"Sui, what do you think? Should I join the cult? Or at least check it out?"
The princess asked in the most serious voice Sui had heard coming out of her mouth until mow.
Sui felt her soul leaving her body at the princess's declaration.
'No way! There is no way I can allow the princess to join a cult. Fuck! All I wanted was to have a life where I would not be noticed. Dealing with the princess is too much for a slave like me.'
"Then again, a cult has too many restrictions, and I don't think I am made for a tame life. I would much rather keep living the life I've been living until now."
The princess finally returned to her senses and Sui breathed a sigh of relief.
She felt a roller-coaster of emotions coursing through her body because of what the princess said to her.
"You are free to do what you want, princess."
'Fuck you! Stay in your line, and don't shorten my life span. Don't you realize that I will be the first casualty if anything happens to you?'
Sui's speech and her thoughts were opposite.
She knew she needed to control her thoughts, but how could you expect her to do that when the princess kept making things difficult for her?
'One day, I might speak my thoughts aloud, and then I will get into trouble. Until then, I can enjoy my remaining lifespan.'
"Hahaha, Sui, you adore you. Never change who you are, alright?"
The princess was laughing at something, but Sui had no idea what had amused her, so she did not bother asking the princess.
Sui led the princess inside the Pavilion where the village leader was sitting.
The man had a bandage around his eye but was soaked red already. The man flinched as soon as he noticed Sui and reached out toward his wound.
Sui got ready to defend herself and the princess if needed, but there was no real need to do that.
"Please have a seat. Once again, I apologize on behalf of our village, Princess. How many can I help you?"
The village leader asked in a severe tone.
Sui looked at the princess, waiting for her to speak up. But the princess was distracted already.
Her attention had been grabbed by the color strings connected to a Dreamweaver hanging over her head.
"Hey, can I have this? This Dreamweaver looks interesting. I wonder how beautiful it will look when dyed red."
The village leader looked awkward now.
He had been told that the princess wanted to talk about the demons and disappearances in the village. That had given the man hope that their situation could improve.
However, the princess focused on something unexpected when she opened her mouth.
"Princess Yunjin, we are here to discuss the disappearance, right?"
The leader asked tensely, but he kept his presence low.
He did not want to sour the princess's mood.
But there seemed to be no way to get the princess's attention without driving her away from the Dreamweaver.
"Huh? Ah, that! Sui, you take over the investigation from here on. I will ask you the details later."
The princess loaded all the responsibility on Sui's shoulder, causing the leader to turn to Sui with a begging face.
"Princess I-"
Sui wanted to complain and remind the princess that she was still a slave and had no authority.
But the princess had already turned her head away from the conversation, and Sui doubted that she would be able to get her attention again.
"Alright, I will listen to you. Can you start from the beginning for me?"
Sui asked the leader, and the man looked thankful.
"Of course! It all began one year ago when the masked men arrived. They warned everyone that our god was fake and only their god was real. Most people did not care about those masked men and ignored them."
"But that was when the monster attacks started. We filed a complaint with the locals, who forwarded it to the royal court. But we got no response for a week."
"We tried to file once again, but Minister Xiao quickly shot our request down. We tried repeatedly to reach the Imperial guards, but we were blocked every time."
"It was pure luck that one of the people who disappeared last week was friends with the imperial guard, and this incident got reported."
The leader finished speaking, and Sui could not help but marvel at the coincidence…no, careful planning at the cult's hand.
"Had any of the cult members ever been abducted?"
Sui asked to confirm her suspicions and the leader quickly shook his head.
"Not that I am aware of. The disappearances usually happen from the houses of non-believing poor people who will not be able to raise their voices."
This was expected cliche, and all the evidence pointed toward the cultists being the people behind this incident.
'Could there be more to this incident? Maybe a hidden agenda or a villain trying to take advantage of this situation. Or, maybe it is as straightforward as it appears. I won't be able to say anything until I investigate this situation.'
Sui let out a heavy sigh before she filed everything up inside her head for later.
"Hey child, you will make a great wife for my son. He is a little older than you, but I am sure he will treat you right. If you don't have anyone else in mind, how about you-"
The princess stood up and grabbed Sui around the middle before throwing her over her shoulder.
"Talking time is over. We will be heading back to the castle now. Village leader, I will see you soon regarding another request."
The princess did not even let this conversation finish before she was carrying Sui out of the village.
Sui felt her face burn as she was carried out on the princess's shoulder and through a small crowd of people.
'Why is the princess doing this to me? This will make people misunderstand our relationship! But how do I even bring this topic up? Will the princess even understand what she is doing wrong?'