"Dong~Dong~Dong..."

Six heavy and resonant chimes rang from the top of the bell tower outside the main gate of the Grand Wuting, rousing the entire city from its slumber. The morning sun pierced through the mist lingering in the streets and alleys, casting light upon the ancient streets of Secret Magic City, with an average age of over three hundred years.

On both sides of the old street, rubbed uneven by shoe soles, the dim gas lamps gradually extinguished in the morning light, replaced by rows of bizarrely blazing torches.

And the passersby, with faces painted in oils, feather crowns on their heads, and torches in their hands, waved their brass torches, aflame with a bluish-green fire, in gracefully dance-like trajectories, painting brilliant light trails in the air as they moved through each new street and alley.

As the priests at the head of the procession chanted, and the shamans by the roadside drummed, countless bluish-green torch-drawn light trails intertwined, weaving into rows of mysterious text.

Soaked in the aroma of burning herbs and resins, these indecipherable runes transformed into tangible entities, showering down upon each person, drifting onto ancient streets, and, along the staggered ancient alleys, forming brilliantly colorful grids dense like veins.

At the end of these vein-like paths, using the ancient alleys as carriers, was the vast and bizarre plaza in front of the Grand Wuting, which was the destination of numerous solemn-faced people.

As the colorful "veins" slowly wove together, the plaza, shaped like a giant heart laid on its side, began to pulsate vividly, as if it were a real heart...

The Witch King's ceremony had begun!

Gazing towards the direction of the Grand Wuting, seeing the Grand Witch King being carried out, alongside Leon and the Cat Princess standing side by side, the Multi-level Marketing Witch, mingling among the crowd and waving a torch, immediately checked the strength of the "binding".

Very well, everything was normal with the [Bedtime Story] for now, and all forty-two of the True Gods were still alive, with no one killed by the Food God.

After confirming that the plan was proceeding smoothly, the Multi-level Marketing Witch, with her face smeared with bluish-green paint, couldn't help but relax slightly, then signaled to the handsome youth holding a white cat behind her.

White Snake! Starling Crow! It's time for you to act!

Alright!

Bowing slightly to the Multi-level Marketing Witch transformed into the Narration of Nonexistence, the handsome youth, wearing white snake earrings, left the street with the struggling white cat, bypassed the advancing crowd along a small path, and arrived near the outer wall of the Grand Wuting.

"Remember your task!"

Tossing out a somewhat "retro" styled hook and lock, and flipping over the outer wall with the white cat turned Starling Crow, the White Snake youth coldly recited:

"Starling Crow, you only have one task, which is to get Prince Joshua into the lake, divert the guards, and while I go steal the witch's yarn ball, return to the outside plaza and disrupt the Witch King's ceremony.

When I bring the gloves woven from the yarn ball over, put on the gloves, transform back into Princess Catherine, expose the 'fake princess' and the Lionheart Prince's plot, and order the soldiers to hang them. Success will be ours! Understand?"

"Meow meow meow! Meow meow meow meow! Meow meow meow meow meow!"

No way! Listen to me! This will definitely fail!

"I'll assume you understood."

Ignoring the Cat God's harsh, loyal meows, the White Snake directly tossed him towards the lakeside. After landing, the Starling Crow angrily glared at him twice, then, following the story's plot, reluctantly drooped its head and trotted sadly towards the lake.

You two idiots! The Food God's knife is already at our throats, and you still don't see it, insisting on jumping into the pit? Not only dragging yourself in, but forcing me to sacrifice myself with you!

Curse it, how can I achieve anything in the Slaughter King Association with these stupid bugs?

After meowing curses all the way, the cat, which had been betrayed by its pig teammates, finally reached the lake. However, before it could start searching for its target, it saw a sign approximately thirty centimeters high, just visible to the cat.

[Turn right fifty meters ahead, bypass the small pavilion at the northwest corner to find Prince Joshua]

"..."

This sign...isn't exclusively written for me, is it?

After standing in front of the small wooden sign for a full five minutes, the Starling Crow in cat form mustered its courage, tentatively moved forward for a stretch, then turned right according to the sign, bypassed a small pavilion, and then...

No way...even this was prepared in advance? 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Seeing the Prince Freckles tied directly with a rope, hanging on the lakeside's protective embankment, where cutting the rope would drop him into the lake, the Starling Crow's cat brain buzzed, and after freezing in place for a few seconds, it turned and ran!

Damn, even a horse's ass could figure there's something wrong! Although the Narration of Nonexistence can forcefully fabricate stories, they can directly see the future! How can we fight them?

"So soon?"

Seeing the cat come back after a short while, frantically tugging at his trouser leg and lifting its paw to point outside the wall, meowing incessantly, the White Snake couldn't help but furrow his brows.

"Why hasn't anything happened there? Did you really find the prince and push him into the lake?"

"Meow meow meow meow!"

Push a damn feather! They were just waiting there! If I don't run, I'm dead!

However, just when the Starling Crow was meowing with heart-wrenching intensity, almost tearing its cat heart out, exclamations suddenly erupted from the direction of Wuting Lake.

"Oh no! Someone fell into the water!"

"It's Prince Joshua!"

"Guards! Guards! Someone, come quickly!"

Huh? It actually succeeded?

Hearing the commotion from the direction of Wuting Lake and observing the guards being called away, the handsome youth in White Snake form couldn't help but nod in satisfaction, a rare trace of approval appearing in his gaze towards the Starling Crow.

"Well done."

Picking up the white cat at his feet, he climbed back up the outer wall and threw it out, riding on the outer wall and saying,

"You go to the plaza to disrupt the ceremony, leave this part to...wait a minute! The plaza isn't that way! You're running the wrong way! Where are you going?"

Where am I going? I'm damn well looking for a way out!

Realizing that the Slaughter King Association was full of incompetents and only himself as the top player, the Starling Crow in cat form went all out, while fully mobilizing its truth to counter [Bedtime Story], sprinted on its short little legs, escaping towards the outside of Secret Magic City!

The White Snake is probably done for, and the Narration of Nonexistence might be as well, even those True Gods called down are likely in dire straits too!

The only way out now is to run! Run for your life! Run until the others are taken down by the Food God and [Bedtime Story] collapses on its own! I don't need to outrun the Food God, just the Narration of Nonexistence!