Saving the Heartthrob Frenemy-Chapter 177: Scammed

After a few tries Jolie managed to get back to the forest. She was truly worried that Qie Xieling would be turned to a pancake by now but when she got back, the little cub was nuzzling a big ass dragon with no restraint.

Jolie, "..."

He had just been sold and he was counting the money. Jolie thought that they were going to give King Luo smoke before they could make up. She was ready to light his butt on fire but in less than two minutes Qie Xieling was already wagging his tail in following after his master.

Before he could embarrass himself, she pulled him away and the dragon that was enjoying the rub opened its eyes and found that that person was gone. Before he could say anything Eling was gone with Jolie dragging him away. He blew out a breath of hot air while rocks and boulders were falling to the from almost striking the people on the ground.

When they were far enough away from earshot distance, Jolie couldn’t help but ask, "What happened? I thought from our discussion earlier that you were going to stay mad for a while. Men are like a donkey, you need to dangle that carrot before them to get stuff done. Didn’t your dad teach you that?"

Qie Xieling, "..."

"I um... he saved me so... I just got too excitable," he said and Jolie couldn’t help but facepalm.

"Get it together. You can’t forgive him just yet. Look at him... he is still talking to Miss Yunning over there," she said and Qie Xieling glanced in that direction.

Yunning was looking at King Luo with an affectionate gaze seeming so concerned. Qie Xieling pursed his lips and nodded his head but the reluctance in his eyes was evident.

"You aren’t a home wrecker. Let the house burn from the inside then maybe you can be together," said Jolie and Qie Xieling had a dumbfounded expression.

"Huh?"

Jolie couldn’t help but sympathise with him. How would Qie Xieling ever survive this game without him? Turns out Jolie’s words entered one ear and exited the next because ten minutes later something was wiggling in Qie Xieling’s clothes. Jolie thought she was hallucinating but after looking around and not finding the figure of the devious dragon she knew already what was going on. Jolie blocked his path while asking, "What is in there? Show me."

Qie Xieling, "..."

He took a step back while answering, "Nothing."

Jolie wasn’t going to let it slide. She was ready to tear his clothes up and review the stowaway. She reached over to take a look and Qie Xieling tried to run.

"Wait wait wait, he said that he needs to heal so I let him," said Qie Xieling and Jolie knew this one had been scammed. She thought Qie Ranzhe had Wen Qinxi wrapped around his finger but Luo Muchen... Luo Muchen had Qie Xieling in a trance.

It was so easy for him to draw Qie Xieling in. "You just got scammed," she said and King Luo heard that but he was pretending to be asleep.

"Look, he is sleeping," he said and Jolie peeked into his clothes. Indeed the small dragon was wrapped around Qie Xieling’s waist his head lowered. Jolie hated to admit it but the tiny dragon seemed quite comfortable.

"Fine, I will stay out of it. Don’t come crying to me later," said Jolie before walking away.

Qie Xieling pressed his lips into a thin line while glancing at the tiny dragon with its body rising and falling peacefully.

He smiled slightly only to feel this eerie sinister gaze directed at him. When he looked up he found that Yunning was looking at him like he was a dead man. She looked like she would push him off the cliff at any moment.

Qie Xieling ran after Jolie shaken to the core. He would rather stick to Jolie. At least there would be some sort of protection.

***

Queen Yana sighed heavily as she sat on her grand throne, her delicate fingers covering her tired eyes. The anxiety of waiting to see Eling’s body at her feet made her unable to sleep for days and a hint of annoyance lingered in her heart.

The throne room, once filled with bustling courtiers and vibrant conversations, now stood empty and dimly lit, mirroring the gloom that hung over her head. She could feel her throne built from a sand castle hanging in the balance.

Amid her thoughts, the heavy doors of the throne room creaked open, and a timid figure slipped inside. It was a monk, his robe swaying as he scurried across the room, his body trembling with trepidation. He knelt before the queen, his hands shaking as he presented a small, ornate transcript, a magical artefact known to hold great power.

"Your Majesty," the monk’s voice quivered, "I bring you grave news."

Yana slowly lowered her hands, her eyes glinting with curiosity mixed with a tinge of dread. She regarded the monk with a gaze that pierced through the dimness, urging him to continue.

"Speak," she commanded, her voice laced with weariness.

The monk took a deep breath, his voice filled with fear. "Your Majesty, the assassin, Drew... he is no more. He met his unfortunate fate at the claws of a... a."

Her heart dropped when she heard him stammer. "Speak if you value your life," she said and the monk lowered his head in terror.

"A...fearsome dragon."

Yana’s eyes widened, and a rush of anger surged through her veins. Drew, her most trusted assassin, had been a powerful card in her intricate plan.

The realisation of his demise struck her like a bolt of lightning, shaking her to her very core.

Fury consumed her as she rose from her throne, her regal demeanour giving way to raw emotion.

The empty room seemed to tremble in response to her rage. With a swift motion, she swiped at a nearby table, sending a vase hurtling through the air. It collided with the monk, who cried out in pain as shards of porcelain scattered across the floor.

Yet, in her furious state, Yana barely registered the monk’s cries. Her mind was consumed by thoughts of revenge, of the power she had lost with Drew’s demise and the fact that her brother Luo had returned.

She clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palms, a mix of frustration and desperation etched onto her face.

"Damn that bastard!" she roared, her voice echoing through the dimly lit chamber. "Why isn’t he dead?!"

The monk, his face bloodied and bruised, continued to kneel before the enraged queen, his body trembling in fear. But Yana paid him no heed. Her thoughts were consumed by the desire to end Luo’s life, to unleash her wrath upon that dragon that was threatening to take everything away from her. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

At that moment, the once regal and composed Queen Yana stood as a tempest, a force to be reckoned with. The gloom of the throne room seemed to intensify, matching the fury burning within her very being.

And as the monk lay groaning on the floor, Yana’s heart burned with a newfound determination, ready to unleash a storm of vengeance upon the world.

All of this belonged to her. She was born in the same year as Luo from the same father so what made him more deserving of the throne? She couldn’t give it up not when she had everything close to her fingertips.

As Queen Yana stood amidst the shattered remnants of her fit, her breath ragged and her body trembling with rage, a chilling presence made itself known in the room. From behind a heavy curtain, a figure emerged, radiating an aura of dark power. It was Loviatar, her goddess mother, the embodiment of suffering and pain.

Loviatar gracefully settled herself upon the throne, her eyes gleaming with amusement. She observed her daughter’s dishevelled state with a cold, detached gaze. A cruel smile tugged at the corners of her lips as she spoke, her voice dripping with scorn.

"Oh, dear Yana," Loviatar taunted, her voice laced with mockery. "Is this the mighty queen I see before me? Reduced to such a pitiful state over a mere man? How entertaining."

The words sliced through Yana’s anger like a poisoned blade. Her eyes blazed with fury as she lunged toward her mother, propelled by an overwhelming desire to strike back at the goddess who had belittled her time and time again. But before her hand could make contact, a powerful force seized hold of her, freezing her in place.

Gritting her teeth, Yana found herself immobilized, her body held captive by Loviatar’s divine power. The queen struggled against the invisible restraints, her muscles straining against the immovable force. But her efforts were in vain.

Loviatar regarded her daughter with a mix of amusement and disdain. "You are truly a disappointment, Yana," she sneered. "To think that you, a queen, would allow yourself to be consumed by such base emotions. You are weak."