Imperial Princess Charlotte Radiance was a top-tier 【hero】 of the 【radiant king】 path, and her level of attainment was not far from the rank of a saint.
Her huff, filled with murderous intent and rage, was truly soul-shaking.
If Faust had not previously absorbed the path experience from the elf martial saint, he might have been truly cowed by that sound.
Now, however, his expression merely tightened for a moment before he regained his composure.
"Don't get too excited just yet."
Realizing his words had caused a misunderstanding, Faust wiped the spittle from his face with a handkerchief and explained, "I wasn't talking about your Lady Lian."
Clearly, this explanation failed to convince Charlotte.
He had just looked at Lian's photo and immediately claimed he wanted to be a dragon knight—how was she supposed to believe there was no causal connection?!
Yet, the princess couldn't afford to break the alliance entirely. She could only grit her teeth and follow the out he provided.
"You'd better not be..."
Sitting back in her seat, Charlotte crossed her arms and legs, abandoning her previous royal poise. Her sharp gaze looked as though she wanted to hack Faust into a thousand pieces.
Originally, Charlotte had held a fair amount of appreciation for Faust, but a single sentence had reset his favor to zero. Now, she looked like she wanted to pounce on him and tear him apart.
Faust didn't particularly care. If not for Mephistopheles, he wouldn't have any intersection with the Second Empire at all. The key factors were always the fairies and dragons; Charlotte's attitude was insignificant.
What truly bothered him was that Mephistopheles had caught him in a compromise.
【Ho ho ho, a dragon knight... is that so?】
【Faust, Faust... my dear Faust, so you actually harbor such thoughts? How adorable.】
【If this can help with your release, I don't mind.】
Faust replied, "I must clarify. The dragon knight I spoke of is simply the kind that looks impressive. I have no other intentions."
【A 'try not to laugh' challenge? I lost.】
Sigh, I really shouldn't have let my true feelings slip. Now that Mephistopheles knows this, I'll never hear the end of it.
In the eerie silence, the carriage reached the station. Before the imperial diplomatic mission departed, Charlotte finally spoke again.
"Prince of Qingxi, if you truly intend to gain the favor of a fairy, why not try challenging yourself?"
"Hmm?"
Charlotte sneered. "I have a suggestion, though I don't know if you can handle it. If you succeed, the merit you achieve will certainly be enough to attract a fairy."
The imperial princess looked around and said flatly, "Aren't you... quite close to the Midwinter Kingdom?"
"The Midwinter Kingdom..."
Faust recalled the name, remembering it as a rather mysterious one among the surrounding realms.
Despite not being in an extreme geographic zone, its winters were exceptionally long. It was covered in white snow for nearly half the year. When Faust first heard of it, he thought it odd, but considering this was a fantasy world where anything was possible, he hadn't paid it much mind.
More interesting than the abnormal weather were the kingdom's strength and antiquity.
That kingdom had long practiced isolationism. Whenever an external enemy tried to force open its gates, they were swept away by a thunderous force, forcing the neighboring countries to bow their heads and become its vassals.
But that was it. Even though the Midwinter Kingdom had countless opportunities to integrate other small nations and grow stronger, it never did.
Even during the empire's peak, it had failed to conquer this ancient land. For many years, the Midwinter Kingdom only opened limited ports for trade.
Outsiders knew almost nothing about its internal affairs, which only added to its shroud of mystery.
However, seeing as Charlotte mentioned it, the princess seemed to know the internal truth.
"What's wrong with that kingdom?"
Charlotte placed a hand on her hip and shrugged.
"They have been cursed by a dragon, trapped in a pathetic cycle... Every generation's Snow White must commit matricide to ascend the throne. All the suffering and glory of that nation stem from the tragedy of their royal family's mutual slaughter."
"Heh, that's why I said not all fairies possess the compassion of Lady Lian. That group of executioners who enforce fate harbor plenty of malice toward humanity."
"Wait, what did you just say?! What princess?!" Faust immediately caught the keyword and pressed for details.
The princess, completely baffled by Faust's excitement, raised an eyebrow.
"Snow White... That's what they call the heir to the throne. You didn't know? Well, your kingdom is far too young; even your founder was just a crude adventurer."
Fine, fine, 'Snow White' it is.
Faust had known about the Midwinter Kingdom for a long time, but no one had ever told him this piece of information!
Sigh, my father's background is just too grassroots; he's ignorant of many ancient secrets.
"The Midwinter Kingdom is deeply mired in a curse it cannot escape, which is why it remains so silent. If you can break the dragon's curse, that merit will inevitably attract the attention of other fairies."
"Furthermore, if you can conquer the Midwinter Kingdom, you will naturally gain its group of vassal states. That expansion speed is much faster than managing your own little kingdom."
Although Charlotte's proposal was enticing, anyone could guess her intent.
If the Midwinter Kingdom truly had a dragon's curse that had remained uncurable for so long, it was surely a lethal problem. Charlotte's urging was likely a form of revenge for the Qingxi prince's "blasphemy."
Allies are just enemies in disguise, wishing for each other's death!
Faust struggled to suppress a smile, placing a hand on his chest. "Thank you for the suggestion. I've gained much from it. I'll give it a try."
If it were any other unknown trial, Faust wouldn't dare agree so easily.
However, this was 'Snow White'.
If he didn't know, that would be one thing, but now that he did, there was no way he could ignore it.
"Oh?"
Charlotte watched Faust's obvious eagerness with half-closed eyes.
She had suggested it out of spite and didn't actually expect Faust to go through with it.
However, the imperial princess soon stopped caring.
"Then I shall look forward to the good news."
Whatever. If Faust died that easily, he wouldn't be much of a trump card against the 【brave one】 anyway. And if he really could complete the challenge... well, she would worry about that then.
Rumble—
The heavy sound of a train approaching echoed. Charlotte and the rest of the imperial mission disguised themselves and, just as they had arrived, quietly boarded the train to return to the capital of the Radiant Dynasty.
After seeing off the princess at the station, Faust suppressed his excitement and spoke to his contracted fairy in his mind.
"Mephistopheles, I've decided on my next destination."
The Prince of Qingxi said, "First, tell me what exactly is going on with the Midwinter Kingdom?"
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