Hidden genius: Black belly snake

Several hours later…

Five figures stood ramrod straight in the elven royal palace courtroom as if they were about to be hung.

Numerous injuries and open flesh wounds were littered all over their body.

It was a miracle that they hadn't yet dropped dead on the floor.

There were even heavily bleeding and oozing burn marks on their bodies, well at least on four of them.

The fifth one, the wounded snake, was slightly unscathed and untouched by the fire, after all it was that guilty party who had set the forest on fire in the first place. 

But even if they were heavily injured and could barely stand, all five of them were currently frozen solid, standing still with their heads bowed down.

And in front of them, on an ornate crystal throne, a terrifying yet enchanting figure lazily rested.

The man's blood red eyes surveilled the culprits in front of him with visible disinterest.

Xander had just now finished a long and grueling meeting with the big shots of the nine countries.

Dealing with those arrogant, conniving, and shrewd old bastards had taken quite a lot out of him, considering that tempers were running very high.

The mysterious tribulation lightning and the heavenly treasure that magically disappeared had created quite a big fuss and commotion.

Xander rubbed his temples.

He then glanced at General Salvatore, his right hand man, who was sweating profusely and stood alongside the culprits with his head hung low.

"Go on then. Tell me…" Xander tilted his face to a side and indifferently rested it on his palm.

His other hand was dully rapping on the magnificent edges of the throne, his eyes narrowed into thin slits.

A frightening aura seeped out of the elf.

"What was so important that you had to see me at this ungodly hour? Hmm?" 

The man's tyrannical voice thundered like heavenly hammers on the courtroom floor.

Charlotte shivered. 

The man she so desperately wanted to see was finally paying attention to her, but his gaze was grimly suffocating.

"She… She… Tang Yue has the… the treasure. She… She killed the centipede." 

Charlotte stuttered and with great difficulty lifted her wounded hand and finger to point at the snake standing beside her.

General Salvatore was aghast! His daughter's words were ridiculously stupid and foolish!

Sure! An entire army of powerful experts searched the forest with a fine tooth comb, but the treasure is in the hands of a weak snake spirit beast!

He had absolutely no idea what the hell happened to his usually shrewd and calculative daughter.

Why was she being so damned foolish today?

In the era, where sons were cherished and daughters were looked down upon, elven General Salvatore had always considered his daughter to be the apple of his eye.

She was a talented swordsman, cultivation genius, and refined beauty.

So, he just couldn't understand what the hell happened to her tonight?

On one hand, it greatly pained him to see his daughter so heavily injured and bleeding and burnt, but on the other hand, he wanted to kill her himself before she sentences the whole Salvatore family to death.

General Salvatore was really at his wit's end. He knew full well just how angry the crown prince was right now. 

He was also present in the earlier meeting. Otherwise, he would have stepped in and stopped all of this mishap from happening.

Glaring at his daughter, the old General hurriedly intervened, before things could worsen.

"I apologize on her behalf, your highness. Please show mercy." 

The esteemed General immediately knelt down on the floor and bowed his head deeply.

Xander grimaced. "Why am I dealing with this nonsensical drama in the middle of the night?" He rubbed his temples with his eyes closed.

"Tell me exactly what happened in the forest." His eyes flashed open and his deadly red orbs gazed at the elf Herald, one of Charlotte's companions.

Herald clenched his fists. He was barely conscious and his legs were trembling and shivering.

At this point, there was no turning back. He knew that he would instantly be killed if he dared to lie like Charlotte had lied.

"Your highness, please forgive me." 

Herald collapsed on the floor and banged his head on the marble floor repeatedly. Blood dripped and stained on the clear white marble floor.

He then proceeded to narrate the entire series of events to the cold-blooded tyrant… without hiding anything…

Charlotte's eyes bulged in shock. Her closest companion was ratting her out right in front of her!!

It was all over. She knew it.

The beautiful elf's face that was barely recognizable had an unsightly scowl. She turned her head and glared at Tang Yue in anger.

This was all her fault!

Damn it! They should have killed the snake when they had the chance, and all of this wouldn't have happened.

But who knew her fire magic would be so strong.

All of them were injured and wounded, almost near death, but somehow Tang Yue had managed to set the forest on fire and escaped from there.

While the snake easily slithered out of the mess, Charlotte and her companions had to endure a lot and only narrowly missed being burnt away.

And in that fit of anger, Charlotte had barged into the royal courtroom and pointed her finger directly at Tang Yue for pocketing the centipede.

And by mistake, in the heat of the moment, she even threw in her own extra flavorings and accused Tang Yue of pocketing the treasure as well.

Otherwise, how else could she have killed the centipede?

It was quite the sound logic, unfortunately, it was not true…

And of course, as soon as she mentioned the word treasure, the crown prince was instantly notified and Tang Yue who had just now reached her private chambers was mercilessly dragged out of her bed and into the courtroom by two royal guards.

Thus currently, all the guilty parties were squirming right now in front of the enraged mad man.