and she was in such good spirits she felt she wouldn’t mind cooking for him for a few more years.
"Thank you, Lanci."
Miss Isatia sobbed as she spoke, furiously wiping away tears streaming from unseen eyes.
The thought of the Alansar family being reunited was something she dared not even dream about.
She hadn’t realized someone was out there, unknown to her, fighting tirelessly for her family.
"It’s okay now, Miss Isatia, your sister is here, I’m right by your side."
Seeing her state, Talia swiftly got up and went around the long table, soothing her sister’s back and drying her tears, holding her to comfort her until Miss Isatia’s emotions settled.
"But Blood Moon City is really hard to conquer, I feel so powerless thinking about it, I’m such a useless Princess."
Miss Isatia hung her head in defeat.
Even taught the mechanisms, she still felt incapable of overcoming Blood Moon City.
"Actually, it’s not your fault, Blood Moon City is like a siege-level battle, you need a group of around twenty to fight together, it’s definitely not a one-person job. Coming back alive is already impressive."
Lanci understood Miss Isatia’s intention was merely to rescue Migaya.
However, to venture into Blood Moon City alone was the act of someone courageous, yet presumptuous.
She must have had some sort of Space Series artifact that allowed her to escape forcibly.
"Do you plan to raze the entire Blood Moon City?"
Miss Isatia was also stunned.
She thought Blood Moon City was a stealth mission, similar to a prison type Shadow World, and rescuing Migaya would be a success.
She hadn’t expected Lanci to talk about conquering the whole city.
"Of course, if we don’t tear down Blood Moon City, we won’t catch these members of the Blood Clan; with a base, they’re just too sneaky, they can always retreat into darkness."
Lanci replied with certainty.
He could not allow this menace to wreak havoc under his Cerryti Empire!
"You got this, brother, I will definitely help you."
Miss Isatia clenched her fist, her tears mixing with a smile.
"Could you not call me ’brother’..."
Lanci felt a shiver every time he heard it, no matter how many times.
Although Miss Isatia’s girlish charm wasn’t feigned, but...
No buts.
That’s what he thought under Talia’s watchful gaze.
"Um."
Miss Isatia, her index finger lightly touching her lips, seemed hesitant, perhaps worried that Lanci might dislike it.
"Lanci, Miss Isatia wants to call you ’brother,’ is that okay?"
Talia looked at Lanci with a smile while her unseen hand of spiritual power rested over his heart.
"..."
Lanci didn’t move.
What can I say?
"He has no objections."
Talia gave her permission.
"Okay."
Miss Isatia smiled brightly.
"I..."
Lanci’s face went through several expressions.
He felt it was too weird to be called ’brother’ by Miss Isatia.
What if it became a habit?
If Hyperion saw it, Lanci felt he could no longer be around Hyperion.
