The Counterattack Plan of A Villain With Ten Thousand Fans - Chapter 60 (Patreon)

Chapter 60

The second prince's expression turned somewhat unpleasant. "The king is currently unwell and should not be bothered."

"This matter is of great importance, and I believe it's best for the king to handle it personally," Ling Chunann also insisted.

The two remained at an impasse for a while until the eldest duke present spoke up, "Your Highness, since the third prince has spoken, it must be a serious matter. It's best to let the king decide."

In fact, after the second prince announced the king's illness, many ministers attempted to visit him, but they were all fended off by the second prince with various excuses. Over time, it's no wonder people began to suspect.

With the elder duke's words, almost all the ministers began to echo his sentiment.

The second prince's face grew darker and darker. Finally, he gave Ling Chunann a fierce glare and reluctantly said, "Fine, I'll go report to the king first."

"In that case, I'll accompany my brother." Ling Chunann followed the second prince closely, gesturing for the other ministers to follow suit.

As he looked at the group behind him, the second prince took a deep breath.

"Del, what's going on?" The queen opened the door to welcome them in, her eyes still showing some concern. She then noticed Ling Chunann behind the second prince and forced a smile, "When did Karl return?"

"Mother." Ling Chunann bowed to the queen with courtesy. "I heard that Father is ill, so I've come to visit him and clear up some misunderstandings."

"Host, do you really intend to show that memory stone to the king?" 098 asked as it looked at the weak king sitting propped up on pillows. "What if he gets upset after seeing it?"

"It's alright. If he gets upset and passes away, then it's perfect. My eldest brother will inherit the throne." Ling Chunann replied.

Such reasoning indeed made sense.

This memory stone was contributed by the dragon and could record both visuals and sound.

When the second prince saw the pure white stone in Ling Chunann's hand, he had a bad feeling. However, when he saw the images and heard the sound inside, his face turned even darker.

The cause was Rod, whom many doubted, seen dating a werewolf girl. The girl leaned on Rod's chest, her voice sweet and sad. She said, "Your country doesn't allow marriage with beast-men. When you go back, you'll forget about me. I want you to remember me forever, so I did this. I'm sorry. I want them to bind you here, so we can be together forever."

Rod was obviously moved. He kissed the girl on the cheek and said, "Gana, don't worry. The second prince of the empire is my good friend. When he ascends the throne, I'll ask him to approve our marriage, and then we can be together openly."

"But I heard your empire's king is still very young. It might be decades before he abdicates. I might not be able to wait that long." The girl's eyes brimmed with tears.

"It won't be long. At most two months."

At this point, Rod smirked mysteriously, refusing to answer the girl's further inquiries.

But his unspoken intentions were clear to everyone present, who all turned their gazes to the second prince. The previously composed king now looked furious, unable to utter a word and gasping for breath, clutching his chest.

"Father, don't believe his nonsense! He's slandering me!" The second prince, now in a panic, grabbed the king's hand and said urgently.

At this point, the meaningless flirtation between the two in the image was no longer the focus. Everyone hurriedly began to comfort the visibly unwell king.

"Counterattack value +5%. The current counterattack value is 90%. Please continue your efforts, host."

After a while, a healer hurried over and cast several healing spells on the king. However, it was clear that they had little effect. Every time the king saw the second prince, he couldn't help but convulse.

"Brother, you should leave first. Father doesn't seem to want to see you." Ling Chunann said to the second prince.

The ministers also advised, "Your Highness, look at how the king is. It's better to wait until he's better to speak to him."

"Del, you go out first." The queen finally spoke, her tone icy, evidently influenced by the images in the memory stone.

Seeing everyone doubting him and intending to explain himself, the second prince's face turned black with rage. He glared fiercely at Ling Chunann before storming out of the room.

"Considering Rod's words and the sudden illness of the king, he has no way to defend himself. If I were him, I would quickly pack my bags and leave the imperial city after leaving the room." Ling Chunann said to 098 as he looked at the closed door.

This time, 098 finally understood Ling Chunann's implication. "Is the host implying he won't give up so easily? Is he planning a rebellion?"

"098, you're really smart." Ling Chunann praised.

"Thank you for the host's compliment." 098 felt a bit embarrassed. "But host, when do you think he will make his move?"

"Sooner is better." Ling Chunann said meaningfully.

An hour later, the king finally recovered his breath. He dismissed the ministers and remained alone with Ling Chunann.

"Karl." The king looked several decades older, his voice weary. "Come closer."

"Father, please speak." Ling Chunann sat beside the king.

"Cough cough." The king's face was pale. "You're very clever. I believe you've already guessed something after our first two meetings." He paused and took a few breaths, looking very uncomfortable. Ling Chunann remained seated, allowing him to recover on his own.

"You're not my son." The king dropped the bombshell casually to Ling Chunann, a message that could shake the kingdom. "Originally, it should have been my elder brother who inherited the throne, but he passed away before ascending, so I took his place."

"At that time, my eldest son, your elder brother, was already seven years old. If you don't believe me, you can ask him. Del was five at that time, but I kept him at his grandmother's house until he was eight, so he was unaware."

"Thank you for raising me all these years." Ling Chunann interrupted the king's words, his face showing no hint of surprise, appearing exceptionally calm. "So, you're suggesting that I willingly give up the throne and make way for your son."

The king's expression became somewhat awkward.

"No problem." Seeing that the king seemed to have difficulty explaining, Ling Chunann didn't intend to trouble a dying man. "But you've already seen the images in the memory stone just now. I hope you'll give careful thought to your successor."

"Thank you." The king breathed a sigh of relief, looking at Ling Chunann with some guilt. "Though I am ill, I am not confused. The next emperor of the empire will be Hiris Land."

"No, the next king can only be me!"

Just as the king finished speaking the name of the eldest prince, the door of the bedchamber was suddenly kicked open with a bang, followed by a group of swordsmen filing in aggressively, looking particularly intimidating. In the center was the second prince, who had just left in a huff.

"You see, I was right, wasn't I?" Ling Chunann boasted to 098.

"Host, there are level ten swordsmen here. Are you sure you'll be okay?" 098 expressed concern from another perspective. Magic users are naturally weaker than swordsmen in physique, and now, indoors and facing so many swordsmen of different levels, Ling Chunann was just a mage. What if he couldn't handle them?

Why didn't the host let the dragon come along?! 098 was full of worries.

"It's fine." Completely unaware of his own system's concerns, Ling Chunann's tone was as usual.

At the same time, his expression was extremely indifferent, with a questioning look in his eyes. "What did you do to the queen and the ministers?"

"Don't worry, Third Brother. They're all fine." The second prince smiled, his face carrying a hint of threat. "As long as Father orders the succession to me, they'll all be fine."

"You!" The king was infuriated by the threat in the second prince's words. "You wretch!"

"What did I do? Everything was planned perfectly. If not for you…" The second prince's gaze fell on Ling Chunann, as if he wanted to devour him. "If not for you, I would have ascended to the throne smoothly next month."

The more he spoke, the more agitated the second prince became. "Go, arrest the Third Prince!"

"Yes!"

The swordsmen moved quickly, with the foremost being that level ten swordsman.

As someone "powerless" and "feeble" as a "fragile mage," and with a specially crafted magic suppression barrier, Ling Chunann was naturally caught defenseless.

The second prince, feeling satisfied, chuckled, then turned his gaze back to the king, who was on the verge of passing out in anger.

He took out the king's seal and a decree. "Father, please give the order."

"Host, what do we do now?" 098 was at a loss.

"098, as a diligent and responsible system, you should be trying to help the host find a solution at this time, rather than asking me what to do." Ling Chunann said.

"Sorry, host." 098 immediately realized its mistake. "I suggest you find a way to escape."

Facing the system's suggestion that was made as if nothing had happened, Ling Chunann burst out laughing. "098, you're really adorable."

"..." It seemed like it was scolded by the host.

In the end, the king was forced by the second prince to write the abdication decree, then closed his eyes and passed away.

The second prince proudly stamped the decree with the king's seal. Then, with a triumphant air, he ordered the swordsmen, "Take the Third Prince to the dungeon and take good care of him. I hope to see him at my coronation ceremony three days from now."

"Third Prince, I'm sorry." Two swordsmen pressed Ling Chunann down, showing no respect in their tone.

"Do you really want to be king?" Ling Chunann asked the second prince before he left.

"Naturally."

"Why?" Ling Chunann was puzzled.

"Haven't you ever thought about how wonderful it is to become the most esteemed person in this empire?" At this point, the second prince's expression seemed somewhat deranged.

"Sorry for the inconvenience." Ling Chunann suddenly said something out of the blue.

"What do you mean?" The second prince asked.

"Just a passing comment." Ling Chunann replied.

The second prince's face twisted slightly. "Take him away."

The dungeon was very dark, filled with the smell of dried blood and damp decay. Ling Chunann was locked in the innermost cell, with an anti-magic collar around his neck, but his clothes and such were not changed.

After he was locked up, the group of swordsmen left.

098 surveyed the gloomy dungeon and suddenly felt a little scared. It was so terrifying here. What if the host was reminded of his past memories and suddenly fell ill?

But it seemed like it was worrying too much. After a while, Ling Chunann was still fine.

"Don't worry, I'm fine." Seemingly sensing 098's emotions, Ling Chunann said.

Seeing that he really seemed fine, 098 finally breathed a sigh of relief. "Host, why didn't you take action just now?" With Ling Chunann's current level of magic, he couldn't possibly be suppressed by a mere anti-magic barrier.

"When people are at their proudest moment and then get thrown into hell, their expressions are more interesting." Ling Chunann replied. "I'm waiting for the coronation ceremony three days from now. Elder Brother and the male lead will return together. They'll probably arrive the day after tomorrow."

"Wait here?" 098 asked. It seemed like the host was being too hard on himself.

"Of course not." Ling Chunann said, "According to the agreement, if I don't leave the palace within fifteen minutes, he'll come crashing in." He wanted to watch the show, not the ruins.

"..."

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