Villain: After I died, all the heroines cried themselves to sleep.

The empress before me seemed like a completely different person.

That strength and domineering attitude vanished without a trace, replaced by a completely different kind of cowardice.

She clung tightly to Rod's neck, nestled in his arms, and wept.

"Your Majesty, what's wrong?"

Rhodes couldn't help but reach out and put his hands on the Queen's shoulders.

The Queen looked up at Rhodes, her eyes filled with panic and fear.

"Teacher, someone in the palace wants to assassinate me. We must escape immediately. If we stay here, we will all die one day."

Upon hearing this, Rod frowned, realizing that things were not so simple.

The empress's personality suddenly changed, and she started saying things that didn't make sense.

However, it corresponds to a system task.

In other words, what the Queen said is very likely true.

"Your Majesty, please calm down."

Rhodes spoke to comfort the Queen.

The Queen leaned against Rhodes' chest, feeling his heartbeat, and her inner turmoil gradually subsided.

She reached out and grabbed Rod's collar.

"Teacher...don't leave me..."

The queen whimpered softly.

"Don't worry, I won't abandon my students."

Rhodes held the Queen's hand, giving her an invisible sense of security.

"Your Majesty, can you tell me what happened? Why has your personality suddenly changed so much?"

"I...I don't know."

The Queen kept shaking her head.

So Rod asked again.

"Do you remember when I had an audience with you not long ago?"

"I... I have a little bit of a memory, but it's all so confusing... I remember having so many nightmares, and every time I saw you, teacher, dying right in front of me..."

The empress recalled the scene from her dream, and a strong sense of fear flashed in her eyes.

She immediately curled up and hid in Rod's arms.

Shivering.

"..."

Rhodes felt the empress's body trembling.

He had a general understanding.

The empress may have suffered some severe trauma in the past, leading to mental instability and the development of a split personality.

The problem now is...

Do the head guard and the head maid know about this?

"Your Majesty, have you informed the head guard and the head maid about the assassination attempt on you?"

"No, we can't tell them. Even if they know, it won't help. Only you, teacher... only you, teacher, can save me..."

The Queen looked at Rhodes with teary eyes.

She pleaded in a trembling voice.

"Teacher, can you take me away? I'm so scared, I really want to leave here."

"...Your Majesty, running away is not the best answer. The best way to eliminate fear is to face it."

"But I'm so scared, so scared that you'll die in front of me, teacher."

"I will not die, I will live."

Rhodes made the promise again.

The Queen seemed very concerned about his life or death.

Could it be that her previous death caused her to become like this?

Rhodes felt increasingly guilty.

"Teacher, you will protect me, right?"

The Empress said expectantly.

"I will not break the promise I made."

Rod answered seriously.

"Thank you, teacher..."

The Queen smiled shyly and nuzzled her head against Rhodes' chest.

"..."

Rod remained silent, his face tense.

Good heavens! That cold and domineering empress is actually acting like a spoiled child in my arms?!

He spent several years with the Queen, always in a weaker position, being dragged along by her unreasonable and domineering ways.

Even during that civil war, the Empress was utterly despondent.

I've never seen her so delicate before.

It's like the sun rising in the west!

In the palace, Rhodes just sat there, letting the empress sit on top of him and act coquettishly.

Until the head maid's voice came from outside the door.

"Your Majesty, it's time for the banquet."

The head maid's words reminded Rod.

He finally managed to shake off the Queen's entanglement, straightened his clothes, and stood up from the sofa.

"Your Majesty, it's getting late, I shall take my leave now..."

"don't want."

The Queen reached out and grabbed Rhodes' sleeve.

She put on an adorable, pitiful look.

"Teacher, don't leave me..."

"...But you need to eat dinner."

"Then let the maid escort it to the bedroom door; that's what I've always instructed."

"..."

"...Is that not allowed?"

"...Okay, but I need to go to the door and tell the head maid to wait for me here."

Rhodes couldn't refuse the Queen, but he also took the opportunity to talk to the head maid.

He arrived at the entrance of the palace and conveyed the Empress's message to the head maid.

The head maid listened without raising any questions.

"Head Maid, did His Majesty lock himself in his room like this?"

Rod couldn't help but ask in a low voice.

The head maid glanced at Rhodes and nodded.

"His Majesty has been frequently locking himself in his room for the past month. However, His Majesty's temperament began to become unpredictable three years ago."

"..."

"Then Professor Rhodes, His Majesty will be in your care."

The head maid bowed respectfully to Rhodes.

He turned and went to the kitchen, instructing his servants to bring dinner to his bedchamber.

After dinner.

Rhodes wanted to take his leave, but the Queen stopped him again.

Although the current empress is not as strong and domineering as she used to be, her endearing and coquettish charm makes Rhodes feel like he can't resist her.

So Professor Rhodes stayed on.

He chatted with the Empress, almost bathed with her, and finally lay on the same bed with her, coaxing her to sleep.

"Teacher, I can't sleep..."

"...Then I'll tell you a story from One Thousand and One Nights."

"Yeah, I've heard it many times, but I don't remember most of it..."

"That's just right."

In the bedroom, only Rod's gentle voice echoed.

As the Queen gradually fell asleep, Rhodes' hand was held by her, and he couldn't pull away.

"I'm so tired."

Rod sighed helplessly and could only stay there, drifting off to sleep.

And then the next day.

Rhodes slowly opened his eyes.

But he saw the Empress staring at him with an unhappy expression and extremely cold eyes.

"Sometimes, I really want to kill you, Professor Rhodes."

"..."

It seems the Empress's main personality has returned.

Rod thought to himself, but calmly straightened his clothes.

He said in a serious tone.

"Your Majesty, are you aware that you have a second personality? And that this second personality believes you will be assassinated and wants to escape from this palace?"

"A second personality? I don't know what you're talking about."

The Empress didn't care about such things at all.

"Putting aside any talk of a second personality, why would I want to escape the palace? The entire palace is under my control; there's no possibility of assassination."

"..."

The Queen was not wrong.

After that palace coup, the Empress strengthened her control over the palace, and the head guard and head maid were no ordinary people.

She herself possesses the strength of a level one warlock.

Assassinating her would be virtually impossible.

However, if the second personality appears.

Perhaps that's a different story.

……

Rhodes had breakfast with the Queen before leaving the palace.

As I walked along the road, I was still thinking about the Queen.

"teacher?"

Suddenly, a voice pulled him back to reality.

Look up.

Anjie was standing at the intersection, smiling at herself.

It's hard to say whether that was really a laugh.

Rhodes was in the sunlight, yet he felt as if he were shrouded in cold darkness.

"We agreed to go home early, but the teacher didn't come back all night."

Ange spoke gently, slowly approaching Rhodes.

"..."

Having escaped one tiger's mouth, they entered another wolf's den.

It feels more of a headache than saving the world.

Rod felt like dying.

Where's the system? Help!

Survive.

……

The next few days.

While investigating the ghost incident with Ange, Rhodes also has to enter the palace to meet the Queen, and may even encounter a witch's sudden visit in the middle of the night.

They were extremely busy.

What happened to the villain's return and his promise to enjoy a free life?

Now I'm physically and mentally exhausted...

at last.

that's it.

Witches' Day is here.