"Your Highness, Lord Meltzer has already led your forces south to begin clearing out the monsters. Everything is going smoothly."
"Navia City has also been included in the clearance efforts."
"In about six to seven weeks, we should be able to restore the roads and communications with the surrounding city-states."
Dressed in a different outfit, Old Book acted as a secretary, reporting the news from the past two days to Qin Ran, who had just returned.
As he spoke, Old Book watched Qin Ran carefully.
Although Qin Ran's expression was perfectly calm, Old Book could keenly sense that something was wrong with him.
He was a little angry.
And a little resentful.
There even seemed to be a hint of... pain?
Old Book did not understand what could have happened to leave Qin Ran with such complicated emotions.
Wasn't everything taking a turn for the better?
The monsters in Navia City had retreated without a fight, withdrawing into the depths of the sea.
The monsters in the surrounding area had also gone from dense swarms to scattered groups. If they moved quickly, they could even get a crop planted in time.
Had something unexpected happened on this trip?
Impossible!
Every report had shown that His Highness was cutting through those monsters as easily as chopping vegetables.
Although puzzled, Old Book did not ask.
He had not signed the contract long ago, but Old Book had already committed himself wholeheartedly to one rule: if Qin Ran did not tell him something, he would never ask.
As Old Book's voice faded, silence settled over the room.
Only Qin Ran's uneasy breathing remained.
Once again, Qin Ran felt waves of tightness in his chest.
Of course, compared with when he first learned that the monsters occupying Navia City had withdrawn into the depths