A Single Person's Infinite Wonderful Life

Having changed into a strange but very beautiful new outfit, Raphtalia entered the living room.

At this moment, Li Wei was sitting on the sofa, flipping through a copy of the Naruto manga. Li Wei had also thought about going to the Naruto world to collect votes in the future, so he was starting to do his homework now as a preparation for the future.

Li Wei saw Raphtalia in her new clothes and nodded. The fresh Lolita dress paired with animal ears was incredibly cute. If this were in the real world, a hardcore otaku would probably have a heart attack on the spot.

"My lady, what should we do next?" Raphtalia asked.

Li Wei sat on the sofa and said, "You don't need to do anything. This is your free time. As long as you don't leave here, you can do whatever you want. We are currently in the royal palace of the Kingdom of Merlomark. If you go out alone, you will easily run into trouble with the guards."

Raphtalia nodded. She hadn't expected that she was now in the kingdom's palace. Her new master was far more powerful than she had imagined. Someone who could stay in such a luxurious room must be a distinguished guest of the king.

Li Wei observed Raphtalia. Raphtalia's current petite state was enough to drive any lolita-loving otaku crazy, especially with the pink and white short Lolita dress that accentuated her cuteness. The small ears on her head and the tail wagging behind her revealed the charm of a beast-eared girl without reservation.

Raphtalia nodded, quickly pushed open the balcony door, and stepped onto the balcony, the highest point of the palace, offering a panoramic view of most of the city. She also saw the slave market where she had previously been—a massive, circular tent-like structure, its bricks and tiles piled up, quite conspicuous.

Raphtalia could hardly believe that she was actually in the royal palace.

The feeling of suddenly jumping from hell to heaven felt unreal to her; such dramatic ups and downs in fate were something even legendary tales wouldn't dare to fabricate.

Just as she was gazing blankly at the distant scenery, Li Wei's voice came from behind her.

"Oh, by the way, there's a banquet tonight, a celebration hosted by the King. Let's go then."

Raphtalia turned around and said in surprise, "Can a slave like me really attend a banquet?"

“I’ve already told you, you’re not a slave, you’re my companion. Is the king so great? The banquets the king hosts are no different from any other banquets,” Li Wei said.

Raphtalia couldn't agree with Li Wei's explanation. Unlike Li Wei, an outsider, as a native of this planet, she was used to the hierarchical system of this era. Although there were relatively advanced countries on this planet, some of which had even begun the Industrial Revolution, Merlomark was still in the late stage of feudalism. The entire society was divided into several classes, and as a demi-human and a slave, she was at the very bottom of all classes.

··· ·Requesting flowers···· ·

“Companions…” Raphtalia looked outside, recalling her life in the village. The village was affected by the wave, and a large number of monsters easily broke through the village’s defenses.

The village is located by the sea, in what can be considered one of the kingdom's most border regions. It was originally a paradise for the demi-humans, and apart from the annual tax payments to the kingdom, the kingdom did not interfere with their lives.

... . ...

However, the kingdom had no troops stationed there, so the villagers had no time to react to the monster attack. In addition, the monster invasion occurred at dusk, when most people had already returned home, and there were almost no guards around the village. As a result, the village was almost completely wiped out in that wave.

Her parents fled with her, eventually reaching a cliff edge by the sea. In an effort to save her life and give her a chance to survive, her parents fought the three-headed dog with their bare hands, while she fell off the cliff.

A cold wind blew by, and Raphtalia hugged her shoulders. Her Lolita dress, which was protected by magic, was extremely warm. The cold she felt was more of a psychological effect. Every time she recalled the scene of her parents' death, a bone-chilling cold would surge from the depths of her body.

A large hand pressed down on her head, and a gentle voice sounded from behind her.

“I can feel your fear, although I don’t know exactly what you’re afraid of. But no matter what happens to you, I’ll be your strong support,” Li Wei said with a smile.

Li Wei really enjoyed rubbing Raphtalia; the fluffy feel was like touching a plush toy, very comfortable. She was a cute little girl with animal ears, but once she started leveling up, the mountains quickly disappeared from sight.

Chapter 4. The Dinner

As night fell, Li Wei led Raphtalia out of the room, where a court lady was already waiting at the door.

The female official bowed slightly to Li Wei and said, "My lord, the banquet has begun. Please follow me."

The two followed the lady-in-waiting and spent some time before arriving at the spacious banquet hall. The kingdom's palace was a massive castle, and thanks to its spacious interior and the lighting provided by magic, it was not as dark as other castles.

The banquet hall was now lavishly decorated, with numerous round tables arranged neatly, laden with a variety of exquisite dishes. Elegantly dressed nobles had formed small groups, chatting about things that interested them. Meanwhile, a band was playing lively music on the side of the hall.

Raphtalia was very uncomfortable with this scene, and she instinctively grabbed Levi's clothes.

Ottocre's attitude toward Li Wei was very complicated. He didn't want to fall out with Li Wei yet, but he also didn't want to have any connection with him. So, although he invited Li Wei to the banquet, he didn't let Li Wei go on stage to introduce him separately.

However, this is, after all, the territory of the Three Heroes. Unless Ottocre has lost his mind, he won't single out Livy for introduction. After all, too many of his nobles are followers of the Three Heroes. If he shows goodwill towards Livy, the Three Heroes will definitely gossip, which would be very detrimental to his rule.

However, Li Wei was happy with this arrangement. He had never intended to deal with Otto Cree, and the other party's cold treatment suited him perfectly.

Levi said to Raphtalia, "I took you to a restaurant today, but some savages ruined it. Now you can have a proper meal."

A balcony was located to the side of the banquet hall, connected to the hall by several large doors. Watching Raphtalia carrying a plate to get food, Levi walked towards the balcony.

Just then, a young woman in bright red blocked Li Wei's way. She had a beautiful face, a voluptuous and tall figure, and was dressed in a well-fitting white evening gown, making her quite dazzling.

However, Li Wei had no interest in her whatsoever.

Because this beautiful woman in an evening gown is none other than Maddie S. Melomark, the princess of the kingdom who set up the honey trap for Naofumi Iwatani, and one of the biggest villains in the original work.

You could say this is a venomous snake in human skin, capable of anything for its own ambition, even harming its own family.

Li Wei felt that he was already a representative of evil, after all, he had done many bad things. However, he would not harbor evil intentions towards his family. In this respect, Li Wei felt that he was far superior to the venomous snake in front of him.

“Hero, it’s a pleasure to meet you here. May I offer you a drink?” Maddie said with an innocent smile.

"Excuse me, I don't drink. Please excuse me." Li Wei didn't want to get involved with McGrady at this time, not because he was afraid of trouble, but simply because he felt disgusted.

Li Wei doesn't hate evil people; after all, everyone has their own way of living, and one shouldn't advise others to be good without experiencing their suffering. But even evil people have their bottom line. Even a world-destroying demon like Li Wei values ​​his family very much.

However, in order to seize the throne, Maddie first attempted to assassinate her sister Melty, and when the assassination failed, she framed Naofumi Iwatani for the incident. Later, she also caused the death of her mother, Queen Mirelia.

Li Wei felt a deep disgust for someone who would even harm his own family, but he simply didn't show it.

"Oh? That's a real shame. But it's alright if you don't have a habit of drinking alcohol, as the banquet will offer a variety of fruit juices," Maddie said.

Maddie looked at Levi, suppressing her greed. Her purpose in approaching Levi was very simple: to become his teammate... Following a strong person like Levi, it wouldn't be difficult to rise to the top. Moreover, with Levi's strength, defeating the Tide was only a matter of time. Regardless of whether Levi stayed or left after defeating the Tide, she would reap huge benefits.

With the help of Levi, she even dared to fight her own sister Melty for the throne of the kingdom.

"Sorry, I'm not in the mood for chatting right now," Li Wei said.

"Is it because of the King?" McGrady asked.

“Why would you think that?” Li Wei said.

Maddie smiled and said, "The king had no choice in that situation; he couldn't back down. He didn't want to offend the Shield Hero because of this issue. For some reason, this country is very unfriendly to the Shield Hero. I hope you can understand, sir."

Although Li Wei knew why this country rejected the Shield Hero, he still pretended to be curious and said, "Can you tell me why?"

Maddie laughed, "As you wish. That happened hundreds of years ago, before the kingdom was even established. At that time, the Tide struck. The vast Assex Empire crumbled due to the Tide's attack. In this chaotic world, desperate people summoned the Four Holy Warriors. The three warriors—the Spear, the Sword, and the Bow—protected humanity and stood on the side of humankind. After the Tide subsided, the Kingdom of Merlomark was established, and the Three Heroes Cult, which worshipped the three warriors, became the kingdom's state religion."

Seeing the curious expression on Levi's face, Maddie continued, "That year's Shield Hero chose to protect the demi-humans and helped them establish their own country. In people's eyes, the Shield Hero betrayed humanity, so he's not popular here. People consider him a traitor, so every subsequent Shield Hero is a natural enemy to the people of this country."

Chapter 4. McGrady's Scheme

Li Wei laughed and said, "In other words, I've been made a scapegoat for my senior."

Maddie nodded and said, "That's the truth. Even though the Shield Heroes of later generations performed exceptionally well and successfully repelled the wave, the people of this country still instinctively harbor hostility towards the Shield Heroes. I suppose that's a flaw in this country."

Li Wei said, "This kind of thing doesn't matter. I didn't come here to save people. My purpose here is just to buy time. Whether I fight the waves or protect ordinary people, these things are not important to me."

McGrady said, "So, you mean, just go with your gut feeling?"

Li Wei said, "That's about right, that's the gist of it. This world is quite backward compared to the world I live in. In my world, it's rare to see such classical scenery. This trip is like a vacation for me."

Maddie knew that Levi was capable of saying such things. The massive golden fleet in the throne room had shown her what true power was. It was normal for a monarch who commanded an entire fleet to have such a mindset.

Her goal was simple: to use the hero's power to seize more power for herself. Who the hero was was irrelevant to her. All she wanted to do was cling to the strongest patron. To achieve this, she would use her superb acting skills to constantly adjust her outward personality to ensure that she wouldn't be disliked by the hero.

But Maddie didn't know that Levi had read the original story and knew very well what kind of person she was. No matter how superb her acting skills were, they were useless to Levi.

She was unaware that she was a pretty good target for Li Wei to rack up points, just like her father, who hated the Shield Hero—both were just tools.

Li Wei saw Raphtalia walking towards him and said, "Excuse me, my companion is coming."

McGrady quickly replied, "My name is McGrady. If you need any help, you can come to me anytime."

Li Wei nodded and walked towards Raphtalia's direction.

McGrady knew that Levi's personality was something she could only appease, and she was quite experienced in how to be a sycophant.

There are always a few people around a king who are not very capable but are very good at flattering him, and the king often tolerates such people staying by his side.

She didn't believe that Li Wei disliked flattery and that she could abandon her bottom line if necessary. How many other people could do that? That's why she was confident in herself and felt that she could stay by Li Wei's side.

Of course, if a hero stronger than Li Wei were to appear, she would immediately abandon Li Wei and join the ranks of the stronger hero.

Li Wei saw Raphtalia carrying a large plate. At the banquet, although the nobles looked at Raphtalia with disdain and disgust, their self-cultivation prevented them from expressing their attitude openly.

Raphtalia approached Levi and said with a smile, "My lord, because of me, you missed lunch, so I took some extra. Would you like to eat with me?"

“Of course, but I don’t like the environment here. Let’s go to the balcony.” Levi chuckled, ruffling Raphtalia’s hair.

"Mmm!" Raphtalia's fluffy tail swayed rapidly.

The balcony was much quieter; apart from a few nobles enjoying the night view in the distance, there were no other people in sight.

There were no tables and chairs on the huge balcony. Li Wei snapped his fingers, and a set of unassuming wooden tables and chairs appeared near the railing. He took the plates from Raphtalia and placed everything on them.

Raphtalia hopped onto the chair. Still with her short legs, using adult-sized furniture was a little inconvenient for her.

Just as the two sat down, a court lady carrying a tray walked over and placed two glasses of juice on the table.

The lady-in-waiting put away the tray and said softly, "Hero, please be wary of that woman named Maddie. She is not someone to be trifled with."

Li Wei looked at the palace lady and asked, "Who are you?"

The court lady bowed slightly and said, "I'm sorry, it's not the time to reveal my identity yet, but please believe me, I have no ill intentions towards the Hero. This country has a strong aversion to the Shield Hero, and irrational people are easily manipulated by those with ulterior motives. I hope you can understand, Hero."

Li Wei said, "That woman named McGrady already explained the reason to me. I know that many people in this country are hostile towards me. But what does that have to do with me?"

Li Wei's words surprised the court lady. She could sense Li Wei's attitude—his indifference to outside opinions—which was a dangerous double-edged sword for the kingdom at present.

The court lady said, "This concerns you, my hero. Whether you can return to your own world is something we hope you will take seriously."

Li Wei smiled and said, "Explain it to me."

The court lady said, "After repelling the tide, you, hero, have the right to return to your own world. You can choose to return to your own world or stay in this world; it all depends on your choice."

Li Wei said, "Today I spent some time studying the shield and unearthed some information related to the Four Holy Warriors. I already know what you're talking about. I also know that the Four Holy Warriors are, to some extent, all in the same boat. If any of the four are injured or killed, in order to summon a new batch of warriors, all of the current warriors must die."