Chapter 50: Bai Li’s Troubles (20)

After some time had passed, a voice called out from the doorway.

“Princess, it is almost time. You should go see the Queen.”

Bai Li was so absorbed in the book that he jumped.

“Snap!”

He slammed the book shut and frantically stuffed it under his pillow, his cheeks burning hot.

‘What… what on earth am I doing…?’

To think he had been so engrossed in that kind of book that he almost… cough, cough!

Bai Li quickly tensed his thigh muscles.

“Ah! I hear you, Fei Yi! I’m coming!”

“By the way, Princess, there are fresh clothes in the wardrobe. You may change whenever you like.”

“I-I understand!”

Bai Li dived into the wardrobe and rummaged around for a moment.

After finally finding some undergarments, he hurried into the dressing room.

As he changed out of the damp fabric, a wave of shame washed over him.

He felt like he wanted to find a hole to crawl into and hide.

‘This is too embarrassing… I actually got that carried away. I feel like my brain is going to break!’

‘I have to get Baining to find a way to change me back. How can I make sure she doesn’t just brush me off…?’

‘Whatever, I’ll think about that later!’

“Uh, hey, Fei Yi…”

Bai Li asked awkwardly.

“I have some dirty clothes. Where should I put them?”

“Princess, you can place them directly in the laundry basket in the bathroom. I will collect them at the scheduled time.”

‘Dammit, that’s too awkward! Then wouldn’t Fei Yi know… No, I have to change the whole outfit!’

Bai Li quickly picked out a dress from the wardrobe that looked relatively easy to put on and clumsily struggled into it.

A moment later, he walked out of the room.

“Fei Yi, I accidentally got my dress wet while I was washing up just now, so I changed into a new one. Could you please wash it for me…?”

Bai Li stammered, his face red as he forced himself to lie.

“Of course, Princess.”

Fei Yi stepped forward.

“The buttons on your back are fastened incorrectly. Let me fix them for you.”

“Oh, okay!”

Fei Yi skillfully refastened the buttons, smoothed out the wrinkled collar, and gave his back a gentle pat.

“There you go, Princess.”

“Mhm, thank you, Fei Yi!”

After thanking her, Bai Li scurried off toward Baining’s office like a startled rabbit.

Fei Yi watched his small, flustered figure retreat.

A complicated smile flickered in her eyes, and she sighed softly.

‘What a polite, cute, and pure-hearted child…’

‘It is a pity, though. She is likely going to be eaten clean by the Queen.’

‘It is a shame she belongs to the Imperial Family. I will never have the chance to join in.’

Fei Yi then turned and entered Bai Li’s room to silently collect the laundry basket.

***

Inside the Dragon Clan Royal Palace, upon the throne.

The tall and cold Longjiu was slumped over uncomfortably.

Her Dragon Might was in disarray, and her breathing was unstable.

“Ah… ahhh! This is unbearable!”

She tightly gripped the clothing Bai Li had left behind, greedily inhaling the lingering scent.

However, the surging desire within her body could not be suppressed in the slightest.

She had vastly underestimated the impact Bai Li’s departure would have on her mind and desires.

At this moment, she was filled with regret.

She hated herself for letting him go so easily.

“Someone! Bring me every object the Princess touched or wore before!”

Longjiu let out a roar, and her Dragon Might swept through the hall like a tidal wave.

The surrounding soldiers and ministers were all silent as cicadas in winter, glancing at one another.

No one dared to be the first to step forward.

Just then, a single soldier was shoved forward by the person behind him.

He turned back in shock and anger, only to see everyone else looking away, pretending nothing had happened.

With no choice, the soldier braced himself and stepped forward to report.

“G-Great King… we have already searched through all the clothes the Princess wore previously. There are… truly none left.”

“Then bring me her toothbrush, her utensils, everything she used!”

“B-but Great King, those have already been cleaned. I am afraid…”

“I do not care if they were cleaned! Bring them to me! Go, now!”

Longjiu seemed half-mad at this point.

Everything belonging to Bai Li had become a fatal temptation in her eyes.

she wished for nothing more than to hold him in her arms right now.

“I will go at once!”

The soldier fled as if he had been granted a divine reprieve.

“G-Great King, if you continue like this, it will not be a permanent solution…”

A dignified elder general dressed in armor stepped forward.

Like the Queen, he was a Red Dragon with top-tier combat power.

He had previously been dispatched to guard the border and had only just returned after hearing that the palace had been infiltrated.

“Why don’t we begin preparations immediately to attack the Vampires and seize the Princess back?”

“…”

Longjiu let out a few pained groans and took another deep breath of the clothes in her hand, her eyes a mix of struggle and agony.

“No. As important as Bai Li is to me, I cannot lead the Demon Race into a civil war for my own selfish reasons. Moreover, the Vampire Queen is my sister…”

“I will rely on my own strength to take him back from her hands personally, without moving a single soldier of the state.”

“But Great King, your current state is detrimental to both the country and the people. It would be better to strike while the Vampires have not yet fully risen and their wings are not yet fledged. We should send out the army and settle this once and for all…”

Another veteran soldier stepped forward to agree.

“Indeed, Great King. We are the Dragon Race. Dragons are the symbol of emperors. Why must we endure this? We can simply annex the Vampires and then unify the Demon Race!”

“Shut up!”

Longjiu snapped, her eyes turning cold as ice.

“My mind is made up! There is no need for further persuasion! If there are changes in the future, we will reconsider!”

“By your command, Great King!”

The two soldiers were shouted back and did not dare to say another word.

Longjiu was extremely frustrated.

These people only knew how to talk of war; they did not understand her considerations at all.

What she wanted was to bring Bai Li back to her side through her own will and power, not through the plunder of war.

Once the state was involved, it would no longer be a simple matter of personal affection, but the survival of countless lives.

If it were in the past, she might have had the courage to gamble, but now that she had someone she cared about in her heart, she would not—and could not—gamble.

“By your command, Your Highness!”

The soldiers shouted in unison.