Eternal Thief

After that day, the Sky Heart Plains experienced peaceful days. There were no more thieveries; it was as if the thieves had vanished like a nightmare. Although the people were on the lookout for them, as time passed, they started to drop their vigilance.

The imperial family was still as strong as ever because the thieves had never targeted it before. But soon, another matter came to the attention of the imperial family and the Golden Lion Kingdom: Princess Riana was nowhere to be found!

This matter was kept under tight wraps, and the Crown Prince people and the Golden Lion Kingdom royals conducted the investigation in secret. After all, if Riana had run away, it would have been a huge scandal, and the prestige of the imperial family would have greatly plummeted.

Even Jenna visited Antonio to discuss this matter since she had used a soul brand on her. It should have been quite easy for her to sense her presence, but she was startled when she found nothing at all.

Furthermore, she had already heard about how Antonio had dealt with Zack and Connor, so she wanted more details.

However, to her surprise, her usually doting husband, who always succumbed to her demands and kept very little from her, rejected her request for a meeting because he was at a very sensitive juncture of his cultivation.

Although it was somewhat strange, he did leave everything to her, so she wasn't very suspicious, and she used the imperial palace resources to launch a search for Riana's whereabouts.

Furthermore, the Crown Prince was the most agitated about this turn of events since Riana was very important to his path to the throne, especially after Evie's 'death,' and he was almost going insane as more days passed without any news.

This naturally affected the Golden Lion Kingdom the most, and the imperial family put them under huge pressure.

As for Sofia, who was the last person to see Antonio, no one found her, and she focused on cultivation. She was also looking forward to Antonio's promise, and she didn't tell anyone about it; she just promised him.

Fourteen months had passed, and today, the Mortal Emperor, who never showed himself, finally appeared. Although he looked the same, his aura was suffocating despite being completely suppressed.

"Dark Shadow, go summon Princess Sofia in the throne hall." He coolly ordered before heading toward the throne hall.

'Today is the day I finally managed to find a way to go around those damn runes. Although it took me more time than expected, now I have a 70% chance to complete this mission.' Ace's eyes were filled with confident as well as a hint of apprehension was present in them.

He knew this was going to be his biggest and most dangerous mission in Mortal Sky Heaven, and it was his last mission before he left this place for good. He was rather nostalgic and also excited to see the new heaven. But he knew that to achieve all this, he needed first to pass this wretched mission.

While musing over his plan, he reached the empty throne hall and sat on the throne of the Mortal Emperor. Soon, the thorn room opened, but the person who entered wasn't the one Ace was expecting. Instead, it was another graceful woman in a queen's dress with a mask on her face, and her demeanor was dignified.

Ace was surprised since he knew who this was; she was the Empress of Sky Heart Mortal Empire, Jenna.

'This woman seemed to have ears all over the palace. I was hoping to avoid her and leave silently…' Ace frowned slightly, but he didn't show it on his face.

"I was about to look for you, but I didn't expect you to be still in the palace." Antonio smiled gently.

Jenna performed a curtsy greeting before she replied, "The matters of the school have been completely settled, so I was in the palace searching, helping the Crown Prince to search for the missing princess. Your majesty might've heard about this matter."

She said gently as she walked towards Antonio, and then unexpectedly, she directly sat on his lap while wrapping her hands around his neck. Ace was startled, but he controlled his urge to push her away.

Antonio was, after all, Jenna's husband and their relationship was very good, so this kind of intimation should have been normal for them when they were alone.

"I've heard about it indeed, but I was deep in cultivation, so I left the matter to my capable empress," Antonio replied while wrapping his hands around her waist.

Jenna's eyes flashed with helplessness as she replied, "You're giving me too much credit. I still couldn't find her whereabouts. It seems she had a helper." A faint coldness crept in her eyes as she suppressed her rage.

"Don't fret over it; she can't escape the Sky Heart Plains. Let me tell you something important: I'm going to ascend soon," Ace said while looking at Jenna closely.

Jenna suddenly trembled, and her eyes widened in disbelief when she heard this completely unexpected news.

"Are you serious?" she asked in disbelief, even forgetting about Riana. She was aware of Antonio's talent more than anyone else, and she knew he might not have a destiny with ascension in his life, yet now he was suddenly dropping this bomb on her.

"Why would I lie to you? In fact, today is the day…" Antonio impassively stated.

Jenna was again shocked, and suddenly, she sensed something strange. Antonio's eyes suddenly turned into a dark vortex, pulling her into it.

"Now, you're going to go back to your cultivation chamber and then sleep until someone touches you!" Ace's words were filled with bewilderment as Jenna's eyes became listless, and like a puppet, she stood up without saying anything and started walking towards the door.

'Her soul was quite formidable, and without giving her mental shock, soul words might not have worked on her at all this deeply. The moment I said those words, she instantly became vigilant, and if I had explained more, she would've suspected something since she's an extremely shrewd woman.

'Now, she might never awake again since no one would dare to touch the Mortal Empress. Even if she awakes, she will forget all about this ever happening, and I will be long gone. The imperial family will be in a huge mess…' Ace coldly looked at Jenna's leaving figure.

Thereupon, Sofia finally arrived adorned in a white dress, and her eyes were filled with hidden excitement.

"Are you ready?" Ace smilingly asked.

"Yes!" Sofia replied without hesitation before she asked with a hint of confusion, "But where are others? I've heard that when someone ascends, it would be a huge event and a sacrificial ceremony for the ancestor to give good luck to the ascender."

'There's such a thing?' It was his first time hearing it, but he didn't show any clues and waved his hand. "I've already discussed it with your mother, and with all the things going on lately, the fewer people know about my departure, the better. I've already taken care of all the things. Let us go without wasting any more time."

'He can really leave just like that? What about the successor of the throne? Could it be that he left everything to Mother? Nonetheless, it has nothing to do with me since this is a hard to come by opportunity, I'll be following father's footstep in future!' Sofia thought with resolution.

But she didn't know that it was the last time she would step into Mortal Sky Heaven again!