Translator: ChuRen/ YuQiChen
Amidst the storm and rain, the distant castle gradually blurred until it became nothing more than faint shades of gray.
Tang Qing braved the rain, running all the way back to the imperial capital. The raindrops soaked his hair and eyes, but he numbly kept moving his legs and running.
Finally, he saw Princess Lily.
“Your Highness, I want to go back and save him,” Tang Qing said softly after explaining everything that had happened at Castle Csejte, unable to suppress the worry in his voice.
He feared that after he left, Julian might suffer punishment from Countess Bathory or get hurt because of him. Not being allowed to return, even for a glance, left him feeling unsettled.
“I oppose it.”
Captain Carter of the Knights stepped forward beside Princess Lily, his voice cold.
“Humans and vampires are mortal enemies, bound by blood feuds that cannot be reconciled. How could we possibly go to save a vampire? Every member of the Legion of Light has lost family and friends to vampires; I will never allow my legion to aid one.”
At the mere mention of vampires, Carter’s golden eyes blazed with fury. Each fallen knight in his legion had ties to vampires. Every day he lived was consumed by the desire to exterminate every last vampire.
“But… Julian isn’t an ordinary vampire. He’s different. He saved me several times…” Tang Qing nervously clutched the hem of his skirt, lowering his voice.
Shax, one of Carter’s men, nearly jumped out of his seat in anger upon hearing Tang Qing defend a vampire, his face flushed red.
“No matter how good he is to you, he’s still a ruthless killer. How do you know his kindness isn’t a ploy? His kindness is just to lower your guard. Once he’s done toying with you, he’ll abandon and harm you. That’s the true nature of vampires—their vile tricks!”
Carter walked up to Tang Qing and said seriously,
“Anne, never trust a vampire’s words, no matter how perfect their appearance or how humanlike they seem. They are not on our side and will never be our friends.”
Tang Qing pressed his lips closed, saying nothing more.
He understood that his plea sounded like a childish joke to a knightly order holding a blood feud with vampires.
“Anne, I’m sorry. I know you’re hurting. I believe what you say. I believe that vampire truly saved you,” Princess Lily said, embracing Tang Qing compassionately as she saw his dejected expression.
The warmth of Princess Lily’s embrace was just as comforting as ever. Tang Qing lifted his head, looking at the princess, hope returning to his eyes once more.
“But I am the princess of the Kingdom of Ireland; every action I take represents the royal family,” Lily looked at Tang Qing with a mixture of apology and guilt in her eyes. “I’m sorry, my dearest friend Anne, my bravest friend Anne—I cannot support you.”
Tang Qing nodded; this outcome was within his expectations.
As the crown princess, Lily had to consider not only personal feelings but also the safety of the kingdom and its people. She simply couldn’t openly support him.
Feeling somewhat dejected, Tang Qing returned to the maid’s resting room and collapsed onto the bed, exhausted.
Tossing and turning, he couldn’t fall asleep.
“99, can you see how Julian is doing now?” Tang Qing was still very worried about Julian’s situation.
[Host… I cannot find any record of a person named Julian on my end.] System 99 replied, sounding a bit confused after scanning the storyline. [It seems Julian does not exist in the original world.]
[The female lead arrived at Castle Csejte and clashed with Countess Bathory. Later, her blood inadvertently dripped onto Sephiroth’s coffin. Because her blood was of pure royal blood, it awakened the sleeping vampire prince.]
“No Julian?” Tang Qing asked incredulously.
[Yes. When the female lead faced persecution by Countess Bathory, she relied on her protagonist’s aura and a relic left by her mother—namely, the silver cross she gave you—and a specially crafted dagger. By a twist of fate, these allowed her to slay Countess Bathory.]
So that was the case.
For someone like Tang Qing, without a protagonist aura, if it weren’t for meeting Julian, he probably wouldn’t have lasted beyond three chapters in the novel…
But who exactly was Julian?
He had intervened several times and seemed to be on a similar level to Countess Bathory and Butler Andrew. Yet, they both feared him.
Yet System 99 also said that Julian didn’t exist in the original plot. Characters who don’t appear in the original storyline usually aren’t very powerful, right?
Although his instincts told him Julian might not be affected by his own affairs, he still felt uneasy without personally going back to check on him.
He didn’t know how Julian was doing at all.
Tang Qing’s thoughts drifted farther and farther…
…
The next morning, Tang Qing woke up.
Unexpectedly, after returning to the imperial capital, in the safe human residential area, Tang Qing still couldn’t sleep.
A gentle knock sounded at the door.
“Anne, are you awake?” A soft female voice came—it was Princess Lily.
“I’m awake, Princess.” Tang Qing quickly got up and opened the door for her.
“Good morning, Anne.” Princess Lily gave Tang Qing an appraising look and warmly asked, “Finally back home. Did you sleep well last night?”
Tang Qing forced a smile and said, “I slept very well, thank you for your concern, Princess.”
Actually, he had hardly slept all night, only resting a little just before sunrise.
“You’re lying to me, Anne. With your pale and delicate face, any dark circles are impossible to hide.”
Princess Lily said as she reached out to pinch Tang Qing’s cheek.
Tang Qing could only reply, “Maybe I’m just not used to the bed.”
Princess Lily stared at Tang Qing, silent for a moment, then said with concern, “Anne, my silly Anne.”
She solemnly took a dagger from her pocket and handed it to Tang Qing.
“This is for you, to thank you for bravely gathering so much important information for the royal family.”
It was an ancient, exquisite silver dagger. The blade measured about a foot in length, slightly curved, hard as steel yet smooth as water, reflecting a cold silver gleam under the candlelight. The handle was carved from deep red wood, symbolising blood and life. Intricate patterns were carved on the handle, most notably a legendary magical array used to ward off vampire creatures.
“Vampires are so hard to kill because they have regenerative abilities. Ordinary weapons only cause wounds that they can heal.”
“But this dagger was forged by a vampire hunter from a long-ago era. It can inflict irreparable harm to vampires.”
Tang Qing took the dagger in surprise. “Princess, such a precious item—how can you give it to me so easily?”
He recognised it as one of the valuable heirlooms System 99 had mentioned the heroine possessed.
“Besides, I don’t need to come into contact with vampires anymore, so it’s not of use to me now.”
Lily smiled. “Don’t you think I know you, Anne? You want to go back and find that handsome vampire youth of yours, don’t you?”
Tang Qing’s cheeks blushed slightly as he replied evasively, “No…”
Lily said, “As a princess of the royal family, I can’t support my maid going to save a vampire.”
“But as Anne’s good friend, Lily can encourage her brave friend to do what she wants to do.”
Tang Qing’s eyes suddenly welled up with tears.
“Anne, there are so many male and female servants in the royal household that I hardly recognise them all.” Lily playfully stuck out her tongue and continued,
“If one day, I have a maid who disguises herself as a man and leaves the palace, I wouldn’t be able to tell at all.”
Tang Qing understood what Lily meant.
He couldn’t help but hug Lily, this sunny and kind princess.
“Thank you, Princess, really, thank you.”
The princess patted Tang Qing’s back with a mischievous smile and said, “Besides, Anne, your chest is so flat—dressed as a boy, no one will recognise you anyway, hahaha.”
Tang Qing: “…”
Tang Qing changed into the male outfit that Princess Lily had brought for him. She had also invited a barber to cut his hair shorter from the nearly shoulder-length style it had been.
It was the most common men’s outfit in the Kingdom of Ireland—classic black and white. A white shirt with a large curled collar and long sleeves paired with fitted waistcoat shorts, complemented by calf-length stockings and short leather boots.
Though an ordinary set of clothes, the high waistline accentuated the youthful silhouette, highlighting his straight posture, slim waist, and long legs.
Tang Qing was filled with mixed emotions; he hadn’t expected that after coming to this world for so long, today would finally be the day he wore men’s clothing.
“Anne, you look really good,” Princess Lily couldn’t help but compliment. “If I didn’t know you were a girl, I’d think you were some handsome young man.”
Tang Qing smiled awkwardly.
After thinking for a moment, he took off the silver cross from his neck and returned it to Princess Lily.
“Thank you, Princess Lily. This cross protected me at a critical moment. Now that I have your dagger, I’ll return this to you.”
If Sephiroth saw this cross again, he would surely recognise his identity.
“Well then, I wish my brave girl success in love!”
“It’s not… Princess, Julian and I are just ordinary friends…” Tang Qing stammered, trying to explain.
He was a boy, and Julian was a boy. How could he possibly like Julian? The princess must be mistaken.
“Haha, don’t be shy. Can’t you see you look like a lovestruck maiden?” Princess Lily said boldly. “Alright, fine, I believe you. You’re just good friends. Long live friendship!”
No matter what, Tang Qing was very grateful for this kind-hearted girl, and he hoped that when he infiltrated again, he could gather more information to help her.
Before leaving, they shared a big hug one more time. Tang Qing set off again, heading back to Castle Csejte.
He hoped Julian was still waiting for him.
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After leaving the entertainment industry, the Ge’er became famous for his embroidery skills
I’m currently translating these novels as well~
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2 thoughts on “Chapter 178 – The adorable little male servant”
Sry I was late cause I was thinking how bad my bus is, it comes an hour and 15 mins late to go to my house😢. Also, here,”The princess patted Tang Qing’s back with a mischievous smile and said, “Besides, Anne, your chest is so flat—dressed as a boy, no one will recognise you anyway, hahaha.”
Tang Qing: “…” I bet his face was deadpan😂.
and here, Princess Lily stared at Tang Qing, silent for a moment, then said with concern, “Anne, my silly Anne.”
She solemnly took a dagger from her pocket and handed it to Tang Qing. I THOUGHT SHE WAS GONNA STAB HIM BRO, LIKE ANNE MY SILLY ANNE SOUNDS LIKE ANNE IS SILLY ENOUGH TO TRUST. Like my imagination is rich, I seem to watch a lot of villains. Thank you for the chapter ChuRen jiejie.
Hmmm my new novels are out as well. You can try and have a look~