"Have you ever thought of taking my life?"
Meruem directly asked the soul-piercing question: "Is it the reward after you win?"
"Your majesty?!"
Shaiapouf, on the side, was shocked and shouted incredulously.
"Shut up!"
Meruem shut him up with one sentence.
Shaiapouf choked, but his eyes were fixed on the blind girl, and his hands could not help but clenched tightly.
"The life of the supreme leader..."
The blind girl was startled at first and then waved her hands quickly: "How dare I have such an idea!!"
"I have never thought of such a thing! Not at all..."
"I know."
Meruem interrupted again: "This is my own problem.
"I won't bet with you anymore. I'm just too bored."
His tone was unusually calm, but he raised his left arm directly.
Then he grabbed it with his hand, and then…
Puff!
The tearing sound of flesh and blood separated sounded directly at the scene.
The blind girl had no time to react to what happened; she just felt that a lot of liquid seemed to splash on her face.
"Please forgive me."
Meruem smiled like a king while holding his torn left arm in his right hand and looking at the blind girl in front of him.
"?!!!"
Shaiapouf stood up suddenly.
The Ant King's action was beyond everyone's expectations and everyone who was watching this scene was caught off guard.
"King, you are bleeding, your arm... you need treatment quickly!!"
In an instant, Shaiapouf turned into a gust of wind and hurried to the Ant King.
While trembling, he began wrapping the Ant King's wound as quickly as possible.
"Go on."
Meruem did not express anything about this but calmly let the blind girl in front of him continue to make moves.
"Hey, hey, what happened?!!"
However, the blind girl was frightened by the sudden change at this moment.
She could not see what was happening in front of her at all, but she knew that something particularly serious seemed to have happened.
"Your majesty, you can't do this. You have to rest quickly, and you can't play Gungi anymore..."
Shaiapouf pleaded, his tone both loyal and desperate.
But before he could finish his sentence…
Whoosh!
Bang!!!
A massive force sent him flying.
Meruem's powerful tail lashed out, striking Shaiapouf directly in the face and sending him crashing into the far wall. His body slammed against it before sliding down to the floor.
"Don't make me repeat myself."
Meruem slowly withdrew his tail. "I will continue playing with her."
His gaze was now fierce and commanding. "I was the one who said I would keep playing without rest. Do you want to make me go back on my word and disgrace myself?"
Shaiapouf staggered to his feet, his face bruised from the impact, but he had regained his composure.
"Then I will call Neferpitou over at once."
He tried to keep his voice steady, but there was still a slight tremor.
Shaiapouf's eyes, once calm and composed, now held deep concern.
"If Neferpitou performs surgery while Your Majesty plays, at least you will still be able to continue your match."
"This is the only compromise I can offer."
He spoke firmly, making it clear that this was his bottom line.
"If your majesty refuses even this—"
"Then please, behead me and take my life."
His words were resolute, filled with unwavering loyalty.
"Fine then. Come here."
Meruem never accepted compromises. "I'll kill you in one blow so you don't suffer."
Without hesitation, Shaiapouf stepped forward, eyes filled with resolve.
When it came to protecting the king's well-being, he would never back down.
"Now it's your turn. Hurry up."
Meruem urged the blind girl, who was still trembling in shock.
However…
"I... I refuse."
"Hm?"
"Until the supreme leader's wounds are healed, I will not play."
Whoosh!
Meruem's tail lashed forward, the tip stopping just a fraction of a millimeter from the girl's throat.
She was a hair's breadth away from death.
"Don't make me say it again. Play."
"I will not!"
The blind girl had finally recovered from her shock and, for the first time, showed a rare display of stubbornness.
"If you wish to kill me, then do it through a game of Gungi."
She forced herself to stand tall despite her trembling body.
"You..."
Meruem gritted his teeth, his expression darkening.
In the end…
"Call Neferpitou here."
He retracted his tail and gave Shaiapouf a direct order.
"Yes!"
Shaiapouf bowed and quickly left to summon Neferpitou.
Before leaving, he couldn't help but glance at the blind girl.
This girl… she was changing their king.
A king who had once been cold, ruthless, and violent suddenly showed restraint, even... Concern?
For Shaiapouf and the others, such a thing had always seemed impossible.
"So, the Ant King is being influenced by that Gungi champion."
Watching the scene unfold on the screen, Ging Freecss and Lan took in everything that had just happened.
"He was originally a merciless creature."
Ging mused, snapping his fingers. "But after absorbing human genes, he gained not only intelligence and personality but also..."
"Emotions?"
Anyone could see it; the once emotionless, brutal Ant King had shown something rare, warmth, although only a flicker, toward this blind girl.
"In that case, he's also exposing his weakness."
As a seasoned veteran and a cunning strategist, Ging knew exactly what this meant.
"Though, it seems like we might not even need to exploit that weakness..."
Lan cracked his knuckles, stretching his limbs.
"Right now, isn't this the perfect opportunity?"
His gaze remained fixed on the screen, where Neferpitou was now rushing toward Meruem to begin treatment.