Chapter 20: Leave it to Me!
Before entering, Livra and after exiting are like two different people.
Before entering, she was trembling and deferential; after exiting, she was full of spirit and struck hard!
When Livra slipped out from the stone door, her footsteps were hurried, as if there were dogs behind her trying to bite her.
Creak~~
But as soon as the stone door closed, and Livra saw Lord Xialet and Miss Shaya again…
Her terrified expression gradually disappeared, slowly transforming into a proud stance with her hands on her hips, like the brightest little sun in the sky at this moment!
As the “director” of this farce, Xiya naturally knew how things were progressing.
But out of politeness and a sense of completion, she asked anyway.
“Princess Livra, was your negotiation going smoothly…?”
Smooth or not, it was practically written all over Livra’s face.
Livra blinked her big eyes, frantically hinting—praise me, praise me!
This way of nonverbal communication, simply blinking and smiling brightly, was indeed very lively…
And also rather annoying.
At the same time, unnoticed by Livra, Shaya’s apparition transformed into a shadow and dissipated.
In its place stood the real Shaya, her eyes regaining their luster!
She tiptoed and patted Livra’s shoulder from behind. Livra’s “arrogant” expression immediately turned pale; she thought it was Princess Xue Fei chasing after her!
Although knowing that Princess Xue Fei also had a heart for peace, her teasing gaze and the overwhelming presence of Six Wings still made Livra shiver!
But when she turned around, thankfully it was not the fearsome Princess Xue Fei, but the lovely and lively Miss Shaya!
“Whew… Miss Shaya, why were you hiding back there? You scared me!”
“Hiding? Was I hiding?”
“N-no? How come I didn’t see you just now…”
“?”
The onlooker sees clearly.
They didn’t understand, but Xiya clearly saw that Princess Xue Fei had been blocked by a stone pillar from Livra’s angle, as she was too short.
She truly hadn’t been deliberately hiding, and Livra’s vision wasn’t to blame.
When everyone was gathered, Livra touched the back of her head with her left hand and finally broke into a silly smile.
“Ahahaha… I’m so lucky today; my communication with Princess Xue Fei must have been effective.”
“Not bad!” Shaya generously praised, giving Livra a thumbs up. “Congratulations, Livra! You survived successfully; that’s great! You must know that even a mouse that enters this door would be killed by a witch, and you surviving is far better than a mouse!”
“Woo… Thank you, Miss Shaya, but hearing your praise makes me feel like I’m not actually happy…!”
It’s fine, Livra, I didn’t mean you’re slightly better than a mouse; I meant you’re much better than a mouse!
Livra felt that if she talked for too long with Miss Shaya, her worldview would collapse, so she decided to reflect the current situation to Lord Xialet first to calm her emotions.
“Well, Lord Xialet, Princess Xue Fei has given us quite a degree of trust, and I hope we can trust her too. So if you’re ready, please find a suitable time to release her soon, and after releasing her, there’s no need to restrict her freedom anymore; I think… she will make her own judgments.”
“I understand. Since you say so, Your Highness, I won’t ask further; the sealing barrier can be released in a couple of days.”
“Mm, please notify me in advance. I will return here to represent the Olus royal family and welcome Princess Xue Fei back to freedom.”
Good, Shaya felt relieved upon hearing this.
Don’t forget to bring your fish and your horse when the time comes.
The fish are the ones to be released into the lake, and the horse is for pulling the donut cart.
The three of them followed the lights of the underground maze back to the surface.
Once they stepped onto the forest steps and saw sunlight again, Livra raised her hand to shield her eyes, the dappled tree shadows enveloping her, shaking her head to breathe in the fresh air—truly a moment of survival after disaster.
Shaya was imagining a beautiful life ahead.
Unbeknownst to her, as Livra stretched toward the sky and ended the moment, she turned around and brought up this topic.
“Miss Shaya, Princess Xue Fei specifically requested me to bring you some donuts and live fish.”
“No need, I’m a person of high morals and integrity, I don’t need such baseless gifts; please don’t give me any.”
“Is that so… then… forget it, I thought you liked these…”
“No, although I don’t need them, they can resolve my urgent issue, thank you for your gift.”
“……”
Receiving gifts also requires etiquette and refinement.
One cannot merely be deferential; one must stand tall with a grand spirit!
Why can’t one’s spirit be tall even if one’s stature is short?
Upon hearing Miss Shaya say that she could accept, Livra’s hanging heart finally relaxed.
Because even if Princess Xue Fei didn’t give such requests… Livra still wanted to do something for Miss Shaya to thank her for her exemplary contributions to the kingdom and to herself.
Shaya’s contributions to the kingdom went without saying.
If it weren’t for that, her father wouldn’t have given her the honor of simultaneously holding the titles of Kingdom Knight and Countess.
And the impact on her own part… was what moved Livra the most.
At the moment Jeffrey attacked the capital and released the black hole domain, Miss Shaya bravely rushed into the black hole; that scene still occasionally replayed in Livra’s mind. She really couldn’t imagine such a fearless existence in this world!
With such a small body… yet shouldering the responsibility of protecting her family and epitomizing the vision Livra pursued of “punishing evil and promoting good, protecting family” to the utmost!
Because of this, just now when facing Princess Xue Fei, Livra straightforwardly and unreservedly said, “Miss Shaya is my aspiration, my role model.”
With both hands behind her back.
The playful breeze that weaves through lakes and forests lifted Livra’s dark hair.
The midday sun illuminated her already carefree expression, making it even more free-spirited.
“When Lord Xialet releases Princess Xue Fei, please don’t have too many concerns; she is a much gentler existence than we imagine, not as brutal as the rumors say.”
Xiya and Shaya exchanged glances with smiles as Livra expressed her sentiments.
—And Xiya posed this rhetorical question that was seemingly obvious.
“How do you know, Your Highness? I think the Demon Princess is quite dangerous?”
“N-no, not dangerous! My intuition tells me! She really isn’t like that!”
Livra, worried that Xiya might refuse to release the Demon Princess, spoke in an anxious tone while quickly gesturing with her hands, hurrying to explain to Xiya what she had observed.
“Just like I said earlier… Princess Xue Fei can see Miss Shaya’s needs; she can empathize with others. Such qualities couldn’t exist in a cold-blooded villain! I know you might worry she’s just acting for her freedom, and I understand my conclusion might be irresponsible… but I can’t explain my intuition… I’ve been this way since childhood. I’m certain she’s not lying; I…!”
“Okay, okay, Your Highness, don’t worry. I understand. As a subject, I don’t have to question your judgment. As long as you and His Majesty the King give the order, you don’t need to seek my consent.”
“You still need to consider Lord Xialet’s opinion; you are the kingdom’s backbone!”
If it were another royal family, they would definitely put on a lofty demeanor, at most saying some formal words.
But Princess Livra felt completely different; she didn’t take pride in her royal status and was willing to engage with everyone contributing to the nation sincerely and equally.
“Pfft… Your Highness, you’re getting better with words.”
“Hehe… People must grow, right?”
As she said this, Livra’s gaze unintentionally drifted toward the innocent Miss Shaya.
Shaya had her hands behind her head, frowning.
You grow however you like; what does that have to do with me?
Whether it has anything to do with her is something only Livra would know~
Such good news made Livra eager to share with her father and mother, after all, they were anxiously waiting. Right now, they were in the dark about whether their daughter returned as a corpse or full of life.
She had already made a move to run back down the path.
But Livra suddenly stopped; she felt it was better to inform them in advance.
“Um… about the event at the Gladiatorial Arena this weekend, we will try to reach a consensus with Princess Xue Fei. If she is willing, it would be great if she could make an appearance at the arena, after all, this is something we promised to Princess Belis…”
“Mm, what you said is very true. Furthermore, if Princess Xue Fei can appear at the arena, we can also respond flexibly to the Church State. However, if that’s the case, the royal family and the Knight Corps must ensure the safety of the venue and avoid any mishaps, especially to guard against guests from the Church State, as I feel… they might have bad intentions.”
“Yes, I share that sentiment; even the Pope said he would personally come this time… This elevates the entertainment event to a national strategic level, which makes it difficult for me to say… ahaha… thinking about this is still too far; we don’t even know if Princess Xue Fei wants to attend the event. If she is unwilling, we won’t force her and can think of other ways!”
Shaya was leaning against a tree, listening to these words.
Within her deep gaze, it seemed there were glimmers of gold coins!
Finally, she spoke.
“Livra, I’m curious, so I’ll ask. Since this competition has such high specifications, the prize money must also be considerable, right?”
“P-prize money?”
Livra was slightly taken aback by this question.
But since Shaya asked, she cleared her mind to recall it well.
“Um… I remember hearing before that those big merchants organizing it spent a lot because they heard both country heads would come. Last week’s Gladiatorial Arena had only a few dozen gold coins…? This time, I heard it would be the same.”
“Tsk~ how dull.”
“The quantity is the same, but the gold coins have been changed to silver coins.”
“Leave it to me.”
“Eh?”
Leave it to you… what?
Miss Shaya patted her flat little chest, and the sound echoed disturbingly through the forest.
“I’ve been having good conversations with that Princess Xue Fei lately! I’ll persuade her to participate; it’ll definitely be foolproof!”
“Really…! Ah… I think I just heard Princess Xue Fei say she’s been in touch with Miss Shaya recently. If it really works out, that would be amazing!”
“Hehehe, just leave it to me; I’m a person of my word!”
“Truly impressive, Miss Shaya! You’re incredible!”
Xiya watched from the side…
Her trembling brows hadn’t stopped twitching.
I said, Princess Xue Fei…
You little money-loving brat!
Is your sister unable to support you anymore?!
Xiya was already planning to go back and rummage through her coin pouch to find a shiny silver coin to throw at her face!
