Can't a Person Just Peacefully Grind Quests?

"Then, without further delay, let's head to Everwinter Peak. I hope Lingbao hasn't run into anything bad."

Unable to hear sounds, Unable to feel hands or feet, As if all senses had been sealed off, Though consciousness remained intact, and thinking seemed largely unrestricted, A "vegetable."

This was probably the situation.

Lynx began recalling everything she had encountered. First, some Silvermane Guards abruptly inspected the campsite where she was staying, and then a few of them said they had received orders from her brother to come find her.

At the time, she hadn't doubted it much. She packed a few personal belongings and left the campsite.

But after that...

It seemed she saw a masked girl appear before the Silvermane Guards and herself, and then she lost consciousness.

Later, in a daze, she thought she heard her sister's voice.

She wasn't sure if it was an illusion.

She vaguely remembered her sister shouting loudly, the voice very close, even mixed with some sobbing.

It must have been an illusion, right?

How could her sister ever cry?

At least she had never seen it...

Lynx's mind wandered chaotically. She felt as though some images were continuously flooding into her thoughts.

She... seemed to have aimed the ice axe her sister gave her at her sister's forehead?

Cold, trembling...

As if her body was beginning to regain sensation, she quickly focused her will into controlling it.

In her ears, the sound of something cracking began to emerge.

Amidst the cold touch, a hint of warmth started to seep in.

Though her eyes couldn't open to see yet, a blinding white light had already broken through the barrier of her eyelids.

At a certain moment, a sudden sensation of weightlessness struck her body, and her sister's scream rang in her ears. Without time to think, she hurriedly opened her eyes. The next second, her body was caught in someone's arms—even through the layers of clothing, she could feel the warmth so close. When her eyes focused, a handsome young man with orange-red short hair was smiling warmly at her.

"Good morning, miss."

"Mm, good morning."

Perhaps because she had just broken free from frozen ice, her mind was still a bit muddled, or maybe she was drawn by the stranger's affable demeanor and the warmth radiating from him. This young girl, seeking that comfort, instinctively wrapped her arms around the stranger's neck, like a kitten instinctively seeking a warm, cozy nest.

"...Lingbao!"

Suddenly, from a little farther away, a young girl's incredulous shout came out of nowhere. Lynx lifted her drowsy eyes, her gaze catching the person calling her. The moment that person's face and voice registered in her mind, a tired smile tinged with drowsiness spread across her face. Her usual clear, slightly dazed voice reached the young girl's ears.

"Pela..."

"Why... you... you... why are you in his..."

There's a cuckold!!!

The Intelligence Officer stammered, trying to organize her words, while from the angle where he stood with his back to her, Mr. Emiya's mouth was already uncontrollably curling upward.

[From Pela: Emotion Value +45]

[From Pela: Emotion Value +35]

[From Serval: Emotion Value +11]

[From Cocolia: Emotion Value +25]

[From Stelle: Emotion Value +21]

[From March 7th: Emotion Value +35]

The local customs of Belobog are absolutely amazing!

Even without turning around, Mr. Emiya could already picture the "delighted" expressions on the faces of the group behind him.

Splendid!

Is this Belobog's unique culture?!

Can your Xianzhou provide so many good women for emotion value?!

Well done! You've done well!

Earlier, when I said I'd skip this Belobog map, that was definitely too hasty on my part, bro.

Mr. Emiya even greedily wished that Gepard, as the "family member," were also present—he'd probably be weeping with joy.

But wait, why was March 7th's reaction so big... Whatever, it's not important. In short, Belobog is truly a blessed land full of outstanding people!

Just hugging them got such a big reaction—if I had a bit more power, I could've sent them straight on maternity leave...

Kyuu kyuu kyuu kyuu kyuu------!

"Can you put me down?"

The moment she opened her eyes, Serval found herself and her little sister both held in a man's arms. Even for a mature woman usually so bold and carefree, a subtle stir of emotion began spreading through her heart. Her gaze even caught a certain blonde spectator in the scene, a faint smile inadvertently curling at the corner of their lips.

Damn it!

Rage flared up in her heart!

Serval shot a vicious glare at that blonde bastard, then broke free from the orange-haired youth's embrace.

"Can you explain the situation to me?"

She'd been lured to this Everwinter Peak by a secret letter, then attacked by Lynx, who seemed to be under some kind of control. After that, she'd apparently been frozen in ice.

Now unfrozen, but with Bronya and Cocolia both present, it was clear that the kidnapping of her and Lynx wasn't just a simple attack on the Landau family alone.

"That's a long story."

"Then make it short."

"A little devil girl seems to have teamed up with someone in Belobog to seize Cocolia's throne. You two were part of the plan to lure her out of Belobog."

[Emotional value from Serval +32]

Mr. Emiya's eyes lit up slightly, then he added, "When Cocolia first got here, she nearly came to blows with Bronya over your situation."

"Is she out of her mind?!"

[Emotional value from Serval +35]

Oh, delightful!

Chapter 047: This Is Joy, Isn't It?

"Many canine creatures are like that—spot a piece of meat, and they can't help but be drawn by the scent."

"If the prey is strong, they'll cower and not dare show their heads. But when defending their own territory, they often turn as fierce as true wolves."

"A wolf backed into a corner is a terrifying thing, you know."

"Landau! Landau! Landau!"

"How many times! How many times! How many times!"

"How many more times must you block us before you stop appearing before us?!"

"You faithless, foolish hound! If I could sink my teeth into your flesh, I'd gnaw your bones and drink your marrow dry!"

Within the encirclement of the Silvermane Guards, Clio's brown pupils seemed to have shed all human traits, turning as savage and cruel as a beast's.

"Cocolia betrayed us! She no longer has the right to rule from Kliperburg!"

"Landau! Have you completely forgotten? The City Builders weren't just the first Rand—our noble ancestors... were heroes who shed blood and flesh on that front line."

"Belobog was never solely the Rand's! It belongs to all of us, the descendants of the City Builders!"

Seven hundred years ago, the City Builders, led by Alisa Rand, shed blood and sweat on that Iron Guard Forbidden Zone. This fortress wasn't built by Alisa Rand alone. She was honored as the Supreme Guardian only because she was the leader of the City Builders at the time, and under her command, the Great Cold's sudden assault was gradually repelled against the Antimatter Legion's attacks.

Before people called her the Supreme Guardian, she was actually known as "the one who sparked a miracle." She truly earned the title of Supreme Guardian because, in the endless Great Cold that followed, she made Belobog stand firm against the wind and snow, unafraid of the bitter chill.

That was the power of Preservation. The City Builders sensed this nature and rallied to support this leader who had advanced further on the Path of Preservation.

In the final defense battle, Alisa Rand led from the front, wielding the Power of Preservation across the battlefield as if it were empty ground. By that description, Alisa Rand at that time not only had the prestige of building Belobog and the great feat of sparking the Great Cold miracle, but also martial prowess that outshone the entire army. On any planet, for such a peerless figure not to be the leader would be a blindness on the people's part.

The first Rand, the second Rand, the third Rand—all were great figures etched into history's monuments. Though the heroes of their eras were somewhat dimmed, they were still martyrs recorded in the history books. The vast majority of Belobog's nobles are descendants of these martyrs, members of the City Builders from that time.

"Gepard Landau! How long will you remain blindly loyal? Since Cocolia took power, the Preservation power lingering on this fortress of Belobog has dwindled to almost nothing. Without the Power of Preservation, how do we withstand the Great Cold and the ever-encroaching Fragmentum?!"

Gepard paused at this, silent for a moment, then let out a faint laugh.

"Simple—just give up on Preservation, no?"

With that, he stopped hiding his aura, letting it burst forth!

A bewitching crimson glow instantly flooded the entire corridor. The moment Clio saw that flash of seductive light, her expression twisted, and her voice turned piercingly sharp.

"You again! A follower of Joy! You again? Damn it, damn it... So Gepard was never here from the start... Wait, what's happening outside right now?!"

From within the bewitching crimson light came a laugh as crisp as silver bells.

"Want to know, little wolf cub? Then Lady Sparkle will graciously tell you. When I came by just now, I happened to see the Minister of the Interior being arrested by a Garrison Officer of the Silvermane Guards."

...Brother, arrested?!

"Mhm mhm, it seems the Minister of the Interior was meeting another noble's wife in private, and that noble just happened to find out, and the Silvermane Guards just happened to be nearby, and... a Garrison Officer just happened to be on the Minister's escape route... So many coincidences—Lady Sparkle finds it quite strange too."

"Impossible, my brother would never... It's you! You impersonated my brother!"

"Guess away, little wolf cub."

At some point, a petite figure had landed beside Clio. She gently blew a breath against the neck of this Lord Hyena, and in that instant, a vicious kick came whistling toward her.

But accompanied by a delicate laugh, that whip-kick landed on empty air. Cleo, like a cornered lone jackal, her brown pupils flickering with an extremely dangerous and mad gleam, "Come out!"

"Don't be so impatient, little wolf cub. Soon the Captain of the Guard and their beloved Supreme Guardian Cocolia will arrive at her loyal Kliperburg. By then, what do you think will happen to the arrested Minister of the Interior?"

"You monster! A monster that tramples on people's hearts!"

"Heehee... saying that will make Lady Sparkle very sad, because Lady Sparkle has left you a nice little item for a comeback. Ta-da... just press this button and you'll get a mysterious grand prize."

As the laughter faded, a mass of phantoms vanished without a trace at the same time. Cleo looked down—somehow a strange button-switch gift box had fallen into her hand. Her body trembled uncontrollably, her pupils bloodshot...

"You've been toying with me! Toying with my heart! My soul... you monsters! I curse you... I curse you monsters to never truly obtain the joy of satisfaction! By my soul as Cleo Jackal, I swear I will fight Joy to the death, never ceasing!!"

That venomous, twisted desire for revenge surged fiercely. At the distant edge of the universe, a great existence vaguely sensed this intense and targeted vengeful will, and was about to lower its gaze to grant that person a simple glance.

But before that, an empty mask first blocked Its line of sight.

Amid strange, vibrant laughter, the great existence that had been about to answer the wish for revenge withdrew its gaze.

And at this moment on Jarilo-VI, Cleo, hearing a laugh in her ears, also sensed a majestic existence casting its gaze upon her.

She accepted the possibility granted by that gaze with ecstatic joy, gently pushed open the Imaginary Gate she had long awaited, And then, In the next moment, she learned the source of that gaze.

Instantly, an even more anguished roar echoed through the entire corridor...

"Joy! Why Joy! I curse you! I will never accept this humiliating power! Joy, detestable Joy! I will never yield to you!"

Amid her furious roar, her palm unconsciously crushed the gift box in her hand, and at that very moment, a fragmented yet seductive whisper came through in her mind...