"Lilien, feel free to ask whatever you want to know," Luo Wei said, seeing through her thoughts.

Lilien replied apologetically, "You saw right through me. I'm sorry. I do have a question for you. How did you know there were monsters there?"

People born into royalty tend to be more suspicious, and today's events were too coincidental for her not to overthink.

Luo Wei answered frankly, "To be honest, I didn't know there were monsters there initially. I was just doing a divination at noon when I noticed an anomaly in the north. Out of curiosity, I took Troy and rode out of the city on horseback."

"Later, when we got tired of riding, we rested by the river. That's when we saw black mist coming from the forest. Troy said it was the aura of monsters, and that's how we knew monsters had appeared in the forest."

"Saving you was also a coincidence. While killing the monster, Troy unexpectedly found something moving inside its belly. Suspecting there might be someone still alive in there, he cut open its stomach and released you all."

Lilien was surprised that Luo Wei could do divination. A moment later, her expression turned pained. "It must have been Vincent and Robert who heard someone killing the monster outside, so they desperately tried to make noise to get the attention of people outside to save us."

Luo Wei played along and praised, "They are truly loyal warriors."

"Yes, they are," Lilien nodded repeatedly.

"But why did the monster appear there?" Luo Wei frowned and said, "That forest is so ordinary. How did it attract such a powerful swamp monster? If only there were Holy Knights here, they would surely know how the monster came to be."

Lilien sighed, "How would Holy Knights care about such small matters? Without a divine oracle, they wouldn't leave the church at all."

"Indeed," Luo Wei sighed as well. "But divine oracles don't appear often. Without a major disaster, it's impossible to alarm the church."

Lilien smiled bitterly, "That's how they operate, always preferring to save the world after a disaster has occurred."

"If I had lost my life to the monster today, they might have come to investigate at my father's request, only to give an ambiguous answer."

Luo Wei opened her mouth, showing a surprised expression. "Sister Lilien, so you also dislike the chur—"

"Shh!" Lilien put her finger to her lips. "Don't say such obvious things."

Then she looked at Luo Wei and smiled. "It seems we royals all dislike that way of doing things."

"Yes," Luo Wei showed a knowing smile.

Lilien let out a small yawn. "Luo Wei, I'm going to bed now. Thank you for today."

"No need to thank me. Go get some rest," Luo Wei said.

As Lilien turned around, a glint appeared in her eyes.

She had just deliberately used the phrase "we royals" as a trap to test Luo Wei, and Luo Wei didn't even notice. She must indeed be of royal blood!

After Lilien left, Luo Wei's gaze flickered.

Axina had lied to her. The Holy Knights wouldn't come to investigate just because someone wrote a letter of complaint.

And she had misunderstood today's star signs as well.

Professor Tobias had said that whether the answer from divination is correct or not depends on one's own judgment. Today, she had almost walked into a dead end due to misjudgment.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

The great danger indicated by the Horn constellation was actually the chain reaction that would have been triggered by Lilien's death.

If Lilien had really died in the monster's stomach today, King Kinoko would definitely have sought help from the church. The church would have sent people to investigate, and then they would have discovered her, a "demon occupying a human body," and she would have been executed.

The way out given by the Dipper constellation was actually telling her to go to the forest in the north to save Princess Lilien. As long as she saved her, the subsequent events naturally wouldn't happen.

Yet she had thought the star signs were telling her to flee north, and when Troy said he wanted to kill the monster, she was reluctant.

Fortunately, fortunately, Troy was a kind person!

Otherwise, she, this selfish creature, would have lost her life today!

Luo Wei made a decision in her heart to be nicer to Troy in the future. He might be her lucky star, the key to turning her fate around.

......

It was pitch dark when Troy finally returned with the chestnut horse.

When Luo Wei heard the sound and walked out of the courtyard, she saw him removing the blindfold from the horse's eyes.

"Why do I feel like you treat the horse better than you treat them?"

He had even blindfolded the horse to prevent it from being afraid of heights, but he wasn't nearly as attentive to Lilien and the two knights.

Troy snorted coldly, "You treat them better than you treat me too."

"Oh, are you jealous?" Luo Wei teased.

Troy hung his head glumly, not wanting to respond to her.

"Alright, don't be angry. They won't be staying here for too long," Luo Wei said, thinking she had discovered the reason for his anger. "Once the two knights have recovered from their injuries, they'll move out."

"This is your territory. You decide who stays," Troy said with his back to her. "I'll move back to the inn during this time."

"Troy, are you afraid they'll see your hair?" Luo Wei asked, guessing.

Troy paused. "So what if I am."

Luo Wei fell silent. Indeed, so what if he was.

She couldn't possibly drive Lilien and the others out now.

But she also couldn't just let Troy leave. Although Troy seemed easy to talk to, she knew his heart was hard.

"Troy," Luo Wei thought for a moment and said in a gentle tone, "I know you don't like nobles. Maybe they've hurt you before, but not all nobles are bad people."

"Lilien saved my life, so I can't turn a blind eye when she needs help. I'm very grateful that you helped me today, which allowed me to repay this debt of gratitude."

"Once I've repaid her for saving my life, there won't be any more interactions between us. I'm asking you to bear with them for a while. It won't be for too long."

Troy finally looked at her, his eyes showing a hint of confusion. "She's a royal princess. I'm just a lowly commoner. Why do you care whether I like her or not?"

Luo Wei replied rationally, "I want to say we're friends, that I get along better with you, that we've known each other longer, but I think these words are all too hypocritical, and you wouldn't believe them anyway."

Troy: No, I would believe it.

"So my real reason is that I need you. I need you more than I need them."

Luo Wei looked at him sincerely. "To me, your existence is more important than theirs."

Without Lilien, she wouldn't lose anything, but without Troy's protection, she would truly die!

Troy, however, stood there as if dumbfounded, those few sentences echoing repeatedly in his ears.

She said she needed him.

She said his existence was more important than theirs!

A sour yet sweet feeling welled up from the bottom of his heart, tingling and itching, making him want to unbutton his shirt and touch his heart.

Was his heart... broken?

Troy suddenly clenched his fist, trying to hide his excited and agitated inner feelings. "Ahem, if that's the case, I'll treat you well in the future. You don't need to pay me anymore. I'll find a way to earn money..."

Luo Wei: ??

What on earth was Troy saying?

Wait—

"You mean I can employ you without paying? Is there such a good deal?" Her eyes brightened as she grasped the key point. "Really, no payment?"

Troy looked at her bright, pure eyes and finally realized he had been presumptuous.

His face instantly darkened, and he sneered, "Employ me without payment? In your dreams!"

"Not a single coin less!"