For Kaelan, the truth was unbearable.
It was Zion who had exposed him.
Zion who had destroyed his reputation.
Zion who had turned his future upside down.
And Zion was also the person who had appeared in front of him and taken Vanessa's attention away from him.
Who else could know everything that had happened between them so clearly?
Kaelan's hands tightened at his sides.
The humiliation of the past few weeks came rushing back all at once. He remembered the day Vanessa had rejected him without hesitation. He remembered her tearing away his mask and exposing his scarred face before everyone in Origin Medical Hall. He remembered the countless eyes that had watched him fall from the position he once believed belonged to him.
And now the person responsible was standing before him.
Calm.
Unconcerned.
As though none of it had ever mattered.
Kaelan's hatred deepened.
But he was not the only one struggling to process what had just happened.
Vanessa stood rigidly where she was, her gaze fixed on Zion.
She had known the young physician from Origin Medical Hall.
She had known the former young master of General Helius's household.
She had even known the man who had once been her fiancé.
Yet until this moment, she had never realized they were all the same person.
Earlier, she had tried to convince herself that the Divine Physician and the sickly young man she had once known were two completely different people.
That explanation had been easier to accept.
But reality had just shattered it.
They were the same.
Zion was the physician from Origin Medical Hall.
Zion was the former fiancé she had abandoned.
Zion was the man she had later pursued after he saved her life.
Vanessa's mind went blank for a moment.
'How could this be?'
She had seen Zion countless times in the past.
Back then, he had been pale, thin, timid, and sickly. His presence had been so weak that she had never truly regarded him as someone capable of standing beside her.
Yet the man before her now was completely different.
He was composed and confident, carrying himself with an ease that made the entire garden unconsciously give way to his presence.
It was not merely his appearance.
His entire temperament had changed.
Vanessa's expression became complicated.
If his appearance and temperament had changed so drastically, there was only one conclusion she could draw.
He had been hiding himself.
For years.
That realization struck harder than his transformation itself.
If Zion had truly been pretending all this time, then everything she remembered about their former engagement suddenly looked different.
Had he really been as useless as she thought?
Had he really been incapable of cultivating?
Or had he simply never cared enough to reveal his true abilities to her?
And if that was the case...
Then perhaps he had never wanted their marriage from the beginning.
Vanessa's heart tightened.
She remembered how easily he had rejected her at Origin Medical Hall.
At the time, she had been unable to understand it.
She was the Crown Princess. Countless noble families would have considered it the greatest honor imaginable to marry into the Imperial Family.
Yet Zion had shown no interest.
Now she understood why.
Perhaps he had never needed her.
Perhaps all those years when she believed herself to be the one holding the power in their relationship, Zion had simply been allowing her to believe it.
The realization left Vanessa with an unfamiliar sense of humiliation.
She had once thought Zion had changed because of everything that happened afterward.
Now she wondered whether the person who had changed was actually herself.
At the head of the garden, Emperor Alexander and the Empress exchanged a brief glance.
Neither had recovered from the revelation.
The Emperor's gaze settled on Zion before shifting toward General Helius.
"General Helius."
His voice was deep and carried unmistakable authority.
"Wasn't your son blind in the past? Wasn't that one of the reasons his engagement to the Crown Princess was annulled? How is he standing here like this tonight?"
The question immediately put Helius under pressure.
Cold sweat appeared along his forehead.
He stepped forward and bowed.
"Reporting to Your Majesty, Zion was indeed blind in the past. However... his eyes were later healed by some unknown fortune."
It was the only explanation he could offer.
And even that was not something he truly understood.
Helius had spent years treating Zion as a useless son. He had never expected the boy he had neglected to become the Divine Physician who now stood before the Emperor.
As for how Zion had recovered his eyesight, how he had acquired such extraordinary medical knowledge, and how he had transformed so completely...
Helius knew none of it.
Alexander frowned.
"Healed?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Then why was this never reported to the court?"
Helius's heart sank.
He had known this question would come eventually.
Yet there was no good answer.
"This..."
His voice faltered.
The sweat at his temples became more noticeable.
If he admitted that he had simply failed to pay attention to his own son, he would expose the neglect that had existed within General Helius's household for years.
If he lied, the Emperor could easily investigate and discover the truth.
Before Helius could decide how to respond, another voice interrupted.
"General Helius."
Minister Henry looked at him with narrowed eyes.
"Origin Medical Hall has been open for more than a month. If its Divine Physician is your own son, how can you claim that you only discovered his transformation tonight?"
The meaning behind his words was obvious.
Henry was questioning whether Helius had deliberately concealed information from the imperial family.
Helius nearly cursed him aloud.
Of all the people in the Imperial City, Henry had chosen the perfect moment to make things worse.
Still, he forced himself to maintain his composure.
"My household matters are not something I report to the court in detail."
Henry's expression remained faintly amused.
The Emperor stared at Helius for several breaths.
He was clearly displeased, but after a moment, he finally looked away.
"This matter will be discussed later."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Helius bowed again.
Only after Alexander turned away did he allow himself to breathe properly.
His mind was already in chaos.
He had no idea what explanation he could possibly give the Emperor later because, for once, General Helius himself had more questions than answers.
Tonight had already gone far beyond anything he could control.
Fortunately, the Emperor did not continue the matter in public.
The Empress soon stepped forward, calmly restoring order to the banquet.
"There is no need to let an unexpected incident spoil the evening. Let the younger generation show their talents. Music, dance, poetry, whatever they have prepared is welcome."
Her tone was gentle, but everyone understood what this meant.
The banquet could finally proceed.
And with it, the true purpose of tonight's gathering would begin.
The selection of Vanessa's future consort.
Zion returned to his seat without showing the slightest discomfort.
The palace servants soon resumed moving between the tables, serving delicate dishes and carefully prepared desserts.
Zion picked up a small piece of royal pastry and tasted it.
The flavor was unexpectedly good.
Beside him, however, two familiar little creatures had completely lost themselves in the sight of the banquet's endless supply of food.
Black and White's eyes practically lit up.
Their tiny heads moved from one plate to another.
There were pastries.
Fruits.
Roasted meat.
Candied delicacies.
And far more food than two small furballs could possibly need.
Zion glanced at them.
They looked ready to throw themselves into the banquet.
He couldn't help laughing.
"Don't wander too far."
The two little furballs immediately darted away.
Zion shook his head and returned to his dessert.
Callista, seated beside him, watched the entire exchange with an amused smile.
"You really aren't worried?"
Zion raised an eyebrow.
"About what?"
Callista gestured subtly toward the surrounding garden.
"The Emperor. Your father. Your former fiancée. Half the nobles in the capital are staring at you."
Zion calmly picked up a grape.
"What do you think of General Helius's position?"
Callista understood immediately.
"Unshakable."
She didn't even need to think about it.
General Helius had spent most of his life on the battlefield. He had defended the empire's borders through countless campaigns and possessed enormous prestige within the military.
Alexander might be angry.
He might question Helius.
He might even reprimand him.
But the Emperor was not going to destroy a general of Helius's standing over a family matter.
And Zion was still Helius's son.
Whatever had happened inside the General's household, Zion's life was not in immediate danger simply because he had exposed the truth tonight.
Zion bit into the grape.
Callista watched him for a moment before smiling.
"You've already calculated all of that."
"I only considered the likely consequences."
Callista gave a quiet laugh.
"You certainly aren't lacking confidence."
Then her gaze shifted.
"There is someone who isn't having such a pleasant evening, though."
Zion followed her eyes.
A short distance away, Kaelan stood among several young noblemen.
The atmosphere around him was completely different from the one surrounding the rest of the garden.
The nobles who had approached him earlier were no longer treating him with the same courtesy.
Some wore polite smiles.
Some whispered behind their hands.
A few did not even bother hiding their contempt.
Kaelan's face remained stiff, but the humiliation was obvious.
Zion watched silently.
Callista glanced back at him. "Do you feel sorry for him?"
Zion's expression did not change.
He had no reason to pity Kaelan.
Kaelan had spent years enjoying the position that had once belonged to Zion. He had accepted Vanessa's affection while she was still engaged to Zion, and he had participated in the circumstances that had left his elder brother isolated within his own family.
Now Kaelan was finally experiencing what it felt like to stand on the other side of that treatment.
For more than fifteen years, Zion had endured coldness, neglect, ridicule, and humiliation inside General Helius's household.
Nobody had defended him then.
Even now, Kaelan still had the General's Residence behind him.
His position had been damaged, but he had not been abandoned completely.
Compared with what Zion had endured, this was hardly enough to make him feel sympathy.
"Do you?" Zion asked.
Callista shook her head.
"I don't like him."
Zion glanced at her.
Callista's expression softened slightly.
"But I do feel sorry for you."
The answer caught him off guard.
For the first time that evening, Zion didn't immediately know what to say.