“Bang! Bang!”
Wendy, unable to bear it any longer, delivered a flick to each of the girls’ foreheads.
The crisp sound instantly silenced the two, who had been on the verge of drawing swords and arguing over nothing, making them clutch their heads in unison and glare at him with a mix of grievance and disbelief.
“Is this really the time to be fighting among ourselves?”
He placed his hands on his hips and scolded the two.
“Is now really the moment to argue about who goes first? Astreia will be back in three days! If we don’t finish the mission, all three of us are dead meat!”
“Right now, immediately, focus on the work!”
Maybe it was because Prince had a point, or maybe the “physical persuasion” worked, but the Little Queen and Miss Klein exchanged a rare glance and, for once, didn’t bicker any further.
Yekaterina pouted and obediently went to handle the related government affairs, mobilizing resources to pave the way for the upcoming “Public Opinion Storm.”
Meanwhile, Wendy took Laxana and headed straight for the Royal Workshop.
According to the plan, they needed to produce enough paper and revolutionary “Movable Type Printing Presses” here as quickly as possible.
Wendy had thought this would be a grand and cumbersome project.
Even with the unreasonable presence of magic in this world, the intricate parts on the design drawings would still take a lot of effort.
However, he once again underestimated the convenience of magic—or rather, the terrifying genius of Laxana.
Was magic ever something so inconvenient?
He watched as Laxana operated like an all-powerful, self-running production machine.
A pile of scrap wood pulp was swiftly purified by Water Element, dried by Fire Element, then cut and shaped by Wind Element. In less than half an hour, stacks of smooth, even “Hemp Paper” piled up like small mountains.
As for the Printing Press, it was even more absurd.
Wendy merely drew the design, and after Laxana glanced at it, she raised both hands.
Earth Element constructed the machine’s frame, Fire Element melted metal to cast the lead type, Light Element precisely engraved characters onto each type, and finally, Dark Element inscribed Magic Arrays to automatically absorb ink.
A meticulously structured, even somewhat sci-fi-looking Magic Printing Press was hand-crafted out of thin air by her.
Wendy was dumbfounded as he watched from the side.
Only then did he realize Laxana’s mastery wasn’t limited to just Light and Lightning.
Water, Fire, Wind, Earth, Dark…
This woman was practically a walking periodic table of elements!
Sensing the Prince’s incredulous gaze, Miss Klein lifted her chin proudly and wiped away a nonexistent bead of sweat from her brow.
“Well? Amazing, right~”
“This is the result of years of hard work!”
Wendy silently rolled his eyes.
Effort was certainly involved, but being able to wield so many different schools of magic this skillfully had to be ninety-nine percent innate, cheat-level talent!
With Laxana, the human factory’s magical support, enough paper and over a dozen printing presses were somehow all finished before dinner.
The rest could be left to the craftsmen and servants to work overnight.
***
When Wendy and Laxana dragged their exhausted (mostly mentally) bodies back to the Queen’s Bedchamber, a sumptuous feast had already filled the long table.
In the air, an aroma completely out of place in this world drifted.
The Braised Pork was rich but not greasy, glowing red; Kung Pao Chicken was sweet, sour, spicy, and tender; the golden, crispy Sweet and Sour Pork, refreshing Smashed Cucumber, and a plate of perfectly grained Egg Fried Rice speckled with green scallions.
All these were Huaxia Cuisine recipes Wendy had described to the palace Chef from his previous life’s memory.
He had repeatedly warned them not to improvise with cheese or butter and to skip any seasonings they didn’t have—authenticity was the soul.
Now, though the flavor was still a far cry from the original, the effect was impressive.
The Little Queen Yekaterina clearly couldn’t wait any longer, already seated at the head, stabbing Braised Pork with her left hand and spooning Kung Pao Chicken with her right, her small mouth oily and utterly lacking in queenly grace.
Seeing this scene, Laxana’s willow eyebrows shot up.
Good grief, this little brat dared to sneak a bite?!
Without a word, she charged into the fray, afraid she’d be left with nothing but soup if she hesitated.
Wendy could only shake his head helplessly and quickly take a seat with his utensils.
However, where some rushed, others idled.
Just as Wendy was about to put a glistening piece of Braised Pork into his mouth, a faint, feather-light touch brushed against his calf.
It felt as if a single feather was tracing over his skin, leaving a subtle tickle.
“This is…”
He paused, looking instinctively beneath the table.
There, encased in black fishnet stockings, a shapely leg was pressed against his calf, restlessly rubbing back and forth.
!!!
Wendy’s eyes widened like copper bells.
Following the curve of the leg, sure enough, he met Yekaterina’s mischievous emerald gaze.
Instead of retracting, the Little Queen hooked her lips in a sultry, wicked smile.
A rush of heat surged from Wendy’s toes to the top of his head.
Damn it!
He quickly looked toward Laxana on the other side, only to find she was completely oblivious, locked in an epic battle with a piece of Sweet and Sour Pork, her cheeks puffed out.
Thank goodness…
Just as Wendy let out a sigh of relief, the teasing sensation intensified.
The rough texture of the fishnet stocking climbed leisurely up his leg, finally resting lightly on his knee.
Wendy sucked in a cold breath and glared fiercely at the Little Queen, eyes filled with warning.
But he didn’t call her out or move the offending leg—he simply turned back and continued eating.
Only, his hand gripping the soup spoon began to tremble.
Seeing his forbearance, the Little Queen’s smile deepened.
Suddenly—
“Clang!”
The soup spoon slipped from Wendy’s hand and clattered to the floor.
“I… I’ll pick it up.”
He stammered, face red, ducking under the table as if fleeing.
At that exact moment, the Little Queen’s triumphant smile froze.
Her emerald eyes glazed over, a flush rapidly spreading from her neck to her ears, and her breath quickened.
A moment later…
“Wendy, why does it take you so long to pick up a spoon? Useless!”
Laxana, mouth full, mumbled a complaint.
But just as she finished, the Little Queen shuddered violently, and her own spoon fell with a “clang” to the floor.
“I-I’ll pick it up too!”