Chapter 695: Quiet Evening…(2)
The kaijin watched Zhen Jun Yao as the man kept searching the floor for his lost jade necklace, to the point that the man had swept through the same at least three times by now.
After the third sweep through, Zhen Jun Yao simply got up from his crouched position and walked away.
[Oh, would you look at that? He finally gave up searching,] Hurricroak noted.
[That or he realized Zhen Hai probably nicked his precious jade necklace from the arena’s floors. Judging by his expressions at least,] Spring Brawler added.
[Either…way…we…gotta…follow,] Frosttusk told the others.
[Of course.]
With their person of interest finally on the move, the kaijin figures did their best to keep up. As they did, they decided to converse once more on a very old topic of theirs.
[Seriously though, this is why we need a stealth type kaijin in our roster.Easier than having our asses be the ones to do it,] Razorstella complained for the umpteenth time. She wasn’t wrong about their need for a new member to the roster, but there was a severe lack of good materials. That fact however, did not stop the kaijin from speculating and bouncing off ideas.
[What kind of things would such a kaijin be even made of? More spiders?,] Hurricroak asked.
[I was thinking we enhance one of those ghost zakos,] Razorstella elaborated. [I would’ve suggested one of our zakos apprentices, but those guys are more likely to act like us then act stealthy.]
[Heh. I do enjoy the idea of having band mates again…]
[If you ask me,] Spring Brawler interjected, [we need a bird. People freak out over seeing a spider or a ghost, nobody freaks out when they see a tiny tweeting bird. That or a fox.]
[Wait, can our lord use intangible materials?]
[Guys…our… target…has…stopped…moving]
[Huh?]
The kaijin put a stop to their conversation as soon as Frosttusk pointed out that something unexpected had occurred with their target.
Soon after Zhen Jun Yao had given up on finding his necklace in this place, Zhen Jun Yao was contacted by…someone. Unfortunately, the initiator of this call had done so while under some obscuration effect.
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If the kaijin were closer they might’ve been able to break it, but that would involve walking up to this guy and not alerting him to their presence until it was too late.
Granted, it didn’t stop some of the kaijin from trying.
[Wait a minute…I have an idea!,] Hurricroak quietly exclaimed.
Before the other kaijin could ask what her idea was, she quickly changed shapes into that of a toy-looking wasp.
[Bee right back.]
[Boo…]
[The puns…they hurt.]
[Just…just go.]
With her new form, Hurricroak pretended to be a wild wasp and landed just a mere foot away from Zhen Jun Yao and his ongoing conversation.
She wasn’t able to pick up everything that was being said, but she could pick up some rather important details.
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[Oh those rat bastards! They’re planning to pin the blame on the maestro and his family, assholes!]
[They won’t be able to do that if I just snap his neck…,] Spring Brawler suggested.
[Oi, patience little brother, patience. As much as I love a good grand guignol, we can’t make a spectacle this time. This guy is too high up to not cause issues when he’s gone,] Razorstella pointed out.
[We can’t just blame it on the Fallen?]
[Doubtful, our energy signatures are too distinct.]
[So what do we do?]
[Wait…,] Frosttusk interjected. [I think…we…can…use…this…]
[Really? How?]
[We…just…need…to…keep…following…then…we…can…act…]
[Okay…when?]
[When…we…find…where…he…sleeps.]
[Ah.]
The kaijin had no idea what sort of cryptic idea was floating in Frosttusk’s mammoth-like skull, but they could at least take comfort in the fact that he wasn’t going to lead them astray in the matters of [Revenge], since he was made of that particular desire. That and he clarified what he was thinking when asked.
[One…man’s trash…is another’s…treasure. One… man’s evidence…is… another’s… downfall…]
[Wait…oh I think I know where this is going…]
[Oh this is going to be hilarious!]
Once the kaijin figured out what was going on, the expressions on their tiny disguised faces turned rather sinister.
Like proper demons, laughing at the folly of a sinner. Truly, only the most wicked of hearts could lead such beings.
Speaking of their leader…
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Meanwhile, back at the Cozy Maple Hotel…
‘Is there a word stronger than irony?,’ Zhen Liu thought to himself as he walked up the stairs to his suite, rubbing his temples all the while.
In a turn of events he swore he didn’t see coming, Princess JinJu Ren had decided to tag along with him and his family back to the Cozy Maple Hotel instead of the shared quarters she had with her brother, JinJu Yang.
When asked about why she was doing such a thing, she replied with arguably the bluntest sentence in the entire multiverse.
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To say everyone was shocked at the princess’s words was a massive understatement. There were a lot of emotions at play and no one knew how to process it, Zhen Liu included.
There was outright rejection, such as the case of the Imperial Prince.
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There was amusement at the absurdity of the situation, as was the case of Matriarch Zhen Xun Tian who absolutely approved of this sudden matchmaking.
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And then there was just outright disbelief, as was the case for the entire branch clan.
Patriarch Zhen Shi was shocked that one of his grandkids was now marrying one of the members of the Imperial Family, aka, the same people he pissed off years ago for the sake of love.
“Xiao Hua…is this what they call irony?”
Evidently, this was a sentiment that was shared by the elders/Zhen Liu’s uncles, albeit they were also touch relieved.
“Should…should we be jealous that it wasn’t one of our kids, or…”
“This is the Bellona situation all over again. We should be thankful none of our sons will have a wife that…blunt.”
“I mean fair, but…”
Zhen Yan and Daria Nerisa-Zhen, Zhen Liu’s parents, were just shocked that their son had such a frantic love life, as they were fairly certain that they didn’t raise him to be like this but they were kind of strangely proud of him at the same time…
“I think we’re going to have to postpone his wedding.”
“I think we have to get ready for the possible fallout this will inevitably cause.”
Meanwhile Zhen Liu’s cousins were just in disbelief at how he managed to secure a third fiancee, a second princess at that.
“On the one hand, I’m jealous he managed to earn the affections of a powerful princess. On the other hand, I think I just heard her suggest they celebrate their union by hunting a Crimson Nova Horned Lion? Aren’t those like…seventh tier at minimum.”
“Yeah…and she suggested having the horns processed into something that would apparently strengthen Zhen Liu’s bones.”
“Huh…let us drink to his health.”
“Agreed.”
Unsurprisingly though, Zhen Liu was the most shocked about this announcement.
“I-why? Marriage is a big commitment and I have like…two fiancees, a girlfriend and an amazon that looks like she’s been wanting to pin me against a wall for the better part of a week now. I’m fairly certain that you’d be happier with someone more… faithful?”
“Oh please,” Jinju Ren dismissed with a wave of her hand. “Father has at least fifty wives and twenty husbands.”
“Hold up, what?”
“If anything, I find it even more attractive that you still care about my happiness despite being such a hot commodity. It assures me that even if you have a hundred wives one day, you’ll love us all equally.”
“That…I have no idea how to argue against that.”
“Face it puppet boy, I’m all yours.”
Needless to say, after dealing with the sudden arrival and declaration of a very headstrong princess, Zhen Liu felt it was necessary to just pass out in bed.
However…
‘Huh? What’s Jin Fang doing out there?’
There was one last thing he needed to address before sleeping.
