Leaning Over the Bathtub

"I've got my eye on his pet—" Leon Zane pointed at Cutie Pie.

Cutie Pie glanced at him.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Grace was momentarily confused by his words.

"Oh, forget it! Go wash up! You look just like a lump of coal!" Leon Zane waved her off.

Grace, still baffled, headed off to bathe.

Cutie Pie silently followed behind her.

Leon Zane nudged Bianca Whitefan, pointed at Cutie Pie, and mouthed two words: "Pervert."

......

Bianca Whitefan was an exceptionally meticulous person.

Seeing how dirty she was, Bianca Whitefan had already prepared two large basins of hot water in the bathroom.

Grace undressed, rinsed off the black soot from her body, washed her hair, and, now mostly clean, finally stepped into the large bath tub for a proper soak.

As soon as she got in, she discovered... Cutie Pie was sprawled on the edge of the tub, staring at her without blinking.

Grace felt strangely shy under its gaze, reached out to cover its head, and said, "Who let you in here!"

Cutie Pie was slippery and quick—slipping out of her grasp, it darted to the other side of the tub, as if making space for her.

"Hey! Get out!" Grace tried to shoo it away.

Cutie Pie shook its head.

"Hurry up and get out! You're a boy snake, you can't peek at me while I'm bathing!"

Cutie Pie still refused to leave.

"If you don't leave, I'm going to get mad!"

Cutie Pie finally hopped off the tub, leaving reluctantly and glancing back at her with every step.

Grace finally got into the tub and scrubbed herself clean, taking her time.

Cutie Pie left the bathroom and saw Leon Zane peeking in.

Seeing Cutie Pie come out, Leon Zane grinned wickedly. "Your Highness, you're really something! Becoming her spirit pet, you get to... openly... hahaha!"

Cutie Pie shot Leon Zane a cold look.

"Alright, alright! I won't say another word! Look at that glare... I'm going to bed! Suit yourselves!"

Grace finished her bath and came out; by then, the sun was up.

She took Cutie Pie and headed straight to the Prime Minister's Residence, where she ran into Minister Zhuo at the gate just as he was leaving for court.

She told Minister Zhuo about the mine incident.

Minister Zhuo perked up and immediately took Grace to the palace to see the Emperor.

The Sun Family is a prestigious clan, and the president of the Spirit Alliance. It would be best to let Emperor Colin Gu handle it directly.

Prime Minister, Grace? Why are you two coming to see me so early? Is something wrong?" Emperor Colin Gu asked curiously.

...Your Majesty, it's like this," Grace said. "I wanted to register for the Spirit Alliance Entrance Exam, but I was rejected."

"Are you here to ask me for help?" Emperor Colin Gu smiled.

"Yes!" Grace replied. "But not for myself."

"What do you mean?"

Please listen to me, Your Majesty," Grace said, exaggerating a little. "Sophie Sun tore up my registration form, and her father, Charles Sun, told me to remove everyone from Lucky Star and give him one night. Then he'd let me register."

"Oh? What does that mean?" Emperor Colin Gu was completely baffled.

"Exactly! I have no idea either. So I pretended to agree, then secretly followed them. Guess what I saw?"

"What did you see?"

"I saw him move hundreds of big boxes of mythril ore out of Lucky Star and transport them to a coal mine in North Mountain."

"Hundreds of boxes of mythril ore?" Emperor Colin Gu frowned. "How could there be so much mythril ore!"

Mythril ore is the main material for forging spirit weapons, and most of it is used to make military arms.

Hearing about hundreds of boxes of mythril ore, the first thing Emperor Colin Gu thought was: that's enough to arm several spirit cavalry units... What are they planning?