Invisible Eyes

Meanwhile.

At the very center of the royal palace, inside the King's palace.

The palace bedroom.

The enormous bedroom, nearly sixty square meters in size, was lit by countless candles and oil lamps, making it brightly illuminated. Yet the light brought little life. Even on this hot summer night, the entire room still felt gloomy and cold.

An ornate wooden bed stood in the middle of the bedroom, as lonely as a small boat adrift upon a vast ocean. Lying on it was a wrinkled old man—the King of the Blue Lion Kingdom, Donas Austin.

Donas's face was pale. The exposed skin of his body had turned a strange black, with some areas already rotting. Even after being coated with ointment, it still gave off a faint foul stench.

A thin blanket covered his body. His chest rose and fell as he struggled to breathe through his mouth and nose. In his sleep, King Donas's life force looked weaker than the flickering candlelight beside him.

Suddenly!

"Cough—cough!"

King Donas jolted awake from his sleep and opened his eyes, gripped by a suffocating feeling. A thick wad of phlegm blocked his throat, making him want to cough but unable to do so. His face flushed red. Veins bulged beneath his loose skin as he struggled to sit up, trying to draw someone's attention so they could help him.

But the two guards standing at the bedroom door seemed to have gone deaf. They simply watched as His Majesty hammered the bed with bang bang sounds, their bodies remaining utterly motionless. Under the candlelight flickering outside, their shadows stretched across the floor inside the bedroom door, twisting slightly like souls struggling after being tempted by demons.

Bang bang, cough!

King Donas continued pounding the bed. His fists were clenched tight, his knuckles turning pale, veins bulging at his temples, his eyes wide open. His mouth hung open, yet he could not draw in any air, like a fish swept ashore by wind and waves.

Then, at that very moment, King Donas suddenly felt a heavy blow strike his back, as though someone had punched him. His entire body jolted, his throat loosened, and the phlegm blocking it burst free in a violent cough, landing on the floor.

"Puff, puff..."

Donas began gasping for breath, his chest heaving violently and producing the sound of a broken bellows being pulled.

Only then did the two guards outside the bedroom hear the commotion and step inside. But someone was faster than them—the royal palace Butler, Delong. He had been keeping watch outside the bedroom, but his age had caught up with him and he had dozed off. Awakened by the sounds from within, he hurried inside to see what was happening.

When he saw Donas sitting up crookedly and gasping for air, with unbroken strands of thick saliva still dripping from his mouth onto the blanket, Butler Delong immediately understood what had happened.

He walked over and gently patted Donas's back, making Donas cough again and expel the remaining phlegm in his throat. After using a handkerchief to wipe his mouth, he carefully asked, "Your Majesty, are you all right?"

"I'm fine... Hah... I won't die yet," Donas said between breaths.

"Then... shall Your Majesty continue resting?"

"Forget it. Now that I'm awake, I'm afraid I won't be able to sleep again tonight." Donas waved his hand. The pallor on his face, worn down by the strange illness, was especially pronounced at that moment. He said, "Why don't you tell me about what has been happening lately? How have my two sons—William and Richard—been recently? They haven't caused any trouble, have they?"

"No." Butler Delong shook his head. "Both princes have been doing well. First Prince William voluntarily cut the palace's expenses, saying it was to find physicians to treat Your Majesty's illness. Yesterday morning, First Prince William also came to see Your Majesty, but Your Majesty had finally fallen asleep, so he did not dare wake you and returned instead. He even reminded me not to tell Your Majesty, lest Your Majesty be disappointed."

"Mm, William is a good one." Donas nodded, then asked, "What about Richard?"

"Second Prince Richard..." Butler Delong hesitated slightly before saying, "Prince Richard is also very concerned about Your Majesty, but he has been busy recently, so..."

"So ever since he came last time, he hasn't cared about me at all, is that it?" Donas said, slowly closing his eyes as though calming his emotions.

"Your Majesty..." Butler Delong said softly, "Perhaps Prince Richard is still angry with you. After all, you did wrongly accuse him over that matter from several years ago..."

Donas opened his eyes. After a long silence, he said slowly, "I was indeed impulsive over what happened three years ago. But if he had not been doing all those miscellaneous things related to Wizards, how could I have misunderstood him? Since it has already happened, what can be done? Must I, the King of a kingdom, apologize to him and beg for his forgiveness? Besides, even if I did apologize, I doubt he would accept it!" By the end, a trace of anger had appeared on Donas's face. "Please calm your anger, Your Majesty," Butler Delong hurriedly said. "Naturally, Your Majesty cannot apologize to Prince Richard, but you could still punish those who fanned the flames back then. It is said that the news originally came from an attendant in First Prince William's palace, and then..."

"Do not mention this matter again." Donas waved his hand. "William already explained the reasons behind it to me in detail. It was not that attendant's fault at all. I made a mistake years ago; must I make another mistake just to make up for one? Richard... let him suffer a little grievance. I am his father! I cannot possibly chill William's heart again in the name of fairness. Besides, does fairness even exist in this world? You should know that I think highly of William. Whether in bearing or in his methods of handling affairs, he far surpasses me when I was young. I believe that if the Blue Lion Kingdom is handed to him, it will certainly become even more prosperous. And as the next King, he cannot have any stains on his record.

As for Richard, since he has suffered a grievance, William can compensate him properly when the time comes. Grant him the finest territory and exempt him from taxes. That should make him happy! After all, when all was said and done, the previous matter was merely the accidental killing of a few people around him and confining him for a period of time.

As for the people who were killed, he claimed they were some assistants he had painstakingly trained. But in my eyes, they were nothing more than a few ignorant peasants, country bumpkins—not even worth as much as pretty maidservants. So what if they were killed? In exchange, he would enjoy wealth and honor for the rest of his life. What could he possibly be dissatisfied about? Even if he is dissatisfied, he will endure it! I am his father, the King of this country! Everything within this kingdom's territory is my property, and everyone must obey me! I am not dead yet, so I will not permit anything that defies my will to exist. I—I do not want to hear any negative voices!"

"Uh, yes." Butler Delong did not dare argue. His eyes flickered as he said, "But... Your Majesty, isn't it a little early to say such things now?"

"Heh." Donas laughed, seeing through Butler Delong's thoughts. "Do not worry. I know the state of my body. Although this strange illness torments me and my body grows weaker by the day, I can still hold on for now. Speaking of which, when the leaves in Birch Forest outside the city all turn yellow in autumn, I still want to go and see them."

"Uh, that is good, that is good." Butler Delong replied repeatedly. For some reason, his expression became somewhat complicated.

Donas was in high spirits and did not notice anything strange about Butler Delong. He continued talking.

As they spoke, a candle burned in the corner of the bedroom. Its wick grew longer and longer, making crackling sounds as the flame gradually became unstable. Suddenly, an invisible force appeared and pinched off a section of the wick, causing the flame to stabilize once more.

Neither Donas nor Delong noticed this. Nor did they notice a pair of invisible eyes slowly leaving the palace and rising into the sky.

Late at night, the darkness was deep. Stars glittered across the night sky.

An invisible, transparent ribbon floated through the air. One end was connected to Richard, who sat cross-legged in a bedroom in the palace northwest of the royal palace, while the other was connected to Richard's consciousness form flying through the sky.

The energy of Astral Projection was scattered all around in the form of motes of colored light.

Richard spread out his consciousness form and began absorbing and drawing in the vast energy. Although the energy he absorbed could not be stored before he had Opened the Source of Magic, it could still help him become familiar with the process and strengthen his Mental Strength.

In the distance, a massive figure completely unlike a bird swept swiftly past...