The Shining Star Above The Heaven

"So, what are we supposed to do, sir?" one of Vars's men asked, but Vars remained silent as he continued to think about the problem they were facing.

Not long ago, they had received news from headquarters that an envoy had already been sent and was almost arriving at the Barisan continent. With their arrival, they would undoubtedly ask many questions about Aldrian, yet they had no way of answering truthfully because of the slave seal.

The Everlasting Demonic Follower seal embedded in their souls ensured they could not harm their master, nor could they give truthful answers to their families, for doing so would trigger the seal. Unless their master granted permission, they could not reveal the truth.

The problem now was that once they gave false information to their families, and something happened as a result, they would essentially be betraying their own families. Their families would definitely not let them go unpunished. If that time came, their only choice would be to seek Aldrian's protection and hope he could shield them.

However, the problem was—

'Did he consider us as valuable pawns or not?'

If Aldrian did not intend to keep them, then their betrayal would surely end in their deaths. Aldrian might not care if the Barevisk family came after them. They knew well how cruel and persistent the Barevisk family was in hunting down traitors, and that was why they truly hesitated to betray them.

Even though the triggered Everlasting Demonic Follower seal inflicted extreme pain upon their souls, the Barevisk family had their own methods of torture that made them shudder just from imagining it.

The uncertainty of their value in Aldrian's eyes was what placed them in such a dilemma. They felt they could not betray the family that had been part of their entire lives, especially with the harsh punishments awaiting traitors. Yet at the same time, they did not want to endure the agony brought by the Everlasting Demonic Follower seal.

Moreover, they did not dare to offend someone like Aldrian, whose power they had come to understand after spending some time on this continent. From what they had learned, they could only conclude that anyone who made him an enemy would be inviting their own destruction.

No matter how strong they were, there was no way for them to withstand the unstoppable force named Aldrian. They could already imagine the Barevisk family's fate if they truly offended him. Even at this moment, they did not know the true purpose of their infiltration mission. Was it really only about gathering information on this continent and Aldrian?

They did not know the true nature of the mission, nor what their family was using the information for that they had been sending all this time. But they were certain it was not for a good purpose.

"We cannot reveal certain information to the family without it being considered betrayal. As long as this slave seal exists, the only choice is betrayal," the leader sighed. "In the end, the safest bet in this situation is to lean on Emperor Aldrian."

That was Vars's conclusion. Their best chance of survival was to rely on their master, Aldrian. They could only hope he still saw some value in them, even if their family branded them traitors after this.

"Let's join Emperor Aldrian after this. We will abandon the Barevisk family," Vars finally spoke, causing the rest of them to sigh. Vars looked at them and raised his eyebrows.

"You don't seem surprised?" he asked.

"We more or less knew it would come to this. As long as the slave seal remains embedded in our souls, we can do nothing but betray our family. There is no other path left to us. We are only forced to join Emperor Aldrian," one of his men said.

"If you had said we should return to the family, I was prepared to persuade you to change your mind. From my perspective, a war against Emperor Aldrian would only end in defeat. No one has any chance of winning against that man," he added.

Hearing this, Vars sighed again and nodded. "Then we can only hope that Emperor Aldrian will see our value, even though our family has discarded us."

That was the only way left for them to survive.

--------------------------------

On the next day, Aldrian received another guest, this time from the Avilandis imperial family. Emperor Rozwald, accompanied by his son, the crown prince, Prince Ronwell, had finally arrived. At this moment, they were strolling through the garden as Aldrian guided them around the palace grounds.

They had already exchanged some conversation when Prince Ronwell suddenly took out a beautifully carved box from his storage ring.

"Your Majesty, please accept this gift we obtained before departing here. This is a sign of our sincerity in building a good relationship with the Aster Empire as a whole," he said, before opening the box to reveal its contents.

Aldrian looked into the box and raised his eyebrows. Inside the box was a transparent flower. Its petals reflected faint colors within their layers, giving the flower a beauty of its own.

"This is the Seven Laws Rainbow Flower," Prince Ronwell explained. "It is a spiritual herb that blooms only twice in ten thousand years. By chance, a few days ago was its blooming period, so we decided to present it to Your Majesty."

"This flower contains seven laws: the four basic laws, along with space, illusion, and light. It can be consumed directly, granting the user deep comprehension of these laws. Even someone at the pseudo-immortal establishment stage could still gain benefit from it."

He continued, "This miraculous herb can also be given to a child, instantly allowing them to comprehend the laws and turning them into a genius overnight. If Your Majesty were to refine it into an elixir or pill, depending on the ingredients combined with it, the benefits could be even greater. Such a treasure will surely bring immense benefit to Your Majesty."

Aldrian was genuinely surprised. For the Avilandis imperial family to offer something this valuable, they were truly giving nearly everything to secure a good relationship with him.

Although he already had many treasures that could help his family's development, it did no harm to add more, especially something as valuable as this flower.

Prince Ronwell then closed the box again.

"Please accept this, Your Majesty. We hope to build a good relationship with the Aster Empire, one that will last long," Emperor Rozwald said from the side.

Aldrian smiled, then took the box and stored it in his storage ring.

"Alright, I accept it. Thank you for giving me such a valuable gift. I suddenly feel bad that you have given me something so precious when I have given you nothing in return," he said.

"No, Your Majesty, it is our pleasure to present this to you. It is simply our way of showing sincerity, and we hope this gift will benefit you in the future," Emperor Rozwald replied.

Aldrian nodded. After that, they conversed for a few moments before Emperor Rozwald and his son finally took their leave.

Once they were gone, Sylphia appeared and approached him with a smile.

"Tired?" she asked.

Aldrian shook his head. "Not really, especially with you always near me and ready to recharge me," he said as he wrapped an arm around her waist. Her face flushed with embarrassment, yet she still allowed him to hold her.

"I can see that after your cultivation session just now, you're already close to the next stage. Perhaps you could break through to the high marquess stage within the next few weeks. It would be even faster if we dual cultivated," he added.

"Ah, stop it. You just want to satisfy your beastly desire."

"Well, I'm a beast in front of you," he said playfully, pretending to bite her neck while making beast-like sounds, causing Sylphia to giggle at his antics.

But as they were still enjoying their moment, Aldrian suddenly stopped His communication artifact was giving off an incoming signal.

He took it out, activated it, and a voice came through from the other side.

"Your Majesty, there is another guest who wishes to visit you."

Hearing this, Aldrian was not surprised and simply continued to listen.

"This one is a group from the continent of elves, led by the princess."

Aldrian raised his eyebrows before glancing at Sylphia in his embrace.

'The princess from the continent of elves?'

He knew there was only one empire on that continent, the root of the elves who now lived on the Barisan continent.

Sylphia, who could also hear the message, was equally surprised. Yet at the same time, she felt curious about the elves from outside the Barisan continent.

"Alright, bring them in," Aldrian ordered.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

After cutting off the communication, Aldrian looked into Sylphia's eyes.

"Do you want to accompany me to meet them? I think you might be interested in seeing them."

Sylphia nodded. "Yes, actually I'm really curious about them. I've never met elves from outside, and from what I know, they come from the place our ancestors originated."

Aldrian nodded. "Then let's go. They should already be near."

"Wait, let me prepare myself first. I don't want to embarrass you," she said, wiggling out of his embrace before running into the palace.

Aldrian smiled at her and made his way toward the throne hall, waiting for the group of elves to arrive.