Chapter 24: The Powerful Enemy Appears for the First Time

  "Tonight, drunk where, willow shore, dawn wind and residual moon. From now on, it should be a good day with beautiful scenery, even if there are thousands of emotions, who can I tell?"

  On the white paper, a line of elegant small characters fell, carrying a faint ink fragrance. Naya stared at this line of words for half an hour.

  "Liúyún Kǎi Dé, is that really you?" Naya, returning from the night banquet, felt as if she had experienced a dream tonight. This dream made her, who always looked down on men, see through someone for the first time - Liúyún Kǎi Dé.

  "Nana, haven't you rested yet?"

  "Father Emperor, how did you come?"

  Naya snapped out of her reverie to find George IX standing in her room, gazing at her with affection.

  "Tonight, that old fellow at the Cadwell's brought out a few bottles of good wine and I couldn't help but have a few extra cups. Now I'm wide awake, so I came over to see you." George was in high spirits tonight, thanks largely to the several bottles of wine on this hot day.

  "What kind of fine wine could make Your Majesty the Emperor so appreciative?" The emperor had drunk a lot of good wine, but it was rare for him to be so pleased. Thinking of this, Naya's heart became even more confused.

  "Why is it that when something involves the Kai family, it becomes so extraordinary?"

  "That wine is called General's Tears, I'll let you try it sometime. Father, what I'm tasting isn't just wine, but a heroic passion that belongs to soldiers, to blood and fire on the battlefield! It even reminds me of the passionate years I spent on horseback!" George sighed.

  "By the way, Nà'er, was there anyone at the dinner party who caught your eye?"

  After Ziliyun broke off the engagement, Naya's marriage made him worried. Although he agreed to let his daughter do whatever she wanted, he was afraid that her standards were too high and she would miss out on her youth.

  At tonight's banquet, I found two special people. One is Nalan Gongzi, and the other is... Thinking of this person's unconventional words and actions, Naya hesitated for a moment.

  "Nalan, I've heard of him, one of the few young talents in the empire. And who's the other one? Tell me quickly, so I can hear it from you myself." George was also piqued by his daughter's expression.

  "Another one... is Flowing Cloud Kaito." Naya finally managed to say with difficulty.

  "What? How is that possible?" George IX furrowed his brow upon hearing his daughter's words.

  Naya then told her father about what happened at the dinner party.

  Unfinished, she sighed softly and said: "Father, Naya should probably go out like Second Brother. As a princess, I can only look up at the beautiful scenery in the sky, but I don't see the suffering of the common people, and my heart is filled with shame."

  George IX paced back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back after listening to his daughter's words.

  "Nah, if everything is as you say, then this change in Liú Yún is too great. To be able to utter astonishing words, it's completely unlike the rumors." George IX said after a long while.

  Naya looked a bit tired, and tonight's events made her feel somewhat exhausted in her heart.

  "Perhaps he was stimulated by everyone tonight and said those words. However, his words are reasonable."

  "Perhaps he's just become more eloquent. However, his words about not fearing war but refusing to fight for the nobles really resonated with me. The Empire's nobles are getting out of hand." George stroked his beard and chuckled.

  "Good words! Daughter, did you write this?" George asked in surprise, looking at the white paper and a line of small characters in front of his daughter.

  Naya gently shook her head.

  When the New Year arrived, the Eaglet Academy also had a holiday and held some celebration activities. All of this was organized by Kaslo according to the arrangement made by Liú Yún before he left. However, all the activities were held within the academy, and the sentries standing like cedars at the gate still faithfully performed their duties.

  Shuiling sat beside Shuihan, quietly gazing at the smiling faces of the young and confident people by the bonfire, and sighed: "Brother, do you still believe they were once homeless orphans?"

  "Sister, on this joyful night, what are you still sighing about?" After a period of training, Shui Han's personality also became more cheerful and the experience of being a deputy captain made him mature.

  "I just feel that what he does can change a lot of things." Shuiling thought of Liuxing, who was far away in the Imperial City.

  "He? He's a freak, you'll never understand what he's thinking." Shui Han stretched and laughed.

  "Sister, do you still hate him?" Shui Han suddenly asked, thinking of the things that had happened over this period of time, he felt that it was already very hard for him to hate that person again.

  "I don't know." Shui Ling'er shook her head.

  "But you'd better keep your distance from him," Shui Han said, "The Wind System squad I'm in is specialized in espionage, reconnaissance, tracking and assassination. The methods he teaches are only thought of by demons. I even suspect that if I follow him for a long time, I'll become very evil too, heh." After finishing speaking, Shui Han intentionally made a mischievous face, revealing his white teeth.

  "Is it that scary?" Shui Ling'er also laughed.

  "However, he also said that for a warrior walking in the dark, survival is more important than anything. And all evil things, as long as they are used for good, are just and righteous. War is not a game, and when dealing with enemies, one can be ruthless. But I still find him terrifying." Shui Han seriously recalled what Liu Yun had said.

  "Could it be that he has experienced war, otherwise how would he have such strange ideas?" Shuiling was getting more and more confused.

  "He gives me the feeling of having experiences far beyond his age," said Shui Han.

  "Is there also suffering and hardship that surpasses his age?" Shuiling'er thought, "Tonight, I actually thought of you, but will you think of me?"

  Five people from Liuyun arrived at the most prosperous Caixing Avenue in the Imperial Capital. The New Year's Eve of the Imperial Capital was also a sleepless night for the Imperial Capital.

  Lanterns shone like shooting stars, illuminating every corner of the long street. The lanterns hung high on the densely packed shops, displaying peace and prosperity to the world. On the street, jugglers, magicians, and snack vendors filled the air with their cries. Families out for a stroll enjoyed the happiness of being together, while young couples walked hand in hand, their faces filled with sweet love.

  But Liu Yun always felt that there was something missing behind this bustle.

  "With fireworks and firecrackers, this night scene should be even more beautiful, right?"

  The festive atmosphere was finally found to be lacking in firecrackers and fireworks, "But even if there were, she wouldn't accompany me to watch them anymore." Thinking of her, Liu Yun's heart couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness.

  Suddenly, a burst of exclamation erupted from the crowd around them. More than ten figures flew out from a wine shop by the street and surrounded Flowing Cloud and his five companions in the middle. Several patrolling soldiers discovered something amiss and immediately rushed over. A man in black clothes instantly went forward to meet them. With flashes of sword light, three soldiers cried out in agony as they fell to the ground. The remaining few knew they were no match for him and hastily retreated.

  Liu Yun was also slightly surprised, but immediately calmed down and looked around at the black-clad men surrounding him. There were fifteen attackers in total, all dressed in black and masked, with twelve of them holding long swords and three holding magic wands.

  "We only want these two, the two gentlemen and the lady can leave on their own."

  At this point, one of the men in black suddenly pointed at Iverson and Walker.

  After hearing what the man in black said, Liú Yún knew that he was a sworn enemy of Iverson's who had come seeking him out.

  "Yun Shao, you take Third Master and Miss away first." Everson said gloomily, what was bound to happen has finally happened.

  "Forgive us for not being able to follow you anymore."

  Liu Yun looked at Are and Jing Lei beside him, then whispered to Jing Lei's ear: "Third brother, take your sister and leave first."