50. The Outside Assistance Has Expired
Relying on the higher privileges I gained from recently getting along with Adéle, I easily bypassed the elves who had been watching me and headed to the royal suite where Louis IV and the others had long been waiting for my arrival.
As for Adéle, she should still be tied up, blindfolded, and waiting to play hide and seek, while strumming her harp. Although there were hints in the script that she had her suspicions, I believed this time would be enough for me to escape before she truly sensed something was wrong and came looking for me.
At this moment, in the royal suite where Queen Louis IV was located.
When I opened the door, fully disguised and in a hurry, Kephiel and the queen immediately turned to look at me. The cold tea on the table indicated that the queen had been waiting for quite some time.
Kephiel was the first to approach, her concern evident.
“Why are you so late?”
I felt a bit puzzled; ever since the incident with Nilu had temporarily settled down, it seemed like Kephiel had lost some of her aloofness and gained a bit of that “good wife, wise mother” vibe. Where did that ice queen aura go?
I didn’t dare to say anything, fearing I might get hit, and this wasn’t the right occasion to bring it up.
“I got held up a bit while making an excuse to leave Adéle. So, we…”
“We can leave now! The queen is ready!”
Most likely because we could finally shake off the threat posed by that marriage-pressuring sprite, Kephiel couldn’t help but seem a bit excited. She had been holding onto my arm since the beginning and showed no signs of letting go, her gaze now filled with anticipation.
I scratched my head, um… What was Kefir expecting me to say? It couldn’t possibly be something like “We’ll get married once we return home,” right? That would be too dangerous!
The next moment, the queen’s cough finally broke the atmosphere that had begun to turn pink.
“You two, if you keep showing off your affection in front of me, not only will I not let you leave, but I might even report your intentions to Aidev~”
Turning my head to look, the great Queen Louie IV still had a smile on her face, but the displeasure seeing through was almost enough to make her smile crack.
This queenly buzzkill could hardly be called a buzzkill; she was practically the sun.
“Kefir, go do a final check. Moriarty, inform your people to get ready.”
I watched as Louie IV stood up and picked up a small bag from the table, clearly signaling her intention to “make a run for it.” Just as she was about to pass by me and take me along, she suddenly turned around as if she had thought of something. This unusual behavior caused both Moriarty and Kefir to halt in their tracks.
“By the way, O’Keefe, given your previous statements that rival those of a seasoned player in the romance game, and your completely contradictory actions of innocence, I still need to confirm something with you.”
After a round of sarcastic words, Louie IV turned away, her smile fading, and with a serious frown, she asked, “Did you really use the medicine I gave you to knock Aidev out?”
“!”
My little hand trembled! I was just about to bluff my way through, but then I realized I wasn’t facing some naive fool, but rather the sharp-witted Louie IV! A blatant lie would likely be exposed immediately!
However, before I could even whistle a note, the queen had already caught on to the hint in my slight reaction!
【Louie IV guessed O’Keefe’s actions!】
This was exposed!?
But I just couldn’t bring myself to use the “drugging” method on Aidev, and as an alternative, I had found a good excuse to ensure Aidev wouldn’t chase after me for a short while. Was there… any problem with that!?
The next moment, before I could voice my confusion, I heard Louie IV let out a heavy sigh.
“Ah… I knew it would be like this. Moriarty, don’t clean up, Plan B. Kefir, from this moment on, I temporarily hand over the command authority of the patrol team you brought this time to you. Moriarty and I have special identities, so we won’t accompany you any longer.”
I was momentarily at a loss!
“Your Majesty, what does this mean? Drugging someone is indeed a bit… hard to stomach, but I also mentioned that Aidev shouldn’t react immediately!”
“O’Keefe, if it weren’t for the fact that I know you’re really just a fool who likes to flirt around without realizing it, I might think you’re deliberately trying to take over the continent.”
The queen’s attitude towards me reverted back to her true nature. “Don’t think that just because that elf looks like a loli, you can treat her like one. Elves are quite clever; you should be a bit ruthless, but you just can ‘t bring yourself to do it. Ah… you’ll soon find out what will happen next.”
I instinctively glanced at the script, but upon looking, the queen’s earlier words came true like a “prophecy”!
【Aidev has suspicions!】
【Aidev is on her way to find O’Keefe!】
No… it can’t be!? That elf has already realized I was trying to sneak away!? Shouldn’t she still be enjoying the hide-and-seek game with M?
Looking back at Louie IV, the queen had finished criticizing me and returned to her original state, even knowing exactly what I was thinking!
“If you still want my help in this situation~ then O’Keefe must become my husband~”
“Sister Queen!!?”
Kefir certainly wouldn’t agree, and Louie IV was very aware of this, so her real intention was in the next sentence.
—
“I will use the prepared one-way teleportation to return to the teleportation point ahead of Moriarty~ However, if this teleportation needs to be discreet, then it’s just me and Moriarty who can manage it. Therefore: Kfir, O’Keefe, I ‘ll trouble you two, especially you, Mr. O’Keefe, to resolve the good things that have arisen in the Kingdom of Prussia one by one, before returning to the Great Ying Empire~ Don’t think about bringing any trouble back, as I won’t be responsible for handling it~”
With the Queen saying this, her attitude couldn’t be clearer: O’Keefe, you’re an idiot, and now I have to fulfill my duties as a queen. The shift in situation caught me off guard, but… it was my fault to begin with, and I had nothing to argue about; Louis IV had already helped me enough.
However, the Queen didn’t seem so heartless, as she quickly walked over to Kfir.
“Kfir~”
“Your Majesty… I won’t go back.”
“I won’t let you go back~ Listen carefully~”
In the next moment, the Queen’s smile suddenly turned “dark,” “You’ve seen the lesson this time; keep a close eye from now on. If you think it’s no big deal, I don’t. If someone gets lost— I’ll hold you accountable~”
By the time Kfir looked over in surprise, Louis IV had already returned to her original idol state, waving goodbye to me with a serious demeanor, accompanied by Moriarty.
“Well then, Mr. O’Keefe, take care and enjoy your first time★”
【Whoosh】
A flash of white light, and the figures of Louis IV and Moriarty vanished, replaced by the content of the script that was about to unfold!
【Adele bursts in!】
—