Enchanting Cult Leader 20

"Could you kindly inform Miss Hongxiu that Gu Han wishes to speak with the Sect Leader?" Gu Han stood at the door of the study, requesting an audience with Elora. After thinking through the night, he had concluded that since he could not return Elora's affections, it would be best for him to leave sooner rather than later.

"Please wait a moment," Hongxiu said, her tone unconsciously filled with respect, knowing the esteemed place Gu Han held in the Sect Leader's heart.

A moment later, Hongxiu returned. "Young Master Gu, the Sect Leader has requested your presence."

...

"I hear you have something to discuss with me?" Elora greeted Gu Han with a warm, inviting smile as soon as he entered the study.

Gu Han was momentarily dazed by her smile, his farewell words caught in his throat.

"Well, what is it that you need?" Elora asked, noticing that Gu Han seemed lost in thought. He had said he had business with her, but now he was silent.

"I... I came to say goodbye," Gu Han said, turning his face away, unable to meet her gaze. He feared he wouldn't be able to say the words aloud.

"Is... is that so?" Elora's smile faltered, freezing on her face.

To mask her unease, she forced a smile and added, "You're still recovering from your injuries. Why don't you wait a few more days until you've healed completely before leaving?"

Looking at Elora's strained smile, Gu Han felt his heart twist in agony. He couldn't refuse her request, no matter how much he wanted to.

In the end, Gu Han reluctantly agreed to stay until he had fully recovered.

...

"Mo Yu, where is your master?" Since that conversation, Elora had taken it upon herself to visit Gu Han every day, bringing medicine and occasionally some delicacies.

"Master is resting," Mo Yu replied. Elora had visited every day without fail, and Mo Yu had long run out of excuses to refuse her. But it was his master's command, and he dared not disobey.

Over time, Mo Yu had come to admire Elora. Contrary to the rumors about her cruelty, she treated her subordinates with great kindness.

"I know he's in there, and I know he's not resting. Please, let me see him! I have something for him, I promise I'll leave once I deliver it," Elora pleaded, her eyes brimming with unshed tears. Why? Why didn't he want to see her?

"Apologies, but please leave," Mo Yu said, his voice reluctant. His master's orders could not be ignored. Though he hated to, he had to deny her.

"Then... fine," Elora whispered, clenching the poorly made sachet in her hand. She had heard that men liked women who were skilled with their hands. She had learned to embroider just for him, working through countless sleepless nights to make this gift. She had hoped to present it as a farewell gift, but now he refused to even see her. It was all just a foolish fantasy. With a heavy heart, she threw the sachet into the bushes and left Gu Han's courtyard.

Mo Yu turned around, only to realize his master had been hiding behind the door all along. Gu Han stood there, staring in the direction Elora had gone, lost in thought.

"She said she had something for you. Young Master, you truly don't want to see her?" Mo Yu asked, sensing the conflict within his master. Wasn't it clear that Gu Han still cared for the Sect Leader? But why did he refuse to see her?

"No need." Gu Han responded, pulling his gaze away, retreating into the room. He had already resolved that they could never be together. Why stir the waters of his heart?

...

"Has the Sect Leader of Nebula Sect come today?" Gu Han paced anxiously around the room. It had been six days since her last visit, and with his departure imminent, he wondered if she had truly given up on him.

"Reporting to the Young Master, she hasn't come." The servant answered, clearly tired of hearing the same question over and over. "Would you like me to go and check for you?"

"No, it's fine." Gu Han slumped into a chair, feeling disoriented. What did he want? He had kept her at the door, unwilling to see her, and now that she wasn't coming, wasn't it exactly what he had wanted? So why did he feel this unbearable longing?

"Mo Yu, don't you find it strange?" Gu Han glanced around. Normally, at this hour, there would be servants tidying up the room, yet today, there was no sign of anyone. It felt strangely out of place, not at all like the usual order of Nebula Sect.

"It's eerily quiet," Mo Yu said, sensing the abnormal stillness. He tightened his grip on his sword, on high alert.

Suddenly, Gu Han realized something, and his heart skipped a beat. "This is bad!" He quickly rushed out to search for Elora.

...

"I am the Sect Leader of Nebula Sect! If you wish to attack my Sect, you'll have to step over my dead body first. I'll see if you have the courage!" Elora stood resolutely before her followers, clad in red, her eyes sharp and commanding. Her every movement radiated authority.

"The cult has long been a threat to the martial world. Today, we shall eradicate Nebula Sect in the name of justice!" Elora glanced over her shoulder, her gaze settling on Axel, the Sect Leader of the Golden Scorpion Sect, who had secretly colluded with Evan Skylar.

"If Nebula Sect is truly a threat, then Axel, as the Sect Leader, should know best," Elora said coldly, dismissing him with a glance.

"You want Nebula Eclipse, don't you?" she sneered. "And now you use the excuse of upholding martial justice to raid my Sect? Have you even asked the martial world if they consent to this?"

"What do you mean by that?" Axel's voice faltered, unease creeping into his heart. Did she know something?

"Evan Skylar has long coveted Nebula Eclipse," Elora continued, her voice dripping with disdain. "To satisfy his selfish desires, he devised a brilliant scheme."

She looked directly at Evan Skylar, who remained surprisingly calm. "He secretly sent people to impersonate my Sect, causing chaos, killing, and pillaging. Once Nebula Sect's reputation was ruined, he planned to use the excuse of protecting martial justice to rally various sects to attack us. Once Nebula Sect is destroyed, he'll claim Nebula Eclipse as his own without a single soldier lost. It's a plan that lets him gain both a good reputation and the power he craves—truly a two birds with one stone plan."

Elora turned to Evan Skylar, her eyes challenging. "Skylar, am I wrong?"