Aeldara's question, each word like a sharp needle, pierced directly into the deepest recesses of Alex's heart.
The Prince, who had just been beaming with excitement while recounting his "chance encounter," suddenly had all the color drained from his face.
A fresh wave of panic washed over him.
He stammered, his eyes darting wildly, lips trembling as he struggled to form a coherent sentence.
"I... I..."
"It's... because... it was just so beautiful..."
"I... I just lost my mind for a moment..."
His fabricated excuses were laughably weak, failing to convince even himself.
Under Aeldara's soul-piercing gaze, these lies crumbled instantly, leaving only his most wretched core exposed.
"Tell the truth."
A palpable killing intent seeped into Aeldara's voice.
The cold pressure, no longer merely a metaphor, materialized into an icy chill that coated the stone walls of the Council Chamber with a thin layer of frost.
Oh, Your Highness, just confess already! Lin Qingyue mentally urged him frantically.
Keep stonewalling, and the Commander will really lose her temper. Then it won't just be the magic books torn to shreds—you'll be ripped to pieces too!
Lin Xiyue, watching from the sidelines, was burning with impatience, desperate to grab Alex by the collar and force him to spit out the truth. This agonizingly drawn-out scene was more torturous than battling a Stitched Abomination.
Xia Lian's cheeks flushed crimson, her gaze darting nervously, yet she maintained a forced composure, sitting ramrod straight.
Only Su Wan remained effortlessly poised, a playful smirk curving her lips. She sat like a theatergoer with the best seat in the house, thoroughly enjoying the absurd drama unfolding before her—a spectacle directed by folly and desire.
Utter terror finally crushed Alex's pitiful pride. As if his spine had been instantly removed, he slumped completely in his chair and, in a tone of utter despair, finally screamed the truth.
"It wasn't me! I swear, I didn't want to steal it!"
His voice was thick with desperation and an urgent need to shift the blame.
"It was Liliana! My crazy sister!"
"After I had that dream, I bragged to her about receiving guidance from the Goddess, saying I was going to witness a divine miracle in the Forbidden Land of the Elves!"
"She didn't believe me, she even mocked me! To prove I wasn't lying, I... I let my temper get the better of me and sneaked her in with me!"
Alex seemed to have uncorked a floodgate, washing his hands clean of all responsibility.
Here we go! The much-anticipated "Royal Scions Shifting Blame and Backstabbing Each Other" segment!
Lin Qingyue's mental commentary erupted in a frenzy, spamming her thoughts.
This prince is selling out his sister with ruthless efficiency to save his own skin!
Alex continued his confession, abandoning all pretense of restraint, desperate to purge the secrets weighing on his heart.
"When we went inside, we actually found the album! Good heavens! Her Majesty the Queen in those pictures... she was even more alluring than in real life!"
"In the album... Her Majesty the Queen in her youth... she was wearing... wearing those thin, flowing robes, playing in the waterfall..."
"Some of the pictures even showed a man who looked just like me... cradling her foot..."
A feverish flush crept across his face, his eyes glazed over, lost in the throes of memory.
Lin Qingyue nearly lost her composure.
Holy moly! So it's the Elf Queen's limited-edition "Summer Refreshments" swimsuit photoshoot album!
And his ancestor even made a cameo as a foot fetishist? This brat's probably projecting himself into the scene!
Her mental commentary exploded, flooding her mind in a tidal wave of thoughts.
But seriously, what did Her Majesty the Queen look like when she was young? What could have driven this Good-for-Nothing Prince to such madness that he would risk his head by stealing the royal family's darkest secrets?
Lin Qingyue's mind conjured the image of the Queen in her full, mature, and commanding presence, then tried to imagine her as a young woman.
Hiss... Now I'm getting curious. This could be some seriously scandalous stuff!
"I was completely stunned at the time, but I swear, I just looked! At most... I might have drooled a little! But Liliana... she went completely insane!"
"She... she's Liliana, you know! The most notorious beauty in the Royal Capital—men and women alike, no one could escape her charm!"
"Her collection of portraits of beautiful people could stretch from the Royal Palace gates all the way to the city walls! She called it 'art appreciation'! Compared to her, I'm practically as pure as a Holy Child!"
This kid is really throwing his sister under the bus to save his own skin! Exposing her as a sea queen who swings both ways and has no taboos?
Still, to be fair, with these royal siblings indulging in such extravagant debauchery, it's no wonder the Necromancer caught them hook, line, and sinker.
Lin Qingyue's mind conjured a vivid image of the two blond-haired, blue-eyed Good-for-Nothing siblings, reveling in decadent pleasure at lavish noble parties.
Alex gestured wildly, mimicking his sister's frantic state at the time.
"She snatched the album, her eyes wide and shining, muttering over and over, 'So beautiful! It's a miracle!' and things like that..."
"She declared that Her Majesty the Queen was the most perfect being she had ever seen—ten thousand times more beautiful than any Saintess Statue painted by the artists of the Royal Capital!"
"And then! She hugged the album and refused to let go!"
"She argued that such a peerless treasure couldn't be left rotting in some musty corner of the Forbidden Land of the Elves! It was blasphemy against beauty! Only someone who truly understood beauty—like her—could 'protect' it!"
Alex's voice cracked with emotion.
"I tried to reason with her! I swear, I did! I told her it belonged to the Elf Queen, and if we were caught, we'd both be killed!"
"But she insisted that the 'god' in her dream had said no Elves would ever come here! We could steal it without anyone ever finding out!"
"She even said, 'Can art really be considered theft? This is salvation!'"
"I... I was persuaded! No, I was coerced! She's the mastermind! I was just an accomplice!"
Alex's anguished shout echoed through the Council Chamber, followed by a deathly silence.
Lin Xiyue stared in disbelief, whispering to Lin Qingyue, "Sis, is his sister... really this bold?"
Bold? This is like a crazed fan starting a world war for a limited-edition idol collectible! Lin Qingyue marveled inwardly.
Her Majesty the Queen's charisma is terrifying! She truly captivates both men and women, transcending species! If she were in our world, she'd be the ultimate top-tier celebrity, a cosmic-level idol!
Her curiosity about the "Magic Image Diary" had now reached its peak.
Xia Lian's face was as red as a ripe tomato. She clutched her face in both hands, wishing she could leap out the window.
Having such private topics—"swimsuits," "attracting both men and women"—discussed so loudly in this solemn setting felt like a public execution.
Even Su Wan, whose cool, detached gaze rarely wavered, finally allowed a genuine smile to flicker in her eyes.
She raised her teacup, using the rising steam to conceal the uncontrollable upward curve of her lips.
The interrogation had completely devolved from a serious political affair into an absurd gossip comedy.
Lin Qingyue's knack for stirring up trouble and guiding events toward the absurd only made her more intriguing.
Aeldara fell into complete silence.
She was utterly stunned by the bizarre reasoning of this brother-sister duo, momentarily at a loss for how to react.
A crack appeared in her eternally icy mask, revealing two words etched clearly across her expression:
Absurd.
She had imagined countless possibilities: political conspiracies, quid pro quo deals, coercion...
But she never could have imagined that the driving force behind these Human royals' monstrous crimes, and the subsequent turmoil they unleashed, was the most primal and pure...
Lust at first sight.
[Ding! Host has successfully witnessed the legendary cross-species allure of the Elf Queen! Elation Value +233!]
The System notification chimed in Lin Qingyue's mind, nearly making her burst out laughing.
Perfect. That's perfectly reasonable.
With this, the truth came to light.
A mysterious faction skilled in Soul Magic (likely undead) had used a ludicrous dream to precisely lure the foolish, lustful royal siblings to the Forbidden Land of the Elves.
They had meticulously calculated the siblings' character flaws, knowing they would be unable to resist the "private portraits" of the Elf Queen in her youth.
Once the theft occurred, the already fragile alliance between humans and elves would shatter completely.
Border tensions would escalate, bringing war to the brink.
While everyone's attention was fixed on the escalating conflict, the true mastermind could secretly carry out their real scheme.
The entire plan was meticulously crafted, each step interlocking with precise and malevolent intent.
Even the masterminds themselves likely hadn't anticipated that the Good-for-Nothing Prince and his sister would act with such reckless boldness, actually managing to steal the artifact.
The operation had unfolded far more smoothly than anyone could have imagined...
"So that's how it is..."
Aeldara murmured to herself, her voice tinged with weariness and an indescribable sense of absurdity.
She finally understood that the continental turmoil had stemmed from such a... laughable origin.
Lifting her gaze, she looked again at Prince Alex, who had completely surrendered.
Her eyes regarded him like a pitiful, laughable puppet, utterly hollowed out by greed and folly.