Valerian, The Legendary

Stephanie replied calmly, “I am going to visit the second princess. You do not have to follow me.”

A guard frowned and said, “How can that be, Your Excellency? It is our duty to protect you and escort you.”

Stephanie knew these guards will not let her go, so she said, “Assign two guards to follow me, you do not have to send too many, after all, I am not leaving the palace for war. I am just visiting my daughter, that is all.”

Her tone was stern and she did not leave room for the guard. She was stating a fact and not suggesting it, and even with the support of the Emperor, the guards did not dare to disobey her. They nodded and two men were assigned. Stark watched all this but he did not take a step forward.

Stephanie gazed at his face for a moment, her ever-so-gentle face did not seem out of ordinary, but her eyes flickered for a blink and calmed down. She turned around with the two guards and walked in the direction of Ashlyn’s room.

...

Meanwhile, Valerian dealt with ten guards in the shadows. All of them were warriors, from grade five to grade seven. Thankfully, the two of them relied on each other, and relying on the element of surprise, they killed there way through. At this moment, Valerian and Fortuna were standing in front of a dead end.

The dragon said, “Did we read it wrong? I do not sense anything odd with this wall, it is not hollow either.”

.....

Valerian clicked his tongue and said, “To think that Mighty Princess of Dragons will not be able to see through this lousy trap. The world view has expanded.”

Fortuna gazed and jumped up to his shoulder and smacked his face with her cat claw.

smack!!

Valerian was shocked when the cat said with a glare, “I helped you kill five people, yet you dare to make fun of me? So what if you know this is a trap, big deal. Humph petty human, cannot let go of a chance to poke my pride. I am not going to talk to you.”

Valerian was shocked not because of the slap, but because of the closeness Fortuna displayed in the following statement. She had never expressed any anger or sadness to him before this. The boy said, “Sorry, I was only poking fun at you.”

Fortuna refused to look at him and turned her face away. She said, “If you know what this trap is, solve it. Do not give me bullshit.”

Valerian said, “Although I know what this trap is, I need to check if they have set up supporting chain traps. Give me some time.”

Fortuna hopped off his shoulder and said, “I will go and wait at the end of the corridor, lest someone barges in and we are discovered.”

Valerian nodded and began to study the wall in front of him.

...

Stephanie stood at the door of Ashlyn’s door with her guards and entered the place. She found Ashlyn to be standing on the balcony greeting her with an indifferent back. This was not a display of trust, but a display of strength. The princess did not fear the empress at all. She had her heart firmly in her hands and could squeeze her life out any moment she wished.

Stephanie was acting cautious because she did not know if the secret she was guarding closely to her heart was known to anyone other than Ashlyn. She controlled the rage and said, “Ashlyn, I have come. What do you want to talk about?”

The princess did not turn around and said, “Do you want the entire palace to know about this, or would you like to close the door first.”

Stephanie grit her teeth but then she turned around and slowly closed the door. The two guards from before have woken up and were watching all this happen from the gaps in the wardrobe inside the room. They did not dare to believe that the feared little ancestor, who was unruly but was tamed by the Empress was baring her fangs. That too at the hand that fed her. They found it too ungrateful.

Ashlyn turned around and with a bright smile, she beckoned the empress close to her. The two of them sat down on a pair of chairs on the balcony. Ashlyn said, “Look at you, basking in the glow from anticipating motherhood.”

Stephanie glared at her and said, “Ashlyn cut the crap and get to the point, what do you want from me?”

The princess chuckled and commented, “Spoken like a true Empress, never wasting a single second. Very well, since you have asked let me tell you what want. I want you to leave the palace, while you still have a chance.”

The Empress was stunned for a moment, then she burst up in a strong chuckle and said, “To think that you will even dare to have me exile myself?”

Ashlyn leaned back in the chair and said, “Yes, compared to how you killed my mother and father, what I am asking is too less in compensation.”

As soon as she said this, Stephanie rushed forward and her fingers wrapped around the slender neck of the princess and she said in a cold voice, “If I killed you now, I can get away by saying that you expressed the intention to rebel against the throne, do you believe me?”

Ashlyn’s face was drained of blood and she was breathing with great effort, she could not move. Despite all this, her lips had a smile. Her heart was calm, and this calm frightened Stephanie, under her confused gaze, the princess whispered, “What if I said the same to the Emperor? Also, do you think that I will not have insurance plans?”

The Empress’s heart wavered. She could not understand how this girl was so cunning all of a sudden. This unknown made her heart tremble, and her rage grew even stronger, she tightened the grip around Ashlyn’s throat and said, “Tell me, what do you know, bitch? What is it that you have been hiding? Tell me!”

There were a lot of eyes and ears stuck to the scene right now. The guards in the wardrobe and another pair of eyes were filled with rage and hatred. Ashlyn raised her hand and grabbed the Empress by her throat. Stephanie was shocked, and then she was pushed off by Ashlyn’s foot.

She was in the early stages of pregnancy, and this was a crucial period for her. As soon as she fell back she gasped and her hands looked for support. She landed on the chair and inspected her condition, she was enraged, and yelled, “You bitch, how dare you hurt me? Do you want to kill my child? Who gave you the guts, just wait, I will tell Thales about it and you will die.”

Ashlyn laughed and said, “You want to tell him to kill me for this child? Are you sure, Stephanie? When the child is born its bloodline can be checked, the Sapientia empire still has some means. When the result of the test comes out, the entire world would know, that you are an adulterous slut, who went behind her husband, fucked a guard to satiate your lust.”

Stephanie was shocked and she blurted out, “How did you find out?”

Her secret was found, she could not imagine someone found out her secret. This was not the first time, she had been adulterous with Stark. But somehow, she managed to get pregnant. This was the first time she has ever come close to the feeling of carrying another life in her body.

She did not want the child to be slayed, but the truth was still out, and just as soon as her words dropped, a calm voice sounded from her side, “So, if she found out, that means, this person must have treated you well, right?”

...

Valerian finished studying the wall, and when he found no other traps, he used a knife to cut down the wallpaper and revealed a simple door. He tried to push it open but that did not work. He said, “Fortuna, can you open this door for me?”

A silver figure flashed and Fortuna arrived at the door. She glanced at it and said, “This is no ordinary wood. However, it is easy to break in.”

The cat placed a silver claw and the door was pushed open. Valerian was calm, but when he peeked inside, his breath was shockingly fast.