Chapter 262: The Humble Queen

The capture of the princess’s head guard terrified her loyal attendants, who hastily fell back to protect her. A majestic, silver-armored Holy Knight nearby shouted to the forces in the distance.

"Listen up! If you don’t want this fool to die, then pull back your troops!"

None of them dared to retreat. They all knew that a Divine Physician who could supposedly bring the dead back to life was staying in Yaglu Castle. If they couldn’t secure his cooperation, the King would have them beheaded upon their return to court.

Better to die in battle than to face that.

The two sides were at a standoff. A great battle seemed imminent. But just then, a voice from a distant megaphone repeated an announcement.

"Her Majesty the Queen has arrived!"

Chen Qingdi had been relying on a translator to communicate with the members of the Evil God Sect lately, so he was the only one who couldn’t understand what they were shouting.

His translator told him the Queen had arrived.

"If we capture this new target, can we force the royal court to withdraw its troops?"

The Holy Knight beside him replied.

"Sir, you may not know our customs here. The Queen cannot be touched by another man. If she is, the King will not hesitate to fight to the death!"

Chen Qingdi gave a bitter smile. "I have no desire to fight them to the death, but it seems they won’t leave us in peace. Otherwise, I would have already called on everyone from Evil God Island to overthrow this king completely!"

Before long, a luxury car was seen speeding toward them.

At a distance from the castle, its passenger transferred to a luxurious horse-drawn carriage.

The carriage drew up before Chen Qingdi and his men. An elegant, noble-looking woman disembarked and slowly approached him.

The same handmaiden Chen Qingdi had struck down earlier was there, still putting on airs by riding the Queen’s coattails.

"Her Majesty is here. Why have you not kneeled?"

Chen Qingdi regarded them with perfect calm.

The Queen came before Chen Qingdi and gave him a respectful bow.

"My daughter has contracted a strange illness that no local doctor can cure. I heard that the Divine Physician has hands that can bring the dying back to life. I wonder if you would grant us the honor of treating her."

Strangely enough, the Queen could speak the language of the Dragon Country. It wasn’t perfectly fluent, but it was understandable.

Chen Qingdi was not swayed by the Queen’s beauty. He let out a cold snort.

"I was under the impression that people from your court were all arrogant and incapable of speaking politely."

The Queen shot a subtle glance at her handmaiden.

"Daisy, who gave you permission to be rude to the Divine Physician? Get on your knees and beg for his forgiveness."

Daisy came before Chen Qingdi and knelt.

"I’m sorry!"

After his translator relayed the words, Chen Qingdi snorted.

"Fine. For the sake of this noble and elegant Queen, I will let it slide."

The handmaiden then stood before the Queen like a mother hen protecting her chick.

"I’m warning you! Don’t you dare speak disrespectfully to the Queen! You must show her respect, or His Majesty the King will not spare you."

The Queen was genuinely angry now. She ordered the guards at her side.

"Daisy is unwell. Escort her away so she may rest."

The handmaiden named Daisy was then forcibly escorted away by the guards.

The Queen then apologized elegantly to Chen Qingdi. Seeing her sincerity, he decided not to pursue the matter and politely welcomed the Queen’s entourage into the castle.

Once they were seated as host and guest, Chen Qingdi asked the Queen about the princess’s specific illness.

The Queen sighed. "Lately, she has been eating enormous amounts of food but continues to grow thinner. What’s more, she becomes delirious around midnight every night, as if a demon is whispering in her ear! One moment she’s burning up, the next she’s freezing cold. We have no idea what this illness could be."

"Can Her Highness the Princess be brought into the castle?"

A short while later, the princess was wheeled into the room.

A single glance at the princess’s face was all it took for Chen Qingdi to understand her illness. But before he could speak, a doctor dressed in a sharp suit approached.

"Your Majesty, this man is nothing but a charlatan! We absolutely cannot allow him to treat the princess! I still recommend surgery, using modern medical techniques!"

From someone’s introduction nearby, Chen Qingdi learned this man was named Doyle, the princess’s personal physician.

He was also a reasonably well-known physician in the region.

"Mr. Doyle, have you determined the princess’s illness? Where would you operate, and what would be the success rate?"

Mr. Doyle replied calmly.

"The princess is certainly infected with some kind of virus. If she’s scratching uncontrollably, her hands are likely infected as well. We amputate wherever there’s an infection!"

Chen Qingdi, listening from the side, grew increasingly furious.

"And if the infection is in her head? Are you going to chop it off?"

Doyle, fuming, stormed over to Chen Qingdi.

"That is slander!"

Chen Qingdi ignored him and turned to the Queen.

"Your Majesty, if Mr. Doyle treats the princess according to his plan, she will end up either dismembered or decapitated. That isn’t treatment, it’s murder. I urge you to reconsider."

She turned to Chen Qingdi.

"Divine Physician, how certain are you of success?"

"One hundred percent."

"Very well!"

The Queen ordered everyone else to stand aside.

"Please, Divine Physician, begin my daughter’s treatment at once!"

Doyle, upon hearing that the princess was being turned over to Chen Qingdi, became terrified that this newcomer would steal his position.

"Since you’re so confident, I’ll ask you: what illness does the princess have, exactly?"

Chen Qingdi snorted.

"Strictly speaking, the princess is not ill. She has been poisoned!"

Hearing this, Doyle snorted.

"We diagnosed that long ago. Are you just stating the obvious?"

Chen Qingdi stared at him and pressed,

"Then let me ask you, what kind of poison is it, and how do you plan to cure it?"

Although Dr. Doyle’s medical skills were considerable, toxicology was not his specialty.

"Well... I would need to take a sample of the pathogen back to the lab for analysis, then formulate a targeted antidote!"

"And how many years would that take?"

Mr. Doyle turned to the Queen.

"With adequate research and development funding, we should be able to synthesize an antidote within two and a half years!"

The Queen hesitated. Deep down, she still trusted the physician who had served the princess for so many years. If she hadn’t been backed into a corner, she never would have agreed to let her daughter receive treatment from a practitioner of traditional medicine.

Seeing the Queen begin to waver, Chen Qingdi snorted.

"Let me be blunt. If this condition is allowed to drag on for forty-nine days, the poison will reach its peak, and she will die. How could she possibly wait two and a half years?"

The color drained from the Queen’s face. "Sir... are you telling the truth?"

Chen Qingdi snorted.

"Do I have any reason to lie?"

Mr. Doyle, still unconvinced, was about to argue his case when the Queen let out a sigh.