The Paper Slip

Less than half an hour remained before the midnight election. The kings, who had only recently arrived at camp, were busy rallying their clansmen, while the twelve commanders returned to their tents for a brief rest. They had already tried every means at their disposal and now waited for the final result.

Shangguan Ru stared at that tent for a while, then retreated into the darkness and whispered, "See? There's no trap."

The observation had been too brief; even if there had been a trap, they wouldn't have spotted it. Gu Shenwei said nothing. He quickly moved to another concealed position and continued watching.

The soldiers all over camp were mourning in silence, making it much harder to move around at night. On the bright side, they were deeply absorbed in their grief. They occasionally whispered among themselves, but most of the time they barely even looked up. And there were still few lights, leaving plenty of shadows for anyone moving unseen.

Even as a child, Shangguan Ru had never been a killer who worked well with others. After years away from training, that was even more apparent. She made no effort to watch their backs, but instead stood shoulder to shoulder with the Dragon King as they observed.

"Li Man is very loyal to you. You should save him, if only for his sake."

Gu Shenwei retreated to a relatively secluded spot. "Let's go see this Captain Gulin first."

Even in the darkness, Gu Shenwei could sense Shangguan Ru's delighted smile. "Wait. I have a condition."

"The Dragon King never takes a loss." Shangguan Ru's low voice was full of laughter.

"And he's very stubborn, too."

Shangguan Ru knew what the Dragon King's condition was. Her smile vanished at once. "Do you have to know everything?"

"It's one of