— Diane, nice to see you again.
She stepped forward and lightly struck David's chest, almost knocking him over.
— You haven't changed over time.
Diane Hyperion, third daughter of the former patriarch André and younger sister of the current patriarch, David.
— I could say the same about you, you know.
David returned the remark with a smile, tinged with a hint of annoyance on her face.
— Anyway… you called all of us here, so it must be quite important, right?
Charl approached, scratching his head.
— Huh… I would've sworn you wouldn't come today.
André addressed his son directly:
— Why wouldn't I come? I can, can't I?
Eric and Lara stood up from their seats, like everyone else. Johan and Jonas also approached.
— Lara… Eric…
— Hey, you two.
Johan asked them if they had any idea why the whole family had been summoned.
Eric didn't know, but he suspected the situation must be serious enough to bring both the main branch and the secondary branch of the family together in the same room.
— If they want to talk among adults… why summon us too?
On that point, Lara completely agreed with Jonas.
— Didn't you think this might concern us as well?
Oliver approached from behind, his face closed off and angry.
— It's possible… but to summon both the main and secondary branches, the situation must be really critical.
— Yeah… — Johan added in a tired, almost sleepy voice.
The patriarch spoke, his voice echoing throughout the entire room:
— Alright… let's begin!
Meanwhile, our protagonist and the princess were already outside the capital city.
They were crossing the slums, the blue light of the lamps illuminating their path.
— I didn't know the slums of the Eastern Empire were this large…
Noa walked, his eyes fixed ahead, but his mind was elsewhere, constantly thinking about the overlap he had seen when he looked at Atela's face.
— To be honest, if the slums are this vast, it's partly because of the Hyperion family.
Atela asked him what he meant. For her to understand, Noa would have to tell her part of his story.
— As I already told you, I'm the adopted son of the patriarch. He found me in the forest when I was three years old. Which means I'm not the legitimate heir of the Hyperion family…
He paused briefly.
The two continued walking through the narrow alleys of the slums.
Atela could feel that he was weighing every word.
— My arrival in the family caused a lot of problems… both internally and externally.
His voice grew colder.
— My presence in the family didn't please either the high-ranking members or the council of elders. To them, I was a thorn in their side… one that had to be removed at all costs.
Silence settled for a few seconds.
— To reduce tensions… the patriarch decided to temporarily place me in the secondary branch of the family.
Noa stopped, scratching his head.
— And that's how I joined the "Lost Order."
Atela looked puzzled. The "Lost Order"? She had never heard of it in any record concerning the different kingdoms, let alone the Empire.
— It's normal that you don't know about it. Anyway, I wasn't supposed to tell you.
The Lost Order is an organization run by the secondary branch of the Hyperion family. Basically… it's the one that does the dirty work for the council of elders.
A drop of sweat ran down Atela's face as she processed the information.
— That means you are…
— An assassin. Or rather… a child assassin serving the Lost Order.
This time, he turned directly toward her.
— I was trained throughout my youth to perfect assassination techniques, to develop my unique talent. Over the years, I built a reputation within the Order. That's how I was able to access hidden archives of the family.
Atela added:
— Which means you know information that even the other heirs of the family don't, is that it?
Noa didn't deny it; he confirmed in a firm tone:
— Exactly. Thanks to that, I discovered the truth about the Hyperion family.
500 years ago, four kingdoms entered an endless war over territorial disputes. These four kingdoms had overlapping borders… and after constant conflict, the territories were destroyed.
The entire area became a refuge for criminals from all kingdoms, since no nation governed it.
He continued:
— This zone became forbidden, ruled only by the law of the strongest. That's when a man decided to take control: the ancestor of the Hyperion family.
He conquered the territory by force and expanded the Eastern Empire…
But some refused to submit and took refuge in isolated territories. Today, the authority of the imperial family only controls half of the former zones. The other half remains plunged in poverty and misery.
Atela understood better why this story wasn't recorded in the registers of the Kingdom of Garion.
— But hasn't the current patriarch done anything to improve the situation?
Noa sighed as he resumed walking.
— He tried… but without success. The slum inhabitants have harbored a deep hatred toward the Hyperion family since that time.
They categorically refuse any intervention from the family. As a result, in the uncontrolled zones, the inhabitants appointed their own leaders—the strongest figures of the slums.
By the way… one of them is going to help us.
Atela thought for a moment. A question arose in her mind:
— You know these leaders… but are you sure he's really going to help us?
Noa smiled slightly.
— Yes. Don't worry. He's an old friend…
Next chapter: An icy breeze