Chapter 54 Castile (Part 5) The Rose Knights

Xu Lingzhao changed into the knight's attire, which was a little ill-fitting, but it didn't matter. Feng Sui led her through the camp to the Rose Knights, placed her at the very end of the group, and then left.

The procession was quiet. The knights standing around her all had their heads down and their faces were expressionless, but a few barely audible sighs could be heard. This silence was broken when Feng Sui walked to the front of the procession.

"Hey, logically speaking, the Knights' Camp shouldn't have assigned us to pick up people after we just made a contribution."

"What can we do? Can you guess what the higher-ups will decide?"

"Hey, do you think it's because of this newcomer? I heard she's one of Duke Gene's people. There are plenty of people in the palace who don't like Duke Gene. We're forced to take on these kinds of missions as soon as she arrives."

"Tsk, don't talk nonsense. Instead of talking about this, you should pray that you don't encounter the Zerg."

From their conversation, Xu Lingzhao roughly guessed that this mission seemed to be very dangerous. Her gaze lingered on the waist of the person in front of her. There was no gun, only the tip. Although firearms were rare, having a gun would greatly increase the safety factor if it was a long march.

As she pondered, a figure stopped beside her. His hand casually rested on her shoulder, a smile on his face, but his words were unsettling. "What are you daydreaming about? Since you were recommended by Duke Gene, you don't have to participate in this mission yet. Oh, by the way, you haven't had your mental strength tested yet, have you? What are we going to do? If your mental strength doesn't meet the standard, we'll have to send you to logistics. You can cook, right?"

His series of words seemed to be concerned about himself, but in reality, he was digging a pit for Xu Lingzhao, putting her on the hot seat. "Reporting to the deputy commander, not a single knight is a deserter. My mental strength is at S-rank." Her words were powerful and clear, and although her voice was not loud, most people could hear her. Xu Lingzhao did not avoid his gaze, her golden eyes staring directly at his face.

Galahad thought Xu Lingzhao was an easy target, but his smile gradually froze. S-rank mental strength, even the Knight Commander was only A. "Really? Was it professionally tested?"

Xu Lingzhao gave a meaningful smile. "Of course it's true, Vice Commander. My mental strength was tested in Duke Gene's castle."

"Hehe, that's good, that's good." Galahad patted Xu Lingzhao's shoulder heavily, turned around and left. His face darkened. His faction was at odds with Duke Gene. He originally only wanted to suppress this newcomer, but unexpectedly gave her a chance to show off. S-level mental strength, while he was only B-level.

Moreover, with this newcomer joining, it's inevitable that his position will be affected, Galahad thought to himself. Originally, he could become the Knight Commander simply by eliminating Feng Sui, but now the situation is different.

A short while later, the entire team set off.

The sound of footsteps crunching on the withered leaves filled the air as the team walked along the pre-established route. Xu Lingzhao felt a light bump on her arm and turned her head slightly. The female Alpha standing next to her was winking at her. "Hey, you're really S-rank? Then your days are going to be tough. Galahad will definitely target you."

Xu Lingzhao frowned slightly. Galahad was the name of the vice commander? Seemingly noticing her confusion, the female Alpha continued, "The one who was picking on you just now was Galahad. He's petty, has no real strength, but he wants to be a knight commander."

Xu Lingzhao was even more puzzled by the female Alpha's remarks. Was this person genuinely straightforward or did she have ulterior motives? She simply nodded politely to indicate that she understood, then looked straight ahead and followed the person in front of her at a leisurely pace.

Her mother, the Queen of Castile, was about to have three more young and handsome concubines. Her fingers curled slightly. Why did her father die so young while she lived such a carefree life? Xu Lingzhao thought that there was nothing more painful than watching everything she had gradually slip away.

As dusk fell, the Knights stopped and set up camp in a relatively flat and open area. Just as the fire was lit, Galahad came up to Xu Lingzhao and said to her in a businesslike manner, "Today is your first day here, you're not familiar with anything, you'll keep watch." After saying that, he left without looking back.

The female Alpha who had just spoken came over again. She had overheard Galahad's words. "Tsk tsk, she did it on purpose. I told you she would target you on purpose."

“You hate him.” Xu Lingzhao took a step back imperceptibly and took out a cloth from her pocket to wipe her sword.

“Many people hate him, but he also has his lackeys. I’ll keep watch with you tonight.” The female Alpha said indistinctly, a withered foxtail grass dangling from her mouth. “My name is Yu Yu.”

“Yu Yu?” Xu Lingzhao repeated, “It’s a cute name.”

Yu Yu: "..." She spat out the foxtail grass in her mouth, coughed a few times, "It's the 'Yu' in 'little fish,' and the 'Yu' in 'melancholy.'"

"Oh." Xu Lingzhao nodded, carefully wiping the sword in his hands, and replied casually, "My name is Xu Lingzhao, Xu as in Xu Lingzhao, Ling as in Xu Lingzhao, and Zhao as in Xu Lingzhao."

Yu Yu's lips twitched slightly. After a long while, she said, "You're really interesting."

Xu Lingzhao was eating the dinner she had been given in line for. It was rye bread with a small piece of hard cheese. The texture was rough, but it was filling. Yu Yu sat down next to her as if they were old friends and casually tossed a small bottle of wine into Xu Lingzhao's hand. "Drink up, don't choke."

During the march, it was practically impossible to drink fresh water due to the poor sanitation conditions. So Xu Lingzhao didn't stand on ceremony and directly pulled out the cork from the bottle and took a sip. A hint of doubt flashed in her eyes. Logically speaking, the wine distributed by the logistics department was usually of poor quality. Even if Yu Yu had prepared it herself, this bottle of wine looked very ordinary, but it was surprisingly mellow and fragrant. It was a good wine.

"You bought this yourself?" Xu Lingzhao put the cork back into the bottle and into her backpack, then stood up with her sword, ready to patrol the area. Yu Yu followed her, stretching as she walked. "I got it from home. How is it? Tastes good, right?"

“Indeed.” Xu Lingzhao nodded. This night watch was not simply about sitting in one place, but required constantly patrolling around the temporary camp set up by the Knights.

Bored, Yu Yu kept trying to find topics to talk about, and the conversation gradually went astray. She lowered her voice and said to Xu Lingzhao, "Hey, I heard that among the three new concubines we're going to pick up, one of them is an Omega prince from Lorraine. He's... well, what's that word again? Right! He's incredibly beautiful."

This time, it was Xu Lingzhao's turn to have her lips twitch. Even the usually serious Yu Yu had such a perverted side. She was speechless. "Putting everything else aside, how can a knight like you have designs on a concubine? Aren't you afraid of getting your head chopped off?"

"Tch, what's the big deal? Don't you know that concubines are just playthings to the Queen, who can be given away to anyone at will? There's a knight commander in the Knights' Headquarters whose consort was personally bestowed by the Queen." Yu Yu pouted and continued, "Besides, I'm not after a concubine. I have a fiancé." Yu Yu winked.

Yu Yu's words plunged Xu Lingzhao's heart into despair. So that's how it is. So that's why her father didn't want to continue being with her. In the Queen's eyes, a concubine was just a plaything that could be given away at will. Her fingers clenched into fists.

Yu Yu noticed that Xu Lingzhao's expression was slightly off. After thinking for a few seconds, she covered her mouth and pretended to be very surprised. "Could it be that the person you like is the Queen's concubine? No, you're only 16 years old."

Xu Lingzhao glanced at her, his expression returning to normal, and said quietly, "Yes, you know I'm only 16 years old."

The entire camp fell silent, with only the campfire burning. Xu Lingzhao patrolled diligently, while Yu Yu shivered beside her. She wanted to speak, but Xu Lingzhao covered her mouth. "Shh, there seems to be some noise." Xu Lingzhao's face showed a serious expression, and her eyes were fixed on a tree not far away.

Without the slightest hesitation, she shouted, "Zerg! Zerg! At nine o'clock!" Her shout shattered the silence, and countless torches instantly lit up the camp. Knights rushed out of their tents, swords in hand, watching warily in the direction Xu Lingzhao had indicated.

Sure enough, the roar of the spider-faced creature came, and countless green eyes lit up on the tree at the nine o'clock position. They were so dense that anyone with trypophobia would faint. And sure enough, Galahad fainted right in front of everyone.

Feng Sui shouted, directing the knights to line up. She threw the torches in her hands into the densely packed eye-covering structures. In the firelight, the human-faced spiders that had been lying in wait retreated unwillingly.

Yu Yu wiped the non-existent sweat from her forehead. At this moment, she truly believed that Xu Lingzhao possessed S-level mental strength. If she hadn't given the warning, the scene that followed would likely have turned into a fierce battle between the Spider-Man and the Knight, with inevitable casualties. If the casualties were too high, they would have no choice but to return.

However, returning to the Knights' Headquarters would result in mission failure, and in more serious cases, it could lead to being demoted to a fourth-level knight order. Yu Yu's thoughts at this moment were the thoughts of everyone in the entire Rose Knights.

Feng Sui watched the human-faced spiders retreat. He pointed to two patrol teams and increased the patrol intensity. She walked up to Xu Lingzhao. Although her face still had an aloof look, she patted Xu Lingzhao on the shoulder and said, "Well done. You guys go and rest. I'll take care of things here."

Xu Lingzhao nodded without saying much, then turned and walked towards her team's tent. She was indeed a little tired after walking for so long. High-level mental power could indeed detect the presence of the insectoid race, but hers seemed to be a little different. She took off her knight's uniform and lay down on the bed. Just as she turned around, she found Yu Yu sleeping next to her.

Xu Lingzhao: ........ She almost forgot that she and Yu Yu were members of the same team, but she was certain that the person sleeping in the bed next to her was definitely not her! Yu Yu changed beds.

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Author's Note: This is a paid chapter! Today's chapter is a huge 10,000-word long chapter! [Confetti][Confetti] I really didn't expect my first novel to be a paid chapter, but I'm also aware of my shortcomings, and I'm working hard to correct them! It will definitely get better and better in the future! Thank you so much to all my readers for your support! You've given me the motivation to keep going! [Confetti][Confetti]