51 The Empress and Princess

We finally reached the 50th chapter. Well, 51st if we count the prologue.

Anyway, what do you think about the story so far?

And just a head up, the update will be slower from now on.

One chapter a day sounds good? Because I'll stock up chapters from now on and add this fanfic to my P@treon. There would be advanced chapters soon!

Well, that's it. I hope you enjoy the story~!

--- Chapter 50 ----

The white clouds drifted above Silver Lake City.

A gust of wind washed out the walls, giving a cold sensation to everyone within it.

Water droplets fell one after another, starting a light but enjoyable rain.

As the atmosphere gradually chiller than before, who wouldn't want a cup of warm coffee? And that's how Yu Long bizarrely encountered one of the Against the God's Heroines.

The Blue Wind Empire's Princess, Cang Yue.

Fun fact. The princess used 'Lan Xueruo' when introducing herself as she accompanied her sick mother. After all, the surname 'Cang' will attract too much attention.

It was noon time.

Lan Xueruo went to the buffet lounge, which she didn't know existed, and curiously ordered food for her mother. She only picked the tasty-looking ones and eventually stopped at the desert section.

She was about to order some cookies when a youth stood beside her and ordered a cup of coffee. She didn't think much about it until they pointed at the same cookie under a glass counter.

The cookie they pointed out is none other than macarons.

"Ack!" They stared at each other awkwardly.

"Um, you can take it." Lan Xueruo offered immediately with a small smile. 

Although she wanted to try the unique-looking cookie, others should have tasted it first. Not to mention, the handsome golden-eyed youth looks a year younger than her.

Yu Long scratched his cheek and replied, "No, you can take it." 

"I'll wait for them to make another one." 

"No, you should take it." Lan Xueruo shook her head gently.

Yu Long was adamant either, "No, you!"

They kept doing this back and forth for a few minutes before the person behind the counter told them some freshly made macarons were ready.

Of course, it was fast because the Shadow Agents didn't want to disappoint Yu Long.

"Pfft." They chuckled in amusement.

Yu Long cupped his hand politely, "Yu Long." 

"Lan Xueruo." The princess also exchanged the gesture.

"Xueruo as 'Stay as pure as the white snow'?" Yu Long tilted his head as he caught the meaning behind her words.

Lan Xueruo blinked in surprise and giggled, "Yes. My mother gave me this beautiful name." 

"It's a good name." Yu Long nodded slightly.

"Well, I hope we meet each other later again." 

Yu Long turned around and walked away while sipping his coffee, leaving Lan Xueruo amazed.

The princess watched the youth's back and was amazed because her beauty didn't affect him. Even though Lan Xueruo was only fourteen, many people praised her for her beauty.

In the future, she'd definitely grow into a breathtaking beauty!

Coupled with her aristocratic upbringing, only a handful of individuals could compete with her. Unfortunately, Lan Xueruo doesn't care much about her status and chooses to stay humble due to her mother's education.

Lan Xueruo hummed and brought the tray back to their room. 

Upon returning to the hotel suite, Lan Xueruo saw her mother sitting on the balcony to watch over the lake nearby. 

Her gaze is profound, as expected from the Empress of the Blue Wind Empire.

Lan Shirou smiled at her daughter, "Xueruo, you're back?" 

"Mm, and I brought you food. Let's eat together." Lan Xueruo placed the tray on the wooden table beside her mother.

After tasting the food, they surprisingly liked everything on the tray. 

Even Lan Shirou, who wasn't that hungry, ate the foods her daughter brought wholeheartedly.

"T-That was good..." Lan Shirou said while wiping her mouth with a napkin. "I didn't expect this hotel to have such a skilled chef."

"Even our royal chef isn't this good." 

"Actually..." Lan Xueruo began to retell her experience in the buffet longue.

The Empress was dumbfounded.

Such a convenient thing in the world?

"I even overheard that you can order hotel service, and they'd bring this level of food to our room directly." Lan Xueruo added sincerely.

"So, basically like a servant calling." Lan Shirou nodded in understanding.

"Oh, wait. Did you mention meeting a youth earlier?" 

Lan Xueruo recalled Yu Long's handsome face and blushed slightly, "Well, yes." 

A knowing smile appeared on Lan Shirou's mature face as she teased her daughter, "Oh, my. My daughter is actually flushing red." 

"This is the first time." 

"Why don't you tell Mother more about this youth." 

Lan Xueruo buried her face with a napkin and told Lan Shirou about her encounter with Yu Long. As the story went by, Lan Shirou's impression of youth improved significantly.

'A boy around Xueruo's age wasn't affected by her beauty?' Lan Shirou couldn't help but giggle. 'What an interesting fellow.' 

"But Yu Clan, huh?" 

"Do you know something, Mother?" Lan Xueruo noticed her mother's expression change.

Lan Shirou nodded and replied, "In the Blue Wind Empire, only one family with such a surname." 

"Yu Clan, the most prominent business clan in the Blue North County." 

"Their business's assets are inferior to Black Moon Merchant Guild only." 

"T-They are that strong?" Lan Xueruo covered her mouth in disbelief.

Lan Shirou gazed at the rain and replied, "Indeed. We are fortunate that the Yu Clan never flaunt their wealth, or else the power balance in the Blue Wind Empire has long changed." 

She sighed helplessly and resumed, "The Blue Wind Imperial Family's predecessor is lucky for making a sworn brother with the Heavenly Sword Villa's founder. We are protected, thanks to it."

"Maybe I should greet them once. Or things will become awkward later." 

"From your encounter, the youth named Yu Long is probably the young master of the Yu Clan."

"And he's here to spend time with his family."

"Silver Lake City is quite far from Blue North County, after all." 

"Anyway... What do you think about the boy?" Lan Shirou flashed a smile at Lan Xueruo.

Lan Xueruo swayed her head, "H-He's unique, I guess?" 

"Unique... You never described anyone like that before." 

"Mother~!" 

"Haha~!" 

As the mother and daughter bonded with laughter, they would have never thought the encounter with Yu Long would change their lives forever.

...

Over three days, many surprising things happened.

The Empress and the Princess of the Blue Wind Empire visited Yu Long's suite and greeted them, especially his father and mother.

Of course, the shocks are mutual.

Yu Zhan and Yu Xin didn't expect to meet with the rumored Blue Wind Empire's Empress here. In Silver Lake City, when they were on a family holiday.

Above all else, Lan Shirou is such a good talker that she never outspoken and converses to know each other more relaxedly. She's polite but still shows the dignity of an empress.

On the other hand, Lan Xueruo gets to know more about Yu Long as well.

Still, Lan Xueruo was surprised when she found that Yu Long was two years younger than her. His tall body and toned build make him look like the youth of the same age as her.

Then, Lan Xueruo discovered a girl named Xia Qingyue is overprotective of Yu Long. The latter would only respond when Yu Long was involved.

The 'longest' conversation Lan Xueruo had with Xia Qingyue was when they introduced themselves.

It was a surreal experience for Lan Xueruo.

Everyone is having a barbeque on the grass field behind the Silver Moon Hotel. High-quality meats roasted on the grill, making an inviting aroma hit their nostrils.

Yu Long, Xia Qingyue, and Lan Xueruo stayed near a river. 

They competed to see 'who could skip a rock the most' over this river.

Xia Qingyue moved first and threw a pebble casually, creating a breeze as it skipped over the water several times.

"H-How did you do that?" Lan Xueruo was speechless.

"Are you perhaps a profound practitioner?" 

"Yeah." Xia Qingyue responded calmly.

"No way, you're younger than me. I thought you could only cultivate at the age of 14?" Lan Xueruo doubted her knowledge.

Yu Long chuckled and answered, "In your everyday case, yes. People cultivate only when they reach 14 years old." 

"And that's because their profound veins matured at 14. Some special cases allowed one's profound veins to mature earlier." 

"Princess, your profound veins have matured, right? Can I check it?" 

Faced with such a sudden question, Lan Xueruo was 'actually' taken aback but still let Yu Long touch her hand.

Lan Xueruo felt her heartbeat rising as Yu Long's warmth comforted her for some reason.

"Hmm, you're quite talented." Yu Long praised modestly. "16 of your profound entrances are opened." 

"You can train anytime you want." 

"Really??"

"Yes, but do you have profound art, though?" 

Lan Xueruo peeked at her mother and brought out a book from her spatial ring. "This is profound art passed down on the Blue Wind Imperial Family." 

"Only people with royal bloodline and pure hearts can cultivate it." 

"It's called Monarch Heart Search Art." 

"Have you tried practicing it?" Yu Long asked curiously.

"I did, but it was weird..." Lan Xueruo replied softly.

"With the Monarch Heart Secret Art, one can peek into a person's fate and luck to a certain extent. And I never discovered anything special before..." 

"Try it." Xia Qingyue suddenly said. "Try it now, and you'll get surprised." 

"Uh, okay..." Lan Xueruo closed her eyes and chanted something. Her sparkling eyes gained a profound light as something unbelievable happened.

Lan Xueruo blinked her eyes and saw overflowing fate and luck around Yu Long. It was so great that she felt overwhelmed and drowned in it.

"AAAAAAAAAAAHH~!" 

"Is everything okay there?!" The adults were alerted.

But with some explanation, the adults finally calmed down.

Lan Xueruo glanced at Yu Long with a complex expression and asked her mother to talk alone on the side.

"What's the matter, Xueruo?" Lan Shirou asked with a concerned expression.

"Mother, you know Monarch Heart Search Art, right?" 

"I do... And I warned you not to use it randomly." 

Lan Xueruo bit her lips and explained, "When I used Monarch Heart Search Art earlier. I pry into Yu Long's fate and luck." 

"And..." Lan Shirou felt the suspense in her daughter's words.

"And it was overwhelming to the point my vision was 'literally' drowned by it." Lan Xueruo finished her words, shocking Lan Shirou to her core.

"Fate and luck so great that you felt drowned by it..."

"Miracle, this is a miracle!" 

"Xueruo, you have to choose Yu Long as your champion!" Lan Shirou firmly holds her daughter's hand. "This is your only chance."