Chapter 25: A good horse never turns back
Aznar, the capital of the Heyang Kingdom.
It truly had the style of a capital city, a scene completely different from what Wilvis had seen. Bustling streets dozens of meters wide, bustling with people, dotted everywhere with ornate, tall buildings that resembled medieval architecture but were slightly different. Huge plazas surrounded the capital, each several times the size of Wilvis town, and along the streets stood all sorts of unique and interesting shops not found in Wilvis.
However, Beichen, who had just arrived, had no intention of paying attention to these things.
Led by Heihuo and Sujie, she walked quickly on the gorgeous and tidy main street of the aristocratic residential area, followed by Xiang Ying.
Rui's hunch was correct.
As soon as he arrived in the capital, Rui's subordinates came up to him and said that they had found something very important when searching Darim's mansion. After Rui heard his subordinates' whispers, his face turned not so good. He then entrusted Heihuo Sujie to protect Beichen well and take him to the second prince's mansion, and then left in a hurry.
Although before leaving, Rui Yi smiled and said, "Royal brother is the kind of person who will just stab someone if he doesn't like them. He won't bother to beat around the bush or make excuses, so don't worry, he won't do anything to you." But when Beichen thought about facing the man who was surrounded by a negative atmosphere, especially when the man was wearing the face of an old friend, he always had an urge to escape from reality.
However, in order to obtain information about Gu Yinyue, there was no other way. Since the other party specifically asked Beichen to pick him up, he had no choice but to go ahead and do it.
"Oh, Master, you haven't said anything yet."
Maintaining a brisk pace, Xiang Ying suddenly spoke in the mind communication channel.
"Why did you have such an abnormal reaction when you saw the Second Prince?"
Hearing Xiang Ying say this, Heihuo and Sujie, who were walking in front, also turned their heads.
"...What do you mean, stupid Shadow?"
It seems that after holding a weapons exchange meeting with Xiang Ying, Hei Huo and Su Jie changed the way they addressed Xiang Ying from "little long sword" and "stupid long sword" to something strange like "stupid Ying". However, Xiang Ying seemed to have gotten used to being called a fool by them and didn't object much.
"Hmm... Anyway, let's hear what the master has to say. It seems like the master has seen the second prince's face."
"Oh? No way? Aren't you a visitor from another world?"
Su Jie's voice was filled with curiosity.
Beichen lowered his head and looked at the ground which was rapidly retreating as he walked.
"Well, in my old world, there's someone I know who looks almost identical to him, except for the eye color. Even his voice and demeanor are somewhat similar, though of course, his aura is a bit more powerful."
"Oh, that's really a coincidence, isn't it?" Black Disaster said, and then suddenly asked: "What is your relationship with that person?"
Beichen looked up and smiled awkwardly at the three warriors.
"...Uh, do I really have to say this? I feel a little embarrassed."
"Owner……"
Xiang Ying's low and somewhat aggrieved voice was heard.
"Master, you promised to tell me about the past, right?"
"What! Little Loach, you actually promised that stupid Ying something like that?! How could you be so partial?! Are you even a qualified master?! Su Jie and I will cry!"
"I don't believe you would cry! ...That's not the problem. You hadn't signed a contract with me at that time."
"If we cry, we'll be so hateful that we'll kill, burn, and steal indiscriminately, and even put your name on it."
"That's a bit too much of a threat! You've gone from villains to Texas Chainsaw freaks!"
"Master, don't worry. We're just concerned about you," Xiang Ying said softly. "We all want to know more about you. Actually, it's not just about you. I can be completely open with you! If you want to know anything about me, I'll tell you the truth, from my experiences since birth to my preferred astral energy flavor, even the amount of hair on my head!"
"Forget about the amount of hair... I don't want to torture you..."
"Hmph, we can say that too! Right, bro!"
"Yeah, bro. Black Disaster and I are the same. Whether it's our measurements, our quirks, how many people we've killed, and how we killed them, you can tell us every detail, Master☆"
"No, that, none of what you said is what I want to know about Su Jie... And what does that five-pointed star at the end of your sentence mean?! Are you being maliciously cute!?"
A group of people walked on the road with serious expressions on their faces, but the mental communication channel was lively but meaningless.
However, after their commotion, Beichen's tense mood relaxed a lot, and the corners of his mouth involuntarily curled up slightly.
"Well, I'll tell you what I'm going to say, but you can't laugh at me."
Beichen closed his eyes gently, then opened them.
I originally thought that it was a huge pain buried deep in my heart, but now that I have dug it out and faced it, I find that it is nothing more than that.
...Yes, there is nothing to be afraid of or to escape from anymore.
Now, I have such excellent people around me. I don’t feel lonely and I don’t have time to feel sad.
After a year, you finally become unimportant.
"That man who has the same face as the second prince...is called Yin Lingsi, and he was my former lover."
『──』
The three warriors gasped in unison.
"However, we broke up after only two months. I left him and moved to another city."
"Why? "
Xiang Ying's voice was very low, with some strange emotion in his tone.
"It's a long story," Beichen sighed softly. "We'll talk about this when we have time to sit down and have a good chat, but the general reason is... compared to love, I chose bread and my life."
"What do you mean? That man put your life in danger?"
Black Disaster's voice suddenly became as cold as ice.
"Well done! A man who can't even protect his own woman is not worth lingering on."
Su Jie hummed softly on the side, gloating.
"Then, does the master still like him now?"
Xiang Ying asked again, his voice a little anxious.
"No,"
Beichen answered decisively.
"You can call me heartless—in fact, if I hadn't seen the Second Prince, I would have almost forgotten him in the two months since he came into this world."
"What about the second prince, Redis? Does that face affect you in some way?"
Black Fate muttered softly, then suddenly raised his voice:
"Let me tell you first, that Redis is a pervert. When he likes you, he'll be nice to you, but when he doesn't, he'll just stab you! And he has an SM hobby!"
"Yeah, little loach, you really have to be careful. That face of his might be the legendary scumbag face that would make him a scumbag in any world! Not only does he like SM, he's also bisexual, especially into sixty-year-old men. Plus, he has a voyeuristic nature, so he always arranges for someone to spy on him while he's showering!"
Beichen twitched his lips: I say this is pure slander, Hei Huo Su Jie.
"Brother Hei Huo, Brother Su Jie, you should trust the Master. Since the Master has said that he doesn't like him, he naturally won't be tempted by that face anymore, right, Master?"
"Hmm...you're right, Xiangying."
"Yes! A goddess like the master should like a man with peerless beauty, unrivaled bravery, unwavering loyalty, a rich education, a thoughtful mind, a great family background, a high moral character, and who must be extremely gentle and attentive to the master!"
"Stupid Shadow, are you sure that creature really exists?"
"Even if there were, wouldn't something as perfect as that be boring? Does Little Loach have such bad taste?"
"Ahem—"
Beichen coughed awkwardly.
"I don't want to think about love until I've decided on my own path in life. After all, I haven't decided which world I want to stay in yet, right? So..."
Her voice suddenly became very low and a little embarrassed.
"What I love most right now is, of course, my own weapon. Lovers and the like are nowhere near as reliable, cute, or interesting as you are."
『…』
『…』
『…』
Then the three warriors suddenly fell silent.
Beichen, on the other hand, suddenly shouted as if he remembered something.
"Strange, haven't we arrived at the Second Prince's residence yet?"
"Oh, I've gone too far. Turn into the intersection we just passed and it's a few minutes away."
『…』
So, they finally arrived at the Second Prince's mansion, whose carved iron gate alone was five meters high.
Perhaps the Second Prince had given instructions in advance, so Beichen and the others informed the guards. Not long after, the Second Prince came out from the door with a familiar figure behind him.
"Naraka!!"
Beichen couldn't help but let out a low cry, and Naraka, who was behind Redis, was obviously stunned when he saw Beichen wearing a helmet and with golden hair, probably because he didn't recognize him for a moment.
Beichen also noticed this problem. In order to prevent her real name from being reported, she quickly followed up with a sentence.
"I'm Yaxiu, do you remember me?!"
Naraka seemed to recognize Beichen's voice. A light flashed in his eyes and he smiled at Beichen.
"I didn't expect you to come pick me up, Yaxiu."
"Wait a minute! You rude commoners, shouldn't you greet His Royal Highness the Second Prince first before reminiscing about the past?! Barbarians from the tribe are still barbarians. Do they need to be reminded every time to greet each other?"
The two swords behind Redis began to speak again.
Upon hearing this, Beichen and his companions had no choice but to salute him once again. Although he had learned the details of human salutes from Rui, Beichen still used the salute of weapons.
A human's salute only requires a slight lean of the upper body, while a weapon's salute requires a ninety-degree bow. With her current strength, she cannot go against the etiquette of a country, so -
If their status cannot be improved,
At least, let me endure the same humiliation as them and let me be reduced to the same status as them.
——Thinking so, Beichen put his hands on his forehead and bowed deeply, then stood up with an expressionless face.
This detail did not escape the eyes of Xiang Ying and the other two.
Xiang Ying frowned and looked at Beichen's figure, with tears almost in her eyes.
Heihuo and Sujie exchanged glances with each other. When they looked at Beichen, their faces were filled with obvious joy and pride. Then they looked at the two swords behind Redis with strong pity.
We are both twin weapons. The master we follow accompanies us in performing the weapon ceremony, but you are not even allowed to maintain your human form next to the master. What are you so arrogant about?
—With such a look, he silently protested.
Naraka stared at Beichen, his eyes were complicated but with a smile;
But Redis snorted unkindly:
"This is the first time I've seen a human humiliate themselves like this. Well, if you want to humiliate yourself, I won't stop you. It took 25 bottles of refined astral ore solution to repair the ballista, Naraka. Put a mark on it, Rui. Remember to report it."
Beichen nodded and broke out in a cold sweat for Prince Rui, who was short of budget.
"Then, can we take Naraka away?" Beichen said to Redis in a humble manner.
"Can."
Redis turned and nodded to Naraka, who then saluted and ran behind Beichen.
Beichen was delighted to see that Redis made friends so readily.
"Well, if there's nothing else, please excuse us..."
"Why would I call you here if there's nothing else?"
Redis frowned, crossed his arms over his chest, lifted one foot and slightly moved his ankle.
This small action made Beichen's pupils shrink.
...If the similar facial features can be explained by coincidence, then what about the similar small movements?
Ignoring her shock, Redis spoke.
"Take off your helmet and let me see your face."
"……this……"
In fact, it is not necessary to cover the face. The current disguise is just for buying insurance in the future. But after Redis said this, Beichen felt inexplicably uneasy.
"I'll give you five more seconds. If you don't move, I'll punish you."
...It's indeed a dictatorial idea. Beichen took off his helmet helplessly.
Redis's expression froze the moment she took off her helmet.
Then he took a few steps forward, grabbed Beichen's wrist fiercely, and dragged her to his side.
“—Xiaochen?!”
"!?"
Beichen was completely stunned.
What did he call her? "Xiao Chen"? That was the name Yin Lingsi would use in that world, not the name Prince Redis would use here, right?!
Could it be that this Redis doesn't look like Yin Lingsi, but... they are the same person?!
Impossible!
"Ling...Si?"
She shivered and tentatively called out the name that she had not uttered for a year.
“It’s really you!!”
Cracks finally appeared on Redis's always cold facial expression.
"Why are you here?! No, why did you leave without saying goodbye at that time?! Why did you leave T City? What did that text message mean?! Do you know how long I have been looking for you!?"
"So what!?"
Beichen's voice suddenly became sharp and nervous. She waved her hand vigorously and broke free from his grip.
"When I was being bullied by that woman—when she threatened and humiliated me and treated me like a dog, and when my grandmother was beaten to death by the people she sent, what were you doing?! You said she had what you wanted, and then used your looks to get close to her! I made the mistake that girls in love often make, believing and relying on you like a fool, but that doesn't mean I won't wake up, Yin Lingsi—no, Redis!"
"Xiaochen, listen to me—"
"What are you saying? You say you have your own difficulties? No matter how big the difficulties are, does grandma's life matter? Because of you and her, all my happiness and hopes have been shattered! Why do you think I dropped out of school and left T City? She has forced me to the point where I can't survive there anymore!!"
"Then why didn't you tell me? You never said any of this when we met secretly!"
"Even if I didn't tell you, you didn't notice!? You said the bruises on my body were from a fall. You actually believed such a lame joke? Did you really value me? Was it really worth me suffering this kind of injustice for you?!"
Beichen's face was twisted, and the malice in her smile made it look extremely hideous. It seemed that because Redis owed her too much, she no longer wanted to care about the prince or the etiquette. Redis on the opposite side did not care about her disrespect, but showed a rare look of self-blame for her words.
"Look at the warriors behind me. A tiny, insignificant movement from me can make them worry and ask questions for a long time. Compared to them, you are not even as good as a maggot! I must have been blind to fall in love with you a year ago!"
"Give me a chance to explain! No matter what, how can you compare those shabby war machines with me!!"
"ha!?"
Beichen took a few steps back, his mouth almost crooked from laughing.
"Broken weapons?! They are my most important treasures right now!! I'm so glad I woke up early. It turns out that you, who lived in that world, are also a narrow-minded racist?"
Perhaps it was Beichen's malicious look that made Redis very uncomfortable. He opened his mouth but did not speak.
"As for you, Redis, I finally understand why you behaved so strangely in that world and often disappeared. You should answer me—what was your purpose in going to my world? Can anyone here open a path to that world at will?"
"...I can't tell you that. It could lead to fatal consequences."
Redis lowered his voice and avoided Beichen's sight.
"Okay, if you don't tell me, that's fine."
Beichen took a breath and tried to calm himself down.
It's over. No matter how much pain it was, I've gotten through it.
No matter how deep the scar is, it has already scabbed over.
Now, I am happy, so don't be like this.
Don't show this ugly and pitiful look, making people around you worry about you and feel sad for you.
Remember what grandma said. Even if you are surrounded by the deepest malice, don't forget your original color and don't be polluted. That kind of self-abandonment and treating the whole world as an enemy is not worth showing off or displaying.
Don't let yourself fall to the same level as them.
Don't let your sadness become bait to satisfy others' abnormal pleasure.
See the world clearly, but don't make things difficult for yourself. Instead of indulging in self-pity, focus more on things that make you happy, because happiness is what you and the people around you want most.
She turned around and gave a gentle yet slightly sad smile to Xiangying, Heihuo, Sujie and Naraka behind her, telling them with her eyes that everything was fine.
"Farewell, Your Highness the Second Prince."
"Xiao Chen!"
A hand grabbed her wrist, stopping her abruptly.
"I didn't pay attention before, now we start over!"
"That's impossible, Your Highness Redis."
Without a second's delay, Beichen gave a rejection answer as quickly as possible.
"You should know that in our world, there's a saying: A good horse never turns back. You're already a thing of the past."
"Don't test my patience. Do you know the rules of survival in this world?"
"It's a world where the strong reign, isn't it?" Beichen turned and gave Reidis an expressionless look. "Don't make any mistake, Reidis. No matter how powerful you are, you can only restrain a human body. We all pay you a weapon salute, but do you really think any of us consider ourselves inferior to you? If you want to inherit the throne, at least learn how to write the word 'respect'. This is your ex-girlfriend's final advice to you."
She shook off Redis's hand for the second time and put the helmet on her head again.
"Let's part ways amicably. Since you didn't kill Rui, maybe we can still be friends when I finally let go."
“…”
In the end, Redis could only watch the petite figure and the four warriors gradually walk away.
"Master, are you really going to let her go like this?"
The two swords behind him spoke, their tone full of anger.
"She's so ungrateful! That tone—does she really know who she's talking to?!"
"Shut up."
Redis spoke calmly, and the two swords immediately fell silent.
"Mei Luo, Mei Sha, you are not allowed to participate in the food supply this week. Be more disciplined."
"……yes."
“…Yes, Master.”
Shuangdao's voice sounded a little aggrieved, but he didn't dare to question or complain.
After taking another look in the direction where Beichen left, Redis had put away all the unstable expressions he had just revealed, and returned to his usual princely demeanor, slowly walking back to the door of the mansion.
──Can we part ways amicably?
On the other side, on a secluded path in the aristocratic area, Beichen was walking quickly on the road, while the four warriors followed her silently.
──She needed quiet now, so they all considerately gave her such space.
But they also knew that silence couldn't last too long, otherwise it would easily lead to overthinking, and the more they recalled, the sadder they became. So, Xiang Ying spoke softly.
"Master, are you crying?"
“No.”
Naraka smiled faintly and spoke,
"That's just sweat from wearing a helmet for too long, right?"
Beichen paused, then reached out to wipe her cheek, only to have the back of her hand bump into the metal plate of her helmet. With this movement, she burst into laughter, her tears breaking.
She stopped and looked at the people around her.
"I'm sorry for letting you see my ugly side, but believe me,...it's okay now."
"I see." Black Fate tilted his head and smiled. "Just sweating like this is too boring."
Su Jie nodded and said, "Yeah, if you're going to sweat, just sweat it out thoroughly."
“…”
Beichen didn't say anything, but suddenly threw his helmet to the ground, pouting and throwing himself into Xiang Ying's arms. By the way, he picked up Heihuo's sleeves and Sujie's clothes to wipe the messy liquid off his face.
Heihuo and Sujie's faces were full of veins: I think you are taking this opportunity to take revenge.
But even though they complained secretly, they still did not break free from Beichen's hands.
Xiang Ying, on the other hand, patted her back gently and kept whispering "It's okay, Master", which earned her a vigorous nod.
After venting for about three minutes, Beichen left Xiang Ying's arms, wiped his slightly red eyes a little embarrassedly, and laughed dryly at Naraka.
"Ahahaha... I'm sorry, Naraka, I made you laugh."
"It's okay. Without experiencing a stupid first love, a woman can't transform from a naive and foolish little girl into an adult who has seen through the world."
Beichen twitched his lips: "Uh, I haven't reached the point of seeing through the world yet..."
Then, she slowly put away her expression and looked at Naraka seriously.
"It's time to find out about Mr. Gu Yinyue—is he okay?"
"My contract with him is still in place, so his life shouldn't be in any danger. I'm more worried about him starving to death from a lack of food, or contracting the Moon Poison from staying in the Protoss Mine for too long."
"Are you saying that he's trapped in the Protoss mine?"
"The trouble isn't there," Naraka said, frowning gravely. "The area surrounding the Star Spirit Mine was blocked by a difficult enemy, and that's why I was seriously injured."
"—A difficult enemy?"
"Yes," Naraka took a breath and then spoke slowly.
"A humanoid possessed Moon Envoy."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
