Chapter 205: Covert Struggle
Anno woke up early. She had slept soundly, but had a dream in which she rode on the back of a wolf mother, running freely in the snow. There was no blizzard, no feeling of hunger, only the sun shining through the clouds, the warmth of the sunlight on her body.
When she opened her eyes, she knew where the warmth came from.
She clung to Karina like an octopus, Karina's long, pure white hair spreading out beneath her.
Looking at the face so close to hers, she couldn't help but hold her breath, afraid of waking Karina.
Anuo gently brushed aside a strand of long hair that had fallen onto her face. Even though she had seen many beautiful faces, she was still captivated by her second sister's beauty.
Her features were distinct, with smooth contours, exquisite yet grand. Coupled with her ruby-like eyes and pure white, smooth long hair, she resembled the sunset glow, a richly colored oil painting, stunningly beautiful.
She has such a beautiful face, yet her temperament is as cold as snow.
She still remembers the first time she met her second sister. She felt that her sister was like a rose blooming in the snow, and the fragrance she exuded was cold.
But a flower that can bloom from ice and snow must be incredibly resilient.
Now, this ice flower is warm.
Anno nestled in Karina's arms, having the illusion that he was the one warming her up.
There was an indescribable sense of accomplishment and joy.
However, Karina was not her kin, so she did not know what Karina was thinking; it was merely her own delusion.
She rarely has so many random thoughts about one person. She can know what her closest people are thinking through her consciousness network. She can even communicate with Sister Nai through her consciousness.
Now, the people she cares about have basically become members of the Zerg, or can communicate directly with them through consciousness, so she won't have any communication barriers with them.
Actually, she and her second sister didn't have many communication barriers. The only thing they couldn't communicate about was that her second sister's personality and way of speaking were sometimes too straightforward.
But that's just her personality trait, and she can only accept it helplessly.
Anno was staring blankly at Karina's face, lost in thought, when he saw Karina open her eyes.
Anno blinked and smiled at Karina, "Good morning, second sister."
"morning."
As soon as Karina woke up, she tried to sit up, but her hair was pressed down by Anno, and she was pulled back down by inertia.
With the force she used to get up, a normal person would have cried out in pain, and even Anuo was pulled a little by her movement.
But Karina remained calm, looking at Anno and asking, "Want to sleep a little longer?"
Anuo immediately got up. "Second sister, did it hurt you?"
Karina wanted to say no, but seeing Anno's concerned gaze, she leaned closer to Anno and said, "A little, can you rub it for me?"
Anno knelt on the bed, his fingers reaching into Karina's hair to massage her scalp.
After massaging it for a while, she asked, "Is it any better?"
Karina hummed in agreement. "Much better."
She had just gotten up, and her voice was slightly lazy and hoarse, which made Anno's ears feel a little itchy.
She thought to herself, "My second sister is so perfect, even her voice is so beautiful."
She actually really liked Karina's voice; it was clear yet slightly husky, just like her appearance and temperament—the two qualities combined created a sense of contrast.
While Anno was still rubbing Karina's hair, the other family members in the other rooms were already getting restless.
They barely slept and stared at the ceiling all night.
When Anuo woke up, various thoughts and feelings were transmitted to their consciousness to some extent.
Mingxiao said in the small group: "Your Highness is so good to this Beihe Star person, I'm so envious."
The other family members thought to themselves, "That's more than just good; His Highness keeps praising her in his heart!"
Tanville and Caesar both knew Karina, and not just that she was Anno's second sister.
Rather, she knew that the Queen favored her to become Her Highness's consort and valued her abilities.
His Highness already has enough high-ranking relatives. With Bazeir already making it crowded, if another one comes, there will be no room for them.
But Karina is the Queen's chosen one for His Highness, and she holds a place in His Highness's heart, making it difficult for them to make a move against her.
"I'll go call His Highness!" Mingxiao jumped out of bed and ran to the door.
Caesar said to him in the consciousness network: "Little Mingxiao, His Highness has woken up. The important task of delivering breakfast to His Highness is entrusted to you."
He had just appeared at the door of Anuo's room, wanting to be the first to greet her, when he paused, his hand about to knock.
Bringing breakfast to His Highness!
"Roger that! Lord Vanguard, I'll be right there!"
He dashed downstairs again to prepare breakfast for Anuo.
Tanville was the first to arrive at Anno's door. Just as he raised his hand to knock, Caesar had already opened the portal directly inside. But the next moment, he was blocked by high-voltage electromagnetic waves at the portal's exit and was knocked out.
For Karina, whose current ability level is close to SSS level, her ability is no longer just lightning. She can create an electric magnetic field to interfere with electronic devices, including spatial portals like Caesar's.
Spatial portals are inherently susceptible to interference, and at such close range, Karina sealed it off completely.
Anno watched as Caesar's portal flashed in front of him, and before he could even see Caesar, Karina raised her hand, several bolts of electricity flashed, and the portal disappeared.
Then there was a knock on the door.
Outside the door, Tanvel and Poponia watched Caesar with schadenfreude, his meticulously styled silver hair bearing burn marks at the ends.
Smoke was still rising from the combat suit.
In the past, Caesar always used his abilities to "cheat" and get to spend time with His Highness in front of them, which was very annoying. It was rare to see him get his comeuppance.
Now there's someone who can control him.
Caesar expressionlessly brushed the smoke off his clothes and cut off the charred ends of his hair.
His thoughts are similar to Tanville's: if Bazeir comes along, that's one thing, but if Karina comes along, they'll have an even harder time dealing with her.
He had a keen sense that this woman was much more difficult to deal with than Bazel.
However, he knew that His Highness did not want to convert Karina and would not let her become a member of the Zerg. Even if the Queen desired it, His Highness could not change her mind.
Hearing the knock, Anuo opened the door and peeked out. Looking at the family members standing at the door, she said to them, "You all go downstairs for breakfast first. I'll come downstairs after I've washed up."
Before Caesar could say anything, Anno patted him on the head with his foot and said, "Good boy."
The door closed again, and they didn't miss Karina standing behind Anno. She looked at them coldly, as if she were looking at an object.
There was no provocation, no contempt, just a simple lack of consideration for them as "human beings."
In her eyes, they were all just objects around Anuo, obedient little dogs.
After the door was closed again, Tanvel's expression turned unusually somber. He looked at Caesar and Poponia and said, "You should be glad that His Highness does not want to convert her."
Transforming such a person into a different race, whose mindset differs somewhat from that of the native Zerg, would pose a significant threat to them in the future.
Just like Bazeir, who went downstairs with Mingxiao immediately, unlike the others who tried to stick to His Highness right away.
Mingxiao was still foolishly preparing breakfast for Anuo when she saw Caesar and the others all come down.
The hotel was small, with only one chef. After breakfast was prepared, Anno had already washed up and came down with Karina.
The tables in the restaurant on the first floor were all for four people. Anno glanced at Caesar and the others and sat down at an empty table.
Karina naturally sat down next to her, leaving two seats opposite her, which were occupied by Caesar and Mingxiao.
This time, Mingxiao was clever; his superpower was teleportation, and no one could move faster than him.
Bazel calmly pushed the table next to Anno's table together and sat down directly on her left.
Anuo was the only one seriously eating breakfast, while the others were all secretly glaring at each other.
Karina completely ignored them and, just like she always did at home, helped Anno prepare the food.
This small island is far from the mainland, and most of the food is seafood, even breakfast consists of various kinds of seafood.
Apart from Bazeir, the other four hadn't eaten much proper food. They would just throw shellfish and other shellfish into their mouths and chew them without even removing the shells.
Bazel and Karina peeled shrimp and shellfish for Anno, one on each side, and dipped her in sauce.
As Anno's legitimate family members, Caesar and his companions felt inferior to the two outsiders at this moment, their thick seashells being crushed to pieces by them.
Their consciousness network formed a small group, which Anno sensed more clearly, and they couldn't hide it even if they wanted to.
She picked up her fork and tapped it lightly on her bowl, saying to them, "Eat properly."
Then, she took a palm-sized scallop from Mingxiao's hand, pried open the shell for him, and added some dipping sauce, saying, "You can't eat the shell."
Mingxiao excitedly took the scallop from Anuo's hand, wishing he could whip his back and eat the whole scallop. He could eat anything His Highness gave him!
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