Chapter 985: Alternate Timeline: Black Citadel (1)

Meanwhile, Emperor Alexander once again failed miserably at befriending Felix.

The golden cat completely ignored the Emperor most of the night while spending most of the time in Serestia’s lap.

On the other hand, neither Arceus nor Noah was in a good mood tonight, as Kiara, who sat opposite Xander, chatted with him quite a lot during dinner. Neither the topics were important nor was she overly friendly or anything, but both of them did spot that Kiara had a genuine smile as she talked with Xander and also Magnus.

But to the Emperor, her answers were short and on point, and to Serestia, she barely talked. As for Callista, she wasn’t there for dinner. The other princes also did not attend this dinner, because it was a dinner between the Emperor/the Imperial Palace and Nexus Store. The princes and Callista had no right to join in.

Xander was there because he is the Supreme Commander, and Magnus Phoenix was there because he is the customer that Nexus is selling all the weapons to. The Emperor is only paying the money for it.

At the end of the gathering, Magnus personally escorted Kiara’s group outside.

Then, just before departing, Kiara made a specific request to him.

The Second Prince agreed immediately.

Soon afterward, Magnus climbed into the backseat of Noah and Zion’s vehicle while experiencing what he jokingly described as "the joy of finally being chauffeured."

Baltrow rode with Kiara instead.

Arceus sat in the front seat while Felix slept comfortably inside his arms.

The night journey lasted roughly seventy minutes.

Eventually, the convoy arrived near a massive black-water lake stretching quietly beneath the moonlight.

The dark surface reflected almost nothing.

The surrounding atmosphere felt cold and strangely oppressive.

But that lake itself was not their destination.

Nearby stood the true objective.

A heavily hidden underground prison entrance resembling the mouth of an abandoned mine.

Arceus quietly stared at it in surprise. He had never visited this place before.

Only two guards stood outside, which initially made the location seem unimpressive.

But Kiara immediately sensed otherwise.

"Follow me," Magnus said quietly.

The group entered.

And the deeper they walked, the more obvious the security became.

Soldiers stood guard along nearly every corridor.

Torches burned against damp stone walls.

The air smelled faintly of rust, moisture, sweat, and old iron.

Though individually the guards were not especially powerful, the security layers themselves were extremely dense.

Eventually, the prison warden arrived.

A peak 5-star rank Spirit Warrior covered in scars.

Yet the moment his eyes landed on Baltrow, his face visibly paled.

"Cell 403," Magnus instructed calmly.

The warden bowed immediately and led them through several twisting tunnels that became increasingly confusing.

For ordinary people, memorizing the route would have been nearly impossible.

But Zion and Noah silently observed everything without difficulty.

Meanwhile, Kiara calmly walked behind them while casually thinking, ’Releasing prisoners during wartime would definitely create chaos for the Imperial Army.’

The thought lingered quietly inside her head.

Eventually, they arrived before Cell 403.

Inside sat Wester Silver.

Plain white prison robes covered his body loosely.

Under flickering torchlight, he looked far older than before.

A bowl of rice rested untouched nearby.

He seemed not to have eaten.

Kiara briefly glanced toward Arceus.

His face remained calm.

Too calm.

Magnus finally spoke.

"Wake him."

The warden nodded, removed a long, thin staff from his storage ring, and prodded Wester lightly in the abdomen.

"403. Visitors for you."

Wester slowly opened his eyes.

"Yes...?"

His vision remained unfocused initially.

Then suddenly, he recognized the people standing outside.

His eyes widened.

"Ark?"

Arceus looked directly at him.

The silence afterward felt heavy.

Cold.

Then, finally, he answered.

"I don’t believe you still possess the right to address me that way, Wester Silver."

His voice remained perfectly calm.

"So please refrain from speaking informally to me."

Everyone present became slightly startled, except the androids and beasts.

Even Magnus quietly glanced sideways.

Wester froze briefly. This was the first time his son directly addressed him with his name, with no respect in his tone or speech.

Then slowly lowered his head.

"Yes," he muttered bitterly. "You’re right."

Before anyone else could speak, he continued on his own. "I don’t have the right to call myself your father anymore. Nor the qualification to ask forgiveness from either of you."

His voice sounded tired.

Genuinely tired.

"I’ll pay for my sins."

Then he slowly looked toward Arceus and Kiara.

"And I only pray... that one day, both of you stop hating me."

Kiara narrowed her eyes slightly. Something indeed felt different about him. Even Magnus sensed it.

But Arceus did not seem moved.

Not even slightly.

He looked directly into Wester’s eyes and replied quietly, "Those words do not suit someone like you, Wester Silver."

A faint bitterness surfaced inside his calm tone now.

"You’re probably hoping I’ll forgive you and reduce your punishment."

His fingers tightened slightly beside him.

"But that will never happen."

For several long seconds after Arceus finished speaking, the underground corridor remained drowned in silence.

Even Magnus Phoenix, who had expected bitterness from Arceus, became speechless for a moment because the man standing before them no longer resembled the gentle and obedient young heir everyone once knew from the Imperial City.

There was no trembling in his voice.

No tears.

No anger either.

That was the frightening part.

The kindness was still there, but it had become exhausted, like a candle that continued burning only because the wax beneath it had not fully melted yet.

Arceus slowly looked at Wester Silver through the iron bars while the orange torchlight flickered across his face, and then he continued speaking in the same calm tone that somehow felt heavier than shouting.

"Since childhood, I heard you say many times that you wanted another son because I wasn’t talented in fighting."

His fingers slowly tightened beside his robes.

"You said it while speaking to Elder Oswin."

"You said it while speaking to my mother."

"You said it while speaking to guests after drinking."

A faint smile appeared on his face, but it carried no warmth.

"At first, I felt sad because I thought I failed you."

His voice remained steady, yet the memories hidden underneath those words quietly surfaced one after another inside his mind.

The large dining halls.

The cold looks from the elders.

The constant comparisons.

The unspoken disappointment.

"I knew I could not become the heir you wanted."

"I was neither a talented Spirit Warrior nor a son capable of inheriting your position."

The prison torches crackled softly.

"So I simply chose the only thing I could do."

"I obeyed whatever you say."

Arceus lowered his gaze briefly.

"When you ordered me to become engaged to Sienna Vale on my nineteenth birthday, I accepted it without resistance."

A faint ache flashed through his eyes.

"You said I need to learn to love my fiancée to accept her as my wife wholeheartedly. I obeyed and tried my best to love her."

The words came out softly.

"But in the end, I only received heartbreak."

Wester lowered his head slightly.

The chains around his wrists gave a dull metallic sound as his fingers twitched weakly.

Then Arceus continued.

"After that, you tried to send me to House Drake."

"You locked me away."

"You even hurt my mother because of it."

A deep breath escaped his lips.

"Yes, I ran away."

"Yes, I went against your wishes."

"But how could I calmly agree to marry Jennifer Drake and even become their martrilocal son-in-law when I had never even met her before?"

The corridor became silent again.

Even the prison guards standing farther away subconsciously avoided looking directly at them.

Arceus slowly shook his head.

"After escaping, I still felt guilty."

His voice softened slightly there.

"I regretted not trying harder to convince you."

"I regretted leaving without understanding your feelings properly."

"That is why..."

His throat moved slightly.

"When you and the elders decided to kill me, I accepted my fate."

Those words made Magnus stiffen slightly.

Even Kiara quietly glanced toward him.

Arceus, however, continued calmly.

"If you had merely disowned me back then, I would have accepted it quietly."

"If you had forcefully dragged me away from Kiara before the engagement ceremony, I might still have begged for your life afterward because I would have believed you were simply blinded by emotion."

His eyes slowly hardened.

"But you crossed beyond that point, Wester Silver."

The air suddenly felt colder.

"You smuggled legendary experts from a vile organization into the Imperial City."

"You chose to attack only after Kiara officially became my fiancée, in front of many eyes, when you could have done that a day prior..."

Wester’s breathing became heavier.

Arceus took one slow step forward.

The fabric of his robes brushed softly against the stone floor.

"Tell me honestly. Did you truly believe those people would quietly leave after killing Kiara?"

His voice finally carried bitterness now.

"They would have started a massacre to erase witnesses."

"You would have died."

"I would have died."

"My mother would have died."

"Everyone nearby would have died."

His eyes stared directly into Wester’s trembling face.

"And I refuse to believe that possibility never crossed your mind."

Wester’s lips trembled faintly.

But Arceus did not stop.

"No."

"I believe you already accepted that outcome."

"As long as your enemy died first, you were willing to throw everything else away alongside him."

His voice became quieter.

"That is the kind of person you truly became."

Wester slowly closed his eyes.

Each word struck harder than any weapon.

Because none of them were false.

Arceus then took a slow breath before speaking his final words.

"And because of that..."