Chapter 520: Young Miss’ Psychological Battle
Chapter 520: Young Miss’ Psychological Battle
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Subtle body language often betrayed a person’s true emotions.
Someone who was feeling happy would naturally relax their muscles, whereas someone who was upset was prone to turning cold. These were natural reflexive responses that were hard for humans to control.
The difficulty of controlling these reflexive responses was further heightened for transcendents due to the additional element of mana, which happened to be a strong conductor of emotions.
That was also why Charlotte woke up at this precise moment.
In her groggy state, she had sensed a mana pulsation that she had never felt from Roel. It was overflowing with extreme anger and rage, but it was also mixed with hints of indignation and desolation. If she had to draw an analogy, it felt like an incredibly melancholic sigh.
It was as if a warm spring had suddenly turned cold and turbulent. Such a jarring change couldn’t have escaped Charlotte’s notice, even though she had been asleep a moment ago.
She opened her eyes and looked at Roel.
What she saw on his face was neither burning rage nor tearful sorrow, but confused exhaustion. He seemed to be pondering a complex question that he simply couldn’t find an answer to. He hadn’t noticed her awakening yet, which was why she was able to see his true feelings.
He had never liked to worry others. The moment he realized that she was awake, he would immediately put on a smiling face, but that only made her even more anxious and perplexed.
What could have made him so distracted that he would reveal such an expression and not even realize that I am awake?
After a moment of hesitation, she decided to call him out.
“What’s wrong, darling?”
“!”
Roel jolted. He immediately put on a smile—just as she had expected—before lowering his gaze to look at her.
“You’re awake? It hasn’t been an hour yet. Why don’t you sleep a while more and resume work in the afternoon?”
“…”
Charlotte spent a moment staring at Roel’s uncracking smile before she finally answered.
“…I’ll postpone today’s work.”
“Charlotte?”
“It’s all right. I’ve already dealt with the urgent documents… and I believe that there’s something more important here that I have to settle.”
Roel was taken aback. Charlotte raised her hand and gently caressed his cheek.
“…Darling, what happened?”
“…”
Roel’s smile fizzled out when he realized that he had failed to convince Charlotte with his act. Through their exchange of gazes, he sensed her determination to get to the bottom of the matter. In the end, he heaved a sigh of resignation before handing the two documents to her.
“This is…”
Charlotte took the documents with a quizzical look on her face. She sat upright and began solemnly browsing through the two documents. Her face remained mostly stoic, but the subtle movements in her facial expressions hinted that she wasn’t as calm as she appeared to be.
When she finally put down the two documents, she turned to look at Roel but found herself at a loss for words.
Even she was repulsed when she learned that the Saints Convocation had been hoarding the Ardes’ remains, let alone Roel, who carried deep respect for his ancestors.
“Darling, I…”
Charlotte kept raising and lowering her head as she struggled to find the right words. She wanted to comfort him, but words seemed to fizzle out at the tip of her tongue.
In the end, she straddled his thighs and hugged him tightly. She stroked his hair comfortingly and gently whispered into his ears.
“Darling, you can cry too if it’s too much for you to bear.”
“I don’t think that I will. They might be my ancestors, but I don’t personally know them.”
“Still, it must have been upsetting to learn about their plights.”
“…Rather than upset, I feel more indignant on their behalf,” Roel replied as his exhaustion resurfaced.
Those words left Charlotte pondering the circumstances surrounding the Ardes, and she couldn’t help but feel melancholic about everything they had been put through. She lowered her head and sighed deeply.
Indeed, it must have felt indignant, she thought to herself.
Since the Second Epoch, the Kingmaker Bloodline had been defending the peace of the human civilization from the shadows. While they had risen to a prominent position for their sacrifices, it was hardly comparable to the blood they had shed in the process.
It was no exaggeration to say that the rise of human civilization was built on the blood of the Kingmaker Clan.
To protect human civilization, the Kingmaker Clan maintained a tight grasp on the Mother Goddess and the Savior, but they suffered a terrible backlash as a result. The Ardes crumbled, and its scattered members had to live in constant fear of the evil cultists after their lives.
A thousand years had passed since then, and the once glorious clan had shrunk till it was only two people strong. In fact, before Roel awakened his bloodline, most noble houses believed that the Ascarts had already run their course.
Yet how did humankind reciprocate the Kingmaker Clan’s sacrifices?
The Saints Convocation exploited their flesh and blood in order to acquire greater power.
Powerful transcendents who had descended into depravity directed their blades at them.
Their once stalwart ally, the Ackermanns, turned their backs on them when they were in dire need of help.
The Kingmaker Clan had been brought down by the very same people they had protected.
In Charlotte’s embrace, Roel looked at the scenery outside with eyes flickering with uncertainty, reminiscent of a lost child.
“Charlotte, do you think that kindness begets kindness?”
“…”
Charlotte was unable to answer Roel’s question.
She could disguise the truth with flowery words, but kindness didn’t always beget kindness. Tragedies always accompanied those who walked the path of a protector—the history of the Ardes had shown as much.
But those weren’t the words that she wanted to tell him. Neither did she think that he had posed that question out of cynicism of humankind. She pressed her lips on his forehead and pondered it before finally offering her answer to the question.
“I can’t say that good people will be rewarded for their kindness… but it’s my personal belief that evildoers will suffer retribution.”
“Retribution?”
“Evildoers ought to be punished for their sins. I’ll take it upon myself to ensure that happens.”
“Charlotte?”
Surprised by the forceful declaration, Roel turned his head over to look at Charlotte. Sensing his movements, she also turned to look at him, revealing the unwavering conviction in her eyes.
“Charlotte, you…”
“Darling, leave the Saints Convocation to us. You shouldn’t get involved in this matter, all right?”
Charlotte caressed Roel’s cheeks as she gently persuaded him with a smile. Even so, Roel looked hesitant about accepting the offer.
“This is our Ascarts’ problem. It doesn’t seem right to leave it all to…”
“Are you going to continue using that excuse with me after everything we have been through?” Charlotte asked with a dissatisfied frown.
“That’s not what I mean. There’s no way I would regard you as an outsider, but…”
“You are regarding me as an outsider. I am your fiancée. Shouldn’t we overcome difficult times together?”
“…”
While Roel was unable to refute those words, he was still reluctant to concede on this matter. Charlotte let out a sigh before continuing on.
“You seem to be mistaken about something. The Saints Convocation is already on Rosa’s black list after they brazenly bared their fangs at us. I’m going to ensure that every single one of them is weeded out… Besides, it’s about time for Rosa to change its own position in the world.”
“Position?”
Roel narrowed his eyes questioningly. Charlotte continued sharing her thoughts.
The Rosa Merchant Confederacy had always taken a pacifist stance in international politics, opting to maintain good ties whenever possible to facilitate trade. This allowed Rosaian merchants, especially the Sorofyas’, to expand their business all over the world.
However, with the peaceful era slowly receding, Rosa would have to adapt to the changing circumstances in order to remain relevant.
Having a say on international matters was of utmost importance in a chaotic era.
Rosa couldn’t allow itself to be seen as nothing more than the money bag of humankind. Eradicating the Saints Convocation was not just a matter of vengeance anymore. More than that, it was an opportunity for Rosa to showcase its might.
Roel expressed his approval of Charlotte’s thoughts.
Rosa’s influence was sorely lacking in comparison to the Saint Mesit Theocracy and the Austine Empire. If they wanted to become one of the decision-makers of humankind, they would have to prove their strength and build up merit by accomplishing something substantial.
In that case, Roel ought to fully entrust the Saints Convocation to them. His involvement in the matter would only undermine Rosa’s accomplishments.
“Other than that, you seem to have forgotten the most important thing here.”
“I did? What did I forget?”
“Our child is going to be a member of the Ascart House too.” Charlotte pinched Roel’s cheeks as she spoke with a pout. “If our child awakens to the Ascart Bloodline, the Saints Convocation would likely go after him too. I’m not going to sit still when someone endangers my child.”
Roel widened his eyes.
“You’re right. But it’s not just the Saints Convocation that’s dangerous here. The same goes for the Fallens too.”
Roel finally snapped out of the melancholic mood he was in. His golden eyes regained their usual sharpness. Charlotte quietly exhaled at that sight, relieved at the success of her strategy.
The plight of the Ardes was a tragedy for the descendants of the Kingmaker Bloodline to grieve over. She was indeed an outsider here, in the sense that she couldn’t share Roel’s sorrow and comfort him. Anything she said would have been shallow.
However, it was a different story when it came to the topic of their children.
The tragic fate of the Ardes despite their sacrifices had extinguished Roel’s fighting will, but she believed that he would be able to pull himself together if he turned his focus toward their future child. She was right about that.
Another question quickly surfaced in her mind.
“Darling, how do you intend to deal with your ancestors’ blood and remains?”
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“I’d have to discuss the matter with my father, but I wish to bring them back to the Ascart Fiefdom.”
“I see… I’ll have Grandpa Andrew deliver it lest the evil cultists try to steal it.”
Roel thought that Charlotte’s words made sense. He could see the evil cultists attempting that.
Now that he had matured, it was getting increasingly difficult for the Saints Convocation to acquire a fresh sample of the Kingmaker Bloodline from him. The only way for them to retain their control over the Six Calamities was for them to steal back their stockpile.
It was also possible that the Saints Convocation had more samples of the Kingmaker Bloodline, but that wasn’t something Roel could do anything about at the moment.
So, he accepted Charlotte’s goodwill.
Charlotte’s lips inched upward triumphantly.
She knew from the locations of the Saints Convocation’s base and the Ascart Fiefdom that the shortest delivery route would pass through Rosa City. It wouldn’t be right for her not to do anything at all when her fiancé’s ancestors were passing through her homeland.
Thus, she turned to her lover and made a proposal.
“Darling, why don’t we pay respects to your ancestors together?”
“Oh?”
“In Rosa, we hold rituals for the bodies of family members who have died on the battlefield to garner blessings for them. I believe that the Ascart Fiefdom has a similar custom, right?”
“Indeed, but…”
“It’s settled, then. We’ll hold a grand ritual for your ancestors here in Rosa. You’ll be the one officiating the ritual… and I’ll be right beside you as your wife.”
Charlotte clasped her hand over Roel’s mouth and single-handedly made a call on this matter. Despite her domineering attitude, she was blushing furiously.