Stop Hypnotizing Me, Villainous Princess!

“Chapter 170: The Plot Deviation on First Descent”

Lynn stared blankly at the maid who was fleeing the scene in a panic.

Damn it, I knew it.

Of course, showing off had a bad ending, especially in front of Tia and the world’s will.

And just like that, karma hit like a truck.

Ignoring what might happen next, Lynn pinched his nose and crouched down, starting to search for clues left on the corpse.

From the marks on the ground, it was clear that the culprit was likely a fallen transcendent who worshipped “Tyranny” rather than a true demon.

To create such a scene without him noticing, that individual’s level probably wasn’t low.

Starting from Third Stage and going up, no limits.

Looking at the situation, it seemed the unlucky guy wearing the raven mask had been mistaken for Lynn.

Now that would make things interesting.

Having just returned to the Imperial Capital, someone was already monitoring him, even knowing about the mask he wore after getting off the carriage.

Aside from those hostile forces holding grudges against him, Lynn couldn’t think of anyone else who would want him dead.

So the suspects were narrowed down to the Mosgra Family, the Church of Heavenly Justice, and Sixth Saint Roland.

Among them, Sixth Saint Roland could be ruled out first.

Lynn knew very well that the current condition of his own body required the core of the sealed item inside him, along with the help of Creation Demon Uvilia.

Until he successfully obtained what he wanted, Sixth Saint Roland would want Lynn to live more than anyone else.

In some cases, this could even serve as his talisman.

Take that night in the Political Discussion Hall, where Lynn publicly killed Eunice; it was bound to provoke the emerging elite forces led by the Mosgra Family, and he should have been dead for sure.

But in the end, Sixth Saint Roland still shielded him.

Gotta give a thumbs up to my old man, cough cough, the old emperor.

Aside from Sixth Saint Roland, the remaining suspects were obviously the Church of Heavenly Justice and the Mosgra Family.

Going by hate levels, the top contender was undoubtedly the Mosgra Family.

Plus, this whole thing was a bit too sloppy.

Although Lynn thought everyone in the Mosgra Family besides Irina was a bunch of idiots, there’s no way Marquis Mosgra would stoop so low as to retaliate impulsively.

That would be like roasting his own family over a fire.

This passion-fueled revenge act was more something a woman would do with emotional thinking.

However, since Lynn didn’t understand the full story behind it, he didn’t want to guess further.

Additionally, he discovered something from the corpse.

Though the body parts were all cut up and arranged on the ground, Lynn looked closely and found that one arm was missing, leaving him curious about where it went.

That was about all he could gather from the corpse.

After a moment, he slowly stood up and offered a moment of silence for the unfortunate guy.

Ultimately, the guy took the fall because of a mask swap.

But even so, Lynn felt no guilt; the blame lay squarely with the puppet master.

He had no prior knowledge, should be considered a victim—what’s the point of internal strife here?

Moments later, amidst hurried footsteps, a group of armored guards rushed in, their expressions stern as they fixated on Lynn.

“Guest, please move to the lobby on the first floor for a discussion.”

The leading elderly knight spoke in a serious tone.

Everyone was on high alert, as if bracing for Lynn to lash out at any moment.

After all, he was covered in blood, and there was still a recently healed wound on his chest—definitely not a good situation.

However, since he was a guest invited by Cyrilina, no one dared to delay him.

Seeing this, Lynn waved his hand, “Relax. If I were the murderer, I’d have already… Oh, whatever, it’s pointless to discuss this. Lead the way.”

Shortly after, surrounded by guards, he arrived at the lobby.

At that moment, the entire mansion was in lockdown, and the ladies who should have returned home after the dinner party were sitting in the living room, wide-eyed, saying nothing.

They looked slightly nervous, or perhaps being the parties involved, they felt a strange thrill over the sudden criminal case.

When the ladies noticed Lynn being escorted in by a crowd of guards, many of them instantly shot him astonished glances.

For them, what happened tonight was simply the best gossip material.

But before any of the ladies could speak, a flurry of footsteps echoed down the stairs, hurried and chaotic, as if someone was desperately trying to reach someone.

Since Lynn was currently in the lobby, he could easily see who was descending the stairs.

It was a stunning figure in a black gown, her calves trembling slightly in high heels, yet she moved in a hurry as if fearing the outcome before her was unacceptable, while still worrying for someone’s safety.

When the woman’s face appeared, her bright red eyes met Lynn’s gaze mid-air.

In that instant, Lynn could genuinely see a glimmer of relief in Ivyst’s eyes, almost as if she was about to cry.

But she ultimately didn’t cry, nor was it possible for her to do so.

After regaining her composure, Ivyst suddenly remembered that she should uphold her icy persona, rather than act like a caring girl.

With that thought, Lynn watched as the princess made a cute little move.

Out of modesty, she instinctively halted her eager steps, but stumbled also, nearly falling over.

She managed to steady herself with the railing, awkwardly lifting her skirt with one hand to keep her balance.

Noticing Lynn’s gaze, Ivyst seemed a bit embarrassed and straightened up, then flicked her hair back with a little huff.

Immediately after, as if nothing had happened, she elegantly glided down the stairs, cool and aloof like an empress in her finest attire.

At this moment, she had unknowingly removed her mask, revealing her true self.

Thanks to the negative effects of the curse mark, no one dared to make eye contact with her, not even a glance.

So, only Lynn was fortunate enough to witness this scene.

Carrying an imposing aura, Ivyst parted the guards and stepped into the crowd, taking Lynn’s hand and pulling him aside.

Upon seeing the scars and blood on Lynn’s chest, she discreetly frowned, “Who did this? So hard to kill? Did you get hurt?”

Clearly, Ivyst assumed he had tussled with someone yet again and had simply dispatched them.

To her, this didn’t seem like a big deal.

“I didn’t kill anyone.”

Lynn blinked for a few seconds and replied slowly, “Um, I know who the culprit is.”

“I really didn’t.”

“Not being good.”

“…”

Lynn took a deep breath.

Moments later, Cyrilina also descended the stairs.

Seeing Lynn unharmed, she too let out a breath of relief.

Not that she had any particular feelings for him.

It was simply because she had just realized that Lynn held such a high position in little Ivyst’s heart.

If he had died here, the conflict between him and Ivyst would probably never be resolved.

But upon seeing the scars and blood on Lynn’s chest, she still frowned.

“You dare to kill someone at this princess’s banquet?”

As the empire’s Crown Princess, Cyrilina questioned sternly.

Clearly, both sisters thought Lynn was absolutely capable of such an act.

But, ironically, this time it truly wasn’t him.

Lynn felt extremely wronged.

A flash of exasperation crossed his eyes as he tried to explain himself, “I think you both seem to have a misunderstanding about me…”

But before he could finish, sensing Cyrilina’s displeased tone, Ivyst’s icy voice interrupted, “Even if he really did kill someone, who gave you the right to kill him?”

Cyrilina: “…”

The atmosphere fell silent for a moment.

This duo was truly the ultimate mood-killers.

Whichever one was present would, at the cost of sacrificing the lively atmosphere, become the focal point of attention.

But honestly, Lynn didn’t mean to attract this kind of attention; he was just as helpless.

Fortunately, after a moment, Ivyst’s focus was diverted to something else.

Amidst a heavy and chaotic stamping, a group of heavily armed Punisher Squad members rushed into Cyrilina’s mansion.

The young man at the forefront had a slicked-back hairstyle, his eagle-like eyes sharp and keen as they scanned the room.

It was as if he was searching for a specific target among the crowd.

Seeing their uniforms and the golden thunderbolt emblem on their chests, Cyrilina’s expression slightly changed, and she cast a cold glance around.

Someone had just died, and it seemed this group belonging to the Imperial Council’s Punisher Squad had caught the scent and rushed over.

There was a mole that needed to be rooted out.

Keeping this intelligence in mind, Cyrilina stepped forward voluntarily.

“Members of the Punisher Squad, what brings you to our residence at this late hour?”

Seeing the eldest princess, the leading young man showed no signs of respect, merely offering a slight nod before adopting a business-like tone.

“We received a report that an incident has occurred in your mansion, with the assailant suspected to be the ‘Bershiman’ we’ve been investigating.”

“As this case is of high importance to the emperor and the three major churches, we hope you will not obstruct our work, Your Highness.”

In other words, even if you’re the princess, please don’t interfere with what the Punishers do.

This was quite an unfeeling statement.

However, Cyrilina had risen to her current position, so she wouldn’t be easily provoked by mere words.

“What do you intend to do?”

She calmly retorted, stepping half a step forward and shielding Ivyst and Lynn behind her.

Seeing this action, Ivyst fell silent for a moment, then seemingly unperturbed, looked away.

Lynn, on the other hand, sensed something and frowned slightly.

Ivyst had previously mentioned that due to the Orlen City incident being resolved smoothly, Sixth Saint Roland had entrusted the handling of the Night Executioners to her.

But the Punishers did not belong to the same administrative system; they were directly under the Imperial Council.

To put it bluntly, the Night Executioners were roughly like the police in a city, responsible for handling various supernatural cases that popped up in civilian life.

While the Punishers, akin to the secret police, wielded far greater power and scale, effectively encompassing the former’s duties.

As expected, the next moment, the leader of the Punishers, that young man with the slick back, scanned the room with hawk-like eyes.

Upon accidentally meeting Lynn’s gaze, a barely perceptible smile crept across his lips.

Then, with everyone looking on, the young man waved his hand.

“Arrest him.”

In an instant, this well-trained gang of transcendent individuals surged into the mansion, encircling Lynn and the others in the middle.

One of them pulled out cold shackles and approached Lynn.

Seeing this, Cyrilina shot a serious glance at Ivyst.

Just as she suspected.

Even as a Sixth Stage, she had her weaknesses and vulnerabilities.

And right now, the lurking forces were finally ready to strike.

As a fiery red glow slowly unfurled, a death-like killing intent loomed large.

At this moment, Ivyst’s eyes turned cold, her black hair swaying as she instinctively prepared to make minced meat out of these disrespectful fools.

But just as she was about to lift her hand, Lynn, who had initially intended to let things unfold, suddenly felt a jolt of recognition.

A familiar yet strangely distant system notification echoed in his ears.

Familiar, because of its cold and mechanical tone.

Strange, because of the content of this particular notification.

[The plot deviation degree for S-grade plot character “Ivyst Roland Alexini” has been reduced to 11.07%.]

(P.S: There’s still one more chapter to come, but it might be a bit late. Check back in the morning, my bros.)

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