?"Sigh…" Valentin rubbed his head in distress as he listened to Lucia''s unbelievable words,


    "On the ount that you are the daughter of Marquess Astaze, I will forget that you have sneaked inside the imperial pce without permission… But my Lady, I think it is really time for you to go back to your family''s estate."


    Lucia already expected that they would not believe her at first, and so she stayed calm, "As youmand, Your Highness, but even so, there''s nothing wrong in increasing the guards assigned for Lady Teh. "


    "That goes without saying..." Crown Prince Valentin tightened his grip on Teh''s arms.


    "Alright then… if both of you changed your minds, don''t hesitate to send me a message. A word of advice… never underestimate an obsessed person''s means of doing things." Lucia signaled the hooded mercenary to carry her back to the estate after she curtsied to Valentin and bade goodbye to Teh.


    Soon, all that was left was the stunned Teh and the anxious Valentin.


    "What do we do now, Valentin?" Teh looked at him with worry in her moss green eyes.


    It was already a hard time for Valentin at the moment, and yet his burdens have increased again. What was more frustrating was that she was the added burden. "I am sorry… because of me…"


    "No, do not think about that… If any, I would be the one to apologize. I already knew that these things might happen and yet, I still became selfish and -"


    "Please do not say that Valentin… The moment I said yes to your proposal, I also said yes to the happiness, the sadness, as well as the problems that I will face together with you. What frustrates me is that I do not even have the ability to protect myself to lift your burdens by just a little bit…"


    While the young couple supported each other, Lucia silently stood on her balcony as her eyes darted to the view of the night sky.


    "The skies in my dreams were filled with gigantic stones… unlike these skies… they were so brilliant and full of beauty…" She mumbled to herself.


    "Why don''t you just go away to the Empire then?" The mercenary was not yet dismissed at that time and so he asked Lucia curiously.


    "That kind of dream… there''s no escape… If I think about it, after my ''death'' in that dream… don''t you think that the enemy will just stop at our Empire? If there was no one who could stop them in the great Seirende Empire, then how about the othernds?"


    "There would be a widespread danger…" The mercenarymented.


    Lucia did not know why she was exining things to the mercenary; however, at the moment, she would just like for someone to listen to the thoughts that she had kept secret for years.


    "Look, if my conjecture was true, who could stop a family who could manipte the forces outside the Empire and cause a war? I don''t believe that their power only extends in this empire… but far to the outside…"


    "And so I firmly believe that there was no use for me to escape… because death would chase me and my family anyways… unless I do something…" Lucia faced the hooded mercenary and ordered him once again…


    "For my nextmission, please stay discreetly beside Lady Teh… But do not protect her entirely… just make sure that no assassination attempts would severely harm her… For I still need for the Crown Prince and the Lady to realize how far Carolina would go…


    "Just intervene when it''s already a matter of life and death…"


    "I received your orders Mdy…" The mercenary bowed and immediately disappeared into the darkness.


    It did not take her long to receive some news about the multiple attempts to harm Teh and for them to summon Lucia secretly back to the pce.


    "So… are you ready to hear my story now?" Lucia looked at them who wore anxious and lethargic expressions.


    "Tell me, Lady Lucia, what have you seen in the future…" Valentin waved his hands, gesturing that he was finally willing to listen.


    "The vision I saw… would not even happen in this time period, it would be decades from now… where my brother would even have his own children growing up as fine men…" Lucia started to exin what she saw in the vision.<novelsnext></novelsnext>


    "So you mean to say, that the Ves would work with some unknown forces and gain unstoppable power in the future… and you believe that the trigger for this would be because I chose Teh to be the Empress?" Valentin''s expression grew dark.


    "As what I have seen in my vision, only that I couldment, but do understand that what I saw was only a part of the future… and I can only make guesses because of that. I have already told you my tale, even the exact words that I said and heard… nothing more… nothing less…"


    Lucia looked at the couple seriously, when it came to the matter of her vision, she would not dare to guarantee that what she deduced out of it was the entirety of the problem.


    "It is up to Your Highness and Lady Teh to determine your interpretation of the tale that I have said… What I just wanted for myself was a chance of survival for me and my family… that''s all.


    "Then if your theory was true… what do you think was the best course of action then?" Valentin asked.


    "Soon, the report from the scouts woulde, and it would determine your need to ascend to the throne or not…" Lucia boldly mentioned the rumor of Emperor Idelfonso''s demise.


    "You…" Valentin''s eyes flickered.


    "There''s no use of being angry with me… But it''s time for you to be prepared… The Ves might move on that moment… You know that the closest to the warzone was their East territory… and so they might use this as a bargaining chip to force you to marry Carolina…"


    "You mean to say?" Valentin almost stood to his chair in surprise, for because of all the chaos that happened and hisck of preparation, he did not realize this obvious possibility.


    "Yes… and because of you not having a stable influence yet due to the urgency of the matter… you will be forced to coborate on a power. In short… you need to choose whom you will ally with so that you can resist the pressure. If possible, use this to also crush the Ves''s growing power on the onset. While they were still manageable."


    "If it was to ally, isn''t the Astaze good too?" Teh interjected.


    "Yes… I could guarantee that our family will help you when that timees, however, we need a more powerful ally… The Forgewons and Faraulds… specifically, the legendary grandmasters…" Lucia finallyid down her ns and left it all for Valentin to carry out.


    "This…" Valentin was uncertain, it was not only because the grandmasters were a special existence in the entire Prasinos, but also, they were away at the moment and it would be hard for him to summon them.


    "If the Grandmasters were to intervene in the war, then the Vess would lose the leverage against the Empire, for whoever allied with them outside would surely hesitate to coborate again because of the presence of two grandmasters. Even if they manage to bring down one, I am confident that they could not take two at once, considering that they have already weakened because of His Majesty Emperor…"


    The more Valentin and Teh listened to Lucia, the more they were convinced how scared she was of the impending future that a sheltereddy like her was forced to study the mechanics of politics, military, and war.


    "This is as far as I have nned Your Highness and Lady Teh… As for the rest, I am sure you have a better insight than mine…" Lucia felt like her throat dried because of how she exined a lot of things to the couple, but she finally felt relieved.


    "If this works, all I ask of you is to please look upon my family''s welfare and protect us as you ascend to the throne." Lucia bowed and concluded with a pleading tone.


    She did everything that she could do in her capacity as ady of the Astaze family. To give Valentin and Teh the warning for the future… She knew that this might change something, if not everything.


    The meeting with Valentin and Teh finally ended.


    But on their way back to her estate… they were suddenly blocked by a few men with Temple robes.


    "My Lady, Lucia Astaze…" The leader of the men stepped forward and bowed.


    "His Eminence, High Priest, would like to send you a message. The message goes like this:


    ''Young one, I know you saw what the heavens have intended. Yet I must warn you… do not try to interfere with heaven''s will for there is a price to bear… Young one, if you wish to hear more of your gift, then you must visit me immediately…''


    Thus says the High Priest!"