Chapter 224: The Other Side of the Perfect Princess
Leaf of Asgard, one of the most beautiful and elegant cities in the Eternal Night World, appeared in the game as a fleeting glimpse.
Elf beauties, a subject that no pervert can miss, game companies have always understood people’s hearts.
Completely disregarding practicality, focusing only on beautiful architectural styles, with ten thousand years of artistic accumulation and cultural heritage, this is a paradise for old nobles. While Freedom City rose, it was the favorite destination for the wealthy to show off their fortunes.
Even after the rise of Freedom City, countless old nobles still preferred Leaf of Asgard, believing that its cultural atmosphere was worthy of their cunning minds.
What players saw in the game was actually just the outer civilian and commercial districts of the elven capital.
As a race with a long history and immense pride, the elves’ peak has passed, but their temper has not changed at all.
Back then, the player characters were human, and they didn’t know any high-ranking elves. They didn’t see any disdainful looks in Leaf of Asgard.
But now, Roger has arrived as an envoy of the empire, carrying contracts worth hundreds of billions of Azurevine coins, and possibly representing official imperial investment and construction. He was personally welcomed by the Elf Empress.
In his daily comings and goings, he was accompanied by high-ranking elf nobles. Except for the empress’s and princesses’ chambers, and the temple that always maintained extreme hostility towards the Azurevine Empire, he had free access to travel and sightsee in Leaf of Asgard.
On the surface, Roger was there for a new round of trade negotiations. The construction projects for power and railway transportation lines within the elven empire would be jointly invested in by the Azurevine Empire and the elven empire, establishing a large number of joint ventures for construction.
The development of the Azurevine Empire had already demonstrated the importance of infrastructure projects.
The elven empire understood that this was a national project that had to be kept in their own hands, but they had been so exploited by the Kingdom of Terra over the years that they couldn’t afford to build it.
Roger brought the empire’s investment intentions, which could get the elven empire’s infrastructure moving, keeping pace with the progress of the entire world, and at least not falling behind.
There was still the hidden danger of vital lifelines being held by another country, but they had no choice but to endure it.
Because once the surrounding countries completed their infrastructure upgrades, the elven empire would be comprehensively behind in transportation and basic living security, and the losses would be even greater.
Of course, the Azurevine Empire’s motive was to increase the productivity of the elven empire, so that the goods produced could be transported out and the costs controlled within a certain range. They had no intention of actually ruling the elven empire.
Therefore, they were only participating in the investment to ensure their own profits and were not very interested in majority control.
However, by participating in the construction, they would gain knowledge of many of the elven empire’s arrangements and secrets. If the elven empire were to turn against the empire one day, they might suffer very precise “sabotage” from within.
In secret, Roger, under the guise of this trade negotiation, also reached a quiet agreement with some influential figures within the elven empire. The empire would assist them in expelling the influence of divine authority.
Humans are inherently greedy. With the pace of external wars halted, their only path to expand power internally is to eliminate as many competitors as possible.
In the past, divine authority was a supplement to royal authority, capable of assisting in educating the populace and reducing the cost of governance.
However, now, the function of divine authority has been infinitely weakened by the Blissful Illusory Realm. Instead, it has become a constraint that requires Faith Power to maintain, draining the nation’s vital forces. Many people have already begun to resent divine authority and the churches of the gods.
Gods treat nobles and officials among mortals as sheepdogs, but in the eyes of less devout nobles, churches and priests are merely small whips to help them make their horses run faster.
Now, the Blissful Illusory Realm is clearly a more useful whip. The church not only fails to help but also drains their blood, consumes their population in useless battles, and makes them unable to stand firm against Tasika. Many nobles are already finding ways to deal with the divine authority within their own borders.
The only reason they haven’t acted against it is their lack of strength.
Especially in the elven empire, there are a considerable number of devout believers, foremost among them being the current Elf Empress Gladys Moonwalker, a devout believer of the God of Nature who would never convert.
Legend has it that the Moonwalker family inherited the bloodline of the God of Nature, which allowed them to become the royal family of the elven empire. It was also with the help of the church’s power that they maintained their rule for ten thousand years without wavering, making them one of the oldest families in this World.
Many had opinions about the Church of Nature, but no one had acted until Roger, representing the Azurevine Empire, quietly expressed his willingness to “contribute” and help them solve their divine troubles, finally giving them hope for action.
The highest decisions of the elven empire are formulated and executed by the Governing Council, composed of nineteen Chancellors who deliberate together.
The Empress and the Cabinet are responsible for daily governance, but the Chancellors close to the Moonwalker family occupy the vast majority of seats in the entire council, so there are few nationwide policies in the elven empire that can go against the Empress’s orders.
If the Elf Empress disagrees with suppressing divine authority, even if several Chancellors united, they would be powerless.
“Lord Roger, do you have any way to persuade our Empress?”
Roger was currently talking with several Chancellors who were already dissatisfied with the God of Nature.
“There will certainly be a way. You only need to support Princess Windsor’s proposal at the next Governing Council meeting.”
Roger smiled, exuding an air of absolute control over the situation.
“Ah, that Perfect Princess? She is like her mother, the most devout believer!”
“I cannot disclose the specific details, esteemed Chancellors. All you need to do is cooperate with what I say. The empire will always be the elves’ empire, not belonging to any god.”
Roger cast a playful smile, sweeping his gaze over the six Chancellors present.
While it was not yet half of the nineteen Chancellors, with proper arrangements, the elven empire would inevitably undergo a drastic change.
…
…
Windsor Moonwalker, the eldest daughter of the current Elf Empress, the heir apparent, and also known as the Perfect Princess.
Whether it was her magical talent, her appearance, her personal charm, or even her speech and actions, she was a perfect model for the elven race, a perfect successor with no discernible flaws.
Until now, from the Empress to everyone in the elven empire, including the Church of Nature, had placed great hope in Princess Windsor, believing that she would lead the elven empire to continued glory after their current Empress’s lifespan came to an end.
However, in a side quest within the game, Roger knew that this Princess Windsor was not as obedient as she appeared and secretly disliked the image she presented to the public.
From childhood to adulthood, she excelled in everything she did, showing no flaws and satisfying all the demands elders had for an heir. But this was actually the demand of her mother, the current Elf Empress.
Gladys had meticulously planned Windsor’s growth path down to every hour since her birth. Fortunately, Windsor was also a highly talented and intelligent child who always managed to perfectly fulfill her mother’s requirements.
This display of excellence, coupled with the royal family’s propaganda, led to the Perfect Princess becoming well-known and beloved by everyone.
The lifespan of elves in this World is around four hundred years. As a legendary powerhouse, the Elf Empress could live for over a thousand years.
She was eight hundred years old when she gave birth to Windsor. Windsor is now one hundred years old. In about another hundred years, no one doubts that Princess Windsor will be the next Empress.
For humans, this might be like a Crown Prince who is two hundred years old, but for an elven princess, it is quite normal.
Moreover, from now on, Princess Windsor is already a Chancellor of the elven empire, serving as the Minister of Culture.
In the elven empire that respects art and enjoys pleasure, this is not a leisurely position, but a rather important one.
Princess Windsor naturally performed perfectly. During her tenure, she implemented many excellent policies, loosened management controls, and led to an unprecedentedly active cultural industry in the elven empire, producing many excellent artists.
This increased her popularity and favorability. The reputation of Gladys for raising her daughter well also extended to Princess Windsor.
After holding a secret meeting with six Chancellors, Roger remained in Leaf of Asgard under the pretext of a vacation, doing what an elegant noble should do:
Attending concerts, enjoying elven cuisine, reading their treasured poetry collections, and visiting museums, without making any excessive demands on the accompanying elf court steward.
For such a young Duke, still unmarried, the old elves who appeared submissive but inwardly looked down on humans were quite worried that Roger might make some impolite requests.
It wasn’t until the third day that Roger arrived at the elven sword dojo, intending to participate in their anonymous challenge.
As long-lived beings, elves cultivate various skills to extremely high levels, and sword arts are naturally included.
The sword dojo is a venue for pure sword skill contests, without the use of any magic or auxiliary means. The pure and sharp sword skills of the Elf Sword Saints are also quite famous in the Eternal Night World.
The anonymous challenge is a battle open to everyone. A total of one thousand people registered, and it’s an elimination-style tournament where the winner is decided in one night, with a substantial reward for the victor.
Matches are three minutes long per round. If no winner is determined, both are eliminated. It’s a rather cruel rule, and it also tests luck. Countless sword masters come to experience it and test their mettle.
When Roger arrived, registration was full, but he was a VIP. The court steward made a slight arrangement, and one participant withdrew due to personal reasons, allowing Roger to be included among the thousand participants.
Whether it was the gleam of gold coins or the smell of power, Roger didn’t care. It was a privilege granted by elven resources, and he hadn’t requested anything.
The court steward clearly wanted to see Roger make a fool of himself because, according to public records, Duke Roger had very few combat records. The limited combat records also demonstrated his magical output capabilities.
Although nobles generally practiced swordsmanship, there was a significant difference between casual practice as a form of etiquette and being a true swordsman.
Moreover, in anonymous challenges, sword saints in training would often participate to hone their skills.
Roger showed a faint smile.
Although he hadn’t specifically practiced sword skills, and magic was prohibited here, he had the system.
Although the “Lying Flat System” hadn’t performed any earth-shattering feats in recent years and hadn’t made any significant contributions since the Source Sea series, it had already boosted Roger’s personal strength to a considerable level.
This was mainly evident in his tankiness.
Whether it was the thickness of his shields, various resistance skills, self-healing and recovery abilities, or the shameless true damage reflection attribute, Roger was now so resilient that even the Empress of Eternal Night, a damage monster, would want to vomit.
He was like an immortal cockroach.
If the Empress of Eternal Night was the empire’s strongest spear, then Roger was now essentially the man at the ceiling of the empire’s defensive capabilities.
He stacked the thickest armor, ready to take the harshest blows.
However, the system still strangely hadn’t rewarded Roger with the magical output methods he had been longing for.
After the initial Mental Power, it hadn’t rewarded Roger with any related magic attacks, but instead gave him a bunch of melee skills.
But with just this endurance and damage reflection, combined with those skills, Roger could already put himself in an invincible position and then infuriate his opponents to death.
In a normal battlefield, with the weapons produced by the arcane, using etched bullets, Roger could also slowly aim and execute fancy outputs.
However, today’s sword challenge prohibited the use of equipment, so he could only rely on swordsmanship to duel his opponents.
The divine-level Veronica Royal Swordsmanship, even if Roger hadn’t personally mastered it, could fight evenly with any sword skill below legendary when he used it alone.
Even more shamelessly, he played a life-risking tactic throughout.
“My blood is thicker than yours anyway, you’ll be the one hurt in the end!”
Normally, in such a string of battles, opponents would definitely cherish their stamina and health, and rely on skill to win, as there was very little time for recovery.
But the empire’s “meat mountain” had extremely strong recovery capabilities, with innate buffs. He would start regenerating blood eight seconds after disengaging, and would be fully resurrected in half a minute, easily advancing round after round without feeling any tension from the game.
The elves outside waiting to see Roger make a fool of himself were all surprised and helpless. Those traditional elves were so enraged that their lungs were about to explode seeing a human swaggering on the stage with such a fighting method.
Although his name and appearance were hidden, his racial characteristics were too obvious, and Roger still displayed them.
Is this a sword fight, or a physique contest?
Yet, Roger wasn’t cheating. He didn’t use magic, just a few passive skills, which were allowed within the rules!
Anyone with eyes could see that Roger’s victories were entirely due to his shameless resilience, not his swordsmanship.
In a three-minute battle, he didn’t need to think about defense; he could just attack.
Others who attacked him would suffer damage reflection, forcing them to calculate who took more damage. If they didn’t attack, they would be quickly defeated themselves.
Later, some elves tried to use time-dragging tactics to eliminate the human who was causing trouble, but Roger’s attack power wasn’t bad in these small-scale arena battles.
His attack power was insufficient compared to the Empress of Eternal Night, and he couldn’t be of much use in large-scale battles.
Soon, out of the thousand participants, only Roger and one other opponent remained. They were scheduled to fight in five minutes.
In the preparation room, several Sword Saints were helping their princess analyze Roger’s moves and instructing her on combat techniques.
“Although the opponent’s recovery ability is very strong, he is not truly skilled in swordsmanship after all. Princess, you only need to stall for time, and you will be invincible. Then, use Moon Shadow Form to evade damage reflection and find an opportunity to win.”
The beautiful Windsor nodded. On the surface, she seemed obedient, but in reality, she disliked the tactics devised by the Sword Saints, yet felt helpless.
She originally intended to just play around and relax.
But in the end, it was down to her and an imperial person. For the sake of national pride, she had to use every means to win.
What a boring display of imperial arrogance!
The five-minute rest ended, and Princess Windsor stepped onto the stage, giving Roger a meticulous bow.
Roger’s movements were casual. He touched his wristband and quietly commanded, “Deep Blue, activate intelligent assistance.”
The next second, Windsor charged at Roger, only to find that her opponent’s swordsmanship was more than ten times more ferocious!
