The old woman brought her sister’s body to the Church of the Lord of Radiance, watching the twisted transformation on the corpse. The Bishop shook his head, "Please restrain your grief, Lady Aurelia."
"My tears are almost dry, Your Excellency. I hope she and her children can find peace in the Heavenly Kingdom."
"I am sure they will, my lady. After the Purification ceremony is concluded, I will inform your family."
"I am very grateful for that."
After nodding her head, the old woman left the Church and got into her carriage. She lightly tapped the front panel, where there was a small window. The coachman opened the window and asked, "Lady, where would you like to go?"
"722 Kartz Avenue, Dove Cafe. An old friend is waiting for me there."
The old woman leaned back in her seat, glancing back at the Church of the Lord of Radiance. As it gradually disappeared from view, she turned around, her appearance beginning to change. Her wrinkled, aged skin became tight, and her lifeless blue eyes sparkled with vigor. Her once dull blonde hair turned beautiful.
Aurelia Karna was not the decrepit old woman others saw, but an Illusionist of the Sequence Third Tier.
The carriage headed north, and Aurelia sat in silence until it stopped in front of the coffee shop. To the outside world, she remained an old woman, hunched over, entering the cafe with the help of an attendant to see her friend—Manli of the Mowish family.
For some reason, Aurelia envied her, envied her for having the perfect sisters, the perfect husband.
The Prince she had once looked down upon, had now become the master of this realm. The Guards Army of the Mowish family was one of the strongest in the human kingdoms. Manli’s elf sister, as a Legendary combat Mage, never behaved arrogantly despite her favor. A few days ago, she even willingly brought the head of a Great Demon to complete a trade within the family.
This made Manli a celebrity in the circle of Noble women, everyone envying her for having such a reasonable and potent sister.
What about the Karna family? The sisters were estranged, offspring lacking virtue, and in the end, it was still up to her to dirty her hands.
"Aurelia, others may not know, but do you think I don’t know your true appearance? Stop putting on an act in front of me," said Manli. Aurelia smiled and shook her head, "It’s not an act, my sister. I’m just used to living this way. By the way, I owe you one for orchestrating the connection with Lady Anna this time."
"We sisters don’t need to say anything, Aurelia. I heard about your situation and am deeply pained," Manli sighed, but her face showed a hint of relief.
Aurelia’s face was filled with bitterness: "Do you know, Manli, I truly envy you, envy you for having such good sisters."
"I don’t think there’s anything to envy; she’s too domineering. Although she only had Faye with Goethe, I was always very afraid before, afraid that Goethe would make her Queen." Mentioning this, Manli’s face was full of relief, "During that time, I nearly went mad, you know."
"I’ve heard about how she later gained your trust," Aurelia was also very curious. As a Sequence Three, she knew full well that as a Legendary battle mage, Lady Anna could kill her with a single hand.
For such a woman to bow to Manli, Aurelia didn’t think her sister possessed any extraordinary personal charm that defied common sense.
"It was during the Harvest Festival, she spoke to me in person a lot, including about Faye’s marriage. She said she hoped Faye would marry Malin."
"Malin, I’ve heard of this child, with a very powerful lineage. If it weren’t for her feud with the Karna family, I’d have liked to raise another daughter, just to acquire some of that strong bloodline from him," Aurelia said with admiration. In this world, a child born of powerful parents possessed a powerful lineage, and only a strong lineage could potentially survive in such a dangerous world.
"Don’t even think about it, that child Faye is actually quite resolute. I initially thought of having her marry into my maternal family’s descendants to strip her of the inheritance rights. Later, Anna told me Malin belongs to this world, he is her mentor’s descendant."
"My heavens, no wonder she values that child so much." Aurelia sighed—grateful that her husband eventually chose another path. If he had chosen vengeance, then her entire family could have been exterminated.
As a legendary battle mage, Lady Anna truly had the right to claim she never let a grudge last overnight.
"Yes, I was shocked at the time, but later on, I realized that what she did was actually helping me, after all, a married daughter has no inheritance rights," Manli said. "Of course, I must admit, the gift she prepared for my son was indeed the key reason I finally chose to collaborate with her."
"I know." Aurelia was very envious of that gift, a Great Demon’s head, which placed in any Church, would be a very respectable offering.
"That’s how it is, I and Anna turned from enemies into friends, and I believe, as long as I don’t pressure Faye, and treat the children she has with Goethe a bit better, this friendship will continue. After all, she personally promised me that her son will not become the new King of this country," Manli said satisfactorily, "You should know, my sister, a Legendary battle mage’s word isn’t a virtue that common folk can just throw away at any time."
"How envious I am, my sister, just thinking of the things Lisa has done, I feel sad. Why does she insist on Kay becoming the next head of the family? Why does she have such a severe lust for power? She doesn’t even understand that our husbands have gone further on the path of transcendence than she has, she won’t even live to see her husband’s death, she won’t even likely outlive me."
"Level determines performance, my sister, just like Anna," Manli said, looking at her old friend, "Speaking of which, how are you going to handle Mistar?"
"The child is still young, I will take care of him, and if possible, I’ll make him forget all this," Aurelia said with a sigh, "My sister, you must think I’m too soft-hearted, right?"
"Yes, just like the court dramas of the Thanan people, if you cut the grass, remove the roots," Manli shook her head, seemingly dissatisfied with her sister’s performance.
At this, Aurelia sighed and shook her head, "After all, he is the flesh and blood of my husband, only four years old, I don’t want to be too ruthless, my sister."
"Alright, after all, it’s your family matter, you have the final say," Manli stopped speaking. She took a sip of her tea and then looked out the window, "The prophecies are increasingly depicting scrolls of doom, and the time left for our generation is running out."
"May Truth be eternal, my sister."
"Yes, may Truth be eternal."