67. Rich in fortune, rich in chicken rice…
—
Now was not the time for us to ponder “why Ludwig could directly ‘extract power’”! Because with each stream of “moonlight” flowing into Ludwig’s body, as time passed, even now that Elisse, the Moon Fairy, finally understood Ludwig’s thoughts, she could do nothing to resist!
She frequently retreated, but could never break her gaze from Ludwig, and naturally… it seemed that the fairy’s power was continuously flowing from her eyes, surging into Ludwig’s body!
With her long hair cascading down, head tilted back and eyes closed, bathed under the crescent moon, Ludwig looked as if she had transformed into someone else. In the next moment, she seemed to revel in the feeling of “gaining power,” even dropping the oversized sword in her hand, slowly opening her arms, appearing completely unguarded, but in reality… she was far more dangerous than she had been just moments ago!
“Ah… after causing trouble, it’s only right to exist for this moment.”
A voice devoid of any sense of crisis rang out, and at the same time, my script seemed to be influenced by the power Ludwig had obtained, beginning to unfold a series of events that were completely beyond my control, difficult to articulate in content! It was as if: this uncontrollable power of the Moon Fairy, the “ability to peer into hearts,” had interfered with my script at this moment, revealing Ludwig’s current feelings to me!
【Ah… the power of the Moon Fairy is indeed impressive.】
【With this power, I can… hmm… hmm…】
—
【Forget it, it feels too troublesome, anyway… as long as there is power, that’s enough.】
This is clearly just Ludwig’s complaints and grievances, but…
Just like the earlier warnings from the spirits of Prussia: Ludwig is a dangerous person who has no stance and no constraints in pursuit of power! This made my suspicions come true, and in this moment, I finally understood Ludwig’s thoughts and actions!
Initially, when the spirits from the Kingdom of Prussia came to me and relayed the warnings that Adele had specifically made for me, I didn’t pay much attention, thinking it was just a prejudice stemming from the long-standing troubles among the spirit race. However, when Ludwig actually appeared, not only did he not follow the Moon Fairy’s orders to “get rid of me,” but he even proposed a way for us to negotiate with the Moon Fairy, I gradually began to doubt.
To put it simply: why would Ludwig go through such troublesome things? Just as he had just said: only matters related to power wouldn’t feel troublesome.
At that time, Ludwig was already preparing to seize the power of the Moon Fairy. Every action was merely to deceive the Moon Fairy’s ability to “gaze into the heart,” after all, while the power of the Moon Fairy, Iris, is terrifying, it still has its flaws. Aside from being able to see only one person at a time, it can only look at “one matter” at a time—this was something I discovered the night I negotiated with Iris before leaving, and Ludwig probably knew it long ago.
So he deliberately brought us back to negotiate, claiming to ease the situation to ensure our success; all of this was to attract Iris’s “gaze,” leading her to overlook the ultimate goal that Ludwig deeply concealed in his heart. Iris only peeled away the first layer, yet Ludwig’s true purpose was hidden in the fifth layer.
No wonder since Ludwig offered help, my script with Kephiel and the Queen has been smooth sailing. Hmph, with the power of the Moon Fairy, Iris, being siphoned away, we indeed could have “smooth sailing” afterward.
However, in such a choice, whether to opt for the “smooth sailing” that benefits oneself or to remain true to one’s original purpose, I won’t interfere or speak out. Kephiel… I will respect your decision; you don’t need to look over here. Follow your heart and make your choice! After all, this is also the reason I’ve been hiding and reluctant for Iris to discover—besides wanting to make that old hag suffer a bit, more importantly… I want you, Kephiel, to choose the outcome yourself!
In the next moment, I realized I no longer needed to urge Kephiel.
The power being siphoned by Ludwig was suddenly interrupted by a figure’s “obstruction,” and the Moon Fairy, Iris, who couldn’t even make a sound, immediately fell backward, fortunately caught by the Queen. The “gaze” was blocked, and it seemed Ludwig’s trick to “take the power” was also forced to halt.
Of course, I was also clear about the consequences that would follow.
Ludwig opened his eyes, no longer lazy as before, but now as cold as the crescent moon of the night, one of his eyes even taking on the shape of a crescent moon, turning to look at the person who blocked the Moon Fairy’s sight—Kephiel, clearly expressing his anger at that moment.
At the same time, my script appeared once again.
【Ludwig has not fully obtained the power of the Moon Fairy!】
Unfortunately, what I saw this time was not some “smooth sailing” content.
【Ludwig feels anger!】
【Ludwig attacks Kephiel!】
【Kephiel is injured by Ludwig!】
All the previous smooth scripts vanished, replaced by such dangerous content. However, since this was Kephiel’s decision, I had nothing to complain about! To take a step back, I also didn’t want our group to be used by Ludwig, even to the extent of being exploited to take away what originally belonged to Kephiel.
“…Kephiel, why do you have to do such troublesome things?”
Ludwig turned to Kephiel, then slowly bent down to pick up the oversized sword from the ground.
“I clearly said I would ease things for you; didn’t you understand that well enough?”
“What you mean by easing things is to use us to ambush the former queen of the Great Yng Empire?”
“Sigh… isn’t this result good for everyone? Why do you humans always have to fuss over such trivial matters? The outcome has already left you with nothing to complain about. As long as Iris is temporarily no threat, aren’t you safe?”
Ludwig pouted, “By the way,
—
Well… K…
I no longer needed to remind her, for in the next moment, I realized: Ke Fei’er seemed to have made all the preparations and was truly about to begin her “duel” with Ludwig, just as she had previously said, “Be ready.”
“How unfortunate, Sword Saint, now I also want to have a go at you. And then force the power you brought to be spat back out, after all, you look like you have no sense of honor or shame regarding power at all!”
The real “duel” was probably just beginning now!
—