Free Web NovelThis secret prison lay deep beneath the base, and only a very small number of Saint Clan had the authority to enter.
The farther down they went, the lower the temperature became.
Rather than a prison, it felt more like a cold storage vault.
After it detected someone entering, the lights below came on. In the white hall, five low-temperature hibernation pods were arranged in a row.
Mond pressed the “open” button on the console.
The pods that had been sealed for so many years began to awaken again.
They rose slowly. The metal doors slid open, revealing Saint Clan still sleeping inside.
Without exception, all five were women—and judging from their physical traits, they were all high-tier Heimo.
Coupled with the fact that they had been sleeping here, and the rose brooches pinned to their chests, their identities were obvious.
They were Tasiya’s personal guards.
Every royal-blood had a personal guard corps—except for Mansendis. He’d refused to establish one, because it was troublesome.
Tasiya was the opposite. Back in childhood, she’d started selecting members for her guard corps—choosing only women. Those women grew up alongside her, living day and night at her side, fighting shoulder to shoulder.
And because of that, they were fiercely loyal to her. Almost every one of them had offered a scale.
After Tasiya became queen, some were granted official positions, others commanded troops. During her reign, they became her right and left hands.
Later, when the riot broke out, most of them died that night. The only ones left were these five Heimo who had been dispatched elsewhere at the time.
By the time they rushed back, everything was already over.
Tasiya was dead. They refused to swear loyalty to the new sovereign, so they chose to sleep here instead.
Even now, there were probably many Saint Clan who didn’t know they were still alive—didn’t know they had been secretly imprisoned here, spending the rest of their lives in this place, suspended in hibernation.
-
As if sensing the change outside, the women woke from sleep.
They opened their eyes. The moment the light flooded in, their pupils tightened instinctively.
But when they stepped down from the pods and saw the figure before them, their originally indifferent expressions turned sharp in an instant.
“...You?!”
They recognized the visitor as Mansendis.
This royal-blood prince—who had once had the weakest presence—was a sibling bound by blood to the sovereign they had served, and also...
—the executioner who killed Tasiya.
Remembering everything that had happened, their eyes turned ice-cold when they looked at him.
And when they saw Mond standing behind him, they understood even more clearly: Mansendis was likely the Saint Clan’s current sovereign now.
“It’s been a long time, Your Highness. We haven’t even had the chance to congratulate you on ascending the throne.”
One of the women spoke in a cold voice. Her words said “congratulations,” but her tone held none of the respect a new sovereign should have received.
Behind them, Mond frowned faintly—both displeased with their attitude, and worried it would anger Mansendis.
Mansendis, however, didn’t seem to care about the faint hostility and chill in the way they looked at him.
To him, whether they swore loyalty or opposed his rule made little difference.
Tasiya’s era had long since passed, and the glory that belonged to them had vanished with it.
He had spared their lives back then only because dealing with them was a bother.
And this time, the only reason he’d come was to learn about Tasiya—from their mouths.
Ignoring their icy gazes, he spoke bluntly.
“I came to find you.”
His words made them pause, but their attitude remained indifferent.
“Winners take all. I don’t think we have any value left that would require you to come personally.”
And that was the truth.
They didn’t know how much time had passed in the outside world, but they knew they hadn’t been asleep for a short time.
If Mansendis truly had something to ask of them, he would have done it long ago—not waited so many years before waking them again.
Waiting this long meant one of two things: either it was a small matter and he hadn’t been in a hurry, or it was extremely serious—so serious they’d nearly been {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} forgotten, and yet someone still had to wake them for it.
They clearly leaned toward the latter.
Because if it were the former, Mond could have handled it alone. The new sovereign had no need to come in person.
Thinking of that, the women exchanged glances.
It was still the same one—the woman who had spoken first—who opened her mouth again.
The rose brooch on her chest marked her as one of the highest-ranking personal guards beside Tasiya.
And the others subtly treated her as their lead.
“You are the Saint Clan’s new king, but we still follow her in Thorn Castle—even if she has fallen into eternal sleep.”
They didn’t know what he wanted.
But one thing was certain: they would never do anything that betrayed Tasiya. That would never change.
Mansendis didn’t want them to betray her. What he wanted was simply—
“I only want to know about Tasiya.”
So their answer was just as direct.
“The one responsible for Esoris was Kali. We don’t know.”
Kali was the head maid by Tasiya’s side, and after Tasiya died, she had followed the queen into death.
So it was perfectly normal that they couldn’t answer his question.
After all, Kali was already dead.
Mansendis showed no reaction to that answer. His expression remained calm—no doubt, no follow-up questions.
But that silence only made their bodies tense.
Just as their pupils began to tighten, threatening to expose what stirred in their hearts, he suddenly spoke again.
“Kali chose death because she refused to submit to me after Tasiya died. What about you?”
If they truly only wished to be loyal to Tasiya, then after her death, why hadn’t they chosen to follow the queen the way Kali did? Why would they rather be imprisoned here?
Mansendis had never bothered to dig into that before. They had been locked here because their identities were special.
They were Tasiya’s personal guards. They had offered scales and sworn oaths. Even after her death, they refused to abandon their old sovereign.
In that situation—new sovereign ascending—the usual ways to deal with them were either to kill them, or to imprison them.
Just like Brand’s father: after Tasiya took the throne, she had slaughtered the opposing side’s personal guards to the last.
Mansendis’s situation had been different. He had killed every royal-blood other than himself—there were too many forces left behind, and cleaning them up took an enormous amount of time.
So when these women asked to surrender their power and enter hibernation here, he agreed.
Only now, looking back, it seemed their choice to sleep here might have had another purpose.
“My patience is limited. I want you to speak truthfully.”
As he spoke, he revealed what he had been holding.
The moment they saw the object in his hand, the emotion in their eyes surged beyond anything they could conceal.
There was no way they could mistake it.
What he held was the brooch that represented Tasiya’s identity.
“Tell me everything, and I can give this brooch to you.”
He toyed with the brooch, unhurried.
Their eyes couldn’t move away from it.
It was Tasiya’s belonging. To them, this brooch was priceless.
Seeing their reaction, he knew it was enough—and calmly added more pressure.
“Not just the brooch. I can also let you meet someone.”
“...Who?”
“My child.”
“!!!”
The instant the word child left his mouth, their expressions changed completely.
...........
“Little Highness.”
Alvin found the cub by following the videos filmed around the base—straight to the storage vault where Wen Yuzhi was picking out ore.
At first, Wen Yuzhi had only wanted a few stones that looked nicer.
But after he asked Selet, Selet didn’t hesitate for even a second before bringing him to this vault.
And inside, the glitter nearly blinded him.
Only later did he learn that all ore mined from the extraction sites had to go through layers of screening. The prettier, more valuable pieces were selected again and again, then sent here.
They were often made into jewelry, then escorted by warships to the palace, supplied for the royal-blood to choose from.
The huge pile of matching accessories that came with his outfits had come from here.
And because there were only two royal-blood in the Saint Clan now—and Mansendis disliked extravagance, and disliked dressing up even more—Esoris had accumulated an enormous stockpile of jewelry over the years. The vault was nearly full.
Then Wen Yuzhi arrived.
Whether it was Mond or Alvin, both were extremely enthusiastic about dressing up the little Highness.
Wen Yuzhi’s clothes were almost never worn more than twice—except for the small robe Mansendis had knitted. That one had become his sleepwear.
Every night, the cub had to wear the clothes Dad knitted to fall asleep.
But during the day, Mond still dressed him up beautifully, rotating precious gemstones and jewelry every single day.
You could say Wen Yuzhi’s arrival had practically restarted Esoris’s clothing workshop, which had almost stalled.
What had once served the entire Salilaino royal line had now all but become the little Highness’s private workshop.
The moment the little Highness said he wanted to find some nice-looking stones, they immediately opened the vault and let him choose freely.
Wen Yuzhi picked and picked until his eyes went unfocused.
By the time Alvin arrived, the cub was so tired he’d slumped over a pile of pearls.
Alvin looked for a long time before finally spotting him—nestled on a seashell tray, surrounded by pearl clusters.
His skin was already pale to begin with. Even the pearls couldn’t compete. Their glow reflected over him, and a word instantly rose in Alvin’s mind.
Drenched in jewels.
And the cub sitting on that seashell tray really did fit it. The moment you saw him, you wanted to take the tray and the cub together and carry both away.
Alvin nudged his glasses, then crouched down so the cub lying on the tray wouldn’t need to lift his head to see him.
A level, respectful posture. freewёbnoνel.com
“Little Highness wants to find some nice-looking ore to bring back?”
Wen Yuzhi nodded. He didn’t say it was for giving a friend a gift—only that he wanted to bring some pretty ore back.
“A good idea. When we leave, you can take all of it with you.”
...All of it?
Wen Yuzhi blinked.
Only after a moment did he belatedly remember—right. Esoris was their family’s business. Everything on it, including the ore that had been mined, belonged to him in a sense.
If he couldn’t choose today, he could just take it all.
So... there was no need to rush at all. Once back on Dark Tower Star, he could take his time and choose slowly...
Thinking that, his little wings drooped, looking completely too tired to move again.
On the side, the Gumu saw it and immediately wanted to hop in and pat his back, rub his legs—
Only they forgot that all of this was on top of pearls.
With a plop, the Gumu tumbled into a rolling pile.
Fortunately, Alvin reacted fast. Before Wen Yuzhi could be hit by falling pearls, he quickly scooped the cub up and carried him out.
At the same time, Alvin silently slapped an unreliable label onto these Gumu.
The little Highness was better off being watched over by a reliable adult Saint Clan like him.
With that thought, he lowered his gaze, looking carefully at the cub resting in his palm.
He smiled. “Does the little Highness want to go see how warships are made?”
Warships...?
Wen Yuzhi had been a bit wilted, but the moment he heard those words, he perked up instantly.
“Yes!”
“But...” he hesitated a little. “Can I really go look?”
Wasn’t something like this supposed to be highly classified?
Military secrets, and all that...
Would it really be okay?
Alvin said it was fine.
Same answer as always: forget Esoris—the entire Ninth Star Sector was Wen Yuzhi’s home. In his own home, he could go wherever he wanted.
Not only could he visit—he could even personally design the warship he liked.
Not long after they first met, Alvin had already told him: he could build a fleet that belonged only to him.
And the little Highness had been back for quite a while now. The candidates for the personal guard corps had already been selected, and the assessment would happen soon.
Naturally, the fleet that belonged to the little Highness should also start being prepared.
Coming to Esoris this time was the perfect chance.
Wen Yuzhi was full of anticipation for the visit.
Sitting on Alvin’s shoulder, he even excitedly messaged Xi Heyan.
【Do you know how warships are designed? Alvin said I can design a warship I like.】
“.......”
Xi Heyan read it twice, confirming he hadn’t misread it. The message really did say warship.
A family with mines, and money enough to design warships...
He was almost numb to how rich the young master’s family was.
But he didn’t think too deeply, assuming Wen Yuzhi meant an ordinary light warship.
Technically, warships were military supplies, and normal people couldn’t buy them.
But the empire’s upper ranks were rotten. After His Majesty Bernard fell ill, the Hoffmann royal family’s control over the empire had been steadily weakening. In contrast, noble families were becoming more and more lawless.
Now, as long as you could pay, warships could be bought and sold. They’d even become a trendy new toy among nobles.
These days, if your family didn’t have a warship, it was embarrassing to even show your face in those circles.
So Xi Heyan assumed that was what Wen Yuzhi meant.
But in reality, Alvin planned to bring Wen Yuzhi to see warships that were destruction-class and above.
However, on the way to the armaments factory, they ran into Mansendis first.
“Dad!”
The moment Wen Yuzhi saw the silver-haired sovereign, he immediately abandoned Alvin and flew straight toward him.
Before he could reach, Mansendis extended a hand midair and caught the cub.
Wen Yuzhi pressed close against his chest first, rubbing in affection, then lifted his head—
and it was that movement, looking past Mansendis’s shoulder, that let him see the women behind Mond.
They were unfamiliar faces.
He had never seen them before.
...Were they Saint Clan who worked here?
He wondered, but still nodded politely in greeting.
He had no idea that such a simple gesture nearly made their eyes turn red.
Wen Yuzhi didn’t notice. After greeting them, he stopped paying attention to the unfamiliar Saint Clan and put all his attention back on Mansendis.
“Dad, when we leave, can we bring the ore from the vault with us?”
“Um... I want to bring some back as souvenirs.”
“I already picked some out. Some for you, and some for Mond—Alvin too...”
