The conversation at Blue Stone Bastion lasted well into the afternoon. It wasn't until the warriors of Aether gathered at the gate to welcome their chieftain that he finally left the camp of the Lunar Essence Clan. The scrawny old man rode a black horse, but the warriors, tall and imposing, exuded an air of formidable presence.

"What did you talk about?" Aria quietly pulled Neven aside from the farewell procession and asked in a hushed voice.

"The chieftain wants you to go to Aether," Neven replied softly.

"What?" Aria hissed in astonishment, drawing the attention of the soldiers. She quickly lowered her voice, a mix of anger and confusion flashing in her eyes. "Are they all mad? Why is Felix abnormal, and his chieftain even more so? What have I ever done to offend them?"

"The chieftain is willing to exchange you for ten thousand carts of grain. Do you know how much that is?" Neven looked at her in disbelief.

"How much?"

"Enough to feed the entire Moon Tower for a year."

"Did Sage Solon agree?" Aria asked anxiously.

"Sage Solon said..." Neven deliberately dragged out his words, watching Aria's anxious expression before slowly uttering, "No..."

Aria's taut nerves finally relaxed, like a deflated balloon, her heart settling back to its normal rhythm.

"One more thing." Neven ran towards the gate and returned shortly with a birdcage and a letter. "The chieftain sent you a raven." The black bird inside the cage let out a piercing screech at Aria.

Aria opened the letter, which read:

"My dearest Aria, if you're reading this, it means the chieftain couldn't bring you back to Aether. I am truly saddened. But true love knows no price; I believe one day we will be together. If you miss me, use this raven to send me a message. — Felix."

Aria angrily tore up the letter and ordered Neven to release the noisy raven. As far as she was concerned, there was no "if" in her relationship with Felix; she would never use this annoying bird.

After seeing off the chieftain of Aether, Sage Solon called Neven into the Blue Stone Bastion for a private conversation. This talk was brief, and soon Neven walked out with a letter heading towards the watchtower. Aria eagerly followed him, waiting outside for as long as Neven was inside. She was worried the conversation might involve her, not wanting to be traded to Aether. Neven reassured her that Sage Solon would never do that. He whistled towards the watchtower, where Sable was lounging with his feet up.

"Did the chieftain mention anything about my scales? How did he know I could shoot arrows?" Aria displayed her scaled hand, holding it up to Neven.

Neven chuckled softly, taking her hand and kissing the scales. "The scales are adorable. Don't worry about the Aether people; we'll figure out what the chieftain's up to sooner or later."

The ladder creaked as Sable slowly climbed down. "Don't get all lovey-dovey in broad daylight; my eyes are going blind," he grumbled, rolling his eyes.

Sable's mood brightened considerably with the task Neven brought. He danced around, waving the letter meant for the Moon Tower. Ever since arriving at the camp, he had been clamoring to return to see his dream girl. Now, Sable's wish was granted.

After that day, Aria repeatedly tested her newfound talent. She had never noticed her familiarity with archery before, yet strangely, her accuracy was astounding. As long as she focused on her target, holding her breath and staring at it, she would hit the mark with a single shot.

She shot down an eagle, a deer, and even a wild boar that tried to attack her, and hit a ring-sized dead leaf on a rotten tree.

"If I had known, I wouldn't have taught you swordsmanship," Neven said, standing under a tree, watching her intently.

"I need a hunting dog so I don't have to go to so much trouble finding prey. These animals have such sharp ears; sometimes I don't even see them..." Aria grumbled, carrying the eagle back. She had given up on the larger wild boar.

"Hunting dogs are best trained from a young age; otherwise, they won't obey your commands," Neven replied, taking the game from her.

"I still don't understand why the Aether chieftain thinks my scales mean I'm a master archer. I didn't even know, and I’ve never touched a bow and arrow in my life," Aria said, feeling a bit uneasy looking at the eagle she had killed.

"Your scale hand, it might mean you have a special knack for certain things. Aether chieftain mentioned it, I believe that's the reason."

"A knack? That's a bit far-fetched."

"Alright, why trouble yourself with this?" Neven comforted her. "I've got a surprise for you. In a few days, we can go back to the Moon Tower for a few days."

"That's wonderful! I've missed the royal city so much," Aria said happily.

"Sage Solon is sending me to retrieve supplies from the Moon Tower. He refused the Aether people's generous offer, but right now, we are actually short on food."

"Then why didn't he agree to sell me to Aether?"

"The Lunar Essence Clan isn't so easily bribed." Neven smiled knowingly, pulling out a letter from his coat. "Guess what this is?" he asked mysteriously.

"What is it?" Aria asked absentmindedly. In her impression, Neven received letters almost daily, whether it was secret letters from Sage Solon or urgent military reports from others.

This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

"It's a letter from Sage Solon to the Lunar King."

"Doesn't he regularly report on the situation here?" Aria said lazily.

"Since you're not interested..." Neven tucked the letter away, feigning disappointment.

"I can't wait to know what it is," Aria said, hooking her arm through his and putting on a curious, surprised expression.

"It's Sage Solon's acceptance of the request to serve as the Grand Mentor of Starguard," Neven said in a flat tone. "Look at you, my good mood is gone..."

"Are you saying the Sage Solon..." Aria cleaned her ears. "This is even better than returning to the Moon Tower! We're finally free of Alpha. Oh my god, I'm so excited I could faint."

Neven smiled, kissing her brow tenderly. "We've finally made it through the storm," he said with relief.

The radiant Moon Tower appeared once again on the gray horizon, making Aria too excited to close her mouth. She had always eagerly wanted to go to Voidmarsh while living in the capital, but once she left, she couldn't wait to return. Aria felt like a walking contradiction, but regardless, the ruins of Sovereign Bastion would always be her home.

Alexander had also returned to the Moon Tower with them. He needed more herbs as the casualties in Voidmarsh were far more severe than anticipated, and the herbs he had taken last time were used up in just a few days. He mentioned a woman in the town named Sandy who was the only one capable of growing the rare spirit herbs.

“She must be another beautiful and amorous lady,” Aria said, looking at Alexander’s back.

“More of a fresh and refined type,” Neven replied.

“Not amorous, huh?” Aria muttered.

“They’re not the kind of relationship you’re thinking of.”

“Humph, a pure friendship…” Aria dragged her words out sarcastically.

Due to the attention of the Aether chieftain, Aria was summoned to the grand hall by the queen as soon as she returned to the Moon Tower. The grand hall, which had existed since the time of Sovereign Bastion, was quietly bathed in sunlight, but the queen sitting on the throne now was vastly different from before.

The queen sat on the Black Dragon Throne, haughtily looking down at Neven and Aria as they entered the hall. Alpha and Quinn stood on either side, with Quinn’s face looking very pale, probably mourning the loss of his executive commander. The queen inquired about the Aether warriors and chieftain, and Aria and Neven answered truthfully. Neven presented Sage Solon’s letter, and as they had anticipated, the queen immediately agreed to the request for Sage Solon to become the Starguard Grand Mentor.

Alpha's cold face showed a hint of displeasure and disappointment, but after the queen's consent, he quickly turned to flattery. “Your Majesty, Sage Solon will be the most respected Grand Mentor,” Alpha complimented.

The queen then lifted her aloof eyes and looked at Neven. “Did he appoint you to continue as Executive Commander?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Since it's Sage Solon’s proposal, everything will be decided by him.” The queen turned to Quinn and asked, “Quinn, how is your selection for Executive Commander going?”

“Your Majesty, it’s not decided yet. I wish to be more careful in choosing my Executive Commander this time,” Quinn replied.

“Quinn Morrison, you need to open your eyes and not let what happened last time happen again,” Alpha sneered. “Threatening a mortal girl and then going mad and committing suicide—no Executive Commander in the Moon Tower's hundred-year history has ever been like this.”

“He went mad because he was attacked by a demigod,” Quinn hissed quietly. “Alpha, your Executive Commander has been making constant mistakes on missions recently, costing over ten lives. If it were the queen you were escorting instead of the elders that day…”

Quinn and Alpha argued incessantly in the grand hall, and Aria was inwardly thankful to Alpha. Seeing the queen made her so nervous she would sweat all over, likely because her father had left too many shadows in her mind. But at this moment, the queen’s attention was entirely on the arguing pair.

After the questioning in the grand hall, Aria returned excitedly to the North Tower she had missed. Although she could only stay for a few days, she was still very happy. She moved her belongings from Neven’s room back to her small room.

Aria was stopped at the door by Neven as she carried a pile of clothes.

“We could continue to live together. We did well in Voidmarsh, didn’t we?” Neven said anxiously.

“That’s because we only had one Dragonfire stone. Now it’s different; my room has a fireplace too. Besides, I like sleeping alone,” Aria answered arrogantly, lifting her head on purpose.

Neven sighed and stepped aside. “Alright, if you insist, I respect your choice.” He forced a smile, but there was a hint of disappointment in his eyes.

Seeing him like this, Aria felt a little guilty and stopped. “Actually… you don’t need to worry too much about me,” she said softly. “I just don’t want you to think I always need your protection.”

Neven raised an eyebrow and stepped closer, saying, “I know you’re strong, Aria. But sometimes, it’s okay to rely on someone else.”

Aria didn’t respond, just nodded lightly, then turned and walked into her room. She closed the door and leaned against it, feeling a surge of complex emotions. She knew Neven was right, but her independent nature made it hard for her to accept help easily.

The next morning, something that made Aria utterly frustrated happened.

When she woke up, she was surprised to find her room looked different. She was covered with a snow wolf fur blanket, and the armchair by the fireplace made her immediately realize this was Neven’s room. Aria was shocked, thinking she was dreaming. She heard footsteps from the balcony, and Neven walked in through the glass door, bringing a gust of cold wind.

“How am I in your room? I clearly went back to my room last night. What’s going on?” Aria asked. Then she suddenly thought of something. “It was you! You have that master key that can open all doors. You moved me while I was asleep, didn’t you?” She was even more sure of her guess when she saw Neven's smirk.

“I was afraid Lucius Argent might come back to harm you, so I decided to move you back,” he said, smiling broadly.

“Lucius can’t hurt me; that time was definitely an accident. Besides, he didn’t seem right. If you’re going to make excuses, don’t make such a flimsy one. You just want me back here,” Aria fumed, guessing only Neven could do such a thing.

“Aria, I really worry about you. You didn’t even notice when I carried you from your room. If it had been any Lunar Essence, they would’ve woken up when I opened the door.”

Aria flopped back onto the bed, pulling the blanket over her head. They must have had a grudge in their past lives; that’s why Neven enjoyed going against her in this life.

From the moment she woke up, Aria was mildly irritated. First, she went to see Oak. His leg was much better; he even demonstrated walking around the room. A group of rats was already eating venison jerky on the floor, bold enough not to fear people.

“Hearing you talk about pet rats gave me the idea. Look at them, fluffy and cute,” Oak said, his small eyes full of affection.

Aria slapped her forehead hard. She was speechless about these creepy pets.

Leaving Oak’s place, Aria went to find Sable’s dream lover. Last time, Sable had returned with a letter saying his dream lover wanted a special birthday gift. Sable had prepared for it for a long time, entrusting the gift to Aria to give to the woman he was infatuated with.

But Aria was indeed in a dilemma. When she handed the Night Ghoul fang necklace to the woman, she shamefully bowed her head and slipped away. A terrible scream came from behind her, and she was sure Sable had sent his love to the guillotine. Aria had warned him that no woman would like such a horrifying gift, but Sable insisted she didn’t understand women’s hearts.

Aria was so focused on escaping that she bumped into someone in the hallway. She quickly apologized and looked up, surprised to see it was Neven.

“Did you fight with that woman?” Neven asked, pointing to the enraged dream lover.

“No, I just gave her Sable’s gift. Let’s go…” She pushed Neven, fleeing in embarrassment.