Legacy of Hatred

Two sets of panting resounded in a vast, furnished hall. Liam and Grace had relocated and gone into hiding, finishing dealing with their first order of business.

Grace was belly down, with Liam lying on top of her, their right hands intertwined, his left arm wrapped around her, slightly lifting her, pulling her close.

Liam honestly didn’t know what had taken over him. It might have been the pent-up urges or the heartfelt conversation, but he had been unable to get his fill that day. He still hadn’t, but his body had hit a limit.

Grace wasn’t innocent, far from it. If anything, her status as a branching expert made her the main culprit behind everything that had unfolded. Still, even she could feel that her physical limit had arrived.

Liam was spent, but he still kissed Grace’s back, his brain lighting up at the tremors he caused. He climbed toward her head one kiss at a time, eventually reaching the ear peeking past her hair.

"That was amazing," Liam whispered. "You are amazing."

That would usually be Grace’s cue to demand more praise, but she just voiced a pleased noise, scooting closer to Liam to send a silent message.

Liam flopped at Grace’s side, pulling her on him before reaching for his robe nearby, bringing it over them. Grace spun to curl on his arm, clinging to his side to keep him close.

For a few minutes, the couple did nothing but catch their breath. Grace’s eyes were closed as Liam studied the bliss on her face, his palm running along her back, genuinely shocked by the emotions filling his brain.

’What is happening?’ Liam wondered, despite already knowing the answer. He just couldn’t believe it could be so intense.

Grace had changed in Liam’s eyes, and that had nothing to do with her new cultivation level and the sexual prowess it provided. The woman in his arms was the future mother of his children, her sole willingness to assume that role being an act of rebellion against the fate administered by the Bloodline Screening.

It seemed even love had different depths, and Liam had just unlocked a new one.

’I want to eat her up,’ Liam cursed internally. ’She tastes so good. But where did she learn to do that stuff?’

While Liam was busy reviewing certain actions that had immediately entered his list of favorites, Grace was the one doing the tasting, leaving small kisses on his chest before burying her head in it.

Still, eventually, Grace got down to business.

"Dear, I wish to run my plan for our next step by you," Grace announced.

Truth be told, Liam wouldn’t have minded cuddling a bit longer, even sleeping on top of that. He was quite in the romantic mood. While not safe, he and Grace had just settled in the underground hall, so they had some breathing room.

"This is new," Liam commented. "We usually go ahead with any idea you come up with."

That actually wasn’t entirely true. Liam had provided plenty of input on the border, albeit Grace had still shouldered most of the mental workload.

"Dear, your capable possession is also just a woman," Grace pointed out. "And your seed is still warming her up. You’ll forgive her if she wants to confront ideas with you, even if just to hear your voice."

’She is the one always asking that,’ Liam sighed internally, part of his brain lighting up. ’And now she is using it against me.’

With techniques to avoid conception, there was no real risk of unwanted pregnancies. Grace mostly did such shameless requests to rile Liam up, but he guessed her greed was part of the equation.

Of course, Liam didn’t mind that at all, not even close. Besides, it did sound like Grace now considered him learned enough to respect his opinion on their plans.

"What do you have in mind?" Liam asked, not forgetting to pull Grace closer. He even closed his eyes after he buried his nose in her hair.

"We are in completely foreign territory," Grace said. "But it is a territory with stable political environments inaccessible to foreign parties."

Grace had gone through the southern region while migrating from the western one, meaning that was her and Liam’s first time in the current environment.

Moreover, that wasn’t the border. There would be no abundance of minor organizations and criminal forces that followed no real rules. The northern region was a world of Sects and Guilds which held utmost control and enforced tight suppression on any unaffiliated individual.

Liam had never faced that in the past. He had relied on his Sect first, and then on Grace’s connection to the Merchants Guild. They had neither now, and that wasn’t all.

Through Adrian, Liam had learned about the Church’s wanted posters. They had been limited to the eastern region back then, but they were spreading in the northern one, too.

With the influence the Church could exert, it was basically impossible to enter lawful environments while being its enemy. No one would dare to hear the couple out, let alone do business with them.

There could be Demonic Sects available, but their influence would be limited compared to the border, and Grace and Liam needed a lot of resources. They also had too many wares at their disposal for a single force to satisfy them.

Even if the northern region had a worthwhile network of criminal forces, finding it would be challenging since the couple didn’t know anything about the area.

Also, there was no hiding Liam and Grace’s identity anymore. The information might be limited to the Church for now, but it was unclear for how long.

The riddle looked impossible to solve, but the couple had two factors working for them. Liam was a prolific alchemist, and that was priceless basically everywhere in the Kingdom. As for the second edge, it was that Grace was a branching expert now.

However, there was another option, one that Liam found himself unable to keep silent about due to the recent developments in his relationship.

"Why don’t we head straight for the western region?" Liam suggested. "And deal with your Clan?"

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