After defeating Leia, she would figure out a way to subdue this damnable Evil Dragon. Yeah… if she could just get Leia pregnant with her child, all their past grudges would be wiped clean~
She absolutely had to make Leia see just how formidable she was!
Xuefei brushed the dust off her skirt and returned to the carriage with a smile on her face.
~~~
“Lady Xuefei.”
“What?”
The beastmen had fully retreated, the battle was over, and the carriage raced a thousand miles into the distance. The bumpy yet quiet journey resumed once more.
This time, having witnessed mountains of corpses and rivers of blood—the power of the Demon Race, or rather, the Evil Dragon’s power—the nations that had eyed the carriage chose to withdraw. They no longer dared to offend Princess Celi.
None of them wanted to end up like the beastman prince. Besides, if Xuefei had wished it, the beastmen would have been annihilated long ago. In the face of absolute strength, they could only offer flattery and goodwill.
“I’m sorry. I failed in my duty to protect you, Lady Xuefei.” Laer knelt on one knee. She paid no heed to Princess Celi and instead apologized directly to Xuefei, ready to accept punishment.
Leia had sent her along to guard against any moves from the gods, since Leia couldn’t be sure whether they would see through Xuefei’s disguise.
Thank goodness Lady Xuefei was so overwhelmingly powerful. She had slain that irritating god…
Had the god laid a hand on her—abducting or killing her—Laer might not have been executed, but she would have been haunted by an inescapable shadow for the rest of her life.
“It’s fine. See? I won. Hehe, even that god wasn’t a match for me.”
“This is my responsibility, Xuefei.”
Xuefei let out a sigh. “No need, Laer. Get up. He really was strong. He only came after me because he was avoiding you. If anyone’s to blame, it’s me for using my old power.”
What concerned Xuefei wasn’t the failure of the battle itself.
Good…
Okate—Alres’s death wouldn’t cause any ripples. If she hadn’t killed him in a single strike, he would have called on the other gods for aid. That was when things would have truly gotten troublesome.
At that point, Xuefei would never have set foot outside the Evil Dragon Palace again.
Laer nodded, remained kneeling for a few more minutes, then finally rose to her feet. Still, she didn’t dare meet Xuefei’s eyes and shrank into the corner, lost in her own gloom.
“What happened to Okate?”
At the same time, Celi, seated across from them, voiced her question. Laer had deliberately muddled their earlier exchange, so all Celi could glean was that the topic involved that human.
One hand absentmindedly toyed with her trailing green locks.
“Celi, it’s nothing. He got ambushed by a beastman trap. He’s probably on his way to the Beastman Kingdom by now.”
“How awful…”
Celi’s expression fell, heartbreakingly forlorn—like a morning glory wilting in the rain.
“That’s just how the world works. And war is war. In my opinion, if he wanted to scavenge treasures from beastmen corpses, he had to pay the price and face the consequences. If I remember right, that’s the code of a swordsman, isn’t it?”
“Okay.”
Xuefei narrowed her eyes.
This lie was so blatant even I wouldn’t buy it. How did you fall for it? I’d already braced myself to spin a longer explanation!
In truth, Celi wasn’t the sort to be so obedient. She was the type to push back and fight.
So which words won her trust?
It must have been the bit about “saving the world.” Maybe she really does see me as some kind of messiah. After all, a princess born into this age of endless war—barely sixteen—might dream of setting the world’s heart right and bringing peace to its people.
“I’ll handle the explanations with the Hero Party. You just focus on staying alive, Princess.” Xuefei’s gaze drifted elsewhere, her thoughts unreadable.
“Thank you, Miss Xuefei. Your power is truly incredible. With you around, no one would dare lay a hand on the Snake Demon Country. Without you, we might all be joining our kin in the afterlife by now… I can’t thank you enough~”
“It was just a transaction. Don’t make a big deal out of it.” Xuefei tilted her head with a grin.
See? The allure of finishing the deed and vanishing into the wind had already taken root in the little serpent’s mind. Even after turning into a dragon, she was still as dashing as ever!
Her past self must have been this cool too. If she kept pushing forward, she’d rack up fans and admirers left and right.
Yeah… best case, she could even found her own cult. Faith provided power, after all. That way…
Hold on?
Why is Celi’s face red?!
No, no, no—it had to be my irresistible charm that won her over! But sorry, my heart already belongs to Leia. If I ever fell for someone else, the only way to make up for it would be to lay countless dragon eggs. So, best not to entertain those weird ideas!
“By the way, do you have a cold?” Xuefei asked, feigning composure. In truth, she just wanted to know—no, she had to confirm—why Celi’s face was so flushed.
Maybe it was too hot in here. Though the weather outside remained chilly and overcast, heatstroke hardly seemed likely.
When Celi didn’t respond, Xuefei tilted her head to the other side and reached for her tea…
But Celi’s blush only deepened. Her hands rested primly on her thighs, as if she were channeling some ultra-powerful spell.
“Cu…”
“What?” Xuefei prompted.
“Cute… so cute…”
“Wha…?”
Even Laer, who had withdrawn into sulky silence, made a brief reappearance at that moment, nodding in firm agreement.
“Right, Princess? Lady Xuefei has a one-of-a-kind cuteness all her own. She’s an immaculate white lotus, the very faith of our Maid Corps’ hearts.”
Celi nodded frantically.
“Exactly! That aura of power wrapped in feigned elegance, graceful even in her restraint, those little hands clasped between her legs—it’s just too adorable! Look at her eyes, always attuned to our every emotion, like a true angel. And the perfect contrast with those intimidating dragon eyes full of oppressive might! Mmm~ Thanks for the feast. By the way, are all Demon Race like this?”
“I already said it’s her unique cuteness,” Laer said in admiration, throwing up a thumbs-up. “If Your Highness could grasp Lady Xuefei’s charm too, we’d be sisters in all but blood.”
“Mm-hmm!”
The two dove into an enthusiastic exchange, leaving the petrified Xuefei to flail in the wind.
Wait…
Why was this happening?
Hadn’t her personal charm captivated them both?
Xuefei recalled the looks from that pack of maids. Damn those maids and their stares—she was only two centimeters shorter than Leia, so why the massive gap in how they treated her?
She wanted to be a sovereign reigning above the masses too!
No, this absolutely could not continue. It was time to unleash the majesty befitting a dragon!
After all, the final bosses of other difficulty levels were dubbed at most “Demon King.” Only in exceptionally rare worlds like the Camiran Continent did they earn titles like “Evil Dragon” and “Dragon King,” thanks to their matchless power and world-shaking aura of dominance.
Thus, armed with the gods’ power and the Evil Dragon’s might, Xuefei should already surpass the big boss of the first playthrough.
Leia had managed it.
Even without the gods’ interference, she would eventually unify the Camiran Continent, ascend as the supreme ruler, and even carve paths through the cosmos to expand her domain.
So why did Xuefei feel herself veering ever farther from the path of kingship, hurtling instead down the road to mascot-hood?
What the hell was going on?!
