Chapter 163: 162 What Will You Do This Time (Please Subscribe! Seeking Monthly Tickets!)
At Anxi’s invitation, except for the Knights of the Knight Order, everyone present moved to the state guest reception room of the Royal Palace and took their seats there.
Lu Muya and Merica seemed quite uneasy, their bodies tense throughout, their faces fraught with nervousness. Sitting there, they didn’t dare to speak, let alone breathe too heavily.
Shane and Vivian, however, took their seats. Across from them sat Anxi and Luoqi, with the Strong Knight Aridia standing behind them like a potent protector, his expression as unwavering and stern as rock throughout, resembling a weapon deployed specifically for the protection of the Royal Family, casting a palpable presence that was undeniably formidable.
In this setting, Tielle didn’t join the others; instead, she leaned against the wall in the corner of the reception room, arms crossed, radiating a ‘keep out’ vibe.
Meanwhile, Luoqi had clarified the gist of the events to everyone present.
Anxi nodded thoughtfully.
“So, because of Vivian’s introduction, Luoqi met Lord Shane and, recognizing his extraordinary skills, joyously invited him to a training session in the Royal Palace Arena?”
Anxi confirmed the sequence of events.
Luoqi nodded, her stunningly beautiful face austere and striking, fully assuming her Princess mode.
Such a Luoqi commanded an impressive presence on the scene—so much so that even Anxi, the King, was overshadowed, prompting sidelong glances.
In fact, from the beginning, Lu Muya and Merica had been stealthily glancing at Luoqi, their faces slightly flushed and their eyes full of admiration, clearly enamored.
In front of others, Luoqi always appeared as flawless as she did now.
“Because I never imagined I would encounter such a formidable peer, I got a bit carried away and caused everyone so much trouble. I truly apologize.”
Luoqi genuinely felt responsible and had been apologizing ever since.
“I also owe you an apology, Shane, for getting you involved in this situation.”
Luoqi bowed her head to Shane, surprising everyone present.
Only Shane, somewhat disgruntled, glanced at Luoqi, as if he could see her pleading with hands clasped together.
The others, though unable to see Luoqi in such a state, still accepted her apology.
“Nothing serious happened, which is best.” Anxi looked at Luoqi with a doting gaze, as if beholding the treasure of his life, saying, “If sacrificing one arena can secure the safety of the Holy Sword successor that my Royal Family has awaited for a thousand years, I believe everyone in the Kingdom would feel it a small price to pay, even a bargain.”
Rather than have Luoqi face an attack, the Kingdom would prefer to sacrifice ten, a hundred, or even a thousand such arenas as a precaution to ensure her safety.
Anxi expressed this sentiment, met with silent agreement from Vivian, Aridia, and others nearby.
This clearly demonstrated the Kingdom’s immense regard and care for Luoqi.
Perhaps that was why Aridia had responded by attacking Shane in the arena without a second thought.
After all, at that moment, Shane could have been an assailant.
As the saying goes, concern breeds chaos. Witnessing anyone who could threaten Luoqi appear, both Anxi and Aridia would immediately become anxious and take measures to protect her.
Luoqi was well aware of this and thus expressed her gratitude to everyone.
Still, Shane could discern a hint of helplessness in the eyes of the Princess.
After all, it was this concern that had become the cage imprisoning Luoqi, preventing her from showing her true nature.
To be valued to such an extent, whether to feel happy or helpless about it, was indeed a matter of perspective.
Perhaps it was for this reason that Luoqi had no choice but to restrain her behavior even more, to prevent herself from becoming too willful.
Otherwise, for a mere whim of hers, everyone in the Kingdom might very well do something irrational, leading to a tragedy.
Luoqi’s status was too special, her influence too strong.
If she were to act willfully, it might bring about repercussions for many, causing unintended victims to suffer terribly.
Shane had come to understand why Luoqi felt the need to present her perfect and flawless side to others, instead of her real self.
Simply because, with the environment around her as it was, if Luoqi did not restrain herself, then no one could.
With this in mind, Shane gave Luoqi a sympathetic look.
Luoqi seemed to catch it, and her expression of helplessness deepened.
If it weren’t for the presence of outsiders, Shane believed, Luoqi would definitely have voiced her complaints directly.
But for now, Luoqi could only sit there quietly, trying to be a well-behaved princess.
Meanwhile, everyone else’s attention had shifted to Shane.
“I really hadn’t expected that in this world, there would be young people who could match Luoqi.”
Anxi exclaimed in astonishment, also giving Shane a friendly expression.
“You’re a member of Vivian’s adventurer team; you must be a child from Lamijion, right?”
Anxi started probing Shane’s identity.
Shane really wanted to respond that he was from the Star Sea.
Unfortunately, that kind of evasive remark, good for a joke, would hardly work when dealing with a king.
At the moment, Shane simply nodded, trying to appear as aloof as possible.
Of course, Shane’s anger had mostly dissipated by now, and there was no need to continue holding a grudge over that issue with the king.
But precisely because the man was a king, Shane felt it better to speak less when conversing with such high-ranking officials.
As the saying goes, “The more words, the greater the chance of error.” His identity had previously seemed well concealed, yet it had been seen through many times.
To avoid a repeat, Shane tried to remain silent, creating an image of aloofness.
Anxi didn’t seem to mind this too much.
“It’s truly a miracle,” Anxi simply remarked. “Originally, Luoqi’s birth was already a miracle for the Kingdom and even the entire Human Realm. Yet, it’s because she is a Descendant of the Brave that she has achieved her current status. I really didn’t expect that a genius comparable to Luoqi would be born among the Human Race. Such a talent should have immediately attracted the attention of the Divine Race at the moment of birth, and should have become well-known eventually. Her sudden emergence is really surprising.”
Anxi’s implication was clear; he was still surprised and puzzled by Shane’s presence.
However, Shane had already decided not to react to this at all.
(Just continue marveling and probing.)
I won’t say a word anyway, let’s see how you discern my identity this time.