“Cough, cough…”
The dark sewer was damp and gloomy.
A pair of scarlet eyes slowly opened in the darkness.
‘Again… dreaming again…’
Ever since the Blood Escape, she had been dreaming of her childhood these past few days.
That was the happiest time of her life.
Too bad it could never go back.
A996 coughed continuously, her small face pale.
She knew that this Blood Escape had cost her even more than before.
And she had been hiding here all along, with no blood to recover.
She could clearly feel her life force slowly draining away in this body.
‘Is this… my destiny?’
A996’s scarlet eyes began to dim.
In a daze, she dreamed of that day again.
The Empress’s radiant smile lingered before her eyes.
“When I become Empress in the future, I will appoint you as my Bed Warmer Guard!”
Empress, my Empress, where are you?
Why… did you abandon us?
She weakly raised her hand, trying to grasp that illusory bubble.
But soon, her hand dropped powerlessly.
In the dim environment, only a faint rustling sound could be heard.
‘It’s the rats…’
“A996, it really is you.”
A familiar voice.
The dying A996’s spirits shook.
She suddenly opened her eyes, her scarlet pupils full of killing intent.
No one.
Nothing.
But A996 felt as if she had fallen into an ice cave.
‘Could it be the Great Witch? Or some kind of invisibility technique?’
“Down here.”
The voice said helplessly.
A996 looked down.
By the faint light, she saw a palm-sized doll staring up at her.
She fell silent.
“Don’t recognize me? G502.”
G502 fluttered her thin wings and flew in front of A996.
Seeing this senior in such a miserable state, G502 had mixed feelings.
“It’s you.”
A996 breathed a sigh of relief, and her body instantly went limp.
“Looks like I wasn’t wrong. You’re not one of the False Emperor Faction. You’re a Royalist, right?”
G502 had been following A996, and she had seen A996 collapse several times, but still muttering “Empress” under her breath.
She wasn’t sure which Empress A996 meant, but once she vaguely heard “Su Yao,” and understood.
“Is it necessary?”
A996 leaned against the wall and shook her head.
‘Yeah, it really isn’t necessary.’
They were of the same race after all, no need to kill each other.
“But some people don’t think so.”
G502 sighed.
The disappearance of the Former Empress had caused too much impact.
The atmosphere fell into silence.
A996 looked at G502.
“Why are you here? And why are you in this state?”
She knew G502’s talent.
[Selflessness]
An excellent means of survival.
Seeing G502 like this, it was obvious that she had died at least once.
“Looking for the Empress, of course.”
G502 casually told a lie.
Although A996’s power was greatly reduced, she was still not someone G502 could oppose.
“Found her?”
A996’s tone became a little excited.
She tried to grab G502, but the other dodged nimbly.
“Of course not.”
Hearing this, A996 was stunned at first, then fell silent.
The atmosphere chilled again.
At that moment, A996 suddenly realized that suspicion had already taken root between them.
‘She’s not a Royalist after all. Even though I only want to find the Empress and understand what happened back then, would the other Imperial Guards believe me?’
“Why show yourself?”
A996 forced herself to stand, sensing a hint of danger.
In the darkness, she couldn’t see G502’s expression.
G502 fluttered her thin wings and stepped back slightly.
“Sigh…”
She sighed softly.
Reason told her she didn’t need to show herself at all.
But…
They were of the same race after all.
A996 was still her senior and had once guided her.
G502 looked at A996 with a complicated expression.
In the dead silence, the dangerous aura followed like a shadow.
A996 understood.
She smiled.
“It seems you still don’t fully trust me.”
“You know, I can’t afford to gamble.”
A996 was not of their faction after all. Although G502 had confirmed along the way that A996 was not one of those fanatical False Emperor Faction members, A996 had an indescribable feeling toward Su Yao.
But she couldn’t take the risk.
As a loyal Royalist, to protect the newborn Empress, she had to nip the danger in the bud.
G502’s body was tense now.
She had already exposed A996’s coordinates.
At this moment, a net had been cast here.
She could have hidden in the dark and quietly watched A996 meet her fate.
But…
Just as she said, they were of the same race after all.
She wanted to see A996 off one last time.
Unexpectedly, A996 relaxed at this moment.
She leaned against the wall, her expression so carefree, her smile so easy.
“Tell me, have you found the Empress?”
“…”
Silence.
“Buzz buzz buzz!”
Suddenly, a low buzzing sound came from afar.
It was the Witch’s detector.
“Sorry.”
G502 turned her head away, unable to bear looking at A996.
“I have to go.”
G502 slowly backed away.
The Witch’s detector was getting closer.
If she stayed any longer, she wouldn’t be able to leave.
At this moment, she felt endless regret in her heart.
‘Damn it, I shouldn’t have gotten so emotional.’
‘She’s going to die anyway, what does it have to do with me?’
If A996 suddenly attacked now, she wouldn’t be able to escape either.
Facing A996, she kept retreating.
She didn’t dare let A996 out of her sight.
“Goodbye… No, it seems we won’t see each other again.”
A996 grabbed the wall and slowly stood up.
Her scarlet eyes were now full of release.
G502 said nothing, but said everything.
‘Empress… that’s good…’
‘Looks like the Bed Warmer Guard has no chance…’
G502 took one last look at A996.
In the darkness, A996’s figure was so blurry.
She gritted her teeth, turned around, and quickly left.
“Hurry! Hurry! Someone reported that Zerg is here!”
“Has the informant’s identity been confirmed?”
“Confirmed. But that Witch said her phone was stolen this morning. Probably the informant stole it.”
“Forget it, never mind. Hurry and confirm the coordinates. Lady Qianxia will be here soon.”
“Lady Qianxia!”
G502 pressed herself against the ground of the sewer, hoping the detector would mistake her for a rat.
Above her, a swarm of detectors drifted through the sewer like ghosts, searching for A996’s location.
The pipes beside her vibrated, carrying snippets of conversation from the Witches above.
G502 hid inside a dried-up pipe, watching the buzzing detectors.
Finally, she hardened her heart and turned to crawl deeper into the pipe.
‘As I said, I can’t afford to gamble.’
‘For the Empress, I have to do this.’
“Goodbye, A996.”
…
Chengcheng’s Maid Cafe.
Su Ling and Su Yao were busy.
After all, they still had to work.
Only Suzuki was left at home.
But since there wasn’t anything valuable there, Su Ling was fine with Suzuki staying.
Suzuki owed so much debt she didn’t dare go back, and she had given Su Ling ten thousand for rent.
Besides, Suzuki kept acting cute and begging, so Su Ling had no choice but to let her stay.
Now that the heat over Luo Qianxue’s scandal had died down, the maid cafe was back on track.
With Su Yao and Su Ling’s natural looks, even without those rumors, they attracted plenty of customers.
“Hello, here’s your coffee, nya~ Love you, nya~”
Su Ling made a heart with her hands and acted cute.
The little loli at the table blushed deeply, her hand holding the coffee cup trembling.
Cheng Cheng stood next to Keke, looking at today’s revenue with dissatisfaction.
‘Tsk, so little.’
Keke knew exactly what she was thinking and rolled her eyes.
‘She’s really gotten cocky. Forgotten the time when the shop was about to go under?’
This revenue was already as good as the best days before.
Even if it couldn’t compare to the Luo Qianxue scandal peak, it was still great compared to before.
Unfortunately, that’s how Witches were.
Once they got the best, they unconsciously compared everything to that standard.
Watching Su Ling and Su Yao busy themselves, Cheng Cheng’s brows relaxed.
‘I really hit the jackpot.’
“Work hard tonight, I’ll treat you all to a big dinner.”
Cheng Cheng’s lips curled up. Keke, who knew her well, recognized that this profiteer was up to no good.
“Hurry! Hurry! Emergency! This area has been sealed off by the Student Council. I heard at least three Great Witches are coming here!”
Suddenly, a figure rushed recklessly into the store and shouted at everyone inside.