Chapter 6
The entire place fell into dead silence. Every gaze turned to me.
My father thought I was causing trouble again. Seeing my sister fail to receive the inheritance pushed him over the edge. Fury
burst from him like a storm.
He unleashed his divine aura, and I was forced to my knees.
“Althea,” he growled, “You’ve disappointed me beyond words. I’ve let you off too many times before, but this-this time, your .sister was meant to inherit the Phoenix Court’s legacy, and you interfered again and again. Today, I’ll discipline you on behalf of
your mother.”
He raised his hand.
A heavy wave of spiritual force condensed into a slap aimed straight at my face.
I stared up at him, calm, unflinching.
From the side, Nyxar actually looked concerned.
“Althea, just apologize,” he said hurriedly. “Do you really want to be struck?”
But as the blow came close, he backed away, unwilling to be caught in it. He chose himself, as always.
What I didn’t expect was for Franz to suddenly lunge forward and shield me with his own body.
The strike landed squarely on him.
Blood spilled from his mouth, again and again, until he collapsed against me.
“Princess… go…” He gripped my arm weakly, trying to pass what little spiritual energy he had left into me.
Franz truly thought only of me.
My father, seeing a lowborn white serpent openly defy him, was now beyond rage. He raised his hand to strike again.
But this time, I bent forward, pulling Franz into my arms.
I whispered softly into his ear, “Don’t worry. I am the embodiment of divine will in the Phoenix Court.”
Before my father’s blow could touch me, a thunderclap shattered the sky.
Boom!
A bolt of lightning came crashing down. It struck him cleanly-blackening the outside, searing the inside.
But that was only the beginning.
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Chapter 6
One strike. Then another. And another. Each louder than the last, like a heavenly punishment.
It didn’t stop until my father was beaten back into his true form.
Seraphine stared at me in horror.
“Althea… what did you do to Father?”
I withdrew my healing hand from Franz and rose slowly to my feet.
+25 Bonus
“A hundred years ago, my mother gave her life for the Phoenix Court,” I said. “In gratitude, the clan’s guardian spirit granted a
blessing.
“I, Althea, Second Princess of the Phoenix Court, was given the right to name the next heir. And anyone who dares to harm me
will suffer the wrath of heaven. Those who harbor ill intent toward me will never become the successor. Not in this life, or the
next.”
Seraphine suddenly snapped.
“No! I don’t believe it! You’re lying, Althea! You haven’t made an ounce of progress in years. You think you have the right to name
the next heir?
“You must’ve done something-sabotaged me-so I couldn’t inherit! I won’t let you get away with it!”
She charged at me, her once-beautiful face contorted by rage.
I let out a quiet sigh. “You’re no exception.”
Boom!
Thunder struck again, this time aimed at her.
She was young, her divine refinement far beneath our father’s. She ran wildly under the thunder, battered and humiliated, unable
to defend herself.
Our clan, who once praised her, not a single one dared to step forward.
Nyxar edged close to me.
He looked at me with a complicated expression and said, “Althea… you’ve been hiding all of this from me. If I had known earlier, I
never would have…”
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