Chapter 1643: Home Invasion

Outside the formal dining room, Zhao Li Xin stepped onto the quiet balcony as he answered the buzzing phone.

"Wife," his voice came easily and softly.

"Li Xin, who’s the woman standing near you?" Lory’s voice came without warning.

"Hm?" Zhao Li Xin blinked in surprise. Instinctively, he glanced to his left and right. "Woman?" he repeated, utterly confused.

"Yes, the one who’s been eyeing you," Lory insisted with absolute certainty, as though she were standing right beside him. "Don’t lie to me, I can feel it."

An amused smile curved his lips. "What woman? We’re only having breakfast with President Zhang and his family."

"So there’s a woman there," she pressed.

Zhao Li Xin wasn’t the least bit annoyed. If anything, he found her reaction unbearably adorable.

"Only President Zhang’s wife..." he answered unhurriedly. "And his daughter."

"A daughter?" Lory gasped. "How old is she? Wait... President Zhang’s daughter... wait!" Before he could say another word, she suddenly went silent. A rapid series of taps echoed faintly through the phone as she was searching the internet.

A moment later, she let out an indignant cry. "Zhang Fei Fei! Twenty-four years old! Smart, rich, and she made it into the Top Fifty Most Beautiful Women in the World last year!"

Zhao Li Xin chuckled softly. "Aren’t you better?" he teased. "I heard that before you disappeared, you were always ranked among the Top Five Most Beautiful Women in the World."

"...huh?" Lory had completely forgotten about that.

Leaning against the balcony railing, Zhao Li Xin let his gaze drift across the tranquil morning landscape. Golden sunlight bathed the palace gardens, yet it was the lively voice on the other end of the call that held his attention.

The smile lingering on his lips only deepened.

Her relentless questioning should have been exhausting, even unreasonable. Instead, he found every word endearing.

Having grown up within the imperial harem, Zhao Li Xin had witnessed countless women wage silent wars for a single man’s affection. Those years had taught him a truth that few outsiders ever understood.

As long as a woman still argued, still complained, still grew jealous over the smallest things, it meant her heart remained deeply invested. It was only when she fell silent, when she no longer questioned, no longer cared, no longer became angry, that love had truly reached its end.

That was why he had never found Lory’s little tantrums troublesome. To him, every pout, every jealous glance, and every unreasonable complaint was simply another reminder that her heart still belonged to him.

"Alright, don’t be angry." Zhao Li Xin’s voice was gentle, coaxing. "I don’t even remember what that woman looked like. You know... to me, there has only ever been you. In the past, in the present... and in the future."

The irritation in Lory’s voice melted away almost instantly.

"...I know." She let out a small, embarrassed sigh. "Sorry... I don’t know why I’ve been so emotional lately." Her voice grew quieter.

"The other day, I was watching a cooking show on TV," she admitted dryly. "I cried when the chef killed a fish... but after he finished cooking it, it looked so delicious that I got hungry and asked Fred to have the chef make the same dish for me."

She buried her face in her hand and sighed. "I really can’t control my emotions these days, Li Xin."

"How was the fish?" Zhao Li Xin asked, a soft chuckle escaping his lips.

"It was delicious," she replied at once, her voice brightening with unmistakable enthusiasm.

His laughter grew a little warmer. "See? Everything turned out just fine," he said tenderly. "You don’t have to hold anything back. No one will blame you... especially not me."

His voice was filled with quiet affection as he continued, "Just be yourself. Cry if you feel like crying. Laugh whenever you want to laugh. Do whatever makes your heart feel lighter."

He paused before adding with a smile she could almost hear through the phone, "You know that, don’t you?"

"I know," Lory replied softly.

He could hear the smile returning to her voice, and it made the corners of his own lips lift a little higher.

"So... when are you coming home?" she asked.

"The day after tomorrow, at the earliest," Zhao Li Xin replied.

"Oh..." The single syllable carried unmistakable disappointment.

"Don’t be sad," he coaxed gently. "I’ll come back as soon as I can. Is there anything you want me to bring you?"

"...No." She paused before adding in a solemn tone, "Just stay away from other women."

"Alright."

"Don’t you ever talk to them."

"Alright."

"And don’t smile at them," Lory continued, sounding utterly serious. "You’re already handsome enough with that cold face. If you smile... it’ll be overkill."

Zhao Li Xin fell silent.

A moment later, a helpless laugh escaped his lips. In the end, he surrendered without the slightest resistance.

"...Alright."

A satisfied hum drifted through the phone before Lory spoke again, her voice sweet and gentle. "I love you, Zhao Li Xin."

The warmth in his eyes deepened, and a tender smile blossomed across his face. "I love you more, Lorient."

After a few more whispered words, Lory reluctantly ended the call.

The room fell quiet once more.

She let out a soft sigh as her hand instinctively drifted to her still-flat stomach. Her fingertips gently caressed it, a faint pout lingering on her lips as longing quietly settled in her heart.

She missed him already.

Lory hung up the phone and released a quiet sigh that lingered in the stillness of the room. Her hand drifted instinctively to her still flat stomach, her fingertips gently caressing it as a faint pout tugged at her lips.

Lory ended the call and released a quiet sigh that lingered in the stillness of the room. Her hand drifted instinctively to her still-flat stomach, her fingertips gently caressing it as a faint pout tugged at her lips.

"There are just the three of us here," she murmured softly.

Her gaze wandered across the spacious bedroom. Without Zhao Li Xin’s presence, the room felt far larger than usual, its silence wrapping around her like an invisible blanket. For a brief moment, loneliness crept into her heart.

Then she gently patted her stomach and forced a small smile.

"Let’s do something productive."

Sliding off the bed, she made her way toward the study. The soft rhythm of her footsteps echoed faintly through the quiet residence. Pushing open the glass door, she stepped inside and settled into the chair before the computer.

With a few clicks, the monitor flickered to life, bathing her delicate features in a cool, pale glow. She began scrolling through the latest reports, intending only to pass the time.

Before long, she realized every major news outlet was dominated by the same headline.

The Bael attack.

Images and videos revealed vast stretches of farmland transformed into lifeless wastelands. Once-lush crops had withered into blackened husks, forests stood dying beneath a sinister crimson blight, and fertile fields that had nourished generations were now nothing more than barren earth.

Experts warned that Bael’s toxic blood had seeped deep into the soil, poisoning the land itself. If left untreated, entire regions could remain uninhabitable for years, perhaps even decades. The environmental damage alone was enough to cripple countless nations.

Elsewhere, Gifted peoples who had lost control of their powers continued to rampage through cities and towns. Governments swiftly branded them as terrorists, using the designation to justify large-scale military intervention. Reports of fierce clashes, collapsing buildings, and mounting casualties surfaced almost every hour.

Yet despite the bloodshed, public attention remained deeply divided. Many feared that the poisoned land posed an even greater threat than the rampaging Gifted. Wars could eventually end, and cities could be rebuilt, but poisoned soil was another matter entirely.

If the blight continued to spread, harvests would fail, food shortages would become inevitable, and famine, economic collapse, and mass displacement could haunt the world long after the fighting had ceased.

Every new article painted an even grimmer picture than the last.

With each passing day, the situation spiraled further into chaos. Hope seemed to fade with every headline, replaced by fear, uncertainty, and despair.

It felt as though humanity had once again been pushed to the precipice of catastrophe.

Another end of the world.

Lory slowly leaned back in her chair, her gaze drifting toward the pristine white ceiling. A deep weariness settled over her heart as the weight of the reports pressed down upon her. She knew this was only the beginning. The situation would only grow worse from here.

Almost unconsciously, both of her hands came to rest over her stomach, gently cradling the tiny life growing within her. She had waited so long for this child, a blessing she had once believed might never come.

She was grateful beyond words, yet fate had chosen the cruelest possible moment to place that precious gift in her hands.

If the world truly stood on the brink of another catastrophe...

What kind of future awaited her child? The thought tightened her chest.

Lowering her gaze, she released a long, quiet sigh that dissolved into the silence of the empty study. After sitting motionless for a while, resolve gradually replaced the uncertainty in her eyes.

She reached for her phone and dialed a familiar number.

After a few rings, Jay answered.

"’Sup, Lory?" Jay’s familiar, playful voice came through the speaker. A heartbeat later, however, it turned noticeably concerned. "Are you okay? Are the babies alright?"

Lory chuckled softly, "I’m fine. Luc has practically moved his entire study into my bedroom. I had to kick him out just to get a little privacy."

"You kicked the King of Harland out?" Jay gasped dramatically. "The audacity." Lory couldn’t help but laugh.

After the brief moment of lightheartedness faded, her expression turned serious. "How’s the situation? How many ceremonial sites have you managed to destroy?"

The line fell silent. She could hear the rapid clatter of a keyboard before Jay finally spoke again. "Counting the ones Fargo and Zhao Li Xin destroyed, we’ve taken out about a dozen."

"That many?" Lory’s smile disappeared, her voice growing solemn.

"Yeah." Jay let out a weary sigh. "And now they’ve started relocating the remaining sites to places that are far more difficult to reach. Beneath Elysium."

Lory’s brows knitted together. "Then why didn’t they hide them there from the first place?" she asked, unable to conceal her confusion.

"They didn’t want to take the risk," Jay replied. "Transporting the victims into Elysium meant moving them through populated areas. No matter how carefully they planned it, there was always a chance someone would be caught on a security camera or recognized by a passerby. One mistake was all it would take to expose the entire operation."

"...And now?" Lory asked.

Jay let out a dry laugh. "Have you seen today’s news? The whole world is in chaos. Cities are under attack, governments are stretched to their limits, and millions of people are evacuating. In the middle of all that, a few hundred missing people won’t attract nearly as much attention as they normally would."

Lory nodded in understanding. "That makes sense."

She was quiet for a moment before another thought crossed her mind. "By the way, where’s Cliff?"

"Following an important lead," Jay replied.

Lory’s expression immediately turned serious. "What lead?"

"Is abouthe the new version of the MADD device," Jay’s fingers continued tapping across the keyboard as he spoke.

"You know we’ve been trying to understand how the upgraded version works. The problem is that every implanted subject dies before we can examine the device. It’s designed with a built-in fail-safe. The moment its owner is captured, or the device detects an attempt to remove or tamper with it, it destroys itself—taking all of its data with it."

Lory frowned. "So Cliff found a way around that?"

"Not exactly," Jay said. "He found someone connected to the people who designed the upgraded MADD. If we’re lucky, that person can tell us how it works without us having to recover an intact device. It’s the first solid lead we’ve had in months, so Cliff insisted on handling it himself."

Lory let out a quiet sigh. "Tell him to be careful."

Her voice softened with sincere concern. "My children are still going to need Uncle Cliff around to keep them from trouble."

Jay burst into laughter. "Hey, you’re the one who got us into trouble." His laughter gradually subsided before he added teasingly, "Oh, by the way, I heard Fred’s gone into full nanny mode. He must be driving you crazy by now."

Lory let out an exaggerated sigh. "He’s worse than a strict mother-in-law."

Jay laughed so hard he nearly choked. "I can imagine that..." he managed between laughs, "I feel sorry for you, sis."

"You should," she replied pitifully. "Which is why you should buy me a cake to cheer me up."

"I don’t know, Princess." Jay clicked his tongue. "Security around you is ridiculously tight."

"Oh, come on!" Lory protested. "You’re telling me you can infiltrate Luxembourg’s headquarters, but you can’t get past the guards outside my room just to smuggle in a cake?"

Jay snorted, "This is Fred we’re talking about. The man can probably smell guilt from a mile away. What if he notices the cake box, the wrapping, or even the crumbs? You remember how many times he’s caught us before, right?"

Lory clicked her tongue in reluctant defeat, "...You’re right."

Resting her chin on one hand, she fell into thought.

A few moments later, a mischievous glint flashed across her eyes, and the corners of her lips slowly curved into a sly smile. "Fine. Just get the cake to me, I’ll take care of the rest."

Jay let out an amused chuckle.

"Deal. But if Fredhardt finds out, you’re taking all the blame. I’m not dying over a slice of cake."

Lory rolled her eyes. "Such a brother you are, whatever. Over and out."

The call ended, leaving only the faint smile lingering on both of their faces.

It was remarkable.

Despite the years she had been gone, despite everyone believing she was dead, nothing between them had truly changed. Their friendship remained as effortless as ever, as though time itself had failed to carve a distance between them. There was no awkwardness, no hesitation, no lingering gap left by her long absence.

Perhaps, of all the miracles she had experienced, this was the greatest of them all.

A small smile had barely formed on Lory’s lips when all of a sudden—

BOOM!

A deafening explosion tore through the palace, violently shaking the walls beneath her feet. The windows rattled, and the floor trembled with the force of the blast.