60. Banquet, Convoy Arrives

Night falls in the courtyard of Qiyana's palace.

Having won the Truth Duel, and won beautifully and decisively, showcasing her talent to everyone, Qiyana is clearly in a good mood, and even her appetite has improved considerably.

Holding a knife and fork, Qiyana hummed an Ixialia folk song as she put food into her mouth.

Although she had eaten these delicacies countless times in the past, for some reason, Qiyana felt that this time the taste was exceptionally good, making her feel comfortable from the inside out!

Sitting on the other side of the table, Yuan Chen was filled with emotion.

Although Qiyana's palace is the smallest, and even the most remote, compared to other palaces in Alai, it is still quite spacious overall, considering that there are only Yuan Chen and Qiyana there besides the servants.

Well, even without considering the down payment, it's still a mortgage that an ordinary person could never pay off even if they worked day and night for three lifetimes.

He didn't pay much attention to it; the systemic issues were too complex, and Yuan Chen knew he didn't have the ability to meddle.

"If Sane had won the Truth Duel, the victory banquet would be packed with guests by now, wouldn't it?"

Leaning back in his chair, Yuan Chen gazed at the empty courtyard, his face casual. "Unlike us, even if we win, there are only two of us drinking alone."

"Very good!" Qiyana smiled as well. For Qiyana, this approval was like a poison; even a brief taste had given her an unprecedented sweetness.

"As for the guests... there's nothing to worry about. Because I'll keep winning! The guests will come naturally! Rather, we should think about how to make my courtyard appear more spacious through planning!"

When talking about Yuan Chen, Qiyana naturally refers to him as "we." Just as Lupe had once told Yuan Chen, it is more precious to offer help in times of need than to add to someone's success.

Admittedly, people change. Sometimes, those who offer help in times of need are more loyal and sincere than those who later add to one's success.

But this thing is like Formula 1 racing; it's all about timing. The corners are where skill really matters, but who doesn't step on the gas on the straight?

Even though everyone knew this, Qiyana didn't care. Because in her mind, she would never lose.

"No need for that."

Upon hearing Qiyana's words, Yuan Chen stroked his chin and said:

"Sane is already packing her things... After such a humiliating defeat, with her disgraceful state witnessed by all the Yuentar, that proud girl has no face to remain in Yishuaoken longer."

"Those nobles who once supported him have lost their allegiance, and the palace will be left empty. As things stand, no one should be foolish enough to stand in your way."

Hearing Yuan Chen's words, Qiyana curled her lip and said, "Even if I get her palace, I'll smash it all and redo it!... Tch, she ran away quickly. I was thinking of humiliating her before she left."

Perhaps due to a personality flaw, or perhaps Childhood Trauma, Qiyana doesn't value etiquette. It's not that the strong should ruthlessly humiliate the weak; rather, Qiyana simply enjoys watching the defeated bark helplessly in front of her.

Just like how Sane once saw himself.

Although this wasn't exactly a good personality trait, Yuan Chen didn't care much, because Qiyana was generally quite easy to talk to commoners and servants—provided you could accept Qiyana sharp tongue when you messed things up.

"But then again..."

After a pause, Qiyana squinted at Yuan Chen: "Whether in public or in private... you always seem to separate us into two individuals. Since I've already said 'us,' why do you still say it's blocking 'my' path?"

"..."

Upon hearing Qiyana's words, Yuan Chen fell silent.

Qiyana is very sensitive, both physically and mentally.

Yuan Chen had just said that no fool would stand in Qiyana's way. To others, this might not seem like much, but Qiyana clearly sensed the subtle yet ever-present distance in Yuan Chen's words.

Do you think I'm not capable enough? Or are you uncomfortable having you as my teacher in front of so many people?

Qiyana put down her knife and fork. Although her words sounded somewhat forceful, her eyes were filled with doubt and a hidden unease.

"At the very beginning, you were the one who kept saying 'we.' Why is it that now that I think so too, you've started referring to 'we' as 'me and you'?"

"..."

He rubbed his temples, feeling a bit of a headache—to be honest, Yuan Chen had known all along that this kind of thing would happen sooner or later.

That's just Qiyana's personality; she finds it difficult to fully accept someone.

Once she has accepted someone, any slight change in that person's feelings will be seen as a betrayal.

But... some things have to be done this way.

"Because I will eventually leave; I can't stay here forever," Yuan Chen said softly. "I said this when we first met... If I also treat our relationship as a Normal State, the consequences will be unimaginable."

"..."

Upon hearing this, Qiyana leaned back in her chair, a thoughtful look in her eyes, and said thoughtfully, "Is it because... a demon?"

"Um."

"What demon?"

"It's a special case; I can't reveal her name," Yuan Chen said, frowning.

"This might disturb her... I went through a lot of trouble to somehow shield her from my presence. If I mention her name here, she might re-anchor herself to me."

In fact, when Yuan Chen Oshirresh's name to Nedeli last time, he noticed that Oshirresh inwardly whenever he uttered the name.

Now, thanks to the blessing of the Wilderness Consciousness, he is temporarily free from interference from Oshirresh.

Therefore, Yuan Chen did not intend to rashly try to reveal her name until he had traveled west to find the key to solving this problem.

Upon hearing Yuan Chen's words, Qiyana frowned—to be honest, she hated such irrelevant answers.

But after a long silence, Qiyana finally just nodded calmly.

"I see..."

At the same time, Qiyana's eyes were filled with many thoughts—the fact that simply uttering the demon's name would attract its attention meant that this demon was no ordinary low-level demon like Azakana, nor was it a subordinate demon that could only hunt humans through inferior means.

The Nascent Demon exists only in legends, and was sealed away by the gods of heaven a thousand years ago. Under these circumstances...

"A high-ranking demon?"

Qiyana thought to herself, "If he's a high-ranking demon, it's no wonder Yuan Chen would act this way. After all, a high-ranking demon can turn a city into a living hell without making a sound."

However, it's rare for high-ranking demons to do this—after all, their sustenance comes from the human spirit.

With all humanity dead, the emotions that Runeterra can generate will greatly diminish. Relying solely on the instinctive emotions of wild animals, and aside from some concepts that exist only in ancient legends, all other demons will inevitably starve to death.

Yishuaoken discovered a thousand years ago that demons and humans have a twisted symbiotic relationship.

The very existence of demons is driving humanity to develop more civilizations... and also to destruction.

"Anyway, my performance was perfect, now it's your turn!" Qiyana said decisively.

"This will be my first time hosting the Elemental Festival. If you mess it up, you won't be leaving Yishuaoken a second!"

"From what you're saying, it seems you don't really want me to succeed..."

"I didn't say that~"

As they talked, Qiyana seemed to have forgotten her earlier unpleasantness, and their conversation gradually shifted towards an academic discussion.

Qiyana is very interested in Ionia's Spirit Theory —especially in today's battle, when she attempted for the first time to transcend the constraints of axioms and merge her spirit with the earth beneath her feet.

The result was that the originally unremarkable Earth Element magic became incredibly powerful after the fusion of spirit and soul, and the feeling of controlling it became infinitely lighter and faster.

How should I put it? If, under Normal State, one can feel oneself Spellcasting, operating and applying it according to the formula of the Yuan Chu Axiom.

With the blessing of Spirit Theory, everything is perfectly harmonious; often, a thought just arises in the mind and is completed in the next moment.

However, Qiyana could also sense some shortcomings of the Spirit Theory – besides requiring extremely high levels of mental fortitude from the controller, it also placed extremely high demands on the environment.

If the elements in the surrounding environment are restless, then the users will also be affected.

This is also the problem that Yuan Chen wants to solve—the constraint method of the Yuan Chu Axiom can suppress it to a certain extent.

The two talked for a long time, and in the end, they even asked the servants to clear away the food and clean up, their enthusiastic conversation continuing late into the night.

It wasn't until Qiyana started to feel a bit tired that the two began their journey home.

Back in her room, Qiyana remained silent for a long time before opening her eyes and saying, "Servant."

"Your Highness."

A maid with a reserved expression came to Qiyana's bedside—aside from Yuan Chen, few people could remain calm in the face of Qiyana's domineering aura.

"Go to the library and bring me the book about demons... Don't let Yuan Chen know."

"Yes, Your Highness."

The next morning, Yuan Chen peeked through the crack in the door at Qiyana, who was fast asleep, and then quietly turned and left.

Arriving at the city gate, Yuan Chen waited quietly. Around noon, he finally saw the familiar, long caravan.

I found a typo-checking software, let's see if it works...