Chapter 177

Evening, courtyard behind the mountain.

Night fell, and a huge bonfire below erupted with hot and dazzling light.

Surrounding this bonfire, a group of deformed members hooked each other's shoulders, singing and dancing, laughing loudly.

And after joining this bonfire party with the magician, Xia Mingyu also followed the customs and danced with other members while hooking shoulders, a faint, gentle smile always hanging on his face.

"Sage big brother, hug~"

Seeming to notice that Xia Mingyu, like Anliya, felt no rejection toward them at all, Mia took the initiative to run in front of him and opened her arms.

Her cute, Mickey Mouse-like face was filled with deep anticipation.

Xia Mingyu bent down and gently hugged the petite mouse girl.

And this action seemed to trigger a chain reaction, and all the deformed children in the circus excitedly surrounded him.

"Sage big brother, I want a hug too~"

"Sage brother, I will retract my tentacles when you hug me."

Xia Mingyu naturally would not refuse the requests of these cute children; he bent his waist lower and hugged them one by one.

"So happy, this is the first time I've been hugged by someone other than everyone in the circus!"

"I... I... I'm so happy!"

"Sage big brother, can I tell others in the future that you hugged me? That way, no one should laugh at me for not having a mom and dad."

After being hugged by Xia Mingyu, these children were so happy that they seemed to want to jump up and fly into the sky. They surrounded Xia Mingyu and were unwilling to leave for a long time.

And the other adult members of the Monster Circus, such as the two-headed giant, the snake-scaled youth, Helena, and others, saw this scene, and their gazes toward the black-haired youth became much softer.

"Lord Mingyu, I'm sorry I couldn't go to the library to take care of you today."

After the children left Xia Mingyu and started chasing each other again, Anliya walked over and said with an apologetic look.

"It is indeed excessive not to visit me for a whole day; I have decided to punish you," Xia Mingyu said calmly.

As soon as these words were spoken, although Anliya's expression did not change, many circus members who heard this cast worried glances, and some even tried to speak up to plead for the girl.

"I will punish you by having you dance a dance with me."

Xia Mingyu's originally expressionless face suddenly revealed a smile. He bowed slightly and extended his hand toward the girl like an elegant gentleman.

"It would be my honor."

Anliya held his hand with a normal expression. The corners of her mouth lifted slightly, and her blue eyes were filled with love for the person before her.

The two held hands and stepped into the center of the dance floor illuminated by the bonfire.

Tap, tap, tap.

They began to dance to the rhythm of the music, their steps light and steady, as if walking on the clouds.

The girl's skirt flew with the dance steps, and her eyes always followed the youth's figure. Under the firelight, their figures intertwined, like a beautiful painting.

The bright moonlight shone on this pair of dancing beauties; at this moment, it seemed as if the whole world had stopped for them.

Everyone in the circus stopped their movements and stared blankly at this scene, because the dance of the two was simply too beautiful!

Clap, clap, clap.

After the dance ended, everyone couldn't help but applaud with excitement.

And the black-haired youth and the blonde girl stared tightly at each other, finally kissing deeply under the burning bonfire.

"Now is the time!" Magician Lu En put his hands behind his back and secretly snapped his fingers.

The next moment, the "Spark of the Stars" worn on Xia Mingyu's ring finger was dragged by an invisible force, falling off his finger and onto the ground.

A line of deep purple text appeared above his head—"Heir to the Kingdom of 1,409,670,292 Citizens."

The magician and the circus crowd: "???"

Clap, clap, clap!

Accompanied by the sound of a pile of wine glasses falling to the ground, everyone's facial muscles twitched as if they had been possessed.

Lu En, who had always presented himself elegantly and was a devil from hell, was now rubbing his eyes in disbelief. He suspected he had been hit by an illusion, but is there really an illusion in this world that can affect him?

And the sage's crest is "Heir to the Kingdom of 1.4 Billion Citizens"—doesn't this just prove the truth of that brilliant future!

The big Toby on the left of the two-headed giant was so shocked that his eyeballs were about to pop out, while the little Toby on the right was blankly counting the numbers on the crest. After counting, he said innocently, "Wow, big brother has 1.4 billion citizens!"

The rat girl, Mia, fell to the ground clutching her heart as if struck by lightning. Even the little white mice summoned by her, wearing silver top hats, fell down one after another clutching their hearts.

Hiss, hiss, hiss... The scales on the snake-scaled youth, Sif, all seemed to explode and bulge. His vertical pupils contracted violently, and his forked tongue flicked out continuously, so fast that it left afterimages in the air.

The only one in the audience who could barely remain calm was the six-armed dancer, Helena. The woman stared blankly at the line of deep purple text, and only one thought remained in her mind—in the future, do I have to call little Anliya "Queen"?

After Xia Mingyu let go of the hands holding the girl's face, he was surprised to find that he was already surrounded by all the members of the Monster Circus.

Their gazes were incomparably complex, filled with shock, awe, curiosity, and fear...

Finally, all these emotions turned into a unanimous action—these deformed members bent their knees and knelt on one knee toward Xia Mingyu.

Even the magician Lu En, as the circus leader, after hesitating for a moment, took off his hat and bowed deeply toward him.

Although he is a supreme powerhouse at the peak of the Radiant Moon Rank, although he is powerful enough to easily kill the other party, although he possesses an entire hell, although he is a bishop of a true god... but facing the weight of 1.4 billion people, even a devil must kneel.

"Your Highness, your head..."

Xia Mingyu was still wondering why they were doing this when he saw the blonde girl opposite him pointing at his head with a wry smile.

The black-haired youth looked down at his empty ring finger and the ruby ring on the grass, and in an instant, he understood everything.

He immediately picked up the "Spark of the Stars" from the ground and put it back on his finger, and that shocking line of text gradually disappeared.

Strange, the ring had never fallen off during previous battles; how could it fall off during a dance?

No, now is not the time to think about this. The point is what to do next; what if it spreads and the Gluttonous King hears it...

Thinking of this, the expression on Xia Mingyu's face gradually became bitter, and he said quite helplessly:

"Everyone, can you keep the secret of my identity crest for me?"

"Your Highness's command is our command!"

The circus members looked at each other and finally said in unison.

"I swear to the great Creator..."

Immediately after, even though Xia Mingyu did not ask, these members started to swear one by one, and even those young deformed children were no exception.

Afterwards, the bonfire party continued.

Initially, because of awe, Xia Mingyu's side seemed to become a vacuum, and no one dared to approach except Anliya.

However, because he always had a bright smile on his face and waved to the children, soon bold children surrounded him again, carefully handing him the candies they cherished most.

"Your Highness, there are so many citizens in your kingdom; will there be strange people like us inside?"

The rat girl, Mia, hugged his thigh and asked curiously.

"Yes, there are," Xia Mingyu nodded.

"Then how will your kingdom treat those people?" Mia asked anxiously.

"They will be provided with more welfare protection than normal people, such as sending some coins and food every period of time, and if the defects on their bodies can be improved through treatment, the kingdom will provide the expenses required for treatment for free."

Xia Mingyu answered after recalling the memories in his mind.

As soon as these words were spoken, the courtyard was silent, and even the boiling bonfire seemed to have been stilled by the bright moonlight in the sky.

The eyes of all the circus members who heard this lit up; they couldn't believe that there was such a paradise in the world!

You must know that as deformed people, before being found by the leader, most of them suffered the cold eyes and injuries of the world. Finding a place that didn't discriminate against them was already a great fortune, let alone such a dream kingdom that treated them even better than normal people!

"Your Highness, will your kingdom accept us?" Mia immediately asked the question everyone cared about most.

"Everyone who is kind and works seriously will be accepted, and of course, that includes a cute child like Mia."

Xia Mingyu smiled and touched the girl's head.

"Your Highness, where exactly is your kingdom?" Mia asked in a low voice, her face blushing with shyness.

"Uh, a place very, very far away."

"Where is that? How do I get there... ouch!"

Mia wanted to continue asking, but her forehead received a light knock, which frightened her into exclaiming, and her tail almost stood up.

"Alright, how can you keep asking His Highness questions?" Helena put away her fist and said angrily.

"His Highness treats you well because His Highness is a good person, not for you to be so presumptuous!" Helena scolded.

"Yes, I'm sorry, Your Highness..." Mia said aggrievedly, until Xia Mingyu bent down again and gave her a hug, then she happily ran to show off to the children.

"Your Highness, you seem a bit too kind to her," Helena said helplessly.

"After all, her path is much harder than others," Xia Mingyu said gently, looking at the girl's cheering figure.

"Can you tell me that child's past?"

"Her? Her parents were both nobles. After she was born, she was regarded as a family disgrace and was locked in a dark basement like a rat for more than ten years. In the end, the leader saved her, but because of this, her mentality has always been at a child's level..."

"Perhaps, I should be better to that child."

After a long silence, Xia Mingyu squeezed out this sentence. His expression was complex, and there was a hint of heartache in his gaze toward the girl.

He used to think he was very pitiful, without parents, but after coming to this world, he realized that many times, people with parents are not necessarily happier than those without.

Late at night.

After the bonfire party ended, the magician stood alone under an old oak tree, holding the trunk and dazed for a long time.

"Leader, the ring of that Highness, you made it fall off, right?"

Helena walked over slowly and said softly.

"As expected, I can't hide it from you," Lu En turned around, looking at the blue-haired woman who had accompanied him for decades and whom he regarded as a daughter, and sighed.

"After all, your technique is too crude. Given the size of that ring and His Highness's finger, it would be impossible for it to fall off with just the level of force used in dancing, let alone after the dance was finished..."

Listening to Helena's words, a hint of embarrassment rose on Lu En's face.

As a father, being caught by his daughter for playing magic tricks is too shameful!

"Why did you do this? Although that noble Highness has a gentle temper and wouldn't bring disaster to the circus even if he found out, it would inevitably raise some ill will. Moreover, His Highness has a favor first; how could you do such a rude act!"

Helena questioned, her stern tone making the magician shrink his neck involuntarily.

"Because there is one thing I need to confirm no matter what..."

After hesitating for a moment, Lu En slowly told the other party about the future Cyril glimpsed from Xia Mingyu.

A radiant monarch who brings salvation to all... Even the woman who was always calm and composed and didn't lose her composure even after seeing the 1.4 billion crest was stunned after hearing such an incredible future.

"Leader, what do you plan to do after confirming it?"

After a long time, Helena, who had recovered from the shock, continued to ask. She knew that the other party must have already made plans in his heart.

"A monarch who can bring salvation to everyone will definitely treat us marginalized people gently, just like in his kingdom," the magician muttered to himself.

"I want to go and take a look at such a future." His expression was calm, but the heterochromatic purple-gold eyes erupted with unprecedented majesty, making people tremble.

"The assassins who assassinated that Highness and Sister Rosa earlier all came from the Faceless Secret Society of the Gluttonous King."

"Based on my understanding of that Gluttonous King, he is a person who will never give up and acts decisively. It is very likely that the next one he sends will be his most capable arm."

"You mean..." Helena realized something, and her expression gradually became solemn.

"Notify all members who can fight to rest and recuperate these days," Lu En said lightly.

"I am going to the royal capital to have a good talk with that Gluttonous King," the magician said coldly. The surging purple-gold magic power, like a river, erupted from his body, and for a moment, the torrent of magic power even broke through the sky.

"Okay." Helena nodded heavily. She knew that a great battle was inevitable...

It's just that she doesn't know if the "monster" they formed by gathering together can rival the kingdom's highest military force—the Molten Gold Fire that can easily destroy a giant city-state?

(End of chapter)