Chapter 176: Pride of Hailan

"Let me try," Constance said, taking the Gemstone from Aive’s hand. "I’m a Half-Elf, too. It should work for me, right?"

"Maybe my luck is better than hers."

Aive was rendered speechless. "This isn’t some kind of mystery box. Those people from the Hailan Empire packed it hundreds of years ago. What’s luck got to do with it..."

"That’s what they all say about the prize wheels at the circus," Constance shrugged. "You never know with this kind of thing."

"But... why won’t it fit? Don’t tell me it’s a fake?"

"Don’t talk nonsense! My teacher helped find this personally," Aiksuuri said, unable to sit still. "You’re ’slantering’ him!"

"It’s ’slandering’," Victoria said, slapping her forehead.

"Whatever, you know what I mean," the Young Black Dragon said, impatiently slapping his tail against the ground. "I’ve been learning too many languages with my teacher these days. They’re all ’jumbled’!"

Ron understood that one. The kid was deliberately using an Elf Language pronunciation, and with a heavy accent, too.

"Try flipping the stone slab over," Ron offered, lending a hand. "The two sides correspond to Magic Items from different origins, so it’s two-sided."

When Constance flipped the slab, the pink Gemstone immediately fit into place. A magnificent and opulent necklace instantly appeared in her hands.

"What a huge pink diamond!" Even the Half-Elf, despite having lived in a wealthy merchant family for decades, couldn’t help but gasp in amazement. "This is incredible!"

This pink diamond, with its pale violet hue, was certainly one of the largest ever set in a necklace. It felt heavy in Ron’s hand when he took it. And if one were to use Detection Magic, the Magic Radiance it emanated was even more intense than that of the Kite Shield.

"Stop staring at the pink diamond," Silvia said. "Look at what it’s strung with."

"Amber, Bloodstone, citrine, coral, jade, pearl, quartz..." Constance reeled off the names of each bead on the necklace as if listing her own family heirlooms. Even she had never possessed such a valuable piece of jewelry.

"This must have belonged to some noble lady from the Hailan Empire!" she exclaimed. "Look at these! There’s even lapis lazuli, a black pearl, and Yellow Jade—these are real Magic Materials! I can’t think of anyone in Rose City who would be extravagant enough to own a piece of jewelry like this!"

"That’s because it doesn’t belong to Rose City. It belongs to Hailan, a brief yet exceptionally powerful empire. And the name of this piece is the Pride of Hailan." Ron was also amazed by the necklace’s value, but what truly left him breathless was the Magic on it.

"This piece of jewelry belonged to the Hailan Empire’s one and only Eldest Princess. To ensure the safety of this battle-loving noble, the empire’s finest craftsmen created this necklace. Nearly every Gemstone on it contains a spell that the holder can cast once per day." Ron rattled off the results of the Identification Magic as if reading from a menu: "Marking Slash, Summon Mount, Secondary Healing Technique, Demonized Weapon, Poison Protection, Domain of Honesty..."

"And this largest pink diamond can cast either a Sixth-Ring Spell-Invalidation Barrier or Commanding Magic!"

"It’s like having a dozen Paladins strapped to you!" Ron licked his lips. "I bet if the craftsmen were skilled enough to infuse higher-level Magic without shattering the Gemstones, this necklace might have even had Meteor Burst in it!"

"The one and only Eldest Princess..." Those in the room with Elven blood exchanged glances. "Doesn’t that have to be Princess Oriana?"

"That woman who made a complete mess of the gladiatorial rules? Oh god, it really is her!" Aive cried out in disgust. "If that’s the case, it’s not strange at all that she’d wear a necklace like this!"

"What do you mean?" Ron asked, not understanding. "What does that have to do with gladiators?"

"That ’battle-loving’ you mentioned," Constance explained, "she’s partly to thank for the gladiatorial traditions of the western city-states."

"She was personally a huge fan of the arena format, especially beast-fighting and monster dueling, and she often entered the ring herself. I used to idolize her, but looking back now..."

Aive pursed her lips. "Maiming beasts and amputating monsters’ limbs before putting them in the arena to fight her—you call that a duel? It was just to satisfy her own sick desires!"

"I’m so happy for you that you can now see those ’duels’ for the pathetic shows they really were, Connie."

"One of that princess’s most infamous moments was when she fought a great-horned deer bare-handed. And what happened? The deer’s horns had been sawn off, and its two hind legs were broken! She beat it to death with her bare fists!"

"And even then, the deer still managed to knock her to the ground. I was there; I even bought a ticket," Yelena interjected. "Afterward, she forced everyone to applaud and cheer for her. Imperial citizens who didn’t were whipped, and slaves were killed on the spot. Over three hundred slaves were executed that day."

"I was spared that torture because I had diplomatic Exemption. What’s with that look? I hadn’t completely left the Shadowfall Netherworld back then. I was in Hailan on official business."

Silvia crossed her arms. "You didn’t even try... to rescue the slaves who were there?"

"Why would I—" Yelena started to retort, but she turned and met a pair of blood-red eyes that looked ready to burst into flames. "Alright, alright. I did try. A little."

"The Hailan Empire was at its zenith back then! And that was the Eldest Princess! I’m just an ordinary Shadow Spirit—or a Shadow Dancer, if you want to be generous. I wanted to help, but I was powerless."

"Suddenly you’re not so keen to mention your noble family bloodline?" Aive couldn’t help but tease.

"I..." Yelena gave a bitter smile. "You’re not going to make me spell out why I couldn’t, are you?"

’Some things were fine for deceiving outsiders, but if her family could truly rally support with a single call, what business would the Laine Clan even have?’

’If I had really tried to do something, it would have just made things awkward for everyone.’

Fortunately, Silvia was just expressing her displeasure and didn’t intend to truly blame the Shadow Spirit for it, so the matter was dropped. She looked at the necklace in Ron’s hands. "So, congratulations to our benefactor on acquiring another treasure?"

"After all, you need a multi-functional Magic Item like this for protection, don’t you? This will undoubtedly be a great help to you."