Chapter 415 He Could Hear Her Thoughts
The High Priest was absolutely right.
Zara sighed. "Fine. You win. Tell me the script."
The High Priest glanced at her in surprise, a faint smile lifting the corner of his mouth.
It seemed they had not misjudged her after all. Zara did care about Lucian, at least a little.
Aurelion found that hard to believe. Hadn't she sworn that if Lucian had to die, he could only die by her hand?
The High Priest explained the story they had given Lucian.
"In his memories, he grew up on Earth, but he is actually Lord Valerius's son."
"What about me?" Zara asked.
"You are his enemy, a woman who covets the position of Holy Sovereign."
"Your script is unbelievably shameless."
The High Priest smiled. "I'll take that as a compliment."
Zara fell silent.
Fine.
She straightened herself, drew a deep breath, and headed off with Aurelion to meet Lucian.
Aurelion clicked his tongue. "Woman, thy name is contradiction. Didn't you say on the way here that Lucian could only die by your hand? Now that you've heard he might actually die, you suddenly can't bear it?"
"There's nothing I can't bear," Zara replied. "This isn't some TV drama. I don't have a recording of him leaving me his estate. Do you think a court back on Earth would believe me just because I said so? Of course I need his signature."
As if performing a magic trick, she produced several sheets of paper. "Look. I even brought the notarized estate-transfer forms and an ink pad for his fingerprint."
Once he stamped them, well...
Lucian would simply have to blame his terrible luck.
Aurelion was speechless.
He had been wrong.
Despite all the television he had watched, he still could not understand this woman.
She was a demon.
A cold, heartless demon.
Even Pyrelion was stunned inside the backpack. "Perhaps Noctilion failed because he wasn't ruthless enough."
Grand ambitions and elaborate schemes meant nothing in the face of Zara's sheer lack of mercy.
"Brother, women are terrifying," Aurelion said. "I don't think I ever want a wife."
"...Neither do I," Pyrelion agreed.
"How is this my fault?" Zara snapped. "I can't exactly let Lucian conquer Earth. Besides, he doesn't remember anything from before, so he isn't really the old Lucian anymore."
She added, "A better future always requires someone to make a sacrifice. You can't seriously expect that person to be me."
That made it painfully obvious who the sacrifice would be.
Aurelion and Pyrelion fell silent.
The blood of the Divine World combined with an Earth education had somehow produced a monster like this.
What upset them most was that Lucian had given Zara houses and arranged travel and education for her younger siblings, yet none of it had managed to soften her heart of stone.
Even if she did not love him, shouldn't she at least have developed some basic affection for him?
Even mystic beasts understood that much.
Zara apparently did not.
Aurelion decided he would keep his tail tucked and behave himself from now on. If Zara could sacrifice Lucian without hesitation, what wouldn't she do?
Before long, they arrived at a magnificent palace.
The towering structure seemed to pierce the clouds, and even Zara could not help marveling at it.
"Lucian's accommodations keep getting better and better. He really has me to thank for all this."
Aurelion was about to respond when Zara continued.
"Thinking about it that way makes this much easier. Lucian, don't blame me. Blame my dad for choosing the wrong person back then."
She sighed heavily.
"Every year on the anniversary of your death, I'll make sure you get plenty of offerings."
Aurelion and Pyrelion fell silent.
A chill ran down both dragons' spines.
Lucian lived at the very top of the palace. From his chambers, he could overlook the entire world.
Actually, no.
All he could see were clouds.
The place was absurdly high.
His chambers were undeniably luxurious, though, and surprisingly advanced.
The massive doors opened automatically as soon as Zara approached. Beyond them lay an enormous hall filled with sleek, modern technology.
Lucian stood on the balcony outside, gazing over the sea of clouds.
The floor beneath his feet was transparent glass, making it look as though he were standing in midair.
Anyone afraid of heights would have dropped dead on the spot.
Lucian wore an elaborate custom-made cloak, his back turned to her.
Something that dramatic really only suited a man who enjoyed looking impressive.
Zara called out curiously, "Lucian?"
Lucian turned around.
He did not look much different from before.
He just seemed... even more intimidatingly polished.
His manner was distant, elegant, and regal, but the warmth he used to have was gone.
The Lucian standing before her now seemed more like a cold, emotionless weapon than a real person.
In other words, he had finally become the one calling the shots.
Aurelion clicked his tongue. "Put him in a TV drama looking like that, and millions of women would swoon on the spot."
Unfortunately, Zara was completely immune. Even faced with a man this outrageously handsome, all she could think about was inheriting his fortune.
Lucian's gaze slowly shifted to Aurelion. "Who is he?"
Aurelion seemed vaguely familiar to him too, but he could not remember why.
It was strange. The High Priest and the others had told him this woman was his enemy, yet seeing her left him unexpectedly calm.
She did not seem hostile toward him either.
Remembering that his memories had been altered, Zara kept her explanation brief.
"My pet."
Lucian's tone remained flat. "There's another one in your backpack."
"That's right," Zara replied naturally. "I have two."
Lucian stepped inside from the vast balcony suspended over the clouds.
He looked far too formal and imposing, and Zara found it oddly uncomfortable.
[Why are you trying so hard to look impressive? Lucian, what happened to you?]
Lucian looked puzzled. "What did you say?"
Zara blinked. "I said I have two."
"Not that. You asked what happened to me."
Zara fell silent.
Aurelion's eyes widened.
He had been standing right there. Had his hearing suddenly failed him? He had not heard Zara say anything like that.
Zara sensed that something was wrong. "I didn't say that."
[I only thought it. How could you possibly have heard me?]
Lucian, now apparently incapable of anything but honesty, replied, "I can hear what you're thinking."
Why could he hear this woman's thoughts?
Zara froze.
Her heart suddenly began pounding. "You can hear my thoughts?"
[That's impossible! How the hell can he hear my thoughts? Even I can't do something like that!]
Lucian nodded again.
His voice remained cool, though there was a faint gentleness beneath it. "I can hear you. And a young woman shouldn't swear so much."
Zara fell silent.
Aurelion sucked in a sharp breath. "Zara, this just became a very serious problem."
Lucian could hear Zara's inner thoughts.
Damn.
What kind of nightmare scenario was this?
For a moment, Zara's face changed color so rapidly it resembled a shifting palette.
Few things were more terrifying than having someone hear every thought in your head.
And now it had actually happened.