The Shining Star Above The Heaven-Chapter 422: Reunion With His Past Lord

Swoosh!

A figure flew as fast as possible, his surroundings blurring in his gaze. After being released by Aldrian, Adel escaped as far and as fast as he could. Right now, his only thought was to put as much distance between himself and Aldrian—nothing else crossed his mind. There was no trace of a swordmaster’s composure in him at this moment; instead, he resembled a frightened cat.

"Fuck! He’s truly a monster! I’ve only heard stories about him and the traces he left across the continent, but seeing him in action firsthand... he’s absolutely terrifying," he thought.

He already knew that Aldrian was the real deal and not just an exaggerated rumor when he first felt his sword will in Balin City after the Hydra incident a few years ago. He knew that someone like that was a swordsman with far greater attainment than himself, judging by how profound and powerful the sword will Aldrian had left behind at that time.

Even now, Aldrian’s remnant sword will still lingered there, turning the place into a sacred ground that sword cultivators from across the continent had to visit at least once to deepen their comprehension.

Whoosh!

He had no idea how far he was from Rosalind City. His face was already drenched in sweat, but he didn’t hesitate to pour all his energy into increasing his flying speed.

Luckily, he was one of the King Stage cultivators spared by Aldrian. He didn’t know if it was merely a coincidence or if Aldrian had deliberately chosen to let him live—but he didn’t care. The only thing that mattered was that he still had his life intact.

After nearly exhausting his energy, he decided to stop and look behind him. No one was following him, which filled him with relief. It seemed Aldrian had truly kept his word and allowed him and the others to leave.

This was the first time he had ever felt this way. Usually, he was the stronger one, the one who decided whether to grant mercy.

Beneath him stretched a vast expanse of dense forest, with nothing but trees visible all the way to the horizon. He sighed and decided to land to rest and replenish his energy.

He landed on a sturdy tree branch and retrieved a communication artifact from his storage ring. After taking a deep breath, he spoke into the artifact.

"This is Adel Schwertwächter. We have a situation in Rosalind City."

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Back in Rosalind City, Aldrian had already been escorted to a luxurious guest room, where a drink had been served to him. He simply took a seat, with Old Man York sitting beside him.

Aldrian had removed his mask, leaving Baron Rosalind astonished. He had heard rumors about how young the mysterious swordsman was, but seeing him in person was something else entirely. Could someone this young truly be the same figure who had shaken the entire continent multiple times? ƒreewebηoveℓ.com

Baron Rosalind couldn’t help but sigh, feeling how the heavens favored certain individuals. With the talent and strength of this young man, how could other cultivators, those who proclaimed themselves or were hailed as geniuses dare to raise their heads? They would be completely overshadowed by him. He doubted that there had ever been a figure like Aldrian in the history of the continent, at least as far as he knew.

Baron Rosalind and Elena sat across from Aldrian, but then the baron’s gaze shifted to Old Man York, who kept his head lowered. He wondered what had happened to the old man before turning his attention back to Aldrian.

"Young master, if you don’t mind me asking, who is this gentleman?" he asked. For some reason, the old man felt strangely familiar to him.

Aldrian simply smiled and glanced at Old Man York.

"Do you want to say it, or should I?" he asked.

Old Man York, feeling a nervous weight pressing on him, let out a sigh. He could no longer hold it in. Lifting his gaze, he looked directly at Baron Rosalind.

"It has been so long, my lord."

Baron Rosalind narrowed his eyes as the old man spoke. Although he felt a sense of familiarity, he couldn’t immediately place his identity. Then, at last, a memory surfaced—someone from his past with the same intonation when addressing him that way.

Back then, that person’s face had been much younger, but now, as he recalled it, he saw the resemblance in the old man before him.

"Head Cook York... is that you?" Baron Rosalind asked unconsciously, calling him by his old title. His eyes widened in shock.

Old Man York felt an overwhelming urge to cry but held himself back. His lord still remembered him, even after thousands of years. It touched him deeply.

"Yes, it’s me, my lord."

Baron Rosalind instantly stood up and walked around the table. Old Man York, already aware of what the baron intended to do, also rose to his feet. Before he could say anything more, the baron pulled him into a firm embrace.

"I’m sorry that I couldn’t truly protect you and your dignity back then. I was a terrible leader for failing to do more and allowing those bastards to trample over us," he said before finally releasing his hold.

But before he could step back, Old Man York bowed deeply at a full ninety degrees, without hesitation.

"No, my lord! You did everything you could to protect my dignity and the family’s honor at that time. In fact, I have long blamed myself for failing to watch over the food properly, allowing those who sought to harm you and the family to take advantage of it," he replied.

Baron Rosalind was deeply moved and placed a reassuring hand on the old man’s shoulder.

"Then, let’s just consider it our shared failure—that we allowed those families to harm us with their tricks."

Old Man York smiled, his eyes glistening with unshed tears, but he simply accepted Baron Rosalind’s words. He knew the baron didn’t want them to dwell on blame endlessly.

Baron Rosalind returned to his seat and began introducing Old Man York to Elena. Since earlier, she had been wondering who this old man was and why he was with Aldrian. From the time she had followed Aldrian’s group to the church territory, there had been no old man among them—yet her father clearly recognized him.

Upon hearing his identity, Elena was astonished. Without hesitation, she instantly stood up and bowed her head toward Old Man York.

"It’s a pleasure to meet you, Sir York. Father has told me about his former head cook who always amazed him with his cooking and followed him long before he was forced to leave due to the cunning schemes of hostile families," she said before straightening her posture.

As a noble young lady, she felt no shame in lowering her head to an old man who had once been the head cook of her family.

"The pleasure is mine, young miss. I have only heard of your greatness from many people. The last time I saw you, you were just a baby, and now you have grown into a fine young lady. You have truly continued Lord Raz’s legacy and elevated it even further. Seeing you up close now—there is nothing that could bring me greater happiness," Old Man York replied warmly.

Watching their interaction, Aldrian simply smiled and took a sip of his tea.

"By the way, young master, how did you meet Head Cook York? After he resigned from this family, he was never seen again, and I never knew his whereabouts," Baron Rosalind asked.

"Ah, you could say it was pure coincidence—though I believe it was fate that I met Sir York in that place," Aldrian replied before recounting the story of how he encountered Old Man York.

Baron Rosalind listened intently, and when Aldrian finished, he could only sigh in amazement.

"This is truly fate—truly fate. When you planned to visit this place, you ended up meeting someone from this family. It must be destiny," the baron said, taking a sip of his tea.

"Anyway, young master, I must apologize. You came to visit us, yet you were dragged into this civil war. As your host, I am truly ashamed that your arrival happened at such an unfortunate time."

"But if I may ask, young master—why did you insist on coming here now? You could have chosen not to visit us. I can’t imagine that our legacy artifact is important enough for you to risk making the entire Second Prince’s faction your enemy."

"Well, from your Excellency’s point of view, it may seem that your legacy artifact isn’t worth involving myself in this civil war. However, I must say that this artifact might be a crucial clue to a certain problem of mine—one I cannot explain to you. So, its value is certainly high enough for me to justify my involvement in this conflict."

"And even if I had no plans to visit you, I would still have been drawn into this civil war because of my business with the Church—" Aldrian then proceeded to tell the baron about his pursuit of Cardinal Carsius.

Of course, he didn’t reveal his true relationship with the Church to the baron. He simply told him that he had a special connection with the Church and that they had requested his help in capturing the traitor.

After hearing about Cardinal Carsius, Baron Rosalind stroked his chin in thought.

"So, the Second Prince is harboring that traitor, huh?" he muttered before looking at Aldrian. "Then, young master, if the Second Prince were to hand over that traitor to you, would you stop involving yourself in this civil war?"

Aldrian smiled at the question.

"What do you think?"