Read Novel Full Chapter 1116: Limited Freedom
Chapter 1116: Limited Freedom
Ah... I didn’t need this right now," Ayame sighed, looking at the buzzing necklace in her hands wryly.
"The work never ends, hm, miss second in command?" Seraphiel giggled.
Aurora was significantly less amused than the elf. She addressed the royal princess directly. "Felicity, as Miss Black had said, we can’t have you leaking certain information. Not just Raika and Vex being present. Frankly, those are not the worst you could reveal to the king. They were simply the final drop before we had to make the decision. Do you understand what I’m trying to tell you?"
"Yes, Miss Platinum..." Felicity nodded reservedly. "Unless I want my treatment to be drastically different, I should watch my mouth when speaking to Father."
The plump alchemist inclined her head. "You can still speak as you want, just think twice if you begin talking about your new surroundings."
With that, Ayame gave the necklace back to Felicity, as it required her mana signature to respond to the call of the king.
Felicity accepted it with careful fingers. The artifact’s glow pulsed in rhythm with her heartbeat. She drew a steadying breath and channeled her mana into the artifact. The buzzing cut off instantly, replaced by an oppressive stillness. Then a familiar, commanding voice bled through.
"Felicity," the king spoke up. "Are you okay?"
The girl’s face lit up instantly upon hearing her father’s voice. "Yes! I’m having a lot of fun! Lord Black’s home is awesome!"
The king’s deep tone softened, though it carried its usual weight. "I take that as you’re being treated well, then."
"Mhm! Lord Black has kept his promise of treating me as if I were his daughter!" she said proudly, then leaned closer to the artifact, voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "In fact, I think I might even quickly become his favorite!"
"..." The king remained silent at those words. But someone else wasn’t.
"Haah?! Rosie heard something utterly outrageous just now!!"
A pause wrestled its way across the stronghold before the king’s voice sounded. "Who was that?"
Felicity froze, glancing worriedly at Ayame. The samurai gave her a simple nod of permission to continue. Relieved, the princess exhaled and answered. "She is Lord Black’s youngest child! A really adorable little girl who makes me want to play dress-up doll with her. But, well, she’s really jealous and possessive of her father’s affection... I don’t envy her future younger siblings."
"I see. Then, Devil has my heartfelt congratulations."
Felicity pouted at the unexpected remark. "You’re saying weird things, Father, considering..."
"Our situation may be complicated," Alexios replied with a voice that was as steady as the mountains, "but a father can give his good wishes to another no matter the circumstances."
"Yeah? Then how about you use those good wishes and remove the massive bounty from his head?"
"..." The silence that followed spoke louder than words. But for good measure, the king still added, "I won’t be doing that. Either Devil cooperates willingly and accepts my more than generous offer, or is to be brought before me in chains, or in a bloody bag, depending on his captors. The choice is out of my hands. I can’t allow such a dangerous man to ally himself with my enemies and grow even stronger than he is currently. It is my duty as king to ensure the continued prosperity of my lands and people."
Felicity’s expression turned grim. She understood that her father was burdened by the crown on his head, and also that her father was right, as Black was a criminal, but the girl still wished the two men could come to a mutual compromise. They could even become good friends, the princess hoped.
That was when Ayame’s voice finally slid in. "I’ll pass on your good wishes to my husband, King Alexios."
"You have my gratitude. Speaking of your husband, is he available?"
Ayame opened her mouth to answer, which would’ve been ’No, but I’ll look for him.’
But before she could relay those words, a sharp, guttural hiss cut her off. The noise grew into a growl, followed by the sound of frantic flailing.
Across the stronghold, Quinlan emerged with arms that were full of one very angry, very broken woman. Raika thrashed weakly in his grasp, clawing at his shoulders and snarling. ᚱ𝒶Νồ𝐁Еṩ
"Release me immediately! I demand a rematch right now!"
Her voice broke halfway through, more pitiful than terrifying. Her fists thumped against his chest and shoulders, but with her utterly ruined exterior and interior, the strikes were feather-light.
Quinlan endured it with the calm of a statue, walking forward with a perfectly straight poker face, which only served to infuriate the woman even further.
The sight was outright comical. Raika, the Raika who was known as ’The Brutalizer,’ a sturdy, badass woman who could take damage like no one else, was throwing the most feral tantrum her battered body could muster, while Quinlan was carrying her like she weighed nothing, looking as if he was feeling utterly nothing emotionally.
Ayame deadpanned at the sight.
Finally, Quinlan’s eyes shifted toward the group and the artifact in Felicity’s hand. Seeing it was time for seriousness, he sighed, raised a finger, and flicked Raika on the forehead.
Her head snapped back. "Five to zero.".
Raika’s eyes rolled back. The last thing she saw was an infuriatingly smug grin. Her lips parted just enough to slur out, "Motherfu..." before darkness claimed her.
Quinlan then handed the limp woman over to Seraphiel. "Heal her, my cheeky elf. This chick’s about to die but was too stubborn to admit defeat even as her body was busy bleeding out."
The elf’s eyes danced with amusement as she accepted the infamous woman and quickly began treatment, knowing full well that Quinlan’s analysis wasn’t off at all. She was not far from death, not at all.
Quinlan gave Raika a final, flat look before turning to Ayame.
"The king wishes to speak with you," she relayed.
Felicity, wide-eyed, held the necklace out with both hands. Quinlan accepted it without a word and began walking away. He could feel the weight in the air.
Not that he had to guess, for it was Ayame’s voice sliding into his mind through [Master’s Link] to inform him: <I feel like he wants to speak with you alone, Quin.>
<Thanks for being so reliable at all times, my sexy samurai,> Quinlan replied, earning himself a cute, feminine scoff in response.
Seeing his Skysplitter was refusing to meet his gaze, Quinlan’s lips curled in a humorless smile as he raised the artifact. "Both of us are blessed with amazing wives, aren’t we?"
His tone dripped with sarcasm. "I heard that the noble-spirited Queen Morgana took it upon herself to set out toward Greenvale so she could take revenge for her innocent citizens. What an amazing woman that one is. It’s rare to find ones with such pure, golden hearts."
"..." while the king only responded with silence, Felicity’s murmur came in a low whisper. "I wish I could be more trusted here... But how...? I’m the princess and they’re wanted criminals..."
Feng, ever the opportunist, didn’t miss a beat.
"Easy. Let the overly arrogant dude [Subjugate] you, and everything would change. We would have no reason to hide anything from you; you’d become an ally we can share everything with."
"... Huh?"