"Ladies and gentlemen, we have a major issue."

Entering the room in a whirlwind, Tiran locked the door behind him and addressed Mimi and the others in the room with a serious expression.

Being a military fortress, the living area was quite limited due to maximizing the space for military facilities. The room where Mimi and others resided was originally an officer's quarters, a standard four-person room with four beds placed against the walls on both sides, each separated by a metal cabinet, reminding Tiran of his college dorm room.

By ordinary standards, the room was considered quite good, clean, and tidy. However, it might not be suitable for those accustomed to a lavish lifestyle. Fortunately, the people here were not very particular about their living quarters.

The four-person room housed exactly four people - Mimi, Li, Shuma, and a little Chirp. Mo Yi and Zhi Lan knew that Xiang Ling had returned to Yanmen Pass and had gone to find her immediately, while the others were still in the room.

"Your Highness? What brings you here?"

"Enough talk, I'll be staying here from now on."

The princess's expression was complex, even a Northeastern accent slipped out. Xiang Ling wouldn't dare stay at the place she was in previously after her earlier display of dominance. Just a small misstep and she might find someone else in her bed at night...

The most frustrating part was that she couldn't resist at all. After all, Xiang Ling was a true Holy Rank, unlike her, a fake who could only use the rules with the help of mental strength.

"What happened?" Mimi asked puzzled. She had never seen the princess show such an expression, almost like... the wise state Aya displayed after being teased by the princess?

Yes, that was the feeling.

"Mimi, listen to me..."

After Tiran finished explaining what happened, everyone in the room fell into a brief silence. The situation seemed both too exhausting to comment on and yet amusing at the same time.

"Little Tiran, why don't you just marry her, after all, it's for Milanía," Liecho couldn't help but interject, looking up from his book. "General Ling actually has a point. We don't know what's happening with King Granzon and the domestic situation, Brad is no saint either. He's definitely planning something during Maston's invasion, and it's crucial for us to maintain good relations with Western Empire Chu."

"Well... though I hate to say it, logically speaking, Your Highness marrying the princess of West Chu is actually a pretty good choice," added Shuma, who had been listening quietly before.

The only one clearly against it was Miss Mimi. What a joke! She was already competing with the maid captain for the princess's affections, and now there was this Elf and a certain dragon. After finally setting out with the princess, they encountered someone like this? And now, she wanted to propose to the princess? How could she possibly agree to such a thing!

"Chirp? Is daddy going to marry someone else?"

Chirp's ears twitched with curiosity and asked.

"Yes, little Chirp, someone wants to break up your parents. Can you agree to that?" Mimi quickly tried to persuade Chirp. Well, as much as she didn't want to benefit Aya, it was still better than the unknown princess from a foreign country!

"Chirp?!"

The furry tail immediately stood up, Chirp widened her eyes and looked at Tiran, filled with surprise and caution. "Daddy, don't kidding, right?"

"Of course not." Tiran immediately said firmly. She hadn't forgotten the purpose of her trip to East Land, and suddenly felt something was wrong. "Wait a minute, when did I say I want to get married! Li!"

Turning her head abruptly to glare at the culprit who brought up this topic, Li closed the book, opened his hands innocently and said, "I was just making a suggestion based on the situation...Well, since it's two to two now, shall we invite the mercenary leader to cast the deciding vote?"

"So, you were just playing around, huh? Don't treat my lifelong decision as a joke!"

Tiran felt frustrated. She truly didn't know how to handle Li's type—always serious on the surface but sneaky enough to set traps, a kind of subtle scheming.

The dormitory was filled with noise, yet no one seemed to find any problem with the idea of girls marrying girls once you removed all the political, emotional, or simply physical desires factors.

...Something is definitely not quite right with this world.

...

"Achoo!"

Aya suddenly sneezed, touched her nose, then glanced at the girl lying on the bed beside her. Jojo lay quietly under the blanket, immersed in a deep slumber, or perhaps just unconscious from being knocked out by the old wolf.

The place Aya was in now was completely different from the scenes in the slums before. A clean room, sunlight shining through the window onto Jojo's face, her fair skin almost translucent, long eyelashes trembling slightly with each breath.

She looks quite cute when she's not running around summoning her stand to punch people.

Aya thought to herself.

This place was the medical room of the guard camp. After taking down everyone in the martial arts school, including the old wolf and his henchmen, Aya brought the unconscious Jojo here. It's not like Aya suddenly remembered the way, but shortly after the fight, a team of guard soldiers appeared out of nowhere.

But considering the commotion caused and the fact that the old wolf's influence had long been under the watch of the guards due to his connections within the regular army and the somewhat orderly presence he maintained in the lawless zone of the slums, the guards had turned a blind eye.

However, now that the old wolf was in trouble, there was no reason for the guards to let him off the hook.

This guy was always ruthless and cautious by nature. The current predicament he found himself in was most likely due to provoking some incredibly skilled individual, perhaps even a cultivator.

- With such preparation in mind, the guard soldiers were still shocked when they entered the martial arts school and saw the white-haired girl holding the last henchman of the old wolf and throwing him against the wall (chaos).

In such a big martial arts school, except for the white-haired girl, everyone else was lying down. Besides her, nobody else could have taken down the old wolf and his lackeys.

However, while it was one thing to thank her for defeating the old wolf, the rules still had to be followed. According to the standard procedure of the guard army, Aya would have to be put in prison along with a group of injured people and wait for the outcome of the investigation.

Luckily, the military officer of the guard camp to which this team of guard soldiers belonged was actually a former translation officer under the current Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Empire—an interpreter who had studied the Western Barbarian common language at the Gaixia Academy, achieved great success in the Foreign Ministry, and abruptly resigned to become a military officer, crossing all boundaries without looking back.

Ahem, that was a digression. Anyway, the officer instantly recognized Jojo, who was being held by Aya, which spared Aya from being questioned. She could now take Miss Jojo directly to the infirmary for treatment instead of being crammed into a cell with a bunch of wounded. As for her own identity, Aya casually claimed to be Miss Jojo's bodyguard, and after retelling Jojo's chivalrous deeds, the officer believed her story, showcasing quite an impressive level of intelligence.

Of course, criticisms aside, most of her account was true. Furthermore, the officer also sent someone to deliver a message to the foreign minister, killing two birds with one stone. Now all that was left was to wait for Jojo to wake up. Just as Aya was contemplating this, Jojo's eyelids twitched, slowly opening.

"Huh?"

Her lips parted slightly, emitting a soft sound of puzzlement. Her eyes, not quite accustomed to the sunlight after a long slumber, looked dazed.

"You're awake! The surgery was successful, and now you're officially a girl, oh wait, you were already a girl," Aya said, leaning on her chin from the chair beside the bed.

"Aya? Aya!" Seeing Aya, Jojo's memories before she lost consciousness came flooding back. "Old Wolf—"

"He beat you up, I beat him and his lackeys, and now we are at the guardhouse. Your father is on his way to take you home," Aya quickly recounted the events.

"Father?! Wait, I don't want to be taken back! Aya, let's elope!" Catching the keyword, Jojo tried to sit up but was promptly pushed down by Aya.

She seemed to be growing more and more like Miss Tiran, her thought process falling into the same eccentric category. Also, who said anything about eloping! This dragon is already taken!

Uh...maybe? Caught in Jojo's odd gaze, Aya suddenly covered her face and lowered her head, possibly hearing a couple of silly laughs.

"Ahem!"

Realizing her lapse, Aya quickly composed herself. "Lie still and don't move. Although the doctor said you're not in serious condition, there are still some abrasions and aftereffects of oxygen deprivation. Also, I've fulfilled my promise to you, so don't forget what you promised me."

"Oh, right, I almost forgot...hehe."

"Hehe my foot!"

"Wait, wait, don't hit my head! Aren't I still a patient? Trust me, I won't forget. I will tell my father."

"Good." Aya nodded satisfactorily, feeling a bit more relaxed.

Meanwhile, in the cell of the yamen, dozens of Old Wolf's henchmen, along with the man himself who was severely injured by Aya, huddled together with dejected expressions. Old Wolf lay on a pile of hay closest to the iron bars, staring blankly at the ceiling.

Within a single day, everything he had built over the years — his casino, martial arts school, underground human trafficking operation — had been easily destroyed by two young girls, especially that white-haired one, which was simply unthinkable.

The big families, the immortal path...those lofty figures could easily crush him, yet it was just a young girl on a whim to challenge him, ending up destroying everything he had.

"Damn...damn!"

Resentment turned into anger and frustration, almost causing Old Wolf to burst his eye sockets.

"Well, that looks pretty dire, Mr. Old Wolf."

Footsteps echoed outside the dim cell, accompanied by a voice Old Wolf recognized.