This time, only Iri, Golden Princess Lana, and the Old King remained seated at the tea table; everyone else had moved aside, as there was no place for them with His Majesty the King present.
At this moment, Iri greatly admired Golden Princess Lana's methods. So, all that effort to trick her into coming to the Royal Capital was just to curry favor and gain her goodwill?
Although she understood that Lana wanted to gain her popularity, what was her purpose in trying to please her so much?
And how did she know her identity? Did Xiao Di tell her? She felt it was impossible; Xiao Di shouldn't reveal her identity outside. There was still too much she didn't understand.
"His Majesty the King, regarding the matter of war, for this I can only express my deepest apologies." Since she knew Lana's intention, she might as well play along, Iri thought.
"Princess Elizabeth, there's no need to be so formal. I merely came to see my daughter, and happened to meet my daughter's friend who came to visit. Moreover, like you, I have no say in this country, so Princess Elizabeth need not apologize," the Old King said magnanimously.
In her impression of the plot, the Old King wasn't a bad person; it was just that his subordinates, the nobles, and the First Prince were courting death. However, if those people hadn't courted death, the incident of Ainz-papa's rise to fame on the Katz Plains wouldn't have happened.
"His Majesty the King, aren't you the greatest person in this country?" Iri feigned ignorance, though in reality, she understood better than anyone, having read the script.
"Haha! Quite the opposite, I am merely a figurehead. In fact... after hearing Gazef's suggestion, I also very much wanted to directly give our land to you in exchange for peace, it's just..." The Old King chuckled, though his laughter was forced.
This is also what you brought upon yourself. Look at the Blood Emperor next door, who has developed his empire by learning various policies from Princess Lana, your daughter. Yet your family's situation is like this; it's not worth any sympathy.
And you said it, didn't you? You said your land would be given to Nazarick, right!? Although strictly speaking, Nazarick is indeed an aggressor, given the current problems of the Kingdom, it's only a matter of time before it's swallowed by the Blood Emperor. It's better for Nazarick to take direct control than for the Blood Emperor to benefit.
"Give it away... His Majesty the King, although what I am about to say might displease you, I must still say it: it's not 'giving'! It's 'returning'! That land originally belonged to Nazarick. If it weren't for those despicable humans back then!" Iri feigned a very displeased look, clenched her fist, and slammed it on the table, saying.
"It seems there's also some hidden reason on your Nazarick side. If it's convenient..." The Old King saw this young lady, who looked as gentle and elegant as his own daughter, suddenly erupt in anger, and understood the impropriety of his earlier words.
This impropriety was likely the reason Nazarick declared war on the Kingdom. It would be even better if he could find out.
"My apologies, His Majesty the King, I lost my composure. Indeed, this is not your fault. So much time has passed, and I really shouldn't vent my anger on you. And in His Majesty the King's eyes, we Nazarick are indeed aggressors, but in reality, it's not like that. We just want to reclaim what rightfully belongs to us, to reclaim our own tranquility." Iri feigned a melancholic expression, looked out the window, remained silent for a while, then turned back.
"The story goes like this, a long, long time ago..." Of course, it was story time. Iri embellished and recounted the fabricated background story of Nazarick once again.
"This is impossible! I've never heard of..." Everyone else was too stunned by Nazarick's background to speak. Irubyue stood up and raised her doubts, which was also within Iri's expectations.
After all, Irubyue was an old loli who had lived for over two hundred years, so she naturally knew much more than the people present now. However, Iri was confident in telling such a story in front of Irubyue, so Iri directly 'interrupted' before Irubyue could finish her sentence.
"Not having heard of it doesn't mean it didn't happen. I don't need to tell you whose deeds of the Thirteen Heroes have been passed down to this day, do I?
Even the heroes who saved the world are like this, let alone the existence of the Eight Kings, whom you worship as gods, who would tarnish your image! As a heteromorphic, you understand this very well, don't you!" Iri, with great emotion, choked Irubyue into silence with a single sentence.
"Actually, Fei Fei-gege and I woke up in this era a long time ago. Due to incomplete memories, we have been hiding from humans and living incognito. In fact, like you, Irubyue... I am also a heteromorphic, and I deeply understand the hardships of heteromorphics in the human world," Iri said slowly. After slapping Irubyue, she naturally had to ease the atmosphere a bit. She would reveal a bit more information to make Irubyue happy.
"Irubyue, you are actually a vampire, aren't you!" Iri said with a slight smile, directly revealing Irubyue's identity.
"You! How did you know!" Irubyue immediately became agitated. Not just Irubyue, but everyone else in Blue Rose was shocked.
The Old King, Klem, and Gazef were also very surprised. They never expected Irubyue, who always wore a mask, to be a heteromorphic!
"Because I am like you, I am also a vampire," Iri said with a smile. Although she was smiling, there was more helplessness and sighing in that smile.
Hmm! The smile she had practiced for so long in front of the mirror could finally be put to good use! Iri thought to herself.
"Impossible! You clearly have a heartbeat!" Irubyue immediately retorted.
Oh, so she intentionally fell into her arms back then to listen to her heartbeat. So that's it, Irubyue, I didn't expect you to play such little tricks!
"Klem... sit down!" Iri sharply uttered a very inexplicable command, and then saw Klem, looking utterly bewildered, plop directly onto the floor. Everyone's gaze shifted to Klem.
"Klem... left hand." Iri continued to command Klem despite everyone's surprised gazes, and Klem obediently raised his left hand.
After all, Klem had the lowest level among those present, and the Ruling Spell was 100% effective on him. She had originally intended to use it on Irubyue, but considering that she was undead and had resistance to mental magic, and not knowing her exact level, she didn't want to make a fool of herself if it didn't work, so she chose Klem.
"Be free!" Iri thought it was enough to play with Klem to this extent! After all, Princess Lana's glare towards her was starting to look a bit off.
"This... this is... my body moved on its own." Klem, looking utterly bewildered, stood up and looked at his hands in disbelief.
"Because I am a Vampire True Ancestor, a higher existence than Irubyue, I can control you humans as I please," Iri said with a smile.
Upon hearing this, everyone present involuntarily tensed up. The ability to control people at will... if used properly, let alone deploying an army, Iri alone could destroy the entire Kingdom.
"Everyone, please rest assured, I do not intend to abuse my abilities." Iri also noticed that these people were wary of her.
"True Ancestor! Then Feifei-daren also?" Irubyue indeed took the bait. As expected of Ainz-papa's fanatic, she immediately thought of that.
"Yes, but I cannot reveal too much. I can only tell you that brother is also a heteromorphic," Iri said.
"Too... too good." Irubyue said in a very faint voice; if it weren't for Iri's superhuman hearing, she would have barely heard it.
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