Am I going to be controlled by the players too?

"Then you're in for a lot of trouble later."

The old man chuckled sinisterly and gestured towards the operating table with his chin: "The little fairy on your back is badly injured. Put her on the operating table first."

Freya put Li Xianyu down. The old man placed his cigarette on the edge of the table, rolled up his sleeves, and pressed his hand on Li Xianyu's wound, a faint green light shining from his palm.

Healing magic.

Freya was somewhat surprised; the old man looked useless, yet he was quite skilled in healing magic. After Li Xianyu was out of the brink of death, the old man took out surgical instruments to clean the festering wound, bone fragments, and rotten flesh, then stitched up the wound and applied another healing spell.

There's no need to worry about viral infection; just cast a detoxification spell. Magic is really convenient.

The whole process took less than half an hour.

Li Xianyu lay on the operating table, her skin fair and delicate, without a single scar. Her breathing was steady, and her complexion had recovered somewhat. She was still fast asleep with her eyes closed.

Freya breathed a sigh of relief and turned to the old man: "How much is the medical bill?"

The old man shook his head.

“I won’t take your money.” He tossed the scalpel into the tray. “Money has no meaning in this city. If you really want to thank me… send me a cat or a dog. It’s the only hobby I have left.”

Freya was taken aback: "I didn't expect you, Doctor, to like taking in stray cats and dogs? That's so kind of you."

The old man smiled but said nothing.

“…Ignore him.” Cheng Cheng leaned on Freya’s shoulder, his tail tip swaying gently. “This guy is Luffy.”

Freya blinked: "What do you mean?"

"Grass Cat Boy".

Cheng Cheng couldn't understand Shao Furui's thoughts, especially the old man. He was already in his eighties, yet he still wanted to sleep with Cat Dad. What was the difference between that and sleeping with himself?

The old man's eyes lit up, and he took a step forward:

"Your dragon can talk? Actually, dragons are quite something..."

"no!"

Freya immediately refused and took out a gold coin, tossing it to the old man.

"All right……"

The old man clicked his tongue and looked away: "In short, I advise you to leave quickly, otherwise—"

He hadn't finished speaking.

On the operating table, Li Xianyu suddenly opened her eyes.

She glanced at her perfectly intact hand, then sat up in bed, bewildered.

"I... I'm alive?"

Freya quickly explained the cause and effect.

After listening, Li Xianyu stood up, supporting himself on the operating table, and bowed deeply to Freya:

"I cannot express my gratitude enough. You are my savior. From this day forward, I, Li Xianyu, am willing to serve you faithfully for the next few decades, to care for you in your old age, to see you off in your final days, and to collect your body!"

Freya: "Collecting corpses???"

"I'm an elf, so I've lived longer than my benefactor. A few decades is just a blink of an eye," Li Xianyu said gratefully. "A hundred years from now, if you wish, my benefactor, I can arrange everything perfectly for you. I'll build you a grave, erect a monument, and make sure you can reincarnate peacefully after you're gone, so you won't be used as undead material to awaken some kind of 'dead spirit'..."

"That's enough." Freya said with a complicated expression. "I think you're being a bit ungrateful."

What else did Li Xianyu want to say?

"Dong dong dong."

There was a knock at the door.

All three of them were stunned. The old man stubbed out his cigarette on the edge of the table and went to open the door.

The moment the door opened, Freya instinctively took a step back.

Outside the gate stood rows of grim-looking orc soldiers, clad in black armor, their halberds held upright on the ground, stretching from the gate all the way to the end of the alley.

A half-orc stood before the army.

He was dressed in a dark, impeccably tailored suit, his hair was neatly combed, and he was elegant in demeanor with a polite smile. Upon seeing Freya and her entourage, he bowed slightly and said, "Your Highness, I apologize for not greeting you sooner."

Freya recognized him immediately.

Lord of Huabei City, Duke of Zhenbei, is a rare member of an ethnic minority among the kingdom's nobles.

Fran.

"Lord Fran," Freya returned the greeting, "I apologize for disturbing you."

"Not at all," Fran straightened up, his smile deepening. "Please allow me to do my best to be a good host. My humble abode may be simple, but I have prepared some wine. I hope Your Highness will do me the honor of visiting."

His tone was very polite, and there was nothing wrong with it, so Freya had no reason to refuse and nodded in agreement.

Fran stepped aside to make way, raising his hand in a "please" gesture.

Cheng Cheng raised his eyelids, glanced at him, and couldn't help but complain, "This half-orc is not quite half-orcish at all."

His fangs, which had been protruding from his lips, had been removed, and his demeanor was impeccable; it was hard to imagine that such a polite fellow could appear among the orcs.

“You dragon are so rude.” Fran paused. “I am not a half-orc, but a nobleman of the kingdom.”

He paused, shifting his gaze from Cheng Cheng to Freya:

“We nobles are already two different kinds of beings from ordinary citizens. Even someone as noble as Princess Freya—can she still be considered human?”

Freya: "I think I am."

Fran's expression shifted several times, but in the end he said nothing and continued walking forward.

…………

Fran's estate is located in the deepest part of the city.

Fran led Freya to the carriage, and they remained silent the entire way until they entered the luxurious manor. Seeing the formidable orc army within, Freya couldn't help but ask, "Lord Fran, what about the soldiers here...?"

For a lord without any official position to keep so many heavily armored soldiers is clearly an act of usurpation...

"Impressive, aren't they? These are all Unsullied." Fran pointed to the soldiers behind him, a hint of pride in his voice. "The weakness of orcs is their lust. Once they're castrated, they're all the strongest soldiers."

"Castrate them?" Freya asked, a question mark appearing above her head. "Why would they want to be castrated? Don't orcs consider...that kind of thing their life?"

Fran smiled.

“These people—” He raised his hand, drawing a circle in the air with his finger, encompassing the entire manor, “are all my slaves, my property, my possessions. Do I need their consent to castrate them?”

"They're all slaves?" Freya asked, somewhat surprised.

"of course."

Fran became increasingly proud as he spoke: "This is the wealth accumulated by our family over generations. It belongs not only to them and their children, but also to every person, every building, every tree, every road, and every inch of air in this city. It is all my property, and it belongs to me!"

He paused, a slight smile playing on his lips.

“If an ordinary person comes to this city to breathe my air, uses my veterinarians, or burns down my church—” His gaze fell on Freya, “they will be fined until they are bankrupt and face certain death!”

"But Your Highness, as a princess, is naturally my guest."

Freya was displeased and didn't reply.

Follow Fran into a luxurious castle within the estate, through a long corridor adorned with oil paintings, and into a brightly lit dining room.

The long dining table was ten meters long and covered with a snow-white tablecloth. Fran sat in the main seat, with Li Xianyu and Freya on either side. Cheng Cheng lay on Freya's shoulder, his tail wrapped around her neck, motionless.

Dishes and drinks were quickly served.

Fran was a very talkative half-orc. After a few rounds of drinks, the atmosphere gradually became lively. Li Xianyu drank heavily from the wine bottle, and Freya was also a little tipsy. She chatted and laughed with Fran about the embarrassing things that happened to the nobles in the capital.

"Speaking of Sylvia, I used to love taking her toys when we were little, but one day we had a falling out..."

Freya smiled and gave Sylvia a sharp critique, while Fran listened politely and quietly until a servant stepped forward and whispered in her ear, at which point she clapped her hands and said, "Your Highness, please allow me to interrupt for a moment to introduce today's main course."

After saying that, the door opened.

Several servants carried in a huge silver platter.

A young girl was lying on the plate.

She was naked, her hair was spread out on a silver plate, her eyes were closed, her lips were slightly parted, her breathing was very light, and her chest barely rose or fell.

Cheng Cheng's eyes lit up immediately: "Is this going to be Nyotaimori (female body sushi)? That's interesting!"

"Don't look!"

Freya angrily covered Cheng Cheng's eyes, then turned to look at Fran: "What are you doing?"

Fran smiled slightly: "Of course, it's today's main course."

As he spoke, a servant stepped forward and plunged the knife in his hand into the girl's wrist!

The girl's body trembled violently, but she did not wake up. Blood flowed out and fell into the wine glass!

Soon, the glass was filled, and the servant pressed down on Fran's still-bleeding wrist, placing the glass in front of him.

"To Your Highness, Princess." Fran nodded in satisfaction, raising his glass to Freya in celebration of the kingdom's victory.

Freya finally snapped out of her shock, jumped up, rushed to the plate, pushed aside the servant who was still bleeding, and shielded the unconscious girl with her body.

"you--"

Before she could finish speaking, a flame engulfed Fran.

Cheng Cheng flew off her shoulder and transformed into a giant dragon in an instant. Fran's smile froze on his face as his body twisted and melted in the flames. Within seconds, the orc sitting in the main seat was reduced to a pile of cooling ashes.

Li Xianyu jumped up from the chair, dragged the unconscious girl off the silver tray, placed his palm on her chest, and a green light shone.

The wound on her wrist slowly healed, but the girl remained unconscious.

"What did you do to her!?"

Freya questioned them, but the servants stood still, motionless, their faces expressionless, their eyes vacant as if their souls had been ripped out.

Then--

The servant who had been stabbing the girl shuddered, his eyes suddenly focused, and the muscles in his face twitched.

Then, he straightened up, turned his head, and looked at Freya, giving her the same polite smile as Fran.

"Your Highness Freya."