"..."
Sakura's final remark directly left everyone speechless. Even Talulah did not know how to respond for a moment.
Even the red glow in Patriot's eyes flickered slightly, as though he did not know what to think.
Looking at the expressions of the four people before her, Sakura frowned slightly, feeling somewhat slighted. Then she said seriously:
"I'm not joking with you. I'm very strong. I will fulfill the condition I just offered. Even if you ask me to assassinate the Emperor of Ursus, I can do it."
Honestly, Sakura was not joking. If it were truly necessary, she really would cut down Ursus's new emperor...
To her, it would only be somewhat troublesome, but not a major problem. At worst, once it was done, she could temporarily discard the identity of "Sakura" and hide for a while.
"Do... you know... what you're... saying? The Emperor... of Ursus is... protected by... many Elite Guards!"
After hearing Sakura's words, Patriot finally could not remain calm. A terrifying aura burst from his body as his blood-red eyes fixed on Sakura. He spoke in a grave, stern voice.
For anyone else, suddenly facing Patriot's overwhelming pressure would have left them completely suppressed, fearful, even terrified, unless their strength matched his.
But Sakura was different. She was far stronger than Patriot. This little bit of imposing presence and aura was useless against her, like a scratch to an itch.
"..."
Thus, faced with Patriot's oppressive aura, Sakura did not even blink. She calmly met his gaze.
PS: I want to take a leave too, but I'm out of leave slips, so there'll be at least 4,000 words every day unless something huge happens. No getting around that.
I'm fine, so don't worry. Today was purely because I was studying during the day. Alright, good night, everyone. Hurry up and urge me more. And now, a book recommendation—my friend wants to make a push.
How to Poach Rhodes Island's Talent
After meeting Patriot's scarlet gaze, Sakura's expression did not change in the slightest. Neither servile nor overbearing, she said softly, "No need to test me. This little bit of aura pressure does not affect me."
"...You are indeed... very strong. There is... no doubt... about that."
Although the Cautus girl before him showed no change in expression and appeared rather gentle, Patriot felt an intense sense of danger. It was a warning from his body.
The people around them, as well as those listening outside, all showed surprise in their eyes after hearing Patriot's words. Some were even shocked.
After all, everyone present knew who Patriot was and how powerful he was. Anyone acknowledged as strong by him naturally possessed considerable strength.
"But... even if you... are strong, how... could you kill... the new Emperor... under the protection... of the Elite Guards...?"
However, although Patriot acknowledged the girl's strength, he still did not believe she could kill the Emperor of Ursus.
As a former Ursus soldier, he knew Ursus's military strength all too well. He had also experienced the terrifying power of the Elite Guards firsthand.
Patriot's experiences and understanding prevented him from believing Sakura's words at this moment.
"Whether Lord Patriot believes me or not, I will leave this condition here. If you need me, come find me." Sakura blinked her azure eyes and spoke seriously.
Looking at the stern Patriot before her, Sakura did not want to argue with him any further. There was no need.
She had discovered that Patriot's perceptions and worldview had long since solidified. Unless she put on a demonstration for him right now, nothing would shake his beliefs.
Since that was the case, there was no need to argue... Whether they believed her or not, she only needed to make the offer.
"Hmph..."
At that, Patriot let out a low snort and said nothing more.
In a sense, he and Sakura both felt unconvinced. But he also knew this was not the time to argue.
"We'll accept Miss Sakura's condition. We'll also take good care of little Griseo. So, can you tell us about her situation now?"
Seeing that the atmosphere between the two was off, Talulah's eyes flashed with helplessness as she smoothed things over.
For Talulah, regardless of Sakura's condition, she had originally planned to keep Griseo and care for her. So she did not care too much about this matter...
Besides, the little girl had helped both her and Alina greatly.
Hearing Talulah's words, Sakura nodded lightly, but in the end, she could not help adding one more reminder:
"Yes. No matter what others say or believe, I hope Miss Talulah, as the leader, can make good use of this opportunity."
By now,
Sakura had said everything she, as an "outsider," could say.
If something happened later and Talulah still did not remember this condition, Griseo would have to remind her indirectly.
"Alright."
Talulah could not say much in response, so she nodded lightly.
Seeing Talulah nod, satisfaction flashed in Sakura's eyes. Then she said, "Next is the matter of Griseo."
"During the time you have lived with that child, you must have more or less witnessed her abilities, right?"
"Yes, we have. Little Griseo even painted pictures for both of us..."
This time, it was not Talulah who spoke, but Alina at her side.
"She has already painted for you...? Then have any unusual things happened here?" Sakura was initially stunned. Then she slowly frowned and hurriedly asked.
Seeing Sakura's delicate brows furrow, Talulah was slightly taken aback before answering, "No. Griseo's paintings have helped us a lot. Is there a problem?"
After all, she herself had benefited from Griseo's paintings. Her current transformation could be said to be entirely thanks to the little girl.
"That can only mean you were truly lucky. The paintings you received were all positive... No, that's not right. It could also be because..." You're too weak.
Sakura suddenly realized something as she spoke, but she swallowed the latter half of her sentence instead of saying it outright.
She was afraid of discouraging the people before her.
"So according to you, Griseo's paintings are not always positive?" Hearing this, Alina caught the key point in Sakura's words and quickly asked.
Hearing Alina's question, Sakura shook her head lightly before explaining:
"No... Not entirely. Rather than saying they are not always positive, it would be more accurate to say that Griseo's paintings have been entirely negative from the beginning."
After Sakura's words fell, Yelena, Patriot, and the Yetis outside—those who had never seen Griseo's paintings—were all somewhat confused.
However, Talulah and Alina, who knew the wonder of the little girl's paintings, could not help narrowing their pupils slightly, surprise flashing across their faces.
"This is exactly why I wanted to speak with you. I hope you can remember the precautions I am about to mention."
As she spoke, a trace of seriousness colored Sakura's beautiful azure eyes.
After hearing Sakura's words, everyone became fully alert once again. After all, they were about to hear about Griseo's abilities.
This was also one of the things everyone had always been curious about.
Sakura looked at the girls before her, all serious and even slightly nervous, and began to explain.
"You should all have experienced Griseo imitating you. Actually, she does not do that intentionally. It happens because she spends too much time with you and is forced to become stained with your colors."
"But don't worry. Generally, this state does not last very long. After some time, or after being alone for a while, her colors will fade on their own and she will return to normal."
At this point, Sakura paused for the moment, intending to give them some time to process it.
"I have a question. Will that child become stained by everyone's colors?"
During Sakura's brief pause, Alina, who had been lowering her head in thought, slowly raised it and voiced her question.
"Yes."
Sakura nodded before seeming to remember something and adding, "So you need to be careful not to let Griseo come into contact with bad people. Otherwise, she may become frightening."
"Alright, we understand."
After hearing Sakura's reminder, Talulah nodded, indicating that she understood.
"Then, after becoming stained with your colors, Griseo will generally start painting. But... the paintings she creates are not ordinary works."
"The effects of the paintings she creates under different people's influence are different as well... But without exception, they all affect people, and most of them awaken the deepest fears in the viewer's heart."
"Some particularly unusual paintings can even manifest physical objects. You should have seen Griseo's companions before."
After finishing that, Sakura stopped completely. She had already explained the general situation. As for any details, she planned to wait for the people before her to ask.
After hearing Sakura's words, the girls present all wore thoughtful expressions before nodding, indicating that they had remembered everything.
"If you have any other questions, ask them."
"Yes, there really is one more. That is..."
After another round of questions and discussion, the conversation finally came to a complete end.
Afterward, Sakura left behind a means of contact and quickly departed the Reunion Movement camp without hesitation, not even giving Talulah and the others a chance to see her off.
As for that so-called means of contact, Sakura claimed that she had given Griseo something and told them they could contact her by finding the little girl.
Moreover, Sakura had not truly left. After leaving the camp, she dispelled her transformation and vanished directly.
There were actually many things concerning Griseo that Sakura had not revealed to Talulah and the others that night.
Because many things were beyond their comprehension, much like Patriot earlier.
So whether others believed them or not, saying them would bring no benefit.
If the information leaked by accident, it might even make others wary and allow people with ulterior motives to take advantage of it...
Besides, the purpose of this trip had only been to use another identity to let the Reunion Movement officers understand "Griseo." Now that this goal had been achieved, there was naturally no need to say more.
Unlike Sakura's relaxed mood after resolving the matter, Talulah and the others, including the Yetis eavesdropping outside, all felt rather conflicted.
At the same time, they began to speculate about the place—or organization—that Sakura and Griseo came from.
After all, Sakura and Griseo's strength and unusual qualities were right before them. They could not possibly have come from anywhere ordinary.
"You... all... come in. Don't... keep listening... outside." Patriot swept his scarlet eyes toward the door and spoke loudly.
After hearing their big daddy's call, the Yetis hiding outside did not hesitate. One after another, they pushed aside the tent flap and entered.
"Hehe... What a coincidence, Big Daddy, Big Sis."
"Yeah, yeah. What an extraordinary coincidence."
"Alright, quit messing around. We were discovered ages ago."
After all the eavesdroppers entered the tent, Patriot spoke again. "Do not... spread what... you just heard. Since we... promised... that Cautus, we must... be careful."
"Understood. We'll all be careful."
"Don't worry, Big Daddy!"
"Mm."
The Yetis all nodded and agreed.
Although they were usually rather unreliable, they could still be trusted at critical moments.
Besides, the Yetis all liked Griseo, that cute, capable, and sensible little one. So keeping a secret to protect her was no problem at all.
It was another brand-new day. Thin sunlight spilled over Ursus's frigid snowfields as usual.
"Mm..."
When it was time to wake up as usual, the blue-haired little girl lying in bed moved instinctively. Then she slowly opened her large violet eyes, still slightly dazed, and sleepily looked around.
Only after noticing the little white bear tightly hugging her did she become more awake and stop moving entirely.
"..."
Griseo narrowed her big eyes and let out a silent yawn before finally waking up completely.
Once she was fully awake, she instinctively looked toward the other bed in the tent, but there was no one there...
After realizing that Talulah and the others had already gotten up and left, Griseo shifted her gaze to Alyona, who was still sleeping soundly while tightly hugging her.
Perhaps because she had gone so long without getting a peaceful night's sleep... the little white bear showed no sign of waking up.
But Griseo did not mind. She let her companion hold her while she slept. After all, there was nothing bad about it for her... and even if she got up, she would have nothing to do.
Taking advantage of the time, she began checking the final results from last night.
"..."
Honestly, after examining everything, Griseo was rather satisfied. The effect she wanted had already been achieved.
Before you continue