Seeing that Luo Lan remained silent, Ailiya quietly sat beside him as well.
The firelight flickered across her face, while the night breeze occasionally lifted her long hair, the ends softly brushing against the back of Luo Lan’s hand.
After a while, the woman glanced sideways, her gaze settling on the youth’s profile.
“It seems you’ve learned quite a bit from Sirude,” she said softly. “You should know, that lady is hardly the type to make a good teacher. For her to teach you so much, Mr. Luo Lan, you really… must be quite capable.”
Luo Lan pursed his lips at her words, his gaze still fixed on the dancing flames.
“You praise me too much, Lady Ailiya. I only picked up a few tricks from Sirude—if it really came down to a fight for my life, I doubt I could even take a single sword strike from her.”
“Sometimes, being too humble isn’t such a good thing.” Ailiya shook her head, finishing the fruit wine left in her cup in a single gulp. “Sirude is far more formidable than you imagine. Back when the border wars were fierce, she fought on the front lines alongside the Former Duke. I hear she even had a rather renowned title then.”
Luo Lan turned his head, surprise flickering in his eyes.
“This is the first I’ve heard of that.”
“That’s because Sirude dislikes bringing up such things.”
Ailiya set her empty cup aside. “She says those are all old stories, not worth mentioning. But you should know, any knight trusted by the Former Duke is certainly no ordinary person.”
A brief silence fell between them again, broken only by the occasional crackle of embers bursting from the campfire, tracing fleeting arcs across the night sky.
Ailiya watched Luo Lan’s expression quietly, noticing the slight frown that never left his brow. The woman sighed softly and spoke again.
“Are you worried about the Sacred Canon?”
Luo Lan started, then gave a wry nod. “Seems I can’t hide anything from you, Ailiya.”
He paused, his voice dropping lower. “I was just thinking… After spending so long training with Her Highness, if we end up failing at the Sacred Canon… she’ll probably be really upset.”
“Is that so? Somehow, I think you might actually be more afraid of being hurt by failure than Her Highness.”
Ailiya suddenly smiled.
She looked at the youth who had turned away, a hint of teasing in her voice.
“Besides, Her Highness is much stronger than you think. As for you… All these years of supporting her, I’ve seen your efforts with my own eyes. If it were me, there’s no way I could have helped her grow this much. You’ve already done an excellent job.”
With that, Ailiya stood up, gently brushing the snowflakes from her skirt. Then she walked over to Luo Lan, reaching out to tousle his hair.
“All right, all right, stop worrying about things that haven’t even happened yet. It’s getting late—you should go get some sleep. We have to rise early tomorrow.”
Saying so, she withdrew her hand and turned toward her tent.
“As for the Sacred Canon, just let things take their course.”
At dawn the next day, the Caravan set out again. The morning mist had yet to fully disperse, veiling the world in a light gauze.
As usual, Luo Lan couldn’t escape being hauled onto the carriage. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes as Keluowei dragged him into the compartment, he saw Ailiya already sitting there with poise, holding a freshly brewed cup of black tea and watching him calmly.
The carriage moved smoothly along. Looking out the window, Luo Lan could just make out the faint outline of Capital Valgard on the distant horizon.
It was a massive city built by the sea, with soaring spires gleaming golden in the dawn light—like swords stabbing up at the sky. Even from this distance, its majestic presence and suffocating oppression could be felt.
“Like a slumbering giant beast, isn’t it?” Ofiliya suddenly spoke up, setting down her teacup. “I get that feeling every time I return.”
Luo Lan pulled the curtains open a bit more, letting the crisp morning wind wake him up.
At that moment, he noticed several notice boards standing by the roadside, with fresh sheets of parchment posted on them. Looking closely, he saw bold letters reading “Public Security Alert,” with several fierce bandit portraits drawn underneath.
“Logically, the capital region should be the most heavily guarded in the kingdom… How can banditry still be rampant here?”
Luo Lan asked curiously.
Ofiliya sipped her tea and answered lightly, “Not long ago, the capital defaulted on a large sum of wages owed to the Stone Masons Guild. Most of those masons are craftsmen from elsewhere, with no family or roots in Valgard. Desperate, they had no choice but to turn to banditry.”
Luo Lan frowned slightly at her words. “Surely the kingdom isn’t so poor it can’t pay wages? And it’s not even that much, is it? With all those wealthy Nobles, couldn’t they just scrape together a little and be done with it?”
Hearing this, Ofiliya smiled and shook her head. “Mr. Luo Lan, there’s a lot more going on beneath the surface of this…” She raised her teacup, gently skimming off the tea leaves with the lid. “The funds for Palace repairs were allocated long ago, but several major Nobles took them under the pretext of ‘emergency needs.’ When the Stone Masons Guild went to collect, the Minister of Finance claimed the treasury was empty and told them to wait another half year.”
“Half a year—those craftsmen need to eat, to support their families. How could they possibly wait that long?”
“So they just…”
“So they picked up their hammers, but this time they weren’t smashing stone—they were smashing heads.”
Ofiliya glanced out at the ever-clearer city walls. “Now the capital’s garrison has to defend against outside threats and suppress these bandits at the same time. With the Sacred Canon approaching and such chaos in the royal city, there are many who are very displeased.”
It was nearly midday before the Caravan finally reached the foot of Valgard. The city walls loomed like a cliff before them, glinting with a cold metallic sheen under the sunlight.
The city gates stood wide open, caravans and travelers flowing in and out like a river, yet everyone’s face bore a look of numb busyness.
Even from a distance, officials responsible for welcoming visitors stood by the roadside. Spotting the Bransnow Family crest on the Caravan, they hurried forward.
Those officials’ manners bordered on obsequious, yet a hint of scrutiny flickered in their eyes. After a brief and perfunctory inspection of identity and paperwork, the Caravan was finally admitted to Capital Valgard.
As Luo Lan sat with his eyes closed, resting, the long-awaited voice echoed in his mind—
[Conceptual Reverie] activation conditions fulfilled.
The youth didn’t open his eyes, only curling and relaxing his fingers as he accepted the incoming information in his mind.
Ofiliya personally escorted Keluowei and the others to the gates of Rufinias Mansion—a once-grand residence on the edge of the Nobles’ district.
“Vivi can’t bear to part with you—”
Ofiliya clung to Keluowei’s wrist. “I still have so much to tell you.”
Keluowei pursed her lips and hugged her gently.
“You’ll be staying here at the mansion for a while, right? Once I’ve dealt with my family matters, I’ll come see you.”
Keluowei replied softly, then hopped lightly off the carriage.
“Mr. Luo Lan, please wait.” Just as Luo Lan was about to get off, Ofiliya stopped him. “I have a favor to ask.”
“Hmm?”
The youth looked up at her.
“You’ll keep protecting Her Highness Keluowei, won’t you?”
Luo Lan nodded lightly, then got off as well.
Watching the Bransnow Family’s Caravan drive away, Luo Lan finally let out a long breath. Even if Ofiliya wasn’t the future Saintess, the natural aura of authority she exuded was still a bit overwhelming for him.
But when Luo Lan turned his gaze to the mansion gates, he spotted a figure that gave him an even bigger headache than Keluowei, happily waving at them.
It was a girl of about fifteen or sixteen, dressed in tidy short clothes, her features resembling Ailiya’s, though her hair was a bit shorter.
“Ailiya…” Luo Lan’s voice was tinged with exasperation. “Why didn’t you ever mention your sister was coming too?”
“Lord Luo Lan,” Ailiya replied innocently, “you never asked me about that, did you?”