At the center of White Tree City stood the Bai Family estate, the City Lord's Residence.
In the main hall.
Bai Chong, the lord of the city, sat rigidly upright in the seat of honor, as though facing a formidable enemy. He was hardly the picture of composure.
Besides Bai Chong, five others were in the main hall: three seated men and women, and a eunuch and maid standing nearby. These people were the source of Bai Chong's unease.
More precisely, the pressure came from one of the seated men and one of the seated women.
Both were striking in appearance, dressed in silks and satins several degrees more sumptuous than those worn by Bai Chong, a city lord. Even in the demon- and ghost-infested Crimson Firmament Roselight Realm, their every gesture exuded an air of indescribable nobility.
Compared with them, the young woman seated beside them, in the bloom of her youth, was dressed far more shabbily. She wore practical, plain gray clothes, with an unremarkable sword hanging at her waist, and displayed no particular bearing.
Bai Chong cleared his throat lightly and said:
"I was unaware of Your Highness and the Third Princess's arrival and failed to come out to welcome you. Please forgive me, Your Highnesses. May I ask what brings you to White Tree City?"
The girl addressed as the Third Princess smiled faintly and said:
"My eldest brother and I arrived without warning, and City Lord Bai toils day and night for White Tree City. Such a trifling matter hardly warrants concern. We came because Imperial Father heard that White Tree City was in trouble and specially dispatched us to provide aid and lift the siege."
The young man beside her nodded slightly.
Bai Chong frowned and said calmly:
"That will not be necessary. White