IRM Chapter 72

“Shall we make a deal?” Catherine asked.

Ji Chi glanced at her sideways, his expression indifferent, as if he didn’t care at all about the life-or-death threat to the young master. He found a step by the fountain to sit on, quietly gazing at the resplendent palace in the distance where singing and dancing flourished.

After concealing his form, this banquet seemed to have nothing to do with him anymore. The night breeze was comfortable, the environment was tranquil, and the scenery was beautiful. It would be even better if there wasn’t a neurotic little princess beside him.

Seeing his completely leisurely expression, the little princess also smiled faintly, walked over to sit beside him, and together with Ji Chi gazed at the soft halo of light streaming through the palace’s glass windows.

“You seem not to care at all. May I ask why?” Catherine’s voice was sweet and gentle. Without the invisibility potion, the sight of the two sitting together would only seem warm and peaceful.

Ji Chi propped his hands on the steps behind him, stretched out his long legs, and shook his ankles. “I’d also like to ask you—how exactly are you going to kill him?”

Ji Chi softly read out the data above her head. “Character [Catherine], Level [lv.4], Class [None], HP [80/80]…”

Very weak. So weak that even any random laborer on the street could easily overpower her. This kind of physique wasn’t rare on Earth, but on the Demon Sword Continent where everything was determined by combat power, she was definitely at the very bottom.

Catherine understood those individual words, but when combined she didn’t quite grasp their meaning. However, she heard “no class” very clearly, as it was the flaw she’d been criticized for since childhood.

The smile at the corner of Catherine’s mouth didn’t fade. Her clear eyes blinked slowly, her slender eyelashes like a night moth fluttering its wings. “As expected, you also think someone without a class is worthless, can’t accomplish anything, and is born to be dominated by others, right?”

Ji Chi: “There’s no need to distort my meaning like that… I’m just reminding you that even if Brandon is pampered, he’s still a smart and diligent mage. It won’t be easy to kill him without reason.”

Catherine listened very seriously. “Mm-hmm, so you still have that idea—that someone without a class is inferior to everyone.”

“But, Ji Chi.” Catherine suddenly leaned close to his face. “Don’t you also hate the feeling of being bound by fate? Didn’t you waver for a moment, thinking of saving me? Am I not also struggling to resist fate? You should be able to understand me.”

Ji Chi’s eyes narrowed as he looked at her coldly. “You investigated me?”

“Does this need any investigation? I could tell at a glance.” Catherine stared directly into his eyes. “I can also tell that we’re the same kind of people, because we both possess powerful souls.”

Ji Chi frowned and avoided the young girl. He really wanted to believe this was just a severely delusional teenage patient, but unfortunately, Catherine had an inexplicably dangerous feeling about her—not stemming from power, but from a deeper level of tenacity.

The little princess tilted her head with an innocent expression. “I really need this invisibility potion. It can save not just my fate, but the fates of many, many people. Do you really want to watch us live out our lives in misery?”

Ji Chi stood up, his voice cold. “Don’t shift the concept, and don’t morally blackmail me. I don’t have that much capability.”

Catherine nodded vigorously, looking up at him. “You do! You can certainly save everyone. The only difference is whether you’re willing to do it or not. Just like now—you could actually save Brandon, but unfortunately you’re unwilling to.”

This statement sounded strange. Ji Chi frowned and looked at the young girl.

The young girl smiled sweetly. “To live brilliantly like blazing fire, then perish in ashes!”

BOOM—— A tremendous explosion resounded from the quiet palace garden. Towering orange flames, even more dazzling than the magnificent palace, illuminated half the palace grounds.

The suddenly blooming firelight shone on his face, making Ji Chi’s unpleasant expression even clearer.

The explosion location was where Brandon had been.

Catherine giggled. “See? You should have agreed to me quickly.”

Anger settled in Ji Chi’s dark pupils as he turned to look at her heavily. “Aren’t you afraid of being discovered?”

Catherine proudly raised her chin like a pleased little magpie. “How could a classless puppet princess possibly kill the supremely talented young Earl? Compared to me, another young man who disappeared in the middle of the night is much more suspicious!”

Ji Chi stared at her for a while, then smiled slightly as well, his mysterious dark eyes rippling in the night. “How could that be? If someone tried to frame me, do you believe the young master would burn down the entire palace?”

Catherine blinked. “What are you talking about? How would a dead young master have the ability to——”

“AHHHHH——” A familiar maiden-like shriek came from the explosion site. The scream was full of vigor, making it clear the person had suffered considerable psychological damage.

“Who’s trying to kill me!” The young master’s red hair had been singed even curlier by the flames. He angrily turned around, but upon seeing the shattered, charred chunks of corpse on the ground, couldn’t help but rush to the flower bed to throw up.

Under the escort of guards, the King who had hurried over turned pale at the sight.

His favorite floral arrangements had been ruined so messily—this only made his chest feel tight. But when he saw the Second Prince with his lower body mangled and bloody, he truly became anxious and furious. “Good heavens, Louis! Quickly go save him! Hurry and find out who’s causing this trouble! Whoever injured my son like this, I’ll have them die miserably at the stake!”

William hurried over from nearby. Seeing Louis’s wretched state, an inappropriate flash of satisfaction appeared on his face, but it was quickly suppressed. He ran up anxiously and painfully. “Brother, how are you? Can you still open your eyes? Can you still speak? You must hold on!”

Louis was a bit dazed from the blast. He struggled to lift his head and looked at his body. “Mm… it’s nothing serious, just missing an arm, a kidney… oh, my intestines are about to spill out. Help me hold them in.”

His tone was very calm, as if he was quite accustomed to such injuries.

The First Prince & King & young master: “…” What exactly have you experienced before?

The King quickly had someone feed Louis a bottle of the best potion. His external injuries healed rapidly, though his arm would still need a few days to fully recover.

Seeing Louis climb up and even look around searching for his personal belongings that had been blown away, the King finally relaxed. He frowned and looked at Brandon, his tone quite unpleasant. “What exactly just happened?”

Brandon’s face was pale. Compared to the Second Prince, he looked more like the one who had been seriously injured. He tried hard not to recall the black and red mess on the ground, and stammered, “I don’t know… I was just talking with Prince Louis when a gardener suddenly rushed at me. If Prince Louis hadn’t blocked him, I might have…”

The King’s expression grew worse. “So that person was coming for you? What exactly have you done!”

The King was so startled he lost some rationality, his first reaction being to blame Brandon for nearly implicating his child—or rather, the hope of the royal family.

Brandon pressed his lips tightly together, his eyes full of remorse.

“Your Majesty, what’s the point of questioning Brandon now? Shouldn’t we investigate who the mastermind behind this is? A mere gardener wouldn’t have the ability to buy a flame potion with such pure magical power.” A clear voice came from the side, also carrying anger and authority.

Earl Elliot fearlessly looked directly at the King. His well-tailored formal attire was covered with a thin layer of purple-blue flames—only the purest magical power could achieve this.

As a father who had also nearly lost his child, the Earl’s inner shock far exceeded the King’s. Seeing him interrogate Brandon without distinguishing right from wrong, he was also very angry.

The King’s eyes flickered, and he couldn’t help but look away. He took a deep breath to suppress the irritation in his heart and retreated a step. “You’re right. I was too hasty.”

He scanned the surroundings, looking at several guards who were trembling with fear. “You were also nearby. Did you notice anything wrong?”

The guards hastily exchanged glances and hesitantly shook their heads. The King paid great attention to this garden and would send gardeners to trim it from time to time. Although it was indeed odd for a gardener to still be lingering at this hour, they hadn’t thought much of it at the time. How could they have anticipated…

The King glared at them coldly. “Truly useless.”

“Father.” After listening to a guard’s whisper, William suddenly spoke, his face full of anxiety. “There is something wrong—Ji Chi and Catherine have disappeared!”

Upon first hearing this, the King was even more shocked and angry. “What! Catherine is also in trouble!”

William’s expression was troubled as he speculated, “Could it be Ji Chi… Perhaps sister noticed something wrong and was abducted by him?”

Hearing this, Brandon immediately turned to glare at him. “Impossible! What reason would Ji Chi have to kill me?”

William looked at him with certainty. “Don’t you both like the same girl? With his status as a commoner, how could he compete with the son of an Earl? Are you sure he doesn’t resent you?”

The young master hadn’t expected that the hole he’d casually dug would ultimately implicate both of them. His face flushed red as he retorted, “You’re talking nonsense! That’s not at all… That’s…”

William became even more convinced of his speculation, the corner of his mouth twitching as he pressed, “Have I said anything wrong?”

The young master roared inwardly. Completely wrong, okay?! That girl is Ji Chi in disguise, okay?! But I can’t say it out loud, okay?! Otherwise Ji Chi will really kill me, okay?!

Thus, in everyone’s eyes, the young master was rendered speechless.

William lowered his eyes, concealing the delight in them, and continued, “Moreover, the gardener was a commoner. At this banquet, who would recognize many commoners? The most likely suspect is still Ji Chi.”

“Tch——” Saintess Coralie crossed her arms, as if watching an absurd farce, and sneered mockingly. “How ridiculous. So conclusions can be drawn like this? Then you’re an idiot, and no one in this royal family has a brain, right?”

The people around, knowing she was formerly the holy and gentle Saintess, looked at her as if seeing a ghost.

The King and William, having been openly mocked, also looked quite displeased.

The Countess laughed lightly with satisfaction. “Instead of arguing so much, why not just ask Ji Chi directly? He’ll be here soon.”

As soon as the Countess finished speaking, Ji Chi hurriedly emerged from behind a flower bed, followed by a timid and frightened young girl.

The invisibility potion Ji Chi had used in the palace didn’t last long. Without more potion to sustain it, their invisibility effect would be lifted soon.

Catherine’s doe eyes were watery as she said in a trembling voice, “Wh-what happened…”

“Oh my darling, I’m so glad you’re alright.” The King stepped forward to embrace her, stroking her smooth hair, and asked looking down, “Did anyone bully you? Don’t be afraid to speak up boldly. Father will help you seek justice.”

Catherine’s moist eyes trembled slightly when she saw Brandon completely unharmed. She opened her mouth and said softly, “No, I’m fine… What just happened?”

William’s gaze swept over Saintess Coralie with complex emotions. He quickly recounted the events and asked urgently, “Did Catherine notice anything?”

So it was Second Brother who protected Brandon… Catherine lowered her eyes, secretly chagrined. In her momentary excessive excitement, she had forgotten about Louis’s favorable impression of the Earl’s family, which led to the deviation in the outcome.

Catherine reflected privately, but still felt something vaguely wrong, as if some detail had been overlooked by everyone.

Ji Chi glanced at the scene littered with corpse fragments, his eyes showing an inscrutable expression. With such a massive explosion, even with Louis’s protection, the young master might not have survived completely intact.

Yet Brandon now, aside from his scorched and torn clothing looking disheveled, hadn’t suffered any harm.

This was the legendary equipment taking effect. Ji Chi glanced at the young master’s armor value: [9906/10000]. Mm, enough for him to withstand 99 more explosions—one per day would last three months.

Ji Chi breathed a sigh of relief, feeling this was a minor situation.

“I didn’t notice anything… I was with Ji Chi the whole time and don’t know anything.” Catherine was stunned for a long time before beginning to answer, her voice trembling slightly upon close listening. Her pitiful appearance looked very touching.

Hearing this, Saintess Coralie narrowed her eyes. This princess had very successfully created an image of weakness, just like she herself had not long ago—so saintly that no one would suspect her. But it was a bit overdone, especially for those familiar with Ji Chi.

Sure enough, the King grew increasingly suspicious and pressed, “What were you doing together with Ji Chi? Did he show you disrespect?”

“He…” Catherine hesitated. She was calculating whether to frame Ji Chi. Although she really wanted to see him suffer a bit, it wouldn’t be worthwhile if Father actually had him executed.

“Rather than blindly suspecting, why not examine the culprit?” The Countess gracefully emerged from beside the Earl, her snow-white silver fan elegantly closing as she pointed at the shattered corpse fragments on the ground.

William looked at the messy ground with disgust and immediately looked away. “It’s shattered like this—what could possibly be examined…”

The Countess smiled, as if conducting a teaching demonstration, and questioned Louis, “What do you think? Is there any useful information remaining here, Prince Louis?”

Louis carefully observed the filthy lawn and suddenly his eyes lit up. “Yes, the blood is still there.”

The Countess nodded with satisfaction. “Correct. Warriors are most sensitive to blood, and every drop of blood contains information about the enemy.”

The Countess removed her silk gloves and folded them neatly. Every movement was elegantly noble and pleasing to the eye. But in the next second, she crouched down, her scar-covered fingertips stroking across a mangled limb on the lawn, then unhesitatingly touching them to the tip of her tongue.

“Mm…” The Countess closed her eyes to carefully sense, saying softly, “There’s the taste of a brand—mithril, chameleon grass, and… gladiolus.”

Catherine’s pupils violently trembled.