The Duke’s brow furrowed, his voice calm but cautious. "Aren’t we talking already? Why not just say it here?"
"I said alone." Lumberling’s tone stayed even, but there was a weight in his voice.
Hadric stared at him for a mont, studying his expression. Finally, he gave a small nod.
"Leave us," he said, glancing at his knight.
"But, Duke..." Corven began, but one look from Hadric was enough to silence him. With a reluctant bow, Corven stepped back and moved toward the door.
On the other side, Lumberling turned slightly, his eyes eting those of his companions. "Would you kindly give us a mont?"
Under their veils, the three elves frowned, exchanging puzzled looks. Even Liraeth’s expression stiffened, none of them expected Lumberling to dismiss them.
He gave them a small, reassuring smile. "It’s just a talk. Nothing’s going to happen. Wait for outside."
They hesitated for a heartbeat, then nodded. One by one, they followed Knight Corven out of the chamber.
Now, only Lumberling and Duke Hadric remained.
As the door closed with a dull thud. Lumberling walked forward and took a seat across from the Duke’s desk as if he were sitting down for a casual visit rather than a confrontation.
He leaned back slightly, glancing at the porcelain tea set on the table. Steam rose from the pot, carrying a faint floral scent that softened the chill in the air.
"Wouldn’t you offer so of that tea of yours?" Lumberling said with a faint smile. "It slls nice. I’d like to try it."
His tone had changed, gone was the edge from earlier, replaced by a calm and friendly ease.
The Duke raised an eyebrow, studying him for a mont before exhaling softly. "Of course," he said, pouring tea into two cups with practiced grace and slid one cup across the table toward Lumberling.
Lumberling accepted it with a nod. The two n sat there for a while, quietly sipping, saying nothing.
Then Lumberling finally spoke.
"How is it living here, Duke?" he asked casually.
Hadric looked up, slightly puzzled. "Are you referring to how I felt isolating myself from the empire’s issues and politics?" he asked. "If that’s what you an, I’ve never cared much for those things. I prefer peace within my own lands."
Lumberling chuckled softly and lifted his gaze to et the Duke’s. "I’m not asking about that." He set the cup down gently, his voice lowering. "I’m asking how is it living in this world, Duke Hadric?"
The words seed to freeze the air itself.
For the first ti, the Duke’s calm expression cracked. The faint clink of porcelain followed as the cup in his hand trembled, then shattered under the sudden pressure of his grip. Hot tea spilled across the desk, unnoticed.
His eyes narrowed, a flicker of shock breaking through his composure. "You..." he said slowly, his voice low and sharp. "Where did you learn that from?"
Lumberling didn’t flinch under the Duke’s sharp gaze. Instead, he leaned back in his chair and t it calmly. "Why are you overreacting, Duke? Is there sothing wrong with my question?"
Hadric’s expression stiffened for a mont before he exhaled, forcing himself to settle down. The tension in the air lessened slightly, though his eyes still carried a cautious gleam. "Who are you?" he asked quietly. "And how much do you know about ?"
Lumberling gave a small shrug, swirling the tea in his cup before taking a slow sip. "How would I know anything about you? We just t yesterday."
He placed the cup down, his calm deanor unbroken. "I know nothing of you, Duke... except that you and your n practice martial arts."
The Duke froze. His eyes widened as the weight of those words sank in. Then, slowly, he began to study Lumberling more closely. His senses sharpened, and for the first ti, he noticed it. Beneath Lumberling, sothing faint yet unmistakable pulsed from within his body.
Qi.
Hadric’s breath caught for a brief mont. "You..." he said, disbelief in his tone. "Are you also from the Baixian Continent?"
’Baixian Continent?’ Lumberling thought, keeping his face expressionless. ’Is that what the cultivation world is called?’
From the fragnts of Nie Fenghun’s mories he had absorbed, Lumberling didn’t gain much about the cultivation world, only scattered pieces.
Still, by combining those fragnts with what he knew from his own world’s stories and novels, he managed to form a rough picture. And now, he intended to use that little knowledge to learn more about the Duke, and about the cultivation world itself.
Lumberling smiled faintly, leaning back in his chair. "That’s right. You finally figured it out. Honestly, I thought you’d notice the mont we t." He tilted his head slightly, tone turning playful. "I’m a bit disappointed you didn’t recognize a fellow from the sa world."
For a heartbeat, silence hung in the air, then Duke Hedric suddenly burst out laughing. The cold pressure that had filled the room vanished, replaced by a sense of warmth and relief.
Lumberling blinked in surprise. "Hey, what’s so funny?"
"Forgive ," Hedric said between chuckles, shaking his head. "It’s just... after all these years, to finally et soone from the sa world, I couldn’t help it." His voice, once stern and distant, now carried a trace of excitent, almost like an old man eting an old friend after ages apart.
Lumberling grinned. "Yeah, I get it, Duke. I’d probably react the sa way."
The tension between them lted away. Hedric rose from his chair, moving to pour another round of tea, this ti adding a few small dishes to the table. He returned and sat across from Lumberling, his expression lighter, more curious than before.
"So," he asked, setting his cup down, "which part of the Baixian Continent are you from?"
"I was born in the Windveil Valley," Lumberling said smoothly, his tone calm and confident. "In my previous life, I was a disciple of the Galeheart Sect." It was a complete lie, but one he told without a flicker of hesitation, using Nie Fenghun’s identity as his mask.
The Duke frowned slightly, tapping his fingers on the table as if digging through mories. "Galeheart Sect... I don’t recall hearing of that one," he admitted after a mont. "Perhaps it’s a distant place, or maybe we simply co from different tilines."
Lumberling only smiled faintly. "Maybe so."
The Duke studied him for a mont longer, then leaned back. "When did you arrive here, then?"
"Just a few years back," Lumberling replied casually. "And you?"
Hadric gave a soft chuckle, though his eyes carried a hint of weariness. "I’ve been here far longer," he said quietly. "More than three hundred years, to be exact."
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