Chapter 3: The Sovereign's Wife Is Not to Be Humiliated!

"What?!" Two panicked shrieks tore through the living room, startling Yosef Norrell right out of the bedroom where he had been hiding. "What happened? What's going on?" Evangeline Heyland did not spare her husband so much as a glance. She grabbed Rylie Norrell by the arm. "Rylie, why didn't they approve it again? River City Bank already promised. They said as long as you had dinner with them today, the loan would be settled!" Beside her, Charlotte Norrell looked ready to jump out of her skin. "Yeah, sis! Without that $500,000 loan from the bank, our company is finished!" "What? The loan went wrong? Even with Rylie stepping in?" Yosef's face drained of color. "Then what do we do?" Evangeline's eyes flared when she saw how pathetic he looked. "What do we do? What do we do!" she snapped. "You useless waste of space. If you hadn't been blind and made the company lose that much money, would Rylie have to go out there smiling and drinking with strangers? Would Charlotte have to shoulder all this at her age?" Her voice rose until it shook. "Why is my life so miserable? My daughter married a good-for-nothing husband, and my own husband is a good-for-nothing too!" As Evangeline's complaints spiraled, Rylie suddenly pulled her feet out of the washbasin and stood. "Mom, stop." Her voice sounded tired to the bone. "I'll figure out the loan. Go to bed. I'm exhausted." After Rylie went upstairs, Evangeline shot Reginald Lyson a vicious glare. Then she swatted Yosef on the backside like he was a child and dragged him back to their room. Charlotte stayed behind long enough to glare at Reginald. "Reginald Lyson! If you were worth anything, my sister wouldn't be living like this. Just wait. I'll make her divorce you." She left him with that and drifted upstairs. Reginald quietly lifted the washbasin, cleaned up, and did not follow them. Instead, he went into the servant's room on the first floor. It had been his room back when he was a servant. After he married into the Norrell family, it stayed his room. The marriage had been fake, after all. There had been no reason to move. He lay on the bed, replaying what had happened. His expression slowly hardened into something cold and still. An hour passed. The villa fell silent as the other rooms went dark. Reginald slipped out, careful as a shadow. He eased the front door shut behind him, wearing nothing but a pair of cheap flip-flops, and left the Norrell family without a sound. He moved through the neighborhood like a ghost, never alerting the security guards. In moments, he was out the gate. Reginald took out his phone and dialed a number he had not called in three years. After a brief pause, the call connected. "Sovereign. Since you left, it has been three years and twenty days." The voice on the other end was old, yet steady and powerful. "Zayn Vincett," Reginald asked, "was Nine Heavens well?" "Reporting to the Sovereign, Nine Heavens remained as it was. However, there are several matters that still require your attention." "Speak." Reginald said the single word and flicked a lighter. He lit a cigarette he had taken from the house, one of Yosef's, and drew in a slow breath. Smoke curled from his lips. "Sovereign, during the three years you were gone, the Goshawk Royal Family attempted to purge our Nine Heavens forces within their borders. We defeated them. The Goshawk Royal Family knows its sins run deep and wishes to offer a royal princess to the Sovereign as a slave and attendant, hoping you will grant them redemption." "Also, following your instructions, the largest e-commerce company in Giant Owl Country has been acquired by Nine Heavens. Of the world's e-commerce platforms, Nine Heavens controls seventy to eighty percent." "And lastly, Europe's underground force, the Eye of Truth, wishes to define a boundary of influence with Nine Heavens. They hope to meet you in person, Divine Emperor Lord." Reginald flicked the ash away and spoke with measured clarity. "Zayn Vincett. Write this down." "The Goshawk Royal Family's princess means nothing to me. If they want me to spare them, fine. Let the Goshawk Royal Family offer up a royal head." "As for the acquisitions, continue as planned. No need to waste breath." "And that Eye of Truth…" His voice dipped, contempt sharpening every syllable. "A little organization that hasn't even existed for six hundred years. What makes them worthy of being mentioned in the same breath as Nine Heavens?" "Understood. We will follow the Sovereign's will." After the official matters ended, Reginald lit another cigarette. His gaze turned colder by the second. "Zayn Vincett. One more thing. Investigate Fire Nation, River City. Find out what happened to the Norrell family's eldest granddaughter, Rylie Norrell, tonight. I want everything. Big or small. Nothing omitted." Nine Heavens' intelligence network was something Reginald had built over centuries, a web stretched across the world. Its precision and reach were monstrous. Even the most advanced nations could not compare. Under that net, the world had nowhere to hide. If Reginald wanted the launch codes of a country's nuclear arsenal, he could have them within two hours. Finding out what happened around one woman was nothing. Less than ten minutes later, the information arrived. "Sovereign. According to our sources, the woman named Rylie Norrell attended a banquet tonight. The banquet was hosted by senior executives of River City's largest private bank, River City Bank." "Rylie Norrell's Celestial Success Group suffered losses of several hundred thousand dollars due to mistakes made by the former manager, Yosef Norrell. The company is short on cash and urgently needs a $1,000,000 loan." "The current manager, Charlotte Norrell, failed to reach an agreement with the bank. The other side set a condition. If Charlotte's sister, Rylie Norrell, attended this banquet, then negotiations could continue. However, at the banquet, River City Bank chairman's son, Benjamin Wokey, appeared to make improper demands of Rylie Norrell. She refused, and the loan was stalled again." "About half an hour ago, Benjamin Wokey called Rylie Norrell. This is the recording." Half an hour ago? That was after Rylie had gone back to her room alone. Reginald listened in silence. A soft click sounded, and then a young man's voice came through the phone. "Miss Norrell, did you get the bank's call? You want the loan? Sure. As long as you spend one night with me tomorrow, I'll have the bank transfer the money to you immediately." "And if you serve me well, maybe I'll even get them to cut you a little interest." After the filth came a woman's voice, cool as frost. Reginald recognized it instantly. It was Rylie's. "Young Master Wokey, please watch your words." "Heh. My words?" The man laughed, ugly and smug. "Who do you think you are? Some actress crawling around the Entertainment Circle, a woman the Norrell family doesn't even value. What right do you have to lecture me?" "Rylie Norrell, I'm putting it plainly. Either you come over tomorrow and keep me company, or you can forget that loan. And I'm telling you, it won't just be River City Bank. Not a single bank in all of River City will lend to your family!" Beep. The call ended. So that was it. Reginald's face stayed blank as he turned his head toward the Norrell family villa. Rylie had always kept herself clean. Even after stepping into the Entertainment Circle, she had never attended these social drinking banquets. This time, she had broken her own rules for the company. Perfect Sky Company might have been small, but it was built by her father's hands. It carried her younger sister Charlotte's sweat and pride. For her father and her sister, Rylie had lowered her head and endured. Yet those people had only pushed harder. They had used a Celestial Success Group loan as leverage to force Rylie to submit? "I want Benjamin Wokey's location. Immediately." On the other end of the line, Zayn Vincett hesitated, confused. It was only a phone call, a bank chairman's son threatening a small-time celebrity. How could it make Divine Emperor Lord this furious? He asked carefully, "Sovereign… do you know this Rylie Norrell?" "She is my wife." "…" Silence hung for a beat. Then Zayn Vincett's voice returned, low and brimming with fury. "The Sovereign's wife is not to be humiliated! Sovereign, I'll have people move at once. Red Feather is in Fire Nation as well. I'll send her to your side." The moment the call ended, Benjamin Wokey's location came through, along with a photo. The image was pulled from a hotel security camera. Benjamin Wokey had booked a room there. A woman stood beside him, her features faintly resembling Rylie. In the photo, Benjamin had an arm locked around the woman's waist, wearing a self-satisfied grin as he headed for the elevator. Reginald's eyes swept over Benjamin's face. The temperature in his gaze dropped another few degrees. He recognized him. Benjamin Wokey was the rich brat from this morning, the one who had swung a golf club at him outside Magnificent Garden. Reginald's mouth curved slightly. He started walking. The night held no light. Killing intent rose. … Midnight. Grand Fortune Hotel, rooftop. Reginald stood at the edge, one foot planted near the ledge, and unhurriedly lit a cigarette. The wind howled across the rooftop, making the ember tremble and flare. It was time. He exhaled a thin ring of smoke and stared out at River City's nightscape, speaking as if to himself. "Red Feather." The instant the name left his mouth, a woman appeared behind him without a sound. She wore tight black leather. Her skin was pale as cream, her figure sleek and lethal, her beauty cold enough to cut. In one hand she held an ancient longsword. A strip of red silk was tied around the scabbard. She dropped to one knee behind him, fist tapping her chest, eyes filled with reverence. "With my blood, I offer myself to Xuanyuan. Red Feather greets the Sovereign!" "Mm." Reginald glanced back at her in acknowledgment and continued smoking. This woman was Red Feather, Nine Heavens' number one assassin. Because she always carried a longsword bound with red silk, others in the Dark World called her the Red Silk Sword Saint. Her name carried fear. But to Reginald, the Red Silk Sword Saint was only a girl who was loyal to him to the point of madness. Within Nine Heavens, aside from Zayn Vincett, Red Feather was the one he trusted most. Because both of them had been orphans he had personally taken in. "Sovereign," Red Feather asked quietly, "I heard you took a wife again?" Before he could answer, she continued, her tone sharpening. "The Sovereign's wife is not to be humiliated. A mere spoiled young master is not worth your hand. Let Red Feather handle it for you." "This is my family matter," Reginald said. "I will do it myself." Red Feather looked at him, and something complicated flickered in her eyes. She knew the secret he carried. An undying man watched life and death pass like seasons. Reginald had always been indifferent to love. As far as she knew, the last time he married had been two hundred years ago. Yet he had married again. And from what she had learned on the way here, this time he had even become a live-in son-in-law. How could that be? What kind of woman was Rylie Norrell, to make the Sovereign willing? Red Feather bit her lower lip and made a decision in silence. "Wait here," Reginald said, flicking away the cigarette. "I'll go in and take a look myself." Then he stepped off the rooftop. He jumped.