Symphony for the Insect Princess

Chapter 98 Puzzle Game (I)

"Don't go! I... I don't know why, but I just have a very bad feeling about that place! Really, really trust me, don't go!"

Qiumila was uncharacteristically a little timid, but her attitude was very firm.

"Chimira-chan?"

"Well... actually, I hold the same opinion," Sedraon shrugged. "If it were me, I wouldn't go over right away, because I always feel... right?"

"Well, the bugs appearing all over the city are already a pretty obvious clue. Plus, the coincidence between the water conservancy network and the location of the great treasure makes it seem like they're emphasizing the city center as the location. It's very suspicious."

"Yes, yes!"

If you see a treasure chest in a maze, many people's first reaction is to go up and open it.

But if the treasure chest is covered with notes saying "There is treasure here", "Really, really", "If you miss it, it will be gone", I'm afraid most people will back off, because the repeated emphasis is too suspicious.

"But if that's the case, won't anyone go to a place that looks like a trap? After all, it's so obvious..." Charlotte still had doubts.

"No, it's not obvious at all. Have you read too many detective novels from a god's perspective?" Saidron said disdainfully. "If you look through ancient war records, you'll find that many so-called brilliant strategies aren't so impressive from a god's perspective. You might even think, 'How could such a stupid strategy actually deceive people?' But they do."

"That's what it means when someone is involved, the bystanders are more clear. Many doubts that seem obvious are actually difficult to spot if you are in the middle of it all the time," Aisia added.

"In other words, the 'Downtown Water Hub' is a place that attracts idiots who think they've grasped the key points but don't really have a grasp of the overall situation."

"'Overly deliberate hints' are a trap for fools, but a warning for those with a bit of sense."

"That is to say..."

"That's right. Whether it's the coincidence between the location of the great treasure and the water conservancy network nodes, or the emphasis on the city center in the distribution of insects, they're actually... all warnings to 'stay away from that place,' and only those who truly understand the overall situation can detect them."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

The four fell into silence again.

If that's the case, the mastermind behind this is even more suspicious.

It seems that the purpose of the conspiracy is not to deliberately create chaos or to trap people...

What exactly is that guy's purpose?

"……………………filter?"

A small voice broke the silence.

The three of them looked at Qimila together, who quickly waved her hands: "I, I was just saying that casually! I didn't mean anything special!"

The three of them were stunned for a moment, and then at the same time -

"That's it, Qimila!"

"Eh eh eh?"

"You are truly the epitome of great wisdom and apparent foolishness..."

"I'm not stupid!"

"He may look clumsy, but he's actually very thoughtful and, most importantly, very reliable."

"I don't know whether you are praising me or insulting me!"

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"The scorching cold gallops across the fire and ice of heaven and earth—"

"Too slow idiot!!!"

Sarco instantly appeared before I.A., interrupting his chant and mercilessly striking him to the ground with a single blow! The magic armor, compressed to the size of a human, was a concentrated form of power. In the face of absolute violence, the ice shield was completely vulnerable!

"Ahem!"

I.A. spat out a mouthful of blood. Sako approached at high speed. I.A. immediately raised his hand. The blood he had just spat out floated up with his movement, forming a scarlet magic circle!

"Cold Spine Burial!"

A torrent of scorching ice spikes surged out, instantly destroying most of the underground space! The complex waterway walls were first shattered by countless ice spikes, then reduced to ashes in the ensuing heat and explosion!

(Is it done?)

"Humph!!!"

Sarco, who took the blow almost at point-blank range, rushed out of the flames. Protected by the golem, he had almost no obvious damage and even bit down on an ice cone shot at his face with his teeth!

He bit the ice cone in his mouth and crushed it, and then the explosion submerged his head, but after the smoke and dust cleared, there was no trace of damage on his face! His strong defensive power was undoubtedly revealed!

"Is that all you can do? Be good to me—okay?"

boom! boom! ! !

Seizing this opportunity, Nicholas and Harry simultaneously rushed out from their blind spots, their invisible blades and battle axes slashing at Sarco's back! However, Sarco, attacked simultaneously, remained unharmed. Instead, the two attackers were repelled and thrown back! Nicholas's nails shattered, and Harry's knuckles were cracked, but he showed no sign of retreat, his eyes filled with insane rage!

"S-----!!!"

"Idiot! Don't—"

"Ha, after all the useless subordinates die, all you can do is scream and wail like a ghost and go crazy?"

Harry ignored Nicholas's advice and attacked again, but Sarko caught the axe with one hand! Sarko exerted force, and with a snap, the battle axe, which had been tempered by thousands of hammers, shattered!

"Three of them are here, and let me guess, the fourth is—"

Without even turning back, Sarco fired a magical flying sword backwards, piercing Lin Mei's shoulder as she was about to launch a sneak attack! Her chanting became a scream, and she fell to the ground, clutching her bleeding shoulder!

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"In that case, in that case..."

The vast amount of information has gradually been organized, and now only the final question remains.

Who is the mastermind behind this?

Or in other words, where is the real secret treasure?

"After going around in circles, we're back to the scavenger hunt! Damn it!"

Sedroon stomped his feet impatiently, and the bone dragon underfoot made a strange humming sound.

"Think about it, think carefully, are there any clues that we missed? If the purpose of the conspiracy is to 'screen', then they must have left enough clues!"

Aisia also frowned, thinking about it, she seemed to see a faint thread dangling in front of her eyes, but she just couldn't catch it.

"How about tracing back to the source? How did this all begin?" said Charlotte.

"At first...it was the patrol outside the city that spotted a suspicious person, but now I think about it, this was definitely arranged by someone behind the scenes, right?"

"and then?"

"Powerful individuals from all sides have gathered in Kasol City. Three investigation teams have also arrived. This city has become a battleground for the powerful..."

"And then what really ignited this whole thing?"

"Is it the death of Butcher of the Knights… Butcher?"

A flash of lightning flashed through Sedraon's mind.

Yes! Butcher! How could I forget this guy? His death was the trigger that plunged Kasol into complete chaos!

"With Butcher's intelligence, he definitely didn't find these two by himself..."

"Now that I think about it, Butcher's death was definitely caused by the shady business. And the fact that Butcher was found with two fakes on him must have been the work of the shady business as well!"

"Killing Butcher is understandable, but why put a big secret treasure on him?"

"It must be to show the whole city that the great secret treasure exists. Otherwise, nothing would happen!"

"I know! But why two? Why let him die in the square in front of the City Lord's Mansion? Was it just to attract the attention of the three investigation teams? Or was it..."

"Well, is this too complicated?"

Qimila raised her hand timidly again, but this time the three men did not look down on her and looked at her seriously.

"That's just my personal opinion! We're overthinking it. Maybe Mr. Darkmoon just wants everyone to 'pay special attention' to Butcher?"

"...Overthinking it? That's possible, but what on earth is there for Butcher to pay attention to...eh?"

“Could it be—Ah!!!”

Isiah's Sedraon looked at each other at the same time.

"His death message!"

"I remember it was something like... 'Following the Great Secret Treasure'!"

"Why was it missed when it was so obvious?"

"It's because it's so obvious and has long been known to the whole city, so it's ignored by most people!"

"But this sentence doesn't seem to have a very deep meaning... Wait... The Great Secret Treasure... Following the Great Secret Treasure..."

"Could it be——"

Sai Zhuoang slapped his head.

"Everyone, bring out all the fakes you've collected! These are the real deal!"

Chapter 99 Puzzle Game (Part )

I forgot to tell you one thing!

Starting from the popularity vote of the second volume, I will write a special story with the person who gets the highest votes each time (except Nier) as the protagonist.

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Boom, boom, boom! ! !

The sound of the collapse was deafening, and the entire underground was shaken by the fierce battle. Along with the falling rubble, the four people were fleeing deeper and deeper!

Nicholas Xi carried I.A., Harry carried Lin Mei, and behind them—

"Hey, hey, hey, don't be a coward! Where did your momentum go at the beginning?!"

"Tsk——"

I.A gasped and launched a barrage of red ice behind him, but all of it bounced back off the constantly repairing magic armor. Sako also suffered some minor injuries, but it was not a serious problem at all! The initial surprise attack had already failed, and now the four of them had no choice but to retreat!

"Do you know how many people have died from greed throughout history, you idiots?" Sarko's mocking voice grew closer. "If you had fled, I might not have pursued you, but you're getting closer and closer to the core! Even at this point, can't you let go of the real secret treasure?"

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"Is that all..."

Aisia brought out six from the City Lord's Mansion.

Two each for Charlotte and Cedroon.

Qiumila has one.

After comparing the magic marks, these eleven are all fakes - this is of course, there can only be one genuine one, and that one genuine one must be in the hands of the shady people.

Once each counterfeit is compared with the magic mark, its true appearance will be exposed: the rainbow glow disappears, the color becomes dim, and the number left by the sage of the craftsman will appear somewhere on the surface of the second phase.

serial number.

Everyone took it for granted that this was left on the prototype by the Sage Craftsman when he tried to imitate the great secret treasure.

Even if someone had doubts, these doubts were diluted and eventually disappeared in the context where everyone took it for granted.

"It takes advantage of the ignorance of people as a group."

"Tsk, as expected, I never noticed before, there's something wrong with these 'numbers'."

"It's normal to have more than one number, but—"

Eleven great secret treasures were neatly placed in front of the four people.

From left to right, the numbers are:

ene, ene, n, n, mg, mg, mg, ibe, ibe, ibe, ibe.

If the Sage Craftsman had produced too many imitations, it would be normal to use more than one letter to number them, but it would be absolutely impossible if there were serious duplications in the numbers.

"And looking at it this way... these so-called 'numbers' are just ene, n, mg, ibe, which repeat over and over again! Could it be that there are only these four numbers in total?" Setroon scratched his head in frustration.