Divine Luck: SSS-Rank Battle Maid Harem

Zach managed to pull himself out of the bed trying to entice him for another round of heavy sleeping with is soft mattress and comfy sheets. It was an arduous battle, but Zach emerged victorious and cleaned himself up before joining Nessa outside his room.

One by one, his familiars returned to his side as Zach walked through the palace. Yanael was the first. Just with a glance, Zach could tell that she was different from when he passed out. He was interested to learn more, but that could wait.

"You had no trouble entering the palace?" Zach asked Nessa as they strolled leisurely.

"At first. Anerias and I flew to the East first since that's where we thought you were. We managed to find Derot, who told us you were sleeping in the palace, and we were like, 'Whaaat?' But we asked around and that turned out to be true. However, when we tried to enter the palace, we were stopped at the gates.

"Apparently, a lot of people have tried to enter and visit you, claiming to be your friends, family, or even lovers. We considered returning at night and sneaking in when Princess Rienne came out. She recognized us and helped us gain entry."

Zach chuckled. It was a familiar scene.

"Is Rienne's place close to the palace gates or something?" He asked no one in particular.

"What?"

"The same thing happened when Derot and I tried to visit the palace before."

"I see." Nessa was silent for a minute before speaking up again.

"Princess Rienne seemed…worried." Her expression was complex. She had a feeling that she knew what Rienne's worry was about. She sympathized. But at the same time, Rienne had arrested Zach and locked him up without hesitation and remorse. If Zach hadn't saved the east and stopped the Hydra, would she be feeling guilty and bad about it?

"Of course. The Empire's only Archduke was in a coma. Shouldn't the entire imperial family be worried?"

"Not that kind of worried."

"She feels bad about arresting an innocent man, then?"

"Something like that."

"She doesn't need to."

"What? Of course she does!"

"Nope. It wasn't like it was her decision to label me a traitor. It wasn't her order to arrest me, either. If she hadn't done it, someone else would. Before you say anything about how she could have treated me better or trusted me, my family deceived the Empire for generations. There was no reason to think I would be any different."

Zach's perspective on the situation now that he had slept decently for the first time in a while and gotten something else to think about was different from Nessa's and Rienne's thoughts.

It was a situation where no side would come out with their feelings intact. But it was through no fault of their own. They were merely pawns in a game controlled by the people above them.

Zach was put in that position by his family, just like how Rienne was put in it by her family.

Sure, Rienne could have been more polite to Zach when arresting and transporting him to the capital, where she proceeded to lock him up and interrogate him.

But the fact that she wasn't spoke to the strength of her character and her morals. She wouldn't assist a traitor or show him undue kindness just because of a fleeting but meaningful acquaintance.

Eventually, Nessa sighed. If Zach didn't want to hear her complain about Rienne, she wasn't going to make him listen. She had also come to ask him for help. Starting an argument about the princess' right or wrongs was unnecessary.

"Anyway, where are we going?" She asked since it felt like Zach had been marching on pretty intently for a little while now.

"I have no idea!" He said confidently.

Nessa facepalmed.

"This fucking guy…!"

"Huh?"

"Oh, did I say that out loud?"

"My bad," She said as she grabbed him by the head and jerked him around playfully.

"It feels like your hair is redder than before?" She suddenly realized.

"Yeah, that's what happens when you bathe in the blood of your enemies," he said ominously.

"..."

"It's the effect of an Acquired Skill."

"Tell me more," Nessa ordered, grabbing Zach's shoulder and forcing him to look straight into her intense eyes.

"Sure, but do you want me to continue leading the way, or can we find someone to guide us to the Empress Dowager's palace?"

Nessa immediately called out to the nearest palace servant hiding behind a corner and looking at Zach with wide eyes. She had the young maid guide them to the Empress Dowager's palace without even asking why Zach would want to go there of all places.

That was not as interesting as something related to the mysteries of summoning.

Nessa wasn't as bad as Zach, but she was still a product of the phenomenon where interest in summoning was proportional to one's talent with it. She loved summoning and everything related to it.

She had to find out what Zach meant by Acquired Skills and what made one different from a contract skill.

So, while they walked at a slow pace toward the Empress Dowager's palace, Zach briefly recounted some of his experiences in the East and how he discovered the power of Usurpation coincidentally. He talked about his fuzzy connection with the Hydra that seemed one-sided. He talked about Surge. He talked about Chaos. He talked about a lof he had experienced in the east.

It was a good thing they walked slowly. Otherwise, he would have never been able to get that much off his chest in one go.

Nessa realized and understood that the threat she and the others were dealing with wasn't the only threat to the Empire and the continent. She had been narrow-minded.

She briefly wondered if things like these were common and just went unannounced for reasons similar to the ones that made them keep the ongoing invasion of the Underworld secret.

She didn't want to think that the continent was constantly under threat from external sources. But it was a distinct possibility.

After all, what were the odds that several such incidents happened during their generation alone unless it was a normal occurrence?