Chapter 51: The Black Card’s Trail

“Ow, ow, ow! Let go, I swear I was just flustered with concern!”

On the plains of Aitran County, a stunning young woman was fiercely twisting a handsome young man’s ear, dragging him forward.

Ellis scoffed, “Oh really? And your claws just naturally gravitated towards the most perfectly intact part of my chest?”

Larry, looking abashed, explained, “You see, it’s a man’s instinctive reaction. When male hormones are over-secreted, it’s only natural to make some unavoidable moves towards an attractive female. Besides, what if you had internal injuries? I had to check thoroughly, just in case.”

Ellis glared at Larry, snarling, “This old lady is a man!”

“Don’t you feel like that statement is a bit contradictory?”

Ellis had only just realized it herself, quickly clapping a hand over her mouth. What was wrong with her? Why was she calling herself ‘this old lady’?

Ptooey, ptooey. Spending too much time with Hannie had made her unconsciously default to identifying as female.

A wave of irritation washed over Ellis. She knew these shifts were inevitable; after all, there were significant differences between women and men, both physically and in lifestyle. It was only natural for such a prolonged adaptation to impact her psyche.

Especially when a certain good friend, who was once utterly devoid of desire, suddenly developed a keen interest in her body, accelerating this process even further.

Alas, she really needed to find that Demon King soon or come up with another way to change back.

Just as Ellis was lost in thought, a ground-shaking thud of dragon hooves echoed from ahead.

Ellis abruptly looked up, realizing they had somehow reached the border of Aitran County. In the distance, a large contingent of soldiers stood at the frontier, craning their necks and looking their way.

“It’s Daisy and the others! Quick, let go of me! We need to look like a loving couple!”

Larry’s vision far surpassed that of an ordinary person. He had spotted Daisy, riding a tall, swift dragon within the army, and urged Ellis immediately.

Ellis: ‘｡•ˇ‸ˇ•｡’

Larry pleaded sincerely, “Big sister! Please! I don’t want to have nightmares tonight! Let me escape those demons that haunt me! Your humble servant still wants to go back and pick out a high-quality, high-priced, specially made flying contraption for Your Majesty, the Queen!”

‘Oh, right, this kid still owes me money. I need to keep him alive.’

Ellis finally released Larry’s ear, but the very next second, Larry intertwined their fingers, gripping her hand tightly.

Ellis: “!!!”

‘This scoundrel still has ulterior motives?!’

She was about to roll up her sleeves and start fighting when Larry whispered, “Act! We’re acting!”

Ellis forced a smile. “You’d better be truly acting, or I genuinely won’t mind becoming your sister!”

Larry felt a chill run down his lower half and nodded his head rapidly.

Ellis, feeling awkward, was led by the hand by Larry until they stood before Daisy and the others.

Daisy and Meixia asked anxiously, “Are you two alright?”

Ellis spun around. “Perfectly fine, as you can see, we’re completely unharmed.”

Daisy breathed a sigh of relief, then looked towards Aitran County. Although the strange phenomena had dissipated, they couldn’t hide the widespread devastation. She couldn’t help but ask, “What happened here?”

Larry and Ellis recounted the events that had transpired.

Daisy’s eyes were filled with a complex emotion. She finally understood the ruthless methods Gapp had employed.

Without losing a single soldier, he had utterly annihilated Jipp’s most combat-ready army and their generals in Aitran County. All Jipp gained from such a heavy loss was a largely ruined, unusable pasture.

Daisy felt the contract in her arms grow exceptionally heavy.

That was the ten years of development time Gapp had secured for Danga, using his name, both past and future.

Johnny, eager for action, declared, “My liege, Jipp has suffered a heavy blow. Why don’t we take Aitran County and…”

“No.”

Daisy shook her head. “Even if Gapp was a villainous king, he signed that contract with the royal seal. Besides, Aitran County is already destroyed. If we take it over, we’ll have to expend a great deal of manpower and resources to restore it. Let Jipp’s people clean up their own mess. Once we have complete control of our domestic situation, after ten years of consolidation, we will reclaim a fully intact Aitran County!”

At this moment, Daisy’s tone was incredibly resolute and convincing.

Johnny chuckled. “Alright! In ten years, I will be the vanguard, reclaiming a perfectly intact Aitran County for you!”

“Daisy truly has a queenly demeanor now,” Ellis whispered to Larry. “Her temperament has changed so much.”

Larry, deeply moved, nodded in agreement.

Ellis turned her gaze to Meixia, inquiring, “Do you know, Meixia?”

“Mhm.”

Meixia softly relayed the details to Ellis.

Upon hearing it, Larry couldn’t help but say, “Setting aside his actions, he was truly a remarkable individual.”

“Indeed.”

Ellis looked at Daisy, stating, “After all this, Daisy has truly ‘grown up’.”

What transpired in Danga naturally caused a massive stir, especially for Jipp, which suffered a devastating blow. It was said that their king fainted from anger.

Meanwhile, Gapp had paved the way for Daisy’s ascension. She soon officially ascended the throne, becoming Danga’s first queen in history.

Jipp wanted to hold Danga accountable, but Daisy directly presented the contract Gapp had signed. It contained a clear clause: half an hour after signing, Aitran County officially belonged to Jipp, and all its affairs were entirely unrelated to Danga. It also bore the national seals of both countries.

Though merely a piece of paper, Jipp now lacked the power to tear it up.

Previously, Jipp had made enemies on all sides, relying solely on its formidable military might to intimidate surrounding nations.

Now, Jipp’s most renowned warmonger, Trolope, and its most elite army were all vanquished in Aitran County. This news, amplified by Daisy, quickly spread to neighboring countries.

Those long-oppressed neighbors began to stir, and hidden social conflicts within Jipp itself showed signs of erupting.

At this point, the ten years of peace with Danga were no longer a protection for Danga but a guarantee for Jipp to catch its breath.

Under Daisy’s various veiled threats, Jipp could only swallow their bitter loss.

They were desperate to know what had happened in Aitran County, for such a massive army to be annihilated at once. Jipp suspected Danga had employed forbidden dark arts.

They had previously heard rumors of Gapp colluding with demon spirits, but lacked evidence. The events in Aitran County unfolded so suddenly that by the time they reacted and attempted to investigate, they were blocked by Ellis’s barrier. It was truly like an unreachable area in a game world; no matter what methods they used, they couldn’t create even a single crack.

When the barrier dispersed, Larry and Ellis had already cleared the scene, leaving only desolation behind.

And Larry and Ellis were absolutely not going to step forward to testify. Jipp could only endure this unspoken grievance.

“Aha! Delicious!”

Ignoring the somber atmosphere in the Jipp royal court, Danga was in a state of national celebration.

Today, their Queen Daisy officially held her coronation ceremony.

The kingdom’s rituals lasted an entire day, followed by a grand banquet.

Ellis and Larry were arguably the greatest contributors, but due to Adventurer’s Guild regulations, they had to remain anonymous, though they cared little for such fame and fortune.

Currently, Ellis and Larry were heartily drinking expensive fine wine at the banquet.

Meixia stood nearby, urging her to drink less.

“This bit of wine is nothing!”

Ellis declared proudly, “I can drink a thousand cups without falling! Don’t worry, I would never lose control when drunk.”

Meixia was puzzled as to why Ellis was patting her arm while saying this.

Larry suddenly interjected, asking, “My alcohol tolerance isn’t good, so if I get drunk…”

Ellis cut him off and threatened, “If you want to be castrated while drunk, no problem.”

Larry glanced at the wine in his glass, then sheepishly put it down. “In that case, I’ll pass.”

“By the way, Ellis, did you find that black card?”

Suddenly, Meixia asked this, and Ellis’s drinking motion immediately halted. She and Larry exchanged bewildered glances.

They had both apparently forgotten the original purpose of their visit to Danga entirely!

“My black card!”

Ellis no longer had any mood for drinking and immediately ran to find Daisy.

Larry and Meixia followed close behind.

Daisy was startled by the panicked Ellis, and after dismissing her guards, she asked, puzzled, “What’s wrong, Ellis, why are you so flustered?”

Ellis gripped Daisy’s hand tightly. “Daisy, where’s my black card?!”

“Your… black card?”

Daisy stared blankly at Ellis. Larry, who had just arrived, reminded her, “Ellis is anxious. It’s Ellis’s black card. Remember when we sent a quest looking for you?”

Daisy then reacted, giving Ellis a thoughtful look before saying, “I left it in my old room. I’ll take you to get it.”

Ellis was so fixated on her black card that she completely missed Daisy’s suspicion of her.

Upon entering Daisy’s former princess chambers, Daisy was met with a cold draft. Noticing that the room’s window was open, she frowned and asked a nearby maid, “You didn’t notice the window was open?”

The maid immediately knelt to apologize. “It is our fault, Your Majesty, but we checked the window just an hour ago, and it was closed.”

Daisy asked again, “Has anyone entered or left this room since then?”

Both maids shook their heads. “No one.”

“Never mind, it’s a small matter.”

Ellis, her mind solely on her black card, urged them on.

Seeing this, Daisy had no choice but to put the matter aside for now. She retrieved a treasure chest from under the bed, took out a key from a drawer, and said, “It’s in here.”

Then, under Ellis’s expectant gaze, the treasure chest was opened, but the sight that followed stunned everyone.

Inside the box, there was no black card, only a slip of paper.

“This!”

Daisy took out the note, on which a line of text was written.

[If you want the black card, come to the Spanlam Mountains, Ellis and Larry!]

[Signed: Julia, Irene.]

“Julia and Irene were here?!”

Daisy exclaimed in surprise, suddenly recalling the two mysterious figures who had rescued her from the prison cell that day. No wonder they had seemed somewhat familiar; it was them. This meant they had been staying in Danga all this time, and quite possibly lurking within the royal palace.

Thinking of this, Daisy’s heart warmed. Even if she complained about them constantly, they were still her companions in the end.

“Those two women!!!”

A grinding, teeth-clenched voice pulled Daisy from her warm memories. It was Ellis.

She glared fiercely at the open window, asking Larry beside her, “Do you have everything?”

“Uh, I carry it with me now.”

Larry, fearing a repeat of the previous situation, now carried his luggage with him at all times. It was a compressed hip pouch, so it wasn’t heavy.

“That’s good then! Daisy, we’re leaving!”

With that, Ellis grabbed Larry’s hand and leaped out the window, completely disregarding Larry’s cries of alarm.

Daisy watched their departing figures, murmuring, “Ellis, Larry, goodbye.”

Meixia looked at Daisy curiously and asked, “That was Ellis and Larry.”

Daisy smiled faintly, patting Meixia’s head. “Just consider it a slip of the tongue. Aren’t you going with them?”

Meixia shook her head. “No, that’s their world. I’m going back to my hometown for a visit. I’ll depart tomorrow.”

“You must come back to see me often, Meixia.”

“Mhm, I will, Daisy!”

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