Chapter 41

A thousand thoughts churned through Mengdeli's mind, yet his face betrayed nothing. He simply stepped aside, saying, "Of course, you're most welcome."

Duke Yabusi showed not the slightest trace of embarrassment. Clutching his crow, he strode in and settled himself on the largest, plushest, and most comfortable sofa in the room.

Mengdeli sat across from him, cutting straight to the point. "Duke, what exactly do you wish to discuss?"

Yabusi placed the crow on a cushion beside him, then began in a slow, measured tone. "Mayor Mengdeli, you've been receiving certain... informative envelopes, haven't you?"

Mengdeli's heart lurched, but his composure held. "What is the Duke implying?"

A faint smile curled Yabusi's lips. "No need for alarm. I'm the one who's been sending them."

Mengdeli's hand clenched into a fist beneath his robe. "Words are cheap, Duke. I'd like proof."

Yabusi wasn't at all offended. With a simple gesture, Ford stepped forward, handing a file to Mengdeli. "All this information was gathered by me and then sent to you."

Mengdeli recognized the familiar documents at once. Seven-tenths of his doubt dissolved, and his expression eased.

"So, Duke, what exactly do you want to tell me? Let's stop beating around the bush." Mengdeli had too many questions, and he fixed his gaze on Yabusi.

Yabusi seemed pleased. "I truly appreciate a straightforward man like you, Mayor. So I'll be direct: after all my investigation, every clue points to the man above."

Mengdeli listened quietly. He should have realized it long ago, but he hadn't wanted to admit it.

"But how could the King have changed so drastically? He used to be..." Mengdeli's voice turned bitter.

Yabusi gave a sardonic smile. "Who said the man up there now is even the King?"

Mengdeli's head snapped up. "What do you mean?!"

"The King hasn't held court for three months now. Every time he meets his ministers, he hides behind a curtain. Even after what I did last time, he refused to show his face." Yabusi paused. "Who knows what's behind that curtain now..."

Mengdeli found Yabusi's words unsettlingly convincing. "I still want to see the King in person. I'll need your help, Duke."

Yabusi nodded. "Of course. I'll arrange it for tomorrow."

With that settled, Yabusi picked up his crow and rose to leave, leaving Mengdeli to his thoughts.

Mengdeli pressed a hand over his eyes, his heart heavy with countless worries.

A once-wise ruler reduced to this—either accept that the sage has turned fool, or accept that the true king is gone. Whatever the truth, Mengdeli intended to see for himself tomorrow.

After leaving Mengdeli's room, Yabusi made his way to the room shared by Chrisley and Aodisite. At the door, he knocked politely.

Footsteps approached, growing louder, and the door swung open.

Chrisley regarded the Duke outside with a calm, indifferent expression. "Can I help you?"

Duke Yabusi spoke politely. "I've heard you two are traveling merchants. I'm quite interested in your wares and would like to hear more."

Chrisley glanced at him and the crow, then turned. "Come in."

Aodisite sat on the sofa, engrossed in a storybook, and only glanced up briefly as Yabusi entered.

"So, you'd like to know about our goods?" Chrisley took a seat across from Yabusi. With a wave of her hand, an assortment of food, fruit, and the three magical instruments that had been flying off the shelves at Keke Shop appeared in the room. "These are some of our bestsellers. Feel free to try the instruments."

Yabusi was indeed interested, but there were more pressing matters at hand.

"I'll take all of these," he said, a warm smile on his face. "But I also have something more important to ask you."

He looked at Chrisley, hands clasped. "You must have come to the royal city for a very important reason."

Chrisley took a sip of tea. "Indeed. We wish to meet the King and sign a contract with him."

"Oh?" Yabusi feigned intrigue. "I've heard of your Keke Shop before. You've already signed agreements with the beastmen, elves, and others."

Chrisley nodded. "Correct. We came to the Goblin Kingdom to finalize the teleportation array contract."

Yabusi studied the witch before him, knowing she'd be a key ally in his scheme. He had to win her over by any means necessary. "I can help you sign that contract. And to be honest, even if you went to the palace, you wouldn't see the King. And even if you did, you might not get the contract signed."

Chrisley's expression remained unchanged. "If the King himself can't do it, what makes you think you can?"

Yabusi wasn't surprised by the challenge. He spoke slowly, deliberately. "Because the one in the palace now isn't the King."

"Oh? And what proof do you have?" Chrisley popped a strawberry into her mouth, unhurried.

"You can probably see it—there are two souls inside this crow." Yabusi gestured to the bird preening its feathers.

A glimmer of understanding flashed in Chrisley's eyes. "You mean to say the King's soul is in that crow?"

Yabusi nodded solemnly. "Yes. But because of a strange dark magic, the two souls take turns controlling the body. Right now, it's the crow's soul."

"Very well, I'm willing to believe you for now. But tomorrow, you'll take us to the palace. I want to meet this impostor myself." Chrisley stated her terms.

Yabusi nodded readily. "Of course. I'll personally escort you tomorrow."

"It's getting late. Please rest well. I'll take my leave." Yabusi rose, offered a polite farewell, and walked out.

After he left, Chrisley pulled out her astrolabe to contact Rao Ke. The screen materialized into Rao Ke's face, and she adjusted the device to show her upper body.

Rao Ke wore a pale yellow nightgown, her black hair loose around her shoulders.

"Hi, long time no see!" Rao Ke greeted with a smile. "How's your mission going?"

A gentle smile crossed Chrisley's face. "Mm, almost done. We'll head back once it's settled."

Rao Ke nodded and followed up, "Teacher, I received all the materials you sent. I'll handle things properly."

Chrisley nodded, then inquired about Aodisite. "She's binge-reading her storybooks right now."

"By the way, I've nearly finished these volumes. Do you have any more?" Chrisley asked, a bit embarrassed.

Rao Ke couldn't help but chuckle. "Don't worry. I'm planning to open a bookstore in the shop soon, with all kinds of books."

Aodisite, overhearing from the side, leapt up. "Great! Once the bookstore opens, I'll manage it."

The three chatted for a while before ending the call.

Rao Ke turned to Sesame Paste, who was sprawled on a beanbag, harvesting crops. "Sesame Paste, when will the book-related section unlock?"

Without looking up, Sesame Paste replied casually, "Check your quest box."

Rao Ke opened it and saw a newly triggered quest. "!!"

[Quest Triggered: Host a large-scale event with 10,000 participants

Reward: Unlock Books Section]

"Sesame Paste, you can issue quests on your own now?" Compared to the quest itself, this was what intrigued Rao Ke.

Sesame Paste scratched its head. "Yeah, I can issue reasonable quests now, because we've been doing well lately. But the main system will monitor. If I issue something unreasonable, I'll be penalized and lose this privilege."

Rao Ke nodded thoughtfully, saying nothing.

...

In the vast blue sky, the scorching air shimmered slightly as a crimson fire dragon and a beautiful emerald dragon flew past.

They descended near the Adventure Forest and transformed into human forms.

Afra eyed the gaunt, dull-looking man beside her—gray-haired, green-eyed, with a gloomy air. "Garcia, don't you dare screw this up."

Garcia replied listlessly, "If it weren't for the Queen's orders, I'd never leave my house."

Afra sounded disgusted. "Garcia, maybe you should get out more instead of holing up at home all the time."

Garcia looked up. "I've explored every inch of Dragon Island hundreds of times. No interest in doing it again. Home's more fun."

He thought, if not for the Queen's request and this being an off-island event, he definitely wouldn't have come.

"Whatever. We're almost at the edge of the Adventure Forest." Afra was buzzing with excitement—soon she'd see that witch and have a rematch!

Garcia, sensing the hot-headed fire dragon's plan, warned flatly, "If you get into a fight and mess up the Queen's mission, you can explain it to her yourself."

Afra muttered, "It's not a fight. It's called a spar, got it?"

"Whatever." Garcia shrugged and pulled out his astrolabe.

Following the designated route, they reached Keke Shop. Afra strode in through the beautiful, exquisite storefront.

"Chrisley! I, Afra, am back! Come on, let's fight—no, I mean, spar!" Afra was practically bouncing with excitement.

Garcia, meanwhile, kept his distance, pretending to be a random passerby who didn't know her.