"Where am I? Father… I wanna go home…"
In a deep mountain range of the Southern Kingdom, Huan Du Luolan sat helplessly beside a ravine, hugging her knees and sobbing softly.
She had been lost for three days.
Three days ago, she had snuck out of the palace, tailing Poison Hermit in secret. But shortly after leaving, she lost him. Wandering alone on instinct, she ended up deep in the mountains and completely lost her way. For the past two days, she had eaten poorly, slept even worse, and constantly stayed on guard against wild beasts and venomous insects.
If it weren't for her decent poison arts, she might've already died out here.
"Boss! Did you notice I just broke through to Minor Demon Lord level?"
"Nope. But I did notice you run a bit faster—maybe 50% faster than before."
"Hehe, it's not just 50%! At full speed, I'm twice as fast—and I can even dash through the air for a bit! Now, even if we get surrounded, I can definitely grab you and run!"
Luolan's ears perked up when she heard voices nearby. She scrambled up and darted downhill toward the source.
"Hey! Over here! I'm lost! Help me!"
"Hm? Someone's lost? Let's check it out."
Just as she ran toward them, she tripped over a tree root and was about to fall—when a firm hand caught her.
Looking up, she saw a large white dog… and on its back sat a very handsome human.
"You alright?"
"Y-Yeah. Thank you…"
"No problem. What are you doing out here in the wilderness? Where are your parents?"
"T-They're in the palace… I snuck out and got lost. Oh! I'm Huan Du Luolan. I'm a princess!"
Kei blinked. This little girl… there was no way she was the same giant-breasted woman he remembered from the future.
"Huan Du Luolan… Isn't she the Southern Princess? What's she doing here?" the husky asked, clearly startled. "What do we do now? Should we call Poison Emperor for ransom? Wait—we're not kidnappers!"
"She probably followed Poison Hermit, got separated, and wandered out here," Kei muttered. "Alright, hop on. I'll get you to safety, then you can head home from there."
He hoisted Luolan onto the husky's back. "Let's go, mutt. The right path is that way."
"Woof."
Along the way, Luolan chatted nonstop.
"Thanks so much! When I get back, I'll have Father reward you handsomely!"
"No need. Just doing what's right."
"Your clothes don't look Southern. You're not from here, right? You traveling?"
"Something like that. I thought I'd take a quick tour, but didn't expect so many detours and problems."
"Right? Right? I think our mountains are way too confusing too! I looked away for a second and got lost!"
She clung to Kei's sleeve, perched on the husky's fluffy back, feeling strangely secure now. Once calm, her bubbly personality returned.
"When we reach the palace, I'll take you to the best food and fun! We even have super-duper-pretty fireworks! You have to come watch them with me!"
"Sure. Sounds fun. Hmm… hold up, mutt."
Kei heard something and told the husky to stop. He hopped off, and Luolan clung to his sleeve tightly, afraid of being left behind.
A bit of searching led them to a hollow, dead tree where a small, cicada-like insect was hiding.
"A Singsong Cicada… Poison Hermit mentioned these. They can perfectly mimic any sound. If you get two, refine them with secret arts into twin Singsongs, you can poison someone with sound from miles away."
Kei had heard its strange chirping and became curious. He bent down and spoke:
"Hello."
"Hello."
"Ha ha ha."
"Ha ha ha."
It repeated everything he said. Luolan stared wide-eyed with curiosity.
"What is that?"
"A Singsong Cicada. A harmless sound-mimicking bug. Want to try?"
"Okay!"
Kei handed it to her. She said, "I'm Huan Du Luolan."
"I'm Huan Du Luolan."
"It really does sound just like me! You know so much, that's amazing!"
Though she knew about poisons and insects, her studies were limited to traditional Southern techniques. Singsong Cicadas had no combat power, so no one really bothered with them—except for Poison Hermit.
"By the way… what's your name?"
"I'm Kei. Just a traveling doctor."
"A doctor! That means you must be amazing at healing!"
"You haven't seen my skills. Why assume I'm amazing?"
"Because you know so much that I don't—that must mean you're the best doctor in the Southern Kingdom!"
The husky chuckled. "Have you even met any other doctors? How do you know my boss is the best?"
Bonk.
"Ow!"
"I'm not the best?" Kei asked, raising a brow.
"N-No! I didn't say that—I just—ugh, forget it…"
"I'm the princess of the Southern Kingdom!" Luolan declared. "My father's the strongest. I'm second strongest. If I say Kei-nii is amazing, then he must be the best!"
She was quite proud of her logic.
They laughed and joked all the way out of the mountains. After two days of travel, they finally reached the third city.
"I'm finally going home!"
"Once I'm back, I'll give Doggie tons of meat, Kei-nii lots of money, and then we'll all watch the fireworks together!"
She stood proudly on the husky's back, arms stretched wide.
At the city gates—
"Halt! No outsiders allowed!"
Two muscular gatekeeper demons blocked their way.
"…Why not?"
Kei looked at them and gently pulled Luolan behind him before she could puff up and shout "I'm the princess!" Instead, he ruffled her hair, and she obediently stayed quiet, cheeks puffed up but silent.
"The reason's classified! We can't tell you!"
"Yeah! We're rebelling! We're not gonna tell you that!"
Silence. Everyone stared at the second demon.
"…So if I say I wanna join your rebellion and offer my medical skills—will you let me in?"
"Hmm… that makes sense. A doctor isn't an outsider. Come in, then."
They thought about it for a full minute and opened the gate.
Right then, another demon ran up.
"Wait—stop!"
"Scram!"
"Okay."
"…Hey, don't look at me like that! That's our Southern Barbarian King! I didn't recognize him at first!"
"I understand."
Kei nodded and continued inside.
The streets were full of armed demons, loudly discussing how to overthrow Huan Du Qingtian.
"Why do they all want to rebel against my father?!"
Luolan gripped Kei's sleeve tightly.
"It's normal. Every place I've been to so far—border towns, farms, cities—everyone's shouting about rebellion."
"Most of them probably just talk. Don't worry. We'll get a meal, treat a few folks, ask for directions, and move on."
To Kei, this was no surprise. The Poison Emperor had strength, sure—but no charisma. From the start, the people clearly didn't respect him. Without brute force, he would've been dethroned long ago.
Meanwhile, inside the palace, the Prince was already scheming. Outside, tribal clans like the Southern Barbarians, Mad Lions, and Rabid Dogs were just waiting for their chance.
Even the royal relatives, like Poison Hermit and Poison Granny, didn't truly support the Emperor—they supported the bloodline.
In other words, Huan Du Qingtian ruled 30% with strength, 60% thanks to Huan Du Xingzhen, and the rest because of Luolan.
Kei opened his clinic sign and began shouting his offers. Soon, the Southern Barbarian King—the same demon from earlier—approached.
"I've heard about you. Word of your deeds in the border and nearby villages has spread far."
"Would you consider helping us rebel?"
Despite his rugged appearance, the Barbarian King was quite sharp. He kept tabs on all nearby events.
"I'm just a doctor. I don't care about your rebellion. Do you need medical help or not?"
"I don't, but there are others who do. Come with me."
The King took them to the outer part of the city. When he shouted, every house opened its doors, bringing out their sick.
"We live in harsh lands. Even we fear the mists and venomous bugs."
"Our poison arts thrive—but they also slowly poison our people."
"Those with weak demonic power suffer the most, accumulating toxins that eventually become chronic and incurable."
"These folks—can you help them?"
"Yes. Ten coins each."
"Paying isn't a problem—as long as they get better."
Kei got to work. These were chronic conditions, hard to treat. But with his Soundwave Acupuncture and Poison Acupuncture, he could purge the lingering toxins and heal the patients.
Luolan didn't understand why he was helping these people.
"Kei-nii… they want to rebel against my father. Aren't they bad? Why are you helping them?"
"You think that five-year-old girl is part of the rebellion?" Kei pointed.
"…No."
"And that old man over there? Part of the uprising?"
"…He's not either."
Luolan was naive. Sheltered and innocent. A blessing, but also a flaw.
Yet she had a good heart—and wasn't afraid to admit she was wrong.
She saw the little girl hug her and offer toys. She saw the old man quietly help without saying a word, always mumbling thanks to Kei.
"Don't overthink it. If the sky falls, Boss will hold it up for us. Just follow him."
The husky tried to pat her head like Kei, but got poisoned instantly.
"Stupid dog! Only Kei-nii and Father can touch my head! Try it again and I'll poison you into a pig!"
"…Y-Yes ma'am. Geez, what a scary kid."
The husky shuffled away, immune system already working on the poison.
He'd been poisoned several times already in the Southern Kingdom—his resistance was getting pretty high.
Luolan huffed, then turned to Kei. He was still calmly treating the sick, unaffected by anything around him.
"…Oh well. I won't think too hard. I trust Kei-nii. He'd never hurt me."
She ran over and continued helping him.
A hero saving a girl in her most desperate moment will never go out of style. Especially when the girl is young, lost, and scared—and the hero is strong, kind… and handsome.
That's when she starts to trust you unconditionally.
(End of Chapter)
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