Legacy of a Benevolent Lord
Chapter 47: Plum Riven sees a Sword Girl.

Chapter 47: Plum Riven sees a Sword Girl.

Ten-mile Pavilion.

Outside the Stoneveil Mountains was a stark contrast to its ragged environment.

Blue skies. Green hills. Water sparkling in the late sun.

The clouds floated low. The light turned peach as afternoon came.

Riven rode ahead on horseback. The air was crisp. The wind caught his sleeves. His mind wandered.

The carriage behind was large enough to sleep three comfortably. But sometimes, riding with his sword at his side brought a different kind of calm.

He looked ahead.

The sun was about to set.

They could reach the city before nightfall, but there was no hurry.

He brought the group to the Ten-mile Pavilion rest stop.

Selene came up beside him, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear as she looked at the sky.

"You’re drifting again, aren’t you?" she asked, voice light but teasing.

Riven blinked slowly, then turned to her with a smile. "Hmm? Oh. Yeah. Pretty sky."

She shook her head, amused. "You’re hopeless when you’re not playing prince."

He chuckled. "Freedom’s bad for my brain."

They let the guards settle down for the evening. The horses were fed, and Azira unpacked a pot of tea.

Riven and Selene didn’t sit still. Instead, they climbed onto Solwing, their golden-crowned immortal crane, and lifted into the air.

The wind was stronger above, crisp and fresh, carrying the scent of pine and snow from the distant mountains.

"Where to?" Riven asked, reclining back lazily as Solwing flapped upward.

"Stoneveil Mountains," Selene said, while diligently adjusting his cloak. "You said you wanted to watch how the swordsmen train."

"Did I?" he blinked lazily, lying on Selene’s lap. "That sounds like something a very responsible man would say."

"You said it yesterday. While chewing on a plum."

"Ah. That explains it. Plum Riven is very wise."

Their journey was as peaceful as it could be.

Solwing flew over mist-draped hills, through winding valleys, and between narrow cliffs, simply enjoying the calm.

They reached the outer slopes of the Stoneveil Mountains just as the light began to shift into gold.

And there, scattered across the ridges, slopes, and craggy peaks, were the swordsmen.

Some sat alone beneath crooked trees, their blades stabbed into the earth, unmoving for hours as if waiting for an answer from the earth.

Some walked barefoot across blade edges laid flat on stone, arms outstretched, balancing as if courting death just to feel the edge of a blade with their souls.

A few knelt near cliffs, striking the air over and over again, matching the rhythm of the wind, eyes closed in complete stillness.

One man stood atop a jagged spike of rock with only one foot planted, his sword raised above his head like he’d been holding it there for days.

And high up, on the tallest peak, someone was slowly slashing at falling snowflakes, trying to cut only one at a time.

Riven whistled low. "Alright, maybe I did want to see this."

Selene smiled softly beside him. "They’re trying to connect to the Sword Demon’s lingering intent. This mountain range still echoes with it."

"How long ago did he vanish again?"

"A hundred years."

Riven tilted his head. "Still haunts the place, huh. What a ghost... how horrifying!"

"Sword intent that reached the level of domain leaves a mark in Heaven and Earth... is what I read," she said. "The echoes may last another century."

"Maybe I should stab my fist into the dirt more often," he mused.

"You’d probably forget where you buried it."

"Bahahahahaha.... Good one, babe."

They circled the mountains slowly, not wanting to disturb the cultivators.

Even Solwing, the ever-intelligent bird, glided with minimal sound, his wings slicing through clouds gently.

Eventually, they began to descend, just to explore further along the mountain’s lower paths.

It was only when they passed over the Black Gorge, a long, twisted scar in the land between Southvale Domain and the outer spine of the Stoneveil range, that the mood shifted.

Selene’s jade token began to pulse.

She stiffened, lifting a token from beneath her robes. The pale jade was heating in her hand, and the steady blink of light looked almost like it was alive.

Riven leaned over to peer at it. "Your fancy trinket’s blinking. That normal?"

"No," she murmured. "My mother gave me this. It’s supposed to respond when I’m in danger... or when something that’s meant for me appears."

"Meant for you?"

"I.... don’t know," she said softly.

Riven tapped his chin. "Mysterious~ So? What do we do?"

"We follow it."

"Huh? How?"

"Well, the brightness intensifies when we are closer, I think."

He nodded. "Hmmm.... alrighty then."

They angled Solwing downward, flying lower along the jagged edge of the gorge. There was no destination in mind.

Just the signal and Selen’s instinct.

They weren’t expecting anyone, nor were they chasing a rumor.

Eventually, they found the reason for the token’s blinking.

Something black flashed across the narrow paths of the gorge, a blur in motion.

On a black horse, a young girl rode, her face hidden behind a veil. The demonic steed beneath her feet moved with the speed of wind and shadow.

Both maiden and steed streamlined with the wind.

Riven blinked. "That’s... not what I thought swordsman training looked like."

Selene narrowed her eyes. "She’s being chased."

He followed her gaze. Several riders, masked and cloaked in darkness, raced after the girl, fanning out in a coordinated pursuit.

"No way this is a coincidence," Selene muttered. Her jade throbbed faster now.

Riven glanced at her, then back at the scene. "We’re helping?"

She shook her head. "Wait," she said. "Let’s watch first."

They circled high above as the girl maneuvered the tight cliffs with frightening speed, her demon horse skimming past boulders and ledges.

She reined in suddenly.

The steed slid across the black gravel, drifting and turning 180 degrees.

The girl on top hopped off the horse mid-drift and landed with perfect precision, her sword already drawn.

Riven’s brow lifted. "Whistle~~ Didn’t expect that. She’s a good rider and the horse trusts her."

Selene clutched the jade tighter. "Something’s weird here. I don’t understand. But she feels connected."

"To you?"

"Yes....blood? Fate? I... don’t know."

Below, the fight has begun.

The girl’s sword lashed forward, quick and sharp.

Her attackers closed in, surrounding her in a six-point formation. None of them gave any orders to each other.

It was as if the six were a single person, breathing in perfect sync.

But the girl didn’t yield.