Chapter 14: The Heart of a King

“I’m sorry, Galena. Woe is me, I’m sorry!”

Haidai clutched her head and wept.

From the small bump rising on her head, one could tell just how much power the blonde maid had put into that strike.

Rhein was clearly still dazed by the sudden kiss.

Li Ruoyi was even more speechless; the sense of déjà vu from this scene was too strong.

He likely wouldn’t forget it even after a thousand years.

This could already be called performance art.

Combined with those incredibly realistic lines engraved deep within his DNA, perhaps this was the beauty of art.

“Now then, let’s talk business.”

Galena picked up a white napkin to wipe the threads of saliva from Rhein’s lips, then rubbed her cheeks to wake her up.

“You… you idiot!”

Once she regained her senses, Rhein grabbed Haidai by her collar and yanked hard on her cheeks.

Perhaps because she pulled too hard, Haidai began to make unintelligible noises.

“My dear young ladies, where is the poise and breeding of your magical lineages?”

Galena, unable to watch any longer, gave a slight bow to Li Ruoyi before lifting the two and placing them back on their chairs.

“You’re making a fool of yourself in front of Lord Ruoyi.”

Galena’s anger seemed feigned.

She was like a machine—analyzing that the current situation required anger, and the system responded accordingly.

Yet, for some reason, even this false emotion made Li Ruoyi’s heart feel incredibly warm.

Looking at the three ladies before him, he felt as if he had found a home again.

“It’s fine, it’s fine.”

Li Ruoyi smiled and waved it off.

“What is this business Galena mentioned?”

“Haven’t you noticed the problem you need to solve right now?”

Haidai looked at him with an incredulous gaze.

“I’m sorry, but I really don’t know.”

Li Ruoyi set his cup down and spread his hands, making his stance clear.

“Rhein hasn’t seen the state of the world, so she might not notice the problem.”

Haidai’s expression became more serious than ever before.

Though the girl was generous and playful, contrary to her outward appearance, both her personality and her ability to manipulate time seemed unfathomable to Li Ruoyi.

“As a Human King, you are perhaps too weak.”

The sunlight today was a bit piercing; otherwise, Rhein might have noticed the paleness spreading across Li Ruoyi’s face.

She might have also caught the neurotic tremor passing through his shoulders and chest.

She had stated Li Ruoyi’s current dilemma in a single sentence.

“But this is relative. Compared to an ordinary magician, you are already strong enough—for example, compared to me.”

Haidai’s gaze grew sharp.

“You felt it too when facing a truly powerful opponent, didn’t you?”

“Currently, you can’t even manifest Kingship; whether you can defeat the Evil Dragons threatening the border is a question.”

Haidai raised her hand and pointed to the black vortex on Li Ruoyi’s chest.

“According to the preliminary estimate by Galena and me, you have only managed to use at most five percent of the power within your Heart of the Human King.”

Galena, standing by, nodded in agreement with Haidai’s point.

“You know about the Heart of the Human King?”

Rhein asked excitedly.

“In a way, I am someone who has traveled all over the world; over these ten years, I’ve seen more Human Kings than I can count on both hands.”

Haidai drained the fragrant tea in her cup and cleared her throat.

“The so-called Heart of the Human King is a body part unique to Human Kings that connects to the planet’s Great Source and allows for the use of omnipotence.”

Haidai snapped her fingers, and a massive scroll of parchment appeared behind her.

It was covered in dense Latin script.

In the center of the parchment was Da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man, but marked with traits that humans did not possess.

“It is like a power plant. As long as a magician’s crest acts as the starting device, it can continuously draw from the Great Source and then produce and release power.”

At some unknown point, Haidai had changed into a black uniform and put on square-framed glasses, looking like a young female teacher.

Rhein nodded like a student listening intently to a lecture, signaling for her to continue.

Li Ruoyi stared at the parchment in silence.

“And you are like an owner without enough employees; you cannot put every workshop in this factory into production.”

“Do you mean I haven’t obtained the ability to make this heart fully functional?”

Li Ruoyi spoke; Haidai’s words had brought him sudden enlightenment.

“It isn’t a matter of ability; you possessed the ability from the start.”

Haidai smiled slightly.

“You simply do not have the authorization to use it!”

“In other words, authorization only allows five percent of Ruoyi’s heart to activate?”

Rhein was also beginning to understand.

“But isn’t authorization decided by the possessor themselves?”

“Nay, nay! Student Rhein!”

Haidai tapped Rhein on the head with a ruler that had appeared from nowhere.

“The Heart of the Human King itself still falls under the category of magic. As long as you go to the birthplace of magic, you can obtain the authorization to use its full power.”

Haidai took off her glasses and stated her conclusion.

“The birthplace of magic? Do you mean the places recorded in ancient myths and legends—those ruins?”

Rhein clapped her hands in sudden realization.

Galena, beside her, also wore a congratulatory smile.

“As for where these ruins are?”

Haidai’s wandering gaze finally fell back onto Li Ruoyi.

“Lord Ruoyi perhaps knows better than we do.”

“Do you know where they are, Ruoyi?”

Rhein looked at him inquisitively.

“I do. Miss Haidai’s guess is entirely correct; this is exactly the problem I am currently facing.”

Li Ruoyi gave a bitter smile.

“That place feels as if it is calling to me; I have been connected to it from the moment I was resurrected.”

“Nibelungen, within the territory of the ancient Kingdom of Burgundy, isn’t it?”

Haidai asked as she chewed on a macaron.

“How do you know that?”

For the second time, Li Ruoyi was stunned by the girl before him.

“Because I went to those ruins just before coming to Berlin, though I couldn’t get in.”

Haidai spread her hands helplessly.

“Then isn’t that the perfect way to solve the problem of the Evil Dragons? I will submit a request for the mission at the Council of Elders today.”

Rhein stood up and gave a slight bow to Haidai and Li Ruoyi.

“It’s about time. Galena, help me look after Haidai and Ruoyi.”

After speaking, she hurriedly boarded the carriage parked at the manor’s gate and left.

“Goodbye, Miss Rhein. Safe travels.”

Galena called out to the departing carriage.

Only after confirming the carriage was far away did she return to the banquet table.

After exchanging a brief look with Haidai, the blonde maid’s eyes burst with a blue-black light.

The immense power was so great that it even bent the marble pillars.

Haidai stood up, her long hair floating without any wind.

With a crisp snap of her fingers, everything in the world was frozen.

Whether it was the small fish leaping out of the water and hanging in the air, or the dew rolling on the leaves, everything stopped forever at that moment.