Chapter 443

“Yes!”

It’s like he didn’t feel a thing about the unnaturalness of the scene before him—a father and daughter trying to kill each other. As soon as the old king gave his order, the waiter behind him immediately responded, stood up, and lunged toward the princess lying on the ground, ready to subdue her. But…

“Bang!”

All that could be heard was the dull sound of iron colliding. The princess lying on the ground lifted her metal arm, which bore some burn marks, and slapped the waiter hard across the face.

Amidst the creaking sound of twisting metal, the neck of the iron waiter instantly twisted 180 degrees in the opposite direction. The part of the body below the neck lost control immediately, and with a thud, it knelt down in front of the princess.

“You’re truly heartless.”

After attempting to stand up twice but failing due to her right leg joint being jammed, the Iron Princess couldn’t help but said with a sorrowful expression: “No matter what, I’ve called you ‘father’ so many times, yet you actually shot at me?”

“…”

Looking at the iron attendant whose head had been twisted by the slap and who had fallen to his knees, then looking at everyone else outside the study who were completely unmoved by his orders, the old king sitting in the wheelchair remained silent for a moment before responding coldly:

“Don’t pretend! No matter how many times you call out ‘father,’ you are not my daughter!”

“Alright, since you’re the king of this country, whatever you say goes.”

After shaking her head slightly, the Iron Princess staggered towards the door, drew a ceremonial sword from the waist of an iron servant, and while walking towards the old king with the sword in hand, she curiously asked: “If I’m not mistaken, there was a moment when you actually believed my words and thought I was your daughter, but in the end, you still fired… Could you tell me why you changed your mind?”

“…”

As the iron princess approached him with the sword, the old king’s iron face twitched slightly on both cheeks before nodding and admitting: “I did have a moment where I believed Veronica had come to her senses, but after reflecting on my entire life, I immediately realized you could never be my daughter.

For all of us royal family members—whether it’s me, Veronica, Joshua, or anyone else—once we’ve decided on something, there is no such thing as ‘coming to our senses.’ This has been the case for hundreds of years without exception; it’s a curse embedded in our bloodlines!”

“I see.”

Limping through the study and stopping in front of the old king, the princess holding the sword nodded thoughtfully: “That’s why you only tried to persuade me once or twice. After realizing I kept sticking to my own ideas, you stopped trying altogether and began preparing for Joshua to ascend the throne.

You must have thought that trying to persuade me would only make me more cautious and defensive, so you chose not to try anymore and instead supported me, making me think you agreed with my ideas?”

“Not just that.”

The old king straightened himself in his wheelchair and replied coldly:

“What I truly feared was that Veronica, upon discovering my unwavering stance, might temporarily act compliant. Once I handed over the throne to her, she would continue doing her own thing—cutting out the flesh and bone of the royal family to give the kingdom new blood…

Monster! Tell me, how do you know these things? I only privately persuaded Veronica a few times. No one else should know the details. What exactly are you?”

“We’ve already told you, I am your daughter.”

The metallic fingers pressed the spring, flinging off the ornate scabbard. Princess Veronica held the unsharpened ceremonial sword and asked gently:

“By the way, even though your legs can’t move and you can’t escape from me, aren’t you going to resist anymore?

Father, actually, I’ve wanted to see your fear, despair, or regret for a long time. Can you satisfy this small wish of mine before you die?”

After hearing the princess’s malicious inquiry, the old king simply closed his iron eyelids, covering the two gem-like eyes clouded with impurity. Then, a fierce wind whistle sounded beside his ear, and the dark world spun around…

“Father, you’re too old.”

After chopping off the head of the iron king with one stroke, watching the body slump in the wheelchair, “Princess Veronica” couldn’t help but shake her head and pointed the tip of the sword at the attendants and guards outside the door: “If you were younger and had sharper eyes, you probably could have noticed the abnormalities among those soldiers outside.”

Those soldiers?

Upon hearing the princess’s words, the old king’s severed head on the ground suddenly opened its eyes.

“What do you mean?”

“My point is, to prevent them from following your orders and helping you attack me, I had to cut off their ears beforehand.”

The Iron Princess explained with a smile: “You should already have guessed what happened to you, but what you don’t know is that my ‘rule’ revolves around identity, status, and power. Within the scope of my rule, people of higher status can forcibly command those of lower status, and I cannot exempt myself either.”

From this perspective, the queen was actually much harder to deal with than you. If I wanted to raise my sword against her, all she had to do was scream ‘no,’ or even cry and beg me not to kill her, and I would have no choice but to stop immediately.

But you’re different. Your dignity wouldn’t allow you to perform any actions that damage the royal family’s grace. When I walked towards you with the sword, you wouldn’t panic and scream or cry for mercy; you’d simply close your eyes and wait for death, letting me chop off your head.

And when I chopped off your head, your ‘status’ and ‘power’ died with it, meaning that within this kingdom, no one will be able to defy my commands.”

“…”

With a satisfied smile, the Iron Princess looked at the old king, whose iron face now showed a sudden flash of regret, and said: “Dear father, thank you for your dignity, which brought me the final victory.”

“…”

“Are you saying all this because you want to see me regret?”

Glancing at the princess towering over him, the old king’s iron head coldly replied: “Even though I don’t know why you hate me so much, you haven’t won! The Twelve Kingdoms have agreements with the Clearing Bureau. Only someone with our bloodline can become the king of the Twelve Kingdoms. So even if you kill me, it’s useless. Once the Clearing Bureau discovers the abnormality in the palace, they’ll immediately…”

“The Clearing Bureau won’t do anything to me.”

Raising the thick-backed iron sword again, the Iron Princess smiled:

“Just now, I wasn’t lying—I really am your daughter Veronica.

And you yourself said, according to the agreement between the Twelve Kingdoms and the Clearing Bureau, only someone with the corresponding bloodline can become the king of the Twelve Kingdoms.

So, if I act fast enough and kill all the royal bloodline before they arrive, what do you think the Clearing Bureau will do?”

(End of Chapter)