"General Marcia and I will try our best to make the arrangements for you, and we will get as much help
as we can. We will also try our best to rally all the clans and other forces to support us." Lance paused
for a second, as a stray thought entered his mind, and he asked, "But how do we arrange Basil's
residence? It needs to be somewhere safe..." Since Rocky's identity could not be exposed yet, his
whereabouts needed to be kept secret, especially the place where he would live.
"That won't be necessary," Marcia interrupted as another idea popped up in her mind.
"I beg your pardon?" Lance exchanged glances with his daughter, and then both of them looked at
Marcia, confused.
"From now on, he is no longer Prince Basil. So, we won't restrict him. He can go anywhere he wants
to," Marcia declared, looking at Rocky. Her words were vague though, so it only confused the others
more.
"General Marcia, what do you mean? I can't quite catch what you are saying," Isis asked, hoping that
Marcia would explain her words.
"Here is the plan. From today onward, we cannot have any contact with him, and that will last for at
least a few months. He needs to be all by himself. I believe Alston will pay more attention to General
Lance and me when he is in charge instead of the emperor. It's highly likely that he will send people to
monitor our actions. If we come into contact with Basil, we will surely expose his identity. And that is
why Basil needs to go around alone temporarily. He can do whatever he likes, or he can find himself a
turtle shell to hide in. Anyway, as long as his identity is not exposed, everything will be fine," Marcia
further explained. All her plans were made for the sake of his safety. It might be torture for Rocky, who
was eager for revenge, but she believed that he would understand its necessity. He had to be patient
and wait for the best timing.
"You mean I have to act like a turtle retracting its head into its shell?" Rocky asked with a bit of disdain.
He knew that Marcia meant well, and it was actually a good idea. But that didn't mean that he liked it.
"It can be a good time for you. You can take this opportunity to improve your strength. With the way you
are now, you are not yet capable of bringing down Alston. Even if you can handle him, you can't deal
with all the powerful masters and the strongest warriors of the royal family. You have to at least reach
the Divine Stage if you want to defeat Alston." Marcia was looking at the bigger picture. It may not be
easy, but she believed that her plan would work out well.
"Well, it sounds like a good idea. It is not easy to do, but I suppose you're right. I, do, need some time
alone." Rocky nodded approvingly. He shared Marcia's thoughts about their situation, so he was willing
to cooperate. Initially, he had planned to cultivate in seclusion once he was back, and he didn't expect
to contact anyone. He would refine the pill that the girl from the spiritual race gave him, which would
improve his strength greatly. Rocky also agreed with Marcia that Alston was not the biggest threat to
him. The masters that protected Alston were the real enemies that he needed to prepare for.
"That's it. Let's move. Isis, you have to wait for a few more months to be with him again. Can you do
that?" Marcia asked, looking at Isis empathically. After all, the couple had just reconciled after being
separated from so long, and under such excruciating circumstances. It was cruel to separate them so
soon.
"Please don't say that, General Marcia. This is for his own good. I'm more than happy now that I know
that he is alive. Besides, it will only be for a few more months. I can wait. Please don't worry about me,"
Isis replied sincerely with a heartfelt smile. She then snuggled up in Rocky's arms again.
"Lucilla, can you stay with Isis from now on? Please take good care of her for me," Rocky requested.
He trusted her more than the others right now, so she was the only one he could entrust with Isis. She
was powerful enough to deal with every possible situation.
"I will," Lucilla replied without any hesitation, nodding slightly.
They spent some time finalizing the plan after that, and when everything was finished, they had to say
goodbye to each other reluctantly.
"Basil, come with me first. General Lance, you may go with the others after we are gone," Marcia
instructed before she disappeared from the room in the blink of an eye.
After glancing at Isis and Lucilla, Rocky nodded at Lance and disappeared like Marcia.
A moment later, the two of them reappeared in an isolated alley about a dozen meters away from the
inn where they had just stayed.
"Here, take this. This is from His Majesty. This jade token is handed down from each emperor to his
successor. It's supposed to be passed down when you have become an emperor, so I don't understand
why His Majesty asked me to give this to you now. He must have his own intentions. Please keep it
safe, and maybe, someday, it can save your life." With that said, Marcia took out the jade token that the
emperor had given her and handed it to Rocky.
He received it and quickly thrust it into his pocket without paying particular attention. To anyone
watching, it appeared like Marcia had given him nothing important.
"Here, we're going to exchange news through this carrier beast in the future." This time, Marcia opened
the Magic Spiritual Space and summoned a small beast, which was a miniature dragon with wings.
Rocky then opened his Magic Spiritual Space and put the carrier beast inside.
"In the next days, all you need to do is take good care of yourself. We'll take care of all the other things.
Just be patient and keep your cool. General Lance and I will do our best," Marcia advised Rocky. She
hoped that things would go as smoothly as they expected.
"Thank you for everything, Marcia. I owe you big time, not just for this, but for all the countless times
that you had my back. If it weren't for you, I would have been devoured by the evil power of the Holy
Dragon Bead. I regret that I have returned good for evil, as I had thought that you were deliberately
against me. I'm sorry about that. It was not until you sent Sabina to me that I realized that you have
always been acting for my sake. I should have expressed my gratitude a long time ago," Rocky said
earnestly, staring intensely into Marcia's eyes. He felt a little guilty. After all, he had misunderstood her
before.
"Let bygones be bygones. Don't waste your time on that nonsense anymore. To be honest, I felt a little
regretful when I heard that you were dead. I thought that I shouldn't have sent you to the Gehenna
Border. I could have kept you by my side and patiently taught you how to control the evil power of the
Holy Dragon Bead. But I still think that it was a good idea to send you to the Gehenna Border. If not,
you wouldn't have grown strong so fast. Look how Alyssa and Woods treat you. I believe I was right. It
may not be a bad thing for the future of the Holy Dragon Empire." Marcia didn't mind Rocky's attitude
from before, and she had always had a broader perspective than most people.
"Anyway, thank you. But I want to know why you are willing to help me. Is it just because I saved your
life before? Or is it because I'm a prince? Do you have some other reason that I don't know about?"
Rocky also felt that Marcia had done more than enough for him. He wanted her to tell him the truth.
"If you asked me this question before, I wouldn't have been able to answer you. But from the moment I
saw you, I felt like we were destined to be together. And I had to help you with all my strength. It was
only after you had died when I realized that maybe you were the one I was looking for," Marcia
answered with a strange look in her eyes.
"I'm the one you're looking for? Somehow, that sounds familiar!" Rocky said in a daze.
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