Chapter 350 The White and The Silver
"hooa--"
Artur suppressed a yawn after being glanced at by the two women in front of him. Although it was impolite to yawn during an ongoing conversation, Artur couldn't be entirely blamed in this situation.
How could he not? The two women in front of him had been exchanging glances for an hour straight without uttering a single word. Their beautiful blue eyes resembled the depths of the ocean, locking onto each other. Their angelic faces, akin to heavenly beings lost on Earth, remained expressionless.
The two women were Anna and Zilya.
Artur wasn't sure what they were thinking at the moment, and he didn't dare say anything due to the chilling atmosphere. Artur regretted not insisting on Robert accompanying him to this meeting. At least with Robert around, he wouldn't have suffered alone in this suffocating silence.
Feeling frustrated, Artur gathered the courage to clear his throat and initiate the conversation, "Err... Anna, let me introduce Zilya. She's our mother's stepsister. I've mentioned before that our biological grandfather is Sergei Valya. He remarried and Zilya is--"
"I know," Anna replied shortly.
"We've already met in the Great Hall earlier," Zilya added.
"Ah, oh, right..." Artur fell silent, regretting his decision to show off.
The silence once again enveloped the room, causing Artur's back to become damp with cold sweat. The two women continued to gaze at each other, occasionally sipping their tea without uttering a word.
Until finally, words escaped Anna's lips, "Are you not going to force me to return to the House of Valya?"
Artur wanted to feel relieved that Anna had initiated the conversation, but her words sounded so icy. It made the sweat on his back, already damp, feel even colder.
Zilya didn't immediately answer; she elegantly sipped her tea and remained silent for a moment. Then she replied to Anna's question with a tone so flat it seemed icy.
"I have no intention of doing that. However, if you wish to join Valya House, my arms are open wide. I'm confident that this wouldn't be an issue for Sergei or the other elders either. With your current strength, there wouldn't be anyone capable of rejecting a Level 4 Constellation Mage joining them."
"Oh? Is that so?" Anna said.
Artur could see a hint of a smirk on her lips, quickly hidden behind the teacup she delicately sipped from.
Zilya nodded, "That's correct," she responded flatly.
"I thought you might force me to return to Valya House. After all, you've sacrificed a lot to protect my mother. If I were already dead, maybe Artur alone would have been enough to fulfill Valya House's wishes. But with me still alive, doesn't that mean you can gain even greater benefits?"
Though Artur disliked it, he knew where this conversation was heading. One of the reasons the Valya House elders supported Sergei in protecting Cila was because Cila possessed a Mana Womb. She was bound to birth one or more Mana Childs. However, Cila and an ordinary husband. Unfortunately, Artur was just an ordinary mage, not a Mana Child.
chose to leave home and never returned.
Perhaps they were still hopeful for the Mana Child born from Cila and an ordinary husband. Unfortunately, Artur was just an ordinary mage, not a Mana Child.
Even so, Artur had proven himself capable enough to mitigate Valya House's loss due to Cila's departure. But if Anna were to join Valya House, they wouldn't just mitigate their loss; they might turn it into a gain beyond their expectations.
"Oh, why do you think so?"
Because Anna is a...
"Because I am a Mana Child," Anna answered Zilya's question in a flat and casual tone. She seemed unconcerned about what Zilya might think and asked just to satisfy her curiosity.
Once again, Zilya didn't answer immediately. Calmly, she sipped her tea before placing the cup back on the table. She then glanced at the surroundings of Anna's living space.
Anna's room could be considered quite spacious, but not spacious enough for a Prince Consort. There were several pieces of furniture in the room, but the fact that arion species weren't particularly inclined toward artistic pursuits made the atmosphere feel somewhat bland.
The most unique feature of Anna's room was her bed, made from densely packed cotton covered in soft furs. Artur could even sense some mechanism within the bed that made it exceptionally plush, warm, and sturdy.
His gut feeling told him that even an elephant could climb onto the bed without it collapsing. Artur wasn't sure why Anna's bed was crafted to be this robust.
Not only that, he noticed an enchantment on the bed that allowed it to absorb and quickly dry any moisture. The purpose behind it, Artur couldn't quite fathom.
"Does Anna sweat in her sleep that she's made her bed capable of absorbing moisture?" he ask himself.
Zilya's gaze returned to Anna, and her voice began to sound.
"If this were a few years ago before you married Prince Moku, I would've definitely forced you back to Valya House, even if it meant fighting you. But now... the support you have is too strong to be simply countered by Valya House alone."
Hearing Zilya's straightforward words, Artur swallowed hard. How could she dare say such things right in front of Anna? Even though she intended to kidnap Anna, wouldn't it be better to use more diplomatic words?
Artur was afraid that Anna would become angry with Zilya. He didn't want to witness his sister and aunt fighting before him. However, before Artur could say anything, Anna's voice was heard again.
"Hmm... I understand," she nodded.
"I find your words more acceptable than your earlier ones, which sounded quite hypocritical. However, there's one thing wrong with your recent statement. I don't need my husband's assistance to fight you, because right now, you are much weaker than I am," Anna's eyes gleamed as if she were provoking. The words sounded arrogantly though her tone remained level.
"Oh, really?"
Zilya's response also carried a hint of mocking towards Anna's words. It was as if she was telling Anna not to get too full of herself.
"I'm confident in that," this time, Anna's grin was no longer concealed.
The two women resumed their silent confrontation, but the silence Artur felt now was no longer chilly but rather heated, as if he stood between two volcanoes about to erupt.
*Knock! *Knock! *Knock!
The knocking at the door sounded, breaking the atmosphere and returning it to the normalcy Artur had felt before – an illusion that was disrupted, though his clenched fists and sweaty palms told him it wasn't entirely illusion.
Right in front of him, Anna and Zilya had almost engaged in a fight merely to find out who was stronger. Artur truly felt that the battle of power supremacy wasn't solely a male trait, but also a frequent occurrence among women.
"Consort Anna, it's Sir Robert," Gupita's voice sounded, informing them of the new guest.
Anna resumed her calm posture in her chair and said, "Please, let him in."
Zilya too had started to enjoy her tea with grace.
Both of them acted as if nothing had transpired between them.
Robert entered the room along with two others. Artur knew them both – they were Dony and Sigurd. It seemed these two were the ones Robert trusted to accompany him in this meeting.
Artur had no issue with the two men and agreed with Robert's assessment. Dony could be considered the brain of Class A15; he had the ability to analyze problems and find solutions adeptly. With him present in the meeting, any issues they encountered would be resolved more efficiently.
As for Sigurd, even though he didn't possess the intelligence of Dony, he was someone trustworthy. Sigurd was incredibly loyal to Robert, to the point where he might be willing to sacrifice himself for him.
"Consort Anna, please forgive my tardiness," Robert bowed his head to Anna.
Anna waved her hand, "It's alright, Sir Robert. Artur already informed me of the reason for your delay," she said casually.
"Thank you for understanding."
Anna responded with a nod.
"Consort Anna, let me introduce these two good friends of mine. They can greatly aid us in achieving our goals," Robert continued, pointing to Sigurd and Dony.
"Pleasure to meet you, Consort Anna. My name is Sigurd Antolini, you can call me Sigurd," Sigurd offered a greeting with a slight bow of his back.
"Pleasure to meet you, Consort Anna. My name is Dony Rupawan, you can call me Dony," Dony offered a greeting in the same manner as Sigurd.
"Hello Sigurd, Hello Dony, thank you for coming to this meeting. Please, take a seat," Anna responded to their greetings.
"Consort Anna, I've discussed our plan with a few of my uncles. They all agree to assist us in locating the whereabouts of illegal slave trading across the Human Alliance. I've gathered some information already, and I've identified a suitable target location as well,"
Robert began explaining to Anna the findings he had.
"Thank you very much, Sir Robert. Your assistance is greatly appreciated. I hope our activities can save the lives of many unfortunate illegal slaves who are treated so cruelly. Why don't we discuss this matter right here? I'm certain no one would dare eavesdrop," Anna remarked.
"Hold on, Consort Anna. We need to decide something crucial first before discussing our operation," Robert said with seriousness.
Hearing Robert's seriousness, everyone turned to him.
"Oh, what is this crucial matter, Sir Robert?"
"The crucial matter is the name of our group!"
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