Faust struck first. The prince understood the way of the world: rather than reflecting on oneself, it was better to accuse others. He took the moral high ground first, expressing indignation at Artedinis's despicable act of standing by and watching.
As for himself hugging and being intimate with the dragon-maiden... but could that be the same?!
The prince looked at Artedinis with eyes full of sorrowful disdain and said:
“As a true Brave One, when you see a comrade in a bitter struggle, you not only fail to help, watching your colleague die, but you even clap and say... you saw something interesting. Artedinis, you really are something else!”
The Imperial Princess was shocked by the man's shameless counter-accusation, but she was certainly no simpleton. She immediately spread her hands and said:
“Otherwise, what should I have done? Stop Alexander and tell him not to throw his life away? In his state, he probably wouldn't have listened at all. I am not like that fool; I am well aware of the gap between myself and Lady Lian.”
“And Lady Lian had already discovered me earlier. Thanks to her mercy, why would I play the part of an unwelcome clown?”
Faust gave an “oh” and slightly raised his chin.
“From what you're saying, it seems you don't have much hostility toward Lian.”
The prince of Qingxi was also somewhat curious. If Alexander's overwhelming hatred for evil dragons was bestowed by the 【Brave One】 fate-star, then Artedinis, as a 【Brave One】, seemed to have no aversion or hostility toward dragons at all.
How could she fulfill her mission as a dragonslayer hero then?
“After all, I come from the imperial family. I have always held deep respect for Lady Lian, who has protected the empire for eight hundred years. But please don't misunderstand—that doesn't stop me from wanting to slay her.”
Artedinis bowed gracefully, her cream-colored hair falling against her cheeks. Her long eyelashes fluttered as she raised her indigo eyes, a fire of ambition seemingly burning within them.
“My way of expressing true respect to Lady Lian is to do everything in my power to defeat her, to kill her, and to bathe myself in the dragon's blood. Such glory, even for me, is something completely worth looking forward to.”
Was a motive and a plan to slay the dragon enough? As for the reason, it didn't seem to matter much.
Faust nodded. “Hmph, looking at it that way, you truly are a real Brave One.”
Artedinis's beautiful and pretty face flushed. She pursed her lips and smiled.
“A true 【Brave One】... Although I know you only got the title of a quasi-brave one through your connections with the Sanctuary and are deeply involved with the Second Empire, and aren't someone who truly intends to slay dragons, I never imagined you would maintain such a relationship with Lady Lian.”
The Imperial Princess stared intently at Faust with her one uncovered eye, as if she needed to get to know him all over again.
It really was time to get to know him again. Although Faust considered it perfectly natural to get close to a beautiful dragon-maiden.
However, his actions just now were enough to make anyone question whether the prince of Qingxi was still human, or if he had some mental abnormality.
“Your Highness.”
Viviana came to Faust's side and whispered in his ear:
“Since she was watching all along, the secret hasn't been kept. Should we prepare to leave this place quickly?”
If the crime of colluding with an evil dragon were to be established, the next thing they would have to consider is how to safely return to their territory and then face the encirclement of the 【Sacred Alliance】 in its fury.
“That won't be necessary! Rest assured, she won't tell anyone.”
Faust seemed quite at ease, unlike when he was discovered by Alexander. There was no risk of exposure now that Artedinis knew of his relationship with Lian.
If one were to ask why, it was because the prince had already seen through this ill-natured princess:
“Because that would be boring.”
“Heh, hahahaha... Exactly, it would be very boring. Why would I report you? Wouldn't that just drive you away? I'm not so malicious as to do that.”
Artedinis laughed heartily at Faust's sharp judgment. After a while, she wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and said:
“I do have much to say, but it's not too late to talk later. For now, let's leave the secret realm, shall we?”
“Regarding Alexander's death, with my testimony, your suspicion should be cleared.”
Faust retorted, “Don't make it sound like I killed him! Besides, I have no reason to be suspected!”
Big Brother Faust lived with a clear conscience! He had nothing to feel guilty about!
However, Artedinis's willingness to give false testimony was naturally excellent, and there was no reason to refuse.
So, Artedinis left first. A moment later, she arrived in her flagship, loading Faust's group along with Alexander's corpse, and left the slaughtered secret realm prison.
And at the exit in the outside world, the scene was one of madness after the artillery fire had ravaged it.
This encirclement of the ancient giant monstrous beasts had lasted only a day, but the forest around the giant vines had been nearly leveled.
Countless craters and charcoal were scattered around, and the slain giants filled the pits. As for the rest, they had been driven deep into the forbidden zone.
Squads of the holy crusade force were patrolling repeatedly. These elite warriors in heavy armor were more diligent than the imperial soldiers, carefully delivering the final blow to any giants that weren't quite dead.
As for the magic vine itself, after the last person retreated from the secret realm, it was set ablaze, the towering vine turning into a spectacular torch.
If one only looked at the original objective, this encirclement operation against the ancient giants could be said to be extremely successful, achieving its goal in the shortest time with the fewest casualties.
It would have been worth holding a special banquet to celebrate, if not for Lian's sudden intrusion.
After the princess's warship docked, Sister Helen in her sacred robes walked up, a smile on her face.
“Prince Faust, and Princess Artedinis, welcome back. Are you both satisfied with this trial?”
“And Sir Alexander? There was a report just now that some abnormalities occurred inside the secret realm prison. Has he not come out yet?”
“He's dead. He died because he challenged the dragon,” Faust said, getting straight to the point.
“!!!”
The smile on the nun's face froze instantly, and her beautiful brows trembled slightly. Even with the mind of a high-tier Pilgrim, she had to work hard to digest this nonchalant sentence from Faust.
Helen pursed her lips and said in a trembling voice, “What happened?”
“It's as I said. That true dragon of the Second Empire entered the secret realm. She didn't intend to do anything, but Alexander met her and launched a fierce attack.”
Then, he recounted the explanation he had prepared on the way. It couldn't even be called a lie, because Faust only described Alexander's heroic death. As for himself... he had merely stayed on the sidelines out of consideration for self-preservation.
Rate on N.U.
