This chapter is broken. Please report this on discord.
TL: Hm, actually, the planning of Ardion and the not-so selfish action of Laila is not so pleasing though. But still, this chapter was good. What do you think this?
“She couldn’t have gone far. Track her down quickly.”
“Yes.”
Everyone else had left, but Serina was still inspecting my room. She stared sharply at the bed before glancing at the open window. I hadn’t closed it after standing by it earlier.
She walked over to the window, looked around briefly, and then left my room.
“Derol, let’s go.”
Now that Serina had come here, I couldn’t stay any longer.
Does this mean the dream I had earlier is becoming reality?
It seemed clear why Serina was here. She intended to kidnap me and lure Ardion out. It was just as I had overheard in their conversation earlier. Realizing that, I moved quicker.
My body had been itching to move, and now I had a perfect reason to leave, so it wasn’t a bad thing.
❋ ❋ ❋
Derol seemed quite familiar with the ventilation ducts. I followed him through without complaint, crawling through a relatively spacious duct. It was much better than the waste passage under the prison. Compared to that, this place felt like heaven.
The occasional dust on my clothes was something I could easily overlook.
I followed Derol closely, hearing the occasional chatter of people. I could hear them mentioning the prince, and their hurried words indicated something was wrong in the mansion.
What is Ardion doing right now? I looked at my wrist. There were still no signs of any markings. At least I knew the magical drug was there. It was better than being completely unaware.
“Master, we’re almost there.”
I increased my crawling pace while hearing the soft sounds of people’s voices along the way. Occasionally, I heard someone mention the prince, and their anxious tone told me something was definitely happening in the mansion.
Ardion must be busy right now, I thought as I focused on my movements.
I took a glance at my wrist once more. Fortunately, there was no marking. I was grateful for that, as it would have been worse not knowing about the magic.
“Master, we’re close!”
Derol’s voice made me move forward with more determination. Before long, I saw a faint light up ahead.
Derol turned back and pointed. “Master, there it is!”
He quickly dashed ahead, and I followed him, putting more strength into my arms as I moved. Finally, we reached the place where the light was coming from. I stopped and stared blankly ahead. There were no stairs or ladders, and the drop was quite high. A chill ran down my spine at the thought of it.
“Derol, can you go down there?”
“Yes, I can crawl down, but…” Derol’s voice trailed off as he came over. “I’m sorry, Master. I wasn’t thinking about you…”
“No, it’s fine. I managed to make a decent water shield back then, so I think we’ll be fine this time too.”
Please, I thought as I forced a smile. Honestly, I figured it would be better to take the risk of falling from here rather than stay quietly in that room and get kidnapped. It was sad that I couldn’t fully rely on my own strength, but I had no choice. Fortunately, there was no one else around. I calmed myself by thinking of the water barrier I had created in the sewers. Then I reached my hand down, and in an instant, a round barrier formed around me and gently carried me downwards.
“Master!” Derol looked at me, surprised. “I’ve never seen such a perfect barrier before…”
The one I had made in the sewers was rougher than this. I checked below and then jumped. For a brief moment, I felt something soft envelop me, and then I was gently lowered. It felt as if I were floating down on a cloud.
I stared in awe at the disappearing barrier. It seemed it couldn’t be maintained for long.
“Still, it’s something amazing,“ I muttered in admiration.
I pulled Derol out of my pocket and picked up a discarded black cloak nearby. When I emerged from the alley, there were quite a few people around. I passed by them quickly while scanning the ground. I saw the local newspaper with my name in big, bold letters.
[Laila, the Commoner Who Rose to Prominence in an Instant!]
Just then, a large carriage passed by. I quickly stepped aside to avoid it, barely managing to keep my balance. I heard people nearby grumbling about the carriage.
“Those carriages have been going around a lot lately, what with the crown prince’s coronation preparations.”
“It’s ridiculous. They’re shortening the mourning period and still planning a coronation.”
“Speaking of which, what has the crown prince actually done? Isn’t he the one who caused people’s death on the frontier?”
“Watch your words. You could end up in prison if you’re not careful.”
They stopped talking as they passed me. I looked around and noticed a newsstand nearby.
[The Femme Fatale Commoner Who Stole the Crown Prince’s Heart—Who is She?]
I blinked in disbelief. What the…
The newspaper claimed that Rowell was madly in love with me. My face wasn’t shown, but discomfort grew inside.
Why drag Rowell into this?
As I stood there with a stiff face, Derol squeaked. “Master, some strange people are coming this way.”
I turned around in surprise, and indeed, a group of people was walking towards me, staring directly at me. I immediately picked up the pace.
The market was quite crowded today. I covered my face with my cloak and glanced behind me. The people were walking faster. I created a small puddle of water on the ground, then turned towards the carriage approaching from the other side.
“Are you out of your mind? Watch where you're going!”
“I’m sorry.”
I noticed one of the people following me coming out slightly from the carriage, bowing his head. He even stumbled in the puddle. I watched them for a moment before quickly turning and heading towards the palace.
After walking for a while, I arrived at a familiar path. Soon, I reached the gates of the palace. The guards were standing there, holding spears, their expressions stern. It didn’t seem like they would let anyone through easily.
I whispered to Derol in my pocket, “Derol, can you distract those guards?”
“How should I do that?”
Just then, someone passed by, casting a quick glance at me. I turned around naturally and began walking slowly, sensing the surroundings. I glanced back and saw the person talking to the guards. Soon, the person entered the palace.
I said to Derol, “Pretend to be dead here.”
“Pretend to be dead?”
“Yeah, and if you hear coughing, quickly run to the door. But Derol, if it’s too dangerous, don’t do it. I’ll think of another way.”
Derol immediately shook his head. “No, that sounds like fun.”
I glanced behind me. The guards were deep in conversation. While the guards weren’t paying attention, I said, “Derol, you can pretend to be dead right here.”
I gently lowered him to the ground, and he immediately lay sideways on the street.
“Master, will this be enough?” He even stuck out his tongue.
I patted him softly. “Derol, you’re doing great. It’ll definitely fool people.”
Derol made a small squeak, and I patted him again before standing up. I stole a glance at the guards. They were still chatting among themselves, smiling and joking around. Thankfully, the atmosphere seemed calmer than before. I took a deep breath and quickly ran towards them.
“Excuse me!” I called out urgently.
The guards turned to look. They tilted their heads when they saw me and asked, “What’s the matter?”
“There’s a dead rat over there.” I pointed to where Derol lay.
The guards looked uncertain. “There are rats around here sometimes. It’s no big deal.”
I shook my head seriously. “No, that’s why it’s more concerning. I heard that rats carrying the plague have been found around the palace.”
“The plague?”
I nodded. “We should check. Since you’re the ones guarding this place, it’s your responsibility to remove their corpses.”
The guards exchanged glances, their expressions uncertain. They didn’t seem eager to act, but the mention of the plague made them hesitant.
“If you don’t deal with this, the crown prince will likely hold you accountable.”
Hearing that, they quickly ran towards Derol. I had been worried one might stay behind, but once I mentioned Rowell, they seemed too afraid to stay. That worked in my favor. It meant I could easily enter the palace.
As soon as I stepped inside, I let out a loud cough.
Then I hid behind a large pillar, watching the entrance. After a moment, I heard the guards screaming, and Derol ran towards me.
I quickly put him in my pocket and hid behind the pillar again.
“Didn’t the rat run this way?”
“This is bad.”
“Where was the person who reported it?”
“Probably ran off in fear. What do we do now?”
“What do you mean?”
“If His Highness the Crown Prince learns about this, we’ll end up somewhere worse than here.”
“Then, let’s keep it to ourselves?”
They looked around and soon walked towards the door.
“This is something only you and I know.”
“Of course. If His Highness the Crown Prince finds out, it’s just a matter of time before we get kicked out.”
I watched their backs for a moment, then came out from behind the pillar and I headed straight to Ardion’s palace.
❋ ❋ ❋
Ardion checked his wrist repeatedly while looking at documents. He felt relieved to see that Laila was staying in one place and continued processing the documents. Rowell had given him many difficult and annoying tasks. Moreover, he had now left the coronation ceremony preparations to Ardion.
He knew that Rowell was trying to suppress him, but he didn’t expect he would be this petty.