Chapter 188 – Underground Forces

“Princess.”

Calron greeted the girl in front of him after a momentary surprise. It took him a while to register who it was since he had only seen her once on the day he fought with Zarvel.

“You know me!”

Vivian bounced with excitement, her eyes s.h.i.+ning like pearls. 

“I’ve wanted to meet you for so long, but every time I asked big sister Linda, she would tell me that you were busy with something. You did cause quite a storm with the freeing of the slaves so I guessed it was true.”

Vivian chatted with enthusiasm while Breta leaned against the wall to catch her breath. 

“Yes… ”

Calron was confused by his current situation, not expecting the princess to be this interested in him and moreover, taken aback by the bizarre sight of a teen girl babbling before him and an older woman panting out of breath behind her.

What was going on?

“I heard that you are one of the most talented youths of our generation and that you were actually able to fight against a Heavenly stage expert for a brief while! Is that true!? I wish I could have seen it, but the royal guards escorted me away when the battle started.”

Vivan continued talking, oblivious to the dazed look on Calron’s face.

That’s right, I never saw her and the other n.o.bles from the stage once the battle started. I thought they had left for the palace, but they were not there when we arrived inside.

Calron recalled now not encountering the princess and the other n.o.bles inside the palace.

“Isn’t it pitiful? While the rest of the people were fighting to protect us, the n.o.bles and me were hiding for our safety… ”

Vivian said with a self-deprecating smile, turning her glance away from Calron.

“Why don’t you train to fight then?”

Calron detected a subtle melancholy from the traces of her voice which roused a slight curiosity within him. Sensing her meager seventh rank Spirit stage cultivation, it was a given that she would have been slaughtered in the battle with Zarvel against all those Saint stage cultivators.

“I want to, but my father doesn’t allow it. I hate feeling so helpless and having to run away while others fight.”

Vivian looked down at the floor, memories of her father rejecting her every request to start training martial arts.

Is it to protect her from the harsh training, or does the King not want his daughter to fight at all?

Calron could not understand why the King would not allow his daughter to train in martial arts. Throughout the whole kingdom, almost everyone trained in the arts regardless of whether they were a male or female.

“Young lady… ”

Breta whispered with sadness at seeing the lonely look on the girl.

“That should not s- “

Just as Calron was about to respond, he felt his communication crystal vibrate inside his spatial bracelet.

Big brother, you need to rush to the shop right now! There are a few dangerous men who took over, and both me and Avor cannot restrain them. Ellie is here as well.

Calron’s eyes flared with anger, causing Vivian to gasp at the sudden dangerous aura emitting from him.

“I need to leave, princess.”

He turned around to swiftly depart the palace grounds.

“Will you come to the palace again to visit?”

Vivian did not want to pry into Calron’s affairs as they were still strangers and it would appear rude, but she had a feeling that something bad must have happened.

“Yes, I’ll come again. Also, if you really want to learn how to fight, then you should try to learn regardless of the consequences from your father. He might be doing this to protect you from getting hurt, so you need to show him that you are capable of handling yourself. You can hate yourself for being weak, but that hate will only grow stronger if you don’t try to change it.”

Calron turned his head to the side to address the young girl, and later exploded into a burst of crimson smoke as he activated the Blood Mist Step and bolted towards the Azure Pavilion. 

Vivian remained silent and frozen on the spot when Calron left. Even Breta stood still, not wanting to disturb the teen girl’s thoughts.

“I want to stop hating myself… ”

Vivian closed her eyes, drops of tears rolling down her cheeks.

…………………….

Good, they haven’t hurt them yet.

Calron was charging towards the shop, his figure a blur to anyone who glimpsed at him on the streets. He was almost in front of the shop, and using his Divine Perception he could tell that no one was hurt.

*swhoosh*

Stopping in front of the shop’s door, Calron took a deep breath and calmly entered inside.

“Master!”

Ellie cried with relief, but quieted down when the seven men stood up and walked towards Calron.

“Who are you?”

Calron noticed both Roran and Avor bound on the floor with ropes of essence, preventing them from moving or getting up. Both their faces lit up once Calron arrived. It looked like Ellie was not much of a threat, so they did not bother with tying her up.

Scanning the shop, there were no customers to be found but neither was the shop looted or vandalized, so Calron guessed that these men were not here to sabotage his business. The seven men were dressed similarly, with one major similarity between them. The emblem of a ball of fire on their robes.

“We are members of the Outlaw Sect.”

The man standing in front spoke calmly to Calron, introducing the group. The man had a rough outer appearance almost like a street thug. However, Calron could sense his strength was on the levels of a Saint stage expert!

“I have never heard of an Outlaw Sect.”

Although Calron might be new to city, he was familiar with all the major clans, sects and families within the city and he had never heard of an Outlaw Sect. It might be the name of a small and unknown sect, but Calron highly doubted that after seeing that all seven of the men in front of him were Saint stage experts.

“Heh, that’s because we’re a sect made of criminals. It doesn’t matter who we are, our Elder would like to speak with you in private, so please follow us.”

The leader chuckled with mirth, and stated his purpose of coming to the shop.

This is very shady.

After hearing that they were a sect made of criminals, Calron wanted to avoid them even more now.

“And what if I refuse?”

Calron began to prepare himself to bring out the Azure Lightning at a moment’s notice if a fight did break out.

“You won’t.”

The leader smiled as he took out a half-burnt wooden board with faint letters written on it.

Seeing the charred piece of wood, Calron’s eyes widened in shock as he realized who had called him from the Outlaw Sect.