Chapter 1058: Act 230 – Revealing One’s Heart
A dusty, bloodstained hand emerged from the rubble, causing stones to roll down with a clatter. The hand tightly clutched a crystal ball, which seemed to be activated by some mysterious power, radiating a faint glow and emitting a thin mist that enveloped everything around it.
The bloodied hand struggled a couple of times before lifting a larger piece of debris, which appeared as weightless as foam, easily pushed aside, and rolled down with a heavy sound.
Then, with a crash, a large mass of rubble and broken wood was lifted, revealing a person covered in dust.
The person was completely gray, with only two lively eyes remaining. Cautiously, he scanned his surroundings and, not finding Queen Gwendolyn, finally let out a sigh of relief.
This was Brendel.
He thought it seemed that the Elven Queen was at least not joking with him about this; the Dragon Slayer Jewel in his hand truly worked. Otherwise, a mere layer of rubble and wooden debris would absolutely not withstand Gwendolyn’s search.
After glancing at the crystal ball in his hand, Brendel opened his waist pouch and tossed it inside. Despite the barrier of fabric, the mist-like membrane surrounding his body showed no signs of lessening, indicating that it did not affect the jewel’s function.
However, this allowed him to free his hands. He bent down carefully and pulled Medisa from beneath the rocks. Although he was covered in scratches, the Silver Elf Princess was nearly unscathed under his protection, giving him some reassurance. He slung her onto his back, steadied himself with a sword in one hand, and cautiously looked around.
They had to be at the outskirts of the patrol cavalry headquarters; half the fortress had collapsed in the previous battle—though what had transpired between him and the Dragon Queen hardly constituted a true fight. At most, he had just obstructed Gwendolyn’s pursuit of Himelam, after which Gwendolyn retaliated with one strike.
Yet that one strike resulted in the devastation he now beheld.
Standing beneath the night sky, Brendel stared in shock at the scene before him—a ruined expanse of about ten thousand square meters, more thorough than any demolition. It looked as if a demolition crew had deliberately set off explosives, leaving behind a masterpiece; the largest fragment he could see was the fountain that used to be in the courtyard of the patrol cavalry headquarters, which had been ‘lucky’ enough to be shattered only into two halves.
Water gushed from the cracked fountain, filling most of the courtyard, making it seem like half of the patrol cavalry headquarters was a marshland.
“Looks like Her Majesty will have a lot of fun with this. The reconstruction will cost a pretty penny. But the Empire does have money; I just wonder how she plans to explain all of this to the populace,” Brendel thought, unable to suppress a bit of schadenfreude. Gwendolyn certainly had no reservations, as a formidable Sage, to unleash her full power in the city.
Of course, he didn’t dare to confirm whether she had gone all out. After all, there were legends of Sages who could obliterate half a city with a single blow. He simply found it very annoying to feel so powerless in this situation.
Without the ability to grow stronger, one could never truly dominate their own fate.
In this era, he might have been at the pinnacle of humanity, but compared to those legendary existences, he was still far behind.
He glanced around again but did not find any trace of Queen Gwendolyn. He knew she might think he had escaped through some means and would be searching for him outside; dragons often took pride in their physical speed, and it wasn’t the first time they had made arrogant mistakes due to such illusions.
He felt some anxiety about Hisamel’s escape. The time left for the High Priestess had been limited, and he couldn’t be certain if she had indeed fled beyond the Dragon Queen’s perception. Brendel tried to establish a mental link with her but found no response.
His heart tightened at once. He sent several messages, only to be surprised by a response from Repal.
The Fireclaw Lizardman Lord was not far from him; in fact, he was located at the outskirts of the Queen’s district, only a few blocks away from Brendel.
Brendel inquired about Hisamel, receiving a negative answer, before learning that she had left the battlefield before the fight at the Cold Dew Manor concluded.
As a glorious warrior, Repal rarely chose to retreat, but Brendel had tasked him with protecting the young lady of the Flowerleaf Territory. As a competent protector, his best choice was always to place the one he was protecting in the safest possible situation first.
He had arrived early at the Queen’s district, waiting to meet Brendel, and had only cautiously retreated to the west of the Queen’s district once Myad occupied this area, without choosing to confront the cultists.
Brendel had not expected this typically careless large guy to show such meticulousness, and he admired Repal greatly. After acknowledging him with a few words, he then asked:
“Is Faina still with you, Repal?”
“Miss Faina is fine, my lord,” the Fireclaw Lizardman Lord replied in a very formal manner, “We also encountered others.”
“Others?” Brendel was slightly taken aback.
“Lady Veronika, and others.” Since he had met Veronika once at the Loop of Trade Winds, Repal only recognized her, but from his words, Brendel quickly understood that Repal had run into Sidney and her group.
According to Medisa and Hisamel before, there was also a distinguished figure who should be with them. Brendel knew this was someone who once had a significant impact on the Empire’s history, having established the order of the Empire together with the previous Emperor decades ago, until their successors—the Silver Queen—completely destroyed it.
Regardless, this person could indeed be considered someone who had changed the world.
He was the former Chancellor of the Empire, the legendary Nidwen.
Brendel let out a soft breath; he didn’t ask why Sidney and the others had arrived at the Queen’s district so late, and merely instructed Repal quietly, “Repal, tell them to wait for me right there, don’t reveal themselves casually, and inform them that Queen Gwendolyn is nearby, and that I will come to join you.”
“Yes, my lord.”
Repal did not bother to ask who Queen Gwendolyn was, nor seemed to care whether Brendel had the ability to reach them. He just obediently followed the orders like a true warrior.
This rather reassured Brendel.
At least among his subordinates like Medephis, Andrigraphis, Charles, and even the High Priestess, there was someone he could feel at ease ordering around.
Speaking of which, after he had ordered Medephis and Charles to act separately at the foot of the Cold Dew Manor, he had not received any news from them. Ever since he had seen that Nightmare Mother, he felt that the mental link with his traveling mage creature had become tenuous.
Legends said that the Nightmares could manipulate mental networks, and it seemed that was indeed the case.
Closing the mental link, Brendel let out a soft sigh.
Cultists, rioting citizens, and the second corruption of Andisha and Myad—there was clearly a Shepherd’s shadow behind this. And now the Nightmares were once again emerging, with the Dragon Queen brazenly appearing outside; it was as if everything was converging at once.
“What a turbulent time this is. All kinds of monsters are emerging from the core of the Empire…”
He couldn’t help but exclaim.
Brendel was indeed seriously injured; the Dragon Queen’s strike had at least broken three of his ribs. Fortunately, his current physical strength helped him endure; had it been anyone else, they would have likely turned to mush from that blow, even at the peak of their abilities.
Such injuries affected his mobility to some extent. Although his life was slowly recovering under the influence of his tenacity, his fractures could not receive effective treatment. Moreover, in order not to alert Queen Gwendolyn to his speed, he could not dare to fly easily on the rooftops, and could only limp along the streets with Medisa on his back.
He left the patrol cavalry headquarters and made his way through an unknown narrow alley behind the fortress, which he had traversed a few days prior and knew led to Sword-edge Street, the closest area to Repal.
After walking through the dark streets for an unknown length of time, Brendel suddenly sensed a light breath brush against his neck. He paused before realizing:
“Medisa?”
The Silver Elf Princess gently responded with a soft sound. “Let me down, my lord,” she whispered.
“Are you sure?”
“I’m fine. I’m not injured; the mental impact doesn’t affect me that much, especially not like this—it’s just a little overwhelming, but I’m already feeling much better.”
Medisa glanced at Brendel, biting her lip. “You’re much more injured than I am.”
Brendel set her down, but the movement unfortunately aggravated his chest injury, causing him to grimace in pain. Medisa hastily steadied him, her silver eyes staring at him in astonishment.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, confused.
“Nothing.” Medisa looked down.
She blinked, and the bright colors reflected in her silver eyes were even more radiant than the moonlight, like a soft glow cast over her pupils, displaying a vividly distinct inner complexity.
Just when he thought she had nothing more to say, the Silver Elf Princess softly addressed him again: “My lord.”
“Mm?”
“Miss Xi…”
“What about her?”
“She is very dependent on you.”
Brendel was momentarily taken aback, unsure why Medisa would mention this topic.
“You should be able to feel it.”
Brendel fell silent involuntarily; of course he could sense it, and inwardly understood what such feelings meant.
“I think, even if she never receives any acknowledgment or promises from you, she will still be resolute.”
“I…” Brendel wished he could scratch his head. Even when facing the Dragon Queen, he had never felt so hesitant and indecisive. Only on this issue did he feel lost and directionless, cowardly answering:
“I’m sorry, Medisa.”
Yet the Silver Elf Princess showed neither anger nor complaint, and didn’t exhibit disappointment either. She softly said, “No need to say sorry, for to us, this is worth it.”
“You all?”
Medisa nodded, but her gaze seemed to imply she hadn’t taken the matter to heart. When she spoke again, it was as if she was addressing another topic:
“You are too soft-hearted, my lord. I think Miss Xi should understand what you are thinking; she simply does not wish to hurt you, not even a little.”
Brendel was stunned. He had always thought that it was Xi who was hard to read; he had tenderly nurtured that relationship purely to avoid hurting her. From his perspective, Xi had been betrayed more than once, and he was worried that another cold response from him would be too much for her to bear.
But he did not expect the truth to be like this. He couldn’t help but glance at Medisa. Perhaps only another female could understand such gentle thoughts.
Yet he suddenly realized that Medisa was expressing her own feelings through Xi.
“Medisa, you…”
The Silver Elf Princess lifted her head and lightly shook it at him. “No need for that, my lord. I just want to say, I’m very happy. No one has ever treated me this way. In truth, I don’t quite understand human emotions because the life of a Silver Elf is surrounded by battle. I was born to be taught such knowledge. But charging through battle and slaughter does not bring me greater fulfillment compared to now.”
“I think,” she said softly, “Miss Xi is probably the same.”
Brendel lapsed into silence.
The two supported each other as they advanced through the dark alley, a beam of moonlight slipped through the eaves, gently draping over the cobbled path, the flickering light flickering and intertwining between the two.
As if a thread of fate, two souls from two worlds, separated by a thousand years and different eras, were drawn together.
Both were immersed in their own thoughts, to the point that they did not notice the Sword Saint of Green had walked in front of them.
Veronika, with a teasing expression, looked at the two young ones and finally couldn’t help but remind them:
“It seems your feelings have grown, but the little one from the Darus family, being so flirtatious isn’t good for you. My student looks very concerned about you.”
Brendel was startled and looked up in shock, only to find that even though he had not called Sidney and the others to meet him, the group had still managed to find their way here.
However, his gaze first passed through the crowd and did not land on the stern features of the Lady of the Lion Saint Palace, but rather on an old, serious face.
He recognized that person immediately.
The Empire’s only Chancellor, Nidwen.
