From Outcast to Overlord The Unyielding Heir (Leander Ashcroft) novel Chapter 319

Chapter 319 One More Candle

Leander’s eyes flickered, his thoughts rising and crashing like waves.

If there was anyone in the Ashcroft family he still held in his heart, besides Ethan, it was the humble woman in plain robes below.

His birth mother, Lydia.

More than ten years ago, when he was just a little boy, Lydia had taken him up Westvale Peak to light candles and pray at the abbey. Nearly every weekend, without fail, she brought him there.

Lydia told him that prayer was never about superstition. It was about faith, about having something to hold on to when life grew heavy.

He remembered one time he got lost in Durham Abbey. Lydia searched for hours before she finally found him. That day, he hadn’t cried at all–but Lydia had clutched him tightly and wept until her face was streaked with tears.

From that day on, Lydia told him, no matter where he went, no matter how far life carried him, if he ever couldn’t find her, he should come to Durham Abbey. She would be there, waiting.

When Gareth stripped Leander of his martial power, Lydia had screamed herself hoarse, trying to shield him. Reginald only dragged her away with cold indifference, leaving her to watch helplessly as her son was cast out of the Ashcroft family, powerless and broken.

Nine years had passed, but Leander could never forget the look in her eyes that day—the despair so deep it seemed to crush her very soul.

Tonight, he had come to Durham Abbey because something in his heart had stirred, pulling him back to those old memories. What he hadn’t expected was to find Lydia there, clothed in the robes of a nun, her fingers turning rosary beads, looking every bit a servant of the abbey. The sight left him shaken.

Ethan and Daphne sat cross–legged before her. In Ethan’s hands was a small food box, warmed by the quiet current of his inner strength.

“Mom, Daphne and I brought you some chicken soup. It’s still hot–please drink it while it’s warm.”

He lifted the lid, and at once the fragrance filled the quiet chapel.

“Ethan, that’s thoughtful of you.”

Lydia smiled, though a shadow of sorrow lingered in her brow, as if she carried a burden she could never lay down.

She sipped only a few mouthfuls of the soup before setting it aside, her appetite already gone.

Seeing her like that, Daphne felt a pang of sorrow.

“Ms. Brookhaven, please have a little more. It’s only been a week since we last care, grown thinner again.”

Lydia lifted her hand in gentle refusal.

“The supper here was good tonight. I ate enough, and I’m still full.”

At her words, Daphne knew she couldn’t insist, so she quietly gathered the dishes.

and you’ve

Lydia turned to Ethan and spoke softly. “Ethan, you told me not long ago that you were in seclusion, preparing to break through to Martial Sovereign. Didn’t I say you shouldn’t waste time coming to see me during this period? Why are you here again?”

Ethan shook his head.

“Mom, striving for Martial Sovereign is nothing compared to being with you.”

He clasped Lydia’s hand, his voice carrying a plea. “Mom, tomorrow is the Ashcroft family gathering. I came to ask you to come home. Since Leander was cast out of the family… It’s been nine years since you last returned to Ashcroft Residence to be with us.”

Outside the window, Leander froze where he stood. The words struck him like lightning.

“Nine years?”

He whispered to himself, his gaze locked on Lydia, unable to turn away.

Could it be that all these nine years, she had remained here in Durham Abbey, never once returning to Ashcroft Residence?

Leander’s eyes went still, his whole body rooted in place.

Inside the quiet chapel, Lydia reached out and gently stroked Ethan’s head. A faint smile touched her lips, though she shook her head.

“Home? Where is home?”

Her voice carried such sorrow that it seemed to drain every ounce of strength from her.

“The day your father raised his hand against Leander before my very eyes, the day he cast him into the mountains to live or die alone–that was the moment I lost my home forever.

“I swore then that I would never forgive your father. For a single word of judgment, he could deal such a cruel blow to his own child without a trace of mercy. A man like that is unworthy to be a father—and even less worthy to be my husband.”

Though Lydia wore the robes of a nun, her words rang firm and unshaken.

Ethan shuddered at her resolve, his tone heavy with grief.

“Mom, it’s been nine years since Leander’s fate was sealed. That decision was forced on them. Grandpa and Dad were bound by a command passed down from the very first generation of the Ashcroft family. They didn’t dare defy it.

“Please forgive them. Even if Leander is gone, you still have me.”

Ethan glanced at Daphne, but he could only obey, bowing out of the chapel and shutting the door behind him.

“I used to dream of the day Leander would bring you home as his bride. I prepared this bracelet ten years ago, intending to give it to you when you and Leander became engaged.

“But…”

Daphne hesitated for a moment, then took the jade bracelet in both hands.

“Ms. Brookhaven, this is the token you prepared for my engagement with him. Whether he’s here or not, I will accept it.”

Seeing the determination in Daphne’s eyes, Lydia shook her head and let out a soft sigh.

“You’ve always reminded me of myself, even as a girl–cold on the outside, warm within, with a will as steady as iron. Once you decide on something, it’s for life. You’re getting engaged to Ethan, and I don’t even know whether to be happy or worried.

“I know your heart isn’t with Ethan, but he loves you truly and deeply. As a mother, I can only pray that you treat him kindly. If you do marry him, don’t let him suffer too much.”

Though Lydia had spent nine years in the abbey without returning to Ashcroft Residence, Ethan remained her own flesh and blood. She could not help but worry for him.

Daphne fastened the bracelet around her wrist and gave Lydia a resolute nod.

“Ms. Brookhaven, you don’t need to worry. Even though I don’t love Ethan, if I must marry him. I will do my duty as a wife.

“Not just for you, but because… Ethan is his younger brother.”

At her words, a weight lifted from Lydia’s heart. She gently caressed Daphne’s face.

“Hearing you say that, I can finally rest easy.

“It’s getting late. Go find Ethan and go down the mountain together.”

Daphne bowed respectfully to Lydia, then stepped lightly from the chapel, joining Ethan as they left Durham Abbey.

Alone, Lydia rolled up her sleeves and reached into the folds of her robe to retrieve a jade pendant. She held it tenderly, her touch gentle and reverent, eyes clouded with memory.

Carved in cinnabar on the pendant was a single name: Leander.

After a long moment, she let out a slow breath, just about to snuff out the lamp and retire to her room for rest, when the chapel door opened again. A voice drifted through the quiet hall.

“Blessed are those who are guided by God… May I light one more candle?”

She paused mid–step, startled, and turned toward the entrance. There, framed in the doorway, stood a tall, commanding figure, upright and composed, yet radiating a quiet intensity.