Chapter 23 – A Fate and an Embrace

After listening to Bolan’s words, Lin Wei couldn’t help but sigh. The Imperial Family truly played a clever game, sacrificing a small bit of face to shift the matter onto the Floating Sky Capital high above. The methods the Imperial Family used to obtain the scrolls were not honorable, but if the Magic Association were to investigate, they could simply blame their ancestors. As for the Imperial Family’s reputation—the Magic World had always kept its distance from the mainland, so news about magic rarely spread among the common people. As long as the Imperial Family maintained its image of justice, light, and majesty in the hearts of the people, there was nothing to worry about.

However, if the Magic Association were to dig into those old matters, it was unclear whether the other two Forbidden Scrolls hidden by the Imperial Family could remain concealed.

But this was not something Lin Wei needed to worry about—the Imperial Family never did anything that would put them at a disadvantage, so they must have already made thorough preparations.

With the most important purpose of this invitation accomplished, Bolan naturally shifted the conversation to Lin Wei’s life at the Magic Academy.

At least for now, Lin Wei hadn’t encountered any secrets in the Magic World worth hiding, so he simply downplayed the immense power of the mages to avoid making Prince Bolan feel as uneasy about the Magic World as Gregory had. As for the rest—the old mages who locked themselves in their rooms for days and nights studying the mysteries of the elements, the alchemy masters obsessed with all sorts of strange stones, magical beast bones, and plant extracts—he answered Bolan’s questions without hesitation. At least among these mages, Lin Wei saw no trace of ambition.

As Bolan listened, his expression was more one of curiosity and interest.

He looked up, his deep green eyes reflecting the distant sky visible through the gaps in the dense, green foliage outside the window: “It’s a pity I have no talent for magic. Otherwise, spending a lifetime on that isolated island, studying what I love—it would be something to aspire to.”

“Your Highness likes that kind of life?” Lin Wei’s tone was calm. “You could still achieve that in the Imperial Capital. I’ve heard many people say that Prince Bolan enjoys reading and is likely to become a great scholar like the renowned Jonas, who was famous throughout the Empire a century ago.”

“Though people outside often like to say things without much basis, this one isn’t too far off,” Bolan’s pale lips curled into a faint, bitter smile as he met Lin Wei’s gaze, his eyes like still, deep pools. “But even if I did want to follow in Jonas’s footsteps, delving into ancient texts in my study, writing books, teaching disciples… there’s no way I could make it happen. Lin Wei, do you understand?”

Bolan’s voice was cool and low, tinged with the hoarseness of illness, and the deep-seated helplessness in his words lingered in Lin Wei’s ears.

At that moment, the sunlight was just right, but the reception room felt cold and oppressive.

Yes, I understand—Lin Wei answered silently in his heart.

He understood Bolan’s helplessness and the deep-seated anger hidden beneath it, and he believed that such helplessness and anger could not be feigned—even though Bolan had a life of freedom that he yearned for, he was being pushed by life, or perhaps fate, irrevocably toward a completely opposite direction.

Just like Bolan, who could only see a glimmer of hope by seizing power, and just like himself in his past life, who had been led step by step into the vortex of the Imperial Capital by his family.

Unlike Bolan, however, he hadn’t known what awaited him back then—he had simply put on that small white stone under his father’s gaze, becoming one of the Imperial Family’s hidden, skeletal hands behind the scenes. He wore the heavy black robes that concealed his body and face, along with the equally heavy, flame-wrapped sword of the Tidis family.

He knelt on one knee before the Emperor supported by the Tidis family, pledging his lifelong loyalty, but his heart was filled only with emptiness and numbness.

He looked down upon the battlefield surrounded by black-armored knights, listening to the hooves, swords, and cries of the entire Imperial Corps under his direct command, yet felt no surge of exhilaration.

From the age of fifteen, he had been adrift in the tide of fate, heading toward a known, lifeless direction, his entire life laid out before him.

All he had wanted was to be an ordinary noble, with a gentle and kind mother and a strong and capable father, a family he could always rely on, and the ability to live as a noble young master should—always wearing a carefree, playful smile.

Or… to be an ordinary mage, standing openly under the sunlight, like the mage whose dark golden eyes had imprinted themselves in his mind in the final moments of his past life—clear, calm, and without a trace of confusion. That mage knew why he was born, why he fought, and why he would die.

Now, looking at Bolan, Lin Wei opened his mouth but didn’t know what to say.

“I think you understand…” Bolan didn’t miss the subtle change in Lin Wei’s expression and spoke slowly, “I don’t have the special talent you were gifted with, so I have no choice.”

The implication behind His Highness’s words—he had no choice but to plunge into the mire of power struggles.

There had long been rumors in the Imperial Capital that Prince Bolan was far more intelligent and wise than most—and Lin Wei now fully agreed. Hearing Bolan’s words, he knew that in that brief moment when their eyes met, the Prince had glimpsed a soul somewhat similar to his own.

“So, Your Highness…” Lin Wei’s voice was slightly hoarse, “What will you do?”

“Long ago, when we first met, I thought we could become good friends,” Bolan’s expression softened into a faint smile once more, “Perhaps even good partners.”

Outside the window, the bright sunlight bathed the quiet manor, and white clouds drifted lazily across the sky, occasionally blocking the sun and casting shadows on the ground. The light filtering through the carved windows shifted and danced, causing the room to alternate between brightness and dimness.

The Empire—this slow-moving, heavy, and formidable war machine, bristling with sharp teeth—turned its massive wheels at a subtle angle in this room of shifting light, heading down an unknown, new path, leaving deep ruts behind.

When Lin Wei boarded the carriage and left the manor, he turned back to look—on the high balcony of the castle stood a slender figure behind the railing, the breeze lifting his long hair and the hem of his robes. He seemed to be watching the departing carriage, or perhaps gazing at the road stretching endlessly before the gates.

Lin Wei felt as though he had seen the torrent of fate—swift and turbulent, yet not unchangeable.

The carriage raced smoothly along, and the bustling crowds that had gathered in the Imperial Plaza in the morning had mostly dispersed, but the East District was still bustling with activity.

When Lin Wei reached the top of the wooden stairs and approached the door to his room, it opened just as he arrived—Duan Yu must have sensed his approach.

This was the largest room in the entire inn, and aside from sleeping at night, the group usually spent their time together here. However, only Duan Yu was present now; Haitie and Daniel were likely still out on the streets.

Those familiar dark golden eyes, clear and calm… eyes that had once held a killing intent that made him tremble and a serenity that startled him.

Looking at Duan Yu, who stood before him, Lin Wei felt as though he had awoken from a dream.

He had escaped the suffocating black robes, and the mage before him was now his close classmate, friend, and partner.

In Duan Yu’s perception, the person before him had neither spoken nor moved since opening the door, seeming different from usual.

“Lin Wei?” Duan Yu asked.

Lin Wei suddenly became aware of the sound of his own heartbeat.

Rapid, pounding against his chest.

He took a deep breath, his body trembling slightly.

Duan Yu sensed the change in his demeanor: “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, I…” Lin Wei tried to calm himself, “A lot happened today, and I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed…”

He looked at the white-robed mage standing so close and, driven by an inexplicable impulse, opened his arms and hugged Duan Yu: “Let me hold you for a moment…”

The mage, who had never experienced such intimate contact, was momentarily stunned.

Duan Yu’s body was tall and solid, his shoulders providing a comforting presence. Lin Wei’s mind involuntarily drifted to the Magic Academy far across the mainland—giant dragons circling in the boundless sky, the lively red-haired girl with her bright smile, speaking of her longing for the unknown world, the green-robed guy fiddling with strange little gadgets with great enthusiasm, the blonde mage quietly closing his eyes as Lin Wei read fragments of history from the ancient Chronicles of Time… No suffocating undercurrents or heavy pressures, only freedom, clarity, and openness—this was the path he had finally found, the one he yearned for.

Feeling Duan Yu’s steady breath by his ear, the long-accumulated, old shadows in Lin Wei’s heart finally began to dissipate. He felt like a small boat tossed about in a storm for years, lost and on the verge of falling apart, finally finding a calm harbor and a distant, shining lighthouse.

The flustered mage, finally realizing what he should do, opened his arms and gently hugged Lin Wei, who was “feeling a bit overwhelmed.”

Warm, somewhat slender, and real—his heartbeat was clear and palpable, a stark contrast to the white light orb Duan Yu usually perceived.

“Duan Yu… let’s set off tomorrow, to the Floating Sky Capital.”

“—Alright.”

At that moment, another guest emerged from a room and passed by, clearly witnessing the scene at the door.

The guest pretended not to notice as he walked past, but as he descended the stairs, he shook his gray-haired head and sighed, “Young people in the Imperial Capital these days… tsk tsk tsk.”