stonecrandall Page 278
Page 278
"At least this time, he doesn't want to suppress himself anymore..."
"If he can quell the turmoil in the entire kingdom, then he can truly be with Cuiyin forever. That is the wish he has longed for in his heart for so long, the last struggle he tried to make before becoming king."
"Unfortunately, he failed."
Hearst sighed softly from his seat: "We failed too."
Syl then came to her senses and echoed with some regret, "Yes, it was just a little short."
Upon closer examination, the entire plan was within the prince's calculations, but two unexpected events caused everything to fall apart.
"That hero of calamity and the fourth demon... Although it is unknown whether it was one of them who destroyed the Emerald Sound, no matter how willful Ota is, he will not continue to fall into depravity. In other words, they prevented the kingdom from the next step of internal strife."
Hearst stroked his pen, drawing something on the manuscript paper on the table: "But, heroes are one thing, but why are those demons getting involved?"
Raising his head and looking into the depths of the Demon Realm, Hearst's eyes showed a rare hint of doubt.
"I have a feeling that there's an unseen hand at work behind all this... Is it the Demon King's scribe who's good at manipulating people's minds? Or the mysterious and unpredictable Demon King of Time?"
After realizing that he couldn't figure it out, Hearst shook his head and put these less important things out of his mind.
The pen tip paused on the paper.
"No matter what, the plan wasn't a complete failure." Hearst lowered his head and looked at the beautiful songstress vividly depicted on the page. Her emerald green figure and melodious voice were imprinted on the hearts of many people in the capital and those watching the live broadcast that night.
"Through Tsui-yin's concert, the seeds of 'dimensionality' have begun to be sown—"
Hearst gazed quietly at the emerald sound on the drawing paper, and foresaw that the heavenly music from the border would soon truly enter the kingdom, bringing about some new changes.
"Ota, you did it."
"I...succeeded too."
……
royal palace.
back yard.
"Your Highness Ota, Heroine Shana has been locked up in the solitary confinement room for three days. Shouldn't she be released?"
"Your Highness Ota, all the reactionaries subdued on the night of the concert have been tried. We have successfully eradicated several criminal gangs lurking in the capital."
"Your Highness Otta, the noble ministers who neither took sides nor flattered others during the court turmoil are all marked on this list. What do you think should be done with them?"
"Your Highness Ota, are you really not going to try dismantling the remains of the songstress Cuiyin? Perhaps we can find the reason for your abnormal behavior during that period?"
"Your Highness Ota...?"
There was only one seat at the tea table in the center of the garden. Prince Ota sat motionless, like a clay sculpture, staring blankly into the air opposite him.
After calling out several times without receiving a response, Tus sighed, knowing that His Highness the Prince's condition meant he wouldn't recover for several months.
After the tour night, everything in the kingdom returned to normal.
The instigators and evil forces among the masses were sent to prison, the perpetrators who spread rumors and public opinion were exposed, and factions within the nobles, ministers and knights were also clearly defined. The counterattack against the demons greatly boosted the morale of the border.
The people praised Prince Otta's wisdom, while the nobles and ministers were filled with more fear and awe at the prince's shrewdness.
In just one night, Prince Ota eliminated almost all the potential threats that lay before his ascension to the throne.
The price was just a shattered diva projector and... Prince Ota.
"Prince Ota, this time you're truly heartbroken—"
Tus sighed sadly.
Regardless, only he and Erwin knew that although rumors circulated that the prince had "entered the game himself and won by half a move," in reality, Prince Ota was truly injured.
It hurts so much.
Every night, I could hear him sobbing uncontrollably under his blankets, even from across the dorm room.
Although they didn't understand why Prince Ota would have such deep feelings for a virtual singer, Tus and the others had no way to comfort the "love-struck" Ota and could only regard it as a lingering effect of some kind of spell or witchcraft.
If only the hero Mino were here, he could have a few bitter drinks with the prince, or even beat him up, and maybe Prince Ota would be able to handle state affairs normally tomorrow...
A hint of worry appeared in Tus's eyes; he knew that things couldn't continue like this.
His Highness Ota was only temporarily handling state affairs for the ailing old king, and now that even Prince Ota is in this state, he, as a mere minister, simply cannot hold on for long. You must know that the kingdom is accumulating more and more affairs, such as the conclusion of the songstress concert, the change of the title of the Hero of Calamity, and the handling of the noble ministers of various factions. If these are not dealt with soon, the entire kingdom's operation will be in serious trouble.
"Isn't there anything that can quickly cheer His Highness up?"
With a sigh, Tuss turned his head and suddenly caught sight of a timid little head by the garden gate.
"Huh?!"
Startled, the familiar woman in the green dress shrank back immediately.
"Astrid Scholar?"
Tus was overjoyed and quickly chased after him.
"Gah!" Outside the door, Astrid, who wanted to run away, knew it was too late. She could only turn her head stiffly, raise her hands, and sob:
"Yes, it's Minister Tus... I was just taking a stroll around the neighborhood, absolutely... I had no bad intentions whatsoever, I swear!"
"Look, you're here again." Tus shook his head helplessly.
"Scholar Astrid, I sincerely apologize for the psychological trauma caused to you by the paladins at the concert. As you probably know now, His Highness Ota was just not in a good state at the time, which is why he misunderstood you."
Recalling Astrid's actions that night, Tuss's tone was filled with deep respect:
"After all, you stood up selflessly and fearlessly in the darkest hour when everyone gave up and everyone was trying to protect themselves and avoid taking the lead... You are a true role model of humanity!!!"
Chapter 400 The Greatest Invention: Dimensional Filter!
A role model for humanity?
I?
Astrid stared wide-eyed, shaking her head left and right as she looked around.
Trying to find a stranger around you with the same name.
Seriously, isn't this a bit insulting? She's going to sue; this is defamation! The biggest defamation ever!
"Yes! It's you!" Minister Tus clapped his hands in praise.
"Although only we know the truth, that night, you knew that Prince Ota had laid a trap, that Erwin and I had been imprisoned, and that you knew how severe the punishment would be for disobeying the prince, yet you still took that firm step!"
Astrid's eyes widened in confusion... She... she had no idea! Why... why hadn't anyone told her?
"Your unwavering loyalty to the kingdom and your willingness to die for His Highness the Prince have reached the ears of all the ministers! They all idolize you, and some have even unearthed fanfiction written by you to admire the integrity in your words, Scholar Astrid."
"They, they..." Astrid's face flushed red with anger.
"How could they smear my fanfiction like that?! You bastards, appreciate the aesthetics of the character switching between top and bottom!"
"Let's not talk about that, Scholar Astrid. What brings you to the palace all of a sudden? You didn't even tell me beforehand," Tus asked with some curiosity.
"This...I...I..."
Astrid's expression immediately turned timid, and she began to stammer.
The perpetrator will definitely return to the crime scene after committing the crime—this is not the reason for the fear and anxiety. It wasn't until she huddled under the covers in the library for three days, trembling, that Astrid remembered that she had left a fatal flaw when she used her authority a few days ago!
The corrupting power moves silently, but it will leave behind a unique trace of her soul on the objects it manipulates!
Once detected, it will be verified against her.
Thinking of this, Astrid shuddered: that supposedly mentally unstable Prince Ota would definitely tear her to pieces!
Therefore, after a period of intense mental preparation, Astrid decided to sneak into the palace and retrieve that soul aura.
As a great scholar of the kingdom and a great figure who possessed the Key of Night, she naturally had the freedom to enter and leave the palace without being summoned or given permission, for which she should indeed thank that human king.
However, their initial attempt was unsuccessful. Unexpectedly, by following the power sensor deeper into the palace, they discovered fragments of the virtual singer (hardware) remaining in the back garden.
It was one thing for Prince Ota to be sitting inside like a wooden doll, but then Minister Tus actually bumped into him!
My heart was pounding.
Astrid's eyes darted around, and she was about to make up some excuse when Tuss in front of her seemed to understand something and smacked his head hard: "Ah, I was being redundant. My apologies, Scholar Astrid."
He clasped his hands together, his eyes filled with joy and anticipation, and said:
"You must be worried about Prince Ota's health, which is why you came to visit him!"
Eh?
Astrid was stunned.
“Come in quickly, Scholar Astrid.” Before she could explain, Tuss had already walked behind her and shoved her little by little into the garden:
“Prince Ota has been in a rather low mood these days. Commander Erwin and I have tried many methods, but we have been unable to cheer him up.”
"His Highness will be very happy to know that you have come to see him."
"This, this..." Astrid's heart skipped a beat, and she was a little flustered, but then she thought that this might be an opportunity to enter the back garden and withdraw that aura.
After hesitating for a moment, seeing that Tuss was leading the way, Astrid shrank back and carefully followed, glancing around timidly at the same time.
She breathed a slight sigh of relief when she saw that there were no dozen or so burly paladins hiding in the shadows of the surrounding bushes.
As the sense of soul energy became clearer, Astrid gradually stopped.
In the center of the garden, a white jade tombstone stands amidst the flowers, the freshly turned soil still exuding a clear fragrance, surrounded by clusters of delicate white flowers.
Astrid crouched down and could sense the presence of a soul here, or rather, beneath this tombstone.
She subconsciously looked at the inscription carved on the tombstone:
— "This is where Prince Ota's first love is buried."
……
Border Archives.
“Cuiyin’s plan has failed. It’s a pity… that projection box can’t be retrieved. It originally contained another one of my spares, which was intended to deal with Ota’s plan.”
As if remembering something, Hearst looked up from the desk covered with manuscripts, seemingly with regret.
"It's a pity we didn't find the right person; otherwise, that might have been the most effective way to deal with Ota."
"You mean, there are actually two ways to deal with that first prince who is flawless, cold-blooded, and wise, except for his obsession with border products?"