Help! The Villainess Trapped in the Beast World's Drama!-Chapter 542 - 512: Snowball Fight
Shen Tang’s heart instantly leapt to her throat, even her breathing halted, fearing that the faint hope in her heart would completely vanish.
Although she was inexplicably brought into this world and forced to bind with the system, nervously completing reluctant tasks... but she had to admit, along the way, she gained a lot, evolving from a naive, clueless girl to becoming the Emperor of the Night Glow Empire today.
The system was undoubtedly the hub connecting her to this world and her longest companion.
Yes, a companion.
After accompanying her for so long, Shen Tang had long regarded the system as a friend, an indispensable partner.
She could hardly imagine days without the system. Just thinking that she might never hear that noisy little system’s voice again made her nose sting from emotion.
Fortunately, a familiar response soon came to her mind,
[Host, I’m here.]
Shen Tang’s tense heart finally settled, joy surged back, "That’s wonderful! You’re still here... I thought you were gone..."
[Don’t worry, Host, I’m directly bound with your soul; as long as you’re alive, I’ll always exist!] The system also felt relieved.
Shen Tang asked further, "Why did you suddenly disappear on the battlefield? I called for you, but you didn’t respond."
The system explained, [The glass barrier those people produced was very sinister. When Host was trapped inside, I too was shielded by an invisible energy, forced into slumber. Fortunately, when Host’s partners killed the men in black and broke the barrier, I slowly woke up.]
It reassured, [No need to worry, Host, I’ve now recovered! I can continue to work for you!]>
Shen Tang was happy for barely two seconds before her expression turned serious again, "Who exactly are those people in black? They somehow know about the system’s existence and want to kill me and erase you."
The system was puzzled too, [I don’t know either.]
To be honest, it was just an artificial system; ever since gaining consciousness, its purpose was to bind with the host and execute tasks, knowing nothing else.
Its mission was very clear: to collect quality genetic data of beastmen in this world, extract it, and submit it to the main system.
Yet at this moment, the system suddenly wondered—what was the main system’s purpose in collecting genetic data?
Shen Tang was thoughtful, always feeling that the system binding her might not be as simple as it seemed.
[By the way, Host, those dozens of prisoners you rescued in the dungeon are still in the space, isn’t it time to release them?] The system reminded.
Shen Tang smacked her forehead in frustration, almost forgetting about this!
She quickly went to the clearing outside the palace, releasing all those beastmen from the space.
Luckily, Shen Tang had a habit of stockpiling, with a warehouse in the space specifically for storing dry food and packaged goods, just enough for them to eat these days.
These beastmen were in good condition; having waited in the space for several days, they were slightly unaccustomed to the refreshing air of the real world.
When they saw Shen Tang with her true appearance, they realized that the "Female Knight" who had saved them from the dungeon was, in fact, His Majesty the Emperor!
Everyone was overwhelmingly moved, some even covering their faces and sobbing in excitement,
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for saving us! Without Your Majesty, we would have perished long ago!"
"Your Majesty is our great benefactor!"
"We have nothing to repay Your Majesty’s kindness..."
Seeing someone about to kneel, Shen Tang quickly helped them up, gently saying, "You are all citizens of the Empire, as long as there is a sliver of hope, the Empire will never abandon you!"
Upon hearing this, the citizens were even more moved, not knowing what to say.
How fortunate they were to have such a generous and selfless ruler, living in such a good country.
Lu Xiao happened to overhear these words as he arrived.
He paused at the doorway, watching the feminine and beautiful face in the courtyard, radiating a warm and gentle glow under the sunlight... like the Goddess described in the stories he read as a child, coming to save the world.
Lu Xiao’s lips curled into a faint smile as he approached, saying, "Female Master, please return to rest. Later, I will have someone arrange their accommodations and contact their families."
Shen Tang held his hand, raised herself on tiptoe, and placed a gentle kiss on his cheek, "I’ll leave it to you then~ My Ah Xiao handles things, putting me at ease the most."
Lu Xiao felt a tender emotion swell inside, raising a hand to touch her slender cheek, "I’ll make something delicious tonight, what do you feel like eating?"
"I want to eat meat!"
"Hehe~ Okay."
[Congratulations, Host, Lu Xiao’s affection +5!]>
...
Weather was getting colder.
In less than two days, thick snowflakes started to fall over the Imperial City, like willow fluff scattered across the sky. The palace roofs and ground accumulated a thick layer of snow, so much that the palace staff couldn’t keep up with sweeping.
Winters in the Beast World were exceptionally cold.
Although Shen Tang was a beastman of the Cat Clan, she sneezed repeatedly from the cold whenever she went out.
Xue Yinzhou draped a thick bear fur cloak over her.
Xue Yinzhou, unlike Lu Xiao who was busy with family affairs, and Xiao Jin who frequently visited the military department after resuming his military post for inspection or training new soldiers, had nothing much to do besides accompanying Shen Tang.
In his free time, he hunted the strongest brown bear outside the city, its fur extremely thick and durable. After cleaning it thoroughly, he spent several days making this warm attire for Shen Tang.
Xue Yinzhou had warmed the clothes in advance. When Shen Tang put it on, she felt as though she was surrounded by a furnace, not cold at all!
She stepped on the crunchy snow into the courtyard, and a snowball flung towards her, eliciting a delicate cry, "Ah!"
Then came a man’s cheeky voice from not far away,
"Tangtang, want to have a snowball fight?"
Shen Tang turned her head to look at the cheeky leopard.
Xiao Jin weighed the new snowball in his hand, shamelessly bargaining for a favor, "Best of five games! If I win, you have to obediently listen to me tonight... if you can hit me even once, you can have me do anything tonight~"
"You pesky leopard, dream on!" Shen Tang gritted her teeth in anger, bent down, grabbed a handful of snow, molded it into a ball, and threw it.
Unexpectedly, this leopard dodged swiftly, not even a single fur was hit!
"Don’t run! Get back here!" She grabbed another snowball and chased after him, throwing it.
Xiao Jin moved as fast as lightning, impossible to catch, always dodging in bizarre postures.
He joyfully swung his tail, "Tangtang, you’re sure to lose—ow!"
"Don’t bully Tangtang." Seeing Shen Tang at a disadvantage, Xue Yinzhou immediately joined the fray, sweeping with his long snake tail like a broom, forcing Xiao Jin to eat a mouthful of snow, which he spat out with a "pfft."
"You sneaky snake actually dared to ambush! I’ll take revenge right now!" After breaking through to the Tenth Rank, Xiao Jin’s vigor was renewed, unwilling to miss the chance for personal revenge.
Suddenly, the courtyard turned chaotic, a frenzy ensued.
Beastmen from afar, clueless about the situation, upon hearing the commotion, thought the rebel army had come.
What started as harmless flirting brewed into an all-out battle!
Not far away, a tall and slender figure stood at the doorway.
Jia Lan watched the three playing joyfully in the courtyard, a trace of darkness flickering in his deep blue eyes, before turning away.
They were having so much fun.
Tangtang liked them very much and needed them more.
Returning this time, Shen Tang’s strength also broke through to the Tenth Rank; Jia Lan should have been happy for her, but recalling that he was still at the Peak of Eighth Rank...
Although this progress was already strong for ordinary beastmen, compared to Xue Yinzhou and the others, it was inadequate.
She didn’t prioritize him for this reason, probably.
The truth was always harsh, he understood clearly.
——She didn’t need him anymore.
——He was somewhat redundant now.
