The Shining Star Above The Heaven

Aldrian and the elves conversed for a moment after all of them introduced themselves. After a few moments of conversation, Aldrian then looked at the others beside Princess Vaeril.

"Ladies and gentlemen, you may enjoy your time here for a moment, as there is something I need to discuss privately with the princess. In the meantime…" Aldrian paused as suddenly a figure appeared beside him, which stunned the elves because of the figure's sudden appearance. They could not detect the figure's arrival because it was actually Aldrian who had teleported him there.

The figure was Reiss, and he instantly bowed toward Aldrian after appearing beside him.

"Your Majesty," he said.

At this moment, he was already wearing white and yellow robes, and his aura was much purer. He no longer exuded any devil aura, and his cultivation had already broken through to peak emperor stage.

Aldrian nodded. "For the rest of you, let Reiss accompany you to take a stroll around the palace. It will give you a new experience."

Reiss then stepped forward and gestured with his hand. "This way, esteemed guests. I will guide you to see the palace grounds."

He, who had already learned some basic ethics from Aldrian's family, knew how to act as a proper servant for Aldrian. Not wanting to embarrass his master and wishing to help him, he naturally did his best to learn anything that could be useful, even if it meant being tasked with something as simple as this.

The princess's personal guardian still showed hesitation, but Princess Vaeril only gave a nod, which left him with no choice but to follow Reiss. Luren also seemed reluctant, as though he did not want to go, but seeing that Aldrian himself desired a private conversation, he could not say anything and simply followed along with the others.

To be honest, all of them wondered what Aldrian wanted to discuss with the princess that required such privacy.

Once the rest had left, leaving only Aldrian, Sylphia, and Princess Vaeril, Aldrian turned to the princess.

"Let's move to a more comfortable location."

Suddenly, their surroundings shifted, which shocked the princess, for they were already in a different room. She now stood inside a guest room where comfortable sofas were arranged for them to sit. She truly could not detect anything, nor could she do anything about it, in an instant they had already been transported to another location.

Aldrian instantly sat down, with Sylphia taking her place beside him. The princess could only sigh and stop dwelling on Aldrian's abilities, for she did not know the extent of his power. She seated herself on the sofa across from Aldrian and Sylphia.

"My apologies, Your Majesty. What makes you think that my mother expects something from you based on the gift I gave to you?" Princess Vaeril asked in wonder.

Aldrian showed a smile. "From the way you spoke to me when you presented the gift, you specifically emphasized your mother and the imperial family's wish to build a relationship with me. From the value of the gift itself, I know clearly how precious the Fruit of Life is, and your mother gave us five of them. In my opinion, that is truly too excessive merely as a gesture of goodwill.

"Also, I could sense your strong hope that I would accept this gift, which to me feels like the hope of someone wishing I would aid them in exchange for what I have received."

Hearing Aldrian's answer, the princess sighed once again, realizing she could not hide anything from him.

"Your Majesty, you are truly sharp, so much so that it makes me afraid. But yes, I—no, my family, the imperial family—hope that Your Majesty could support us in exchange for those fruits."

"Support?"

The princess nodded."Yes, Your Majesty. We ask for your support so that my mother's position as empress does not falter under the pressure of the opposition."

Aldrian nodded as he finally understood something. "I see. So this is a political matter inside the Verdyn Empire. With a troublesome matter like that, it is no wonder your mother gave me those five fruits as enticement, a bond to make me feel a sense of obligation to help your family."

The princess slightly bowed her body. "My apologies, Your Majesty, if that offends you. This is simply our effort to ensure that Your Majesty might aid us in maintaining peace across the continent of elves. With Your Majesty's reputation, we know it will be an easy thing as long as you stand on our side."

"Let's hear your story first, why you need my support. But before you begin, I think I can already guess the bigger picture. It must be that the opposition faction against your mother has strong supporters, and they are pressing for her abdication for one reason or another. You need my support to ensure your mother remains seated on the throne, correct?" Aldrian said.

"I do not know the political situation of your empire, and for all I know your opposition faction may be in the right and your family the one in the wrong. So I want to hear the details first before I make my decision."

The princess straightened her body and took a deep breath.

"My mother has been empress for more than a hundred thousand years, and not once has she governed the empire unjustly. There is an opposing faction led by one of the grand dukes, but in the past they were not strong enough, since my mother's rule was fair and they lacked support from other nobles.

"However, something strange happened more than thirty years ago. Suddenly, the opposition faction's support began to increase, and as time passed their members grew much larger, becoming truly troublesome for my mother. They constantly opposed whatever she tried to do, hindering the empire's development.

"Because of this, many elves became dissatisfied with my mother and began to think she could not control the situation within the empire. That led many to side with the opposition. Although the Verdyn Empire appears peaceful on the surface, inside it is like a volcano that could erupt at any time, which could lead to civil war."

"The volcano almost exploded not long before Your Majesty fought with the immortal. At that time, devils had infiltrated the imperial family's grounds and killed some of the guards, along with a few members of the opposition faction's family who had coincidentally come to the palace."

"Because of that, the opposition force placed the blame on us, and they nearly attacked with brute force, which almost led to civil war."

"However, after Your Majesty defeated the immortal, the opposition faction seemed to abandon their intent, and thus the civil war was avoided. For that, I am truly thankful." She spoke with a slight bow.

Aldrian could not help but grasp something from her story. The signs were already there, and from his perspective, there was no explanation other than—

'The opposition faction must have had some kind of connection to the devils at that time.'

It was clear from Aldrian's perspective, and Sylphia thought the same. Their experience with the devils on the Barisan Continent, who liked to manipulate and infiltrate noble houses, made them instantly realize what had happened in the Verdyn Empire.

"Recently, the pressure from the opposition has continued, and they seem determined to shake my mother's position with the help of public opinion, which has already been shaped for some time. This time, they move more carefully, unlike when the immortal descended. Because the pressure grows heavier, the only thing that could dissolve the situation is outside support, something that could halt the opposition's movement at once," Princess Vaeril continued.

"And we believe the best candidate would be you, Your Majesty. That is because of your strength and the reputation that has already spread. We cannot rely on other powers, for they do not have enough strength to be a deterrent, and they might even take advantage of our weakness."

Aldrian smiled. "What if I also wish to take advantage of your situation? Isn't your mother gambling too much in this regard?"

The princess nodded. "If that happens, then there is nothing we can do. But at least our empire will not fall into the hands of those bastards who seem only greedy for power. The only reason my mother still defends her throne is to prevent it from falling into the opposition's hands, for they appear to care only about the throne's power."

"We will not allow the empire to fall into decline because of their greediness. They are dangerous, and if we let them take the throne, then it is only a matter of time before the empire collapses in the future."

Aldrian nodded. "I see. So that explains why there is one elf in your group who seemed suspicious and wary of you. He hides his ambition and desire for you, that Luren guy… he must be the opposition's pawn, planted in your group after they pressured your mother, right?"

The princess nodded.

"True, Your Majesty."

"I see. Thanks to your story, I now understand the entire picture and the most likely cause of the events in the Verdyn Empire. Well, it seems there will be bloodshed again in the near future. We will need to clean away any remnants of 'their' influence," Aldrian said, which left the princess confused.

"'They,' Your Majesty?"

Who were they that Aldrian was referring to?