Read Rising from the Ashes (Andrew and Lauren) Novel by Only For You Updated 2025 -26 - Rising from the Ashes (Andrew and Lauren) Chapter 3232
Rising from the Ashes (Andrew and Lauren) Chapter 3232
The morning sun cast long shadows across the stone steps of the Lloyd estate.
Kelvin still knelt there—thin, hollow-cheeked, barely more than skin and bone. A week of humiliation had carved away every trace of his former arrogance.
Andrew straightened after speaking, hands in his pockets, gaze indifferent.
“Eat first,” he said calmly. “You won’t be of any use to me if you collapse halfway back to Sylvan Peaks.”
Kelvin’s lips trembled.
For a moment, he seemed unable to process what he had just heard.
He… was being allowed to stand?
Slowly—very slowly—he pressed his palms against the ground and tried to rise. His legs failed him the first time. A Lloyd guard stepped forward instinctively, but Andrew lifted a hand slightly.
“No need. If he can’t stand on his own, he can continue kneeling.”
Kelvin gritted his teeth. Veins bulged in his temples as he forced strength into muscles that had nearly forgotten how to function. On the second attempt, he rose—shaking, unsteady, but upright.
It was the first time in seven days.
He bowed deeply toward Andrew.
“I will remember this mercy.”
Andrew’s eyes were cool. “Don’t misunderstand. This isn’t mercy. It’s utility.”
Kelvin nodded. “Understood.”
He was escorted inside.
—
From a distance, Brielle watched the exchange quietly.
“You’re letting him go just like that?” she asked.
Andrew began walking toward the gate. “Do you think he’ll betray me?”
“He’s a Nieves,” she replied carefully. “Blood runs deep.”
Andrew gave a faint smile. “So does fear.”
He paused, glancing toward the northern horizon.
“The Nieves family believes Orson’s arrival will stabilize everything. They think the old ancestor can suppress me and restore their dignity.”
Brielle’s eyes sharpened. “You’re going to use Kelvin against them.”
“Not against them,” Andrew corrected. “Against their delusion.”
—
By noon, Kelvin had eaten properly for the first time in days. He bathed, changed into clean clothes provided by the Lloyd estate, and looked almost human again—though the exhaustion in his eyes remained.
Before leaving, he turned once more toward the inner courtyard.
Andrew stood there, waiting.
“Remember,” Andrew said quietly, “I’m giving you the chance to be a father. Don’t waste it.”
Kelvin clenched his fists.
“I won’t.”
He left Chetvine before sunset.
—
Elsewhere, word of Kelvin’s departure spread quickly among those watching from the shadows.
In a teahouse not far from the Lloyd estate, a cloaked figure lowered his cup.
“So Andrew released him?”
“Yes.”
“And sent him back to Sylvan Peaks?”
“Yes.”
The cloaked man smiled faintly.
“Interesting. Very interesting.”
—
Meanwhile, far outside the city—
Orson Nieves continued his slow journey.
Though over a hundred years old, his spine remained straight. His steps were measured, each one compressing the earth subtly beneath him.
The air around him felt heavy—dense with accumulated cultivation.
A disciple approached carefully. “Ancestor, Kelvin has left Chetvine.”
Orson’s eyelids lowered slightly.
“He lives?”
“Yes.”
A long silence followed.
“Andrew is either foolish,” Orson murmured, “or he sees further than most.”
“Should we retrieve Kelvin?”
“No.”
Orson resumed walking.
“If the boy kneels, he kneels for survival. If he stands, he stands for his own reasons. That has nothing to do with us anymore.”
The disciple swallowed.
“And Andrew?”
Orson’s voice was calm, but the mountain breeze seemed to pause around him.
“I will see for myself.”
—
Back in Chetvine, Andrew stood before the Lloyd gates once more.
Today, he would visit the Cunningham family.
The final piece of the puzzle.
Brielle stepped beside him. “Once you move against the Cunninghams, there’s no turning back.”
Andrew’s expression was unreadable.
“There was never any turning back.”
Above the city, dark clouds slowly gathered.
The old generation was arriving.
And the young lion was no longer content to wait.
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