Chapter 3: The First Night

“Quick! Get in here!”

The young man, seeing Yao Xing finally relent, quickly turned and grabbed the edge of the secret door.

[?? Affection +5]

Yao Xing ignored the system’s clattering notifications and kicked over the round table laden with the “last meal.”

A loud crash, accompanied by the sound of breaking porcelain, she cursed inwardly: ‘They want to use me as bait to lure monsters? Dream on!’

She agilely slipped into the secret door, with the young man close behind, struggling to close the stone bricks in the darkness.

Almost at the same moment, the heavy sound of the door being smashed came from outside, along with the increasingly urgent and frantic shouts of the minister: “Brave One? Brave One!”

“Quick, someone! She’s escaped!”

The secret passage was narrow and damp, with a musty mildew smell in the air.

Yao Xing, hunched over as she ran, stared at the small back carrying a lantern ahead.

[?? Affection: -2]

‘Tsk, this kid is really timid. Running away and still losing affection?’

“What’s your name?”

Yao Xing lowered her voice.

“…Anuo.”

The young man didn’t turn around, his voice clearly trembling.

“Ahead is the sewer exit leading outside the city. If we can get out there, the smell of the ‘Demon Luring Incense’ will be partially masked by the sewage…”

[Anuo Affection +2]

‘Okay, finally got the name unlocked.’

Yao Xing was about to praise him when suddenly she felt a strange heat rising in her abdomen.

That heat spread quickly through her limbs and bones, her vision began to flicker, and she could even see a faint purple glow on her skin.

‘Damn, the drug is taking effect…’

Boom—!

A dull, heavy sound came from above them, shaking the entire passage violently, sending gravel and dust raining down.

Anuo was so frightened he collapsed to the ground, nearly dropping the oil lamp.

“It’s… it’s Lin Qi’s siege beast! They’ve caught the scent and are coming!”

Yao Xing braced herself against the wall, enduring the rampaging energy inside her, and looked up toward the direction of the shaking.

Just then, the system screen flared blindingly in the pitch black without warning:

[??? Affection +1]

Yao Xing froze.

‘Wait, who now? The King of Lin Qi is at least a few streets away, Anuo is right in front of me, where did this new question mark come from?’

She whipped her head around, staring into the depths of the passage.

In that deep darkness, a pair of crimson vertical pupils slowly opened, accompanied by an extremely heavy, inhuman breathing sound.

The owner of those red pupils seemed to be staring with great interest through the layers of darkness at this girl glowing with an alluring magical light.

[??? Affection +1]

[??? Affection +1]

‘Help… these affection increases are making my skin crawl!’

Yao Xing swallowed hard.

She had thought escaping the palace meant survival, but now it seemed she had stumbled straight into the embrace of something far more dangerous.

“Anuo…” Yao Xing stiffly extended her hand, pointing ahead.

“We’re being watched!”

Hearing this, Anuo looked there in surprise.

Though he couldn’t see anything, he quickly reacted.

“Follow me! We can’t escape the palace now, but there’s a secret room inside the palace. Come with me!”

Along the way, they could feel footsteps rising and falling in the passage behind them.

Anuo and Yao Xing had to pinch their noses, hold their breath, and walk softly, threading through the increasingly narrow passage.

“We’re here! Climb up quickly!”

With Anuo’s shout, he climbed out of the passage and pulled Yao Xing out.

“Are you okay?”

Yao Xing’s eyelids uncontrollably grew heavier, and the pain in her body and the purple markings made things worse: “Cough… are we safe?”

Anuo was silent for a moment, then after some thought, he had to say:

“You took that medicine. Actually, we can’t move an inch. The effect will last a full five hours… During that time, we’ll be captured for sure.”

Yao Xing, upon hearing this, ignored the pain in her body, mustered her strength, and pushed Anuo in front of her.

“You go, go now! I’ll attract pursuers, so don’t let me drag you down!”

Before they could take any other action, the sound of the secret room door unlocking came.

Anuo’s expression also became visibly panicked.

“No good! Brave, you escape! I’ll hold them off!”

Ignoring Yao Xing’s objections, she was shoved into the secret passage, and Anuo covered it with scrap metal.

‘No, wait…’

Bang—

The door was kicked open violently, and a crowd of soldiers rushed into the secret room like mad.

“Report, Princess! There’s only one person here!”

Anuo struggled desperately but was directly arrested.

Yao Xing wanted to rush out, but the scrap metal over the passage was stomped on hard.

‘What’s going on?!’

A skirt appeared in her narrow field of vision, looking at the soldiers’ expressions…

‘It’s that princess, stepping on me!’

‘Damn it, let me out!’

The princess on the scrap metal waved the exquisite fan in her hand, glancing sidelong at the gap under the metal.

“Take this young man to the dungeon. I will interrogate him thoroughly later. As for the escaped Brave, she’s not here. Search elsewhere.”

“Yes!”

The soldiers obeyed.

‘No! Wait—’

Nothing was left.

Only Yao Xing remained under the scrap metal, enduring her discomfort, witnessing it all, sweating coldly, yet unable to offer any resistance.

‘Damn… damn…’

‘That princess really didn’t notice me. I have to save Anuo later!’

Bang—

In the middle of her thoughts, the scrap metal was kicked open.

“Enjoying hiding?”

Yao Xing quickly looked up to see the princess’s sharp gaze examining her.

‘Must escape!’

Ignoring the pain in her body, Yao Xing quickly shifted her position and bolted to run.

“You wish.”

Cold sweat dripped onto her palm.

The sharp iron fan was already firmly lodged against Yao Xing’s neck.

‘Gasp!’

The princess pursed her lips, with a meaningful smile and a terrifying gaze, forcibly correcting Yao Xing’s line of sight to her face as a warning.

“I’m talking to you, and you run?”

Yao Xing’s neck was twisted painfully.

She stepped back in displeasure, but the iron fan behind her already restricted her movement.

“What do you want—”

Yao Xing didn’t listen to the nonsense.

Steeled herself, and kicked hard at the princess’s face.

“Get lost!”

Without even looking, the princess quickly shielded her face with the iron fan, and the kick was blocked.

“Hmph, such petty tricks, and you dare—”

Squelch—!

The sound of metal tearing flesh was especially piercing in the dead silent room.

The anger on Yao Xing’s face instantly froze, replaced by a blankness as if her soul had been drained.

She slowly lowered her head and saw that the finely crafted steel folding fan was now buried to the hilt in her abdomen like a short sword.

Blood gushed along the grooves of the fan’s ribs, staining the princess’s pristine lace skirt.

“Third is for me to execute you with my own hands.”

The princess’s voice remained steady, elegant, even with a hint of morbid gentleness.

She twisted the handle of the fan violently, sending sharp pain through Yao Xing, making her vision go dark, and only broken gurgles came from her throat.

[??? (Princess) Affection +30]

‘Wha… what…’

Yao Xing stared at the glaring system pop-up, her consciousness fading badly.

‘You kill me… and you gain affection…? You royals… are all insane…’

“You know what?”

The princess leaned close to Yao Xing’s ear, her breath fragrant, her eyes glittering with twisted excitement.

“Every Brave who comes here tries to resist, but you’re the first to dare kick me in the face. That look, that unyielding struggle… I never tire of it.”

Yao Xing’s vision began to blur.

Due to the effect of the Demon Luring Incense, the mana inside her was frantically trying to repair the wound, but this overload accelerated the energy collapse.

Purple markings pulsed restlessly at the edges of the wound, as if celebrating the slaughter.

“Pity, Lin Qi has no use for disobedient ‘batteries.’ ”

The princess coldly withdrew the iron fan.

“Later, I’ll bury that young man beside you. Rest in peace~ ”

Losing support, Yao Xing collapsed onto the scrap metal.

The cold touch gave her a moment of clarity.

She watched the princess walk away without looking back, saw the blood everywhere, and her heart filled with intense, unshakeable regret.

‘Anuo… not saved yet…’

‘I… actually… like this…’

The vision was completely covered in blood.

The system’s sound was no longer a crisp ‘ding’ but turned into a piercing long screech: [Bad End]

Darkness fell.

After an unknown amount of time.

“Brave…?”

“The summoning array actually succeeded!”

Yao Xing’s eyes snapped open.

She took deep breaths of fresh air, instinctively covering her abdomen with her hands.

It was intact, without even a trace of pain.

But the cold feeling of being pierced by metal and drained of blood was engraved deep in her soul.

“Great! Our kingdom finally has a new Brave!”

The minister’s old face, grinning ‘hee hee,’ leaned in again, kneeling on one knee before her, presenting the familiar emblem with both hands.

“Brave, please accept it.”

Yao Xing stared fixedly at the minister.

At that moment, the system interface reloaded in the void, and a line of text slowly appeared:

[King of Lin Qi Affection: 1]

Looking at this 1 point of affection, symbolizing the ‘perfect bait,’ a self-deprecating and ruthless smile curved at the corner of Yao Xing’s mouth.

‘I actually came back.’

This time, she didn’t show any impatience. Instead, she obediently took the emblem, her lowered eyelids hiding the displeasure surging in her eyes.

The minister, from somewhere, took out another piece of paper and handed it over.

“Brave, please write your name here.”

Yao Xing took the pen, looked at the contract of indenture, and her displeasure was unusually evident on her face.

“I—will—not—sign!”