Jobless Reincarnation: The King with a Mental Problem

The carriage traveled along the main road for about half a day.

Emily remained huddled in the corner, clutching her cloth bag, her chin resting on it, her eyes fixed on the rapidly receding fields outside the window.

Luo Qixi finished flipping through the task list, then flipped through it again. Finally, finding nothing worth reading, she closed her eyes to rest.

I leaned against the carriage wall, arms crossed, eyes half-open and half-closed—neither asleep nor fully awake, let's call it "the Shadow King's shallow meditation."

Then, I heard a very soft sigh.

It wasn't the kind of helplessness that Luo Qixi felt, like, "Sigh, this child has had another episode."

It's a different kind—like something slowly rising from a very, very deep place.

I opened my eyes slightly.

Emily took something out of the cloth bag.

It was a small portrait. The size of a palm, the border was badly worn, and there were traces of water on the corners. The painting depicted a young woman with brown hair and gray-blue eyes—somewhat similar to Emily, but with softer lines, and a faint smile on her lips.

Emily stared at the portrait, her fingers gently tracing the border.

"...This is my mother." She suddenly spoke, her voice much softer than usual, as if afraid of disturbing something.

Luo Qixi opened her eyes but did not speak.

"The only keepsake." Emily turned the portrait over; on the back was a small, yellowed piece of paper with faded words written on it: "To Emily—Mom loves you."

Her voice didn't tremble when she read those words aloud. But the knuckles of her fingers holding the portrait turned white.

"Do you know what's the most ridiculous thing?" Emily looked up, her grey-blue eyes fixed on the woman in the portrait. "She abandoned me at the orphanage gate and never came back."

The carriage was silent for a moment.

"Perhaps she has her reasons—" Luo Qixi said softly.

"A reason?" Emily interrupted her, her voice sharp. "What reason could leave a newborn baby in a strange place? What reason could allow a child to grow up without ever hearing a single 'Mommy' from anyone?"

She turned the portrait over again and looked at the smiling face.

"Sometimes I wonder if she never wanted me at all. Or—I wasn't even her biological child. She just picked me up and dumped me at the orphanage gate, as if... I had never been a burden."

"Emily..." Loki's voice was a little tight.

"Never mind." Emily stuffed the portrait back into the cloth bag, patted it hard as if she were pressing something down, "You wouldn't understand. You have families, parents, younger brothers and sisters—how could you possibly understand?"

Luo Qixi glanced at me subconsciously.

There was worry in her eyes—was she afraid that her words would hurt me?

I closed my eyes.

Do I not understand?

I truly do not understand.

But so what?

I, the king, have no need to grieve over things I never had.

It's enough to just protect what you have.

"Trevor..." Loki called out tentatively.

"Hmm," I responded calmly, without even opening my eyes. "I am meditating. Searching for the secrets hidden deep within the abyss."

Luo Qixi was silent for a moment, then sighed softly.

Emily glanced at me, her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but she ultimately kept them closed.

The carriage continued forward.

I heard the sound of the wind, the sound of wheels, and the sound of farmers calling to their livestock from the distant field ridges.

—Why are there so many god-like parents in this world...?

If I were to truly rule the world, I would make it so that even becoming a parent would require a test.

It took about half a day to walk.

Emily didn't say anything more. Loki didn't look at the task list anymore either, but just leaned against the window, looking at the scenery outside, occasionally glancing back at me—her eyes still held a trace of worry, as if to make sure I was really alright.

I'm really fine.

Rather, I'm currently working out an improved version of the next spell during my "Shadow Lord's Shallow Meditation." The control of carbon dioxide concentration can be made even more precise; if only wind magic could create a localized high-concentration area around the enemy without it spreading…

There seems to be something going on up ahead.

Luo Qixi's voice interrupted my train of thought.

I opened my eyes and looked in the direction she was looking.

The road ahead was blocked by a fallen tree. The trunk lay across the middle of the road, and the branches and leaves were not yet completely withered—as if it had just been cut down.

The road was lined with dense bushes, making it almost too quiet.

coming.

"Stop the car," I said to the driver.

The carriage slowly came to a stop.

"What's wrong?" Emily looked up from the cloth bag, staring warily ahead.

"We have a guest." I took out EA from my waist, but didn't draw my sword. I just placed the sheathed short sword across my knee. "Witch, it's up to you."

Luo Qixi glanced at me, seemed to understand something, and nodded.

She stepped out of the carriage and stood next to the driver, gently tapping the ground with her staff.

"Come out." Her voice wasn't loud, but it was clear. "Aren't you ashamed to hide like this?"

There was a moment of silence in the bushes.

Then, seven or eight men emerged from both sides of the road.

They wore tattered leather armor and carried short swords, axes, and even a rusty sickle. The leader was a man with a large beard and a scar running diagonally from his forehead to his chin; he carried a chipped longsword.

"Oh, you're quite clever." The bearded man grinned, revealing a set of yellow teeth. "Now that you know what we do, it'll save you trouble—hand over all your valuables, leave the carriage, and you can go."

He glanced at Loki, then at Emily and me in the carriage, his gaze lingering on us for two seconds before he smiled.

"With kids? Tsk, this deal is a loss."

Loki didn't answer. She simply raised her staff.

"—Water shot."

There was no chanting, no superfluous movements.

Dozens of water droplets, each the size of a fingertip, shot from her staff, raining down on the bandits. Not with the force of hitting a child, the droplets pierced through muscle, splattering blood.

"Rapid cooling!"

The two spells were cast almost alternately, causing the water bullets to freeze and spread rapidly within the body.

"A magician?"

"To judge sinners with a valiant ice sword—Frostblade."

Loki's smooth combo never stopped. First, she used a wide-range water shot to repel the enemy, then she used ice magic to control them, and finally she used her specialty intermediate magic to finish them off.

Now, even though Loki's basic magic can't be cast without incantation, it's almost there, and with skillful coordination, it's quite practical.

"Retreat!" The bearded man turned around decisively, attempting to escape with his men.

Luo Qixi chased after them relentlessly. Because they were running away with their backs to Luo Qixi, most of them died without resistance, but some still managed to escape.

After a short while, both sides of the road became quiet again.

Luo Qixi put away her staff and turned to look at me.

"You seem to have a lot of free time."

"I am observing," I said calmly. "Observing your spellcasting accuracy, casting speed, and intimidation effect on the enemy. Overall rating—Excellent."

"Some people still managed to escape. If it was just a probe, our intelligence would have already been leaked."

"It doesn't matter, it saves us from having to test them again with the next group." I closed my eyes. "Wang will take action then."

Luo Qixi sighed and sat back in the carriage.

Emily remained huddled in the corner the entire time, clutching the cloth bag tightly with both hands, her eyes wide open. Only when the carriage started moving again did she slowly loosen her grip.

She looked at Luo Qixi, then at me.

"You—" she pointed at Luo Qixi, "are amazing."

"Thank you." Luo Qixi smiled.

Then she looked at me and pursed her lips.

"And you? You sat there the whole time, without moving an inch—did I hire you to just sit around and do nothing?"

"I, the king, am in charge of overall coordination." I crossed my arms. "You wouldn't understand strategic matters."

I don't think you're brave enough.

"..."

Luo Qixi coughed lightly beside her, seemingly trying to suppress a laugh.

The carriage continued westward.

Two days later

The next two days were uneventful.

There were no robbers, no bandits, not even trees blocking the road. The road was in exceptionally good condition, and the weather was exceptionally good too—the sun was shining brightly, a gentle breeze was blowing, the fields were filled with golden waves of wheat, and occasionally a few wild rabbits could be seen darting across the roadside.

If it weren't for the subtle low pressure permeating the carriage, this journey could easily be described as "pleasant".

Emily was still huddled in the corner, clutching her cloth bag. But her gaze shifted from the window to me—not out of curiosity, but out of scrutiny. A look that seemed to ask, "What use are you anyway?"

Loki tried to ease the tension.

"Trevor, did you encounter any robbers when you were a child?"

"no."

"When was your first battle?"

"A few days ago. With my father."

"And the result?"

"I have won."

"How did you win?"

"Use the wisdom of shadows."

Emily snorted coldly from the side.

Luo Qixi changed the subject again.

"Trevor, how exactly did you do that 'Shadow Breath'? I still can't figure out the trick."

"The key is to find the right components in the air, which are produced by burning flames and breathing. Then, use wind magic to generate them in large quantities and gather them, settling them in lower places."

"But how do you know that gas can cause someone to faint?"

"Use rats from the field for experiments."

"So it wasn't Rudy who was used for the experiment."

"No matter what, it's a matter of life and death. There are a bunch of rats in the field, but you only have one stupid younger brother."

Moreover, I have a grudge against rats.

The carriage was silent for a moment.

"...Then why did you scare him? You're such a good brother." Luo Qixi's expression was complicated.

"I simply feel that rather than letting him be plotted against in the future, it's better to let him experience the dangers of the world beforehand," I said without changing my expression. "It's education."

Emily finally couldn't hold back anymore.

"Can you two be quiet for a second?" She buried her face in the cloth bag, her voice muffled. "I want to sleep."

Luo Qixi glanced at me and then shut her mouth.

I was happy to have some peace and quiet, so I closed my eyes and continued meditating.

[The second day, evening, in a major city]

Two days later, we arrived in a not-too-small city before sunset.

"We'll spend the night here." Loki glanced at the mission list. "We'll set off again first thing tomorrow morning. It'll be three more days until we reach Donadi Territory."

The carriage stopped in front of an inn.

The hotel wasn't large, but it was more spacious than the previous one, "Sleeping Deer." The lobby was brightly lit, and the air was filled with the aroma of barbecue and ale.

Luo Qixi went to the counter and asked for three rooms.

Seriously, can't we just live together?

The landlady glanced at us, her gaze lingering for a moment on Emily's shabby attire, then nodded and took three keys from the wall.

"Turn left upstairs, those are the three adjacent rooms."

Loki handed one key to Emily, one to me, and kept one for herself.

"Trevor, you'll stay in the middle room. I'll be on the left, and Emily will be on the right. Just knock if you need anything."

"I do not need protection."

"It's not to protect you," Luo Qixi said expressionlessly, "it's because I'm afraid you'll sneak out in the middle of the night."

"Then why don't you live together?"

"Hehe... Yeah? Why is that?"

Yeah? Why is that?

Emily watched us bickering from the side, and the corner of her mouth twitched slightly—the curve was somewhere between "speechless" and "wanting to laugh".

Yes, there's been progress.

At least he didn't have a sour face the whole time.

I took the key, went upstairs, and entered my room.

The room was small, with a single bed, a table, and a chair. The window faced east, offering a view of the flags fluttering on the distant city walls.

He put his bag on the bed and took out the cookies that Senis had baked—just a few left.

Eat sparingly.

Once you finish eating, there won't be any more to eat...