Chapter Forty: Landis

"Greetings, my esteemed lord. You may call me Landis, or, if you prefer, Your Majesty," the girl said as she approached Li Ren, a gentle smile playing at her lips. Meeting her gaze at such close range, Li Ren found himself utterly defenseless against her charm. A blend of pride, strength, warmth, allure, and innocence coexisted within her, each characteristic enhancing rather than clashing with the others. This unique harmony of traits made her irresistibly captivating.

"Uh..." Li Ren was at a loss for words.

Shadow gazed at Landis, unable to suppress a surge of emotion. In their original world, their first meeting with Landis had taken place much later, yet fate had orchestrated an instant connection between them. In the end, his once-beloved queen had sacrificed herself for their sake, wearing that same faint smile as she fell. At the moment of her demise, the Lord's followers were driven to madness and brought about a pyrrhic victory, snatching a sliver of hope from the jaws of defeat. Now, that gentle smile had returned, merging with the shadow before him, leaving his heart aching.

Sensing something, Landis tilted her head and glanced at Shadow. She thought she saw a flicker of deep pity in his eyes—a feeling she couldn’t quite place, as if they had known each other for a long time. Yet, the way he looked at her was as though he were mourning at a memorial portrait!

Annoyed, Landis muttered to herself, "This guy is insane." That was the first impression she had of him in this life. If Shadow had known, who knows what he would have thought?

"Landis, are you... um, are you like us?" Li Ren hesitated, feeling that this girl was entirely out of place in the somber atmosphere of the Deathwish Arena. That someone so stunning could emerge from such a place was beyond his ability to describe.

"Like you? In what way?" Landis’ voice was as clear and sweet as a songbird, tinged with curiosity.

Li Ren struggled for words, awkwardly tongue-tied as he faced the beauty before him. He didn't notice the subtle curve at the corner of Landis' lips; even that slight smile was proof she was far from being a mere summoned NPC.

"We... well, we..." Li Ren stammered, unable to find an explanation.

At last, Shadow spoke up.

"My lord, don't worry. She's the same as us."

"Oh, that's good. That's good." Li Ren finally breathed a sigh of relief, though even he wasn’t sure what exactly was so reassuring. All he knew was that ending the conversation quickly was paramount—explaining their true nature would have been far too difficult.

As the lord of the city, he could easily view the status of his followers who had walked out of the Deathwish Arena—currently, that meant Landis.

Landis

Class: ???
Level: 130
HP: 2,300,000; MP: 5,000,000
All Attributes: 3,000
Special Skills: ???

"What kind of worthless city lord am I?" Li Ren fumed inwardly. He couldn't even see the stats of a summoned ‘underling’—everything was a question mark. How pathetic.

Comparing her level and HP to his own, Li Ren decided it was best to keep a low profile; with her strength, he wouldn’t stand a chance against this self-proclaimed queen.

Landis let the matter drop and naturally fell in behind Li Ren, flanking him alongside Shadow.

Setting aside the issue of Landis’ attributes, Li Ren began investing his soul resources into the Deathwish Arena. Seventeen skeletal guards materialized before him.

Though the city was small and its only inhabitants were the three of them, it was otherwise fully equipped: four city gates, a variety of planned shops, an auction house—apart from the architecture and overall atmosphere, there was little to distinguish it from a player-run city.

Li Ren assigned the skeletal guards in pairs to the gates as sentries, sent five to patrol within the city, and stationed the remaining four to guard the Deathwish Arena and the teleportation array.

Once everything was arranged, Li Ren, with Shadow and Landis at his side, set off toward the lord’s castle. Along the way, Li Ren found himself increasingly unsettled by the strangeness of the Land of the Gods, a feeling that only grew with Landis’ sudden appearance.

"Shadow, what exactly is this place?" Li Ren couldn’t help but ask, though he was fairly certain Shadow would evade the question.

"Huh? What? Isn’t this our Fallen Cloud City?" As expected, Shadow feigned ignorance.

Li Ren seethed in silence, mentally cursing him. For whatever reason, this guy just refused to answer. What else could he do?

"Landis, since you’re like us, do you know what this Land of the Gods really is?" Li Ren turned his attention to Landis, who with her playful charm seemed more approachable than the friend he both trusted and resented.

As he spoke, he shot a smug glance at Shadow. Shadow kept his gaze straight ahead, as if oblivious, but Li Ren was sure he’d noticed—absolutely sure!

"The Land of the Gods is just the Land of the Gods. What a strange question, my lord," Landis replied, her voice deliberately soft and sweet.

Li Ren paused. Well, yes. "I mean, this world—this place—what is it really? How did people like us come to be here?"

"Isn’t this Fallen Cloud City? My lord, what’s wrong? Our appearance here is perfectly normal, isn’t it? We’re system-generated, after all. We’re just NPCs!" Landis replied with the same gentle tone and a hint of smugness at her lips.

If Li Ren still failed to realize the two of them were teasing him, he might as well bash his head against a wall. Clearly, he wasn't going to get any answers for now. Crestfallen, he trudged on, sighing heavily.

Shadow, walking behind, glanced at Landis, nodding to her as an old friend. Landis shot him a sidelong look, snorting softly. In her mind, his insanity had only grown worse.

Understanding the meaning behind her expression, Shadow rubbed his nose awkwardly. "Who would have thought that Landis, whom we were meant to meet only much later, would appear before us so soon? Once the Rose of Fallen Cloud, she possessed unmatched charm and strength—will her tragic fate be changed this time?" Shadow prayed silently, following as the group continued on.

The lord’s castle loomed imposingly, its massive stone gates silently sliding open. Li Ren stepped inside. As the three figures were swallowed by the castle’s shadows, the sturdy doors closed quietly behind them. The castle’s aura of majesty grew ever stronger, as if solemnly awaiting the opening of a new chapter in its history.