Chapter 1631 - 102: Fox and Mouse Game (12)_2

Chapter 1631: Chapter 102: Fox and Mouse Game (12)_2

"Just call me Elizabeth or Liz."

"Alright, Your Highness."

Elizabeth couldn’t help but burst into laughter, "If Siegfried were as adorable as you."

The Knight’s face flushed from cheeks to the ears, and his steps even faltered for a moment.

The banquet hall was just ahead, and there was little time left for casual conversation. Elizabeth sneaked a glance at the Nun behind her and asked, "What exactly are we doing today?"

The One-eyed Major looked quite surprised, "Major Moritz didn’t tell you?"

"He only said it was an invitation to a reception."

The One-eyed Major’s expression turned serious, "It is indeed a reception."

"For whom?"

"All the distinguished guests visiting recently."

"Who all are they?"

"I can’t introduce them all at once, you’ll find out when we get in."

"Then what do you want me to do?" Elizabeth stared intently at the Knight.

The guards opened the door to the banquet hall, and light, heat, and the clinking of glasses flooded out all at once.

"Silence! The most noble Princess Elizabeth! Daughter of Emperor Henry Li Yang!" A brief blast from the trumpet, and the herald’s booming voice pierced through the hall, "Arrives!"

The banquet hall fell silent in an instant.

"You don’t need to do anything; just do what you do best," the One-eyed Major said, escorting the princess, facing hundreds of scrutinizing eyes as they stepped into the brightly lit hall, "be yourself."

Be yourself? ℯℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Who am I?

I am Elizabeth Li Yang, daughter of the great Henry Li Yang, the only daughter, the most beloved daughter.

Elizabeth took a deep breath. She had thought it would take some effort to awaken the past training and habits, but it turned out that resuming the identity of a princess was as natural as breathing—because she didn’t need to pretend to be a princess; she was the Emperor’s daughter.

Elizabeth Li Yang, arrives.

The sudden change in environment brought a familiar dazzling sensation.

With the royal family member’s typical warm yet aloof smile, Elizabeth walked calmly into this small banquet hall, renowned even in the Newly Reclaimed Land.

Yet, beside her, the Knight appeared quite nervous, and even his expression unwittingly became stiff.

"Entering arm in arm with me is the Emperor’s privilege," Elizabeth found the knight beside her increasingly endearing, and she teased him deliberately, "No need to thank me, Your Majesty."

Luosong was initially taken aback, then his taut cheeks relaxed.

"You’re good at this," Luosong said, trying to move his lips as little as possible.

"Better than I imagined," Elizabeth completely unbothered, even had the leisure to nod in acknowledgment to the bowing onlookers, "Let’s go meet the host of this reception."

"Oh, right," Luosong snapped back to attention, "the host."

Due to the lack of large enough venues in Maplestone City, the reception was held at Magash Colvin’s manor;

And since the "Four-horsed Carriage" couldn’t get a single horse to stay put in the stable, the official host of the reception was Chairman Bard, while the actual host was Kai Morland.

With all eyes on her, Elizabeth walked gracefully through the crowd, arm in arm with the One-eyed Knight, moving toward the other end of the hall, as the guests instinctively stepped aside.

"Sister Felt" followed at a respectful distance, maintaining her role as a maid.

Before they had even reached halfway, a young man with broad shoulders and a sturdy build, with steady eyes, had already stepped forward voluntarily, while another medium-built, curly-haired, bright blue-eyed handsome man followed behind him.

"Those two must be the hosts of this banquet," Elizabeth thought, "Just as young as the Major."

"Chairman Bard," Luosong whispered as a reminder, "and Commissioner Kai."

As they spoke, the two had already approached Elizabeth.

"Your Highness, we are honored by your presence," the young man with broad shoulders nodded politely, "It’s a great honor."

"[Old Language] It’s hard to decline such an invitation," Elizabeth smiled and jabbed subtly, though she wasn’t entirely clear on what the role of the Speaker entailed, she still followed protocol, "Thank you for your hospitality, Mr. Speaker."

Elizabeth regretted to find that Mr. Speaker showed no reaction to her sarcasm, merely gave a light smile and turned to introduce the handsome man beside him, "This is Commissioner Kai Morland."

At just one glance, Elizabeth realized that this "Speaker" and the "Major" were the same type of people; to them, the identity of the Empress Princess meant nothing, let alone serving as a life-saving Decree.

"Your Highness," the blue-eyed man named "Kai Morland" clearly held the visiting Princess in higher regard, "should you need anything, please do not hesitate to ask. Though the Newly Reclaimed Land is remote and barren, we will do our utmost."

"No need, Mr. Commissioner," Elizabeth deliberately glanced at the Nun behind her, "I already have everything I need."

The atmosphere cooled instantly, and after a brief silence, it was Elizabeth who broke the ice.

"What is it?" Elizabeth asked with a smile, "Do you want to kiss the back of my hand as well?"

"You’re joking, Your Highness," the young man with broad shoulders stopped the blue-eyed man’s evident eagerness and got straight to the point, "Please, other guests are waiting to be introduced to you. That’s why we invited you here."

"Indeed," the blue-eyed man complimented with a smile, "though we would love to have you all to ourselves all night, that would be quite unethical."

In fact, before she had been caught in this predicament, Elizabeth already had some guesses about the reasons for Siegfried and Marvey’s capture.

Her dealings with the Major, Nun, and the rebel leaders further confirmed her suspicions—the rebels probably didn’t initially set out to capture Siegfried de Harlan or Elizabeth Li Yang; they had another target in mind.

From this perspective, Marvey, Siegfried, and she were undoubtedly three unlucky souls.

But ever since she "traveled companionably" with Siegfried, there hadn’t been a dull moment, and in a way, Elizabeth had become accustomed to bad luck.

Self-pity was also not in her nature.

So Elizabeth dedicated all her energy to two things:

First, surviving;

Second, escaping.

Regarding "surviving," Elizabeth had done everything within her power, even going as far as approaching the rebels herself, just to ensure the safety of her companions.

The results were as she had anticipated; the rebels became cautious. If the Knight hadn’t lied, Siegfried and Marvey were safe for the time being.

Next, she needed to find a way to "escape."

The only possibility of escaping rebel control lay precisely in their initial objective.

Regarding the motives behind tonight’s invitation to the reception, Elizabeth fully understood.

Though having some rough luck, since they held the "Princess" card, of course the rebels couldn’t resist using it to make a move.

This reception was a hunt, and Elizabeth was the bait.

"You want to catch my father’s secret agent," Elizabeth thought, "but I also want to contact my father’s agent. Only by letting father know about our situation as soon as possible can we leave this place at the earliest."

However, Elizabeth felt somewhat conflicted, because exposing her father’s agent would undoubtedly harm her father’s plans and interests—although she didn’t know what the plan was.

Luckily, she was naturally optimistic, rarely brooding over matters.

The young man with broad shoulders and the blue-eyed man led the way, while Elizabeth followed, observing the guests around and speculating who could be her father’s person.

"Take it step by step," she comforted herself secretly, "even if it leads to trouble, causing trouble... causing trouble won’t help, father will eventually... father will surely forgive me in the end..."

However, at the thought of her mother’s impending thunderous wrath upon their return, Elizabeth began to feel a headache.

While she was still lost in thought, things took a sharp turn for the worse.

"Daughter of the Pretender Emperor!" A furious roar exploded in her ears, "Die!"

Before she could react, the Knight was already standing guard in front of her.

The next moment, a blade pierced through the Knight’s palm and stabbed into her abdomen.