“You dare strike at me in public?! Kerlinveil Xuewei, are you trying to break the oath and spark a war?!” Edgar’s voice scraped across the window like rusty iron.

He still shook all over, teeth chattering like sleet on glass, after taking Xuewei’s iceflame head‑on.

“You really said that?” Xuewei laughed, breath like winter smoke. “If some halfwit hadn’t stirred the pot, would this meeting even exist?”

“I had my reasons! That girl, she—”

“Girl, my ass!” Her anger cracked like thunder. “You secretly moved the Duskmoon Empire’s troops to invade Starfate City, led the charge to break a no‑war pact of many nations…”

“And you attacked the continent’s most crucial academy. And you’re telling me it was because of a girl? Did that girl butcher your dear mother?”

“You!” Twice in a row, mother‑cursing blew Edgar’s temper like a furnace bellows.

He could only grind his teeth to dust and swallow it like gravel.

“If not for that girl’s identity, I wouldn’t have done this!” Edgar’s tone rang righteous, like a polished shield. “Do you know—the girl is—”

“Is she the old enemy who slaughtered your entire ancestral line? So you butchered small nations for revenge, making blood thralls. Next plan—massacre Starfate City?” Ling Xuewei propped her cheek on her hand, disdain sharp as a drawn blade.

Edgar flinched, almost blurting “yes,” then choking the word like smoke.

Seeing that, Bai Zhi couldn’t help laughing; that fool danced to my sister’s rhythm, words strangled, hats stacked on his head without him noticing. Duskmoon’s people didn’t lift a finger to help… so there’s a rift there.

Bai Zhi’s eyes narrowed, her smile a sliver of moon.

Humiliated to the bone, Edgar hit his breaking point. Today, he would spit it out, come hell or high water.

“The girl, she is—”

In the next heartbeat, something clamped his throat like a cold hand; not a single word would come.

It felt like a hell‑spawn’s gaze hooked into him. A chill ran from his brow to his heels. Ling Xuewei’s killing intent wasn’t even a tenth of this.

Pressure like this only crushes you face‑to‑face. Which meant… the monster sat inside this very room.

Edgar dry‑swallowed air.

He looked around. Quite a few were smothering laughs… everyone except Bai Zhi.

“Why… why are you laughing!” Shame flushed him scarlet; his roar beat like a cracked drum.

“No, I just remembered something happy,” the Beastkin shrine maiden said, wiping a smile off her lip like dew.

“Nope~ You misread, Mr. Bat~ I wasn’t laughing.” Kareya, dragon to the bone, didn’t bother being polite to an uncivil vampire.

“You were all laughing! And you weren’t even listening!”

“You’ll pay for this…! Especially you two…” Edgar shot a venomous glare at Xuewei and me, then slunk off like smoke.

Weird guy… why’d he bolt on his own like that…

“Ha. Mr. Game Meat… did you forget the point of this meeting? Think you can just walk away?” Ling Xuewei’s eyes narrowed, gaze a blade pinning his back.

Already strung tight as a bow, Edgar panicked at the word and burst into blood mist, fleeing like a hurricane. Even Xuewei had to admit his escape speed impressed.

The room sank into awkward silence, until two dukes of the Blood Clan rose to smooth the waters.

“We’re truly sorry for the trouble we’ve brought…” Duke Alfred Lauren’s smile was a bandage over a wound. “Duskmoon Empire is in a painful bind…”

“Everything’s a mess, and Her Majesty the Queen is missing. Please forgive today’s fiasco. We had no choice. Regarding the damage caused by that cur—by Duskmoon Empire—we dukes will do our best to compensate each nation.”

“As for the rest, it may have to wait until Her Majesty returns… or a new emperor is crowned. Sigh… This is top‑tier Heavenfragrance Blossom Brew. Please accept it.”

“We apologize for the shame.” The two Blood Clan dukes bowed, then set down dozens of bottles, glass glowing like moonlight.

Legend says Heavenfragrance Blossom Brew is among the world’s most exquisite wines; its aroma alone lifts you to clouds. Each top bottle costs millions of gold.

The blossoms grow only in the Duskmoon Empire, scarce as starlight, so other countries must pay heavy gold—and often still can’t buy a drop.

Offering dozens at once was a bleed‑out for the dukes. Clearly, they’d predicted the vampire’s tantrum and prepared the balm in advance.

Two venerable elders of the Blood Clan lowered themselves and apologized; sincerity rang like a clear bell. Even trouble‑loving Xuewei said nothing, just turned her face away in silence.

Her sidelong glance, though, kept drifting toward those rows of flower brew like a cat eyeing cream.

“If there’s nothing else, we’ll take our leave. Duskmoon Empire will send officials to visit and handle compensation. We old men shouldn’t keep embarrassing ourselves here, haha… Without Her Majesty, this meeting means little for us anyway.”

“Understood,” the Moon Elf delegate nodded, quiet as starlight.

Once the Blood Clan elders departed, the multination summit lost its lead actor. The leftovers were dry bread—strengthen cooperation, shared destiny of the continent, the usual talk—plus a few threads on economic ties.

One thing kept tugging at me: the Elf Clan seemed to have many branches missing. Only the Forest Elf representative and a general Elf representative had come. Where were the rest?

And among the strongest races—dragons, angels, demons… well, demons sent someone. The first two didn’t even bother sending a shadow.

Looks like the continent isn’t as peaceful as the painted surface.

Even when small, pitiful countries were erased like sandcastles, no one spared a glance.

…Will Her Majesty fix this once she returns, like dawn cutting through fog?

“By the way, Miss Xuewei, aren’t you going to introduce that little one by your side?” the shrine maiden asked, smiling with eyes like crescent moons.

“…What, you’re interested in my student?” Xuewei’s eyes narrowed, cold fire first, voice second. “She’s fourteen. Touch her, and you know the price.”

“The one thinking naughty thoughts is probably you, Miss Xuewei~ I just want to invite the little sister to the Beastkin capital to play~ She looks perfect shrine‑maiden material~”

“I’m going!” I shot both hands up before Xuewei could answer, heart popping like fireworks.

So many fox‑folk big sisters to cuddle—how is that not heaven! Damn, why didn’t I visit the Beastkin nation before! I’m mad! Right now, it’s pure fantasy—no, I refuse!

Whatever the shrine maiden said after that got steamrolled by my excitement—Qingsheng Tangxue doesn’t hear a thing when the fox‑girls shimmer in her mind.

“You idiot, what nonsense are you spouting!” Xuewei thumped my head, a sharp tap like a chopstick on a bowl.

“Hehe~ I’ll be waiting for you, little sister Qingsheng Tangxue~” the shrine maiden sang, her gaze soft as spring water.

Weird. She clearly knows my name, so why ask Xuewei to introduce me? That’s odd.