To contact the Great Sage required magical communication. Back when they were still part of the Hero Party, she had personally taught everyone the technique—for use in emergencies, like when someone got trapped somewhere.
Aside from the Hero Xuefei—or rather, the “deceased” Hero Mo Ran—as the second most powerful existence, she had always been the Hero Party’s most reliable pillar of support.
Yet in the same vein, in order to defeat the Evil Dragon, the Great Sage had perished beneath its Demonish claws and now slumbered eternally here.
Her relationship with Leia seemed rather good…
“Lady Xuefei, it’s time for breakfast.”
The voice from beyond the door forced Xuefei to return the Holy Sword to the wooden coffin and securely close up the large bed.
The reason she couldn’t simply bond the Holy Sword to her body as she once had was her fear that the woman might notice something amiss.
This was a desperate gamble with no margin for error. If she won, she could escape. If she lost…
Xuefei didn’t dare think about it.
“Holy Sword, I’ll come back to save you.”
She placed her hand on the bed, confirming that her actions had left no trace whatsoever, before finally responding to the voice outside.
“Is that you, Laer? Come in.”
The door eased open, and a woman with black, slightly wavy short hair wheeled in a breakfast cart to Xuefei’s bedroom. Her prim maid uniform looked utterly adorable, and the telltale features of the Demon Race trailing behind her were something Xuefei had long since learned to tune out.
Laer, one of the Evil Dragon’s mightiest servants.
During the First Playthrough, Laer had been nothing short of Xuefei’s nightmare.
Swift and deadly in combat, with immense magical prowess to boot—Xuefei had unleashed the Holy Sword’s earth-shattering full-powered strike just to sever one of Laer’s arms and a leg. Yet mere seconds later, they had regenerated good as new.
The strongest boss beneath the Evil Dragon herself.
…That was Xuefei’s assessment.
“Thank you, Laer.”
Laer had prepared breakfast just as she always did, setting it out on the cute little bedside table. Xuefei flashed a sweet smile, blooming like a flower that carried a soothing, intoxicating fragrance.
Perhaps turning into a girl had at least this one silver lining?
“Mm-hmm, it’s my duty,” Laer replied, tilting her head with a smile of her own. Her small hands fidgeted nervously, rubbing together in front of her.
If there was one major difference between the Laer of the First Playthrough and this one, it was surely that Xuefei hadn’t realized just how cute a girl she was.
“Speaking of which…” Laer suddenly leaned in close to Xuefei, cheeks flushing pink as she asked in a hushed tone, “How far along are things with Lady Leia? Spill the details for me, pretty please? Have you gotten pregnant yet? When’s hatching time?”
Stars sparkled in Laer’s gossip-hungry eyes. As one of the Evil Dragon’s most devoted servants—and fangirls—she was dying for some answers.
To the outside world, Xuefei was Leia’s wife, the perfect match made in heaven. And it wasn’t just Laer; plenty of the maids were utterly hooked on shipping Xuefei and Leia as a couple.
No one knew the tempests Xuefei weathered each night on that massive double bed…
Which made it rather awkward for Xuefei to respond.
Yet without realizing it, the keyword “hatching” had slipped in, drawing a blissful smile to her face. The words tumbled out unbidden:
“Not yet~ But barring any surprises, tonight’s the night we’ll conceive. Mm… and then it’ll be egg-hatching time before long.”
“Really?!”
Laer pumped her tiny fists, looking ready to leap right off the floor.
“Just kidding!”
Xuefei could scarcely believe the words that had come out of her mouth—and with such a satisfied look on her face, no less!
She was hopeless.
All she could do was hope she escaped tonight. Otherwise, she might really end up like that someday… lost in utter despair.
“Ehehe,” Laer giggled behind her hand. “Lady Leia actually mentioned it to me too. You’re finally doing it soon. Gets me all excited just thinking about it. I can’t wait to see the day Xuefei turns into a proper, virtuous wife~”
“No thanks…”
Xuefei let out a sigh, but given her situation, she had no choice but to play along.
She actually got along decently with Laer, who was easy to talk to. Unlike the obsessive Leia, who couldn’t go two sentences without groping her, Laer let Xuefei relax a little.
“By the way, where did Lady Leia head off to?”
Laer rubbed her smooth chin, pondering.
“Hmm… Let me think. This morning, I saw her fly off. Probably some unruly humans stirring up trouble on their side again?”
Just as expected.
Xuefei inwardly rejoiced.
The Evil Dragon truly believed she had her completely tamed into a plaything by now—which was exactly why she felt safe entrusting her offspring to Xuefei’s care.
Good thing she’d kept an ace up her sleeve. As the old saying went: endure sleeping on brushwood and tasting gall, and one day three thousand armored Yue troops could swallow Wu whole. This was merely a touch worse than Han Xin’s humiliation of passing beneath the enemy’s crotch.
But what did any of that matter?!
Now was the time to escape—what was she waiting for?
She had to make this work!
“By the way, Laer, do you have the key to the Mana Lab?”
“I do? What’s up, Lady Xuefei? Do you want to learn magic?”
“No.” Xuefei shook her head. Her own magic was already at the absolute peak; she simply couldn’t quite match Leia yet. “You’re the one I trust most. Actually, I want to see how far my power has grown.”
“Is that so? Hmm…”
Laer fell into thought, and Xuefei’s nerves stretched taut, fearing the Head Maid might grow suspicious.
But even if she did suspect something, it would only be that Xuefei was being “naughty.” The verbal trap she’d laid was undetectable even by gods!
“Sure, but only for a little while! After all, Lady Leia doesn’t allow it…” Laer looked extremely hesitant. “But if it’s for you, Xuefei, making an exception once is no big deal~”
“Really? Thank you, Laer! You’re truly the gentlest, most outstanding, and most beautiful maid!”
“It’s Head Maid,” Laer corrected, holding up one finger.
“Yeah! The most beautiful and outstanding Head Maid Laer!”
Laer had served the Evil Dragon as a maid for a long time. Xuefei remembered that no other maid had more seniority, and she was one of Evil Dragon Leia’s most important subordinates.
Next, they headed to the Mana Lab.
It was on one of the higher floors of the palace. From there, one could gaze through the glass at the distant Demon Capital—the view was quite nice. Xuefei had only been there with Leia, even admiring the scenery together on the balcony.
This time, Xuefei was determined to succeed.
She carefully evaded all the magical surveillance images, opened the door, confirmed once more that no one was around, then closed it and let out a sigh of relief.
The room had plenty of sunlight, making it easy for Xuefei to spot the red Magic Orb sitting on the table. She reached out and channeled her purple mana. Several runes appeared on the orb’s surface, then swiftly dissipated into tangible wisps of mana in the air, seemingly transmitting a message to the outside world:
“Dear Great Sage, you might be surprised to receive this message, but since I remember your code, you can trust me. Simply put, I am the Hero from before the world reset. I’ve run into a crisis and am trapped in the Evil Dragon’s Palace. I request support. If you’re as learned and wise as I believe, you’ll understand everything.”
Confirming the message had transmitted correctly, Xuefei felt a massive weight lift from her heart.
Now she just had to wait for a reply—and that time would drag on like years.
She hoped for a quick response.
…
What Xuefei didn’t know was that Head Maid Laer, humming a little tune and leisurely pushing a meal cart along the carpet, suddenly sensed something. She pulled a simple Magic Orb the size of a fingernail from her pocket.
In an instant, red runes appeared on the miniature portable Magic Orb and faded away. A segment of text materialized before Laer like a holographic projection.
“Hmm, Little Xuefei seems quite sincere.”
She smiled faintly, though it carried a sinister edge, as if everything was unfolding exactly according to her calculations. After all, this was Lady Leia’s order—she couldn’t disappoint those expectations.
“But you know, before the final battle, when Little Xuefei tried to send me to my death, she said something just like that, didn’t she?”
