It's so hard being a hero!

These words made Vic laugh immediately, and he patted Leo's shoulder hard.

"Haha, although we didn't get along back in the academy, and Su Lan and I even beat you up, that's how we became friends. You're just a guy with a strong sense of superiority, but you're not a bad person at heart, unlike Milo, who's a born rebel."

Leo's face immediately darkened, and he muttered a disgruntled remark.

Are you praising me or insulting me?

Vic waved his hand.

"You all have them, right? Remember, be a good emperor and don't let us down. If you don't do a good job in the future, don't blame your brother-in-law for pulling you down from the throne."

These words made Leo smile, but his smile immediately froze.

"Huh? What do you mean by that? Something doesn't sound right to me."

Vic sighed.

"It's been decades. I'm over fifty now. I've been working for your Delos Empire since I was a teenager, just like Su Lan's family. I think I should take a break. I'm planning to take your sister to travel the world."

These words stunned Leo for a moment.

He naturally knew what those words meant; they were an attempt to use the opportunity to relinquish his imperial post and flee.

Frey was also somewhat surprised.

"Grandmaster of the Royal Knights, you don't want to keep your job?"

“Vic, I need you, the Empire needs you. Stay and help me. At least, wait until I fulfill my father’s wish to unify the Starfall Continent before we talk about this matter.” Leo naturally didn’t want to let Vic leave.

Vic rolled his eyes.

"Please, my brother-in-law, when will you finally fulfill this old man's dream? I can't wait any longer. Don't worry, if the empire needs me for anything important, I will still step in. I just don't want to serve in the court anymore."

This sentence gave Leo a sigh of relief.

"If that's the case, then I won't force you to stay. So, Frey, what about you?"

Leo quickly turned his gaze to Frey.

Frey shook her head without hesitation.

“I’m even less interested. Ever since my deadbeat passed away, I’ve had no interest in these things. But don’t worry, I’ll still stay in the Delos Empire.”

Leo was at a loss for words, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

"It feels like you two came here to help me as if you were just completing a task."

Vic chuckled.

"more or less."

"However, Leo, spend more time with the old man. He probably doesn't have many days left to live. I haven't seen him happy since Su Lan died. He's like he's lost his soul."

As he was talking, Vic suddenly changed the subject and brought up a very heavy topic.

Now that the old emperor has lost the potions from the Temple of Desire to prolong his life, his time is indeed drawing near.

The group fell silent.

But after a moment of silence, Leo gave a wry smile.

"You all know that my father used to treat Su Lan as a confidant, even as a real son. He even wanted to marry my sister to him. Some things are lost and I can't replace them."

Upon hearing this, Vic, who was standing next to him, suddenly burst into laughter.

"Hahaha, I can't help but laugh when I think about this. When Su Lan found out that the old emperor was going to marry that crazy woman Sophia to him, he was like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. He was so scared that he wanted to run away. His reaction was really funny."

Frey, standing to the side, immediately looked puzzled.

"What? There's such a thing? I've never heard of it before."

Vic and Leo exchanged a knowing glance, then burst into laughter at the same time.

"You don't understand, do you? There are some things men can't tell women. But Sophia didn't tell you, did she? I remember she was quite speechless at the time and gave the old emperor a good scolding."

Frey's face immediately darkened, thinking to herself: So he didn't know I was the only one who was saved.

She suddenly became very curious about how many things Su Lan hadn't told her.

Soon, everyone went home.

When Vic got home, it was already dusk.

As soon as he entered, a young and beautiful noblewoman came out to greet him.

This woman is Sophia's younger sister, the third princess of the Delos Empire, and now the Queen Consort of the Sun King.

That's right. Don't let Vic's usual unserious demeanor fool you. He is a proper prince, with the title of Sun King. Although it's just an honorary title, like Su Lan's hereditary Grand Duke, he doesn't have a fiefdom, but the title is real.

"Honey, is it over?"

Ashlia quickly stepped forward and looked Vic up and down. Seeing that he had no injuries, she breathed a sigh of relief.

Vic chuckled, reached out and picked up his wife, spun her around, and then put her down.

"It's over. With your husband here, what could possibly go wrong?"

Ashley rolled her eyes at him.

"Let's get down to business. How's my second brother?"

Vic's smile faded slightly. He pulled Ashley into the house, sat down on the sofa in the living room, and then briefly recounted what had happened.

After listening, Ashlia remained silent for a long while, and finally let out a long sigh.

"How could my second brother have come to this? Although I always thought he was impatient and stubborn, I never imagined he would collude with a cult."

Vic shook his head.

“Those people from the Temple of Desire are masters at exploiting loopholes. Your second brother harbored resentment, and they seized upon that. However, the matter is already settled. How to deal with it depends on Leo and your father’s decision.”

"Then, what about Father? How much longer can his body hold on?"

Vic immediately reached out and took her hand, patting it gently.

"The priests of the Vatican are doing everything they can to treat him, but he's old, and the drug from the Temple of Desire damaged him too badly, I'm afraid..."

He didn't finish his sentence, but Ashley understood.

She didn't cry, but lowered her head and remained silent for a long time before finally saying something sadly.

"I, I'll go to the palace to keep him company later."

Vic reached out and pulled her into his arms, without saying another word.

Soon after, Asheria changed into a palace dress and rode in a carriage into the palace.

As for the old emperor, he lay in his palace, looking much older, but his mental state was still relatively good.

He saw his daughter come in, smiled slightly, and beckoned her over.

"Father."

Ashlia walked to his side, took his wrinkled hands in hers, and held back her tears.

How are you?

The old emperor smiled.

"It's alright. Not having medication to sustain life is actually more reassuring."

Ashleya didn't know how to comfort her elderly father.

The old emperor looked out the window and suddenly said something.

"You are probably the luckiest of all my daughters. If it weren't for him yesterday, Leo might not have been able to hold on. I heard he was thinking of running away?"

Ashlia gave a wry smile.

“He had wanted to run away for a long time, but I kept persuading him, saying that he was getting old and the royal family needed someone to keep things in order, so he didn’t abandon the business.”

The old emperor laughed, then fell silent, as if he had remembered something.

"In my life, I've made many mistakes, but I've also done some right things. I've always thought that once I've unified the continent, I'd go to his grave and tell him that I've succeeded. What a pity..."

He didn't finish speaking; he just shook his head and didn't continue.

As Ashlia listened, her eyes finally welled up with tears.

Meanwhile, at Tianxing Academy, Sophia was sitting alone in her dormitory, lost in thought.

Frey just sent her a message with only four words: It's over.

Then he added: "The old man won't live for another month."

Sophia replied with an "Mmm" and then said nothing more.

She turned off the communication crystal disk and tossed and turned in bed all night.

She turned over and buried her face in the pillow.

"Old man, you left so decisively, leaving Leo with a mess. You're something else."

Evelyn, in the next bed, turned over and asked a question in a daze.

Who are you talking to?

"Nobody's talking to themselves. You go to sleep."

Evelyn said "Oh," then turned over and went back to sleep.

Sophia stared at the ceiling for a while before slowly closing her eyes.

Sophia secretly sent Frey another message, roughly meaning that she should find some time to pick her up and take her to the capital.

She wanted to see the old emperor off on his final journey.

Frey agreed.

Chapter 108 A Last Glimmer of Light

News of everything that happened in the empire quickly reached Tianxing Academy.

Students from families with even a slight advantage at the school are all talking about this.

Sophia pretended not to hear and walked right past them into the medicine lab.