Man on the ark, forced to become king

So after the first negotiation, she accepted reality and planned to compromise, leaving most of the affairs to Theresis to see how he would handle. However, the next day, the Blood Demon Lord, representing the Court of Kings, delivered a fatal blow to her and took direct action.

What else is there to say?

Even the best mindset can't withstand such repeated impacts. Since most people basically want her to be a mascot, she might as well go along with their wishes.

After venting her anger by using the Blood Demon Lord as a punching bag, Theresa completely gave up and even offered to go to the Golden Tree to recuperate for a while.

—Since none of you need me, then I can leave, right?

Whether it's out of spite or disappointment, Theresa has basically entered a state of indifference, adopting a "out of sight, out of mind" attitude and running off to Lungmen to enter a semi-retirement mode.

In any case, all Kazdel needs is a Demon King, and they don't care who sits in that position.

Then let them play by themselves, I don't care anymore—that's what she thought, and that's what she did.

Babel Tower is taken care of by Kal'tsit, so there's no need for her to worry about it. After a while, once Amiya has recovered, Theresa plans to bring the little rabbit over to raise as well, as a way of making up for what she owes Amiya.

And... Lin Lu.

Turning to the side, Theresa secretly observed the man beside her out of the corner of her eye, her thoughts a jumble of emotions.

Thanks to the light from the golden tree, the yard was still quite bright even at night, not as bright as during the day, but not by much. Come to think of it... this should be the second time she had seriously observed this man.

The first time was on the small battlefield transporting Rhodes Island back to Babel. At that time, she approached him tentatively, but she didn't expect him to express his feelings so directly, which almost made her lose her composure. She has to admit, he is quite good-looking. He is not particularly eye-catching at first glance, but the more you look at him, the more attractive he becomes... Although Theresa doesn't consider herself a looks-obsessed person, appearance does play a role in the end.

If the person who confessed to her back then had been an oddly shaped, ugly monster, it would probably be a completely different story.

Fortunately, their first meeting went smoothly, and they talked about quite a few things. Looking back now, Theresa feels that it was her good fortune.

After all, if the negotiations had fallen apart back then, she wouldn't be where she is today.

The Demon King will fall, the Tower of Babel will crumble, and Kazdel will drift into an unknown future amidst turmoil. With the loss of the Demon King and a large number of elites, no one knows what the future of Sarkaz will look like.

No matter how good a plan is, it is still idealistic in the end, not to mention that her plan did not include any bright future to enjoy.

Fortunately, none of this has happened. Not only did she survive, but she also benefited from the misfortune. She not only resolved her physical problems but also improved her strength, allowing her to live a long life. Even if she can't be of much help, she can at least watch Kazdel move towards the future.

The final battle between the Tower of Babel and the royal army did not break out, and no large number of elite troops were killed. After decades of chaos, power was once again concentrated in the hands of one person. No matter how you look at it, it was an unexpectedly good ending, a result that Theresa never dared to imagine.

All of this is inextricably linked to the Golden Tree.

That ancient and vast golden tree stands on the land of Kazdel, and is now Kazdel's strongest ally. Golden Tree Dew, Golden Tree Blessing... these are all very powerful things, enough to help the impoverished Sarkaz out of their most difficult period. Although the new alliance has not yet been fully finalized, Theresa no longer worries about such things.

Because... she's still here.

Now that things have come to this, whether she wants to admit it or not, Theresa knows that the rest of her life will likely be inextricably linked to the Golden Tree and this man.

This debt of gratitude was too heavy, so heavy that she didn't know how to repay it. This was part of the reason why she took the initiative to stay at the Golden Tree. With the other person's power flowing through her body, what was there to be sentimental about?

However, staying at the Golden Tree is the limit of what she can do at this stage; more... will require more time.

Even though the final result is already there, the process cannot be omitted. Perhaps some people can do it, but Theresa feels that she cannot. She needs some time to slowly accept and change.

Fortunately, Lin Lu was not in a hurry and did not take advantage of the situation to seek repayment, otherwise she really would not know how to deal with it.

"I said, if you want to look, just look. Why are you looking secretly?"

While she was lost in thought, Lin Lu felt a little awkward. Theresa's supposedly discreet peeping was incredibly obvious to him, making him unsure whether he should call her out on it.

What's going on here... He's a grown man standing here, and he didn't say he didn't want people to look at him. What's the meaning of this sneaky thing? Luckily, the person who did this is a pretty girl. If it were someone with an average appearance, it would just be considered sleazy.

"Waaah~ I..."

Theresa woke up abruptly, turning her head away in a slightly flustered manner. She felt a surge of heat rise from her chest to her face, then to the tips of her ears. She was so hot that she didn't know how to answer for a moment.

"He's a demon king, over two hundred years old. There's no need for him to act like a little girl, is there?"

When Lin Lu spoke, Theresa felt her face get even hotter, not from embarrassment, but from anger.

What do you mean by someone who's over two hundred years old acting like a little girl?

Can't she speak properly? Is she trying to act young?

Actually, Theresa doesn't usually care much about age. She has too much on her shoulders and doesn't have time to think about such things. Just being alive is already a blessing.

But things are different now. The heavy weight on her heart is gone, and everything is moving in a positive direction. She feels much more relaxed, and her mind is no longer tense. The person she's facing is also quite special... She herself feels that she has been a bit sensitive lately, as if the emotions she has suppressed for so many years have started to stir again, causing her to get caught up in some inexplicable things.

For example, age.

She wouldn't care if someone else said it, but it was Lin Lu who said it, so it was different. She couldn't help but start to let her thoughts wander.

"I have to explain, it's not what you think!"

Seeing that Theresa's eyes were gradually becoming dangerous, Lin Lu quickly waved her hand to explain, lest she accidentally step on a landmine. In fact, he had already stepped on one, and now it was time to clear the landmine; whether it would explode or not depended entirely on what he said.

"What I mean is, you can relax more and there's no need to overthink things and make yourself tense."

"I'm a pretty straightforward person, so please bear with me. You see, you don't dislike me. Regardless of how that goodwill came about, you still have feelings for me now, right? Otherwise, there would be no need for you to stay here. As for me, you've known my thoughts from the beginning. Since that's the case, isn't the rest just a matter of time?"

"Whether it's a year, ten years, a hundred years, or a thousand years, it's not a problem. Relax. In the eyes of the Eternal Clock, time is the least valuable thing. We have plenty of time to wait for something to sprout, blossom, bear fruit, and fully mature. Our relationship is the same. For us, the love that ordinary people yearn for is not necessary."

"I should say that love is just a phase in our relationship, not the end. When the time is stretched to a thousand years, you will find that our relationship is no longer maintained by that kind of thing. So, there is no need to feel too much pressure. I did not mean to force you, did I?"

"...What does this have to do with what you're saying?"

Theresa blinked, realizing there was some truth to it.

According to her observation, the relationship between Lin Lu, Lani, and Melina is probably just like he described: they are husband and wife, but not quite husband and wife.

It should be said that "husband and wife" is not enough to describe the bond between them. It is a deeper connection that has been tempered by time and years and will never fade. The trust between them is natural and unreserved, and it seems that doubt and suspicion never exist between them.

It was very ordinary, so ordinary that it was like the natural progression of time.

Even when Lin Lu brought her here, introduced her to Lani and Melina, and arranged the room in front of them, the two women accepted it calmly without the slightest hint of anything unusual. They could completely understand all of Lin Lu's thoughts without needing any further communication.

On the other hand, Lin Lu was the same. Melina and Lani didn't even need to say what they wanted to do; Lin Lu would appear at just the right time. That feeling... Theresa couldn't describe it accurately at all. It was as if they had been one from the very beginning, inseparable.

Could this be the world of immortal beings?

When time loses its meaning, some things that seem important to ordinary people also become unimportant.

Will she become one of them in the future?

Theresa didn't know, but she planned to try to fit in.

"Okay, maybe you're right, but I can't fully understand it yet."

As she said this, the heat in her body subsided considerably, and her mindset calmed down.

"Time will tell, we just have to wait."

Lin Lu smiled and shook her head, knowing that this kind of transformation couldn't be accomplished overnight.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a fancy invitation.

"A penguin gave me this—an invitation to the Ursus Ice and Snow Music Festival. He wasn't planning on going, so it's a lucky break for me. How about it? Anyone interested in coming along? Let's have the four of us go check it out?"

"This... Ursus?"

The sudden change of topic startled Theresa for a moment before she reacted. She hesitated for a moment, then shook her head and said, "Ursus... it's not a good place for me to go, it would cause unnecessary trouble."

She wasn't opposed to going out with Lin Lu; she was already planning to change gradually anyway, so there was no need to be as conflicted as a little girl.

However, her going to Ursus would involve too many things, and it wouldn't be good for Kazdel or the Golden Tree. If something unexpected happened, it would involve diplomatic issues between the two countries.

"Then it's settled."

Lin Lu stuffed the invitation into her pocket, took a few steps forward, and skillfully put her arm around Theresa's shoulder.

"That kind of thing doesn't matter. Sometimes you have to learn to be more carefree, and life will be much easier. Don't worry, since I said that, I naturally have a way to solve the problem."

"...I don't think your solution is necessarily reliable."

'As expected... it's still hard to get used to...'

The sudden intimate contact sent a surge of heat through Theresa, but she did not break free.

She lowered her head slightly, trying to ease her discomfort by changing the subject, while convincing herself that there was no need to react too much to this level of physical contact.

"Did I come at the wrong time?"

Suddenly, the light in the courtyard brightened for a moment, then immediately dimmed. The golden branches swayed, and Melina emerged from the glow, blinking twice with her single open eye as she looked at the two people pressed together, her eyes full of smiles.

"No, you came just in time!"

Lin Lu opened her arms wide, her skin thick with shame, showing no sign of panic. Instead, she waved to Melina, inviting her to come and hug her.

The result, of course, was that things did not go as planned.

Melina rolled her eyes, and as she walked, she opened her palm. A faint, dark yellow light drifted down from the canopy of the golden tree and landed right in her palm.

“A blessing connected to the Golden Tree suddenly became active. A normal blessing shouldn’t have this function. What did you do to it? It’s quite far away, so we can’t pinpoint the exact situation there. We can only tell that it’s a Rupert.”

"Rupert? It's far away?"

Lin Lu was stunned for a moment, and after thinking carefully, she remembered who it was.

Of all the blessings he distributed, wasn't the only one who was tampered with and met the conditions—that very unfortunate Syracuse traitor, Dassim?

Chapter Two: The End of the White Wolf

"Hohman, how's the white wolf?"

In the office, which was decorated mainly in dark red tones, Dasmi glanced at the brown-haired Rupert standing respectfully beside him, gently swirling the delicate wine glass and watching the liquid rise and fall, leaving faint marks on the glass.

"She's still being hunted, but with our people providing secret routes, there shouldn't be any problems. After all, she is..."