He Yuting shook her head. "No, Your Greatness. You are not a prisoner."
Her voice carried unusual urgency now, enough to make Ningyan pause.
"Lord Zhenting merely… cares deeply for you." Her hands tightened at her sides. "We lost everything. Family. Friends. Our home. The future we were meant to have." Her gaze lowered briefly before rising again. "You are the only one capable of restoring what was taken from us. That is why he is protective of you."
Ningyan fell silent.
Something inside his chest ached faintly at her words.
Because she was right.
They had suffered.
And since awakening, he had devoted himself to rebuilding the Phoenix Clan, restoring its glory, strengthening its foundations, giving its people hope again. Every phoenix looked toward him as though he were salvation itself.
Slowly, Ningyan exhaled.
Xie Zhenting was not his enemy.
At least… that was what he told himself.
"I apologise," he finally said, his voice calmer now. "I have merely been tense recently."
