‎”I thought they both had some similarities…” Rullein said as she walked behind Rasmus, whispering into his ear.

‎”Similarities?” Rasmus glanced to the side as he kept following Aris from behind.

‎

‎”Anastasha and her. They both shared the first name, and I thought they would be similar in personality as well,” Rullein answered, glancing at the queen of Brithia, Anastasia. “Well, at least that was what Erlina said about names. She said that certain people with uncommon names, they mostly shared some traits and personalities,” she explained, keeping her eyes on Anastasia.

‎

‎”Humans named their child with hopes and wishes for the child. Humans have so many and yet so few personalities. I do believe it’s just a coincidence, and not all people with the same uncommon name would share the same traits and personalities,” Rasmus answered, but he didn’t deny that it was not uncommon for that to happen. “If you’re curious, why don’t you give it a check and see if you’re right or not,” he looked over his shoulder at Rullein.

‎

‎Rasmus glanced at Erlina, who somehow avoided his gaze as if she was guilty of something. He wondered what Erlina had taught Rullein and how much weird knowledge that she had shared with Rullein. He decided to brush it off and focus on Doloran, a Beastmaster that had managed to find the threat where others had failed. A giant muscular man with long messy hair and beard while wearing shorts and rolled-up sleeves shirt that fit his status perfectly.

‎Rasmus’ eyes turned cold as he imagined himself using Mana to decapitate Doloran. In an instant, Doloran turned his head and glanced at Rasmus with the same cold and sharp gaze. Doloran could feel the killing intent when his instincts warned his whole body. At that moment, Rasmus believed what Alexander said that a Beastmaster had a sharp instinct like animals, which was what intrigued him the most.

‎

‎Doloran furrowed his brows at Rasmus, but then his attention was stolen by Rullein, a tall woman wearing an all-black see-through dress. Her long black straight hair and her dark orange draconic eyes made him unable to look away. Although Rullein hid her power just like Rasmus, making those two seem like ordinary people, Doloran could see through her eyes, the eyes of a beast that had the ability to control all other beings.

Marina gritted her teeth and suddenly smacked Doloran’s back so that the sound of the smack startled everyone and echoed throughout the long hallway.

“Ow!” Doloran groaned as he rubbed his back where Marina had smacked him. Before he could even say a word, Marina pinched his ear and made him lower himself to match Marina’s height. “Ow! Ow! Ow!” He groaned once again, wincing as he made sure his ear wouldn’t get ripped off.

“Where were you looking? Have you forgotten that your wife is walking beside you right now?” Marina narrowed her eyes, displeased by her husband’s gaze toward Rullein.

“I wasn’t looking at her inappropriately. She has the eyes of a beast that I have never seen before. I was just trying to understand what she really was, and that made me curious…” Doloran answered, as his ear was still taken hostage by Marina. However that answer didn’t please Marina at all, it made her feel even ashamed and angry. “Ow!” His groans grew louder.

Marina glared at Doloran, couldn’t believe she was marrying this big idiot. She then turned around to look at Rasmus and Rullein with a guilty and apologetic smile written on her face before she lowered her head at them. Rasmus smiled and lowered his head at Marina as well since he also tested Doloran’s ability to perceive danger as a Beastmaster.

Aris glanced over her shoulder, wondering what was happening back there. She used to be on the back with the others while Rasmus was at the front, but this time the role was switched. She realized how lonely it was to be at the front even though they were close to her. It looked like there was an invisible wall that separated her from the rest.

“It’s an honor,” Anastasia said with a gentle smile on her face, revealing the wrinkles on her face. “Only a handful of people that had the privilege to speak or even to be in the same space with an Orthias. Right now, I’m walking side by side with an Aristoria, and this is the greatest dream for anyone in this continent,” she continued, but didn’t dare to look Aris in the eyes.

“Is that so? I suppose that means there will be a lot of guests that tried to come to see me then,” Aris said with a flat expression.

“Yes, and I believe by now the news is being spread across the continent. It’s going to be hectic, but we will assure you that your time here will be pleasant. We will prevent anyone from seeing you unless you wish to see them,” Anastasia smiled as she lowered her head.

Aris glanced at Anastasia and she noticed that the way Anastasia spoke to her was formal and filled with utmost respect. She never thought that Western people would look at Orthias so highly just like Rasmus had expected. She finally understood why Rasmus wanted her to lead the group here and not him.

“Please do so, my purpose here is to deal with the problem,” Aris responded with a cold tone.

“Of course,” Anastasia nodded with understanding, still with a gentle smile on her face.

When they entered the throne hall, all the royal guards were ordered to leave the room. Since Brithia Kingdom used a matriarch system, Anastasia was the ruler of the kingdom,and that her power was absolute where her husband didn’t even hold any power or authority in the nation. With that being said, the throne room only had a single throne and her husband was nowhere to be found.

Rasmus glanced at the stone table with five seats around it, and then he glanced at Marina. Marina noticed Ramsus’ glance and she stared at him without showing any expression until she gave a slight nod. It was as Marina had warned him before that his presence wasn’t welcomed in West Neva. Rasmus nodded with understanding and decided to walk to the side and stood next to the wall with the others while Aris followed Anastasia, Marina, and Doloran.

“Told you, western people are like this. They don’t hide their resentment and their dislike toward others,” Erlina leaned in to whisper to Rasmus.

“That’s good then, no hypocrisy,” Rasmus responded as he nodded with understanding and looked at Anastasia, treating Aris like a Goddess. “I suppose I did the right thing to let Aris lead here,” he looked at Aris, where her gaze was like dissecting Anastasia’s character.

“I guess you’re right, but there’s a good and bad side about that. Seeing Aris observe Her Highness like a predator staring at its prey is quite hilarious,” Erlina said and tried her hardest to not laugh or even let out a chuckle. “But so far, Aris has shown something extraordinary. She really shows off her arrogance like a tyrant,” she added and immediately pressed her fingers against her lips to prevent her from laughing.

“Hmm, I don’t know who taught her that,” Rasmus hummed and noticed it as well. “But I think she’s always like that, we just forgot that she was an Orthias since we have been around her for a long time now. It has been a while since she showed her true nature, cold and unbothered,” he added.

Aris sat across from Anastasia while Marina and Doloran sat at the side. Anastasia called the maids to bring in the food and drink for Aris after Aris told her that she wanted a fine alcohol. When the maids came in, there was another figure that didn’t belong with the maids, it was Marina’s twin sister, Agnesia. That was when it clicked as to why there were an extra chair at the table.

“Count,” Agnesia stared at Rasmus and showed a gentle and warm smile. “It has been a while,” she bowed her head to Rasmus.

“Yes, it has been a while, Sorceress,” Rasmus lowered his head slightly.

Agneisa furrowed her brows when she noticed that Rasmus was standing on the other side of the hall. When she saw Aris sitting at the table, she realized what was happening immediately.

“Then, I’ll excuse myself,” Agnesia said and went to join the others at the table.

As soon as Agnesia sat at the table, Anastasia cleared her throat, taking everyone’s attention. The maid who brought food and drink also brought a scroll that was given to Anastasia. When she opened the scroll, it revealed a map and a route toward the peak of the Efiva mountain.

“This is the route that Master Doloran has prepared for our expedition. This is the route that he believed to be the safest one. Please, have a look Lady Aris,” Anastasia said as she offered the scroll to Aris.

Aris looked at the route, and since she didn’t know anything about it, she called Yur, who had been hiding by her side the whole time. When Yur showed itself, everyone gasped when they saw a spirit, and a big one like Yur nonetheless. Although she looked like a small child, they recognized that Yur was a Great Spirit, and they all lowered their heads to respect Yur.

“What do you think, Yur?” Aris asked, allowing Yur to sit on her lap and showing the map to Yur.

“Hmm, this is not a bad route, but here…” Yur paused to point at one of the checkpoints. “Rather than going there, we can go here instead. There’s a hidden tunnel that no humans or even animals know about it. It’s a hidden place where spirits lived back then and there was a sanctuary inside,” she pointed out.

Doloran was surprised and decided to look at the map. It was as Yur said, he didn’t know a tunnel existed there even though he had lived in the mountain almost all his life.

“What do you think?” Aris looked at Doloran.

“I know that place. It’s just a wall of stone with no entry whatsoever,” Doloran answered. “If you allowed me, I would love to send my pets to check that place first in case the demonic beasts have taken that place,” he requested as he looked at Yur.

“Sure, I can be their guide,” Yur nodded. “Using that tunnel, we can reach not only the peak, but we can go straight into the mountain’s heart,” Yur revealed.

Anastasia, Agnesia, Marnia, and Doloran raised their brows, surprised that there was an easier route without having to risk everyone’s life.

“Thank you, Great Spirit. We don’t deserve your kindness,” Doloran bowed his head, showing his utmost gratitude.

“Hihihi, that’s nothing…” Yur grinned widely while Aris patted Yur’s head like a proud mother.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep