Chapter 915: Alternate Timeline: At Celestra (3)
Meanwhile, Kiara and Zion were led through a series of long corridors, their footsteps muffled by richly woven carpets.
The palace was lavish, but Kiara’s eyes remained sharp.
Every turn.
Every guard.
Every exit.
A habit forged by caution did not disappear simply because the walls were gilded.
After walking for several minutes, they entered an empty meeting chamber.
The room was spacious and elegantly decorated, with carved pillars, embroidered curtains, and a large circular table at the center.
Kiara and Zion took their seats.
Philip remained standing beside them while a royal knight departed to inform the king.
A few minutes later, the doors opened.
A middle-aged man entered, flanked by two royal knights.
He wore luxurious robes embroidered with celestial patterns, and his long white hair flowed down his back almost to his knees.
Seen from behind, one might have mistaken him for an elderly sage.
Yet when he stepped fully into the light, his face appeared remarkably youthful, smooth, and free of wrinkles.
Kiara studied him carefully.
Without meaning to, she compared him to her biological father, Emperor Alexander Phoenix.
There was a profound difference.
Her father possessed a natural dignity that filled a room like the rising sun fills the sky.
This man, although regal in attire, reminded her more of a shrewd merchant who smiled while weighing the profit hidden behind every word.
That was her first impression.
Naturally, she kept the thought to herself.
Philip leaned closer and whispered, "His Majesty."
Kiara and Zion rose to their feet.
As the man approached, Kiara gracefully bowed with a hand on her left chest, and bowed respectfully.
"Greetings, Your Majesty. I am Kiara, owner of the Nexus Weapon Store. This is my brother, Zion."
The king’s eyes briefly lingered on Zion, who carried absolutely no resemblance or so whatever, but he showed no outward reaction.
Instead, he said in a measured tone, "You are quite late, Lady Kiara. For a moment, I thought you had rejected our invitation."
Before Kiara could offer her prepared explanation, Philip quickly stepped forward and recounted the matter of the vehicle and its need for fuel.
The king listened in silence.
When Philip finished, he nodded.
"I see. Then I misunderstood the situation."
His expression softened slightly.
"If it is not an inconvenience, would you honor us by staying for dinner?"
Kiara had already suspected that the royal family had not invited her merely for idle conversation. Their willingness to wait for hours only strengthened that belief.
She inclined her head. "It would be my pleasure, Your Majesty."
The king gave a faint smile. "You must be tired after such a long journey. Please rest in our guest quarters until evening. We will speak in detail later."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
The king turned and began to leave.
And just as he did, Kiara activated Sage’s Eyes out of simple curiosity.
The information that appeared before her caused her expression to freeze.
Edward Crescent
Race: Human
Age: 68
Rank: 7-star
Spirit Path: Summoner (Necromancer)
Attribute: Dark
Affiliation: Celestra Kingdom
Description: Twin brother of King Caleb Crescent and the Grand Prince of the Celestra Kingdom.
Kiara stared.
For a moment, she wondered if she had misread the words.
Then she read them again.
Her heart skipped a beat.
"That is not Caleb Crescent," she thought, her eyes narrowing ever so slightly. "That is his twin brother?"
A cold ripple of suspicion ran through her mind.
"Is this some kind of joke?"
The fake king disappeared beyond the doorway.
Philip turned to one of the royal knights who had remained behind. "Lady Kiara, he will escort you to your rooms."
Kiara abruptly turned to Philip.
"Prime Minister Philip," she said carefully, "the man who was just here... was truly the king?"
Philip blinked, surprised by the question. "Of course he was. Who else could it be?"
[Ding! You triggered a Hidden Quest, Save King Caleb Crescent.]
The notification appeared before Kiara’s eyes like a thunderclap.
In an instant, the final piece fell into place.
There was no longer any need to speculate.
Kiara masked her reaction and forced a casual smile.
"Nothing," she said lightly. "I had heard that King Caleb was quite old. He appears much younger than I expected."
Philip chuckled. "That is likely because His Majesty broke through to the 7-star rank recently."
Kiara nodded as though satisfied.
But inwardly, her thoughts were racing. "So that is the story they are telling."
If the quest was accurate, then the true king was imprisoned somewhere, while his twin brother sat upon the throne in his place.
Whether the queen and prince knew the truth was another matter entirely.
For now, she needed information.
And privacy.
*
A short while later, Kiara and Zion were escorted to separate guest rooms.
Before parting, she turned to Zion.
"Rest for now," she said. "Stay alert, but do nothing unless I contact you."
Zion bowed his head.
"Understood, Master."
Once alone in her room, Kiara sat down in a cushioned chair near the bed.
The room was lavish, but she paid little attention to the decor.
Her focus was entirely on the newly triggered quest.
She opened the details.
*
Hidden Quest: Save King Caleb Crescent
Description: King Caleb Crescent was imprisoned somewhere in the Holywell Prison. Break into the prison, save the king, and help him reclaim the throne.
Reward: Choose a Warship – [destroyer] [submarine]
Time Limit: No
Condition for failure: King Caleb Crescent dies.
Note: The Quest will be canceled if not accepted within 24 hours.
[Accept] [Reject]
*
Kiara’s eyes lingered first on the reward.
A slow smile touched her lips.
"So the system is finally offering me naval power."
For a few moments, her mind wandered to the possibilities.
A destroyer.
A submarine.
If the warships were ether-based like the attack helicopter, the submarine would be priceless.
If they were standard models that could be mass-produced, the destroyer would likely offer greater long-term value.
But that decision could wait.
The real issue was the mission itself.
Kiara leaned back in the chair and exhaled slowly.
"First, I need information about Holywell Prison," she thought. "Its layout, its defenses, and the strength of its strongest guard."
She rubbed her temple.
"If Noah were here, he could infiltrate without anyone noticing. But if I have to do this personally, then I am not rescuing one man. I am marching into the center of a hornet’s nest."
Her thoughts continued unfolding one after another.
"After rescuing the king, I must expose the impostor and keep him alive. A dead man cannot confess."
"And then what?"
She frowned.
"What if the royal family does not recognize Caleb?"
"What if he has been imprisoned so long that his own people doubt him?"
"What if Queen Penelope is innocent and becomes another victim?"
In this world, reputations could be deadlier than swords.
A queen accused of betrayal, even if blameless, could be driven to despair.
Kiara closed her eyes.
"So many variables."
The quest looked straightforward on the surface.
But beneath it lay a web of politics, family loyalties, and fragile emotions.
Like tugging on a single thread only to discover it was holding together the entire tapestry.
After a long silence, Kiara let out a weary sigh.
"There is no use trying to solve everything before I know more."
She rose from the chair, lay down on the bed, and stared at the canopy overhead.
For now, the wisest move was to rest.
The storm was gathering.
And when night fell, she would decide whether to step into it.