Rivers of the Night
Chapter 443 - 443: The Children

Theron moved like the wind, his gaze traveling to the Alpha from time to time.

For some reason, he really wanted to run on his own legs right now, but it was quickly becoming difficult to keep up with this one.

The problem was that the Alpha was growing stronger. A lot stronger.

As it got used to its new cultivation, its ability to control its Blood Mana was increasing, so its pace was also increasing by the same measure.

Theron took a breath and exhaled.

What was he doing? Wasting time because he wanted to work out some of whatever was on his chest right now? He didn't have the luxury.

With a leap, he landed on the Alpha's back and it shot off even faster than before. They were nothing more than a blur of red, zipping through the world, and in not much more than a few minutes, the Imperial Nightingale Capital was on the horizon.

If it were up to Theron, he would go to the Black Clan. But as strong as he felt right now, that would be nothing short of foolish. Setting aside their sheer numbers, he still wasn't 100% certain if his feeling on Divine Realm experts was true or not.

Was it really a realm that made everything you had accomplished before worthless? He wasn't sure about that.

…

The duo was in the Imperial Academy Library in the blink of an eye. Not a single soul had been able to stop them, and technically Theron still had proper access to the Imperial Academy as well.

He found the sections on Spells he wanted, but the selection wasn't actually that great. There was a reason why he had to buy spells or be gifted them in most respects.

After his and Malaya's wedding, he had actually been gifted a ton. The problem was that they were mostly designed for his level at the time and certainly didn't have the kind that he was looking for now.

Not finding exactly what he wanted, he left and went off to a familiar pavilion.

This was the real location you got your hands on Spells. The difference was that this time… he had no plans on exchanging or paying for it.

Not long after Theron left, there was a rush and Dean Pennel appeared where he had just been. She seemed to have aged considerably in the last few months.

The moment she had heard reports of Theron being here, she rushed here immediately. But… something told her that the boy was far beyond her now.

'And so quickly at that…' she thought silently to herself.

Her son… her daughter-in-law… those two had given up their own happiness for the sake of the Empire, each in their own way. Both refused to have children, but one spent decades away, fighting endlessly on the front lines against demon hordes, while the latter dedicated her life to children.

The irony was that they both ended up in a very similar spot… both booted from their spots and forced into retirement, waiting for the guillotine that hung above their heads to fall.

Then there was her, the Matriarch of it all, not able to do much about it at all.

The war between the Thistles and the Nightingales had only been exacerbated by the conflict Theron sparked. When the battle at the Daggers of the Night erupted, General Pennel had been ordered to get involved. But, infuriated from his dismissal after the Sangun Empire debacle, he refused.

Now, the man was dungeoned and his execution date was set.

Teacher Fern had been kneeling outside of the palace gates for the last several days, weeping and imploring. But none had come to do anything.

The Empire wasn't even aware that their Ancestor was now dead. He rarely appeared anyway, and he was too powerful to leave a Soul Lamp behind. There was no treasure in the Nightingale Empire strong enough to hold a sliver of his soul.

Instead, everything was being headed by the Emperor as usual, and no one was any wiser.

Later today, the execution would take place.

When Dean Pennel got word that Theron was here, it was like she had caught a life vest on a sinking ship. But she still wasn't fast enough to catch him.

She wanted to beg and plead. She had already watched her husband die—she couldn't watch her son and daughter-in-law go next… and that was almost certainly what would happen.

A crack appeared in her heart. She wondered if it was worth it. How could she rely on a little boy to help?

Wasn't this the entire reason General Pennel and Teacher Fern had gone so far? To protect the youth?

The aching pain in her heart increased.

But had they done that?

From the start, when they saw Theron, they realized just how valuable he might be in destroying the rot piling onto this Empire. Had they ever viewed him as a child?

Dean Pennel finally looked at the section of the library Theron had been standing in. Seeing the piles of Water Mancy spells, her eyes flashed.

She knew where Theron had likely gone.

BOOM!

The earth shook and her pupils contracted into pinholes.

Yes, he was there. He had to be there.

Dean Pennel rushed out with all her might. She had no idea how long it would manage to keep Theron's attention.

…

The earth shook around Theron, the formations that protected the Imperial Capital's Nightingale Pavilion were crushed beneath the Alpha's might.

Theron casually strolled in, hundreds of powerful warriors converging onto him. However, his thoughts were quite simple.

'If not here, then I'll have to try out the Obsidian Eclipse Sect. There are good odds that a Sect will have what the other locations do not.'

The Alpha flashed forward, and quite quickly, they were on the highest floors. Theron found a sea of materials for countless Mancy Paths.

'This really is the perfect place.' He nodded to himself.