Chapter 540: Opening the Life Mana Manual

Julius and the others took a while to catch up. Anna hadn’t returned for almost an hour. By then, Julius had explained virtually everything that had happened in the realm. However, that only took up a small portion; the rest of the time was spent just talking about what they had been doing.

When Anna returned, she wasn’t alone. To Julius’s concern, Crown Prince Jaxson was there as well. The young man stood there, expressionless. Despite his youthful appearance, an aura of authority radiated from his body.

It was a different feeling he had gotten from the Emperor at the beginning of the tournament. He wondered why there was such a big difference. Perhaps Prince Jaxson was merely more combat-focused than the Emperor.

“You had enough time, Reinera?” Prince Jaxson suddenly asked Reinera with a softened gaze.

“Yeah, it’s like what we suspected. They were trapped inside an isolated space with the chimera. The other attack on the realm seemed to be related, but ultimately served a different purpose,” Reinera stated with a thoughtful expression.

“There was another attack?” Julius asked curiously.

Derek nudged him gently, as if to tell him to be quiet.

Reinera didn’t seem to care and nodded. “Yes, the attack on you guys seemed to be a secondary goal of the attackers. The true purpose was to destabilize the connection between the realm and us. They also appeared to have stolen something from the realm.”

“Reinera,” Crown Prince Jaxson said warningly.

“What? It’s only fair they know. They shared what they knew; I am just reciprocating.”

“There is no need to reciprocate. That information is sensitive, and the fewer people who know, the more we can control what information leaks out,” the prince said calmly.

“What? You don’t trust them to keep a secret?”

“I trust House Zenith’s loyalty to the Empire, but that doesn’t mean that word can’t spread somehow regardless of someone’s good intentions.”

“Fine. My bad,” Reinera said with a slightly apologetic nod.

Crown Prince Jaxson then turned his gaze to the four of them. “I don’t have to remind you guys that this needs to stay secret, correct?”

Derek bowed elegantly. “Of course not, your highness. We won’t speak a word about this matter.”

“Good,” Crown Prince Jaxson said, and with one final look at all of them, lingering on Julius’s form for a split second longer than the others, walked out of the room, leaving Anna standing at the door.

“Hmm. So what was this thing that was stolen?” Aubrey asked curiously.

Reinera shook her head apologetically. “Sorry, but I might actually get in trouble if I told you guys.”

Aubrey waved her concerns away. “Don’t worry about it. We understand. I was just curious.”

Reinera was about to respond when the door suddenly slammed open.

“There you are!” A familiar voice rang out through the room.

“Honey, you are yelling again,” another familiar voice said scoldingly.

“Sorry, I’m just excited.”

“That’s great, honey, but remember the last time you got too excited?”

“That wasn’t my fault. They should have made that building stronger. How was I supposed to know it would collapse that easily?” Cain said with an offended scoff as he strolled into the room.

Julius held back his amused smile and went over to Cain and Freya. He surprised Freya with a warm hug.

“Oh!” Freya said with a soft smile, rubbing his head lovingly.

“What about me?” Cain asked, disgruntled by Julius’s apparent favoritism.

He ignored the brute and shook his head with exasperation when he felt Freya’s concerned senses wash over him. He could already feel her examining his condition, and he knew she was agitated by what she saw.

“I’m okay. I promise,” he said, letting her know he was alright.

She grabbed his shoulders so that he was arm’s length away. “You absolute buffoon of a boy. I blame Cain for this,” she said with a dark look at her husband.

“What did I do? I’m the victim here. Julius is my disciple, and yet he hasn’t even greeted me yet,” Cain muttered before suddenly appearing in front of Julius with one swift step, slapping his meaty hand across Julius’s back.

“It’s good to see you, though. I saw your fight against Valis’s disciple. It’s nice to see that you have at least a little bit of competition,” Cain said with a laugh.

Julius stumbled forward and glared at Cain. He suspected that Cain had hit him a little harder as a form of revenge. He was petty like that.

“Thanks, I learned some interesting things from him too, so it was worth it,” he said once he healed his bruised back.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Cain grinned and gave him a soft squeeze on the shoulder. Cain wasn’t like Freya, but this was his way of showing affection.

“So who is this young lady?” Cain asked with a teasing grin. “Another girlfriend?”

“She is Reinera Luminous, princess of the Luminous Empire. Please mind your words, Cain Steelborn,” Anna spoke up.

Cain ignored her entirely.

“So are you done here? Or do you want more time to catch up with your princess? I remember you said something about missing her,” Cain said to Julius, loud enough for Reinera to hear.