Pillar of Yita

Fang Hong suddenly gasped.

He seemed to have lost the ability to think as he stared at the somewhat sly noble girl who knew how to make use of her advantages. If she had guessed that he was a stowaway, it might have been said that the officials leaked the message—but the latter case, that was clearly a secret only he and Miss Tata knew.

Fortunately, she only thought she had obtained an ancient Artificial Dragon Soul, not a Zero-Type Holy Crystal. Otherwise, Fang Hong would have really thought she was also in the Holy Sanctuary without him noticing her, but even so, he began to feel slightly uneasy, vaguely sensing that his privacy had been peeped into.

”Mr. Ade used the power of that Dragon Soul to manipulate Meimei, right?” Hilveld came over, tiptoeing, and whispered to him, ”Don’t worry, I’ll keep quiet about it.”

Her voice was light and soft, her breath tickling Fang Hong’s earlobe, making his heartbeat seem to skip a beat: ”Hi, Miss Hilveld...?”

Hilveld retreated, watching him with bright eyes: ”So does Mr. Ade still remember what he said?”

”Ah?”

Hilveld smiled. ”—It’s okay if you don’t remember. Want to see something? I’ll take you to a place.”

”Wait, see what?”

Fang Hong was still puzzled. Originally, Hilveld seemed like just an ordinary noble girl to him, but now she was increasingly enveloped by mysteries, hard to predict. She seemed to know everything, and right, she knew Princess Briana—

It was as if he had just remembered this, that she was quite familiar with the Elf Princess. Briana Karanshir even asked her for a favor, but what could an ordinary person do to help a legendary hero?

He had countless questions he wanted to ask, but Hilveld merely inclined her head with a slight smile, as if issuing an invitation, then carrying a suitcase, walked past him, stepping onto the street.

Her maid followed closely, also looking back at him.

Those violet eyes were full of wariness, as if warning him not to run away.

But Fang Hong wouldn’t run away; he was full of doubts. He quickly followed, but Hilveld moved quickly, merging with the street crowd, yet like a white deer untouched by worldliness, she moved agilely through them.

Fang Hong chased after her, almost bumping into pedestrians several times, drawing a series of unfriendly glances. He could only keep apologizing, while the master and servant ahead walked leisurely through the bustling market—occasionally, the girl would stop, holding the huge suitcase in front, smilingly waiting for him.

But as soon as Fang Hong caught up, Hilveld would move on, leaving only her playful silhouette behind. The two—or perhaps three of them chased and followed this way through the bustling main street; as the street crowd thinned, Fang Hong finally found the opportunity to catch up.

He found Hilveld stopped in a small alley, in front of an archway built between two walls, the end of this district, with a charming little forest beyond the archway, verdant and inviting.

”Miss Hilveld—”

Hilveld turned around, held a finger to her lips, and gestured for him to be quiet. She pointed to the side, and Fang Hong noticed an old man sitting on a low stool, hands in his lap, nodding off.

The old man wore a blue-and-white uniform, the battle garb of the Elpaxin Guards.

”What is this place?” Fang Hong asked with his lips.

”Ameya’s Sacred Altar,” Hilveld replied, motioning toward the forest. ”The shrine is within that forest, home to an ancient White Oak Wood, only accessible during the Harvest Festival and the Spring Ritual.”

”What are we doing here?” Fang Hong was surprised; Ameya’s Sanctum was a natural sanctuary, no wonder this valuable Floating street had such a park-like, birdsong-filled space.

But this noble girl was too bold, daring to sneak into what was essentially a goddess’s sanctuary, viewed as sacred grounds by the followers of Ameya.

Fang Hong couldn’t help but think, if Miss Atira found out, who knows what might happen.

Hilveld looked at him and likewise responded with her lips: ”You’ll see in a bit—”

Saying so, she silently moved forward but didn’t head toward the altar. Instead, she chose another direction. Fang Hong worried but had no choice but to follow the master and servant pair.

Luckily, they didn’t disturb the elderly guard and entered the forest. The forest was silent, occasionally broken by a bird’s trill, the sunlight piercing through the canopy, casting inconsistent golden patterns as though tangible.

Fang Hong seemed to hear his own heartbeat, faintly catching a whiff of fragrance, not knowing whether it was from the forest or the light scent of the young girl.

At that moment, Hilveld said, ”Is Mr. Ade truly an Apprentice Alchemist of Kapuka?”

Fang Hong blinked in confusion—is that also a question to ask? The girl looked back at him, understanding his answer: ”I see.”

”What do you mean ’I see’? Does it matter?”

”Of course, it matters.” Hilveld gave him a meaningful look and a secretive smile before turning away again.