Chapter 903: Alternate Timeline: An invitation
Meanwhile, Serestia followed behind Alucard through the store, though not without noticing the displeased look on the face of the teenage girl, whose hopes of spending more time with him had now been shattered by the arrival of an imperial princess.
But what could that poor girl even say?
Even if Kiara claimed Serestia was not a princess here, courage did not bloom so easily in ordinary hearts.
So in the end, she quietly purchased several boxes of bullets and left.
About half an hour later, another pair entered the store.
The bell near the entrance rang softly.
Kiara looked up.
Malric had arrived.
And beside him stood a richly dressed middle-aged man whose robes alone looked expensive enough to purchase an entire street shop.
"Miss Kiara," Malric greeted with a smile, "this is my friend, Philip."
Philip slowly observed the surroundings before speaking with visible appreciation.
"The interior truly is unique," he said while touching the marble counter lightly with his fingers. "Pure white marble, polished this smoothly... durable, elegant, expensive." He smiled. "You have fine taste, Miss Kiara."
Kiara nodded politely.
"Thank you."
Inside, however, she only cared about one thing.
Money.
The war was approaching like thunder beyond distant mountains, and every passing day mattered now.
"May I know the reason for your visit?" she asked directly.
And immediately, Malric delivered exactly what she hoped to hear.
"All the items you requested have been procured," he said. "They are already on their way toward the Imperial City."
A small spark of satisfaction appeared deep inside Kiara’s eyes.
Finally.
A progress.
Then Malric gestured toward the merchant beside him.
"And Brother Philip here..." he continued, "comes from Lunaris City of the Celestra Kingdom."
"Celestra Kingdom?" Kiara looked at the merchant carefully.
At the same moment, Serestia, who had been walking back toward the counter after finishing part of her tour with Alucard, suddenly slowed her steps.
Her brows narrowed faintly.
"Celestra?" she repeated inwardly.
"Allow me to introduce myself properly."
Philip did not bother hiding his intentions behind polite smiles or flowing court words, "I am Philip, Prime Minister of the Celestra Kingdom and special advisor to King Caleb Crescent. I came here under the orders of His Majesty himself."
As he spoke, he slowly extended a scroll toward Kiara.
"Our King wishes to invite you to lunch," Philip continued in a calm tone, though his eyes carefully studied every flicker of reaction on Kiara’s face, "and while sharing a meal, he also hopes to discuss matters regarding your firearms business, such as opening a weapon store like this in Lunaris City."
Kiara genuinely had not expected such an offer to arrive this quickly, especially from a neighboring independent kingdom. For a brief moment, silence settled over him while she processed the implications hidden beneath those seemingly simple words.
She had only recently established herself in the Imperial City, and yet another kingdom had already extended its hand toward her.
"Your King wants me to open a new store there?" Kiara asked slowly, not because she failed to understand the proposal, but because she wanted to hear how boldly the other side would push this matter.
Philip merely smiled faintly, neither confirming too eagerly nor retreating.
Kiara lowered her gaze toward the scroll for a brief second before shaking her head. "I’m afraid I’ll disappoint you, Minister Philip. There are already too many pending orders, and we are barely managing the current demand. My manufacturer cannot supply enough weapons for another branch right now."
The refusal came politely, yet firmly enough that an ordinary envoy would have understood the answer and stopped there.
Unfortunately for Kiara, the man standing before him was not ordinary.
Philip’s expression dimmed for only an instant before composure returned to his face once more, because the mission placed upon him by his king carried too much importance to abandon after a single rejection.
Philip began carefully, his voice lowering slightly, "I heard that the Imperial Palace has placed restrictions upon you regarding sales to the Desmont bandits."
Kiara’s eyes narrowed almost invisibly.
"I also heard," Philip continued, each sentence landing with deliberate precision, "that several noble houses have formed enmity with you. Because of the existence of a Beast Emperor near your lands, the Church of Thanatos now views you with hostility. The Emperor may have officially acknowledged your firearms, but the southern army of the second prince still hesitates to fully cooperate with you."
His gaze shifted toward the weapons displayed across the hall.
"And even the lands granted to you come shackled with conditions."
One after another, Philip listed matters that should not have been easy for outsiders to uncover, especially not details buried beneath layers of political secrecy, and with every sentence, the atmosphere inside the store grew heavier.
"How about this instead," Philip finally said, folding his hands behind his back, "if opening another branch proves difficult, then shift your business to our kingdom entirely."
He paused deliberately before continuing.
"You will not lack customers in Celestra. In fact, an average citizen of ours is considerably wealthier than an average commoner here in this city. More importantly..." A faint smile touched his lips. "Our kingdom remains neutral. You could freely conduct business with both the Griffin Empire and the Leon Empire without standing in the middle of their conflicts."
His words were calm, yet beneath them hid a blade sharp enough to split alliances apart.
For Philip himself, this conversation was already dangerous territory.
Officially, he had entered the Phoenix Empire’s Imperial City as an envoy tasked with discussing state affairs with Emperor Alexander Phoenix.
Inviting Kiara to lunch had merely been a secondary assignment.
Yet now, standing inside Nexus Store, he was practically attempting to lure away a strategic ally from the Phoenix Dynasty itself.
Had Celestra not possessed an extensive network of spies constantly feeding them information about the Griffin Empire, especially about the strange young woman who kept appearing at the center of major events, Philip would never have dared to make such a bold proposal.
Unfortunately for him, he also failed to realize that someone else had been quietly listening to every single word.
Behind the inner hallway, Serestia Phoenix stood frozen in place, her fingers tightening against the edge of the doorway so hard that the fabric around her wrist creased sharply.
Rage flickered through her chest like sparks trapped beneath dry leaves, because to her ears, Philip’s words sounded less like an invitation to Kiara and more like a polished insult directed toward her father and the Empire itself.
For one brief moment, she truly wanted to go there and smash this middle-aged diplomat into the floor.
Only sheer restraint stopped her.
Beside her, Alucard remained silent, though even he could feel the hostility radiating from her.
Still, Serestia endured it because, more than anger, she wanted to hear Kiara’s answer.
No matter what happened afterward, she had already decided that Philip would receive a lesson before leaving the city, though certainly not inside Nexus Store.
Thankfully for her, Kiara did not disappoint.
"It seems you misunderstood something," Kiara replied evenly, her tone calm enough that it became difficult to tell whether she was offended or merely uninterested. "If freedom and wealthy customers were all I cared about, I would have gone to the Griffin Empire from the beginning and established my business there instead."
He leaned slightly back in his chair, the wooden frame creaking softly beneath his weight.
"I chose this city because I was born here."
The sentence was simple, but the quiet certainty behind it caused even Philip’s expression to stiffen slightly.
"When the day comes that I no longer have any positive feelings left for this place," Kiara continued after a short silence, "then naturally, I will leave."
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Outside, a cart rolled across the street, stones, its wheels rattling faintly through the open windows.
"But," Kiara added, "since your kingdom has shown interest in firearms, I can open a branch in Lunaris City once the manufacturing facility in the Desmont mountain range is fully completed and production increases several times over."
He lifted one shoulder lightly.
"That will probably take at least a year. Maybe longer. Who knows..."
Philip listened quietly.
"Until then," Kiara continued, "you may place large orders here in advance and resell them in your kingdom at whatever price you wish."
The answer was neither complete rejection nor complete acceptance. It was the kind of compromise merchants loved, and politicians hated.
Philip naturally felt disappointed that he failed to separate Kiara from the Phoenix Dynasty, but at the very least, he had secured future business opportunities, which meant he would not return entirely empty-handed.
"Well," he said with a restrained smile, "I will relay your words to His Majesty."
After a brief pause, he added, "Then, may I assume you have no objections regarding the lunch invitation?"
"I can make time," Kiara replied.
Philip nodded slowly before stepping back. "Celestra awaits your presence in Lunaris City. Please keep the invitation letter with you. It will serve as your entry pass."
Soon afterward, Philip and his attendants departed from the store, their footsteps gradually fading into the distance, and only then did Serestia slowly walk out from hiding alongside Alucard.
Kiara noticed her immediately from the corner of his eye, though he did not turn fully toward her.
"How much did you hear?" She asked casually.
"Everything, I suppose," Serestia answered.
Kiara let out a quiet breath before sitting down.
"Then you must be disappointed."
Serestia blinked in confusion. "Why would I be disappointed?"
Instead of answering immediately, Kiara rested one arm against the chair and looked at her thoughtfully.
"I heard from your friend," she said slowly, "that House Drake sent a marriage proposal to Celestra for their eldest heir."
Serestia’s expression shifted slightly.