CHAPTER 682 IT WAS A SET-UP

In a flat tone that didn't betray any hint of emotion, Alston suddenly called another man to out.

Obediently, the man stepped in front, bowing in deference.

As he stood there, Alston ordered him, "Go to Mont City right away, and do as I told you." He was one

of the most mysterious people around Alston. All year round, he'd go about his business stealthily. Only

in the most critical times would he show up. Seeing Alston giving him orders right now, he knew there

must be a serious issue.

Without a word, he nodded and left immediately.

Meanwhile, Isis had caught up with Rocky after coming out from the tent.

"Rocky, is everything okay?" Isis asked. Straight away, she suspected there might be an emergency.

Even though Rocky looked unflappable, she had somehow learned to read his highly layered character.

From the time she met him, she decided to watch out for the slightest clues in whatever he did. A hard

job, but once in a while, Isis had gotten things right. Also, she trusted her own hunches in situations like

this. And as she watched him walk away, her gut feeling told her something was up.

"Take it easy and don't follow me. I just want to be alone for a while," replied Rocky coldly. At this

moment, he didn't want to talk to anyone.

"I know you must be mad at His Royal Highness for transferring you to Mont City all of a sudden. But

the current situation over there is quite scary. Maybe you are the only one who's able to rescue the city.

If you can help out, it will be a significant step forward for the Crimson Dragon Army," explained Isis.

She had feared that Rocky was angry, so she tried to comfort him.

"It's not as simple as you think," said Rocky, still in a firm voice. As he spoke, his eyes were cold,

showing no hint of agitation.

"I don't understand what you mean. But to be honest, I feel that His Royal Highness has a strange

attitude to you. I don't know if I'm being a little too sensitive about it." Isis couldn't describe her feelings

towards Alston. From the way he had been treating Rocky, she suspected there was some bad blood.

But it was only the first time Alston was meeting Rocky, so she couldn't figure out what exactly was the

problem.

Hearing what she said, Rocky stopped suddenly and turned around to look at her. Isis also stopped,

unsure if he had gotten her right.

"Hey, listen! Please, don't follow me anymore. Is that clear?" he warned. The grim face he made as he

spoke meant he was not kidding. But Isis couldn't understand why he was angry at her. Had something

changed between them in a flash?

Everything about him looked strange. His words, the look on his face and body language—everything.

Was he always this unpredictable?

While she brooded over what was happening, Rocky turned around and left, without another word.

'Why has he suddenly become like this?' she wondered. It took her a while to come back to her senses,

an incredulous look clouding her face. In a few minutes of Rocky's departure, his actions made her feel

as though there was a big rift between them. Why did he act as if he was hiding something from her?

The more she wanted to know, the more flustered she became. Until finally, a paralyzing chill gripped

her heart.

Anyway, Rocky was gone. A few minutes after he left, he appeared a place far away from the main

camp. He looked around, cupped the palm of his right hand over his mouth and whispered, "Come out.

I have something to tell you."

At his whisper, Sabina—a beautiful woman in her early twenties promptly showed up. Recently,

wherever Rocky went, Sabina would follow him, almost like his shadow. Now that he was in a difficult

situation, she had to keep a close watch on him in case he needed some help from her. owns this text.

"Why did you treat Isis so indifferently? Don't you think you took it too far? She was just worried about

you!" Sabina asked, obviously very displeased. After all, Isis was a friend as well as an enemy to her.

But those differences did not count when it came to helping Rocky out. Especially, in critical moments

like this, it was not worth feuding, as long as each of the two was doing her part in Rocky's best

interest. Because of that complex relationship between them, what he had done to Isis just now

incensed Sabina.

But Rocky, trying to downplay the issue looked her straight in the eyes and made an effort to smile.

"Haven't you always wanted to know who I really am?" he asked with a playful touch. Then he paused

for a moment, heaved a sigh and added seriously, "Well, I can tell you now, but you have to promise

me one thing."

When she noticed the unusual solemn look on his face, Sabina was surprised. For all the time she had

known Rocky, never had she seen him cut such an austere look. Immediately, she knew he had

something very important to say.

"Do I have to promise you first so that you can say what happened?" asked Sabina, staring him straight

in the face. "That's right," he agreed, nodding calmly.

Given the gravity of the moment, a pensive silence fell over the place, for what seemed like an eternity.

Uncertain about Alston's next move, Rocky was a worried man. As such, he needed a helping hand

from someone that Alston wouldn't suspect of double-crossing him. And Sabina was just the perfect

person for such a job.

"Okay, I promise," she agreed to his request. Then, unexpectedly, much to Rocky's relief, she added,

"You don't have to worry about that. Already, my master instructed me to cooperate with you in

whatever you want. For as long as your wishes are not against my principles, you can rest assured of

my support." In all honesty, Sabina was eager to unravel a thing or two about Rocky's often mystifying

persona. Now, her curiosity had increased even further, after what he had done to Isis. Plus, his

conduct at the moment made her wish to know what kind of a man she was getting herself involved

with. But first things first. She had express instructions from her master. At the moment, it was more

urgent to help Rocky out, whichever way she could.

Thankfully, Rocky read her mind. He saw how anxious she was to know his real identity. After giving it

a moment's thought, he heaved a sigh again, looked her straight in the eyes and said, "Well, I'm Prince

Basil of the Holy Dragon Empire."

It took Sabina a minute or two for his revelation to sink in. Words left her. She couldn't even will her lips

lift. In any case, her mind also had gone blank. So, for a moment, she just stood there, still. Unable to

move. And when she stared into his bright eyes that had the calmness of an angel, even her heart fell

silent. 'Basil? Rocky is Basil? How's that even possible?' A series of questions ran through her mind as

she slowly recovered from the shock.

"What?" she finally muttered, her voice still feeble with puzzlement. "You are Prince Basil!. The one

who absorbed the power of the Holy Dragon Bead?" she stammered. All the while, she must have

forgotten that Rocky was standing there, right before her eyes, watching her reactions. Since she had

stayed in the Rime Army barracks all her life, Sabina had never seen Prince Basil. She had only heard

in the news how Prince Basil had fused the Holy Dragon Bead. His achievement had been big news all

over the empire. And for his legendary status, never in her wildest dreams had Sabina ever thought of

meeting Prince Basil.

Despite how completely blown away Sabina was, Rocky kept it all modest. He politely nodded in the

affirmative, his lips stretching into a mild smile. To her sweet surprise, Sabina realized, if this was

indeed Prince Basil, then he was quite a levelheaded fellow.

"Are you really the prince? Prince Basil?" It was hard for Sabina to believe that the man standing in

front of her was Prince Basil, famed for his Holy Dragon Bead. It was also very strange to her. Rocky

seemed to her a reliable comrade, and someone she was well qualified to protect. But now to imagine

he was from the royal family! The legendary Prince Basil! That reality would take her a long time to get

used to.

"Why would I lie to you?" Rocky's brow arched.

"But I remember, Prince Basil suffered serious injuries while taking a short cut in his cultivation for

power. Isn't he supposed to be in rehabilitation, living in the Palace City still?" Sabina wondered. Could

a person recover so soon from an injury sustained by deviation in power cultivation? Even more

puzzling was the fact that Rocky, as she knew him, had already graduated to the Heavenly Stage.

Heck, he had even led his army to several victories!

"Forget about those reports of injury. That was just part of PR from the palace. How else was the

emperor of the Holy Dragon Empire supposed to cover up, after banishing his son to the Gehenna

Border?" Rocky responded with a sneer.

"Hell no! You want to say, His Majesty, the emperor, sent his own son to the dangerous Gehenna

Border?" That came as a shocker to Sabina. How on earth would the emperor of the Holy Dragon

Empire think of such a thing?

"Because I made a huge mistake. But it wasn't my fault at all. It was a set-up." As Rocky spoke, his

mind flashed back to the face of Lena. The memories of how he got framed flooded in, so raw that they

made him tremble. But he quickly calmed himself down.

"You were framed? You are a respectable prince. Why would anyone do that to you?" Sabina could not

help asking.

"You don't need to know the details. But it's a really long story. In short, I have real enemies, all around,

baying for my blood. If ever you're going to be of help to me, I want you to be careful and on the

lookout at all times. Unfortunately, there aren't many trustworthy people around me. So, I'll need your

hand in this. But thank goodness, there's no one as capable as you. And having you on my side is a

great encouragement." Rocky couldn't reveal too many details to Sabina. All the same, he tried to be

as honest as he could so that he could gain her trust. Once she got to believe him, Rocky knew the girl

would go out of her way to help him.

"Then how can I believe your words?" asked Sabina. Rocky had not shown her any evidence to prove

that he was Basil. She was not sure whether what Rocky said was true or not. If it was, Sabina knew

she had a real fight on her hands if she was to be of help to him.