In the past, Cuihua had always been skeptical about the claim that the deepwood region’s peace was affected by the integration of races there.
In her eyes, there wasn’t much difference between wood elves and humans.
All this time, it seemed that only Qīngmù had ever put her at a disadvantage, but even then, Qīngmù never bore any malice toward her.
So what’s the deal with these two thugs, one tall and one short, here and now?
Is her kindness about to be repaid with evil?
Walking in front of the two, following their directions, Cuihua felt only helplessness in her heart.
She wanted several times to call out to the wood elf guards nearby, who held weapons, but it was as if her intentions were being paraded in the street; whenever she had such thoughts, the tall woman behind her, the one with the pleasant voice, would always speak up and say out loud what she was thinking.
Cuihua could only shake her head and stubbornly deny it.
These two were definitely not to be trifled with.
After being dragged along for some time, Cuihua finally decided deep down that, for now, she would just go along with these two’s demands.
At the blacksmith shop, Cuihua’s arrival was met with a warm welcome from the wood elf blacksmith. After a few pleasantries, Lin Qiyou stepped forward and said to the blacksmith, “Can we talk now?”
Seeing that it was Lin Qiyou, who had been turned away here before, the blacksmith was momentarily stunned. He turned to look at Cuihua, and, seeing the pleading expression on her face, shrugged and replied:
“Shall we talk?”
“I’m looking for a special kind of furnace.”
“Furnace?”
The blacksmith was startled, memories from the Rose Royal Capital—memories that made his heart tremble—surfaced in his mind.
“If you mean a furnace… ah! You gave me a fright!”
The blacksmith slapped the table, while his assistant beside him also looked thoroughly rattled.
“What happened?”
Lin Qiyou asked.
“We were in the Rose Royal Capital, gathering materials to build that furnace, and we ran into that Butcher—just happened to run into her!”
As the blacksmith spoke, Lin Qiyou suddenly glanced at Xiaoya. She, of course, had already recognized these two blacksmiths from the start, but she had always hidden it—she had a feeling she would be recognized at that time.
And sure enough, it happened now.
If she were recognized here, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Of course, Lin Qiyou wasn’t the one who would have to bear those consequences.
Still, she had to do everything possible to avoid it.
Though she wouldn’t mind butchering the Rose Royal Capital, and then butchering the deepwood region after.
“Hmph, so what about the furnace?”
Lin Qiyou acted as though she didn’t care at all about the blacksmith’s inner turmoil, just nodding.
“Uh, we have many furnaces here, but the special one…”
The blacksmith glanced at Cuihua, who at that moment was filled with confusion.
A special furnace—surely it must be the design Qīngmù had given her, right?
But why would these two ask about that furnace?
Not good!
Cuihua instinctively felt she shouldn’t tell them anything about the furnace; her mind was racing, but the blacksmith’s callused, burn-scarred hand was already pointing at her face.
“Wasn’t it Miss Cuihua who gave me the blueprint for the special furnace?”
“Uh… that’s right, that furnace was requested by a relative from the Rose Royal Capital, but unfortunately, he died in the massacre!”
Cuihua clapped her hands, intending to use this story to mislead Lin Qiyou.
With the tacit understanding among wood elves, the blacksmith caught on and immediately nodded, saying, “Yes! That’s the reason I went to the Rose Royal Capital in the first place! Such a pity, what a pity!”
As the blacksmith spoke, he glanced at Cuihua, and, seeing the look of approval on her face, began considering whether to report this to the guards.
Lin Qiyou crossed her arms, looking at the two wood elves. Whether she believed them or not was hard to say. Xiaoya, on the side, kept her face hidden under her hood.
“Ah… is that so? Seems like the massacre made my chance to seek the truth vanish again, huh?”
With a sigh, a fierce light flashed in Lin Qiyou’s eyes.
*****
Another world.
The owner of the palace never went to the study—in fact, she hated dealing with any paperwork. Even though, as a yōkai king, she had to handle some affairs herself, she had an instinctive aversion.
Whenever she had to deal with documents, her head would ache and her heart would pound.
Therefore, oral reports became extremely important in the palace.
Nongli had four attendants whose job was to report matters to her, each with different responsibilities, and they regularly supervised one another to test their secrecy and loyalty.
So, this was truly a dangerous job for those who did it.
In the pavilion, Nongli sat on a chair, listening as her scribe reported on various matters from across the land. Usually, her expression was one of great impatience, especially when she heard of other yōkai kings bringing up issues concerning the resettlement of humans. She would bare her fangs, frown, and form deep creases on her forehead.
But this time, she was lost in thought, not paying attention at all.
“Nongli-daren, did you hear what I just said?”
The scribe’s words jolted Nongli from her trance. “What?”
“I was saying, about the human resettlement—many yōkai kings are very dissatisfied with you.”
“That’s enough!”
Nongli’s change of mood was shockingly quick. With a wave of her hand, she dismissed the scribe and attendants, and headed to a bedroom.
She pushed open the door and, seeing the empty room, muttered, “Strange, where is he?”
Then she caught a whiff of a very peculiar medicinal fragrance—it was the scent of a pill, and it was oddly familiar and very pleasant. Even though it was clearly a pill, it stirred her appetite.
Guided by the scent, she moved past the table and came to a cupboard.
“Pills?”
Nongli opened the cupboard and found a few misshapen pills inside. These were clearly not made by a local alchemist, nor would pills made by local alchemists have such a strong aroma that she could find them just by following her nose.
Could someone be trying to poison me?
Nongli’s foxy cunning surfaced, but still, she picked up a pill and examined it before tossing it into her mouth.
This was Qīngmù’s room. He was just a human cub—how could he possibly harm her?
With this thought, Nongli put the pill in her mouth. The strange medicinal fragrance exploded on her tongue; the effect was so mild it made Nongli want to laugh—it was just like a sugar candy. But she found it delicious. Her fox ears and tail stood straight up, and she had a sudden urge to drop down on all fours and frolic.
Though she resisted the urge, a look of pure happiness spread across her face.
And this scene was seen clearly by Qīngmù outside the window.
No matter how much time passes, a fox who loves eating pills will always be a fox.
*****
“Who are you two? Do you know who I am? How dare you treat me like this!”
On his way back from gathering herbs for Qīngmù, the giraffe yōkai was suddenly subdued by two masked figures. With his hands tied behind his back, he lay flat on the ground. “Let me go, now!”
“Of course I know who you are, and I think you probably know who I am too, right?”
A familiar voice sounded, and a person pulled back her hood. When the giraffe yōkai saw her, his heart skipped a beat.
Lin Qiyou!
He had never seen her up close, but with her cold demeanor, the tear mole beneath her left eye, and that unique aura, he recognized her instantly.
Why is Lin Qiyou here again!
“I know Qīngmù is here. Take me to him now, or I’ll slaughter everyone here again.”