Pfft—
The originally quiet and elegant dining room was suddenly filled with the abrupt sound of someone spitting out water.
Eleanor, who had been raising her crystal goblet to take a sip, completely lost control of her composure.
The cool lemon water had yet to be swallowed when, due to extreme shock, it turned into a mist that sprayed directly onto the delicate steak in front of her.
The Saintess, who normally maintained a perfect image among the Church and nobility, now couldn’t be bothered to wipe the dripping water from her lips. She didn’t even have time to tend to her soiled napkin.
Her azure eyes flew wide open as she stared dead at her sister sitting across from her, her face filled with disbelief and alarm.
“Sisi! What nonsense are you talking about?!”
Eleanor stood up so abruptly that the chair scraped against the marble floor with a harsh screech.
“Wilderness survival? And you want special training? Have you lost your mind?”
Her voice rose in anxiety, echoing in the empty dining room.
“It’s the dead of winter out there right now! Not to mention the magical beasts that have become vicious from hunger! Your body has only just recovered! How can you go to a place like that to suffer? What if something happens to you?”
The more Eleanor spoke, the more agitated she became. She couldn’t understand why her sister would suddenly make such a masochistic request.
In her eyes, although Helos could be a bit mischievous, she was still that little girl who needed to be carefully protected. Having her fight magical beasts in the freezing wilderness? That was just asking for trouble!
Julius, sitting across from Helos, didn’t say a word, but his stern face clearly showed his disapproval.
His brow instantly furrowed, and his hands on the table unconsciously clenched into fists.
As a knight who had experienced hardships in the field, he knew better than anyone how cruel the wilderness was in winter.
There was no warm fireplace, no soft bed—only endless cold wind and lurking danger in the shadows.
Even seasoned warriors couldn’t guarantee a safe return under those conditions, let alone Helos, an ordinary person with no mana to protect herself.
Wanting to become stronger was a good thing.
But this method was far too radical.
The atmosphere in the dining room became exceptionally heavy due to the sudden proposal.
The maids didn’t dare to breathe, let alone have the courage to step forward and clean the table.
However, the Duke of Eisend, seated at the head of the table—the patriarch of the family who had weathered countless storms—did not lose his composure like Eleanor, nor did he look as worried as Julius.
His expression barely changed at all.
He just sat there quietly, holding a pristine white napkin.
But his deep, ocean-like azure eyes now scrutinized the young girl before him like sharp blades.
He was examining her resolve, and perhaps also the truth behind it.
Helos felt her scalp tingle under her father’s penetrating gaze.
She felt like a student caught red-handed by a teacher in class, with all her thoughts exposed before those eyes.
But she didn’t back down. Suppressing the urge to look away, she straightened her back stubbornly and met her father’s gaze defiantly.
She had to show her determination, or the plan would be dead before it even started.
Time passed silently.
Just when the old steward was about to step forward out of concern, Duke Eisend finally moved.
He slowly set down his knife and fork, the metal making a soft clink against the porcelain plate.
“Who suggested this to you?”
The duke’s voice was calm and deep, impossible to read.
But that simple sentence struck the core of the issue.
Hearing that, Helos’s heart skipped a beat.
She instinctively wanted to cover up, her eyes flickering in panic as she stammered:
“I, I thought of it myself…”
“Don’t lie to me, my daughter.”
Duke Eisend cut her off without mercy.
Though his tone remained calm, its authority was undeniable.
“You are my daughter. I know your character, your thoughts, inside and out.”
The duke’s gaze shifted from Helos’s face, slowly moving down to rest on the thin ring finger of her left hand.
There, she wore a silver ring with an antique look, seeming like an ordinary decoration.
This ring was a trinket Christ had picked out for her—’that should have been the case…’
“A wilderness survival special training, using extreme environments to stimulate potential—such an aggressive and goal-oriented method could never have come from that little head of yours.”
Duke Eisend said flatly.
“Besides, though you want to become stronger, you would never risk your life. Only if you trust someone enough and are sure they can protect you would you have someone backing you up.”
Helos’s fingers stiffened. She hadn’t expected her father to be so sharp.
From just one proposal, he could infer so much.
Duke Eisend wasn’t speculating blindly.
Though he was far away in Olivius City, he wasn’t entirely unaware of what happened in the Imperial Capital.
Christ’s letter, as well as intelligence from the shadows, had already laid the recent turmoil Helos faced at the Academy on his desk.
Though it was eventually resolved smoothly with the help of Julius and Christ, and Helos suffered no real harm, this misstep made Duke Eisend blame himself somewhat.
He realized that his protection of his daughter had perhaps been a bit negligent.
And in those unseen corners, there seemed to be someone—or something—influencing Helos’s path.
That forced him to treat every unusual request from Helos with greater care and scrutiny.
“That ring on your hand.”
Duke Eisend leaned forward slightly, and the aura of a powerful man faintly radiated, weighing down the air around them.
“There’s something else hidden inside it, isn’t there?”
As the head of the Olivias Family and a strong warrior who had fought on battlefields, his perception of souls and mana far surpassed ordinary people.
From the moment Helos walked into the dining room, he had faintly sensed an extremely weak yet incredibly ancient aura flickering around his daughter.
That aura was very well-hidden.
If the owner hadn’t experienced a slight emotional fluctuation when Helos made her request, even he might have been fooled.
“Since you’re here, why hide?”
Eisende’s voice was very calm, as if inviting an old friend.
“Why not come out and meet me? I’d also like to see which ‘mastermind’ is behind my daughter’s adventurous idea.”
As soon as he finished, the dining room fell into dead silence.
Eleanor covered her mouth in surprise, her gaze darting between her father and sister.
Julius’s eyes narrowed, and his hand instantly rested on the sword at his waist, his muscles tensed, ready for any sudden development.
Everyone’s eyes were fixed on the ring on Helos’s finger.
The atmosphere grew heavier.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
Just as Helos, sweating nervously, thought Sylvia would either flare up at being exposed or continue to play dead—
“Heh.”
A soft laugh suddenly came from the ring.
It wasn’t loud, but in the quiet dining room, it was exceptionally clear.
It was a woman’s voice, lazy, slightly scornful, and with a hint of surprise.
Then, ripples like water spread across the surface of the ring.
A faint aura with a trace of blood emanated.
Under everyone’s watch, a translucent white smoke slowly drifted out from the ring.
It didn’t dissipate but quickly condensed in midair, taking on a human silhouette.
Hair flowing like a waterfall, white dress stained with blood.
Sylvia appeared without warning above the dining table of the Olivias Family.
She didn’t land but floated in midair, looking down at Duke Eisend seated at the head.
Her normally hollow eyes now sparkled with interest.
“Oh…?”
Sylvia extended a pale hand, lightly resting it under her chin as she sized up the dignified middle-aged man like a rare antique.
“To actually discover me?”
Her voice was hoarse yet full of presence, echoing in everyone’s ears.
“In this age where mana is getting scarcer, humans with this level of perception are rare.”
Sylvia narrowed her eyes slightly, a meaningful smile curling at the corner of her lips.
“Young man.”
She commented in a tone that was presumptuous yet undeniable:
“You look… quite capable, huh.”
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