Chapter 904: Alternate Timeline: Lucian seeks help
"Everson Drake may claim he is willing to forget what happened with Kristof Drake’s kidnapping," Kiara continued, "but noble houses are like weeds growing beside riverbanks. If the roots remain untouched, they rise again the moment the flood passes."
Her tone remained calm, yet there was a quiet sharpness hidden underneath.
"If Celestra already knows so much about me," he continued, "then they definitely know about that incident too. Yet despite that, they still invited me to lunch."
She leaned slightly forward.
"That can only mean the marriage proposal will likely be rejected."
Serestia listened to the long explanation, but confusion still lingered in her eyes because she could not understand why this was supposed to disappoint her. She had no attachment to House Drake itself, nor did she particularly care about their political standing.
The only reason she maintained contact with Everson Drake and Kristof Drake was that she had known them for years.
When she voiced that thought aloud, Kiara studied her quietly for a moment before dropping another sentence like a stone into still water.
"When Kristof Drake was held hostage," Kiara said, "he claimed he was the future son-in-law of Emperor Alexander... as in your father..."
Serestia froze."What?"
"In that case," Kiara continued calmly, "wouldn’t that make you the future daughter-in-law of House Drake? Their family problems should concern you, too. Or am I wrong?"
"Eh?"
For a moment, Serestia genuinely looked stunned.
"What nonsense are you saying?"
Kiara blinked twice, acting almost surprised by her reaction. "You weren’t engaged?"
"Of course not," Serestia answered immediately, her brows knitting together. "Why would I become his fiancée? He’s my childhood friend."
The faint disgust in her tone made her feelings painfully clear.
For reasons even she did not fully understand herself, relief quietly spread through Kiara’s chest after hearing her answer. The thought of Kristof Drake becoming part of the Imperial Family irritated her far more than it should have.
That brat only wanted power.
He wanted the position of Prince Consort.
But the moment that thought surfaced, Kiara abruptly paused inwardly.
Why did it matter to her at all?
Serestia Phoenix should have been nothing more than the Emperor’s daughter in her eyes. Nothing more.
She already had one real sibling somewhere beyond this world, perhaps in another universe entirely.
Taking a slow breath to calm her thoughts, Kiara finally shook her head lightly. "Then he probably lied just to scare me and save himself at the time," She said.
After a brief pause, she added in a quieter tone,
"Still, nobody would be surprised if House Drake eventually sends a marriage proposal to the Imperial Palace. If they dared to send one to Celestra for their eldest heir, then sending one here for their youngest heir would not be strange either."
Kiara’s words lingered in Serestia Phoenix’s mind long after the conversation should have ended, and the more she thought about them, the more restless she became, because until this moment, she had never once viewed Kristof Drake in that manner.
In her memories, he had always been nothing more than a childhood companion who had followed behind her and Darius through palace gardens, training grounds, festivals, and banquet halls for more than ten years.
Because those memories had been built slowly over time, it was difficult for her to suddenly replace them with thoughts of marriage and political ties.
At the same time, however, Kiara was her real elder sister. Her blood.
That truth had only entered her life yesterday, yet its weight already pressed strangely against her heart.
One side was a friendship nurtured across years, while the other side was blood newly returned after being lost for so long, and although Serestia did not wish to admit it aloud, she subconsciously felt that Kiara was trying to create distance between her and House Drake because of her hostility toward them.
Still, no matter how much she tried to dismiss it, she could not completely deny Kiara’s reasoning either.
In the end, Serestia quietly decided that she would personally speak to Kristof Drake later and make things clear once and for all, because if he truly misunderstood her kindness and support as affection, then it was better to cut through the confusion early, just as a gardener trims tangled vines before they choke an entire courtyard.
An hour slipped away quietly after that conversation.
Perhaps fortune simply disliked Kiara today, or perhaps the rumors about yesterday’s frozen customer had spread through the Carlo District faster than wildfire through dry grass, causing ordinary people to avoid Nexus Store out of fear.
Whatever the reason was, business had turned painfully slow.
During the following four hours, only three customers had stepped through the doors, and even they left quickly after making nervous purchases.
Kiara herself did not seem particularly bothered by it, though.
Rather than working on ammunition or inspecting weapon blueprints, she lazily curled herself into the large wooden chair near the front of the store, allowing the warm afternoon sunlight to spill across her body.
Meanwhile, the small kitten slept comfortably upon her lap, its tiny body rising and falling with soft breaths while occasionally twitching its ears in dreams, completely unbothered by the silence surrounding the store.
As for the 8-star rank manticore, the beast had shown no interest in leaving its chamber since morning, and after failing once to coax it outside, Kiara simply allowed it to remain alone.
Nearby, Noah remained occupied with copying and organizing Chapters of Journey to the South, her eyes focused intently upon the pages while the scratching sound of her brush echoed rhythmically through the hall.
That left Serestia with only two choices.
Either sit beside Kiara beneath the warm sunlight, or remain near the reception counter and speak with Alucard.
Unlike Kiara, Serestia was a pure ice mage.
Heat naturally made her uncomfortable, and because of her unique constitution, warm weather affected her body more severely than that of ordinary people.
Outside, the summer temperature had already climbed close to thirty-five degrees, and even thinking about stepping into the streets made her skin feel sticky and unpleasant.
Meanwhile, inside Nexus Store, the temperature remained cool and steady at around eighteen degrees due to some unknown magic woven into the building itself, and the refreshing chill drifting through the air felt like standing beside frozen mountain springs.
Naturally, she chose the second option.
Pulling her robes neatly together, Serestia walked toward the reception area and sat down nearby, while Alucard quietly followed before taking a seat at her request.
For a brief moment, silence settled between them.
Then Serestia spoke.
"So," she began casually, though curiosity quietly hid beneath her calm voice, "how exactly did you end up here? It seems Lady Kiara takes good care of you. Were you acquainted in the past?"
She deliberately avoided asking Kiara directly about personal matters because, after learning the truth about their relationship only yesterday, speaking openly with her still felt strangely awkward, like trying to walk across a bridge that had only just been built.
Alucard shook his head immediately.
"No, Your Highness," he replied respectfully. "It is not like that at all. I met her for the first time when..."
Slowly and patiently, he began recounting the story.
Serestia listened carefully without interrupting, yet the more she heard, the stranger everything sounded to her.
Even as a princess raised inside the Imperial Palace, she understood the value of money better than most commoners imagined.
Six gold coins per day is nothing but trash in her eyes, but it was an absurd salary for someone merely working inside a weapon store.
Even palace maids serving Emperor Alexander did not receive such treatment.
Which meant Kiara clearly saw something important in Alucard.
But what exactly?
Did Kiara know his parents?
Was she secretly helping him because of some old connection?
Or perhaps there was another reason entirely hidden beneath the surface?
One theory after another formed inside Serestia’s mind like ripples spreading across still water, and before she realized it, her curiosity only deepened further.
As a result, her questions gradually became more personal.
Where was he born?
What did he do before joining the Guild?
How did Kiara treat him and the others?
Did she always act this way?
While Serestia quietly continued her soft interrogation, the sound of footsteps eventually echoed from outside the store.
Zion had returned.
But he was not alone.
The moment Kiara lifted her eyes and saw Lucian Storm entering beside him, she immediately straightened from her chair because Lucian’s expression clearly carried worry.
"It has been a while, Young Lord Storm," Kiara greeted politely out of formality, though before even inviting him inside, she directly asked, "What brings you here?"
Earlier, the system had already informed her through a notification that Zion sent a message saying Lucian intended to ask for help. However, Kiara naturally could not reveal that knowledge openly, so she acted as though this was her first time hearing about the matter.
And judging by Lucian’s face, the situation seemed urgent enough that she chose not to waste time.
Lucian inhaled slowly before speaking.
"I need your help," he said, his tone tense, "Not for me but for my friend, Arceus Silver."
Kiara frowned slightly.
"Arceus Silver?" she repeated. "What happened?"