Chapter 48 - Protagonist: I wanted to do this a long time ago.
Chapter 48.1 – Protagonist: I wanted to do this a long time ago.
“Let me take care of this. The Prime Minister will not trouble you.” Jack winked at Xiu and Du Ze. “It’s payment for helping me get Vie back.”
Jack gave some instructions to Enoch, who then took a bottle from Vieruodis and sprinkled a liquid on the white flowers and blood. The ghastly assembly dissolved in a blink of an eye, leaving no trace of evidence for the two bodyguards.
Chapter 48.2 – Protagonist: I wanted to do this a long time ago.
Xiu and Du Ze went to the weapon contest registration area and Xiu filled out the form. Du Ze was a little concerned, for the Moe Master to participate in the weapon contest carries with it a certain risk: After the weapons contest, Princess Kelly asked Ulrich to kill the elf who humiliated her. Ulrich agreed because he wanted the weapon that Xiu made. The first War God did not fail. Xiu was forced to shift into his undead form to be able to shrug off death. This was the time when Ariel contributed her soul to save Xiu.
Therefore, when Xiu handed over his registration form, some silly, cute person suggested to Xiu: “Don’t do too good.”
Xiu seemed a little surprised. Du Ze continued: “Don’t place first, second place is better.”
In the novel, Xiu took second place and could take one item from the Light Empire’s treasury. Because of the protagonist’s halo, Xiu found an interspatial treasure that had an almost limitless storage capacity – this space was the perfect match for the Moe Lord.
Du Ze saw Xiu’s lips curve up slightly. Xiu stretched out his hand and stroked the back of Du Ze’s neck.
“I don’t want her.”
For a moment, Du Ze was too stunned to react since his words seem to have been ambiguous but when he looked at Xiu’s slightly upturned lips, the words wouldn’t come out.
The black haired young man hung his head slightly, like a cat with his fur flat.
(Translator’s note: A cat with his fur raised/puffing up is an angry or frightened cat. The opposite is when the fur is flat. That means the cat is relaxed and happy.)
The weapons contest was held in the middle of the month.1
In the preliminary round, experts weeded out the defective weapons and chose the higher quality items that would be allowed in the finals. Xiu brought a sword that he said was from the Gnome Ruins. Du Ze doesn’t know a thing about weapons so he can’t tell the good from the bad, but he thinks that the sword looked very elegant. As to what quality it was, Du Ze doesn’t know since Xiu said that it was not a very good experimental product, so it should not be a magical artifact.
The sword passed through the preliminaries without any suspense, and when they left with the sword, Du Ze could see the judge’s hands shaking and the shock on his face.
Du Ze tried to confirm it again with Xiu: “This sword is not good?”
Xiu nodded.
Some silly, cute person was immediately relieved.
The preliminary round of the weapons contest was held for three days. The final round was the highlight of the event and the Light Empire’s important guests would be watching it. In the finals, the contestants will take their weapons and display their capabilities, allowing the judges and guests to look at the final top three winners.
Du Ze sat in the auditorium while Xiu sat in the contestants’ area. Xiu drew the number 99 – there were 100 weapons in the finals so Xiu will be the second to the last to go up on the stage. Du Ze looked at the guests’ platform where the Emperor of the Light Empire has appeared. He had a red beard and on his right side was a middle-aged man with an aquiline nose – the first War God Ulrich. On the Emperor’s left side was a beautiful girl with curly red hair, Princess Kelly.
Of all the sisters, the one that hurt Du Ze’s heart the most is Princess Kelly. When Princess Kelly made her debut, the proud princess looked down upon all civilians. Xiu was recognized as a genius in the School of Magic and his fame surpassed that of Princess Kelly’s, so she would often bring a bunch of people with her to bully him. At that time Du Ze was still naïve. He just thought: ah this is just her way of flirting, Princess Kelly is just tsundere. He totally did not expect that she would repay kindness with ingratitude and do evil to someone who had been good to her. Because of her betrayal, Xiu never had a chance.
“… and now, please welcome the Son of God and the Holy Maiden.”
At that moment, Du Ze could not describe his feelings as, with an honor guard of knights, Eric and Vivian appeared. Du Ze finally got a glimpse of the novel’s female lead. She looked like a perfect girl. Both her appearance and temperament are so dazzling that it’s difficult for people to look at her directly since to gaze at her felt almost blasphemous. Eric walked beside her and, even in the light cast by Vivian, Eric did not look in any way inferior. The two people walked together and looked like the perfect couple.
Du Ze saw Xiu staring at Vivian at the VIP area and he thought: now we will know who has to give up all hope.
After the introduction of Eric and Vivian, the master of ceremonies announced the start of the weapons contest. One after the other, contestants showed off their weapons.
Beside Du Ze was a dwarf. Whenever a contestant took out a weapon, he always made a disdainful sound and the noble beside him would flatter him.
“Compared to your work, those weapons cannot be called weapons at all, they are just a pile of scrap metal.”
“Look, that knife can’t even cut the adamant,2 what trash!”
Adamant is the hardest rock in the Chaos Continent. Even a Sword Saint would find it difficult to break adamant. It is often used to evaluate weapons. When contestant number 96th went on stage, the dwarf stopped his disdainful grunts and stretched his neck up to see the demonstration.
“Shing!”
The silver-white sword was stuck in the stone, one-third of the way through. This is the best result of all the weapons so far and even Ulrich’s face showed a satisfied expression. Everyone can tell that, unless there is a big upset, this sword will win first place.
After number 96 finished his demonstration, the dwarf retracted his neck. Everyone could see that he was satisfied with the result but he still grunted and said coldly: “Your man’s strength was not enough to bring out its true power.”
The nobleman hastened to say: “True, true, the master’s sword should be able to cut through the adamant.”
Hearing other people praise his sword, the dwarf was very happy but when he saw the face of Du Ze, the dwarf suddenly became unhappy – the black-haired youth’s eyes were still indifferent. It was as if other people had laughed at a joke but one person’s reaction clearly showed that the joke is not really funny.
“Hey, what’s your number?”
The people seated in that area were related to the contestants so the dwarf asked which contestant he was related to. Du Ze was surprised that the dwarf was talking to him. Alas, some silly, cute person’s social barrier was just too strong so Du Ze just stared at the dwarf and his gaze wandered downwards – a good, thick beard, where is the mouth?
“Ignored” by Du Ze, the hot-tempered dwarf became irritated and was about to cause trouble when a commotion attracted his attention. The dwarf looked back at the stage and saw that a stunningly beautiful silver-haired elf was in the testing area.
The dwarf wanted to maintain his habitual cold, disdainful attitude but the snort he wanted to make was stuck in his throat and he opened his eyes wide. He stared disbelievingly at the sword that the elf held.
Too, too perfect – that’s simply God’s masterpiece!
Xiu pulled out the sword, pointed at at the adamant, and smoothly cut it. Everyone could see that the blade very easily cut into the rock, without resistance, like it was cutting a piece of tofu. Ulrich eyed the sword in Xiu’s hands, his eyes shining.
The audience watched as Xiu swung the sword with precision. The cut he made was one centimeter less than the previous highest record.
Everyone: …
Do you think you can hide the quality of the sword in your hand?
Du Ze can’t help but hide his face in his hands. The cheat has been discovered.3 This brother4 can be so brutal sometimes. Ulrich’s eyes narrowed dangerously when he saw Xiu pull out the sword at the end of the test.
“Elf, are you trying to deceive the Light Empire?”
The War God’s voice reverberated and many people covered their ears in pain. Xiu automatically looked for Du Ze and when he saw that Du Ze was fine, he retracted his gaze. He looked up at Ulrich and his normally cold voice was tinged with a faint displeasure: “I do not want first place.”
“Why?”
Xiu glanced above him at Princess Kelly. He didn’t care to remember anything and his eyes were ice-cold: “Too disgusting.”
The audience was in an uproar and Princess Kelly’s face became red. One after the other, people looked askance at her and she could not help but start crying. The emperor’s face also became ugly but before he could order an attack, Eric, in the VIP section, stood up. The blond son of the lord’s eyes were shining brightly as he looked at a particular place in the auditorium.
Vivian was a little surprised but after she and Eric exchanged a few words, the expression on her face also became that of pleasant surprise. As everyone watched, Eric walked down the VIP seating area and the Knights of the Temple of Light faithfully followed the Son of God.
Du Ze watched Eric lead a team of people to him. The Son of God of the Temple of Light went down on his knees, his voice full of piety.
“I’ve finally found you, Your Excellency, God’s Messenger.”5
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Eric is the Son of God of the Temple of Light. Has he been looking for Du Ze for himself or is it for the Temple of Light?
Or is it for .. the God of Light?
If it is a person, eliminate it; if it is a Temple, destroy it; if it is God, slaughter God.
– [black box]
********
Authors’ Note (spoilers):
This is the typical dog blood (crap) drama story with a happy ending. Those two will soon realize their true feelings.
“Vie and I will not appear in front of other people again. If possible, can you watch Enoch for me?” said Jack. “My stupid apprentice lacks common sense. From the time I picked him up, that guy has acted dumber than a bag of rocks and he doesn’t know right from wrong. Fortunately, he is very obedient so he is very suitable for you.”
Jack looked up at Xiu and his eyes seemed to see and understanding everything clearly. “You can use him as a pawn and regard him as a henchman. Do what you want with that fellow, I only have one request – don’t let that fool die.”
It is for this reason, that Enoch in the “Mixed Blood” novel can be said to be Xiu’s most effective younger brother. That rash brother and the Xiu that doesn’t differentiate between right and wrong were a perfect match. Even when Xiu ordered Enoch to do something wicked, the thief would not hesitate to do it. Enoch just stupidly followed Xiu’s anti-social, anti-society agenda … is it not delightful?1 Du Ze doesn’t know what to say – the thief might be the Moe Lord’s right-hand man, but still he feel like the other person is a pain in the ***.
Xiu didn’t speak but his indifferent expression clearly showed his rejection of this proposal and Jack shrugged.
“Well, for the sake of that guy’s life, I’ll keep him away from you.”
The Thief King made a meaningful remark and went to Vieruodis. Everyone watched Jack push Vieruodis’ wheelchair away. The two figures looked like a happy grandmother and grandchild, but the two of them didn’t’ care.
The next day, Du Ze’s wish was finally granted and he got back his doujinshi. Although it was sent back right under Xiu’s nose, Du Ze didn’t fear that the Moe Lord would discover that it was the little yellow (hardcore adult) book. Some cute person stared at the doujinshi which was locked up inside a small black box. The box was covered with numerous and intricate seals. In Du Ze’s imagination flashed the image of the son of god’s beautiful face changing colors as he locked the evil little book that was now inside the little black box.
Doujinshi: This is bondage play.
Du Ze stroked the doujinshi’s box as if it was a dog’s head and laughed silently: This is very suitable for you.
Now that he has the doujinshi, what should he do next?
Originally, at this time in the “Mixed Blood” novel, Xiu should have killed Darwin at the duel field. This angered the Prime Minister but he received the Emperor’s favor. This launched the third stage of the Star Empire story arc: the cute Master, with a lot of younger brothers and sisters, joined the Emperor’s faction. He helped the Emperor eliminate many rivals and was able to increase his favorability rating with the Emperor. When the Emperor of the Light Empire sent an invitation to a weapons contest, Xiu represented the little Emperor in the weapons contest and met many acquaintances in the Light Empire.
Princess Kelly, the son of god, and Saint Vivian.
Since the Star Empire story arc has been halved, then the next event will be “the Moe Lord goes to the weapons contest to meet his true love?”
This time, will Xiu refuse to go?
Du Ze was feeling a little lost. The person who sent over the doujinshi was not Enoch. It seems that the thief’s mentor really did forbid contact between him and Xiu. Whether it’s the sister, the mentor, or the younger brother, Xiu has rejected them all – that person simply wants to turn away everyone, leaving only two people in the world.
However, Xiu chose the wrong object.
I am not a person of this world.
Xiu turned his head and asked, “What did you just say?”
Du Ze’s mouth was still open but his voice was stuck in his throat and he couldn’t speak. This is not the first time he tried to confess everything to Xiu, but that invisible existence still forbids him from speaking the truth: The World is a novel; you are the protagonist and I am the reader.
And the invisible existence stopping him seems to be warning him: This world is a novel; you are the reader, not the protagonist.
It’s because of this kind of restriction and his 0-point restore that Du Ze always feels that he is an alien2 and that a mysterious existence was always watching his heretical presence and looking for opportunities to remove him.
“… Shall we go to the weapons contest?”
When he heard Du Ze’s words, Xiu’s first reaction was: “You want to see Eric?”
Some silly, cute person doesn’t know what expression he should make when he is talking about the rival that the Moe Lord remembers. He was just about to explain but Xiu didn’t wait for his answer before he said: “As it happens, I also want to.”
Son of the lord, this young man can see your death flag being planted.
Enoch said Eric has been looking for Du Ze, and Du Ze has been wondering about this: Why is Eric looking for him? He thought it over but couldn’t think of an answer. If he really wants to know, then he can only ask Eric why.
When they set out to go to the Light Empire, Du Ze found that he had a problem. Some silly, cute person looked at the little black box in his hand and fell into deep thought: If it’s a book then he can still put it under his armpit, but now should he get a backpack?
Xiu seemed to intuit Du Ze’s predicament. He walked over to Du Ze and said: “Give me your hand.”
Du Ze was perplexed. He extended a hand, which Xiu held, then he saw Xiu take out something from his pocket. It was a familiar-looking silver-white ring set with a blue crystal.
Wait, isn’t this the interspatial storage ring that they looted from the Flame Lord? Some silly, cute reader recalled, in order to properly guide Xiu on how to capture the demon sister twins, he reminded Xiu how to use the rings…
—— You can give this to the person you like.
Silly, cute Du Ze felt shocked as he watched Xiu put the ring on the palm of his right hand then draw a drop of blood from his fingertips. Xiu the dropped blood on the ring. A red and green light flashed. The green light was healing magic and the red light was the ring recognizing its master.
The elf licked the blood from his fingertip erotically. He picked up the ring on Du Ze’s hand, his green eyes full of bottomless feelings.
“I wanted to do this a long time ago.”
His finger was now tightly bound and his heart also felt as though it was squeezed.
Xiu not only drove away all his younger sisters, his mentor, and his younger brothers, but Du Ze replaced the younger sisters, mentor, and the younger brothers, stealing everybody’s role.
The Thief King said to Vieruodis: “We were born to be together.”
Du Ze looked at the ring on his finger and a sentence spontaneously emerged in his brain: The reader and protagonist definitely have to be in true love.
—— To go to the weapons contest so that Xiu can see the female lead Vivian, do you really want Xiu to give up all hope or to give up all hope yourself?3
The next day, the two men left the Star Empire and went to the Imperial City of the Light Empire.
The weapons competition is one of the high points of the “Mixed Blood” plot. In order to curry favor with the first War God Ulrich, the Empire of Light held a contest aimed at finding suitable weapons for the Sword Saints who had recently joined the Light Empire.
The Empire was wealthy and powerful. To attract more talented people to participate in the contest, the Empire made the contest prizes exceptionally generous.
[…
The first prize is marriage to Princess Kelly.
The second prize is the opportunity to choose a treasure from the Royal Treasure House.
The third prize is 5,000,000 gold coins.]
Du Ze and Xiu were standing in front of the weapons contest venue and looking at a bulletin board with the information about the contest.
There is no difference between the current rewards and the rewards he remembered from the novel. The prizes did attract a large number of weapons masters and even some of the reclusive mountain dwarves were disturbed by the noble and powerful families who made every effort to entice them to join as their representatives – if someone wins first place and marries Princess Kelly, then it’s likely that he will become the next Emperor of the Light Empire.
However, those who asked a dwarf master to represent them are totally out of luck this time. When it comes to forging weapons, the gnome is superior to the dwarf. In the novel, Xiu participated as a representative of the Star Empire. He changed into his gnome form and made a sword. Moe Master made an artifact so the sword stunned the whole audience. Xiu deservedly won first place but publicly rejected the first prize and chose to get the second prize instead. Princess Kelly was humiliated and wept.
The crazed fan said: “It’s so satisfying to see bad people’s faces slapped!”4