Evan Chu glanced at the armor in his hand and said, "Go ask your father yourself. The Great General's precious daughter mixing in with a bunch of men—now that's a real oddball!"
"What did you say? If you keep it up, I'll expose your identity and have the whole city hunt you down!" Rowena Luo snapped angrily, not expecting this guy to actually ignore her.
"Are you out of your mind? If your father already knows who I am, why hasn't he arrested me? Go ahead, try it—see who believes you. And just so you know, my wanted notice was canceled ages ago." Evan Chu said.
Evan Chu was feeling pretty damn good right now—he'd finally managed to pull one over on this girl. Ever since she'd tricked him last time, he'd sworn he'd pay her back.
"I'm not falling for your tricks, Evan Chu. Just wait—you're gonna regret messing with me!" Rowena huffed, then strode forward, ignoring him completely.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister's manor was in total chaos. Winston Ying paced back and forth, face dark as iron, after receiving word that all three of his guardians were dead.
"Yu Wen, you damn traitor! You actually killed my men just for some yellow-haired brat. I was planning to let you live a little longer, but since you're forcing my hand, don't blame me for what comes next!"
After that, Winston Ying entered a secret chamber. Inside, a black-clad figure was quietly absorbing starlight energy.
Winston Ying bowed respectfully and said, "Messenger, things have gone south. All three of my guardians were killed by that Yu Wen bastard's men. My cover might be blown—should we strike first?"
The black-clad man exploded with rage, "Winston Ying, you useless fool! You made the empire lose three top experts and you still dare talk to me about your cover being blown? You're infuriating me!"
"Please, Messenger, don't be angry. I'll make sure chaos erupts in the Royal Capital, so that Yu Wen knows exactly what happens when you cross Winston Ying. Also, please report back to the Master that it's time to send the army—this is the perfect opportunity." Winston Ying said.
"The Master has been ready for ages. As soon as the capital falls into chaos, the army will march. But your work has been a real disappointment—always hesitating and dragging things out. If those three guardians hadn't been killed, would you have kept stalling forever? Looks like you've gotten too comfortable in Heavenly Dragon Empire and forgotten your duty." the Messenger said coldly.
"Winston Ying is absolutely loyal to the Master—I've only been waiting because the timing wasn't right. Please, Messenger, see the truth." Winston Ying replied immediately.
Winston Ying was honestly pretty helpless. He really had been living the good life all these years, second only to the throne and above everyone else. Who wouldn't want to keep that? That's why he'd been dragging things out—otherwise, Heavenly Dragon Empire and Sea Dragon Empire would've been at war ages ago.
"Good, as long as you understand! I'm heading back to oversee the big picture. You have to make sure the whole capital is in utter chaos—let Yu Wen scramble to keep order. When he leaves General Roland Lowell behind to hold things down, our million-strong Sea Dragon army can smash through the defenses and take the city with ease." the Messenger said.
"I'll do my best to get it done, Messenger. I'm sure our Sea Dragon Empire's army will be here soon."
The Messenger glanced at Winston Ying, then left the secret chamber. Winston muttered, "The only people in the capital who could kill Elder Yan and the others are Yu Wen's household's Old Wang and General Roland Lowell. No one else is that strong. Just wait and see!"
After leaving the secret chamber and entering the main hall, Winston Ying called out, "Servants!" Two guards immediately came in from outside.
Winston Ying took out a purple token from his robe and said, "Use my token to notify the Minister of War, the Minister of Rites, and General Liu. Tell them it's time to move. Make sure everyone starts a rebellion in every corner of the capital—Heavenly Dragon Empire must be thrown into utter chaos."
"Understood!" The two guards left at once. Winston Ying muttered, "This place isn't safe—I need to get out of here too."
...
When Evan Chu returned to his room and opened the door, he saw Selena sitting nearby with her eyes closed, resting. He put the armor on the table and grinned, "You need to do this too?"
"You're back. How's Gavin Wei doing—did he pass the trial?" Selena smiled, not answering Evan's question.
"He passed. That kid didn't let me down. I bet Winston Ying already knows his three guardians were killed. He's definitely making moves now." Evan Chu laughed.
"This armor is pretty nice. Try it on for me, Evan." Selena replied, dodging the question.
Evan glanced at Selena—she'd already taken off her veil. In front of Evan, she had no need to hide her beauty; it was the best way to make him fall for her.
Every time Evan saw Selena's face, he was stunned by her beauty. But he also felt helpless—not because he didn't like it, but because he was afraid he'd lose control and do something he'd regret.
"Selena, could you put your veil back on? With you like this, it's way too easy for me to commit a crime!" Evan Chu joked.
"That's exactly what I want. When we're alone, I want you to call me Xuan'er—that name belongs to you." Selena's voice was soft and tender, her eyes full of emotion, making it hard not to want to pull her into his arms.
"Xuan'er? That's a beautiful name, but I'm not brave enough to use it yet. Selena still feels safer! Step outside for a bit while I try on this armor and see if it fits." Evan Chu said.
Selena rolled her eyes at Evan Chu and said, "Why should I leave? You're going to be my husband someday—why can't I look at your body? Of course, if you want to see mine, I could show you right now. Want to?"
Evan felt a chill run down his spine. Was this demoness for real? She was way too casual about stuff like this—he was honestly speechless.
"Better not. If I saw your body, you'd probably eat me alive. If you're not leaving, whatever—it's not like I have to strip down completely to try on the armor." Evan Chu said, taking off his outer robe.
Selena stared at Evan, then suddenly spoke up, "Wait, what's going on with your back?"
She noticed a faint golden glow flickering on Evan's back. Even through his clothes, her cultivation level let her spot the anomaly.
"It's nothing, don't make a fuss!" Evan said, getting ready to put on the armor.
"Hold up—let me see!" Selena said, walking right up to Evan and tearing his shirt open to expose his whole back.
"Hey, what are you doing? Planning to take advantage of me?" Evan laughed.
"Dream on. You think I'm that easy? Even if you wanted to, I might not say yes. But seriously, why do you have a flying beast totem on your back?" Selena asked.
"Oh, that? That's my little brother—he's breaking through to King-rank right now. Don't act so shocked." Evan said, then took out an undershirt from his storage ring to put on.
"Your little brother? You mean that King-rank flying beast signed a soul contract with you?" Selena asked.
"That's right, and there's another one too. Look!" Evan showed her the image of Shadow, the Bloodshadow Berserker Lion, on his arm.
"No way—how is that even possible? This..."