Immortal Kingdoms

On that same night, Pandora left Valdmor unnoticed.

On the following morning, Jeffery visited the inn and accompanied Leonardo and Juvia into the inner regions of Valdmor.

Back inside the inn, on the balcony, Wendy and Aria watched the group of three departing.

"Something about him changed," Aria narrowed her eyes, talking to Wendy's co-soul, as she knew that the true Wendy wouldn't stand next to her so casually.

As expected, Wendy's brows locked together as she responded, "He should have switched his cultivation techniques. Still, he seems to have become more urgent for some reason, he's not planning to spend a complete five years on Arcadia."

Aria's eyes flashed. As expected, she thought to herself that the moment he learned of his true origins, he would conclude that House Hestia is too little of an existence to help him, or that he didn't need help, to begin with.

The only moral shackles keeping him bound to his agreement with Nier was the condition to find a cure for his mother, but that agreement is now invalid. However, he's not acting as though he would abandon House Hestia altogether, which should be a good thing.

Still, she began to ponder whether or not she should reveal some matters about herself, Nier, and his daughter before it was too late. After thinking about it for a while, she decided to simply consult her daughter and act based on that girl's wishes.

"Did he tell you something?" Aria suddenly asked Wendy, her eyes gleaming curiously.

Wendy shook her head, then nodded slightly, then shook her head again with a sigh.

"He mentioned something about making preparations and arranging for me to give something to the young lady of House Hestia when we leave, he has a feeling that he wouldn't be able to meet with her. As for the reason, I don't know, he didn't say anything."

"Is that so?" Aria's eyes flashed with worry, could it be that bad? Although Leonardo didn't mention anything about his true origins to anyone after accepting the inheritance, he simply didn't wish to involve them with the karma.

The less they knew, the better. In case they did know, their fates would be intertwined with the existences of such dense karma, it wouldn't be an impossibility for them to run into unfathomable powerhouses on a random stroll through the universe beyond the world barrier.

The lower realms are a cluster of galaxies as planets cannot survive independently, the middle realms aren't that dependent on galaxies as they are somewhat self-sufficient, and the higher realms are a bleak empty void of intelligent life forms, rarely is there a planet or a galaxy as those have long been extinct under the relentless hunting from divinities.

The world barrier separates these three realms while simultaneously providing an environment to ward against the harmful energies of the universe, energies that are lingering shockwaves from powerful creatures that created chaotic storms and regions of death, and the world barrier serves as both a layer of protection and an indication of ownership.

It functions as a mark of some sort, each cluster of realms within a world barrier is the territory of a powerful existence or a powerful organization that is best left unprovoked. In a sense, it could be considered someone's backyard, pastor per se.

If the owner of this backyard wanted him dead or alive, not even the strongest house within this stellar world would be of any help, let alone a house that is facing decline.

Of course, Aria didn't know how grave Leonardo's situation is or that he was not worried about a distant enemy but the current Interstellar Supreme Court. Thus, after a moment of brief silence, this little silver fox disappeared while leaving her ethereal voice behind.

"Look after the kids, I need to arrange for some matters as well."

…

The same scarlet sky and crimson earth, viscous rivers and high mountains, and at the center of it all a pool of dense blood that housed two naked figures.

A petite young woman with long black hair, crimson red eyes akin to lustrous rubies, and a skin riddled with scars.

In her arms was an infant a few months shy of two years old, currently embracing a breast as big as its head if not bigger, feasting on the nutrients provided by her mother while her sparkling black eyes looked up curiously.

That lifeless look with a spark of curiosity that oftentimes flashed dull gray yet oftentimes flashed bright crimson intrigued Nier. Of course, she never thought that her daughter had not two, but three innate martial intents, she merely assumed that the black eyes were normal ordinary eyes.

Thus, she was ecstatic at her daughter's talent, actually grasping two innate martial intents while she was still an infant.

Floating around them on the surface of the pool were portraits of a young man with short silver hair, pitch-black eyes reminiscent of a depthless void, and a sharp handsome face almost crafted with perfection in mind.

This was a beautiful silent image that was suddenly disturbed by a ripple in space, a tall woman in a crimson red palace dress walked in, her expression serious.

However, when she saw the little baby with stalks of black and white hair growing on her head, this woman's face softened. However, when she saw the alternating black, white, and crimson in those babies' eyes, she couldn't help but grow serious once more.

"Mother, what is it?" Nier seemed to have noticed something off, she hurriedly asked with a frown.

"I have something to tell you, something that is both good and bad…"

As Rosaline didn't know what Leonardo planned for the future or how long they had left, she decided to blurt out everything she knew from start to finish.

Learning that her mother was actually accompanying Leonardo in secret under the guise of secluded cultivation, Nier's expression was very odd, caught between lau and tears.

However, when her mother explained that it was an anomaly for a mere mortal to impregnate a divinity, to begin with, Nier finally realized why she was absolutely shocked back then, but the pregnancy was such a serious matter to a woman of House Hestia that she didn't even think too much about it back then, deciding to shelve it away in her mind.

Almost an entire day later did Rosaline finish explaining everything to her daughter, particularly emphasizing on the matters regarding Eternus, and the consequences of investigating a planeswalker, the conspiracy behind the fake Immoral Kingdoms, the realm of Rebirth, and the vast world.

Although Nier was fascinated at first, when she learned that Leonardo was going to leave and possibly without even knowing her name, let alone seeing her, she felt infuriated and somewhat agonized.

"He's already my man! How can he act like I'm not already involved with his matters?!" Nier hissed, accidentally disturbing the peacefully feeding Aria who broke into a fit of crying.

"Oh no," Nier's expression changed, quick to appease her daughter.

"It's precisely because he wants good for you that he made this choice. Moreover, he is stuck with the mindset that the interaction between you two was nothing more than a business agreement; each one will help the other. However, now that you can't possibly help him, but instead will be put in more danger, why should he take this risk?"

Rosaline sighed while watching Nier doing her best to calm the baby down. Then, the more she watched, her brows furrowed before her heart shook.

That's it!

"Daughter, I have an idea…"

With an enchanting smile, Rosaline approaches her uncharacteristically anxious daughter. However, Rosaline knew that it couldn't be helped as the women of House Hestia can take only one man their entire lives as a father to their children.

No matter how many relationships they have, if one of them marked the woman's womb, it would instinctively reject the seeds of any other man; this was originally a mechanism in the bloodline to guarantee its purity one generation after the other.

The distressed Nier was angry and jealous of her mother, but she knew that if it wasn't for her mother secretly following Leonardo, she might not even get the chance to learn of his secret plans, let alone have the opportunity of stopping them.

Even if they couldn't stop or change his mind, there were other methods, and Rosaline seemed to come up with one.