Girl in the Box: Please tell me why I was reincarnated as a mimic monster!

"Eh...? Miss Ning?" The white-haired girl spoke to Ning with some surprise.

Ning stopped in front of her. Her somewhat unfamiliar appearance made Ning think for a while, but he finally recognized her from her aura.

“I remember…you’re the Black Knight, right?” Ning frowned. “Why is it like this?”

The "Black Knight" in front of me was wearing a black bodysuit and a magical armor that had been restored to light armor. This refreshing look was not like that of the tall and mighty Black Knight. Moreover, why was she a delicate girl?

“A lot happened in between…” The Black Knight’s gaze drifted into the distance. “My real name is Ister, Black Knight is just the name I used to register as an adventurer.”

"Is that so..." Ning nodded, making a mental note of it. "You participated in this battle too, right? I'm so glad you're alright..."

“…Yes, it’s so good that you’re alright.” A shadow fell over Esther’s eyes.

During that battle, after the massive warships in the distance fired their cannons, the girl named Hevia quickly disengaged from the battlefield in an airship, leaving the warship that was interfering with them to self-destruct.

Ister survived the explosion, and the others were also safe thanks to the dragons' protection, but she never expected to hear such news upon her return...

Ning keenly noticed the subtle changes in Ister, and she quickly understood the reason: someone... and someone she knew had died in battle...

"I'm sorry..." Ning said apologetically, "Could you take me to see it?"

East nodded, trying to suppress his emotions, and led Ning to a dimly lit tent. Lifting the tent flap, they could see Wu Ke, whose entire body was wrapped in bandages. Beside him lay a person covered by a white sheet, which had not yet covered their head.

Lying there was Celia, still looking the same as when she was alive, her clothes still on. No one had the resources to give her a proper send-off, so Sevi could only arrange a tent for her to rest in.

Another reason was that neither Esther nor Wu Ke wanted to believe the truth, thinking that it was best to leave it as it was, and maybe she would wake up soon. However, under the shock of the truth, Esther could no longer suppress her emotions and knelt down in front of Seria's body, weeping uncontrollably.

Ning sat silently beside the unmoving Wu Ke, the two gazing quietly at Seria's serene face. There were many like Seria on this battlefield; for them to keep watch over their comrades like this was a truly extravagant act.

Of the people Ning knows so far, Seria died in battle, Aye and Akatsuki are missing, and Rie was captured by the Kingdom's army.

The three of them remained silent, keeping watch over their companions. Before they knew it, only Wu Ke and Ister remained in the adventurer's party. Thinking of this, the two felt a sense of loneliness.

Although the dead cannot be brought back to life, miracles can happen in this world, because this is another world, a fact that Li himself has confirmed with his own body.

A faint silver light suddenly appeared in the dim tent. At first, it was so faint that none of the three people noticed it. Gradually, the silver light became clearer and brighter, finally attracting their attention.

This light came from Seria.

“What is this…?” East looked at the silver light with a puzzled expression.

“I don’t know…” Wu Ke shook his head.

The silver light was not at all glaring in the dim tent; in fact, it was quite gentle. Ning remembered this silver light; no one knew it better than her. She then lifted the white sheet, revealing Celia's riddled corpse beneath it.

At first, Wu Ke wanted to stop them, but he stopped after seeing the crystalline prism emitting a silver light on Seria's chest. He had that thing too, and so did Ister; it was something that Li had given them before the war.

"The Reverse Scale of the Time-Space Dragon King".

This so-called "reverse scale" of reason flickered on Seria's left chest, like a beating heart. Suddenly, it released silver magical lines, outlining some kind of pattern, and the light grew increasingly intense at that moment.

Despite its intense intensity, it didn't cause any discomfort.

These magical lines gradually formed a pattern combining gears and clocks. Ning knew this; it was the emblem of the "Dragon King of Time and Space," a unique emblem belonging only to Li in the entire world.

Then several more gears appeared, meshed together and began to rotate, causing the three hands on the clock face to turn counterclockwise.

Seria's body began to change at a visible speed. First, the shocking wounds began to heal, then her pale body gradually regained color, and her breathing and temperature began to return. All of this silver light was injected into Seria's body.

"Hey?! What happened?! Holy crap—!?"

The commotion startled Xuanze and Saiwei, who were still in the main tent. When they entered the tent and saw this amazing scene, they were both dumbfounded. Xuanze even swore in Earth language, which showed how surprised he was.

Finally, the silver light disappeared, and the emblem representing the Time-Space Dragon King vanished. The strange phenomenon inside the tent gradually subsided, and Seria remained lying there. Everyone held their breath, waiting for the miracle to arrive.

"Pfft—?!"

A miracle happened.

Celia sat bolt upright as if on her deathbed, gasping for air, cold sweat beading on her face. Once she calmed down, she stared in disbelief at her surroundings.

“...I’m still alive?” Seria looked at her companions in disbelief.

At that moment, joy filled the entire tent. Wu Ke and East rushed forward without hesitation, hugging Seria tightly in their arms as if afraid she would suddenly disappear. Xuanze and Saiwei both smiled knowingly, while Ning smiled wryly after sensing something.

Protect yourself first, instead of protecting others... you silly box...

Chapter 35 Decision

Because of a miracle, Seria was resurrected. Her memory is stuck at the moment she was instantly killed, and she is still a little scared, but the fact that she is still alive is so gratifying.

“I owe her a lot of favors…” Celia looked at the dull, lusterless scale in her hand with mixed feelings.

The special power of the Time-Space Dragon King's Reverse Scale caused Seria's time and the space within her body to rewind to before she was killed. It is unknown what kind of side effects there will be, but at least it is not visible at present.

Considering this, Ning remembered something. Perhaps Xiao was alright too. It's possible that Leifa had given her Reverse Scale to Xiao a long time ago; if so, the sudden appearance of her aura would make sense. Because when Leifa activated her Reverse Scale earlier, Ning also sensed a faint aura.

"So, it's over?" Celia stood up. "What... has happened since I died?"

Celia has no memory of this part because she was already dead at that time, which is something that cannot be helped.

"After you died, we joined up with Xuanze, who was leading a suicide squad," Saiwei said calmly. "That Demon King messed around and drove the Kingdom's army back. We desperately held them off and fought against the three Divine Punishers. But they don't seem to get along very well. It's thanks to that that we've survived until now."

The relationship between the "Punishers" might not be very good. The three Punishers on Savi's side have almost no intention of cooperating. It is thanks to them that Savi has survived until now. If they were to take things seriously, it would be hard to say what would happen.

"As for me... we found the sniper on the warship..." East also described his situation, "The opponent was too strong... If it weren't for the extra armor sent from Akihabara, I might be finished..."

The wounds on East's body are still throbbing, and they might even leave scars. The opponent's fighting style was so unexpected that it took East some time to adapt, and he also needed the support of extra armor to fight on par with the opponent.

"Later, the things in Akihabara were completed." Xuanze glanced at Ning, who seemed to be deep in thought. "The Dragon Kings also summoned the Dragon Clan, and with the things developed in Akihabara, we were able to turn the tide of the war. But in the end, it seems they were let off the hook; the kingdom withdrew on its own."

"They retreated?" Seria looked puzzled.

“We don’t know what they’re trying to do either,” Saiwei shook his head, then added optimistically, “but at least it gives us some breathing room.”

Even Celia, who was here, knew that the Allied Forces had suffered heavy casualties. Once the battle situation and the balance of power were understood, it was clear that the Kingdom had been in a dominant position from the beginning. If the problem of the air force could not be solved and the war escalated into a protracted conflict, the Allied Forces would be the first to fall.

"Oh, right..." Saiwei suddenly remembered something, "Ning, where's Li? Why isn't she with you?"

Xuanze suddenly showed a somewhat embarrassed expression. It seemed that this person already knew that something had happened.

"Her words, she was kidnapped. The kingdom kidnapped her," Ning said casually.

"Wh...what?!" Savi exclaimed in shock. "When did this happen?! Where was she taken?! Who did this?! Why would she be kidnapped while she was guarding the city?!"

Regarding this, the three of them, including East, showed very subtle expressions, because they all knew that Li was not the kind of person who would sit quietly and do nothing. So, this time he also left his post without permission to go to the front line, right?

However, Xuanze knows more details, but this person doesn't seem to intend to tell. What is he thinking?

"Stay away from me." Ning ruthlessly kicked away the persistent questioning Saiwei. "They were taken away by the intruding Divine Punishers. They were the twin brother and sister who came last time. They probably came for Li from the start."

"How could this be? How did they get into the city?" Even Savi himself found it hard to believe.

"In short, everyone has a responsibility." Xuanze shrugged. "Protecting those barrier warriors is our demon clan's responsibility, and I also have a problem with failing to protect her."

Even though Ning was the one who should be furious right now, she calmly sorted out the situation, which Xuanze greatly admired.

"So what do we do now?" Seria asked worriedly. "Was she taken to the kingdom?"

“There should be another usable teleportation portal nearby.” Xuanze thought for a moment. “I’ll send someone to use the portal to follow the Kingdom’s army. She should still be on those warships. We need to figure out where those warships are going. The rest is up to you.”

"Thank you," Ning said frankly, nodding his thanks.

Xuanze meant that this was all they could do for now, because if they didn't regroup quickly, they might not be able to withstand another attack from the Kingdom's army. Moreover, Xuanze wasn't going to passively endure the Kingdom's army's attacks; this time, he planned to take the initiative.

"Is there anything I can do to help?"

Saiwei was incredibly enthusiastic about this matter, which annoyed Ning the most, so she simply kicked him aside.

“You don’t need to come.” Ning refused him bluntly. “I don’t think you’re capable of this job, and we need your help here, so don’t get involved. I have a way to handle it.”

"...That's true. Then I'll leave it to you."

Savi was also worried about Li's situation, but as the king of the duchy, he was responsible for the people of the duchy, and for the sake of the bigger picture, he had to stay and help.

“Um…” East raised his hand and asked, “Ning, what are you planning to do?”

“Infiltrate,” Ning said casually. “Find their location, infiltrate, and then rescue Li.”

“Isn’t that too dangerous?” East exclaimed in surprise. “All the ‘Punishers’ are gathered there.”

At this moment, the kingdom's strongest forces have gathered together. If they were discovered infiltrating now, not only would Li's situation be in danger, but Ning's would also be at risk. It's important to understand that the Punishers wielding ten 'Holy Swords' are no ordinary beings.

They all knew Ning's strength, but they were still worried; it was simply too dangerous.

“I’ll come along too,” Celia suggested. “Don’t let my appearance fool you, I’m quite skilled at infiltration. Don’t worry about me, thanks to Torrey, my injuries have completely healed. I have to repay that favor to her.”

“Emm, I’ll go too,” Wu Ke chimed in.

“You can’t do it,” Easter said with a wry smile. “You’re too big and make too much noise; you’ll be easily spotted.”

“...I see.” Wu Ke awkwardly scratched his oily bald head.

Before Ning could say anything, they had already started discussing it enthusiastically. That stupid box is really popular.

"Ha..." Ning sighed helplessly, "Even if I refuse, you guys will still come, right... Anyway, we'll leave Wu Ke to PSAA. Try to keep the number of people under five. We'll also try to gather some information while we're at it. Understand?"

And so, the infiltration was decided.

Chapter 36 The Traitor's Actions

"This is truly an unexpected situation."

King Aljaz sat at the head of the conference room, with his confidants and subordinates seated on either side of the long table. He had dismissed all of his original ministers except for Prime Minister Varos; those present were the strongest in the kingdom.

"The Punisher".

"Blade Dance" Lycia, "Dragon Fang" Groot, "Theater" Varos, "Yin Yang" Morning Yin and Morning Yang, "Demon Coffin" Hevia, "Queen" Ailan, "Seven Stars" Peter Pan, "Overlord Banner" Zanoba, "Tune" Sariye, "Time Realm" Lorna.

The eleven people gathered here are the strongest fighting force in the kingdom right now.

Relying on these eleven people, the kingdom swept across the entire continent with lightning speed, and now there are very few remaining resistance forces.

“Varos,” Serik asked, “how’s it going on your end?”

“Your Majesty,” Varos stood up and bowed, “I have brought all the rebellious forces outside the Eastern Kingdom under my control.”

“It’s that country again…” Serik said unhappily. “Never mind, it doesn’t matter if we don’t deal with that closed-off country.”

The "Punishers" remained silent, sitting upright in their seats without uttering a word. The atmosphere in the conference room was extremely heavy, and they all waited for the King to speak. After a long while, Seric couldn't help but burst into laughter. No one knew why he laughed, and therefore no one dared to laugh with him.

“What are you all so nervous about?” Serik asked. “Did you think I would hold you accountable? You’re overthinking it. Rather, the results have exceeded my expectations.”

The atmosphere eased considerably, and Serik seemed quite pleased. He gently lifted Xia Que's face, admiring the strongest being whom even a hero could not match.

It's very close; his goal is within reach. But don't rush. The actors aren't all assembled yet, and it can't be used until that one appears.

“Lycia, you did a great job.” Serik withdrew his hand. “Retrieving Xia Que was beyond my expectations, and it will make future plans much easier. Hale will definitely be chasing after her.”

“Yes,” Lycia said with certainty, “Holl will never abandon her, he will definitely come.”

No one here knows Hao Er better than her; she knows exactly what happened between Hao Er and Xia Que, and what was produced.

That was love, the love that Lycia had never received—Haor's love. It was what she had always been pursuing, and what she had never been able to obtain. She couldn't tolerate Xia Que, this wild girl from another world, taking away that unique love.

Therefore, she wanted to destroy Xia Que in front of Hao Er, to destroy Hao Er's love for Xia Que. In this way, Hao Er's love would return to a state of being ownerless, and Hao Er would once again belong to her alone.

“By then, he will be your responsibility,” Serik reminded him. “But this girl is the one you cannot cross that line.”

As if reading Lycia's mind, Seric reminded her that Xia Que was his bottom line; everything else was fine. Lycia, though displeased, could only nod in agreement. The meeting continued, but no useful information could be gleaned; only disheartening bad news arrived one after another.

"...Tsk, what did those guys do..."

Mo Yueya sat on the bed in the room with his head down, wondering if the kingdom had discovered that he had placed a simple familiar in almost every place. These familiars were magic that could collect and reproduce sounds, which Mo Yueya had created himself.

During this time, he had been infiltrating the Kingdom's army to gather intelligence, using his magic to do a series of intelligence work such as eavesdropping. He guessed that Xia Que would be brought back, so he planned to join the Kingdom's army to help Xia Que. After bribing some high-ranking officers, he was assigned to this mothership.

In this way, at least Summer Sparrow won't be all alone on the kingdom's side.

He had been lying in wait here until today when he saw Xia Que brought back. He hadn't participated in the battle before, but had quietly done some sabotage. This work was insignificant, but at least it eased his guilt a little.

At that moment, he wondered, when did he start feeling guilty?

He had already probed through his familiar, and Xia Que now seemed to have lost her soul, unresponsive like a puppet. It seemed that any backup or assistance was pointless now.

At the same time, he learned about the situation on the other side of the Duchy, formed a united army, and rose up in resistance. With the support of the Dragon King and the Dragon Clan, they brought out weapons they had never seen before to fight. Seric carefully chose to retreat.

"Well done..." Mo Yueya uttered this comment, "Is there one more...?"

He had just overheard that besides the hero, another person was brought back, presumably from the duchy, and seemed to be a girl. It would be best to investigate further. The problem was, that person was being held captive in a very troublesome place.

“…A room reserved for the ‘Punisher’…” Mo Yueya looked at the ceiling with melancholy.

That person was imprisoned on the floor reserved for the "Punisher," which was the highest level of the mothership. It was the most well-equipped and luxurious place, with a total of thirty-two rooms.

Considering there are eleven "Punishers," the possibility of each person getting into a bad room is not low if they are in their own room. How to determine the room the other person is in is a problem. Another problem is Mo Yueya's permissions.

He was at best a new recruit who had only managed to get onto this mothership through bribery. The layer used by the "Punisher" would certainly be heavily guarded; there was no way they would let a new recruit through, right?