NOVEL NEXT Chapter 439: The Reckoning of Blood
The silence that followed the Emperor's matrimonial proposition stretched like a bowstring drawn to its breaking point. Pyris regarded the sovereign with the kind of calm that preceded volcanic eruptions, his golden eyes reflecting depths that had witnessed the rise and fall of civilizations.
"Your Imperial Majesty," Pyris began, his voice carrying a different tone than that of a normal mortal with the silken menace of a blade being slowly drawn from its sheath, "I fear you labor under a profound misunderstanding."
The Emperor's weathered features hardened, sensing the rejection that hung in the air like the scent of approaching storms.
"You speak of marriage arrangements as if Alexandra were some political commodity to be bartered in the marketplace of imperial ambition." Each word fell with the weight of judgment, and the temperature in the room seemed to drop several degrees. "But allow me to illuminate a truth that appears to have escaped your royal comprehension—you possess no authority over the woman I have claimed as mine."
The Emperor's face began to flush with rising indignation, but Pyris continued with relentless precision.
"Whatever paternal rights you believe birthright grants you dissolved long ago, not through any action of mine, but through your own calculated neglect. I did not acquire Alexandra through imperial favor or political maneuvering. Our bond was forged in the crucible of genuine connection, not the cold calculations of dynastic alliance."
"How dare you—" the Emperor began, his voice rising like distant thunder.
"How dare I?" Pyris's interruption carried the cutting edge of winter wind. "How dare you, Imperial Majesty, now claim the mantle of concerned father when for years you allowed your precious daughter to be treated as refuse by your favored offspring?"
The accusation hung in the air like a physical blow.
"She is my daughter!" the Emperor roared, his composure finally cracking like a dam under pressure. "My blood flows through her veins! I have every right to determine her fate, to end this... this unsuitable liaison that brings shame upon the imperial bloodline!"
Power erupted from the Emperor like a supernova of barely contained fury. His aura blazed forth—the accumulated might of centuries, the crushing weight of divine favor, the raw elemental forces that had carved his name into the annals of history. Light magic blazed around him like the birth of stars, earth magic caused the very foundations to groan in protest, and spatial distortions warped the air itself.
This was the power that had humbled gods and reshaped continents. This was the might of one of the Mortal Realm's fundamental pillars, a force that could level mountain ranges with a gesture of his wrist.
Yet Pyris remained seated, unmoved as a mountain peak weathering a storm.
"Father, you say?" Pyris's voice carried across the chaos with crystalline clarity, each word a precisely aimed arrow. "Strange. I have no recollection of Alexandra mentioning you fulfilling that sacred role when she needed it most."
The Emperor's eyes widened, his power flickering as unexpected words struck deeper than any blade.
"Where was this paternal pride when she was deemed 'trash' by your golden children? When they mocked her supposed weakness with the casual cruelty that only comes from imperial immunity? When her mother—your concubine—was treated like a common servant despite bearing your blood?"
Each question landed like a physical blow, and Pyris could see the truth of them reflected in the Emperor's increasingly desperate expression.
"You speak of blood and rights, but what of responsibility? What of protection? What of the love that should define the bond between father and daughter?" Pyris's own presence began to manifest—not as crushing force, but as something far more terrifying: absolute certainty. "You abandoned her to the wolves of court politics, discarded her like a broken tool when she failed to meet your expectations."
The Emperor's aura wavered, his righteous fury beginning to crack under the weight of undeniable truth.
"But now," Pyris continued, rising to his feet with fluid grace that spoke of predatory patience, "now that she has awakened to her true potential, now that her power has begun to bloom, suddenly you discover your paternal instincts? How remarkably convenient that this fatherly concern coincides so perfectly with her increased value to your empire."
Lekiza watched in fascination as this impossibly beautiful young man systematically dismantled her father's position with surgical precision. Every word was calculated, every accusation perfectly aimed at the weak points in the Emperor's armor of imperial authority.
"And let us not forget," Pyris's smile held all the warmth of winter starlight, "that this newfound appreciation for your daughter's worth increased exponentially once her relationship with me became known. How transparent your motivations have become, Your Imperial Majesty."
The Emperor's face had gone through several shades of red and was now approaching purple, his power fluctuating wildly as rage warred with the dawning realization that every word spoken against him was absolutely true.
"You will not—" he began, but Pyris's voice cut through his protest like a blade through silk.
"I will not permit you to use my woman as a pawn in your political games," Pyris declared, his words carrying the finality of natural law. "There will be no marriage alliance, no political union, no arrangement that treats Alexa as anything less than the treasure she has always been."
The silence that followed was deafening.
"The connection between House Obsidian and the Human Empire begins and ends with our business arrangement," Pyris continued, his tone shifting to something almost conversational. "Unless, of course, Your Imperial Majesty finds himself incapable of seeing beyond his wounded pride to the larger picture."
With that pronouncement, Pyris turned toward the door, Elsa falling into step beside him with the natural grace of someone who had witnessed such confrontations before.
"Sooo domineering~" Lekiza whispered, her voice barely audible as she watched his retreating form, a flush coloring her cheeks despite her best efforts at maintaining diplomatic composure.
"Big brother is so cool~" Elsa cooed, her small hands finding his arm with practiced ease, her ice-blue eyes shining with undisguised admiration.
Pyris's expression softened as he looked down at his adopted sister, the dangerous edge in his demeanor melting into something infinitely warmer. "We have our aunties to protect, remember?"
"Of course, big brother!" Elsa declared, her small fist clenching with determination. "After I awaken my magic, I'll be strong enough to protect all our aunties!"
"Hahaha~ that's the spirit," Pyris laughed, his fingers ruffling her silver hair with infinite gentleness. "Now, didn't you promise to show me what you've been creating?"
"Yay~ You're going to be so surprised, big brother!"
Their voices faded as they departed, leaving behind a meeting room that felt somehow smaller, as if the very walls had been diminished by the confrontation they had witnessed.
The Emperor remained seated long after the door had closed, his powerful aura slowly retracting like a tide returning to the sea. The accusations still echoed in his mind, each one a perfectly aimed strike at truths he had spent years trying to ignore.
"Bigger picture, huh," he muttered to himself, his voice carrying the weight of a man forced to confront the consequences of his own choices.
Beside him, Lekiza maintained her diplomatic silence, but he could feel her agreement with every word that had been spoken against him. His own daughter, his most trusted advisor, had witnessed his complete dismantling at the hands of a young man who had spoken nothing but truth.
The Emperor's hands clenched into fists, but whether from lingering anger or dawning shame, even he could not say.
"Let's see how this ends," he whispered to the empty room, though whether it was a threat or a prayer remained unclear even to himself.