Chapter 223: Late

"Li En, didn't sleep well yesterday?"

Someone not only woke up late but also missed morning training—this was extremely rare.

Especially when he sat at the dining table, he looked utterly drained, as if he hadn't slept at all the night before.

"I slept too well. Too well."

Li En rubbed his head; he felt a headache coming on.

He never expected to be forcibly dragged into Lex's memories and forced to endure it all night—and when he checked this morning, the Soul Card progress was still stuck at 49. %, all counted as invalid memory.

Li En was speechless. Was this soul and memory overflow? Still refusing to admit it?

You seemed to have had a wonderful time last night—what happened to make you shut down like this?

"Uh, another problem's come up: the Queen's attitude."

The look in someone's eyes when they want to kill another can't be hidden; adopting Lex's perspective, Li En was certain Lex had zero interest in the elder princess—accurately speaking, if you listed the three people in the capital he most wanted to beat senseless, the former princess, now queen, was definitely one of them.

Reality isn't a romance novel; the chances of a love-hate pair appearing are simply too low.

Their compatibility was genuinely terrible; Maryanna unquestionably hated Lex, seeing him as crude, immoral, promiscuous, and disrespectful of knowledge.

In truth, Lex wasn't a forgiving man either; if not for Rosalind, he would've long since exacted revenge on that princess who looked down her nose at him.

"Headache. Thanks."

Seeing Li En unwell, the apprentice mechanical maid Lija came over to massage his head—her grip was so strong, an ordinary person truly couldn't endure it.

But Li En knew this was already the result of her recent efforts to train.

Yesterday, not a single wall broke, not a single plate shattered, not a single bedframe cracked—she'd already tried hard enough.

And now, perhaps he needed a bit of "massage" that felt like his skull was splitting, just to recover.

Last night's dream wasn't a complete memory; some parts were blurry, others flashed by—but those key moments were crystal clear.

"Uh, I feel like I'm no longer pure."

In every way, Lex was exceptionally skilled at playing, and at that moment, he was especially excited, his memories vividly clear—his various antics opened Li En's eyes wide.

The battle memories, by contrast, were hazy, as if he could win simply by swinging his sword casually. Well, he really did win that way, all the way through.

That was a personality and combat philosophy entirely unlike his own.

He himself gathered every possible card, then adjusted based on real combat conditions—the more cards he accumulated, the stronger he naturally became.

But Lex never cared how many cards he held; as long as he was seated at the table.

"He never once considered he might lose. Where does this irrational confidence come from?!"

Always brimming with confidence, always rational and proactive in seeking victory, fully committed to offense and movement—he was a true perfect combat beast, a monster that captured battle opportunities at two hundred percent.

Two hundred percent? Every move, every action of his actively created opportunities; he seemed to instinctively strike exactly where the opponent was weakest, and if there was no weakness, he'd force one into existence.

He was a monster who could turn one unit of strength into ten units of combat power with ease.

Only as a swordsman himself did Li En realize how terrifying this talent was. Not just himself—even Lana, whom he'd once considered a sword prodigy, was utterly incomparable to Lex.

"It's like on paper you don't seem strong, but when you actually fight, you feel uncomfortable in every way—as if completely suppressed, with the certainty of defeat from the very first clash—is this what 'single-minded focus' means?"

Li En had only experienced that fleeting sensation, as if the entire world vanished, leaving only himself, his sword, and his opponent.

Looking at the Soul Card, his emotions grew more complex—this guy was truly terrifyingly strong; Li En no longer doubted whether he was stronger than the other Soul Carriers.

That unprecedented combat sensation—even if he wasn't powerful yet—would inevitably carry him to the pinnacle of the continent over time.

Here's a ridiculous truth: Lex went from an ordinary person to a professional in just three hours—he simply picked up a sword and swung it, and that was it.

And from first-rank warrior to seventh-rank Hero in less than two years, most of which he spent goofing off; his actual dedicated training time probably totaled less than three months.

When he trained with his sword, heaven and earth held nothing but the sword.

When he faced an enemy, he could clearly sense their breath, heartbeat, and pulse. Such a monster—how could he possibly end up like this?

"Even mages posed little threat to him; he always saw their spells before they were cast and countered them precisely. Setting aside his character, as a warrior, he was truly at the absolute peak—and he was equipped with the Hero's gear, which greatly boosted his power in desperate situations."

Li En had no doubt he would deliberately create desperate situations in battle to gain a one-hit reversal opportunity.

Li En shook his head; he couldn't imagine this man being outright defeated—even if he faced an opponent he couldn't beat, he'd Haobuyouyu turn and retreat.

Nothing like the legends—he had no loyalty, not even a shred of respect, toward the royal family.

"When will His Majesty arrive?"

"Probably not until noon."

Li En glanced again at the Soul Card—what's the point of refusing to awaken? The "Princess" is arriving soon; the other awakening condition is already met.

And the stalled progress bar won't go to waste; as previously mentioned, upon awakening the Soul Card, it will be "converted" into the degree of the Soul's completed task—directly turning into satisfaction and synchronization rate.

So, not only will the reward be calculated in advance, but Li En will also be stronger when possessed by the Soul?

"Are you going? We should be able to get closer." Sallyman really didn't want to go, but some things couldn't be avoided.

"Yes." Li En had a reason he absolutely had to go.

"To survive, I must go."

Previously it was only speculation, but last night's dream of the "Princess in the Tower" matched perfectly with the "Poetry" he'd encountered at the Whisperer Museum.

That almost certainly confirmed it was a trap set for him—and likely by someone who knew about the events of that time, possibly even his identity.

Who's the most likely candidate? Li En didn't need to say it anymore.

Since he was being targeted, if he wanted to survive, he couldn't rely on the enemy's mercy—in the dream, that entity resembling the Xiao 's avatar looked like a Chedi fallen, insane woman.

"She's changed too much—that adorable little Rosalind, and that madwoman in the dream."

After breakfast, Li En still went down to practice swordplay.

On one hand, to pass the time; on the other, he felt today wouldn't pass peacefully—he'd better warm up.

Checking the time, he headed to the city gate to wait. Lucky for him, this convoy was expected to enter from the Nanmen district—not far at all.

Far off, Li En saw the princess, accompanied by her knightly regiment, lined up to welcome her.

The city lord and senior mages were also present; the presence of so many powerful figures gave Li En slight reassurance.

But even until afternoon, there was still no sign of the convoy.

"What's going on?"

"Seems there was an incident en route—but don't worry, the convoy will arrive a bit late."

Apparently, the convoy had been attacked, arriving later than expected; it was supposed to reach last night, entering the city with the morning light.

Some people dispersed; others kept waiting. Li En blended into the crowd and waited patiently.

Finally, around three or four in the afternoon, the expected arrivals came.

The royal carriage at the front slowly rolled in, the white lion banner fluttering in the air—signifying the Queen's arrival.

Facing the crowd, she opened the window and smiled, waving.

"She's thinner. She doesn't seem to be doing well." A sudden, inexplicable feeling pierced through Li En's heart.

Yet even at this moment, the Soul Card still hadn't met its activation condition.

That meant the worst possible development—the reality Li En had vaguely sensed yesterday.

"The 'Princess' in the activation condition… was Rosalind all along."

Li En had thought this would be delayed—but he was willing to wait. Was anyone else willing to wait? The shadow in the darkness had nearly gone mad waiting for this moment!

(End of Chapter)