Chapter 540: Chapter 53: Mountain Ridge
After Fuen’s warm hospitality, Bologue watched as Vasilina dragged Palmer away like a trophy, to the end of the corridor, disappearing from sight.
"Palmer’s in trouble now," Fuen came over and said with a grin, "As soon as this guy left, it was like a wild dog throwing off its collar, returning to the freedom of the wild."
Bologue followed the traces in his memory and said, "I remember this is the first time they’ve met since the engagement?"
Palmer and Vasilina’s emotional entanglement is far more complicated than Palmer described.
"Yeah, Palmer left his Vasilina hanging in the Wind Source Highlands for so long, Vasilina probably wants to tear him apart."
Even though the one deeply in trouble was his own son, Fuen couldn’t help but laugh.
Bologue couldn’t help but wonder if Palmer was really Fuen’s biological child, but then, thinking of Fuen’s darn personality, perhaps when Palmer was born, Fuen might not have felt much joy of having a son, more like having a new toy.
Bologue asked again, "Palmer seems very afraid of Vasilina, why is he scared? Isn’t Palmer supposed to like Vasilina a lot?"
"Hmm... maybe it’s nervousness, being at a loss."
Surprisingly, this time Fuen actually thought carefully for a moment and gave a somewhat reasonable response.
"He might not be used to it yet."
"Used to having a fiancée?"
"Sort of, think about it, before leaving, she was just your girlfriend, but after only a few days of work, she suddenly became your fiancée."
Fuen spoke of his own past, "When I went through this, I was also in a panic, both joyful and fearful, my life was about to start a new Chapter, but this Chapter was full of the unknown."
"In the past, I only needed to take care of myself, but now I am no longer alone, I have attachments, no longer invincible."
Bologue shook his head, "I don’t understand."
War, slaughter, death... Bologue has experienced many terrifying events that a normal person may never encounter in their lifetime; for Bologue, all this has long been taken for granted, but as a price, he has also never had the chance to experience a normal person’s life.
Growth, learning, falling in love, starting a family...
All those extremely ordinary words, for Bologue, are extremely distant and unattainable.
Fuen said meaningfully, "There will come a day when you’ll understand."
"Vasilina Philrad... Philrad, I’ve heard that surname before," Bologue said, "Is it what I think?"
"If you mean the founder secret societies of the Order Bureau, then you’re probably right," Fuen confirmed Bologue’s guess, "Compared to Philrad, I think you’re more familiar with another name..."
"Mountain Ridge."
Bologue stated, as Palmer’s fiancée, Vasilina’s background was not simple.
Just as people often use Wind Source Highlands to refer to the Clarks, Mountain Ridge represents the Philrad family, which, like the Clarks, is one of the founders of the Order Bureau.
Mountain Ridge is located deep within the Rhine Alliance, at the snowy ends of the border mountains, and the most massive and towering peak there is Mountain Ridge itself, like a giant beast crouching on the earth, its arched spine supporting the gaps between heaven and earth.
Unlike the frequently appearing Clarks in the eyes of the world, due to the perilous and unique geographical environment of Mountain Ridge, the Philrad family is truly a Hidden Clan, with few members walking in the mortal world; most of them are like ascetics, feeling the resonance with the Ether in those snow-capped mountains.
Fuen stepped out of the dining room and onto the terrace, pointing in the direction, Bologue could see the vague mountains standing at the edge of the horizon.
"Vasilina is the third daughter of the Philrad family patriarch," Fuen said, "If the weather is good and visibility is clear, you can barely see a corner of the border mountains from here."
"Vasilina was meant for Palmer, wasn’t she?"
Realizing Vasilina’s identity, Bologue felt that the engagement between Vasilina and Palmer was not as nonsensical as Palmer had described.
"Not really, our Clark family advocates free love, as for Vasilina... Palmer just happened to find someone we all like as a fiancée."
Fuen, like an old fox, spoke with slippery words.
"Hasn’t Palmer ever suspected this? The mysterious Philrad family member right by his side, growing up with him, and even becoming his fiancée..."
Bologue’s words were interrupted by Fuen, "You’re too suspicious, Bologue."
"I just care about my partner."
Bologue admitted honestly, he wasn’t lying; Palmer was already a jinx, and Bologue hoped he wouldn’t be unlucky again in such a lifelong matter.
"If I tell you there is no conspiracy at all, it’s purely their own doing, would you believe it?"
Fuen expressed enough patience towards Bologue, possibly due to Bologue being Palmer’s partner, or perhaps because Bologue’s intention was to care for Palmer.
"The Philrad family, who represent the Secret Power Faction, focus on self-enhancement and the Ascending Body School; you could say every one of them is a humanoid monster, and only such humanoid monsters can survive in the extremely harsh natural environment of Mountain Ridge."
Fuen sighed softly, "But not everyone is suited for such power, even though many deficiencies can be compensated for later, inherent deficiencies are hard to remedy."
Bologue didn’t continue, "So Vasilina didn’t grow up in Mountain Ridge, but lived in the Wind Source Highlands..."
"There were no twisted stories, and no tragic fate, Vasilina was simply of a frail constitution, not suitable for living in Mountain Ridge; even after being promoted to a Condenser, she can somewhat adapt to that harsh environment, but she was only a child then, might not survive until the implantation ritual day in that accursed place."
Fuen waved helplessly, "The Philrad family, rather than being a real Hidden Clan, are more like a primitive tribe living deep in the forest, a bunch of real savages advocating absolute force and survival of the fittest.
In their eyes, only those who survive in Mountain Ridge until the implantation ritual and become Condensers are considered real Philrad family members."
"Then Vasilina..."
"She doesn’t count as a true Philrad family member," Fuen complained, "because of the total free-range education by those savages, even though I brought Vasilina out, she still has hard-to-eradicate injuries and illnesses since childhood."
Bologue said, "Sounds like they’re tough to deal with."
"No need to worry about that; normally, an average Condenser might not even meet those savages once in their lifetime," Fuen immediately added, "Of course, if all those savages came out of the mountains, that would indeed be a big problem."
Bologue sorted through his thoughts, the six Hidden Clans shrouded in fog gradually surfaced, giving Bologue further understanding of this complex Extraordinary World.
"Savages, huh..."
Bologue whispered, in this light, at first glance, Vasilina indeed exudes a sense of wild strength, a power derived from her bloodline, even if raised in Wind Source Highlands, the Clark family’s education only served to veil that wildness slightly.
Church approached Fuen, and their eyes met for a moment, they both knew the welcoming banquet was over, and now it was time to move on to the next stage.
"Care to join us, Bologue?" Church invited Bologue.
Bologue knew what was about to happen next, but he did not immediately respond. Instead, he first instructed Aimou, "You go back first... you can play with Leica for a while."
No matter how mature Aimou seemed, it couldn’t change the essence of her being a child; she almost always enjoyed cuddling and playing with Leica.
"Oh, okay."
Aimou nodded, accepting Bologue’s arrangement as usual.
"We can go now."
Fuen gestured with a "please," and then led the way. Bologue and Church followed behind, whispering to each other.
Bologue whispered, "This is your task, is it really okay for me to be here?"
"There’s nothing wrong with it," Church also whispered in response, "I saw the curiosity in your eyes; you also want to know what happened in the past, don’t you?"
Since Church had put it that way, Bologue did not refuse and responded with a smile.
Under Fuen’s lead, they proceeded along a spiral staircase deep into the castle, where the vow binding the Night Race was sealed in that dark place.