Smart Move

"What did you say!?"

Upon hearing news of Aiya, Izzy instantly lost control of himself.

His strength was so immense that it even startled Luo Li.

It had to be said that when fueled by rage, people often burst forth with unbelievable power.

Izzy was exactly like that right now.

His hand clamped around Luo Li's wrist like a branding iron.

"Say it again! You just promised me you would save Aiya!"

"Shh! Lower your voice. If you don't want your Aiya to die right this second, then keep it down."

Izzy's brow was tightly furrowed as he stared fixedly at Luo Li.

"Why do we suddenly need to communicate again? What am I supposed to do in this situation? I can't rely on Keane anymore."

"Keane sold me out. The porters can't be trusted. The whole city is under martial law. In a time like this, you want me to..."

"I'm not asking you to do anything."

Luo Li's brow was also knit together.

In this current situation, just as Izzy said, doing almost anything was nearly impossible.

However, just moments ago during the conversation between Aubrey and Casma, a very important piece of information had been mentioned.

There was a private communication room within the Borgia estate.

If they could find it and use it, they could get news from Brilliant City.

Right now, they had to know if Camilla had received the message.

If she had, then there was no need to worry; they just had to stall for time.

If she hadn't, they would have to notify her again.

She might even... have to use Hero Creation to fight their way out of the city.

Under the current circumstances, Izzy was indeed being dragged into this, and even his relative, April, would not be able to escape the consequences.

"Then what exactly are you going to do? Who are you!? Why did half the nobles send out even their private armies?"

"Are you with the Holy Church? No, the Holy Church wouldn't be enough to make all the nobles move like this."

At this moment, Izzy's mind was racing as he recalled the conversation they had just overheard.

One sentence stood out above all else.

'The Saintess might not be dead; she might have already returned to the continent.'

Connecting the dots with everything that had happened, including the campaign against the demon island...

He recalled Aiya's respect for the girl before him, then thought of the ledger and the girl's general attitude.

The answer... seemed to be right in front of him.

Izzy's eyes slowly widened until they nearly bulged out of his head.

His face was a mask of pure disbelief as he gaped at the girl.

Luo Li couldn't help but let out a sigh at his expression, which looked as though he were witnessing a miracle.

"At a time like this, dragging you into this to such an extent was not my intention."

Since they were already in the same boat, if it sank, they would both go down.

She and this boy would both die, along with Aiya and April. To keep hiding it would be a bit heartless.

"In truth, I didn't expect things to turn out this way either. Let's start over."

Luo Li's expression turned solemn.

"My true name is Luo Li Saint Sariel. I was the one leading the army to conquer the demon island. During the retreat, I fell into the sea and eventually washed up on the beach of the East Forest. I am the Saintess of the Moon."

"The... the Saintess?"

Izzy stood frozen on the spot, his brain seemingly unable to fully process the news in such a short time.

However, there was no time for him to daze out.

"Izzy, listen. The person I contacted in Brilliant City was from the Alchemists' Association. The head, Camilla, has already sworn an oath to me. As long as she gets the message, she can notify my dragon knight army to come and support us."

"But you heard those two talking. I suspect the news that 'I am in Moonrise City' didn't successfully reach Camilla, so I must communicate again."

"If I confirm that they haven't received the news, I'll have to use certain means to save your Aiya first, then immediately go to Luocheng to pick up your sister and find a way to escape the pursuit in Moonrise City."

She slowly lowered her head and bowed to Izzy.

"I am very sorry for involving you. Since things have reached this point, I have no other choice."

Izzy looked at the girl bowing before him, his heart shocked beyond measure.

However, the image of his father, deeply etched into his childhood memories, made him feel instinctively flustered.

The Capablanca family had been Temple knights for generations; it was practically a family tradition.

Originally, if Izzy had been able to cultivate, he would have gone to the Temple to be a knight, just like his father.

Unfortunately, Izzy did not have that talent.

More than ninety-five percent of people in this world lacked the talent to increase their strength.

Izzy was just one of the many masses. Although the Capablanca family was incredibly loyal, they were helpless against such a situation.

Because of this, when he saw the Saintess whom his family had served for generations actually bowing to him, even the usually irreverent Izzy became panicked.

"Your... Your Highness Saintess, please don't do this."

Luo Li raised her head to look at Izzy.

"Why?"

Izzy grit his teeth and suddenly dropped to one knee on the ground.

"My Capablanca family has sworn loyalty to the Saintess of the Moon for generations. As a descendant of the Capablanca family, although I do not possess the great strength of my ancestors, I still hold loyalty to the Holy Church in my heart. If my father saw Your Highness bowing to me, he would climb out of his coffin to beat me to death."

Who would have thought that the Capablanca family was such a family.

Luo Li felt a sense of helplessness. For such a loyal knight to die under a false accusation was a failure on her part as the Saintess.

But thinking back, five years ago, she was still giggling in front of a computer screen.

"Izzy, I thank you for your family's generations of loyalty. Rest assured, as long as we can get through this crisis, I will surely clear your family's name and restore your family's glory."

"Thank..."

"No need for thanks. It's not the time for that yet. Once we survive this, you'll have all the time in the world to thank me."

"Eh??"

Izzy was stunned. He seemed to have heard something incredible just now.

But before he could react, the Saintess whispered:

"Let's find the communication room first, then find a way to contact Brilliant City."

Izzy thought for a moment and nodded.

"But, Your Highness, in our current situation, how are we supposed to find this room?"

"Don't worry."

Luo Li took a deep breath and turned her gaze toward the laundry room they had just passed.

"I have a way."

Izzy followed her gaze and instantly understood the girl's plan.

"You plan to threaten..."

"You don't need to use honorifics with me. Just speak to me as you did before."

A smile played on Luo Li's lips as she glanced at Izzy.

"I won't threaten them. I'm just a passerby asking for directions. Is that not allowed?"

"And if they won't say?"

The girl reached out, and the Holy Cross Sword appeared out of thin air, falling into her palm.

"Then I'll make them say it."

Izzy blinked.

Wasn't that still a threat?

Was there a difference?

None at all.

But it didn't matter anymore.

At a time like this, there was no need to fuss over such small details.

"Let's go."

With no time to hesitate, Luo Li decisively stepped toward the laundry room.

The laundry room was still brightly lit, and the two middle-aged women inside were still gossiping.

Luo Li took a deep breath, walked directly into the light, and strolled into the room with an air of arrogance.

Izzy, startled, hurriedly followed behind her.

As soon as his foot stepped through the door, the girl suddenly drew her long sword and let out a sharp cry.

"Nobody move! I'm not a good person!!"

The two middle-aged women scrubbing clothes at the wooden basins froze.

Izzy, standing behind Luo Li, was also stunned.

However, Luo Li did not hesitate for a second. She strode over, grabbed a white silk scarf hanging on the wall, and stuffed it hard into the mouth of the gaping middle-aged woman!

'Mmph!'

The woman instinctively tried to pull the object out of her mouth, but in the next second, the cold blade of a sword was pressed against her neck. The threat of death instantly left the woman dazed.

"Don't move. Was I not clear just now? I'm not a good person. Be good, and you live. Disobey, and you die."

Next, Luo Li glanced at Izzy.

Izzy reacted quickly, picking up another silk scarf and stuffing it into the mouth of the other woman who was about to scream.

First battle, victory!

The laundry room was successfully suppressed.

The room was quite spacious and very humid.

A faint floral scent wafted through the air, coming from the pool specifically used for soaking clothes.

Luo Li nodded, signaling Izzy to close the door. He didn't hesitate and immediately shut it.

At this moment, only the four of them remained in the room.

Luo Li's Holy Cross Sword was pressed tightly against the neck of woman A.

"I ask, you answer. Whoever is slow dies! Understood?"

At this moment, the girl's firm tone caused both women to show expressions of terror.

The two of them nodded their heads vigorously like chickens pecking at grain.

"I'm asking you, where is the Borgia family communication room?"

Luo Li signaled Izzy to remove the cloth from woman B's mouth and also pulled the scarf from woman A's mouth.

"I know!"

"I know too! I know too!"

Under the threat of death, the two middle-aged women answered without the slightest hesitation.

"It's right next to the main hall!"

"Yes, yes, yes! To the right of the main hall, the third room from the left!"

"Yes, that's it! There are no guards there!"

"That's right! All the guards were sent out today!"

To stay alive, these two women said whatever they could.

They shared almost everything they knew without reservation.

Judging by their reactions, they were likely telling the truth.

Luo Li nodded, stuffed the silk scarf back in, and struck the hilt of her sword against the back of woman A's head.

Woman A was stunned for a moment, clutching her head as she turned back to look at Luo Li with a look of complete confusion.

And Luo Li... blinked, then looked at the hilt of her sword.

She suddenly realized that she had apparently been lied to by television dramas for years.

Who said a blow to the back of the head would always make someone faint?

The directors and screenwriters of those historical martial arts dramas should come out and explain this!

Why didn't she pass out when she hit her!

"Highness... what are you doing?"

Izzy and woman B were also stunned, both of them staring at Luo Li in a daze.

At this moment, the girl was cringing so hard she could have dug a hole to the other side of the planet with her toes.

"I... I wanted to knock her out."

"Knock her out?"

Izzy was stunned for a moment. He lowered his head in thought before looking at Luo Li.

"If you want to knock someone out, that amount of force won't do it. You have to do it like this."

As he spoke, Izzy looked around and picked up a wooden stick used for beating laundry.

Then, gripping the end of the stick with both hands, he gave it a fierce swing.

The feeling was like someone swinging a baseball bat.

The wooden stick even made a whistling sound as it cut through the air.

'Whoosh!' The sound scared the two middle-aged women nearly to tears.

Like that?

Luo Li looked at the sword in her hand, then at the back of the middle-aged woman's head.

Regardless of anything else, a fierce swing like that... she might pass out, but a fractured skull would be unavoidable.

If the angle was bad, her head would be split open.

But Luo Li hadn't intended to kill these two women from the start.

After hesitating, she looked around the room.

The place was full of clothes, belts, and ropes.

Hmm, it seemed knocking them out was unlikely, but tying them up shouldn't be a problem.

"Izzy, tie them both up."

Saying this, Luo Li looked down at the two women.

"You two, listen closely. I'm telling you, this man..."

Luo Li pointed her finger, and the other middle-aged woman also looked in the direction she was pointing.

"He is absolute scum! A beast! When he gets going, even the professional women at the city wall pass out from the intensity! If you don't listen, once his lust takes over... Hehe, I don't need to tell you the consequences, do I?"

Middle-aged woman A nodded frantically, however... middle-aged woman B was stunned for a moment.

She slowly turned her head and looked at Izzy, sizing him up from head to toe.

In her originally lifeless eyes, a sudden burst of startling light appeared.

It was like a person who hadn't eaten for three years suddenly seeing a hotpot feast!

Izzy felt his skin crawl under her gaze and hurriedly tried to defend himself.

"Hey, hey, hey! Don't talk nonsense! I've never done that! You have to believe me, I'm pure and innocent, really!"

However, his defense didn't seem to reach woman B's ears.

Luo Li ignored him, pulled a ribbon from the wall, and began tying up woman A.

Izzy felt so creeped out that he didn't care about anything else and quickly grabbed a rope to tie her up.

But woman B clearly had 'other plans' and kept struggling.

She kept struggling while leaning toward Izzy, not even caring that the cloth had fallen out of her mouth.

Woman B even stood up, yet she didn't try to run away.

In the end, Luo Li had to step in and help tie woman B up.

They stuffed the two of them into a small room in the back before leaving the room.

As they walked, Izzy adjusted his disheveled collar.

"I say, Your Highness, could you please not talk such nonsense? My reputation was almost ruined!"

The girl gave Izzy a disdainful glance.

"Weakling."

"Huh?"

"You can't even handle a middle-aged woman. You really are a pushover!"

Izzy's face turned red. He held it in for a long time before biting back a retort:

"I... I'm the intellectual type! Who goes around using their hands and feet all the time?"

Luo Li's brow twitched. Was he talking about her?

"What, do you have an issue with how I handle things?"

"Of course! Not."

"Smart move."

The girl lowered her Holy Cross Sword.