Chapter 37: She’s Still Pushing Herself Too Hard
After receiving the prince’s message, Cook, being an old hand at politics, naturally understood that Herta was giving him a chance to save face.
It was just a trip to the Rose Cathedral anyway, nothing too difficult. It had originally been a backdoor deal for Clement. According to equivalent exchange, Clement’s Fallen Angel Wing was an essential part of the “Broken Wing Angel Plan,” and Herta had to get this item.
The more you want something, the less you can show it—Herta understood this principle well.
Dark purple lightning flickered in his hands, making muffled “zzt” sounds. His profile appeared and disappeared under the light, while rain fell outside the window.
He had personally come to the fortress. After the Rose Cathedral conquered this place, they hadn’t occupied it. Vivian understood clearly that she couldn’t withstand the Empire’s counterattack for the time being.
On the table, Herta’s crown lay quietly.
…
“The Empire cannot allow opponents of unknown origin to exist. Vivian, please understand my position.”
As Cook spoke, he slowly retreated, his greatsword ready to strike.
Known as the “Shield of the Empire,” he naturally possessed incredible defensive attributes.
“What if I refuse?” Vivian spread her wings, the karmic fire burning on her scythe declaring her decision.
“I’m sorry… but Herta sent me here after all.”
Under the gray sky, Vivian’s scythe struck Cook’s body. He neither dodged nor avoided it, letting her karmic fire burn on his armor.
After she finished slashing, Vivian watched from the air as Cook, covered in flames, simply moved his body and holy light automatically dispelled the fire.
Unwilling to accept this, her eyes turned slightly red, and red light quickly surrounded Cook. Sharp strikes hit him rapidly, the clashing of cold weapons ringing constantly.
“Even if you’re the Shield of the Empire, I’m going to tear you apart today.”
The karmic fire on her scythe gradually turned dark red, and the sparks that flew to nearby trees immediately turned them to ash.
With Vivian fighting seriously like this, Cook couldn’t just stand there and take it. His greatsword tried to block the scythe, but he couldn’t catch Vivian’s agile figure at all.
This passive beating wasn’t working, so he tried to knock her back directly. But Vivian could always find the weakest points in his energy, clinging to him relentlessly. After several minutes, Cook’s armor already had several cracks.
“Enough.” A golden phantom appeared behind Cook. The sword-bearing golden phantom rose, its powerful aura directly repelling Vivian.
Back in the air, she faced off against the phantom. Having continuously enhanced her physical abilities, her magic power was somewhat depleted.
“I don’t want to completely tear apart our relationship. I just want to see that quasi-prince. Is this really necessary?”
Cook’s tone was full of confusion. What exactly was this quasi-prince’s background that made Vivian protect him like this?
Her face was slightly pale as she endured the pain in her lower abdomen, creating a dark curtain. Countless bats flew out, creating an overwhelming momentum that rushed straight at the golden phantom.
After Cook destroyed these bats with two sword strikes, they were just some of Vivian’s energy constructs. She had already disappeared, leaving him only with the tightly closed valley entrance of the Rose Cathedral.
The golden phantom withdrew. Cook looked expressionlessly at the chaotic battlefield, not knowing what to do. He couldn’t storm the place alone, so he had no choice but to retreat.
“She’s clearly one of my few worthy opponents. Why was she defeated so quickly today?” Cook clearly felt that Vivian’s speed wasn’t what it used to be, and she kept looking toward her abdomen, as if something there was uncomfortable.
…
Her hood was carelessly thrown aside, the rose on it already half-withered. Vivian sat in the chair, her pregnant body making fighting too much of a strain.
She took out a handkerchief to gently wipe the blood from her lips. Coughing accompanied by blood—it seemed she had never been this weak before.
“Sister Vivian, how did you get hurt so badly?” Therese asked with concern, bringing a cup of fresh blood to restore her strength.
She tremblingly took the cup Therese handed her, but unexpectedly couldn’t hold it steady. The glass shattered on the floor with a “crash.”
Fresh blood splattered on the ground, mixing with what she had coughed up until they couldn’t be distinguished.
“Sorry… sister was clumsy. Sorry to trouble you, Therese.”
Vivian’s eyes slowly closed. The last thing she saw was Therese’s anxious figure. She seemed to be saying something urgently, but she couldn’t hear it at all.
…
Time returns to before Vivian and Cook’s battle.
“Wensa can’t handle Cook. I need to go out myself.”
Hearing Vivian say this, Bai Li thought this was absolutely ridiculous. “How can you do this when you’re pregnant? Don’t treat your body like a joke, okay?”
She pouted in dissatisfaction. “How can our blood clan bodies be compared to humans?”
“Don’t push yourself. The Empire will find out I’m alive sooner or later. Why don’t you let me go? Senior Cook might not even recognize me.”
Hearing her say this, the always proud Vivian couldn’t listen at all.
“If I don’t go, how can I be responsible to the entire Rose Cathedral? You’re not a prince yet, but I am the legitimate queen.”
He could only watch Vivian leave. All he could do now was go to the dungeon to question Sloy and see if he could extract some intelligence.
At the Rose Cathedral’s dungeon, Sloy was lying on the prison bed. These past few days, that vampire had indeed kept her promise—no torture or interrogation.
“An ice-attribute vampire? How strange.” Just as Sloy was speculating about this person he’d never met, the heavy prison door opened, and that vampire was right in front of him.
“Sloy, I have some things to ask you.” Bai Li spoke coldly, frost forming in his hands. “This isn’t a request, it’s a command.”
“Go ahead and ask. As long as Herta’s around, going back to the Empire is a dead end for me anyway.”
As he spoke, he sat up from the bed. He could sense that the vampire in front of him had no malicious intent, and this speaking style was somewhat like his former teacher.
“The two major events in the Empire’s public opinion recently are my former teacher Bai Li, and myself.” Sloy explained. “I don’t know about the conspiracy against Teacher Bai, but Herta used that incident to bring me down.”
He added that when Liege Fortress first fell, the voices in the imperial court generally blamed Bai Li himself, though the propaganda to the people still called it heroic sacrifice.
“Honestly, I think this was completely a pivot point for inciting divisive emotions.”
Bai Li listened to every word of Sloy’s account. Claude eliminated him because he affected noble interests. To avoid alerting enemies, Claude could only abandon him.
Then, due to Sloy’s allegiance, Prince Herta found an opportunity to isolate him in court, then incited popular emotions and diverted domestic conflicts.
Through war, Claude could consolidate his military power, further weaken the noble class, and Herta’s move perfectly served Claude’s needs.
This way, Claude’s throne would be secure, and Herta would clear out his competitors while forming his own faction.
However, waging war always hurts innocent civilians. For the imperial royal family, this chain of schemes was brilliant for them.
As for who would shed blood, these people didn’t care.
…
“Brother Bai, why are you still here? Vivian… Sister Vivian has collapsed!”
Therese’s urgent voice interrupted Bai Li’s contemplation. Hearing that Vivian had collapsed, his mind went blank.
“Quick, take me there, Therese.”
Bai Li stood up and nearly fell, knocking over a chair beside him. He didn’t even have time to lock the prison door—a nearby guard helped lock it.
Therese took his hand and hurried toward Vivian’s bedroom. Therese had already settled her in.
“Please don’t let anything happen. I told you not to push yourself, look… sigh.”
Bai Li nervously clenched his fists. Though his expression looked indifferent, his disheveled clothes couldn’t hide his anxiety.
…