Nick obediently let the person holding his hand lead him to the operating table. Lily felt sorrowful as she watched. The boy probably did not even know they were going to experiment on him. The organization had taken him away from his father, and he was about to die as a lab rat."You can't do this, Your Majesty!" Lily looked over her shoulder and said to the queen, "You know how risky the experiment is. How can you still proceed? You should stop the whole thing immediately!"Fred frantically nodded as he lay on the operating table, agreeing with Lily for the first time. "That's right! You should stop it right away!" The queen ignored him, slowly turned toward Lily, and said calmly, "You're right. It's risky, so I need someone to test it for me." Lily was at a loss for words. "You're smart and observant, Lily. You knew from the start that I was aware of what Fred was doing. So you should understand that someone as intelligent and capable as me shouldn't die so soon, right?"
"You don't want to die, but neither does he!” Lily pointed at the operating table and said, "Have you ever considered that he's still a child? You're a mother, too, and you even have grandchildren. What if someone else treats them like this—" "That would be their fate!" the queen sternly interrupted. Lily was stunned. The queen glared at Lily and continued, “The world is all about survival of the fittest. If your country isn't strong enough, I wouldn't even need to bother about the ties between our two nations.“If Yudonia is a strong country, we wouldn't need to yield to other countries or care about what the world thinks of us, would we? If you aren't strong enough, you would have died a hundred times instead of questioning me now!"The queen did not think it was wrong for her to make herself and her country stronger. Although she pitied those who died for not being strong enough, she did not think it mattered to the bigger picture.Lily noticed the look in the queen’s eyes
"Don't listen to her, Your Majesty. She's just trying to trick you!" A sudden voice interrupted Lily.Lily had almost swayed the queen, but the person’s words made her catch herself. The old woman looked toward the source of the voice, and so did Lily.Rhea, who had been hiding in the corner, walked over. When the guards stopped her, she looked expectantly toward the queen. The queen waved, and the guards allowed Rhea to hurry over. Rhea then curtsied and said, "Your Majesty, Lily said all that just to save the boy. All her warnings are nothing but an excuse.""Who are you?" The queen had never met Rhea before. "I'm Rhea. I used to work in the research center." The queen caught on. "I heard about you." Rhea was pleased that even the ruler of Yudonia knew about her. "I didn't know I'd been working for Your Majesty all along. Now that I do, I feel truly honored." The queen held up her hand. "No, you've worked for Fred, not me." Rhea looked over her shoulder at the unconsci
Lily took a breath and answered, "Yes, I want to save Nick, but it doesn't make me wrong. I’ve told you how risky the experiment is, Your Majesty. I'm sure you remember." Now that Rhea was trying to disrupt Lily’s plan, the latter could only rely on her relationship with the queen to salvage the situation. However, the queen did not respond and grew pensive, trying to recall what Lily had told her.Rhea noticed Lily had swayed the queen again and said, “Don’t believe her, Your Majesty! Indeed, the experiment is risky, but she only wants to save the boy. You mustn’t fall for her tricks.”Lily glared at Rhea. "Hey, even if I'm trying to save Nick, I'm just stating the facts!"Rhea scoffed and said, "Yeah, right. For his sake, you wouldn't even wish to make the experiment work.""Can you guarantee it’ll work now?" Lily asked. Rhea smiled. "Of course not." "Since you can't, why conduct an experiment that is most likely to fail?" Lily looked toward the queen and said gently, "Your
“You make a lot of sense, Rhea.” The queen gave her an approving smile. Rhea felt reassured. It showed she had successfully read the queen's mind. Lily could only threaten, "Your Majesty, if you insist on proceeding with the experiment, I won't be part of it. I won’t do something, knowing it’ll fail."When the queen frowned, Rhea said, "Well, I can do it.""Rhea, you—""Your Majesty, I may not surpass Lily by much, but I've won many international awards. Although I couldn't create the R10 drug like Lily did due to my limited knowledge about herbal medicine, I'm highly experienced in conducting experiments and surgery."She added with a smile, "Trust me. I can do it well." She knew she had nothing to lose. Previously, she was worried because Fred demanded she make it work despite its low success rate. However, the queen knew it would surely fail and would not blame Rhea if it did.Besides, Rhea would no longer need to bother with Fred when he died during the experiment. She a
Despite her caring tone, the queen continued to look at Lily.Rhea looked at the latter and noticed she was ignoring her, too. She hated being ignored ever since she was a child. Rhea had achieved so much, yet people still treated her like nothing.As long as Lily was around, Rhea could only play second fiddle to her. Rhea could not help but try and persuade the queen again, “We have all the right people and resources to experiment today. Your Majesty, you shouldn’t give up now!”She knew things would be different if they proceeded with the experiment. However, the queen lost her temper and glared at Rhea, scolding, “I told you to leave!”Rhea was startled. She dared not push her luck anymore and bit her lower lip, saying, “If you need anything—”She quickly shut up and left with the others when she saw the queen’s impatient expression.When Rhea reached the door, she could not help but look over her shoulder at them. She grew envious and resentful, seeing the two gazing at each
The queen sighed and said, "You aren't afraid of death because you're not old like me. I used to think I didn’t fear death and that I could conquer every problem."After a pause, she continued, "However, I've realized that there are many things I can’t control. I don’t want to die, either!” Suddenly, Queen Yasmin looked at Lily helplessly. The former became emotional, saying, “I still have many important things I’ve yet to do. Do you know what it feels like to be unable to do everything you want to?”"I do!" Lily answered."No, you don't!" Yasmin retorted, "How could you? You're so young, beautiful, and full of energy. Not only are you young, but you also have a good family and career. How could you possibly know how I feel? I used to be like you, but now I'm old!"Yasmin looked exhausted. She spoke more like an ordinary aging woman than a monarch. She had desperately struggled to defy her fate, unwilling to accept her aging and death.Lily gazed at her and knew how frustrated
Fred had always treated Lily as the queen's vessel. He would take good care of Lily but could never spare her in the end. Lily looked at Yasmin quietly as the latter raised her brow and said, "You don't believe me? If you don't, I can—" Lily interrupted, "No, I do. You're the queen, and I know you keep your promises. You wouldn't say so if you haven't considered sparing my life."Lily smiled somewhat mockingly. "I should thank you for willing to do so."It sounded awkward coming from her, but she meant it. Yasmin did not need to care about Lily’s life, but she was willing to trouble herself with finding a new vessel. Still, that was not what Lily wanted.Yasmin noticed Lily was not overjoyed. The former grew puzzled, asking, “Then why can’t you help me? Don’t you want to reunite with your family? Don’t you want them to achieve immortality, too?”"No." Lily readily shook her head. Yasmin looked at her in disbelief. "Why wouldn’t you? Everyone wants to live forever. I'm sure yo
Lily tilted her head up to fight back her tears, saying, “There’s something I find strange.”“What is it?” Mike asked after comforting his son.“Instead of detaining Prince Ross, Her Majesty has sent him back to Yudonia. If so, why couldn’t we reach him?”After some thought, Mike answered, “There are two possibilities. It’s probably due to poor signals, or he doesn’t want us to contact him.”The two shared a look, knowing what each other was wondering.‘Why can’t we contact Ross? Is he planning something?’…Three days later, Lily inserted the last needle into the queen’s leg and looked up at her, saying, “You should start feeling your legs tomorrow. Still, it’ll take some time before you can stand.”Suddenly, Lily chuckled.“Why are you laughing?” Yasmin touched her legs. She had begun to regain sensation in her legs over the last two days. She then began to believe that she could get up. However, the queen was hesitant when the queen heard Lily chuckle.Lily shook her head
Lily straightened up and said without resentment, “Of course, you wouldn’t.”“That’s… quite a pity,” the queen murmured thoughtfully.“Well, there’s a price to pay for everything. That’s how the world balances itself,” Lily continued, “I can’t stop you if you must carry on with R10. Still, I won’t witness whether or not it succeeds. I just wish the outcome isn’t something you’ll regret.”Lily smiled and turned to head out the door.Rick heard their conversation as he stood guard outside. After exchanging looks with Lily as she brushed past him, he entered the room and saw the needles in Yasmin’s legs. “Your Majesty, those needles—”The queen waved dismissively. “It’s okay. Lily will remove them later.”Even so, Rick was wary. “You’re being too careless, Your Majesty. What if that woman—”“She wouldn’t,” Yasmin interjected, shaking her head."Why do you trust her so much?" Rick asked despite himself. The queen fell silent. If Rick had not asked her that, she would not have rea
Lily took out a cloth and unfolded it, revealing a row of silver needles inside. Yasmin was surprised she carried the needles with her.“Tell me. What do you want?” The queen took a deep breath to calm herself. She then reminded herself that she could always say no to Lily’s request. Still, Yasmin was cautious about Lily trying to trick her.Lily casually said, "I left because Prince Ross wanted to help me. I hope you don’t punish him.""That's it?" Yasmin thought she had misheard Lily. 'Is she trying to talk terms with me just so that I won't punish my son?' she wondered in disbelief."Ross is my son. I won't harm him. Don't you think you've wasted an opportunity by making such a request?" The queen shook her head. "I wasn’t sure if you’d blame him, but he did rescue me once. If I don't do anything, it would be ungrateful of me," Lily said gently, "Also, didn’t you already lock him up?"Yasmin was puzzled. "No, I only sent him back to Yudonia. He kept trying to get me to sto
"Three days," Lily replied.“That’s it?!” Yasmin was in disbelief. She thought Lily would try to buy some more time and suspected she would say the process would take several months or even years.‘I haven’t felt my legs for over a decade. I wouldn’t mind waiting for three more days.’“Are you sure I can get up and walk in just three days?” Yasmin pressed her legs hard but felt nothing. She would have treated her legs long ago if it were that easy.The queen had visited many famous doctors from various countries, but they could only stop her legs from getting weaker. However, Lily confidently told Yasmin that she could fix her legs so quickly.Yasmin wanted to believe it.After some consideration, Lily said, “I can’t guarantee that you’ll walk as fast as you once could. After all, you haven’t used your legs for a long time, and your muscles have atrophied. Still, you’ll recover slowly.”Yasmin nodded repeatedly, thinking it was good enough. She never dreamed of walking as well a
“Because only our opinions matter." Lily thought of something and said, "Unless you choose to believe Rhea.""I… don't trust anyone." Yasmin’s expression stiffened as she turned her wheelchair away."Your Majesty, I know you're dedicated to the experiment, but there are other things in life. Have you ever considered letting go of your burden to sightsee? You’ve done enough as a queen over the last few decades. Aren’t you tired of living a lonely life?”Lily gently spoke as she gazed at Yasmin’s back.The older woman caressed her knees with both hands and stared down at her legs, murmuring, “Sightsee, huh? I’ve forgotten what that’s like.”Yasmin had not used her legs for many years. Initially, she could still stand up and sometimes took a few steps. However, she could no longer get to her feet.She had grown accustomed to sitting in a wheelchair, but she felt a pang of sorrow after hearing Lily’s suggestion.Lily asked, “What if I can help you stand again? What if you can walk a
"Yes, I returned not just for him but also for you," Lily said, "I'm sure you were anxious for my return, weren't you?"Yasmin scoffed dismissively. "Why would I be? I have my bargaining chip. Besides, did you honestly think I couldn’t bring you back?""Bargaining chip? Do you mean Nick?" Lily shook her head with a smile. "Don't forget that he's not my son. Do you think he'll be much of a bargaining chip to you if I choose to ignore him for my three children?"She did not wait for Yasmin to reply and continued, "Besides, Nick still has a father who’s willing to die for him. If Mike decides to take drastic action against you— Yes, you're a queen, and you don't care much about an insignificant businessman.“However, don't forget that his business spans worldwide. There's no guarantee what he might do. Who knows, he might spread information that can affect Your Majesty and Yudonia's reputation?""You…" The queen was exasperated but could not retort.Lily noticed it and casually said
Rick could only remain silent at that moment.Yasmin then turned her wheelchair around and blandly said, “Bring Lily over. I’d like to see what excuses that sly woman can come up with.”"Your Majesty?" Rick was puzzled. "You know she'll just lie to you. Why must you—"Yasmin interjected, "I'd like to hear what she has to say."Rick had no choice but to leave and do as she said.As Lily was about to doze off, she heard noises from outside and opened her eyes. Immediately after, the door opened, and Rick appeared. He glared at her and spoke coldly, “Her Majesty wants to see you.”Lily glanced at Rick calmly and stood up as if she had expected his appearance. On the other hand, Mike rose before her and headed out.However, Rick stopped him as he reached the door. “You stay.”"But we came together!" Mike glanced over his shoulder at Lily, signaling her to persuade the man. Rick added, "The queen doesn’t wish to see you. Just stay here!"Lily patted Mike's shoulder and said gentl
Everyone was shocked when Lily returned to the embassy with Mike. One of the staff members quickly left to report the news to Queen Yasmin.Meanwhile, Lily saw people peering at her and Mike from the corner. Afterward, several guarded-looking men appeared. Lilt recognized them as the queen’s attendants. They brought Mike and Lily inside and then gave the duo a thorough search.The men only relaxed after finding nothing suspicious about the duo. Even so, Lily could not see the queen as the men told her to wait in an innermost room instead.After returning to the embassy, Lily felt a sense of strange familiarity. Although she knew the place well, her mindset had changed.She previously hated the embassy and simply wanted to escape. However, she had returned with a critical mission. Not only did she have to complete it, but she also needed to leave the place in one piece.While she was calm, Mike was somewhat anxious. He clasped his hands on his knees and glanced around as he sat dow
"I promise I'll do anything you want, okay?" Mike begged. He was desperate to see his son, so he decided to follow Lily when she insisted on returning to the embassy.Mike continued, “If any of you go with her, they might stop or suspect you. They won’t do that to me. It’s natural for me to want to see and rescue my son. I’m the best candidate because it makes sense for me to sacrifice myself for him.”After a short silence, Lily said, “You’re right.” She then looked at Alexander, who pondered before slowly raising his head and saying, “Me too.”Dominic tapped the table. "So do I."Cameron thought for a moment before saying, "I've no objections."Seeing this, Austin spread his arms and said, "Since you all agree, what else can I say? Let's do it!"It did not matter whether or not he agreed, but he just wanted to support Mike. The latter nodded and became emotional, saying, “Thanks, you guys!”"Why are you thanking us? Just be careful, and don’t be rash like you promised," Aust