Chapter 131 131: Revealing Appearance
Carl reluctantly let go of her lips, looked down at her, and his eyes were full of emotion.
"The Southern Battlefield is too far, this kiss isn't enough."
Only then did Qiao Suisui understand what he meant by 'labor dispatch fee', her cheeks flushing red.
She lowered her head to hide her expression, thrust an envelope into his hand, and said, "Come back soon."
Carl held her hand against his chest, leaned in unexpectedly to kiss her once more, chuckled mischievously, and said, "Wait for me to come back."
He had slipped out from a mission to have this romance; he couldn't stay long.
Watching Carl walk into the void, Qiao Suisui suddenly felt a void in her heart. Almost instantly, she was left alone in the vast palace, feeling its enormity and her isolation more acutely than ever before.
Days passed as usual.
She was meticulously taken care of by Leberli in the Imperial Court, where the operations ran smoothly and she seldom needed to intervene. But she still had to wait for the public's fervor and curiosity about the Ancient Humans to subside, for the recent uproars to be forgotten, before she could return to school and properly explain everything to Sang Yan and Li Yi.
Qiao Suisui thought of her promise with Anubis and smiled.
Ruka had negotiated something with Leberli, and after being busy for about half a month, he could finally come to see her every day. However, Leberli reverted to his state of disapproval of everyone, and the two men returned to their usual delicate 'balance'.
In an unnoticed corner, a young man often stared out the window, lost in thought.
"Prince Lanze, it's time to take your medicine."
The servant brought the tray, saw Lanze sitting motionlessly by the window, and shook his head with a sigh.
They couldn't understand why, since his return to the Imperial Court, Prince Lanze had been alright at first but then suddenly fell ill. The servant wondered, given his ability of foreknowledge, why he didn't prevent this and spare himself the torment of sickness.
The young man appeared to gaze out the window as if no one was around, his blue eyes unfathomably deep.
The servant had quietly withdrawn, and Lanze, picking up the medicine, stood up, opened the window, and poured all the pills into the outside flowerbed.
Since his last unhappy parting with Qiao Suisui, he had been unable to use his foreknowledge.
Lanze initially thought it was just his poor condition, but then he realized that Talent and spiritual power were normal. Yet every time he tried to use his foreknowledge, the visions before his eyes were foggy, and although it was always the same scene, it changed continuously within seconds. Sometimes, he would even catch a glimpse of a familiar figure, appearing almost elderly.
Suddenly, Lanze thought of an old man from the Freedom Alliance who had once inspired him.
The night was cool and cleansing, as the young man left the Imperial Court and piloted the Flying Ship to the Freedom Alliance.
Meanwhile, Qiao Suisui was called to the small building by Sang Yan.
"Record a video?" she asked, blinking at Sang Yan.
"Recently, some doubts have arisen on the Star Nebula," Sang Yan explained patiently with a specially made recording device in his hand. "Inside the organization, it's fine, but outside, there are rumors claiming that you are an imposter of the Ancient Humans, or even a male orc in disguise."
"I think it's better to prevent than to cure. Recording a video to greet those orcs might also help in managing and boosting morale. The video will self-destruct after viewing, so you don't need to worry about anyone preserving your appearance, and it will only be sent to people within our organization," he continued.
After finishing, Sang Yan glanced at her. At that moment, Qiao Suisui was sitting on the living room sofa, bathed in sunlight streaming through the floor-to-ceiling windows. She looked like a peacefully blooming lily, elegant, pristine, yet naturally charming and paradoxically innocent, making it hard for anyone to look away.
He swallowed, then added softly, "Of course, if you prefer not to, we don't have to record it."
Indeed, Sang Yan's concern was reasonable. Qiao Suisui had never really shown her face publicly. Initially, everyone was curious, but continually hiding it could inevitably lead to a sense of distance.
"I'm willing to record," she nodded in agreement, saying, "Should I prepare something to say in advance?"
Sang Yan, while setting up the equipment, replied, "It doesn't matter, just saying a few words should suffice."
Qiao Suisui was a bit nervous; she hadn't dressed up today, only wearing a white cotton and linen long dress, her thick long hair casually draped over her back and shoulders, her face bare, revealing her everyday appearance.
Feeling a bit awkward, she saw Sang Yan gesture to her, signaling that the recording had begun.
Qiao Suisui looked at the camera, took a deep breath, confidently smiled slightly, and said, "Hello everyone, I am...."
Before she could finish, Sang Yan raised his hand to signal, "That's enough."
"?"
She blinked her eyes and saw that Sang Yan had already turned off the device, preparing to pack up the equipment.
"Is this too short? Would it seem insincere?"
Sang Yan reassuringly smiled at her, signaling her not to worry.
"When you founded Freedom, wasn't it to yearn for a life without constraints? Suisui, you don't have to deliberately do anything for their sake. You are yourself, and whatever you do, you are the highest existence within Freedom."
In fact, Sang Yan even hesitated to send out these brief 5 seconds. However, given that Freedom's membership had surged past one million, it was easy for such a large organization to spiral into chaos. Allowing the orcs to see her appearance, even just for 5 seconds, was already a grace.
After editing, he logged into Freedom's website. Ever since he took over the management of the inn, he had Gai Meilun upgrade the server and firewall for Freedom's website. Now, it served not only to book rooms but also to post tasks and announcements. Freedom even had its forum where members could exchange information and chat.
Sang Yan uploaded the video and clicked 'publish.'
It was a video without any captions or tags, yet within two seconds of its release, the views skyrocketed.
The forum exploded!
If not for Gai Meilun's adept skills, Freedom's server would have crashed.
First floor: Damn, damn! What did I just see? My eyes! I want to gouge them out and offer them up!
Second floor: Ahhhhh! Is this an Ancient Human?? I've seen a living, talking, moving Ancient Human!!! She's so beautiful!!!
Third floor: Help, the leader revealed her appearance! What day is today! (pinching oneself)
Fourth floor: (hahaha) She's so tiny, I can't imagine how anyone could bear to imprison her! Sigh, my soft-hearted beast heart.
Fifth floor: The leader instantly tops all the females ahhhh, she's so effortlessly beautiful!
...
Three hundred sixteenth floor: The leader's voice is so soft~~~~
Three hundred seventeenth floor: Look at me, look at me! Bump me up! I want the leader to see my robust body! Attachment: 18cm.jpg
Three hundred eighteenth floor: Trash! How shameful to show yourself so briefly! Attachment: mosaic.
Three hundred nineteenth floor: Hmm, some males shouldn't be too flirty.
...
One thousand eighty-sixth floor: I swear to protect our little leader!!!
One thousand eighty-seventh floor: I second that!!!
One thousand eighty-eighth floor: Can someone tell me how to catch the leader's attention?
....
Sang Yan looked at the forum where male orcs were courting, flirting, and even sending nude photos, and his face darkened instantly.
Qiao Suisui, curious, walked over and also wanted to look at the reactions on his light computer, but she saw the usually composed Sang Yan suddenly furiously press on the light computer, turning off the screen brightness rapidly.
Sang Yan coughed and said, "The server is too busy, I'll show you later."
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