“I must say, this certainly wasn’t what I envisioned when I first set foot in this place,” Christina said as she walked along a narrow, paved path with two beauties by her side. The trio strolled along with no direction in mind, just taking in the sights.

While Christina held no respect for the White Tiger Clan, she must admit that their fame as a long-lived clan was well deserved. The walled-off community was everything one could dream of as a refuge to pass the years in peaceful serenity. Yet, when she thought it was brought to life by this clan of warmongers, she felt conflicted.

Judging by Leila's expression, she must have felt the same. Even as a member of the White Clan, the dichotomy of these two extremes always left her wondering where they had gone wrong. Their fortune and power were built on bloodshed and war. They profited at the expense of human tragedies, yet she couldn't find it in her heart to revile them simply on account of their deeds. They were family, after all.

“There’s no need to feel bad about it,” Christina said, sensing her inner turmoil. “There are no absolutes in this world, only opposing ideals.”

Leila was a clever woman. She could feel the hidden intent behind the Princess's words, yet couldn't quite figure out why she let it be known. Wouldn't it be more advantageous for her to bury her thoughts in her heart until the right moment? Did she have something else planned out? Leila shook her head. It wasn't her responsibility to meddle in such things. She wouldn't want to be involved in the current strife between her family and the Crown if given the choice. She was loyal to both, yet such loyalty only brought her pain.

Christina was aware of this and respected the woman too much to force her to choose. At first, she planned to use Leila as a pawn against her father but soon ruled against it. It wasn’t that she felt pity for her, but that the benefits weren’t high enough. Even if she did, the most she could achieve was to use her as a spy, and even then, the information she was privy to was negligible. Why make her friend suffer for so little gain.

That said, Christina would do it in a heartbeat if it could take the man down. What was a slight sacrifice in front of the greater good? Christina couldn't care less about justice; only results mattered. Still, Christina wouldn't disregard justice. It was a helpful tool. Such a powerful word could be used as a banner to do many things. The ability to steer public opinion was most required in a ruler.

To use justice as a blade to butcher her enemies would be so satisfying. Alas, her opponents were also skilled in the matter. Despite many years of tyranny over their subjects, the White Tiger Clan were still lauded as heroes for battling the evil invaders. Ironically enough, what helped them remain in power was the constant threat that the Empire provided. What was a little tyranny against foreign oppressors? Christina could only sigh at their patriotism.

“Where to?" Claire asked, slightly bored. Such peacefulness didn't sit well with her. She was born a noble with many responsibilities and raised as a warrior; she wasn't accustomed to wasting time idling away.

Christina chuckled slightly, noticing her disinterested expression, yet paid no mind. She had no intention of letting her small vacation go to waste. Why live at all if you aren't going to enjoy it? She had many things waiting for her to return, but they could all wait. The world wouldn't sink if she wasn’t here to keep it afloat for one day. Besides, she wasn’t arrogant enough to think that one person alone could change the world.

“I spied a lake a little earlier; it got me intrigued,” she said with a slight smile.

"As you wish," Claire sighed, knowing nothing could convince her to return to their room. While this place seemed peaceful, Claire couldn't shake the feeling that something strange lurked deep beneath. She had felt uneasy for a while now. At first, there were clan members all around them, yet the deeper they ventured toward the lake, the fewer they saw until they arrived at the lake's edge, where they were finally alone.

When they first left the mansion's grounds, Christina dismissed all the guards the family had assigned them, as she didn't wish for them to spoil her little vacation. Yet Claire could still feel eyes on them from afar. At the time, Claire shrugged, as this wasn't unexpected. How could they allow strangers to stroll around unaccompanied within the White Tiger Clan's own sanctuary?

Yet, when they reached this lake, Claire couldn’t feel their gaze anymore. Did they lose track of them? Unlikely, as two of the ladies wore dresses and heels. She didn’t believe the Duke’s guards were incompetent enough to lose track of them. The only explanation was that there was something special about this lake.

Claire carefully approached the lake and bent down at the water's edge. She plunged her slender finger into the lake's moist content only to scoop out some of its water into her palm. She watched the translucent substance glisten under the sunlight before turning her palm upside down, letting the liquid fall freely until it hit the ground, hydrating the earth. To her disappointment, this lake only contained normal water, at least, as far as she could tell with her limited knowledge.

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She found it strange that there was a lake in the middle of the inner city, but noble clans had done stranger things in the past. Maybe they found this place beautiful and decided to settle here; only they would know.

Christina also had her doubts about this place, yet her concern stemmed from a different place. To her, this place looked artificial. The concentration of essence was much too intense compared to the rest of the inner city. While lakes and nature generally were more prone to gather the world's essence, they tended to disperse it in their surroundings slightly. Yet, all the inner city's essence seemed to converge here as if a giant funnel attracted the essence toward this lake.

This left Christina with many questions. If such a thing was a regular occurrence, how did it manifest itself in this way? While she wasn't as versed in the subject as many other specialists, she still had a deep understanding of essence. This simply wasn't how essence generally behaved. Essence would usually gush from the earth and spread in the atmosphere, not the other way around.

This left her with only one viable hypothesis. This was artificially created, yet the implications of such a thing were staggering. For one, it would be a monumental achievement if such a thing was possible. Christina didn't believe the clan would let such a place unguarded, much less allow strangers near.

Could it be they didn’t know? Christina rejected the notion. Those who could feel and read the shifts in the world’s essence weren’t common, but they weren’t rare either. Most nobles should be able to feel it, if only slightly. The most logical explanation would be they intentionally allowed her to see it, but to what end? What were they hoping to accomplish? While Christina had a slight guess in her heart, she would need to confirm it. For now, her best course of action would be to leave without mentioning her deductions.

“Something wrong?” Leila asked while noticing the pensive look on Christina’s face.

“No... well,” she replied, unsure if she should mention her doubts. She pondered for a while, then decided to do a little probing. “I’m just in awe of this place. Was this lake here when your clan decided to take root in the surroundings?”

Taken aback by the Princess's sudden interest in the geography of this place, Leila pondered for a while, trying to recall what she had learned in her earlier years as she perused the clan records. Every member of the Duke's household was required to learn the clan's history, as any of them could become the new patriarch. As such, they needed to be ready. Even Leila, with her impure bloodline, was no exception.

Many things were recorded in those archives; some even recorded events as far back as the Kingdom's founding, yet information concerning this lake was few and far between. Leila had never taken this to heart; she thought this was just a lake. It simply wasn't worthy of being recorded.

Still, now hearing the Princess inquire about it, Leila couldn't help but be drawn to inquire further. She wondered why she never had the urge to do so, as such a massive lake within the clan's core was obliviously somewhat particular. She racked her brain, trying to drag the information to the surface, yet what she remembered was superficial at best. She could only apologize to Christina for her lack of knowledge.

“It's okay," Christina said, dismissively waving her hand. "I was just curious; there's no need to take it to heart.

Although Christina said as much, Leila's interest was already piqued. Once back at the Duke's mansion, she would try to find answers. Although most of the clan's records were enshrined in the communal library for safekeeping, some of the most obscure records could probably be found in the Duke's personal study. While Leila didn't have access, she could still inquire by proxy.

She could ask her third brother to do her a favour. Unlike herself, her third brother was favoured by their father. While the favourite had always been her fourth brother, with the incident this time, their hierarchy in their father's heart was bound to change. Meaning her third brother would have certain privileges; asking for a book about a lake would be nothing much to him.

As if knowing her thoughts, Christina smiled slightly. Without lifting a finger, she would gain access to what she wanted to know. As for feeling guilt over using her friend to get what she wanted, Christina couldn’t care less. Noble society was always about benefits. Would Leila be her friend if she wasn’t the Princess? Christina wasn’t that naive. Even family members didn't hesitate to murder each other to rise to power; what was a minor exploitation in contrast? It was almost benign.

With no answers within hand's reach, the trio doubled back toward the way they came. As Christina expected, they didn't see anyone, much less cross paths with them, as they returned to the more public areas of the clan. Although Christina was sidetracked by that mysterious lake, she wouldn't let her vacation go to waste. Why should she toil only to fulfill some unknown party's goal? If they wanted something from her, they should lay their cards on the table and ask her frankly. Only then would she deign to entertain the thought of considering it. Her time was precious, after all. She couldn't simply give it away to anyone who crossed her path. She would probably die of old age that way.

With the matter now far from her mind, Christina continued her leisurely stroll with her two companions, making small talk about unimportant things. Such instances when she didn’t need to mind her words or manners were so few and far between that she wouldn’t let them go to waste. She would enjoy them as best she could.

Yet, her enjoyment was cut short as it always was. A messenger from the mansion had tracked them down and bid them to return as fast as possible, as the Duke had returned and required their presence.

Christina frowned at this blatant display of arrogance while Claire was on the verge of boiling over, yet Christina motioned for her to keep quiet. Falling out at this juncture would be ill-advised. Still, she wouldn't let him get away with this. She was the Princess, after all. Despite her young age, her status was above his. He had no right to control her actions.

A mischievous smile graced Christina's beautiful lips, which made Leila let out an exasperated smile. She had an inkling of what the Princess intended to do but couldn't stop her either way.

"Let the Duke know I'll be back once I'm done here," Christina told the messenger.

The man remained impassive, however much he wished to frown. He couldn't afford to anger either of them, yet he was stuck in the middle. He could only ask respectfully, "What shall I tell the Duke requires your attention so urgently?"

"The flowers are in full bloom, and I wish to appreciate them longer," the Princess said with a straight face.

The messenger's expression was about to turn ugly, but he thankfully managed to restrain it. He could only lower his head respectfully and return to tell the Duke her exact words, leaving the trio to gaze at the flowers on this isolated path. Once a few paces away, the messenger could hear giggles in the distance but could only shake his head and continue on his way.