Thinking about it carefully, Liu Zicai's plan sounded whimsical, but there was still a hint of feasibility.
First of all, Sandora came here under the pretext of studying abroad. This meant that her identity was not only that of a foreign princess but also an ordinary senior high school student. Whether experiencing life or genuinely studying, it all meant she had to lower her stance and interact with ordinary people. In this situation, a Cinderella story could happen. Although the chances were slim, no normal man could resist the temptation of winning over a bonafide princess, right?
Ahem, my case was special and not considered from the start...
Qianqian and I glanced around and only then noticed many so-called young talents with slicked-back hair and elegant manners. These people seemed to be warmly conversing while subtly comparing and competing with each other. Needless to say, they were also here aiming for that elusive opportunity to ascend. Even if they couldn't genuinely end up with the princess, wouldn't they feel they've gained a lot by pursuing a romance with a beautiful foreign girl?
After scanning around, Qianqian and I immediately felt sorry for that pighead Young Master Liu. Of all things, he chose to mess with Sandora. Now beaten to a pig's head look, even ordinary girls would be repulsed by his appearance, let alone a princess.
But then again, even if this guy hadn't been beaten into a pig's head, Sandora still wouldn't have taken a liking to him...
When Sandora announced she would study in China, she only mentioned she would study in K City and didn't specify which school. This seemed to signal that K City's largest noble school, Canglan Private High School, was the only possible choice if a princess were to study in China. Thus, the young masters from Canglan already considered themselves the princess's future classmates, gaining considerable superiority amidst their covert competitions.
"Stupid carbon-based life forms," Sandora's voice suddenly rang in my mind, filled with undisguised contempt.
I innocently said, "Sandora, you're taunting everyone..."
"Staying here is no fun," I said. The place was filled with elites with fake smiles and cockily showing off like peacocks. This environment was not to my liking at all. It was really impressive that Sandora insisted on staying till the end of the welcome banquet—speaking of which, when would she, the actual host of the banquet, make an appearance?
Just when I was puzzled by Sandora's carefree wandering amidst the crowd, a deep male voice suddenly rang out: "Ladies and gentlemen, please allow me to take a bit of your precious time."
I looked up to see a tall, strong man standing in the center of the venue, holding a microphone. I recognized him—it was Carmen, the Xyrin position's defensive heavy infantry soldier whom I once saved. Judging from the fact that Sandora allowed him to speak now, he was probably not an ordinary soldier, at least a Xyrin middle-level officer.
No wonder he could lead just 49 soldiers against the magic beast tide for so long; a high-order Xyrin Apostle indeed had the capability to turn the tide of battle.
Now, Carmen had shed his heavy alloy armor and donned a black tailcoat, with neatly pressed trousers and a perfectly tied bow tie. Although dressed like a gentleman, his tall and imposing figure made him look like a bodyguard disguised as a butler, which was amusingly awkward.
Seeing that everyone's attention was on him, Carmen nodded with satisfaction and said, "First of all, I am delighted to meet you all at this grand feast. Allow me to introduce myself. I am the host of this banquet and also the guard captain of Her Highness the Princess. I will be spending the rest of the time here with you all.
"I believe everyone must be wondering why the main character of this gathering, our Princess, hasn't shown up despite the banquet being underway for quite a while. Here, I will reveal a little secret: actually, the Princess is already among us on this plaza! And she is hidden within you!"
At this, the surrounding crowd immediately began to murmur and cast curious glances around the foreign girls to see if they could spot any suspiciously royal presence. Of course, many glanced at Sandora, but this eternally hungry wild girl was already engrossed in a new round of her battle with food, and her ravenous manners quickly made everyone look away.
After the crowd quieted down a bit, Carmen continued, "Of course, if the Princess is to play this game with everyone, she must have a way to avoid being easily discovered. From now until the banquet moves to the next segment, which is roughly an hour, the Princess will not leave the plaza. Whether you can find her will depend on your observation and luck... Of course, even if no one finds her by the end of the time, the Princess will reveal herself when we move to the next part of the banquet, but by then, there might be fewer surprises..."
It was surprising that someone who looked so much like a soldier had such excellent speaking skills. Sandora surely had hidden talents under her command...
Before Carmen finished his words, several eager young men stepped forward and asked loudly, "If we find the Princess, will there be any rewards?"
At the impulsive actions of these nouveau riche-like guys, I secretly shook my head. These people, who would never achieve much, were only fitting to pave the way for others in such situations.
To the questions of these impulsive ones, Carmen merely smiled slightly and said, "So, what kind of rewards do you gentlemen hope to receive?"
Carmen's counter-question was brilliant. In such a situation, who would really dare to mention any requests?
After a moment of embarrassment, these impulsive young men retreated. Carmen smiled slightly, raised the microphone, and said, "Now, the game begins—everyone, open your eyes wide and look for the Princess around you!"
As soon as he finished, the previously fake, passionate conversations ceased, and the rich young men started earnestly searching for the mysterious Princess.
I curiously looked at Sandora, not expecting that she would be interested in playing such a boring game with humans.
Noticing my gaze, Sandora smiled slightly and continued her battle with the cake in her hand. Qianqian then suddenly stuffed a small piece of pudding into my mouth and pouted, "Seriously, regardless of the reason, could you two avoid showing such heartfelt gazes in front of me?"
Many foreign girls were at the scene, some local expatriates joining the fun and many of Sandora's entourage. Of course, many who were disguised as ordinary people but actually Xyrin female soldiers were also mingling among the crowd. Everyone had reached a consensus: any foreign girl might be the Princess!
Right in front of me, a blonde girl was being pestered by several young men, which annoyed her to no end. Finally, unable to bear it any longer, she burst out in perfect Beijing dialect: "What are you guys doing? Is dyeing my hair a crime?"
Such scenes were everywhere, proving that dyeing hair indeed harmed both body and soul...
Since every foreign girl or suspected foreign girl was being noticed, Sandora couldn't be an exception. Standing next to her, I observed that in just a short time, no fewer than ten well-dressed and charming young men approached Sandora under the guise of cultural exchange, but they fled in fear at her exaggerated eating manner.
"So, are you not full yet?" I finally couldn't bear it after Sandora swallowed a whole plate of chocolate cake in ten seconds and used the spiritual connection.
Sandora's voice sounded in my mind, "Don't use the appetite standards of carbon-based life forms to judge the food intake of Xyrin Apostles..."
...It seemed like among the Xyrin Apostles I knew, only your appetite was this exaggerated.
"By the way," Sandora's voice rang in my mind again, "your loyal troops should also be in this world, right? Why haven't I seen them? Except for Pandora and that teacher Sivis, I haven't seen any of your subordinates."
"Well… actually, I don't like dealing with miscellaneous matters, so I let the commanders under my command find things they enjoy doing."
"Oh——" Sandora understood. She knew about my aversion to troublesome affairs.
At that moment, the corner of my eye caught sight of someone who absolutely shouldn't be here.
A resolute, righteous face wearing an outfit resembling The Matrix, and a black leather bag slung over the shoulder.
"Big brother, want a disc?" The man in black asked everyone he met.
...Selling pirated discs in a place like this, should I say this guy indeed had talent?!
"Liking what you do, huh..." Sandora remarked with a complicated expression.
I'm going to kill this guy!
***********************************************Welcoming the New Spring***********************************************
It's Lunar New Year, who will give Little Wen some New Year's money?