Traveling through the second dimension, the joy system encourages me to laugh heartily!

Immediately afterwards, centered on the point of contact, the slender beam of light seemed to be injected with endless energy, and suddenly began to expand wildly at a speed that exceeded the limits of visual perception!

The light was no longer in the shape of pillars, but transformed into a tsunami of light that swept everything outwards, devouring all things.

Wherever it passed, whether it was the remaining ruins of buildings, unattended fields, desolate streets, or naturally growing flowers, trees, and small animals... everything was brutally wiped away from its current location the moment it came into contact with that light, and stuffed into a portal leading to an unknown realm.

There was no explosion, no debris, only the purest form of disappearance.

Chen Ming stood at a safe distance, intently observing everything. The edges of the light tide were clear and sharp, like the most precise cutting lines; inside the lines was the empty space representing the transfer, and outside the lines was a temporarily safe world.

Finally, this terrifying tsunami of light, as it expanded to near the edge of what was originally the territory of Fetoia, seemed to have hit an invisible wall, and its expansion abruptly stopped.

The blinding light that engulfed everything was as abrupt as it appeared, and it extinguished completely without warning the instant it reached its limit.

It was as if the earth-shattering scene just now was merely a fleeting illusion.

The sky returned to its original color, and the magic vortex vanished without a trace.

All that remains is the former site of the Fetoia Territory—now a huge, eerily smooth, circular depression that looks as if it had been scraped with the finest scraper, barren and empty.

The entire process, from the beam of light descending to the tide of light engulfing everything, and then to the light completely dissipating, lasted less than a second.

The relocation was over just like that. Swift, efficient, and thorough, with a cold aesthetic befitting a world-class disaster.

However, for Chen Ming, the occurrence of this foreseen disaster merely meant that his disaster prevention work had come to an end.

His planned next move had only just begun—he was going to meet the two girls.

In the vast world of "Mushoku Tensei", there are indeed quite a few outstanding beautiful girls, each with their own unique charm.

However, if we must consider objective factors such as appearance, temperament, and social status to make a ranking, then Ariel Anemoi Asra, the second princess of the Kingdom of Asra, is definitely one of the most beautiful women.

In the original course of her destiny, on the same day that this [transfer event] occurred, the princess in the capital would have faced a meticulously planned assassination attempt.

In the original story, it was Hilfiet, who was accidentally teleported to the palace by magic, who intervened by chance, saving Ariel from disaster and thus beginning the deep bond between the two.

Thanks to Chen Ming's intervention, Hilfiet is now safely at home in the magical city of Sharia, playing with Silver Moon, and has not been involved in the transfer incident.

So, if Chen Ming chooses to stand idly by at this moment, the rescuers who should have appeared according to the original trajectory will no longer exist. Ariel, isolated and helpless, facing a scheming assassin, will likely meet a tragic end today—this beautiful princess will probably perish.

The other girl they were to meet was Shizuka Nanahoshi, who had been summoned from another world by this massive spatial magic.

According to the original plan, she should be standing blankly in the center of the now barren territory of Fituia. Although it was desolate and eerie, there was no immediate danger to her life.

After weighing his options, Chen Ming made his choice: to go and save Ariel.

Without the slightest hesitation, after confirming that the aftermath of the transfer had completely subsided and would not have any further impact on "New Fitoa," Chen Ming's figure quietly disappeared from the city wall...

Chapter 341: The Strange Princess

Ars, the capital of the Kingdom of Asura, is undoubtedly the jewel of this vast continent. It is not only the most populous city in the world, but its sheer size and magnificent architecture are also unparalleled.

The towering city walls stretch to the horizon, dividing the area into distinct districts for nobles, businesses, commoners, and artisans. Countless streets meander through the city like veins, ceaselessly transporting people, goods, and information day and night.

The air is always filled with the complex scents of spices, leather, metal, food, and the people themselves. The noise continues from the market vendors in the early morning to the singing and dancing in the bars late at night, forming an endless urban symphony.

At the heart of this vast capital city stands a palace constructed entirely of white stone—called the Silver Palace.

Under the sunlight, the entire palace exudes a noble silver-white glow. Its spires, vaults, reliefs, and continuous columns all demonstrate the ultimate pursuit of aesthetics and the symbol of supreme power, earning it the reputation as the largest and most beautiful white palace in the world.

However, just as even the smoothest silverware may harbor stains on its back, the interior of this dazzling silver palace presents a stark and ironic contrast to its pristine exterior. It is a place rife with the sordid political struggles woven from human desires and power plays.

Between royalty and nobility, and even among blood relatives within the royal family, there is a constant, overt or covert struggle, scheming, deception, and exploitation. Behind a smile may lie poison, beneath flattery may lie a dagger, and before the ink of an alliance is dry, the seeds of betrayal have already sprouted.

From dawn till dusk, conspiracies and schemes, like vines creeping up the palace walls, are intertwined and never cease.

In order to find a moment of tranquility in this high-pressure and distorted environment, the Silver Palace not only has functional halls, but also several beautiful gardens of different styles.

They are rare oases within this fortress of power, allowing those of high enough status to enjoy a moment of natural pleasure.

There's a rose garden renowned for its fiery passion, cultivating and collecting all kinds of red flowers; a peony garden with a multitude of black flowers; and a garden dominated by melancholic blue tones, planted with a large number of hydrangeas...

One garden in particular is called the "White Lily Garden," which, as the name suggests, is planted with a variety of plants that bloom with pure white flowers. These include not only lilies, but also white roses, white lilacs, white camellias, white tulips, and more.

The entire garden is elegantly and spaciously laid out, with white gravel paths winding through it, and a set of pavilions and chairs made of white stone in the center.

This is a place that a certain distinguished person particularly likes.

That person was Ariel Anemoi Asra, the second princess of the Kingdom of Asra.

She inherited from the First Queen, who was hailed as an unparalleled beauty, her flawless, exquisite features, her milky-white skin, and her long, flowing, radiant golden hair that seemed to radiate like liquid sunlight.

She inherited a beautiful, captivating voice from the current king.

Although she was not yet a fully grown woman and her girlish naiveté had not completely faded, she already exuded an extraordinary charm. She was praised by the people of the capital as "the most beautiful princess in history," and her supporters and admirers came from all walks of life.

Princess Ariel had a not-so-secret habit: every three days, weather permitting, she would come to this White Lily Garden to enjoy a leisurely afternoon tea.

Today was no different; the afternoon sun shone through the sparse clouds, gilding the pure white garden with a light gold hue.

Princess Ariel sat gracefully at the white round table in the center of the garden. She wore a well-tailored light blue dress that was neither overly ornate nor unbecoming of a princess. Her long golden hair was not styled into an overly complicated court updo, but rather partially tied up with a simple hair accessory, with the rest flowing smoothly over her shoulders.

A set of exquisite white porcelain teaware sat before her, the steam from the black tea rising gently, releasing a rich aroma.

Of course, as a noble princess, she was not truly "alone".

A few steps away from her, standing on her left and right like two loyal statues, were her guardian knight Luke and the guardian mage Dirich.

Princess Ariel's profile as she picked up her teacup and sipped it with her head slightly bowed was breathtakingly beautiful against the backdrop of pure white flowers in the garden.

It is a beauty that transcends gender boundaries, so beautiful that even people of the same sex cannot help but feel affection and sigh in secret; and for people of the opposite sex, it is even more like a dream, enough to make them lose themselves in the sight, as if approaching or making a sound would be a desecration of this exquisite picture.

Therefore, whenever Princess Ariel appeared in the White Lily Garden, even other nobles or visitors who happened to be passing by would subconsciously slow their pace and cast a pleasing glance from afar, never attempting to approach her.

This allowed Princess Ariel to truly relax and enjoy her afternoon tea time to herself.

“Your Highness Ariel,” the nurse Dirich’s voice broke the afternoon’s tranquility, his tone as serious and worried as ever, “you are an important figure who has the potential to become King Asura in the future. It is not a good thing to easily make enemies because of trivial rumors; it will be detrimental to your reputation and situation…”

Upon hearing Dirich's words, Ariel gently put down her teacup and let out a sigh filled with helplessness and weariness.

“I said, Dilik.”

Her voice was still pleasant, but it carried a detached clarity: "Although you always say that, I am only the second princess. I have two older brothers and one older sister. You should know this order better than I do."

"Yes, Your Highness, I know the order very well."

Dirich insisted, "But it is an indisputable fact that you have a high line of succession to the throne and are one of the strong candidates to become the next king."

"Being a candidate is not only useless, but also very dangerous!"

Ariel's tone was calm and even. "Although my sister is engaged and about to marry into another country, essentially withdrawing from the competition, my two brothers are currently engaged in an extremely fierce competition for the throne. They have accumulated connections, influence, and political capital over many years. As long as they are around, I have no chance of becoming queen."

"No, Your Highness!"

Dilik's voice rose slightly, sounding somewhat excited, "You are the child of the Empress, and currently the only one who has perfectly inherited the legitimate bloodline of the Asura royal family! This legitimacy, at crucial moments, carries far more weight than ordinary forces! The two princes are certainly powerful, but their mothers' backgrounds..."

"Stop talking, Dirich."

Ariel gently raised a hand, interrupting the guardian mage's speech, which might have touched on more dangerous topics.

“My two older brothers might have thought of me as an insignificant sister, but if they hear this kind of talk, they might think I'm secretly accumulating power and coveting the throne, and send assassins to get rid of me, this potential trouble. How should I deal with that?”

"Even if there are no assassins for the time being, the mere presence and flattery of those nobles who have sensed a possibility and want to attach themselves to me in order to gain future benefits is enough to make my two brothers uncomfortable and wary. My life is quite comfortable now, and I don't need any more attention..."

“As long as Your Highness Ariel is prepared to fight for the throne, I, Dirich Reitbart, am willing to fight the assassins and lose my life for it!”

"Dilik, don't say such terrifying things!"

Ariel sighed, her voice tinged with genuine helplessness: "Besides, I know very well what you, and some of the people behind you, really think of us royalty... Are you trying to incite me into that dangerous vortex by saying all this? But if we really encounter an insurmountable danger, like assassins sent by my brothers who are far beyond your capabilities, will you really fight to the death as you say? Or... after weighing the pros and cons, will you choose to abandon me and escape alone to survive? Don't rush to deny it; it's human nature, and I don't blame you."

"What……!"

Dirich's eyes widened suddenly, as if stung by Ariel's blunt, almost cruel words. His body trembled slightly uncontrollably, and his face turned pale.

“Listen to me, Dirich.”

Ariel stopped looking at him and instead turned her gaze to a cluster of blooming white lilies in the distance, her voice regaining its previous calm:

“I don’t need to become queen. I’m already very content with my life… Anyway, even if I were to be persuaded by you to stand up against my two brothers, my chances of winning would be pitifully low. In this situation, why would I want to actively participate in those dirty political struggles and try to seize that unattainable throne… Dirichlet, don’t you think that’s a very foolish thing to do?”

Ariel's remarks were calm, rational, and even carried a wisdom beyond her years.

She accurately grasped the crux of the problem: no matter how legitimate her bloodline, it paled in comparison to the actual balance of political power. Rather than throwing herself into a gamble that was almost certainly doomed to failure and could cost her her life, it was better to face reality early, abandon those unrealistic fantasies, and instead use her noble princess status to enjoy life as much as possible.

After all, even if she couldn't become king, as the princess of the world's largest kingdom, Asura, the quality of life she could enjoy was already something most people in the world could only dream of. Wasn't that a "wise choice"?

"really……"

Dilireborg's Adam's apple bobbed, and in the end, he could only manage to utter those two words with difficulty.

He was clearly still very unwilling, but faced with the princess's clear attitude, he found that he really couldn't say anything more. Saying more would probably only provoke more resentment from the princess.

He gave a somewhat stiff bow, turned around, and walked away from the white round table with slightly heavy steps, heading out of the garden along the gravel path.

Ariel and Luke exchanged a glance and shrugged in unison, seemingly already used to Dirichlet's reaction.

Dirich did not abandon his mission as a guardian mage. He was heading to a toilet for nobles not far from the White Lily Garden.

His and Luke's mission was to protect Princess Ariel, but as humans, they would need to use the restroom sometimes. They had an unspoken agreement: when one of them needed to, they would whisper to the other, then quickly go to relieve themselves and return to their posts.

Initially, Dilik always strictly followed this procedure, informing Luke before leaving.

However, habit is a terrifying thing. After going to the toilet many times, both Ariel and Luke gradually formed a common sense in their minds—Dilric always seemed to need to go to the toilet when he came to the White Lily Garden.

Later, when Dillick was about to report again, perhaps feeling that repeatedly hearing the word "toilet" was detrimental to the elegant atmosphere of afternoon tea, Ariel smiled and ordered him to skip the reporting action and go directly there in the future.

Therefore, Dilik went to the toilet alone.

"Ugh……"

His previous conversation with the princess echoed in his mind.

The princess made it clear that she had no desire to become king and only wanted to be content with the status quo and enjoy life.

But deep down, Dirich had an incredibly strong desire for Ariel to fight for the throne.

He absolutely did not believe that Ariel's two brothers, the First Prince and the Second Prince, were unqualified to be king.

On the contrary, judging from the abilities shown by those two princes, either of them, once they inherit the throne, would most likely become an outstanding monarch no less than the previous kings of the Asura Kingdom.

However, Dirich believed that was not enough.

If one of the two princes successfully ascends the throne, the Kingdom of Asra will likely continue its corruption, much like it has for the past few centuries. The ugly power struggles among the nobility will not disappear; in fact, they may intensify in the next round of power redistribution. This internal strife will severely hinder the nation's overall development…

The Kingdom of Asura possesses the most fertile land on the continent, a paradise "free from hunger" in a sense.

One view even suggests that because of such favorable basic conditions, no matter how corrupt the upper-class nobles were, or how much wealth they extracted from the people through taxes and other means, the lowest-class people could still maintain a basic standard of living. Discontent was unlikely to accumulate to a critical point, thus making large-scale rebellions less probable.

But is this really a good thing?

According to Dirich, the lack of a sense of existential crisis has plunged the entire country into a terrible state of stagnation.

Everyone is content with the status quo, and those who have vested interests are desperately trying to maintain the existing order. No one is willing to risk pushing for profound changes that might affect their own interests.

Admittedly, in certain areas, such as the research of magical theory and technological applications, the Kingdom of Asura is still making slow progress. However, this pace of progress has been gradually caught up with and even surpassed by the Southern Kingdom of Dragon Kings and the three great magical nations of the North!

If this overall stagnation continues for another hundred years... no, perhaps only fifty years, the balance of power among nations could undergo a dramatic shift.

The Southern Dragon Kingdom has long coveted the fertile land of Asura and has always coveted it.

The Asura Kingdom can currently rely on its formidable mountains for protection, confident that it will not be invaded by other nations. But what about fifty years from now? What if the Dragon Kingdom, with its advanced technology, finds a way to overcome geographical barriers and launches a large-scale invasion? How will the Asura Kingdom respond then?

An even more terrifying scenario is that if the three great magical nations, for some reason, form a tacit understanding or even an alliance with the Kingdom of Dragon King, and exert pressure from both the north and south... would the Kingdom of Asura still be able to enjoy peace and tranquility as it does now?

Dirich was deeply worried, not out of mere fear, but because he saw a profound crisis lurking beneath the surface of prosperity.

In his view, the key to breaking this deadlock and injecting real change into the Kingdom of Asura might lie with Princess Ariel.

This idea didn't come out of thin air; it was born the moment Dirich first met Ariel.

Several years ago, at a banquet hosted by the kingdom.

Dirich had just graduated from the magic academy. Although he wasn't the top student, he graduated with excellent grades and was confirmed to join the magic corps of the Kingdom of Asura in a few months.

Dirich believed that although he was quite good, he was just a magician whose level was not particularly rare.

Just then, a lovely young girl appeared before him.

Ariel was not yet an adult at the time, but she still attended the banquet as a guest.

Despite her young age, she delivered her congratulatory message in a clear and assertive tone. In Dirich's eyes, Ariel was even smarter than the top graduate of the academy.

Afterwards, he went to work for the magicians' guild. When his father suggested, "No one has been appointed as the princess's guardian mage yet. Why don't we recommend you, just to give it a try?" Dirich agreed without hesitation.

Ariel is a woman of action. Although she currently lives a life of pleasure, she is actually diligent and willing to work hard to improve herself.

If Ariel were to ascend the throne and dedicate herself to strengthening the nation, the Kingdom of Asura would undoubtedly flourish even more. Conquering the entire Central Continent might not even be a distant dream.