Chapter 73-The Manga Pariah's Guide to Self-Salvation

Upon arriving at the royal palace, Ye Di seemed to have finally figured out why his father had suddenly slapped him. With his head hung low, he obediently followed behind his sister.

A servant was already waiting at the entrance, guiding the Ye siblings to where the Crown Prince was.

As soon as Ye Zheng recognized the familiar surroundings, she knew Sykes was at the hunting ground again. Whenever he was in a bad mood, he would stay there to vent.

It would be strange if Sykes were in a good mood. He was the one who had suffered the most humiliation recently. She wondered how much Sykes remembered of his time being controlled in the Demonic Domain.

"Ye Zheng?"

A faint, hesitant voice called out. Ye Zheng turned her head. The princess, dressed in a court gown, was behind her. Seeing Ye Zheng turn, she showed an embarrassed expression and quickly waved her hands.

"Ah! Are you busy with something? I just haven't seen you in so long..."

The guiding servant took a step forward, about to inform the princess that the Crown Prince was waiting for the two guests, but the Saintess suddenly made a gesture, stopping him from speaking. She then walked towards the princess not far away.

"Heath, long time no see. I've missed you too."

Ye Zheng's rare and direct warmth made Heath even more embarrassed.

Before Ye Zheng became the Saintess, they had been the best of friends at the academy. However, after the fourteen-year-old Ye Zheng became the Saintess, her status and the power she represented made it unsuitable for them to remain close.

Moreover, the Saintess was indeed very busy, and Heath didn't want to disturb her friend's work—even though, strictly speaking, her friend was a child laborer at the time, the Sei Curia had already assigned her a great deal of work.

"Are you here to see my eldest brother? His mood is... well, his mood is always a live volcano."

"I haven't dared to go near him recently. Only my second brother is carefree enough. But perhaps your arrival will improve his mood a little... Sorry, I seem to be rambling again."

The nearby attendants kept their heads down. The princess wasn't someone who required meticulous service, and they had no interest in the two girls' daily chatter.

Ye Zheng, however, kept her head lowered, maintaining a patient and listening expression.

"I was trying to say," Heath suddenly moved a little closer. Ye Zheng's tall figure conveniently shielded her, hiding the sudden change in Heath's expression. She abruptly lowered her voice, "The hunting ground is dangerous!"

Ye Zheng's eyes lowered, her smile fading. She opened her lips, her voice still sounding as casual as if they were just chatting, "Rest assured, Your Highness. Prince Sykes is just feeling down for the moment. I will try to console him."

The Saintess winked at the princess and left under Heath's worried gaze.

Ye Di paced anxiously on the spot, wishing he could just drag the chattering Ye Zheng over. How could they keep the Crown Prince waiting like this?

Seeing Ye Zheng finally finish her chat, the exquisitely dressed boy breathed a sigh of relief and quickly pushed her forward.

"Don't be in such a hurry. Rushing will seem impolite."

Ye Zheng walked at an unhurried pace, letting Ye Di fret beside her. He wanted to leave her behind, but he didn't dare face Sykes alone.

Although they were both students at the Royal Academy and the Ye family was a minor noble house in the upper district, Ye Di had only ever had the chance to see the Crown Prince from a distance. He didn't even have the qualification to greet him up close.

Ye Zheng was completely unconcerned about Ye Di's worry of "keeping the Crown Prince waiting." If one were to speak of disrespect, what she had done to Sykes could hardly be described with a word as light as "disrespect."

Her gaze discreetly surveyed the lavish palace and the passing servants. Everything she could see was unchanged from her last visit, but she could feel that the clandestine security forces within the palace had increased. They had likely learned their lesson from the dismembered body appearing in the Crown Prince's room. The Royal Family would absolutely not allow the culprit another opportunity.

Although she, the culprit, had waltzed right back in, with the current level of security, it would indeed be difficult for her to repeat her previous feat.

—So, who could possibly pose a threat in the Crown Prince's hunting ground?

Heath said the hunting ground was dangerous, not that she was in danger. The princess, knowing the inside story, didn't want her to go there.

If the danger wasn't aimed at her, then the most likely target in the hunting ground right now was... Sykes?

Someone was going to deal with Sykes in the hunting ground?

Ye Zheng's first thought was the lawless Sierra, but she quickly dismissed the option. No matter how impulsive Sierra was, she wouldn't provoke him again at this time. Besides, it was unlikely that Heath would have stumbled upon her.

Suddenly, she remembered that during their chat just now, Heath had mentioned the second prince.

Heath was not one for idle talk; on the contrary, she always hid her sensitive thoughts and kept her dislikes to herself.

As her once closest friend, Ye Zheng knew that Heath did not like this royal brother of hers, even though both were born to the current Empress.

The second prince, Laimeng, was far less capable than Sykes, and his intellect was barely on par with Sykes's. But in terms of ambition, Ye Zheng could see the greedy desire filling Laimeng's eyes.

Although Sykes was the Crown Prince supported by both the Royal Family and the Sei Curia, his recent string of failures had likely given the second prince renewed hope.

To choose this moment of tightest security, to strike at the furious Sykes on his own turf, and to be discovered by a powerless princess—only an idiot who had all the timing and location advantages like Laimeng would do such a thing.

Having figured this out, Ye Zheng quickened her pace. She was becoming curious about the second prince's plan.

The hunting ground was located in the palace's underground level, an extremely vast space that housed over a hundred Mutant Beasts and dozens of Mutant Plants. The dome was carved with intricate and detailed images, depicting the sacred scene of the God of Hope wielding a divine sword to slay a demonic dragon.

And beneath that dome, a group of students in Royal Academy uniforms were frantically dealing with ferocious Mutant Beasts in the arena. Ye Zheng looked down and saw many familiar faces, all children of minor nobles.

Sykes stood with his hands behind his back. Hearing footsteps, he turned his head, his golden eyes exceptionally calm as he nodded at his guests.

Ye Zheng was a bit surprised. She performed a standard court curtsy before continuing to observe Sykes.

Ye Di was also secretly observing. Up close, he noticed that even in such hot weather, the Crown Prince was dressed formally and impeccably, carrying a maturity and dignity that didn't match his age. So, Ye Zheng really hadn't been fooling him?

The Crown Prince appeared wild and willful, but in reality, he was a very conservative dresser?

However, when his gaze fell upon the group of screaming and fleeing classmates in the arena below, Ye Di's face turned deathly pale.

"Your Highness, are you training the junior students?" Ye Zheng asked.

Sykes withdrew his gaze from Ye Zheng and looked back at the center of the hunting ground.

"I heard that I am to select people from the Royal Academy to form a personal guard. Many have recommended themselves, and I simply can't choose. This method is quite effective, isn't it?"

Sykes suddenly looked at the unfamiliar face next to Ye Zheng. It took him a moment to remember who he was. "Your brother? Does he also wish to participate in the selection?"

"The Saintess's brother. I can make a special exception and let him go down now."

"I only want the last five people standing."

Ye Zheng turned to look at her brother. Seeing Ye Di's stiff and pale expression, she knew she couldn't count on him to be selected for any personal guard.

"Ye Di is still too inexperienced and probably cannot handle such an important job. However, if the Crown Prince is short of staff, I would be bold enough to ask for a suitable position for him."

Sykes's lips curled into a surprisingly tolerant smile. "You don't need to speak in that tone. You certainly weren't this respectful in the Demonic Domain."

Ye Zheng frowned slightly. She suspected that Sierra's ability might have some side effects, to the point that Sykes's brain had suddenly righted itself, as if two negatives had made a positive (a slang about how two wrong things can sometimes lead to a right outcome).

"My apologies. I was in a hurry in the Demonic Domain and showed you great disrespect. I hope you can forgive me."

"Ha, although I didn't see a single trace of consideration or respect from you then, I must still say—thank you."

For a moment, Ye Zheng couldn't hide her astonishment. Sykes could say thank you? This was so out of character she was tempted to suspect he had been possessed by some high-IQ Mutant Beast.

Moreover, Sykes seemed to have fully recovered his memories from the Demonic Domain. Since he remembered what she did to him, how could he maintain such a calm attitude...

"Ye Zheng, thank you for healing me. I've remembered many things these past few days."

Sykes's profound and refined features relaxed, the hostility in his eyes diminishing significantly. He seemed to be expressing his gratitude with genuine sincerity.

Ye Zheng had a gut feeling that what Sykes meant by "remembered many things" wasn't just about his time being controlled in the Demonic Domain.

The pensive Saintess's eyes suddenly widened. At the time, in order to probe Sykes's secrets, her water flow had traveled throughout his body. Could the inherently healing [Stream] have inadvertently treated some chronic ailment of Sykes's?

No, that's not right. His body was perfectly healthy, and the Dragon Bone framework within him was exceptionally solid. On a physical level, there was nothing for her to repair.

Just as Ye Zheng was lost in a brainstorm, an explosive sound almost pierced her eardrums. The noisy hunting ground below erupted in a chorus of screams!

Ye Zheng gripped the railing and looked down. A raging fire had ignited in the center of the hunting ground. Both the uniformed students and the Mutant Beasts were scattering and fleeing. Several particularly huge and ferocious Mutant Beasts were rampaging, attacking everything around them.

All of this clearly exceeded the scope of a test.

Ye Zheng watched as a panicked student accidentally stumbled at the feet of an Mutant Beast. The frenzied monster immediately trampled him into a pulp of blood and flesh.

"Th-that's Green..."

Ye Di covered his mouth in horror, his eyes nearly bulging out. He pointed with a trembling finger at the classmate he knew, who was now just a bloody smear under the beast's foot.

The girl turned her head, her face serious as she stared at Sykes. "Stop your test! You are the Crown Prince of the Empire, not a butcher in a slaughterhouse."

Sykes tilted his head up slightly, his cold, emotionless eyes looking down at the pleading and screaming people in the hunting ground. In that moment, the familiar Sykes was back, yet there was something more, something indescribable about him.

The Crown Prince let out a cryptic snort. He turned and leaned close to Ye Zheng's ear. "The butcher this time isn't me. It's Laimeng."

Ye Zheng's grip on the railing tightened. She controlled her expression and showed Sykes a look of appropriate confusion, as if she had no idea why he had suddenly mentioned the second prince, Laimeng.

The dome carved with the God of Hope was trembling, dust trickling down. Sykes seemed pleased with the Saintess's reaction. Amidst the scorching, desperate atmosphere, he was in a good enough mood to add, "You have done me a favor. If you have any requests, address them directly to Yu Tianming. The Empire will satisfy you."

"Recently, I won't have the time to entertain you personally, Saintess."

The moment she met Sykes's calm golden eyes, Ye Zheng realized that not only did Sykes know about Laimeng's plan all along, but he was likely going to use it to turn the tables.

Whether Laimeng intended to attack Sykes in the hunting ground or frame him, this suddenly intelligent Crown Prince had surely already secured evidence of Laimeng's tampering.

The heavier the casualties in the hunting ground now, the greater Laimeng's crime would be. The second prince would completely lose his eligibility to compete for the throne.

What puzzled Ye Zheng the most was that if this was Yu Tianming's idea, he would definitely be accompanying Sykes to execute it. But Yu Tianming was not by his side now; in fact, there was no one by his side...

This plan wasn't particularly brilliant, but if it was Sykes's own idea, it became somewhat intriguing and chilling.

Ye Zheng rubbed her temples, which were throbbing faintly. Really, she had worked so hard to get everything on the right track according to her will, and now an accident had occurred with Sykes.

She quickly calmed down, her hand still gripping the railing. A tiny stream of water quietly flowed down the railing towards the hell on earth below.

Ye Zheng's dark eyes were fixed on Sykes. "Whatever your objective is, an incident like this in your hunting ground will damage your reputation. Please have your attendants—"

"Quick! The Crown Prince and the Saintess are still trapped inside!"

A panicked female voice rang out from beyond the sealed gates, followed by the sound of a door being violently broken down. The knights in charge of guarding rushed in.

Sykes's expression finally changed, returning to the familiar gloomy and dissatisfied look Ye Zheng knew. His golden eyes darkened, but he did not stop the Royal Knights from entering to rescue people.

"Your Highness the Crown Prince! Are you alright!"

"Damn it! How could something like this happen in the hunting ground?"

"Heavens! That His Highness is safe is the greatest fortune!"

A group of people surrounded Sykes, greeting him with nervous respect. Sykes remained silent with a grim face. Through the chaotic crowd, Ye Zheng looked towards a young person at the door, dressed in a complex court gown.

Panting, Heath looked disheveled. Her intricately woven hairstyle was a bit messy. The moment her eyes met Ye Zheng's, they sparkled, as if to say, "I'm so glad you're okay."

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