Ask Princess Royal Helena of Lyndaria directly?
Neither Fortress Lord Ling nor the Moonvault Palace Lord wanted the matter investigated too thoroughly. Some things are better left muddy; after all, even if people suspect Prince Nolan, no one dares do anything to him.
If things are questioned too closely, someone might accidentally expose their own secrets. What face would Skyvault Fortress and Moonvault Palace have left in the martial world—the jianghu—then?
But their refusal was useless. Prince Nolan was giving orders, not asking for opinions. At his signal, the Black Riders strode over to the swordswoman and, without ceremony, dragged Princess Royal of Lyndaria out.
"I am Princess Royal Helena of Lyndaria! Are you trying to start a war between our nations?" Princess Royal Helena bit back her fear and forced out her royal pride. The Black Riders weren’t the type to argue, so they didn’t bother saying: Does Lyndaria really dare to fight us? Even if you do, it won’t be for you.
The Black Riders only stared coldly at Princess Helena, their gaze treating her like an ant. The look made her deeply uncomfortable, and even her beautiful face took on a harsher edge.
By the time Princess Helena was dragged before the crowd, she’d lost all her earlier glamour; her hair and clothes were a mess, her robes torn. But her arrogance had only grown, a sharp contrast to the friendliness she’d shown before.
Her behavior made it clear to everyone: the so-called friendliness of royals is only for show. Deep down, they’re proud to the bone—none of them really respect martial artists.
"Prince Nolan, tell your men to let me go. If you do, I’ll let today’s matter pass." Princess Helena tried to seize the initiative.
"Reveal the demonic mastermind’s identity, and I’ll let today’s matter pass." Prince Nolan threw the words back in Helena’s face, reminding her that only he had the power to forgive what happened today.
"You..." Princess Helena took a deep breath, her proud chest heaving—clearly furious. "Prince Nolan, I told you, I don’t know that person."
"The princess’s memory isn’t great; let’s help her wake it up." Prince Nolan’s words were calm, but sent a chill through everyone present.
‘Wake up’ sounds nice, but it really means torture. If they’d dare torture a princess, what did the rest of them count for in Prince Nolan’s eyes?
Anyone who said they weren’t afraid was lying. Martial artists didn’t really have the guts to risk their heads or lives; you only get one life, and if you lose it, that’s it.
"Prince Nolan, what are you doing? You dare torture me?" Princess Helena’s face turned pale as she watched the Black Riders approach, her pupils shrinking in fear.
"No, I’m just reminding the princess—wouldn’t want you to forget too much." As soon as Prince Nolan finished, a Black Rider stepped forward with a dagger, standing right in front of Princess Helena.
With the blade so close, Princess Helena trembled uncontrollably. The more pampered someone is, the less they can stand pain. The Black Rider hadn’t even done anything yet, but Helena was already drenched in cold sweat from fear.
The Black Rider sneered, baring white teeth. "Please don’t move, Your Highness. If my hand slips, your beautiful face will be ruined."
"S-stop!" Princess Helena used every ounce of strength not to collapse in terror.
She was a princess—she couldn’t lose her dignity. But as the blade drew closer, Helena could feel the tip pressing against the back of her head. One wrong move and it would slice right into her skull.
Prince Nolan looked utterly indifferent, his gaze drifting off into the distance—completely calm and unruffled.
Gulp... Princess Helena stood rigid, swallowing hard, her eyes full of struggle. Just as the blade slid down the back of her head, she finally broke: "Stop! I—I remember now."
Maybe Helena didn’t fear death, but she was terrified of losing her beautiful, delicate face.
"Impressive memory, Princess." Prince Nolan praised her flatly. Fortress Lord Ling’s face grew even darker, anxious about what Helena might reveal.
Meanwhile, Serena finished bandaging the Black Riders. The wounded martial artists, with help from the Black Riders, lined up one by one.
Serena was a doctor—a stubborn one at that. Even though these people had just wrecked her clinic and now bowed their heads in apology, she showed no emotion, only doing what her duty required.
"This young lady is so cold—she and Prince Nolan really are a perfect match." The Vast Heaven Sect’s leader’s words drew many nods. After seeing how Princess Helena and Prince Damien could change faces in an instant, the crowd liked the straightforwardness of Prince Nolan and Serena even more. They preferred honest people; in the jianghu—the martial world—dealing with schemers was too risky.
Princess Helena didn’t want to offend Prince Damien. She’d planned to make up a random identity, but when she met Prince Nolan’s all-seeing gaze, she knew she couldn’t lie. Gritting her teeth, she exposed Prince Damien’s true identity.
"Prince Damien of Southlyn? No wonder he calls himself ‘Little Prince.’ I do have some old scores with him." Prince Nolan wasn’t surprised at all, but since he always kept a straight face, no one thought he’d known beforehand.
Of course, aside from Prince Damien’s identity, Princess Helena wouldn’t say a word more—which let Fortress Lord Ling finally breathe a sigh of relief.
"Prince Damien of Southlyn? The prince who was expelled from the royal family?" The crowd’s eyes widened at the revelation.
"The same Prince Damien of Southlyn who caused tens of thousands of sailors from the Four Kingdoms and Nine Cities to die at sea?" Even the martial artists—members of the jianghu, the wandering martial community—cared about national affairs. The scandal was huge—everyone had been searching for him, yet he’d been hiding in the jianghu, causing chaos as the demonic mastermind.
"No wonder he hates Prince Nolan so much. I heard it was Prince Nolan’s concern for the sailors that exposed the whole affair."
"This has nothing to do with Prince Nolan. Damien must have been driven out of the Four Kingdoms and Nine Cities, so he turned to evil and tried to control the martial world."
Prince Nolan didn’t bother defending himself, but the crowd launched into an indignant debate.
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Hot-blooded young men are easily stirred up. Those who’d cursed Prince Nolan before were just angry—they didn’t really think things through. Now that Princess Helena had revealed the truth, everyone realized they’d wrongly blamed Prince Nolan and felt embarrassed.
"Prince Nolan, we were wrong before. Please be generous and don’t hold it against us." One person started, and soon all who’d blamed Prince Nolan stepped forward. Some weren’t truly sorry—they just feared his revenge.
The Eastlyn emperor was less than a year old, so the Regent Prince held immense power. Even the martial artists knew: if Prince Nolan wanted to wipe out a few sects, none of them could protest—especially since they’d offended him first.
They weren’t commoners, but compared to Prince Nolan’s status, he could easily accuse them of insulting nobility—a crime with serious consequences.
Whether it was their earlier accusations or their current apologies, Prince Nolan stayed expressionless, never caring about these people. Fortress Lord Ling felt both bitter and envious—what Prince Nolan dismissed so easily was exactly what he’d chased after for years, but never attained.
"Prince Nolan, we’ve offended you before. Please forgive us—my Vast Heaven Sect will never forget your generosity. Prince Damien, that demonic mastermind, has committed countless crimes and deserves death. If you find his whereabouts, please inform us. My sect will gladly give our lives to help destroy him." The Vast Heaven Sect’s leader was clever—he saw the others apologizing without substance, so he stepped up and subtly offered loyalty to Prince Nolan.
That’s exactly what Prince Nolan wanted—to make these people serve him. If you’re going to sell your skills, better to choose a trustworthy master. From the way Prince Nolan and Serena treated the Black Riders, it was clear they valued their own people.
The Vast Heaven Sect’s leader was just the start. Smart people quickly caught on and stepped forward to pledge loyalty. At that moment, Prince Nolan’s expression finally changed.
"Your loyalty is admirable. I’ll remember it. If there’s news of Prince Damien, I’ll let you know." Prince Nolan nodded, accepting their allegiance.
Prince Nolan was pleased with their allegiance. Top sects were fine, but they were proud and few in number; their usefulness was limited.
Second- and third-rate sects were different. They had numbers and influence—if organized, they’d be a formidable force. Prince Nolan would soon need that force to deal with Prince Damien and Night City.
Of course, plenty of sects were willing to follow Prince Nolan, but some couldn’t let go of their pride. Though grateful for his help, they refused to take orders from the court, standing haughtily by Fortress Lord Ling to show where they stood.
Prince Nolan didn’t bother recruiting those people—he had no intention of uniting the entire martial world, and that was just fine.
"It’s getting late. Since everything’s been sorted out, let’s pack up and head down the mountain before Prince Damien doubles back and sets fire to the cliffs." Prince Nolan wasn’t exaggerating; the crowd remembered the danger and their faces changed.
"Prince Nolan’s right—we’d better get down quickly." Everyone grew tense, and some worried even more: "I heard Skyvault Fortress was burned. Where will we stay once we’re down the mountain?"
Skyvault Fortress had offered many courtyards to host the major sects. Its destruction disrupted everyone’s plans.
"I’ll arrange accommodations for everyone." Fortress Lord Ling forced the words out, blood rising in his throat from anger. He wanted to kill someone, but had to pretend nothing was wrong.
His Skyvault Fortress had been burned, yet all these people cared about was their own lodging—truly selfish.
"With Fortress Lord Ling’s word, we can rest easy."
Heh... they were resting easy far too soon.
Prince Nolan glanced at Fortress Lord Ling, his eyes settling on the hairpin atop Ling’s head. Nolan closed his eyes and smiled...