Rebecca landed on the edge of a cliff not far from her castle, her expression thoughtful as she pondered about Richard.
Her biggest speculation was that his talent had attracted the attention of many factions, and he had accepted their support.
This was something Rebecca considered a crisisâbecause it meant that, without a doubt, Richard would become a formidable rival for her in the future.
"You!" Her eyes, which were previously narrowed, widened suddenly.
Edward, who had followed her, suddenly wrapped his arms around her from behind.
"Honey, why donât we talk in your room instead?" the man said, resting his chin on her shoulder so that their faces were side by side.
Rebecca frowned, but this man had just given her something incredibly precious.
Whether he had risked his life or spent a great fortune to obtain it, her heart at least felt at ease with him for now.
In the end, she allowed him to continue holding her.
"Donât you know why the White Ancestor helped that boy?" Rebecca asked.
She was far more focused on Richard and only wanted to talk about him.
"I really donât know... But for the White Ancestor to help him, I suspect he might be a member of the Skylight Clan. You know, our clan tends to appear out of nowhere. Even in this kingdom, thereâs the daughter of my older brother."
"Your niece is the one who poisoned my Beast with Imperial Bloodline and stole my Slave Seal," Rebecca replied sharply, surprising Edward.
"That little girl, how dare she."
"Donât talk about her yet... The boy named Richardâhe even used two Arcane Arts from the Moonshadow Clan, which shouldnât have leaked to anyone."
"What? Who gave them to him?"
"Donât ask me..." Rebecca answered firmly.
Then, she narrowed her eyes.
Time and focus had made her forget certain thingsâlike the fact that she had once given birth to a child.
However, this situation somehow caused old memories to resurface in her mind.
She was shocked when she remembered that the name she had chosen for her son was also Richard.
That little boy, though still young, had black hair and a mesmerizing faceâso beautiful that one could hardly imagine how stunning he would become when he grew older. Rebecca had only seen Richardâs image so far, not truly observed him.
But as a powerful Magus, the image was crystal clear in her mindâshe could study it without even looking.
Her gaze instinctively shifted to the manâs face beside her own, finding a striking resemblance between his features and those of the boy.
If there was any difference, such as the soft, delicate charm on the boyâs face, it seemed to have come from her own beautiful features.
"Whatâs wrong, honey?" Edward asked, noticing the sudden turmoil in Rebeccaâs expression.
But the woman remained silent, as though she couldnât utter a single word.
This was no longer mere speculation for Rebeccaâshe was certain of it. She didnât even feel the need to confirm it with anyone.
Regret?
No, she wasnât the type to ever feel regret.
Anger? Of courseâshe was clearly angry.
It felt like a slap to her face. If she were capable of regret, that slap would have felt even harder.
Still, she wasnât entirely consumed by rage either.
It was something complicatedâand feeling conflicted was simply inevitable for her.
---
On the other hand, Richard wasnât sleeping soundly, eagerly anticipating the next day with a cheerful mood.
He woke up in the morning but went back to sleep since no one called for him.
After all, he had gone to bed late, so it was only natural he needed more rest.
If possible, he wouldâve preferred to sleep all day.
Unexpectedly, even by afternoon, no one had come to summon him.
He figured it must be taking longer because, in the end, the Red Bear Clan had to negotiate with other clans to borrow their artifactsâespecially to bring them to Snow Sky City.
That couldnât be done in just one day.
Of course, Richard was no longer sleepy, but he was feeling too lazy to move, so he stayed in bed, doing absolutely nothing.
When night finally came, all he wanted was dinner. He planned to find the finest restaurant, so he went to the bathroom to clean himself up.
DING!
(Your Heavenly Water Points have increased from 65 to 78 Points!)
Incomplete Heavenly Water (78 Points)
He received a notification from the System while showering.
Since it was just an increase in Heavenly Water, his reaction was rather calm.
He thought heâd only be truly amazed once it reached 100 points.
After bathing, he put on a fresh outfit. Instead of wearing the fur-lined clothes typical of this region, he preferred layering his garments to keep warmâhe simply didnât feel comfortable in the localsâ style.
From his room, he went down to the first floor and opened the castleâs front door, finding two guards on duty.
Richard didnât see any members of the Red Bear Tribe aroundâthey were probably staying at an inn.
"My Lord," the two guards greeted Richard.
"Call a few more soldiers and escort me to the best restaurant in this city," Richard ordered them.
"My Lord, would you like me to call the commander as well?" one of the guards asked.
"No need," Richard replied.
Arthur, the commander, had plenty of responsibilitiesâRichard couldnât bother him over something as trivial as dinner.
The two guards nodded and quickly went to gather more soldiers.
Meanwhile, Richard climbed onto Athenaâs back.
Around ten fully armored soldiers soon arrived to accompany him.
One of them held Athenaâs reins so Richard could simply sit back and relax.
They exited the castle gate and entered the bustling city streets, which remained lively despite the cold night winds that blew through constantly.
He saw countless bars, and the drinks sold there must have been incredibly strong, as each bar emitted a thick, pungent scent of alcohol.
Perhaps everyone in this city was a heavy drinkerâbut all Richard wanted was dinner.
He let the soldiers escort him to the best restaurant in town.
Naturally, it wasnât far from his castle.
They brought him to a large three-story restaurant with wide windows.
Even its courtyard was spacious, and from its rooftop rose fragrant smoke scented with spices.