Chapter 75: Lucien and Selvia

Rosia recognized the person who had just opened the door—it was Aris. "You... why are you here?" Rosia was startled, hastily trying to stand up, but her body was already too exhausted to move. She glanced at Lathel, but he didn’t seem to react at all to Aris’s appearance, leaving her even more confused. Aris walked up to Lathel, knelt on one knee, lowered her head, and respectfully said, "Master!" "Ah!" Rosia was so shocked she could only utter a simple sound. Her eyes filled with suspicion as she looked at Aris, then at Lathel, as if waiting for an explanation. Lathel said nothing. He simply stood there. Aris knew exactly what to do—she quickly fetched clothing and began dressing him. "From now on, you and Aris will work as a team. The two of you will coordinate to provide me with continuous updates on Lucien and the people around him." "Additionally, I want detailed information on everything happening within the academy. Understood?" "I... I understand." Rosia pulled the blanket up to cover her body. Her mind still wasn’t completely clear, but she nodded instinctively. However, as she watched Aris respectfully and without a hint of pretense dressing Lathel, Rosia suddenly realized... he wasn’t as simple as he appeared to be. Of course, Rosia had heard of the name Lathel before and knew a little about him, but she’d never paid much attention. Now, seeing the personal disciple of the Vice Dean kneel and address Lathel as "Master," respectfully dressing him like a servant—Lathel’s image in her eyes suddenly grew larger... more mysterious. After he finished dressing, Lathel smiled and said, "Good. Just carry on as usual. I’ll assign you specific tasks later." With that, he placed a small porcelain vial—no bigger than two fingertips—on the bed and left. Only after the door closed did Rosia fully regain her clarity. She looked at Aris, who was still standing beside the bed, and asked, puzzled, "You... you’re Lathel’s servant?" "That’s right." Aris gave a small nod. "Then... why are you with Irelia?" "Because of the mission." "What mission?" "To monitor and report back to the Master. Besides that, I do anything he asks of me." "Ah." Rosia nodded slightly, then asked, "So... what should I do now?" "You already heard what the Master said," Aris replied, her voice filled with apathy. "Just act normally. Don’t make it obvious that you know the Master. Don’t approach him on your own. Understood?" Rosia shivered. She could sense that Aris’s level was likely on par with her own, but the killing intent Aris radiated terrified her. "I... I understand." Rosia bit her lip. Aris glanced at her, then picked up the vial Lathel had left behind and placed it in Rosia’s hand. "This is a recovery potion. Use it immediately and focus on getting stronger." "The Master... has no use for dead weight." "No matter how beautiful you are, no matter how much pleasure you bring him—if you’re useless, I will eliminate you." Rosia, frightened by Aris’s words and the coldness in her eyes, nodded immediately. ... Lathel had just stepped out the door when he immediately vanished. A second later, he reappeared in his private chamber. This was a new ability he had developed after his Space talent reached level 6. In truth, his current ’Space’ talent was only level 4, but thanks to the ’Perfect Humanity’ talent, it had been boosted by two levels, making it significantly more powerful. "You’re no longer pretending to be a kind and useless prince?" Evelyn’s voice echoed in Lathel’s mind. He smiled, not rushing to answer, instead pouring himself a cup of tea. He gently swirled the tea in his hand, eyes fixed on the surface as he said, "No need. For people like her—greedy and purpose-driven, with clear desires—the best approach is to be direct and efficient." "Playing the role of a benevolent prince would only annoy her and make her think I’m unworthy of cooperation." "On the contrary, by doing what I just did, she’ll obediently submit to me... becoming my toy." "I see..." Evelyn said, a hint of surprise in her voice. "You’re not only cruel but also understand humans very well." "Huh!" Lathel chuckled. "Have you finished absorbing Lazarok’s soul?" "Not yet, but I’m close," Evelyn replied. "Just a few more days and I’ll be able to fully absorb the energy inside his soul." "Evelyn, if you needed to replenish your soul energy, what kind of medicine would you require?" Lathel suddenly asked. His question left Evelyn slightly puzzled. "Technically, I can just absorb the souls of beings like Lazarok. But if you’re asking about medicines... then perhaps what I’d need is—" ... "What are you doing here?" Professor Lyra frowned, her beautiful eyes filled with killing intent as she glared at the young man in front of her. A sharp-featured face, resolute eyes, a well-toned body, and short yet slightly tousled black hair. Strapped to his back was a massive black sword. His left arm was wrapped in white bandages. That’s right—it was Lucien. Inside the large room filled with strange jars and herbs Lucien had never seen before, the scent of medicinal herbs lingered in the air, bringing an oddly soothing and peaceful effect to anyone who inhaled it. Lucien stood opposite Lyra, while she sat quietly in a chair, her hand—delicate like a masterpiece—slowly flipping through the pages of a book. However, the angelic face she wore was masked with a layer of cold indifference, her eyes brimming with hostility and disdain as they locked onto Lucien. Lucien felt the full weight of her hostile gaze and sighed inwardly. ’No! She doesn’t hate me.’ he thought. ’She was just deceived by Lathel, that’s why she dislikes me.’ ’Ignore it. Helping Master Lilith is more important right now.’ Lucien took a deep breath and said, "Professor Lyra, what happened before... was all a misunderstanding." "Hmm?!" Lyra shot him a look—so sharp and terrifying that it made Lucien flinch, his heartbeat quickening. "You injured my disciple..." Lyra’s icy voice echoed, "You conspired with the Demon Clan, cheated inside the Trial Tower, and provoked my disciple..." "All of that was just a misunderstanding?" "That..." Lucien faltered. Even though he knew it was all a misunderstanding—a web of lies orchestrated by Lathel—he still couldn’t explain it. He couldn’t even refute it. "Enough! I have nothing to say to you. Get out before I lose my temper." Hearing this, Lucien was filled with frustration. His fists clenched tightly, turning pale and trembling slightly. Still, he endured and remained where he was, loosening his grip. He took another deep breath, forcing himself to stay calm and said, "Professor Lyra, this is all just a misunderstanding. Please, don’t judge me based on lies and what you think you’ve seen." "Hm?! Are you implying that I’m too foolish to tell truth from lies?" Lyra snapped, her beautiful eyes flashing with a chilling killing intent. Lucien stiffened, feeling as though the very space around him had turned into a swamp, rendering him immobile. "Th-that’s not what I meant..." he stammered. "I-I’m sorry, Professor Lyra. I... I didn’t mean it that way." "Huh!" Lyra scoffed with disdain. Lucien felt the pressure around him lift and exhaled in relief, though his back was soaked with sweat and beads of it dotted his face like dew. Wiping his forehead with his sleeve, he spoke in a low voice, "Professor, I came here for a certain soul-nourishing medicine. That’s why... I hope you can help me." "I’m willing to pay any price to obtain it." Lyra frowned, her gaze filled with suspicion as she looked at Lucien. "Your soul appears normal, with no signs of damage. What do you need such a medicine for?" Hearing this, Lucien instantly realized—she did have the medicine. "Professor, I—" Lucien began, but was interrupted by a knock on the door. Knock! Knock! "Professor, it’s me, Selvia." A clear, familiar voice reached Lucien’s ears. The moment he heard it, his heart stirred, making it difficult to remain calm. "Come in." Lyra glanced at Lucien before replying. The door opened, and Selvia stepped in. When she saw Lucien, her face flashed with surprise—but within seconds, her expression turned cold and indifferent, mirroring Lyra’s. "What are you doing here?" Selvia’s voice rang out, filled with irritation. Lucien felt the wave of disdain coming from her and was struck with a deep, painful ache in his chest. ’Selvia... why? Why do you look at me like that?’ He knew... Selvia must have been deceived by Lathel, which was why she now treated him this way. Clenching his teeth, Lucien’s heart swelled with resentment. Right now, he wanted nothing more than to kill Lathel on the spot. "You’re not welcome here. Please leave." Selvia frowned. "Selvia..." Lucien called her name, unable to suppress himself. "Why are you so cold to me? In the past... you—" "That’s enough!" Selvia snapped. Though clearly furious, she held back, her eyes icy as she stared at Lucien. "I am now Lathel’s wife. Please address me as Crown Princess." "Besides, why would I show any warmth to someone who attacked my husband and tried to steal my happiness?" "You..." Lucien clenched his teeth, pain stabbing through his heart like a thousand blades. "Selvia..." "I said..." Selvia growled, voice low and sharp, "Call me... Crown Princess." "Crown Princess..." Lucien bit down, each word a dagger to his pride, as if admitting Selvia now truly belonged to Lathel. "Everything I did was for your own good. You just haven’t seen Lathel’s true face yet. He—" "Enough!" Selvia cut him off coldly. "I don’t care who he is. All I know is... he’s my husband, and I love him. That’s all that matters." Lucien froze. His hands clenched so tightly his knuckles turned white. The hand without bandages revealed fingernails digging into his palm, fresh blood dripping to the floor. "That’s enough." Lyra finally spoke up. "Don’t argue here. Selvia, did you encounter problems during your training?" Selvia glanced at Lucien, then turned back to Lyra. Her attitude shifted immediately. She lowered her head and respectfully replied, "Master, I... I didn’t encounter any issues. I just came to ask for a soul-nourishing medicine." "You..."