Yes, Lady Funina!

Yae no Miko was surprised that Richard, who always liked to be impartial, would actually do something so out of character.

What's going on? Did she change her gender?

But Yae no Miko quickly realized why Richard did this.

Some tricks might work once or twice, but they become less effective if used too often.

The Eighth Prince had used similar tricks several times before, but Richard had always managed to thwart them. If he were to use them again now, even if Richard clearly expressed his 'favoritism,' no one would believe him anymore.

After all, Richard's attitude had already been quite clear before: simply lustful (not really), and equally sharing love with everyone.

As the saying goes, masters know when to stop. After realizing that words alone could not defeat her opponent's spirit, Yae no Miko quickly adjusted her plan. After exchanging a glance with Funina, she went straight to the main topic of the day.

—The Head Maid Li Tea Project is launched!

Chapter 211 King's Game

"A dinner party game?" Richard's face showed a strange expression when he heard Yae no Miko's words.

No, we haven't even started eating yet, and you're already thinking about playing games?

Or perhaps, what does the goddess want to do?

Richard observed the expressions of the women present. Some showed interest, some seemed to have known all along and looked expectant, and some were somewhat surprised but indifferent. Only Clarinde remained expressionless, as if this matter had nothing to do with her.

Is it really unrelated?

Claude noticed Richard's gaze and quickly straightened her pretty face, trying to maintain a cool and aloof demeanor, making it seem as if she didn't care at all about the 'dinner game' proposed by Yae no Miko.

Hmm, it seems we've found the first suspect.

Richard shifted his gaze from Claurind, looked around, and asked, "What do you all think?"

"I think it's a good idea, it sounds like it would be a lot of fun." Fukaros looked quite interested. The game sounded really fun, and it was Yae no Miko who suggested it, so she definitely didn't just want to play a simple social game.

And Funina, who already knew about it and was even the planner, quickly agreed. With the two water gods leading the way, the remaining girls also agreed.

After going around the circle, Richard was the only one who hadn't made a move yet.

“Since everyone is so enthusiastic, I can’t possibly spoil the fun.” Richard knew that Yae no Miko and the others had ulterior motives, but he still agreed.

“Very well, since everyone agrees, I will briefly explain the name and rules of the game.” Yae no Miko coughed lightly.

"The game is called the King's Game." As she spoke, Yae no Miko conjured eight playing cards as if by magic.

The deck is very simple; apart from an ace with a 'King' on it, the remaining seven cards are all number cards.

"The King's Game, as the name suggests, is a game in which the King has unlimited power and can command one or two of the seven numbered cards to do anything."

However, it's important to note that becoming king doesn't guarantee a life of security, as the king himself doesn't know the number plates of everyone present, including himself.

Yae no Miko held the ace between two fingers, while everyone in the room started drawing cards. The last card left was the king's own number card. This card could not be turned over, meaning the king did not know his own number. If he happened to call his own number, it meant that he would suffer the consequences.

"Suppose I am the king, and without knowing your card numbers, I randomly call out a number. For example, I say: Number six, go eat a dessert. Then the person who draws the number six card must eat a dessert."

As soon as Yae no Kamiko finished speaking, Kage revealed his hand card, number six, and then his gaze fell on the small cakes on the table.

"Ahem, I was just giving an example. The game hasn't even started yet, so you don't need to be in such a hurry." Yae no Miko watched as Kage forked a piece of cake and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing it like a hamster.

"...Is that so? It's alright." After swallowing the cake, Ying wiped the traces of cake from the corner of her mouth with her tongue.

"Isn't it just that you simply want to eat it?" Yae no Miko thought to herself.

"In short, the rules are that simple, do you understand?" Yae no Miko said with a smile.

After all, it wasn't a particularly difficult game, and with Yae no Miko explaining it very clearly and Kage demonstrating it live, everyone present understood the rules of the game.

However, before the game started, Yae Miko specifically said, "Since this is just a game between friends, in order not to affect our friendship, we must first determine the limits of this game before we start."

"First, please raise your hand if you cannot accept physical contact with each other."

Yae no Miko looked around, but no one raised their hand.

This is quite normal. Apart from Richard, everyone present was a woman, and there's nothing wrong with women hugging and kissing each other.

As for Richard, there's not much more to say. Not only was there physical contact, but several of them had also had close physical contact.

Then Yae no Miko added, "Secondly, please raise your hand if you cannot accept kissing or cuddling, like kissing on the cheek."

Looking around, still no one raised their hand.

"Finally, please raise your hand if you don't want to see Richard in a maid outfit."

Due to inertia, none of them, including Richard, raised their hands immediately after hearing Yae no Miko's words.

Yae no Miko obviously didn't give everyone time to react, and immediately clapped her hands and said, "Okay, no one objects, so let's proceed according to this standard."

"Wait!" Richard raised his hand after realizing what was happening, indicating that he had an objection.

What does it mean to say, "Raise your hand if you don't want to see Richard in a maid outfit?"

Does that mean he has to change into a maid outfit?

"Oh, Richard, is there anything you want to say?" Yae no Miko asked knowingly.

"What do you mean I'm wearing a maid outfit?"

"It's the king's order, after all. If it just so happens that someone has to wear a maid outfit, there's nothing we can do about it," Yae no Miko said with a smile.

"What if she's already wearing a maid outfit?"

"Doesn't that fulfill the king's order?"

Okay, okay, let’s play like this, right?

Richard noticed that everyone present had thoughtful expressions on their faces, clearly inspired by Yae no Miko's words.

Even Ying was no exception; she was also very curious about what Richard would look like if he wore a maid outfit.

In other words, if everyone present except Richard were to become king each time and be randomly given two numbers, and each person were ordered to change into a maid outfit, then the probability of Richard changing into a maid outfit would be infinitely close to certainty.

Even if you don't draw Richard, you won't lose anything. At most, you'll just waste a chance to become king. But if you guess correctly, you can witness the historic moment when Richard changes into a maid outfit.

Everyone can have Richard dressed up in a maid outfit first, and then officially start the game.

"Do you have any further questions?" Yae no Miko asked.

“That’s it.” Richard shook his head. He didn’t say anything about how unfair it was. It was obvious that Yae no Kami had this idea from the beginning.

Even if he expressed his objection, Yae Shinko would likely say something like, "Everyone else is wearing maid outfits, but you're not. Isn't that your problem?"

"Shall we begin?" Yae no Miko paused. "Why don't you just go change your clothes? Anyway, if I draw the ace, I'll definitely gamble on that two-seven chance."

Richard remained unmoved and instead asked, "Since it's possible to change clothes, can't I make a similar request?"

Yae nods slightly, "Of course, but it has to be on-site."

"You don't need to worry about that."

Richard casually created a spatial rift and then took out a dazzling array of clothes from it. These clothes looked beautiful, but they also had one thing in common: they were very economical with fabric.

Without a doubt, these clothes are all 'shoddy' versions. While they might not be so bad as to fail censorship, they are certainly more revealing than what we have now.

"There will definitely be enough clothes," Richard said with a smile, clapping his hands.

Funina curiously leaned forward, picked up a piece of clothing, and tried it on herself. After imagining how it would look on her, her face instantly turned bright red.

She couldn't even imagine what it would be like if she appeared at the banquet wearing this outfit; the clothes Richard had brought out were far more provocative than maid outfits.

Yae no Miko glanced at Richard's 'King's Treasury' and couldn't help but sneer, saying, "Don't forget, even a 'king' can command himself."

She just wanted Richard to change into the maid outfit she had prepared. If Richard ended up suffering the consequences, it wouldn't be her problem.

Richard simply smiled and said, "I believe in my luck."

Moreover, the fact that he took out these clothes does not mean that he will necessarily issue relevant orders when he becomes king.

These are just intimidation tactics. They want to see me in a maid outfit. Fine, if I really wear it, none of us can escape.

However, Richard knew that this kind of deterrence would probably not have much effect in the end, and as long as Yae no Miko became 'king', Richard might be ordered to change into women's clothing.

Not to mention that Yae no Miko might have accomplices... Richard glanced at Clarinde as if it were an unintentional gesture.

Clarinde, who was being seen, trembled, but then, for some reason, perhaps knowing that she had been exposed, she actually stared directly at Richard, looking like she was ready to risk everything.

Richard didn't say anything about this. Yae and the others were going back soon, while Clarin had a long time to go in Fontaine.

But judging from Clorinde's appearance, she doesn't seem to realize this at all.

"Then I'll go first." Yae no Miko drew a card first, glanced at it, and then closed it. Clearly, she was not the King.

Following a clockwise order, everyone quickly drew all their cards, and Richard became the King for the first round.

"Number One and Number Two, finish a glass of red wine in one go," Richard quickly gave the order.

His goal was simple: to reduce staff as quickly as possible.

The fewer people there are, the greater Richard's chances of winning.

However, the King's Game also has a number of players required. Naturally, the more people there are, the more fun it is. With only seven people, the number is barely enough to play.

Once the number of players drops to five, Richard can suggest changing the game or ending the party for the evening.

Then Richard can pull Yae no Miko and Claurind directly into the next match.

Yae no Miko quickly guessed what Richard wanted to do, but she thought it was pointless.

LOL, among all of you here, who would pass out after just one drink?

“Number one, it looks like it’s me!” Fukaros held up the number plate.

"Then what about number two?" Richard looked around and found that no one stepped forward to claim the number plate, so he realized that, barring any unforeseen circumstances, number two should be him.

Well, thankfully he didn't directly say he was going to pick out an outfit, otherwise we could have declared the defense a failure.

Richard flipped over the middle number plate and found that it really was number two.

Richard quickly finished a glass of red wine, and his expression didn't change much. For him, a glass of red wine was really nothing.

But it was different for Fucarus; after a glass of red wine, his cheeks visibly flushed.

Come to think of it, for the past five hundred years, Fukaros has been hiding in the Prophecy Machine and has never had the opportunity to come into contact with alcohol. Even if she had the opportunity, she would not drink alcohol, because she is not simply hiding in the Prophecy Machine, but is to conduct a trial. Since it is a trial, she must maintain a clear mind.

In this way, Fucarus would not have the habit of drinking alcohol.

That's indeed the case; tonight was the first time she'd drunk alcohol since leaving the Proclamation Machine...

Furthermore, people's constitutions are different. As mentioned before, Fukaros has a very sensitive constitution, with all her senses being extremely acute. This leads to a problem: she reacts strongly to anything that enters her body.

Alcohol, a substance she hadn't encountered for at least five hundred years, was naturally included in that category.

Looking at Fukaros, who was visibly starting to become confused, Yae no Miko silently took back her previous words.

Surprisingly, among those present, there were indeed people who couldn't hold their liquor.

When Lynette saw this scene, it seemed strangely familiar, but she was clearly no longer the same person she used to be.

A mere glass of red wine wouldn't get her drunk at all!

……

Lynette was slumped on the table, her eyes clearly glazed over with drunkenness. Her face was flushed, and the gray cat on her head was faintly pink. Occasionally, it would twitch with a burp.

After several rounds of cycling, Richard, just as he said, was indeed very lucky.

His probability of becoming 'King' is close to one in four, meaning that on average, he can become King once every four rounds.

Yae no Miko, on the other hand, seems to have had less luck. From the beginning of the game until now, he has only been king twice, and he failed to guess Richard's identity both times.

In comparison, the probability of Ying becoming 'King' is ridiculously high, almost one in half.

However, unlike Yae no Miko, she did not constantly order people to change into maid outfits.

Instead, one time she changed into a maid outfit, and the other time she gave other orders.

The main focus is on fairness.

As for Funina, she is clearly just as unlucky as Yae no Miko. Yae no Miko at least got to be a queen twice, while she has only been one so far...

And even on this one and only occasion, she failed to see the head maid, Li Cha.

As for Clarinde, she had her turn a few times as well, but after Richard casually asked, "Shadow, are you going back to Inazuma soon?", Clarinde realized what was going on.

Oh my god, Yae no Miko is leaving, but I still have a long time to go in Fontaine!

Under Richard's meaningful gaze, Claudia silently gave the order.