King Meets King

“I only know this much. I spent the entire night in my room suffering from the ravages of the poison,” Li Yue said with her chin in her hand, sounding somewhat bored. She had originally wanted to say she had been trysting with her lover all night, but then she remembered she was supposed to have been poisoned. Logically, she should have been bedridden the whole time, so she changed her story.

She walked out of the temporary interrogation room. It was already nearing dusk, and almost no one had eaten lunch. Everyone was busy trying to untangle this bizarre case. While assassinations occurred almost every year, this was the first time someone had dared to kill a member of the royal family.

As the sunset gradually dipped lower, Li Yue watched the streaks of blood-red clouds soaking the sky. She couldn't help but think of the withered blood emperor, Mordred. She had wanted to see his grief over losing a son, but from his expression, he didn't seem to have much emotion at all.

Are the magic users I travel with... mostly emotionally detached?

Li Yue didn't quite understand. She looked toward a bench in the corridor where Clo sat with her eyelids drooping. Clo was forcing herself to stay awake, processing the series of tightly packed events while controlling her magical fluctuations. She had to ensure no major abnormalities leaked out. She had a faint feeling that the King had already noticed something, yet he didn't seem to care at all.

Did he... strike some kind of deal with A Yue? In a way, they truly are the same kind of people.

Clo looked at Li Yue not far away and puffed out her cheeks in a slight huff. Still, she obediently moved over to give her half the seat. That small movement sent a burning, sharp pain through her lower abdomen. Her annoyance flared up again, but her confidence seemed to have dwindled quite a bit.

“Still sleepy?” Li Yue smiled faintly, picking Clo up and settling her on her lap.

“It hurts... I'm not that sleepy, just a bit... tired.” Clo let out a yawn. She recalled the recent events. If Li Yue hadn't left so many bruises on her body that had yet to heal, she might have thought she was still dreaming.

She had been woken up in a daze, then endured the aches in her body to get dressed. She had seen Li Yue smiling at the door and Helen's strange gaze, and then she learned the earth-shattering news.

The prince who posed the greatest threat was dead, killed right in his own bedroom. His faction was going crazy. Ascending the throne required the right bloodline; it wasn't as simple as picking another candidate when one died. Their plans and the foundations they had built over the past few years had completely collapsed. There was no longer any possibility of a comeback.

“Did you kill him?” Clo shook her head, feeling like her mind wasn't quite clear yet. Staying up late didn't affect her much, but the sheer intensity of the pleasure she'd experienced really did leave her mentally exhausted. If she weren't a Calamity Warlock, she thought she might not have woken up at all after Li Yue's “tossing and turning.”

“How could I have... Even if you did faint several times last night, I couldn't have run out half-naked to kill someone right under the noses of a dozen Great Mages and several Calamity Warlocks.” Li Yue stuck out her tongue and gently stroked Clo's forehead. She watched the guards standing watch in the corridor and the frantic nobles passing by. She let out a yawn, still feeling uninterested.

“What do we do now? In such an extreme situation, will the other prince die too?” Clo thought for a moment. She watched nobles being escorted into the dark interrogation room and others walking out under surveillance. She felt that the magic users inside, who were supposed to be able to see through hearts, probably hadn't gained much information.

Those Great Mages were still too inexperienced. Even though she was mentally exhausted, dealing with their probes was easy.

“Unlikely, unless Mordred stops caring.” Li Yue shrugged. She peeked through the crack of a door at the faces of those in the darkness... The waves of dejection showed that the human heart was still difficult to see through. Otherwise... the truth would have come out long ago.

“See? They definitely didn't get anything.” Li Yue's tone carried a hint of mockery, the corner of her mouth twitching slightly. “So, is it more useful to have eyes that see through the soul?”

“What do you mean?” Clo tilted her head. Being held by Li Yue was quite comfortable. She shifted her body slightly, feeling the softness beneath her. A wave of warmth seeped into her somewhat cold limbs. Li Yue's body temperature was never very high, yet for some reason, she could feel her warmth now.

Perhaps Li Yue was doing it on purpose. Clo was too tired to think about it further; she just felt waves of drowsiness washing over her again.

“By the way... I didn't finish asking what I wanted to ask last night...” Clo forced herself to stay awake, her eyelids starting to close involuntarily. She rubbed her face against Li Yue's chest, trying to keep herself conscious.

“It was nothing major. A crazy god wanted to rewrite this world, and I noticed. I got a bit serious and shattered his dream,” Li Yue said nonchalantly. She looked toward the horizon, wondering if the moon would rise normally tonight.

The time left for her was growing shorter, but there was a silver lining—the pace of events had accelerated. She had originally thought everything would wait until these boring celebrations ended, but she hadn't expected the other side to be so impatient as to strike already.

Hmm... Less time means more time? What an... interesting fate.

Was this a desperate move, like a drowning man clutching at a straw? Or was it an ambush planned in advance? That poisoned wine, that assassination... perhaps it wasn't those people from the Specter faction after all.

“Forget it. This counts as drawing the snake out of its hole. I don't mind being used for a bit.” Li Yue gently closed Clo's eyelids with her hand. Though the latter resisted slightly, she eventually fell fast asleep. “After all, you know I can't be killed, right?”

Li Yue suddenly spoke to the side. From the pitch-black shadows, a withered old man slowly stepped out. The frantic nobles and the black-clad guards monitoring the area all knelt in unison. Li Yue, holding Clo in her arms, didn't even bother to salute.

The old King passed Li Yue. Li Yue was walking back to lay Clo on the bed, while Mordred was walking toward the interrogation room. Both moved unhurriedly. Li Yue didn't care about Mordred's status, and Mordred didn't care about Li Yue's insolence. Both appeared entirely indifferent.

“Is everyone in the Royal Court so impatient...” Li Yue stroked Clo's cheek. “But this is fine. It's best if you aren't involved in these things. They're a bit too... filthy.”

Li Yue reached under the bed and pulled out a dagger. She admired its sharp edge and the dried blood upon it, the smile on her face becoming increasingly inscrutable.