It's not the protagonist, what does it matter if you are trapped in the Shura field

Chapter 603 What evil intentions could the Sleep Demon possibly have?

In the northwest of the continent lies Dingtal, the "Land of Sorrowful Mountains".

This small, nameless country, forgotten among the peaks, has had little contact with other countries and exists in isolation in the deep valleys surrounded by mountains.

And in this very country, a tragic event occurred three days ago—

Princess Lilika has passed away.

The cold wind of October was like a sharp knife, cutting into the faces of the people of the capital, Emin, leaving them with despair and bewilderment in every direction.

First the king, then the queen, and then the prince.

One after another, just a few days later, the only princess on whom people had placed their hopes also left. The inherited throne seemed to be cursed, and no one knew why.

Now, the king's bloodline has been severed, and what awaits the people of this country is the loss of order and an especially harsh winter.

"God, no matter what I become, please save this forgotten land..."

Beside the princess's coffin.

A gaunt man knelt before the lifeless face, sobbing in grief, ignoring the voices outside urging him to bury the princess as soon as possible.

He took out a box from his pocket from which black mist flowed.

"No matter how I become...it's all good..."

Accompanied by murmured murmurs, the candlelight went out along with the voices outside.

……

The following day at noon, Lovely announced to the people of White Harbor that Lucas was marching there.

In fact, people had already heard the commotion in the tavern, but hearing it spoken by the princess still shocked them all over again.

But that's all.

Lovely was merely fulfilling her duty to inform; frankly, she was never intended to be a down-to-earth heir. It was only the events at Melendall that made her mature.

Lucas and Randall would never communicate information without a specific purpose, at least not in this way.

Lo Wei was also listening in the crowd.

He glanced to the side and saw that all the rats on the list, including the three from the Goblin Cave, were being secretly watched by knights. Clearly, these people were also eager to know how the Fifth Princess planned to deal with the situation, including where her army was and how large it was. However, Lovely remained silent about these matters throughout the entire process, only stating that she would not forcibly conscript the residents of White Harbor into the army.

She really had no choice but to keep quiet about it.

Because she didn't have an army at all.

When the meeting ended, the Second Prince's men had listened to nothing all day and felt that the Fifth Princess was extremely cunning, still hiding her true intentions even at a time like this.

Events on the mainland tend to be delayed.

In some remote and isolated places, news might take a long time to spread. However, even during the pitch-black nights of the past few days, residents have sensed something unusual. It seems that strange things are happening all over the continent now, some of which sound simply unbelievable.

However, people should focus more on the present moment.

No one expected that the conflict between the fifth princess and the second prince would occur in such a small southern town.

As someone who helped maintain order at the scene, Qiluli also listened to the entire speech. Just as she said, these were things that were out of reach for ordinary people like them. She just didn't expect that the second prince would actually lead his army this way. So the people who captured people in the cave earlier were the fifth princess's subordinates. Despite speaking so righteously on the surface, this made her have a bad impression of the fifth princess.

She has only been in Baigang Town for less than half a year.

Although she had heard about the development of the West District and the hosting of elite competitions, what she saw was clearly something else entirely, regardless of what people were saying.

Just then, she saw Lowe put on his hood and turn away from the speech hall.

After leaving the square.

Lowe met at Lovely's private house in town, and the two sneezed at each other as soon as they met.

"What are you doing?" Lovely asked, glaring at him.

"Yes, yes, it was my fault."

When Luo Wei saw her like this, he couldn't help but want to go up and rub her head.

They went up to the second floor together, where they met Ayining, who was doing some statistics, and Mena, who was slacking off.

"The news about the size of the Second Prince's army has come back," Ayining said, standing up immediately and handing the prepared note to the two of them. "This is the estimated number."

fifty thousand.

Rowe glanced at the words on the note, while Lovely stood to the side, her face ashen. This was the number of troops Marcus had sent to attack Uncrowned City, and the number of the Crimson Lion Army stationed in the capital. Logically speaking, even with the temple's aid, the western part of Lion Garden couldn't possibly field this many regular troops.

And that was indeed the case. The note indicated a size of approximately 20,000 men, consisting of conscripted farmers and mercenaries, who marched alongside the army rather than remaining in the rear.

"What on earth is he doing?" Lovely asked, puzzled. "He's demanding that the peasants march at the same speed as a mounted army. Is he personally whipping them from behind?"

“Then his whip would have to leave afterimages to have that effect,” Rowe said sarcastically. “If I’m not mistaken, he probably brought over the unfinished chariots from the West as well.”

"Indeed it is."

Ayining handed him another list, which showed the scale of supplies, including tanks, totaling about three thousand.

"The Western Territory is truly wealthy," Rowe exclaimed. He knew the actual logistical force was far greater than that, and the temple was really going all out. Although the Southern Territory consisted mostly of plains, some inaccessible areas would likely require the angels' familiars to transport supplies. Although Saya had never made a contract with any familiars—she disdained it—she fought until dawn with just her wings and a gun.

This indicates that Lucas has made some changes in his decision-making after this round of turmoil.

"Then there's the matter of the fallen star..." Ayining didn't bring any documents this time, "It's said that it caused quite a commotion in the Second Prince's army that night, Mena said..."

“Mena said that the nobleman is most likely dead,” Mena said matter-of-factly.

Lovely's lips trembled slightly.

This should be considered an unexpected disaster.

“Don’t be too happy yet. If Lucas had any brains, he would have blamed us for this disaster,” Rowe stated. “For example, there’s a heretical astrologer in the enemy camp who’s good at sowing discord and using evil magic, and he could bring misfortune to this land.”

Mena paused slightly, then said, "Thank you..."

Lovely covered her head in distress.

That's definitely not a compliment.

"How's it going on your end?" Rowe asked Lovely.

“What else can happen?” she waved her hand. “I’m not in any trouble.”

The lord of White Harbor Town, who had barely shown his face during the last beast tide, also directly handed over command of the garrison to Lovely this time.

“But what’s the point?” she said, pursing her lips. “Sending these people out to fight Lucas’s army is practically the same as ordering them to commit suicide. It’s not even enough to fill a tooth gap.”

“We don’t need them to deal with Lucas,” Rowe said briefly. “Given the current state of affairs on the continent, you’ll soon realize that just maintaining stability within your own territory is a difficult task.”

"?"

Lovely gave him a disdainful look. You always seem to anticipate things early enough. But even though you've made all the plans, she still often doubts whether you can stop Lucas's army. Has this guy really thought about a strategy? What if he just sells her out when the enemy comes?
Lowe met her gaze and shrugged nonchalantly.

Why would I sell you? That's impossible, you must be overthinking it.

……

In the afternoon, Rowe checked the information at the Adventurers' Guild and the tavern, and also went to the black market.

Here, he met Goodman, who had become quite familiar with the brothel owner. Unlike the situation in the capital, here both the owner and the girls welcomed him. He would get paid as long as they fed him fruit and fanned him. They treated him like a king, since it was tiring to lie there and pretend to be comfortable most of the time.

“Although I know they are all very professional,” Rowe said, sweating profusely, “did you come here to experience being a king?”

"Wasn't it consensual?"

There are no such things as "casual" places in this world. The fact that even when shops in the capital are burned down, they don't renege on their debts shows that the shopkeepers are highly professional and the industry standards are consistently high—it's not some chaotic place. Because they value these things, people in this world have always respected them and don't harbor any unpleasant thoughts about women on the street.

Hmm... except for him.

Sometimes, Luo Wei even wondered if he was too malicious towards the world.

"Speaking of which, there's something here that you might be able to help with," Goodman said with a smile.

"What do you mean?" Luo Wei frowned as he looked at him.

After Goodman finished speaking, he asked the girl to call the boss over, and quickly explained what had happened.

In short, someone spotted wild Sandmans on the outskirts of White Harbor, and they appeared to be injured and in unstable condition.

"If she comes to town to eat in this situation in order to recover... you should know what their food is, right?"

"...I'll keep an eye out for any news."

This is indeed a problem. The Sand Demon is a type of Succubus, and generally speaking, it is only slightly lower in racial hierarchy than the Wraith. It starts as at least a high-ranking demon. Although it does not have the habit of taking human lives, it is true that it can easily cause family disputes when it comes to eating, disrupting public order and often escalating to the point where knights and adventurers need to be organized to subdue it.

The proprietress's intention was quite clear: if there was any place in the town that could accept this homeless sleeper, it was her place.

There's no way to ask adventurers for help with something like this.

The proprietress is after money, and the guild would never help a demon in front of the public.

How did I end up working in the gray area...? In fact, no one knows how that succubus got into that massage convention or where she ended up.

"You wouldn't have the heart to see a poor, lonely girl be beaten to death just because she's asking for food, would you? What evil intentions could Sandman possibly have?"

"..."

People in this world aren't particularly lustful, but businessmen are all incredibly shrewd.

Lowe did not give a definite answer. He didn't even know where the Sandman was. Seeing that it was getting late, he immediately said goodbye to Goodman on the deck chair.

Goodman just smiled and looked at him, knowing that he was very busy at night and continued to enjoy his pampered treatment.

However, just after leaving the brothel, the communication stone in Luo Wei's arms lit up at an inopportune moment.

He paused, his face immediately darkening—

You guys really know how to pick your timing.

(End of this chapter)