Arthur sat upon the throne of Elvania, with Erica resting lightly against him.

Blood stained the once-pristine white-stone floor. Bodies and groaning elves lay scattered across the hall, armor dented, weapons snapped, and the air thick with the metallic scent of blood and burned mana. Faint wisps of lingering mana still drifted through the shattered throne room, while broken chandeliers cast uneven shadows across the ruined floor.

But Erica’s gaze did not wander.

She did not look at the corpses, the half-dead nobles, or the shattered pillars.

Her eyes remained fixed solely on Arthur.

Even though fear churned within her stomach, even though a tremor ran through her chest, her curiosity refused to let go. She focused on Arthur’s profile—the calm line of his jaw, the stillness in his crimson eyes, and the relaxed tilt of his mouth.

’What is he feeling right now...?’ Erica thought. ’Is he enjoying this? Did he do all of this just for fun? Does he... like me? Or does he have some hidden agenda? Why is he going this far for me...?’

Her heart beat against her ribs like a war drum.

Her face turned red.

To anyone watching, it might have appeared as though a princess had fallen in love with the man who had just drenched the throne room in blood for her sake.

But for Erica, it was different.

She recognized this feeling.

It was not love.

Perhaps there was a small thread of admiration woven into it—but it was not love.

So then, what was it?

The answer bloomed in her mind almost instantly.

It was curiosity.

A pure, overwhelming level of interest she had never felt toward anyone or anything before. For the first time in her life, she had met someone she could not understand at all.

A dangerous excitement stirred within her chest.

The distant groans of wounded nobles and the crackling of broken magic circles faded from her awareness. Her attention remained fixed entirely on the young man before her.

Her face reddened even further as the thought slipped from her lips in a small, almost dreamy murmur.

"I want to cut you open and see what’s inside you..."

Luna’s breath caught.

Perched on Erica’s shoulder, the green-haired fairy froze, her eyes widening.

Of all people in the world, Luna knew best that even the kind Erica possessed one fatal flaw.

Whenever she encountered something she truly could not understand, Erica wanted to dissect it.

To take it apart and discover what made it work—whether it was a rare magical beast, a complex magical artifact, or... a person.

Luna had only witnessed it a few times in her life, but she knew the pattern well.

Once Erica labeled something as "unknown," she would either avoid it entirely...

Or draw closer and closer until she understood it completely.

On the other hand, Arthur merely tilted his head.

He looked at Erica as though he had not quite heard her.

"Did you say something just now?" Arthur asked.

Erica stiffened.

In an instant, she hid her darker impulses behind her usual gentle expression. She shook her head quickly, her silver hair swaying.

"N-No, nothing," Erica said.

Arthur gave her a brief look before gently lifting her from his lap and setting her properly upon the throne.

He stepped down from the dais.

"All right," Arthur said, flexing his blood-stained fingers slightly. "Looks like your problem is solved now."

Several surviving nobles instinctively shrank backward as he walked. The image of him sitting upon the throne amid a sea of blood had already burned itself into their memories.

His gaze swept across the hall and settled on Dominic.

The Grand Elder lay on the floor, his robes torn, blood running down his arm and temple. He was still alive, but he was in no condition to stand.

His sharp green eyes remained fixed on Elizabeth, who stood before him like a crimson guardian.

Elizabeth smirked.

"Just because you’re older," Elizabeth said softly, "you think you can overpower my Night Sanctuary?"

She leaned forward, lowering her voice so only Dominic could hear.

"Let me tell you a secret," Elizabeth whispered. "You haven’t even lived half as long as I have."

Dominic’s eyes widened ever so slightly.

Meanwhile, Yuna walked forward, carefully stepping between fallen elves and pools of blood. Her boots avoided the worst of the carnage with practiced ease.

She stopped beside Arthur, her gray eyes scanning the ruined throne room.

She exhaled slowly.

"Too weak," Yuna said honestly. "These people are too weak. They’re the weakest elves I’ve ever seen."

Arthur followed her gaze around the ruined hall.

He nodded.

"I agree," Arthur said. "It’s as if these bastards are a disgrace to the name of elves. I can’t believe a nation this weak actually exists."

Whispers of shame spread among the surviving elves.

Dominic, clutching his staff, forced himself to look around.

He searched the edges of the hall, the shadows near the pillars, and the balconies above.

But there was no sign of the person he had expected.

"Sakura..." Dominic muttered. "Damn it. That woman lied to me. Where is she? Why isn’t she here to support us like she promised?"

Arthur caught that immediately.

’So Sakura tricked him into this mess...?’ Arthur thought, amused.

The surviving elves heard Arthur’s and Yuna’s words and felt their faces burn.

Pride and humiliation warred within them.

Being called weak—a disgrace—in their own throne room struck deeper than any physical wound.

At that exact moment, the doors of the throne room opened once more.

Several units of royal soldiers rushed inside, their weapons instinctively aimed at Arthur, Yuna, and Elizabeth.

"Grand Elder!" the captain shouted. "We heard—"

Then they finally saw the scene clearly.

They saw Dominic lying on the floor, bleeding.

They saw nobles and candidates either dead or incapacitated.

They saw Erica seated upon the throne.

And they saw the strangers standing calmly amid the carnage.

Shock rooted them in place.

Arthur stepped forward slightly, raising one blood-stained hand in a calm, almost relaxed gesture.

"It’s futile now," Arthur said. "All the rebels have already been dealt with."

He turned slightly and pointed toward the throne.

"Accept your former king’s blood as your new ruler," Arthur said. "From this day onward, she will guide you toward prosperity."

The soldiers looked from Arthur to Erica.

Erica sat upright upon the throne, her silver hair still shining despite the surrounding chaos, her blue eyes clear and unwavering.

At that moment, with blood surrounding her and an unknown protector standing behind her, she looked every bit like a queen.

One by one, the soldiers lowered their weapons.

Then they knelt.

Dominic laughed.

Even beaten, bloodied, and lying on the floor, he laughed loudly.

"Do you think it will be that easy?" Dominic said hoarsely. "There are people waiting outside people of this nation—people eager to see their new ruler. They were supposed to judge the candidates’ abilities and choose the one worthy of the throne."

His gaze hardened.

"By using brute force and attacking everyone here," Dominic said, "you’ve ruined all of that. They will never accept Erica as their ruler now."

As if responding to his words, the shadows in one corner of the hall stirred.

From the darkness, Sakura stepped out, Olivia standing beside her.

With them came a brown-haired boy around Arthur’s age and the blond elven girl from earlier—Dominic’s granddaughter, Freya.

Sakura dusted off her coat.

"Good thing I hid Bobby inside my shadow as a precaution," Sakura said lightly. She patted the brown-haired boy’s head. "To protect us."

The boy, Bobby, smiled shyly beneath her hand.

Freya forgot everything else the moment she saw Dominic.

"Grandfather!" Freya cried.

She ran toward him, tears gathering in her brown eyes at the sight of his bloodied state.

Elizabeth watched her approach but made no attempt to stop her. She simply stepped aside, allowing the girl to kneel beside Dominic and fuss over him.

Arthur watched sakura his gaze never leaving her.

’I thought she had run away,’ Arthur thought.

A small, sharp smile tugged at his lips.

’Perfect timing.’

Inside his mind, his voice became cold.

’System, before she escapes again, start the extraction process.’

[ As you command, Host. ]

But just as the Ultimate Scavenger System began to activate—

Another system had already been prepared.

Olivia’s eyes flickered with lines of invisible code that only she could see.

[ Ultimate Hack System Activated. ]

– Hacking Ultimate Scavenger System...

– Overriding extraction authority...

– Protecting designated target: Sakura.

[ Extraction canceled successfully. ]

Several notifications flashed before Arthur’s vision.

[ ERROR: System functions restricted. ]

[ Ability Extraction: CANCELLED. ]

[ Authority of the Ultimate Scavenger System has been temporarily suppressed. ]

Arthur’s smile faded slightly.

He immediately turned his eyes toward Olivia.

He understood at once.

As long as she remained here, extracting anything from Sakura would be impossible.

Her system had powers which Arthur disliked the most. And if that was the case then even fighting sakura brings no benefit to him.

Olivia stepped forward slightly, meeting his gaze without flinching.

"You won’t take anything from her, Arthur," Olivia said.

A tense silence filled the damaged throne room. Even the surviving soldiers and nobles instinctively held their breath, sensing an invisible clash taking place.

Sakura burst out laughing.

"I like you," Sakura said with a grin.

She raised a finger and pointed toward Arthur.

"Let’s play a game—the Game of Thrones, Arthur. If you win, I’ll let you absorb me."

Bobby’s and Olivia’s mouths fell open.

They stared at Sakura in complete disbelief.

"Lady Sakura...?" Bobby whispered.

Arthur’s surprise slowly turned into amusement.

He smiled, his crimson eyes glinting.

"All right," Arthur said.

He took a slow step forward, blood still staining his sleeves.

The throne room was filled with silence as only Arthur’s words could be heard.

"What’s at stake?"