Chapter 81 Castile (Thirty-Two): Resolving the Crisis; The Royal City...

The other knights froze in place, their eyes fixed on the head that had rolled to the ground, while the disgusting black tentacles remained motionless.

Those protruding eyes remained open defiantly, and upon closer inspection, one could see dense, red blood vessels covering the eyeballs, with a tendency to darken slightly.

A commotion arose, and Xu Lingzhao looked up to see a man in a dark blue uniform walking towards them, surrounded by a crowd. Alistair took a few steps forward.

As expected, the person who stopped in front of Alistair was Menan, the Inspector General of Solo. He had a scar on his thin face and faint dark circles under his eyes. After bowing to Alistair, he began to talk about the situation in Solo.

“Solo has been relatively stable in recent years, with no major battles, but a month ago, a strange phenomenon appeared in Solo.” Menan pointed to the strange head. “That’s it. We don’t know what it is, but we all call it a monster.”

After saying this, Menan glanced at Alistair and continued, "Your Highness's arrival should be able to resolve this problem for the people of Solo." His tone was indifferent, as if it were just a minor matter.

“After all, Your Highness can return to the royal city, while some of us will have to stay in Solo for the rest of our lives.” As soon as these words were spoken, Xu Lingzhao could clearly feel the obvious displeasure in the eyes of the knights around them.

“I’ll handle it.” Alistair glanced at Menan, knowing what he meant: only after he resolved this problem would he be qualified to discuss the rest with him.

However, this is indeed a good opportunity to demonstrate strength and win people's hearts.

Menan dismissed everyone and went into the camp alone with Alistair to discuss matters.

Yu Yu rubbed her hands together and leaned closer to Xu Lingzhao, "Do you have any ideas?"

Xu Lingzhao shook her head. "It will take time." She knew clearly that the spread of the mutant species required a medium, and once this medium was found, all the tasks would be solved.

They had just arrived in Solo and knew almost nothing about the place. Before long, Menan and Alistair came out of the tent, and Xu Lingzhao and the others were reassigned to become the captains of other knightly orders in the Solo Knights.

After a tedious morning of training, Xu Lingzhao walked alone on the training ground. Much of the snow on the ground had melted due to the training, and the knights coming and going all had their heads down, looking lifeless. This was Xu Lingzhao's assessment of the Solo Knights.

Over the past month, in order to learn more about Solo, Xu Lingzhao always took the initiative to talk to local knights or residents. The weather was getting colder and colder, and there were only a few minor conflicts. The cold wind blew against her face, and the red berries hanging on the trees caught her attention. She was currently in a small village near the camp, and beyond the village was a dense forest.

The Knights' Camp has a clear rule that no one can leave the camp at will. Even Xu Lingzhao, the captain, was only able to leave because he was authorized by Alistair.

Xu Lingzhao stopped in her tracks. She heard voices and looked in the direction of the sound. She saw a mother and daughter picking the bright red fruit. "Mommy, why have I never seen this before?" The little girl curiously picked up a red fruit and examined it closely.

“It only recently appeared.” The mother tapped the fruit on the tree with a stick, glancing at the little girl’s actions. “Be careful not to break it.”

"Oh, okay." The little girl obediently put the fruit back.

Xu Lingzhao watched their actions quietly from a distance. The red fruit and the mutant species had only recently appeared, making it hard not to draw parallels.

If the fruit was the medium for transmission, why were the villagers unharmed? Xu Lingzhao narrowed her eyes, pondering this question. An idea flashed through her mind.

Over the past few days, she has discovered that those who have been affected by the mutants are all knights, and the biggest difference between knights and villagers is that knights have spiritual power while villagers do not.

She followed the mother and daughter to the village and found that every household had picked some of this fruit. They made the fruit into biscuits or cheese, packaged them up, and sold them to the knight.

Conditions in Solo were harsh; the food in the Knights' Camp was barely enough to fill one's stomach.

Xu Lingzhao followed them all the way, without stopping them. Such clumsy methods were clearly not in line with the style of the Insect Queen. Xu Lingzhao returned to the camp, and this time her destination was the kitchen.

She pushed open the door and entered the kitchen, her eyes sweeping over the faces of the chefs who were engrossed in cooking. Several of them were behaving suspiciously; it was past lunchtime and they were preparing dinner.

-

The royal city remained unchanged in winter, but beneath this surface of peace lurked turmoil. The Queen was unwell, and the Second Prince held absolute power, with many nobles opportunistically currying favor with him.

Even those who previously supported His Highness were beginning to waver.

Since Viv became the first in line to the Duke's throne, she has rarely come to the small manor due to her busy schedule, and Ryan and Chu Jingze have been keeping each other company.

That day, Ryan came to Chu Jingze with a newspaper. The smile on her face was infectious. He was three months pregnant. Xu Lingzhao had never missed a day. With her company at night, Chu Jingze looked great, and his face was rounder than before.

"Wow, Xiao Ze, your Alpha is really amazing! The newspaper says she quelled a lot of rebellions in Solo and even resolved the monster crisis! She prevented it from spreading to the royal city!" Ryan read the contents of the newspaper, constantly throwing ambiguous glances at Chu Jingze.

Chu Jing chuckled softly, his face flushed with happiness. He said, "She's always been very capable." She already knew what Ryan was talking about, so she just smiled faintly.

Xu Lingzhao said that His Highness had successfully established a foothold in Solo, and they would be able to return soon once the war was resolved.

Night falls.

Chu Jing lay flat on the bed. His growing belly made it impossible for him to sleep on his side anymore. The room was filled with the scent of pheromones. He looked forward to this moment every day.

Xu Lingzhao walked towards Chu Jingze with a bouquet of flowers unique to Solo.

She shook the flowers in her hand and asked softly, "Do you like them?"

"I like it." Chu Jing nodded, took the bouquet and smelled it, exclaiming, "It smells so good." His eyes sparkled, and Xu Lingzhao couldn't help but lean down and kiss her cheek, then pulled the Omega into his arms.

Chu Jing nestled in her arms, listening to her recount the events of the day.

“I will be returning to the capital soon. The Second Prince has reached the limit of rebellion, and he has asked me to act as an inside agent.” As Xu Lingzhao spoke, he placed his hand on the Omega’s bulging belly.

Pregnant Omegas are particularly sleepy. Xu Lingzhao looked down at Chu Jingze and found that he had closed his eyes and was breathing evenly. He was asleep, with a blush on his face. The fireplace was burning very brightly.

-

Xu Lingzhao led several knight orders back to the royal city from Solo without any hindrance. The first person she wanted to see was Her Majesty the Queen. The procession was grand and impressive, and Xu Lingzhao's outstanding performance made her famous.

The people of Castile stood on the street watching the hero who prevented a disaster.

Xu Lingzhao arrived at the palace gates, dismounted, and walked into the palace. She was led into the hall by attendants. Although Her Majesty the Queen sat high on the throne, her face was very pale.

The Queen's exhaustion was palpable. Just when Xu Lingzhao thought the routine meeting would be over soon, the Queen asked to speak with her alone.

Senas, standing beside the Queen, showed a displeased expression. She tried to stop the two from talking, but the Queen glanced at her and said, "Senas, you should step down. Don't forget your place."

"Yes." Senas left helplessly, her face filled with regret as she turned away. She hadn't expected Xu Lingzhao to be such a powerful female Alpha. If she had known earlier, she would have spared no effort to eliminate her.

The standoff between the Queen and Senas changed with the arrival of Xu Lingzhao. She represented not only herself but also the Crown Prince behind her. Now, the Crown Prince could return to the royal city at the Queen's command.

The small manor welcomed a guest who hadn't visited in a long time—Vivi.

She was dressed in a gorgeous dress, and the servants following her almost filled the entire living room. Ryan did not say anything when he saw this; Duke Gene had passed away last month.

Viv's status has risen dramatically, and she has become a duchess in all but name. Moreover, she has a very close relationship with the Second Prince. Chu Jing feels that Viv has changed a lot.

To avoid unnecessary trouble, Chu Jing asked Rui En to greet her, while he stayed in his room.

When Viv heard Ryan say that Chu Jingze was ill and unable to see anyone, her smile froze slightly. Then, ignoring Ryan's attempts to stop her, she barged into Chu Jingze's room.

Chu Jingze looked at Viv who had suddenly entered, and he instinctively protected his stomach.

Viv smiled as she watched his actions. She sat down on the edge of the bed naturally, her tone full of concern. Chu Jing, on the other hand, forced himself to deal with her despite his exhaustion.

“I heard that the Queen intends to reward Commander Xu,” Viv said, waving her fan and adopting the air of a socialite. “The Queen usually rewards commanders in a few ways, such as bestowing a concubine upon them.”

These words stirred up waves in Chu Jingze's heart. A concubine? A betrothal?

Seeing Chu Jingze's reaction, Viv looked worried. She deliberately lowered her voice and said, "I heard that the person who is about to be rewarded to Commander Xu is from Lorraine, just like you. His name is Percy Monmo. I've met him. He's a beautiful Omega."

Chu Jing's face darkened completely. He looked at Viv and asked, "What do you want to say?"

"It's nothing, just a friendly reminder. After all, you're pregnant now, and Commander Xu hasn't given you the title of wife." Viv feigned sadness. "Your situation is sensitive."

In Chu Jingze's eyes, this was a blatant threat.

"I have some things to attend to, so I'll be leaving now." Viv stood up to say goodbye, her posture elegant.

Chu Jing looked at her bulging belly, recalling Viv's words in her mind.

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