The lounge corridor was very long.
The walls were painted light gray, with pale blue magic lamps embedded in the ceiling, one every few steps, illuminating every corner of the corridor.
The floor was dark hardwood, making slight creaks with each step.
On both sides of the corridor were doors, their numbers affixed to the doorframes with brass digits.
Zijiang walked ahead.
She tucked her equipment case under her arm, held up her phone with the camera on.
Her pink ponytail swayed gently behind her shoulders.
Orlando followed behind her.
People kept passing through the corridor.
Those in dark uniforms, carrying file folders, wearing the badge of the Commerce Federation.
There were dog-kin, cat-kin, wolf-kin.
They walked quickly, their leather shoes striking the wooden floor in rapid, even footsteps.
No one looked at Zijiang or Orlando.
But Orlando looked at them.
A dog-kin male passed by, holding a stack of documents with the Commerce Federation emblem on the cover.
Orlando’s gaze followed them.
These people.
In uniforms, carrying files, wearing badges.
Walking fast, speaking low, avoiding eye contact.
They all had similar expressions—
Lips pressed together, brows slightly furrowed, as if they were calculating several accounts in their heads at once.
From one end of the corridor to the other, back and forth, over and over.
If he didn’t know this was Gevanitz, he would have thought it was the Federation.
He looked away.
Zijiang stopped in front of a door.
A cat-kin girl stood at the entrance.
Short dark brown hair, cat ears poking up from her hair, with a small tuft of white fur at the tips.
She wore a dark suit, with a Commerce Federation badge pinned to her collar.
She wasn’t tall—
About up to Orlando’s shoulder.
She raised her hand, palm forward.
“Sorry, everyone.”
Her voice was crisp.
Like glass beads falling on ceramic tiles.
“Miss Viloseline does not wish to meet any reporters.”
Zijiang lowered her phone before even raising it.
“But—”
“This is Miss Viloseline’s wish. Please return, everyone.”
“That—I’m from the Federation platform—I have an inner-area press pass—”
“I know. An inner-area press pass allows access to the rest area, but for specific player rooms, we need the player’s or their management team’s consent.”
“Can’t you make an exception—”
“Sorry.”
The cat-kin girl’s ear twitched.
The white tuft at the tip trembled.
Then a voice came from inside the door.
“It’s fine.”
“You can let them in.”
The cat-kin girl turned her head.
“But Miss, you said—”
“I’ll make an exception this time.”
A brief silence.
“Please come in.”
The lounge was small.
The walls were light gray, and the floor was covered in dark gray carpet.
Facing the door was a window, the curtain half-drawn, letting in afternoon sunlight that painted a bright square on the carpet.
A small round table stood by the window, with a white porcelain cup on it, steam rising from the rim.
Next to the round table was a wooden armchair.
A warm gold light armor hung on a coat rack by the door.
She now wore a white linen blouse, with the top button undone, sleeves rolled up to two fingers above the wrist.
Golden hair draped over her shoulders, the ends falling to her waist.
Deer antlers and ears poked out from her golden hair, the ears curving slightly forward.
She held a book in her hands.
Completely different from the so-called “disorderly private life” rumors online.
Zijiang raised her phone.
“That—Miss Viloseline—I’m a streamer from the Federation platform—may I—”
“You may.”
Viloseline placed a bookmark into the pages, closed the book, and set it on her lap.
The bookmark was a small pressed maple leaf.
She looked up, her light golden eyes gazing at Zijiang’s phone camera.
“Please, have a seat.”
Zijiang sat down on the chair across from the round table.
She placed her equipment case at her feet.
She didn’t set up the ring light—
So she held her phone up, angled toward Viloseline’s face.
The comments were already scrolling by.
Orlando stood slightly behind and to the side of Zijiang, able to see the preview screen on her phone.
Comments poured in from the edge of the screen one after another.
“It really is Viloseline.”
“Close up!”
“Zijiang is awesome.”
“She looks so good in casual clothes.”
“What book is she reading?”
“Poetry, you can see the letters on the spine.”
“That—Miss Viloseline—”
Zijiang’s voice changed.
It wasn’t the pitch turned up a notch like during streaming.
It was the tone used for face-to-face interviews—
a little lower, a little slower, each word’s ending clean and sharp.
“May I ask how you’re feeling today?”
Viloseline picked up the porcelain cup, blew on the steam, took a small sip, then placed the cup back on the saucer with a soft clink.
“Not bad, I guess.”
Comments scrolled by.
“What does ‘not bad’ mean?”
“So calm.”
“The goddess speaks so little.”
“When did you first start in the competitive knight industry?”
Viloseline’s finger gently brushed the book cover.
It was a dark blue cover with gold embossed characters.
She glanced at the cover, then looked up.
“It’s been five years.”
Comments:
“Five years.”
“That’s not that long.”
“Five years and already in the Grand Championship?”
“Genius, right?”
“And how did you learn your techniques?”
Viloseline picked up the book from her lap and placed it on the round table.
The bookmark’s stem was visible sticking out from between the pages.
She put her hands on her lap, fingers interlaced.
“Tempered by a thousand trials.”
“It all comes down to skill.”
Her light golden eyes looked at Zijiang’s phone camera.
She didn’t evade, nor did she stare deliberately.
She just looked plainly, like looking at a glass of water on a table.
The comments paused for a moment.
Then one scrolled out.
“That line is so cool.”
“So it’s all about practice.”
“No shortcuts.”
Orlando stood slightly behind and to the side of Zijiang.
He looked at Viloseline’s fingers resting on her lap.
The interlaced fingers were very relaxed—
Thumbs resting on the back of her hands, no tension.
Not the hands of a knight.
He had seen a knight’s hands.
His father’s hands—
Aldric Delfort, the dragon slayer appointed by the emperor, founder of the Royal Dragon-Slaying Squad.
His fingers were covered in calluses, his knuckles deformed from years of gripping a sword, his thumbnail had been torn off twice by dragon scales—
Those were the hands that held a sword.
Viloseline’s hands didn’t look like hands that held a sword.
Instead, they looked like hands that turned pages.
He spoke.
“What is your view on knights?”
Zijiang’s shoulder stiffened slightly.
“Who’s speaking?”
“The cameraman, right?”
“Why did the cameraman suddenly ask a question?”
“This question is so serious.”
“Out of place, isn’t it?”
Viloseline raised her eyes.
Her light golden pupils moved from the phone camera to Orlando’s face.
“That’s an interesting question.”
She uncrossed her fingers.
She placed her right hand on the edge of the round table, tapping the surface lightly with her fingertips.
“But.”
“The matches ahead will tell you the answer.”
Comments scrolled by.
“What does that mean?”
“So profound.”
“So what is her view?”
“Speaking in riddles.”
“The goddess is so articulate.”
Zijiang quickly took over the conversation.
She raised her pitch a little again.
“Then—Miss Viloseline—who would you like to face next?”
Viloseline picked up the porcelain cup and took another sip.
The steam from the cup hit her face, and her light golden eyes narrowed slightly behind the steam.
“Masiweiluo.”
“She is a free knight.”
Her finger traced half a circle on the rim of the cup.
“I’ve always wanted to have a fair duel with her.”
The last syllable didn’t drop after rising.
It hung in the air.
The comments exploded.
“Masiweiluo!!”
“Match of the century!!”
“Candlelight Knight Order vs. Independent Knight!!”
“Both are beauties!!”
“Buy tickets buy tickets buy tickets!!”
“When will they meet?”
“Depends on the schedule.”
Zijiang held her phone steady.
But her toes tapped lightly on the carpet.
“Thank you, Miss Viloseline! That—one last question—do you have anything to say to the audience about today’s qualifiers?”
Viloseline withdrew her hand from the rim. She interlaced her fingers again on her lap.
“Thank you all for coming to watch my match.”
She paused.
“I will do my best.”
Comments scrolled by.
“So gentle.”
“Goddess, go for it!”
“Definitely win!”
“See you at the finals.”
Zijiang stood up.
She still held her phone, the camera facing Viloseline.
She backed up two steps toward the door, then bowed.
Her pink ponytail slid over her shoulder.
“Thank you for the interview!”
“You’re welcome.”
Viloseline picked up the book from the round table and reopened it.
She inserted the bookmark, the stem of the maple leaf protruding slightly from the edge of the pages.
She lowered her head, her golden eyelashes drooping.
The door closed.
Zijiang walked in front, still holding her phone.
The comments continued scrolling, but she was looking at the preview screen, adjusting the exposure.
Her footsteps creaked on the wooden floor.
“Mr. Orlando, that question of yours earlier—”
She didn’t turn around.
“—it was actually pretty good.”
She paused.
“Although some people in the comments were cursing you.”
“Well…”
In the lounge.
The porcelain cup on the round table was still steaming.
The book lay open on the page with the maple leaf bookmark.
The curtain lifted slightly in the breeze, and the afternoon light flickered on the carpet.
Viloseline wasn’t reading.
She looked up at the direction of the door.
In her light golden pupils, the reflection of the brass numbers on the door shone.
“The bloodline of dragons.”
“How interesting.”
Hold on, she FELT his bloodline? At least one of his bloodlines? That’s interesting, is that some Race trait, or some special ability? Maybe she can “Smell” bloodlines ? I’m just guessing(Different “Animals” have different scents) .
Since I read previous chapters I thought he was a “Human-Angel” (Through his mother, At first had an Idea, she might be a dragon, and that’s why he was even able to transform – Bloodline awaken, similar to Mo Li from Dragon Princess) and was turned into “Dragon-Angel”, maybe this crazy blood mix let him(her) awake Angel powers. I will go even further -Angel bloodline is what Withhold his human body, maybe because his blood is a mix, so without Human blood, Angel blood would cease to exist, and Dragon blood just works as a catalyst/boost for his angel blood (And also is a very strong bloodline just as a basis). Orlando/Olivia is an interesting enigma.