Vol 4. Chapter 90: The Children Arrive in Sabelius

Sadik Empire,

on the outskirts of the western metropolis, Sabelius.

Under the protection of several hundred members of the Autumnfall Legion and more than a dozen members of the Black Rose Knights, a convoy composed of dozens of carriages crossed mountains and rivers in a grand procession before finally arriving outside the Black Rose Duke’s estate in the suburbs.

Then, one carriage door after another slowly opened.

“We’ve arrived. Come on down, children.”

One of the Black Rose Knights elegantly removed his hood, revealing a handsome, dashing, and approachable face beneath it.

After hearing the Black Rose Knight’s words, the children inside the carriage hesitated for a moment before slowly stepping down, their hearts filled with both nervousness and excitement.

“Wow!! Is... is this really the Black Rose Family’s territory?!”

Quite a few children who had only just woken up immediately cried out in amazement after stepping out and seeing the scenery outside.

Compared to the Snow Night Empire, a frigid land where snow and blizzards raged throughout the year, the Sadik Empire, located in the southern part of the continent and blessed with a pleasant climate, possessed a far more enviable environment for living.

The sight that entered the children’s eyes was practically paradise.

Bright golden sunlight spilled across the vast green grasslands in the distance. The sunlight illuminated the dewdrops on the blades of grass, making them glitter and shine like countless sparkling jewels.

Nearby, a crystal-clear stream babbled softly. Beneath the sunlight, the water flowed quietly, transparent enough to see all the way to the bottom. From time to time, cheerful little fish would leap from the water, almost as if they were happily welcoming the children’s arrival.

The trees in the small woodland beside them grew lush and dense, radiating a pleasantly cool atmosphere. Brilliant sunlight streamed through layer upon layer of leaves like strands of fine golden sand before scattering across the ground below. Countless varieties of wildflowers bloomed across the land, occasionally releasing an enticing fragrance.

Birds fluttered happily through the forest and chirped brightly. Their songs mingled with the murmuring flow of water and lingered in the gentle breeze.

The clear water and blue sky here seemed unusually transparent and pure, without even the slightest trace of dust.

It had to be said that this enchanting scenery, overflowing with vitality, was enough to make anyone feel refreshed and carefree.

Many of the children who had come from the northern territories and had never before witnessed such a vibrant landscape could not stop exclaiming in amazement.

Among them

were the siblings Aide and Aixue, who had previously been “coincidentally” rescued by Yumo and had nearly been turned into “Soul Pearls” by Xue Tianao’s subordinates.

“It’s so beautiful here... Are we really going to live here from now on, Big Brother?”

The little white-haired, brown-eyed girl dazedly tugged on Aide’s sleeve.

Pulled back to his senses by her, Aide recovered from his astonishment.

Compared to the beautiful scenery around them, however, what attracted Aide’s attention even more was the magnificent mansion inside the Duke’s estate not far away—a residence so luxurious that it could practically be called a palace.

A palace of this scale...

In terms of magnificence, it was no less extravagant than the imperial palace of the Snow Night Empire.

In fact, it contained many things that even the imperial palace did not possess, such as Soul Vines used to decorate stone pillars, Dragon Soul Gems embedded atop sculptures, and large numbers of Flowers of Life planted throughout the gardens...

Although he was still a child, Aide had once been the heir of an old noble family and had read extensively. As such, he possessed at least some understanding of these precious decorative objects.

These things

were all priceless luxuries from the Dragon Race or the Elven Race that were extremely difficult to purchase on the open market, weren’t they?!!

And there were actually so many of them here?!

My god?!

Just how wealthy was the Black Rose Family?!

Where in the world had they obtained all these things...

Aide could not help asking himself question after question.

But obviously,

there was no way he could obtain an answer right now.

Even when he asked the Black Rose Knights beside him, they merely smiled without speaking and refused to tell him anything.

Left with no other choice, Aide temporarily gave up on investigating the matter further.

He shook his head, casting away the questions in his mind, and revealed a bright, energetic smile.

Then,

the little boy directly picked up his younger sister Aixue and smiled as the two of them looked together at the beautiful and extravagant scenery around them.

“Yes, Aixue. From now on, we’ll live here together.”

Aide’s voice was filled with excitement.

Not long ago,

when their family had been destroyed, when they had been thrown into the underground prison and were about to be turned into “Soul Pearls,” they had once completely despaired of their future.

Back then, they could never have imagined that just a few short weeks later, their lives would undergo such an earth-shattering transformation.

Not only had they been rescued from that living hell,

they were now about to begin an entirely new life.

And all of this

was because of that black-haired girl.

Recalling the breathtakingly beautiful appearance of that black-haired older sister and her heartwarming smile, Aide’s heart filled with overwhelming gratitude.

At this moment, the little boy had already begun wondering how exactly he could repay his benefactor.

“Will we... have another chance to meet... Lady Yumo someday?”

Still holding his younger sister, the boy curiously looked toward the handsome Black Rose Knight beside him.

Faced with the child’s question, and seeing the starlight in Aide’s eyes as well as his intense admiration and gratitude, the knight did not hesitate to give him a kind and encouraging smile.

“You will. As long as you study and train hard, you’ll meet Lady Yumo again.”

“Mm!”

...

...

Not far away, inside a pavilion atop a small hillside,

a woman with short dark-blue hair and dressed in a high-ranking maid uniform gazed toward the estate’s main entrance for a long while.

Only then did she put down the magical device in her hand with satisfaction.

A pleased smile slowly appeared on the woman’s face.

Seeing this,

another maid beside her silently brought over a cup of tea and respectfully asked,

“Lady Luowei, what do you think of those children?”

Hearing this,

Miss Luowei, Xiao’s secretary, smiled faintly and nodded.

“They’re quite good. Although most of the children rescued from the Snow Night Empire have only average talent, their eyes are full of vitality and deep gratitude. It seems Lady Yumo didn’t save them for nothing. If we cultivate them properly, they should become loyal subordinates.”

“That really is good news. I heard they were all nearly turned into ‘Soul Pearls’ and suffered quite a lot of abuse. Since they managed to come back from the gates of hell, they should be pretty good at enduring hardship, right?”

“At the very least, better than children their age.”

After giving that calm assessment, Luowei picked up another document from the table and began flipping through it.

At the same time,

the blue-haired woman’s peripheral gaze gradually shifted away from the children outside the Duke’s estate and toward an open plaza on the other side of the mountain.

At this moment, aside from the members of the Autumnfall Legion stationed there and several Black Rose Knights,

nearly a hundred figures wearing all kinds of different clothing—and even belonging to different races—stood somewhat restlessly in the center of the plaza.

These people

were talented children Luowei had recently sent people across the continent to find, as well as some individuals who had voluntarily applied to join the Black Rose Family.

And the documents in Luowei’s hands contained information about these people.

As Xiao’s secretary, Luowei had always been extremely conscientious.

The Black Rose Family possessed countless internal secrets, so naturally, outsiders could not simply join whenever they wanted.

Anyone who wished to join had to undergo a strict screening process.

And with Xiao currently accompanying Lady Yumo in the northern territories, the task of screening new recruits had naturally fallen onto Luowei’s shoulders.

Luowei naturally welcomed capable people who sincerely wished to join the Black Rose Family.

But if they were people harboring ulterior motives...

Looking toward the people gathered in the plaza, Luowei narrowed her eyes slightly.

“The preliminary screening is finished?”

“Yes, Lady Luowei.”

The maid beside Luowei, who was actually a member of Nightingale, replied with a cheerful smile.

“However, the flesh quality of those twenty-one fellows who wanted to try becoming legendary spies doesn’t seem very good. The wolves in the back mountains were a little picky about them.”

As she spoke, the maid seemed somewhat displeased.

“Also, according to the Duke’s orders, I deliberately left six spies from other factions alive. From the perspective of those six adorable juniors, they should believe that they successfully infiltrated our Black Rose Family.”

“Mm, not bad.”

Luowei smiled faintly and gave the maid an approving look.

“Keep an eye on them. They’ll be useful at critical moments. Oh, right. Where are most of these reckless fools from?”

“Same as usual. Some are from the Crimson Leaf Empire, some are from the Holy Tower, some are from the Asumos Church, and there are even a few from the Elven Race... But those long-eared fellows were so terrible at disguising themselves that I really couldn’t keep acting along with them, so I packed them up and threw them back into the Elven Forest...”

“Uh...”

Hearing that, Luowei’s eyelid twitched slightly.

“Those... long ears...”

“But Lady Luowei, this time nearly half of them came from the nobles of the Sadik Empire.”

“Hmm? Them?”

“Yes. Apparently, those members of the royalist faction regard our family as the mastermind secretly threatening imperial rule and want to gather evidence to expose our crimes before the Emperor.”

Unsurprisingly, the maid’s words made Luowei roll her eyes.

“Uh... the royalists? Those idiots who still think the previous emperor died from excessive indulgence actually dare provoke us?”

“Yes. It’s pretty funny. But... that little emperor chosen by the Duke is actually quite sensible. Over the past few days, he’s sent us quite a few apology letters and gifts through rare spatial magic stones.”

“At least he knows his place.”

“Mm. Then, Lady Luowei, how should we deal with those nobles?”

“Once Lady Xizhi returns, have her pay those nobles a visit and properly ‘communicate’ with them. There’s no problem that can’t be solved through communication.”

With that,

Luowei stopped caring about those clowns and began seriously reviewing the files of the new recruits.

Although the Nightingale Organization had already investigated these newcomers in secret, Luowei had worked beside Xiao for many years and had naturally picked up her cautious habits.

She still planned to personally go through all of the information herself

and see whether there were any suspicious points.

Maybe there were still fish that had slipped through the net?!

And so,

with that thought in mind, Luowei carefully began reviewing the information provided by the Nightingale members.

However,

whether by coincidence or not,

she had barely read a few pages before Miss Luowei’s brows furrowed slightly.

At that moment, one newcomer’s report entered the secretary’s sight, causing a hint of surprise to appear in her eyes.

Hmm?

“This child... crawled out of a mass grave after coming back from the dead?”