Shen Zhenyu groaned, his calm mask breaking at last as he winced. He Yuying was laughing too hard to even attempt helping, his shoulders shaking as he wheezed for breath. Song Meiyu ended up sprawled across Prince Lu's back, and the prince made a noise that was part scream, part sob, and entirely pitiful.
"Get. Off. Of. Me," he hissed, his voice muffled against the cold floor.
"I would," Song Meiyu chirped cheerfully, making no move to get off, "but you're surprisingly comfy for royalty."
Prince Lu's entire body vibrated with outrage. "I am not a pillow!"
Beside the pile of limbs, Linyue stood perfectly untouched by the chaos, her hands clasped neatly behind her back. She tilted her head slightly. "We still need the human ladder to go up."
Prince Lu twisted his neck as much as the pile on top of him allowed. His eyes blazed. "I'm a PRINCE! Not a human ladder!"
Before anyone could respond, a shadow stretched across the floor. From the gaping hole above, a head suddenly popped into view. The man's face was unreadable as he scanned the chaotic heap of people below. His eyes stopped on Prince Lu's furious glare.
"…Are you the weird group of troublemakers the Lord's looking for?" the man asked flatly.
Song Meiyu immediately shot upright, finger stabbing the air. "We're not troublemakers!"
Shen Zhenyu, still brushing dirt and unidentifiable stains from his robe, let out a quiet sigh. "We prefer the term survivors."
Prince Lu groaned again and buried his face in his arms. "I hate this. I hate all of you."
"Good," He Yuying said, patting him on the back with zero sympathy. "Save the hate for later. Time to climb."
The escape was not graceful.
Song Meiyu scrambled up first, kicking like a panicked cat, her braid smacking He Yuying in the face as she went.
"OW—watch the weaponized hair!" he hissed.
Linyue followed, calm as always, as if they weren't crawling out of a corpse-filled dungeon. Shen Zhenyu came next, landing lightly and immediately scanning for threats. Prince Lu made a dramatic show of pulling himself up, muttering about dignity and royal blood the entire way, only to lose his balance and tumble onto the floor with an undignified squeak. He Yuying brought up the rear with his usual laziness.
"Definitely troublemakers," the man decided, stepping neatly out of the way as the half-naked prince tumbled onto the floor.
Now back on solid ground—disheveled, dirt-streaked, and carrying the faint scent of underground misery—they faced the man.
He straightened, eyes sharp, voice brisk. "I'm General Shanjun," he said. "King Shu sent me to bring the princess and her group back safely."
"…I see," Linyue said, one brow lifting just enough to show she was thinking dangerous thoughts. Shu Mingye sent help? And for safety? That did not sound like him. In fact, it sounded suspicious.
"Let's hurry," Shanjun said, already turning on his heel. "Something urgent happened at the palace."
That got everyone's attention. Song Meiyu straightened so fast she almost tripped over her own feet. Shen Zhenyu's expression hardened. Prince Lu stopped groaning about the floor being too hard and actually sat up.
He Yuying, on the other hand, stretched like a cat, yawned, and said flatly, "Urgent sounds exhausting."
"Something urgent?" Linyue asked, her voice calm but sharp.
"Yes. Very urgent," Shanjun confirmed, meeting her gaze firmly.
Linyue turned to her group. Song Meiyu nodded instantly, face determined. Shen Zhenyu gave a firm, silent nod. He Yuying offered a one-shoulder shrug, which was probably his version of commitment.
Then Prince Lu's voice rang out, higher than usual. "Wait. Excuse me." He pointed at himself with both hands, looking offended. "Why are you all leaving me out of this?!"
Linyue turned to him with a smile that meant absolutely nothing good. "You have something more important to do here, Prince Lu."
Prince Lu blinked rapidly. "I do?"
"Of course," Linyue said, still smiling.
He yuying nodded. "Yes. Something heroic. Like… wearing a belt."
"I SAID STOP. TALKING. ABOUT. MY. PANTS!" Prince Lu's voice cracked halfway through his royal outburst.
He Yuying didn't even blink. "I know. That's why I said belt."
"Ohhh," Song Meiyu said suddenly, clapping her hands together. "We're finally doing that, aren't we?"
"Yes," Shen Zhenyu said with a perfectly serious nod. "It's for the best."
Prince Lu frowned, glancing from one face to the next. "Wait. What do you mean by that?"
Linyue's voice was calm, almost gentle. "Something that involves… a lot of heat."
Prince Lu's eyes lit up at once. He straightened his back, puffed out his chest, and declared, "Ah! So we're doing THAT! Excellent! Finally, a task worthy of my status!"
From behind him, Shen Zhenyu muttered just loud enough for the others to hear, "He's going to be so disappointed in about thirty seconds."
And that was that. No farewells. No explanations. And unfortunately, still not enough clothing, Prince Lu was officially left behind as the group moved on. His guards swarmed him instantly, looking as if they had been waiting for this exact disaster.
"Your Highness! What are your orders?" one of the guards shouted.
"Do we search the doll store again?" another asked hopefully.
"Or… maybe find you proper clothes first?"
"Your Highness, what about your pants?!"
"I'M FINE!" Prince Lu barked, clutching his pants. "Stop obsessing over my wardrobe!"
Meanwhile, Linyue and the others mounted the horses and rode out with Shanjun.
"Something attacked the palace," Shanjun said grimly over his shoulder. "King Shu is handling it, but there's damage. Heavy damage."
No one asked what kind of "something" it was. At this point, it could've been ghosts, a dragon, or an army of angry teapots, and not one of them would've blinked. When they arrived at the palace, Shanjun didn't waste a second. He took them straight to the training ground. And there it was again.
The smell of blood. The training ground was covered with bodies, the ground slick and red. Limbs were scattered in places limbs absolutely did not belong. Fresh blood ran down the walls in thick streams, as if the palace had decided to decorate itself in horror.
Song Meiyu clapped both hands over her nose. "Why is it dead bodies again? Are we cursed?"
He Yuying casually stepped over what might've been a spleen. "Are we sure we didn't walk into the wrong palace? Because this feels… extra, even for him."
Linyue's voice stayed calm as her gaze swept over the scene. "I knew it. This must be the Demon King's aesthetic preference."
Shen Zhenyu sighed and gave the three of them a long-suffering look. He didn't bother commenting. There was no point.
Meanwhile, Shanjun tried contacting someone through his spirit transmission jade. The one-sided conversation was less than inspiring:
"Yes, the princess is with me."
"Yes, I checked the training ground. It's… never mind. Just tell the Lord—"
"…No, I didn't ask about the bodies! Why would I ask about the bodies?!"
A long pause.
"Fine! We're checking the courtyard!"
He finally lowered the jade with a heavy sigh and gestured for them to follow. "Let's check the old courtyard. Maybe the situation is better there."
It was not better. The courtyard looked like it had survived an earthquake. Or more accurately, it had tried to survive an earthquake and failed miserably. A jagged crater sat in the middle of the ground, as if something huge had clawed its way up from below. Dirt and broken stone littered the area. The air stank of smoke, blood, and something else—burnt… something. And of course, there were more bodies. More limbs. It was starting to feel like a theme.
Song Meiyu whimpered into her hands. "I take it back. This isn't a curse. This is absolutely the Demon King's aesthetic preference."
He Yuying nodded, stepping over what might've been someone's ribs. "At this point, I'd be suspicious if we found a clean floor."
Shen Zhenyu frowned, his expression grim. "And if we do, it's probably a trap."
Linyue didn't say anything. Her sharp eyes scanned the courtyard—the torn earth, the charred edges, the faint whiff of something floral beneath all the blood and smoke. Then realization hit her.
"Is it… the fire blossom seeds we buried?" she asked.
Song Meiyu gasped, clutching Linyue's arm. "That's right! Sister Linyue, you told the Demon King about them, didn't you?"
Linyue nodded. "Mhm. Totally not on us."
Shen Zhenyu stared at them both. "How many did you plant?" He paused, then shook his head. "No. Forget it. I don't want to know."
They didn't have time to stand around and admire the chaos. Because that something whatever Shanjun had mentioned earlier, was right there. And it was not just one thing. It was many things.
Things that shouldn't be moving.