The door didn't creak. It didn't open politely. It didn't even try to survive.
It flew. Violently. Gloriously. It hit the ground with a spectacular crash and flopped over, officially declaring itself dead.
One moment, the room was peaceful (well, sort of) and the next, a poor, innocent door had been executed without trial. The BANG rattled the windows and echoed through the courtyard.
Inside, everyone froze.
Linyue blinked, stunned. Song Meiyu, who had been peacefully sprawled on the bed rubbing her sore wrist immediately launched upright. And Prince Lu, of all people, was standing in her room, still mid-sentence, lips parted.
All three of them slowly turned their heads toward the source of the disaster.
Shu Mingye stood there, tall and furious, radiating both royalty and shock. His eyes swept across the scene, sharp and burning, but what he saw made him falter for the briefest second. This was… not the crime scene he had expected.
Linyue blinked again, still trying to process. What was he doing? And more importantly, why had he murdered a defenseless door instead of knocking like a normal human being? Or using the handle?
Shu Mingye didn't blink. His gaze dropped to the bed, where Song Meiyu sat upright, mouth slightly open in confusion. Then his eyes shifted to the true scene of chaos:
Prince Lu was pressed against a wooden pillar. His hands gripped it behind him in sheer desperation, knuckles white, face drained of color. His left leg was lifted high, trapped midair in Linyue's merciless grip.
Linyue, meanwhile, looked like she had invented a brand-new form of martial arts. Her right leg was planted firmly against Prince Lu's chest for leverage. Both hands were wrapped tight around his boot. Her brows were furrowed in pure concentration, lips pressed tight, and her eyes burned with the determination usually reserved for life-or-death struggles. The boot, however, refused to surrender. It clung to Prince Lu's foot as if it had fused permanently there.
A long, awkward silence fell.
Shu Mingye stared.
They stared back.
…All right. He may have overreacted a little. This was clearly not what he thought it was. But now that the door was dead on the floor, the scene before him was ridiculous beyond measure, and the air was awkward. What exactly was he supposed to say?
Oops, my bad?
Of course not. He was the King of Shulin, the Demon King of the South. Breaking his own palace door was not a crime. In fact, if anyone here owed an apology, it was the door for daring to stand in his way in the first place.
With that comforting logic, Shu Mingye's lips curled into a dark, smug smile that could only be described as villainous. Relief seeped into his chest in the strangest way. He had already planned ten different methods to "accidentally" eliminate Prince Lu within three days. He had mentally drafted a scroll titled One Hundred and One Ways to Banish a Flirtatious Intruder. He had even imagined grand betrayals, stormy duels, and the dramatic funeral that would follow.
Yet here stood Prince Lu, pinned against a pillar, flailing like a helpless noodle, boot under siege, chest under assault. By her.
His anger melted into something far less simple. Relief. Amusement. A hint of jealousy he refused to name. Why had he been so furious in the first place? Why did it twist something in him to see Prince Lu smiling at her, talking so easily, existing in her space?
He didn't know. He only knew that he cared. And the caring made him even angrier.
Now, with the door lying dead on the floor and three pairs of eyes fixed on him, he straightened his shoulders. He had no choice but to act like he meant to break that door all along.
The King of Shulin never overreacted. He simply… executed plans no one else could comprehend.
Linyue stared at the broken door, then up at the man who had clearly lost all sense of civilized behavior.
What in the world was wrong with him? Why break the door? And why was he standing there with that smug, evil smile?
She gave up trying to make sense of it. A lunatic was a lunatic. You did not question the wind. You did not question fire. And you definitely did not question Shu Mingye.
Her eyes drifted back to the poor, splintered door lying face-down on the floor. Then she lifted her chin and locked eyes with the culprit. "Next time," she said slowly, voice dripping with patience she didn't feel, "how about using your hand to open it instead of your leg?"
She didn't even bother hoping for a knock. That was clearly too advanced.
Shu Mingye stood silently for a moment, staring back at her like he was the normal one. Then he smirked. "It's dirty," he said coolly. "I don't want to touch it."
Linyue blinked. Slowly. Her mouth opened just a little.
Excuse me??
She looked at the ruined door again. Then back at him. She was genuinely impressed. That level of nonsense? This level of nonsense had to be a high cultivation realm of its own. Supreme lunatic. Untouchable.
"Well," she said at last, slowly nodding up and down like she was speaking to someone with a severe case of delusion. "Sure, sure. I'll make sure to scrub it clean next time."
She pouted her lips and tilted her head. "Just so there won't be another victim," she added softly, "fallen by the mighty power of your royal leg."
Shu Mingye raised an eyebrow. Was that sarcasm?
It had to be. Her lips were poked out in a ridiculous little pout, her head bobbing up and down. But for some cursed reason, instead of being offended, his brain betrayed him with a single thought.
She's… kind of cute.
Before he realized it, the corner of his mouth curved upward. Just slightly. Dangerous. Almost a smile. Until his brain caught up with his ears.
"Victim" from his royal "leg"?
Wait. Hold on. That—
That did not sound right. Not at all.
The almost-smile vanished instantly. His eyes narrowed, suspicion snapping back into place. He looked at her sharply, searching her face for any trace of hidden meaning, some sly smirk that would confirm his suspicion. But no. Linyue only blinked up at him with those wide, clear eyes like she hadn't said anything strange at all. She looked so innocent, so tragically and completely unaware of how that sentence had sounded that he frowned at himself instead.
Forget it. Forget it, he told his brain. You're imagining things again.She's not trying to imply anything about your leg. Obviously not.
Still… next time she said something about his leg, he was going to stop her. Probably. Maybe. Unless she made that pouty face again. In which case…
Ugh.
Song Meiyu, still on the bed, clapped once. "Bravo. Truly the greatest palace drama of the year."
Prince Lu, still clinging to the pillar, muttered weakly, "Can we finish taking off this boot now… or am I going to die like this?"
All the attention in the room slowly turned to the poor, unfortunate soul: Prince Lu.
Shu Mingye walked into the chamber, his royal robes swaying slightly with every Very Serious step. He looked around, then locked eyes with Linyue and asked coldly, "Care to explain? What is he doing here? Late at night. In your chamber."
Linyue looked at Prince Lu, then back at Shu Mingye, and shrugged. "I don't know," she said plainly.
Right then, He Yuying arrived outside the… now doorless chamber. He paused mid-step, mouth falling open. "What just happened here?" he asked, eyes darting from the ruined door on the floor to the chaos inside.
Prince Lu immediately pointed an accusing finger. "It's because of him!"
He Yuying pointed at himself, confused. "Me? What did I do?"
"You gave me these boots!" Prince Lu snapped, lifting his leg.
"You asked for them!" He Yuying replied, scandalized. "You said your royal boots were too fancy for sneaking through the remote backyard. So you stole mine and stormed off!"
Prince Lu's face twisted in suffering. "Well, now they're glued to my leg! Help me take them off before they take me with them!"
With a loud sigh, He Yuying trudged inside and crouched beside him. What followed was a full minute of dramatic grunting, yelping, and the unmistakable sound of someone trying to wrestle a stubborn boot off a royal foot.
Song Meiyu rubbed her sore wrist from earlier attempts and muttered, "I nearly lost a finger to that boot… What's it made of? Demonic hide?"
Meanwhile, Shu Mingye sat down gracefully on the nearby chair. Linyue followed him and seated herself as well.
Inside the room, the boot finally came off with a loud POP followed by Prince Lu dramatically collapsing on the floor.
Everyone stared at him.
"I'm alive," he said faintly.
He Yuying looked at the boot in his hand and added dryly, "Barely."