King Weis, bathed in the dim shadows, wore an expression so obscure it was impossible to discern his mood.
He moved slowly. The other three people in the hall did not move, waiting quietly for the next words the King would speak.
"I heard that you know of Ruiya's whereabouts."
His clouded eyes stared intently at Grinya.
In his heart, nothing was more important than Ruiya.
Grinya's nervous heart gradually calmed. She pushed her recent lapse from her mind; now was not the time to dwell on such things. She was facing the highest ruler of this kingdom and had to inform the King of the truth regarding Princess Ruiya in the best possible state.
Even though the truth was extremely cruel, she had to do her utmost to make the King believe it.
Only then could she survive.
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
She suddenly stood up from the floor, her gaze exceptionally powerful and her demeanor remarkably firm.
Duke Dagro frowned as he looked at her back, then turned a questioning gaze toward the royal knight commander.
Noticing his look and knowing what Duke Dagro was worried about, the royal knight commander responded with a "no problem" gesture. "Rest assured, she has no weapons. She is not a threat."
Upon hearing this, Duke Dagro relaxed completely.
A girl who looked so young and was unarmed posed almost no threat at all.
After all, both he and the royal knight commander were king-tier mages. Aside from the Pope of the Original God Church, they were among the most powerful people on the continent.
Assassinating the King right under their noses?
What a joke!
And so, Dagro stopped paying attention to Grinya, his thoughts drifting further away.
'That boy Buze has grown up. I heard he even got into the middle academy. Should I buy him a small gift to encourage him?'
'Hmm, I'll go home this afternoon.'
Beside him, the royal knight commander also looked up, his eyes out of focus.
'What should I eat for lunch today?'
'Maybe I should try the roast meat from Old Man Yemo's place. The guys under me all say his roast meat is the best in the capital.'
Upon the throne, the King stared intensely at Grinya, his hands gripping the armrests so tightly he could barely contain himself. "Where is Ruiya?" he asked urgently.
Grinya took a deep breath and opened her mouth.
Then, she simply froze.
'Why can't I make a sound? Have I gone mute...?' Her mind went blank for a moment.
But immediately following that, she discovered she wasn't just unable to make a sound—her entire body was starting to move beyond her control.
A familiar voice rang in her ears again. "Where is this?"
'Is the Great Evil God back?'
The thought flashed through her mind, but before she could expand on it, the next sentence from the Great Evil God came in a tone of utter disbelief.
"What the #% do you mean by 'arrested and imprisoned'?"
Grinya was too embarrassed to respond.
'So the Great Evil God didn't know I was in prison.' She had thought this was a trial he had set for her.
'I'm sorry, I've disgraced the Great Evil God again!'
...
Lu Xun, who had just switched to the perspective of the Peerless Fencer, was bewildered by the unfamiliar environment. After subconsciously saying "Where is this?", he clicked on the quest list.
Sure enough, the main story quest had been updated.
【Main Story Quest: The Radiance of Yiertaya】
【In the preceding plot, you sensed something abnormal about Princess Ruiya and followed her to a stronghold of the Diao Cult. Unfortunately, you were discovered. Although you were no match for them, you used your "brilliant wit" to successfully scare the enemy away. However, the Sin Hunting Bureau arrived and suspected you of being a cultist, leading to your arrest and imprisonment. To save yourself, you found a way to come before the King...】
Staring closely at the quest details for a few moments, Lu Xun froze.
'Are my eyes playing tricks on me? I recognize every word here, but why are they so strange when put together?'
"What the hell does 'arrested and imprisoned' mean?"
After confirming the text was correct, his eyes widened, and he lost his voice in disbelief.
"And why is 'brilliant wit' put in quotation marks? What does that even mean?"
He knew that even when he wasn't playing the game, the characters would live their own lives according to set programs. He understood that, so when he entered the game and found himself in a new place, he wasn't panicked, only curious.
But you can't just go and live your life right into a prison!
Lu Xun felt that the situation was extremely absurd and felt a sense of exasperation.
The moment he saw the quest, he understood his current situation.
It seemed he had been treated as a cult follower.
In this world, if someone was treated as a cult follower, there was no need to describe their end. Therefore, he had to find a way to survive now.
Under normal circumstances, Lu Xun liked to charge in directly, but this time he hesitated.
After all, the Peerless Fencer was only level 13. Her basic stats couldn't even compare to the level 10 Bloodflame Dog Emperor. Trying to clear the entire Katar dungeon with this character would be too difficult.
He probably wouldn't be able to complete it; otherwise, the system wouldn't have specifically had him come before the King.
Wait...
The King?
He paused, then slowly focused his gaze on the frail and aged King Weis sitting upon the throne.
A crazy idea suddenly popped into his head.
But before that, he had to do some preparations.
He remembered there was still a bottle of High-tier Experience Potion in his inventory.
King Weis looked at the motionless Grinya, who was as stiff as a mechanical puppet. A look of confusion flashed across his wrinkled face.
"Why aren't you speaking?"
Grinya did not respond, but a bottle of golden experience potion suddenly appeared out of thin air in her palm.
King Weis was stunned. "Where did you get an experience potion from?"
Grinya still remained silent, simply downing the potion in one go. A golden light of leveling up suddenly erupted above her head.
【lv13-lv15】
"What is the meaning of this?"
"Where did that sword come from? This joke isn't funny. Didn't the knight commander search you?"
"Don't come so close to me. I'm afraid..."
King Weis watched as Grinya approached step by step with a longsword in hand. He pulled his neck back, looking toward the royal knight commander and Duke Dagro behind her for help.
The royal knight commander (looking up, drool dripping from the corner of his mouth): "Actually, the grilled fish from Sisuo's place isn't bad either."
Duke Dagro rested his chin on his arm, deep in thought: 'What gift should I buy for Buze?'
King Weis, taking in this scene: "..."
'This kingdom might as well be destroyed.'
Grinya's figure blurred into motion. She leaped into the air like a graceful white dove, the Sword of Honor tracing a beautiful arc through the air.
"You dog emperor, prepare to die!" she shouted.
Meanwhile, Grinya's consciousness, watching this happen before her eyes: "(꒪⌓꒪)"
Rate on N.U.
