SSS Talent: From Trash to Tyrant

Chapter 497: Chapter 497: Night Walk

Velkaris was still awake when Aubrelle and Rhosyn stepped back into the street.

The lamps cast steady light over the stone, carriages still moved now and then, and people in expensive clothes passed through the northern district without much hurry. Aubrelle walked with her cane in one hand, Pipin circling near her shoulder from time to time, her pace calm enough that it felt more like a quiet stroll than a return home.

Rhosyn matched it without saying much.

After a while, Aubrelle spoke first. ”You don’t have to keep my pace.”

Rhosyn glanced at her. ”I know. I wanted to talk to you.”

Aubrelle turned her face slightly toward her. ”About what?”

Rhosyn let a few steps pass before answering. ”You accepted all of that very quickly.”

Aubrelle was quiet for a moment.

”To be honest, I never expected something like this,” she said at last. ”I always thought the Primordials belonged more to history than to real life. Something people repeated in books, lessons, and old accounts, but never something I would actually touch.” Her hand rested a little more firmly on the cane. ”I’ve studied about your people before. The Age of Formation, the wars against the Void Creatures, the bloodline that stood above the others and brought peace when the world was breaking.”

That made Rhosyn look at her differently.

”You know more than most,” she said. ”A lot of people barely remember any of that now.”

Aubrelle’s lips curved faintly. ”I’m good at the academy.”

Then the faint smile softened.

”And if I want to stay beside Trafalgar, then I have to accept what he is and support him properly. He was the one who chose to stand beside me first.” Her voice lowered slightly, though it stayed steady. ”He never judged me. He helped me. He made me feel at ease when very few people ever have.” She turned her face forward again. ”So no, I don’t regret falling in love with him. If anything, I’m grateful he trusted me enough to tell me something that important.”

Rhosyn said nothing right away.

The answer had more weight than she expected.

When she finally spoke, her tone was quieter than before. ”You really are serious about him.”

Aubrelle gave a small nod. ”Very.”

Rhosyn looked ahead for a few steps, then said, ”I’m grateful for that.”

Aubrelle turned her face slightly toward her.

”You still don’t know every detail,” Rhosyn continued, ”but even so, hearing you say it like that... it matters.” Her voice grew quieter. ”Our bloodline was almost destroyed. We are nothing like what we used to be. Compared to the millions that belong to the other races, only a few hundred of us remain.”

Aubrelle’s hand tightened slightly around the cane.

Rhosyn did not stop there.

”And Trafalgar did not want to alarm you tonight,” she said, ”but you should understand one more thing. In the worst case, in ten years, something close to the Age of Formation could happen again.”

Aubrelle stopped in place.

Pipin reacted with her, wings shifting sharply, his pale feathers rising as if even the bird could feel the weight of the words.

For a second, the noise of Velkaris seemed farther away.

”That is...” Aubrelle drew in a breath, then let it out more slowly. ”That is far too serious to leave in the dark. Shouldn’t people know? The Eight Great Families, at the very least. If something like that is coming, they should be preparing already.”

Rhosyn’s expression hardened. ”Logically, yes. In reality, no.” She looked straight at Aubrelle now. ”If it becomes known that Trafalgar belongs to the Primordial bloodline, or that I do, people will not respond with calm planning. They’ll respond with fear. Suspicion. Greed. Every house, every faction, every bloodline that still remembers what ours once was would begin moving at once.”

Aubrelle stayed quiet, listening.

Rhosyn went on. ”And that could start a war worse than the one that just ended.”

Aubrelle lowered her eyes for a moment, then nodded once. ”Yes. I can see that.” Her voice steadied again as she spoke. ”The last war was not even the worst version of itself. House Thal’zar kept most of its strongest forces away from the heart of the territory so the family would not suffer deeper losses. In the end, the greatest fall was the patriarch’s death.”

That answer made Rhosyn glance at her with new attention.

”You understand these things more than I expected.”

Aubrelle’s lips curved faintly, though there was little warmth in it now. ”That happens when you come from a family that spent generations trying to stand close to the Eight Great Families without ever quite being one of them.”

By then, the station had come into view ahead, its lights stretching across the night like a quiet line of gold.

They reached the platform a short while later.

The station was still alive despite the hour. Servants carried luggage, guards stood near the better carriages, and the first-class wagons waited farther ahead beneath cleaner light and polished brass. Aubrelle came to a stop there with Pipin perched near her shoulder and one hand resting lightly over the cane.

Rhosyn looked at her for a moment before speaking.

”Take care of him.”

Aubrelle turned her face slightly toward her. ”I will.”

Rhosyn’s eyes stayed on her. ”I mean it. The boy still doesn’t understand everything that is going to fall on top of him.”

That drew a softer expression from Aubrelle.

”I know,” she said. ”Don’t worry. We’ll take care of him properly.”

The answer sat well enough with Rhosyn that she gave a small nod and said nothing else.

A moment later, the attendant opened the first carriage for Aubrelle. She stepped inside without hurry, the kind of wagon reserved for people with money, influence, or both. Pipin followed, and before the door closed fully, Aubrelle gave Rhosyn one last small smile.

Then the carriage door shut.

Rhosyn remained where she was for a few seconds, watching as the train swallowed the last glimpse of pale feathers and dark fabric. After that, she turned and headed back into Velkaris alone.

The city had not changed. People still crossed the streets in expensive coats, late-night voices still drifted under the lamps, and the north side still carried that polished ease it liked to pretend was permanent. Rhosyn moved through it without effort, slipping past the flow of people and letting the noise stay outside her thoughts.

By the time she reached Mayla’s apartment again, the night had grown quieter.

Inside, the contrast was immediate.

Trafalgar was already seated in the middle of the room with his hair loose around his shoulders, dark strands falling farther than he liked. Mayla stood behind him with a pair of scissors in one hand, fingers already gathering his hair with the same easy familiarity as always.