Night had fallen, but the streets of the Royal Capital of Hella remained brightly lit.
Chen Mian held several bags of ingredients. Instead of walking on the streets, however, he traveled across the rooftops. His steps were leisurely, yet he soon arrived at the top of a clock tower just outside the palace, where he began to observe the royal palace before him.
The palace looked even more massive up close than from afar. Its golden dome gleamed with a faint metallic luster under the moonlight, and patrolling soldiers marched back and forth along fixed routes.
He closed his eyes to sense the surroundings briefly, eventually focusing his gaze on a row of dark windows near the north gate.
“There is indeed something wrong with the King of Hella.” In his perception, that was the king's bedchamber, and a figure was indeed lying there. The person carried a cold, eerie aura that was identical to the curse on Flora, though it was at a much lower level.
But the king did not possess Flora's Red Jade Rank strength, and his body was almost entirely eroded. If Chen Mian did not interfere, the king's life force would surely be completely drained before long. To outsiders, it would look no different from dying of an illness.
Chen Mian expanded his perception range once more, completely enveloping the palace.
The defensive magic circles and runes on the outer perimeter of the palace were intact, with no signs of damage. However, he sensed an extremely faint aura deep within the palace.
That aura seemed to have been deliberately suppressed, wrapped in a complex set of runes. It was highly similar to the energy of the Child of the Rot, though its intensity was far weaker than what Velyan had been contaminated with back then. This was likely the source used to cast the curse.
He had always wondered why the Shadow Cult, an organization he had completely wiped out along with their demon generals, had risen from the ashes, and why Flora had mentioned that something wanted to seize her body... It seemed highly likely that this organization was connected to those sealed creatures. After all, the Child of the Rot possessed the ability to erode and assimilate others, so it wouldn't be surprising if other sealed creatures had similar capabilities.
A moment later,
Chen Mian's figure silently appeared inside the king's bedchamber. He placed a seal on the king. With this seal, the king's condition would not deteriorate further in the short term.
Getting rid of these forces hiding in the shadows wasn't difficult for him. However, since he hadn't fully grasped the organization's specific situation in the Royal Capital yet, it was better to wait for them to show themselves before wiping them out all at once.
Still, preserving the king's life remained a priority. If the king died, the Hella Kingdom would not see peace for a long time. Besides, Arthur, the king, had some past history with him.
Having done all this, Chen Mian turned and left. He chose not to alert the enemy for now, lest he scare off the big fish.
As for what the Shadow Cult was plotting, Chen Mian already had a rough idea.
Just as he was about to leave, he spotted an unexpected figure: Aler, the Court Mage Leader of Hella.
At this moment, he was silently leaving the palace, slipping into an alley and heading toward the southern part of the royal city.
Chen Mian followed leisurely behind. After walking for about fifteen minutes, Aler stopped in front of an unremarkable residence. He observed his surroundings carefully, and once he confirmed no one was around, he pushed the door open and stepped inside.
Inside the house, Aler took out a small container containing a few drops of blood and spoke with someone dressed as a priest. Their conversation seemed to revolve around investigating the cause of the king's illness and finding a cure.
Chen Mian withdrew his gaze, left a mark on both of them, and vanished into the night.
...
The moment Chen Mian knocked, the door swung open.
“Too slow~ Your landlady is starving to death! I'm docking your rent!”
Loviki stood at the doorway with her hands on her hips. Though she spoke harshly, her expression was clearly much more relaxed.
Chen Mian raised the paper bag in his hand and shook it. “I bought everything you wanted to eat. Are you still going to dock my rent?”
Flora's laughter drifted from inside the room.
“That's more like it... Quick, get in. The broth has been ready for a while, we were just waiting for you to get back.” Loviki's lips curled up slightly as she stepped aside to let Chen Mian pass, then shut the door tightly behind him.
Steam rose inside the warm house, and the rich aroma of the broth drifted out of the kitchen, adding a touch of coziness to the home.
Flora jogged into the kitchen and soon emerged carrying a pot filled with broth, which emitted a rich, savory aroma. “Louise, we'll need to use your temperature-control magic stove.”
“Okay~” Louise retrieved a square stove engraved with magic circles from her wooden storage box and placed it on the table. Its size and shape were almost identical to the induction cooker back in the apartment, except its surface was covered in intricate mana lines.
Chen Mian stared at the stove and paused. “When did you make this?”
“Last night,” Louise said casually. “I figured out how your induction cooker works and replicated it with magic circles. Its power adjustment range is actually wider than the original.”
“...When did you take it apart?”
“After you fell asleep.” Without batting an eye, Louise adjusted the mana output intensity, causing a ring of light blue light to glow on the stove's surface. “Don't worry, I put it back together.”
Flora placed the pot steadily on the stove, and soon, tiny bubbles began to rise from the bottom of the pot.
Chen Mian carried the paper bag into the kitchen and took out the purchased ingredients one by one, placing them on the cutting board.
Frost-vein beef, shrimp, beef balls, chicken, tofu, mushrooms, vegetables, juice, as well as the dango and candy Loviki wanted, filled the space to the brim.
Chen Mian picked up the kitchen knife and sliced the beef into thin pieces, each piece bearing a beautiful marbled pattern.
“Let me help you.” Flora walked over and took the knife from his hand. “You've been out shopping for so long, take a break first.”
“I'm not tired.”
“Then go wash the mushrooms.” She tilted her head, looking at him with a smile. “It's faster if we divide the work.”
Chen Mian smiled, picked up a basket of mushrooms, and began to wash them using a bit of water magic.
It had to be said that not having a water faucet was indeed a bit inconvenient, even in the Royal Capital of Hella.
The hot pot was soon underway. The five of them sat around the small square table, which was completely packed with ingredients and dishes.
Velyan was the first to swish a slice of beef back and forth in the boiling broth a few times. She dipped it in the sauce, popped it into her mouth, and her eyes suddenly went wide. “So delicious!”
“Right?” Loviki said, a hint of pride playing on her lips. “Frost-vein beef is very tasty.”
“What about charcoal-grilled lamb chops?” Velyan asked while chewing.
“I'll take you tomorrow,” Loviki said after taking a sip of her juice, her tone light. “But we have to take care of official business first.”
“Okay! I'll wait for you!”
“I went to the palace tonight,” Chen Mian said casually as he ate a slice of cooked beef.
The atmosphere at the table didn't change because of Chen Mian's words. Velyan was still putting mushrooms into the pot, and Flora was portioning out meat into everyone's bowls.
As he ate, Chen Mian briefly explained what he had seen at the palace: the king's curse, the aura deep within the palace that shared the same source as the Child of the Rot, and Aler's late-night departure from the palace.
“So the royal family is currently controlled by the Shadow Cult,” Loviki said, slowly putting down her chopsticks after listening.
“Yeah. If this Second Prince isn't anyone remarkable, then he's highly likely just an ambitious puppet,” Chen Mian nodded and said.
Loviki fell silent for a moment, then looked up. “So I'm their target?”
“Yes,” Chen Mian nodded. “Otherwise, the Second Prince wouldn't have discarded all shame to threaten you using the Lawrence Family to force you out. The people behind him must be pushing him hard.”
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