civilwarnovels Chapter 1042 The Last Routine 221
Chapter 1042 The Last Routine 221
Chapter 1042 The Last Routine 221
As Alice and her friends followed the path cleared by the Cheshire Cat, Megumin, through the forest, the gates of the enormous palace came into view—
“That’s the castle where the Queen of Hearts lives… It’s very ornate, quite different from the castle I live in,” Alice said with some surprise. The towering, massive city gate was adorned with exquisite and flamboyant carvings, and just by looking at it from the outside, one could imagine how magnificent the palace must be inside.
"Because it was built by the dictator's Queen of Hearts," Top Hat 'Barnier' shrugged, then said with a rather cheerful tone, "There's a pleasantly negative atmosphere everywhere, how wonderful!!"
Sometimes you can't help but wonder if he's really not the real Barnier, who also enjoys negative emotions and is also a fun-loving person.
"Stop talking!" March Hare 'Rain' interrupted him in time, then said with a slightly serious and tense expression, "If those kinds of words get to Her Majesty the Queen's ears, none of the people present will be let off easily."
After all, the Queen of Hearts is the supreme ruler of the entire Fairy Realm, and if they displease her, they will be the ones who suffer. 'Top Hat' Barnier chuckled, the meaning of which was unclear.
Alice said with slight tension and worry, "We won't be let off easily... Could it be that we'll be beheaded?"
"That's...that's horrible...!" This seemed to trigger memories of the March Hare's past; she covered her face in fear and cried bitterly. It seemed that one of her companions had suffered the same punishment. Speaking of which, will the White Hare's Kobayashi also be beheaded and displayed in public?
“It’s alright.” Alice patted the March Hare, who looked remarkably like Rein, and comforted her, “I will absolutely not let that happen!” She clenched her fists, as if to show her sincerity.
Suddenly, the castle gates opened, and there was no one behind them; it seemed to have opened by itself. This greatly surprised the March Hare, 'Rain,' who pointed to the gates and said to everyone, "Look, the castle gates opened by themselves..."
"It's practically an invitation." White Rabbit 'Kobayashi' twitched his lips, already somewhat flustered, and said fearfully, "Hey, I think it's better to go back—"
“What are you afraid of now?” Top hat ‘Barnier’ grabbed the white rabbit ‘Kobayashi’ who was trying to leave, and forcibly led him into the palace. “Let’s go. But… don’t let your guard down. From now on, who knows what might happen.” He then said this to Alice, the key figure in this operation.
“Okay!” Alice nodded seriously, but at the same time asked with some curiosity, “What kind of person is the Queen of Hearts…?” She was both afraid and vaguely expectant.
They encountered no obstacles along the way; in fact, they met with no one at all. They saw no residents like the White Rabbit, the March Hare, the Top Hat, or the Cheshire Cat, nor did they see any playing card soldiers. They went straight to the deepest part of the palace.
When they appeared, the Queen of Hearts, Claire, on the throne, blushed and shouted, "Lady Alice! Hmph, the real Lady Alice!"
Her sudden outburst startled Alice, who involuntarily took a step back. But the Queen of Hearts, Claire, on her throne seemed unfazed. She gasped excitedly, "Ha, ha, the real Lady Alice… So fragrant! The most beautiful Lady Alice in the world, welcome!"
Brother, you look like...JPG
Alice was puzzled, thinking to herself: Although she looks a lot like Claire, she must be someone else... It should be someone else... right? Despite constantly reminding herself that the Queen of Hearts before her wasn't the Claire she remembered, the two were just too similar. Their appearances, personalities, and even their attitudes towards her were exactly the same, making it impossible to tell them apart.
Queen Claire, the Red Heart, on her throne, looked almost fainting with happiness as she exclaimed, "Ever since I first saw Lady Alice through the crystal ball, you have always been in my heart, in my dreams when I'm asleep and in my fantasies when I'm awake!" With that, she reached out to Alice, making a gesture as if performing a theatrical act, and declared as if confessing her love, "Ah, Lady Alice! I've always wanted to see you!"
"You perverted queen with a voyeuristic hobby," White Rabbit 'Kobayashi' bluntly retorted. "Still the same as always, it's unbearable."
"Top Hat 'Barnier' laughed heartily, 'Being true to your desires isn't a bad thing! I like it!'"
“However, that excessive desire has led to the kingdom being looked down upon,” March Hare 'Rain' stepped forward and rebuked her. “This is absolutely intolerable, and you must take responsibility!”
"Disrespect? Responsibility? Insolent fools!" Queen Claire of Hearts looked at them arrogantly and said disdainfully, "It is my freedom to disrespect my own kingdom! Poker soldiers! Seize these people and lock them up in jail!"
Unlike Alice, this guy had no intention of communicating with the White Rabbit, Top Hat, and March Hare. He directed the playing card soldiers, who had just turned to the side but were now facing forward, to capture them.
"Yes! Surrender obediently! Come this way!"
"Eeeeeeeeee————"
Seeing a large group of playing card soldiers rushing towards them, the White Rabbit, Top Hat, and March Hare immediately began to run away. This chaotic scene greatly worried Alice.
"Everyone!"
"Please calm down, I won't do anything bad. I just want to have a proper talk with Lady Alice." The Queen of Hearts, Claire, was indeed very kind to Alice. She indicated that she wouldn't do anything excessive, and at the same time, she had Alice sit down at a tea table that had been prepared at some point, saying, "Attending a tea party for people with all sorts of problems must be tiring. Here, I've prepared some tea for you. Please take a seat."
"...I...I understand."
The White Rabbit, Top Hat, and March Hare had already been captured and taken away by the playing card soldiers. In order to rescue them, Alice had no choice but to agree to the Queen of Hearts' request to sit at the tea table and have tea with her. However, she seemed to be slightly angry because the White Rabbit, Top Hat, and March Hare had been treated badly.
"Ah!" Queen of Hearts 'Claire' couldn't help but groan, "To be able to have tea with Lady Alice like this is like a dream! Her angry expression is so beautiful...!"
Alice didn't want to get bogged down in the details. She felt that if things continued, the Queen of Hearts would cling to her endlessly, just like the real Claire. So she cut to the chase and explained her purpose: "I've come here to talk to you. You've caused trouble for the people of this kingdom, and I hope you can correct that."
"Caused trouble?" Queen of Hearts 'Claire' raised an eyebrow, her lips slightly downturned indifferent, even scoffing, "Quite the opposite, it's troubled me. Especially that white rabbit, who committed an unforgivable crime... Thinking about it now still makes me angry. He should have been beheaded."
"An unforgivable crime...?" Alice was puzzled. To be honest, she still didn't know what the White Rabbit 'Kobayashi' had done to make the Queen of Hearts 'Claire' so angry that she even wanted to behead her.
Queen of Hearts Claire explained, "That guy lost my most important collectible—the Royal Heirloom Heart-Shaped Underwear!"
"...What?" Alice was dumbfounded.
“Those panties are absolutely adorable, from the size of the pattern, the color to the shape… everything is perfectly cute.” Queen Claire of Hearts said this with a look of infatuation, seemingly very satisfied with the collectible. But soon, she said with a look of disgust and annoyance, “And that white rabbit, I don’t know what strange method it used, to steal it from the treasury, and lost it on its escape…! Absolutely unforgivable! Stealing my most important ‘Royal Family Heirloom Heart-Shaped Panties’ is a capital offense! Execution is a must!!”
Alice was completely dumbfounded. She had thought that the White Rabbit 'Kobayashi' had stolen some rare treasure, but it turned out to be just a pair of underwear. No wonder she had kept hearing the White Rabbit 'Kobayashi' say she wanted the best underwear. However, this didn't prove anything.
"Who cares more, you or the lives of your people or your collection!"
"Needless to say, it's collectibles! Being surrounded by cute things is my happiness!"
"To take a life for this is outrageous! Please cancel the punishment!"
"Do you really want me to cancel no matter what...?"
Alice spoke firmly, and the Queen of Hearts, Claire, raised an eyebrow, seemingly sensing an opportunity. She then said, "In that case, please accept my conditions..."
"……condition?"
"Lady Alice, you will become my collection..." Queen Claire of Hearts smiled smugly, finally revealing her desire, and said, "If you are willing to stay in this palace, I will release everyone."
Having captured the White Rabbit, the March Hare, and the Top Hat, Queen of Hearts Claire seems to intend to use them for blackmail, which is truly excessive.
"Always inside the castle..."
Alice fell into deep thought.
“Of course there won’t be any restrictions,” Queen of Hearts Claire quickly said. “I’ll give you everything you want; all you have to do is stay by my side with a smile. I don’t think that’s a bad deal at all, is it?”
"...This really can save everyone, right?" Alice looked at her suspiciously, her eyes full of disbelief.
“Look into my eyes. Do they look like they’re lying?”
"stare----"
"Aha!! So cute! I guess I shouldn't look at it too closely!"
The Queen of Hearts, Claire, was blushing under Alice's gaze. She covered her cheeks, unwilling to be stared at so intently. It seemed she was no different from Claire.
However, the Queen of Hearts, Claire, quickly asked, "Alright, what should we do now? It all depends on Lady Alice's answer—" She didn't believe Alice wouldn't give in obediently, and to prove the truth of her words, she ordered, "Playing Card Soldiers, bring those people up here!"
Soon, the White Rabbit, the March Hare, and the Top Hat, under the guard of the Playing Card Soldiers, arrived at the palace.
"Stop! It hurts!" White Rabbit 'Kobayashi' tried to struggle, but he couldn't break free from the card soldier's hold. He could only shout, "Don't pull so hard!!"
"Mr. White Rabbit!?" Alice looked at him nervously, then turned to the Queen of Hearts and said, "Queen of Hearts, please stop being violent!"
Queen Claire of Hearts remained unmoved. She even raised her head smugly and said, "You'd better think it over before you answer, otherwise the White Rabbit will turn into the Red Rabbit."
Alice stared at her in astonishment, but at the same time fell into deep thought: If I leave the flowers in the palace, everyone will be saved, those flowers…
“…I understand.” Alice made up her mind, looked at the Queen of Hearts, Claire, and said, “Among your collection—”
"No! We can't agree to those conditions!!" At this moment, March Hare 'Rain' suddenly shouted this at Alice, and the playing card soldier tried to stop her but was instead suppressed by her.
"Miss March Hare!?"
Alice hadn't expected her to be so powerful.
The March Hare, 'Rain,' said somewhat sadly, 'Is it really okay to stay in the palace all the time? I can't join everyone for tea parties or sing together!'
“Um…!” Alice bit her lower lip. She remembered that she had complained to Claire before that the other party was unreasonable and that it wouldn’t hurt to go outside for a little while.
“There is no unfree life in the palace; instead, you will lose true freedom!” The March Hare ‘Rain’ reminded Alice of herself now, and it seemed there was no difference.
"Shut up!" Queen of Hearts Claire shouted, "I will love her for the rest of my life, so there's no problem!"
"What a selfish queen... And what are the little girl's wishes?" At some point, the top-hatted 'Barnier' had also subdued the playing card soldier who was bothering him, and he asked Alice about her true thoughts.
"Lady Alice's wishes?" Queen Claire looked at them arrogantly and said, "What matters is my wishes, isn't it? I said, just show me love, and that's enough, isn't it?"
These words reminded Alice of Claire's earlier words: "Lady Alice, please calm down, I'm very worried about you—"
Clearly, they are not the same.
“I take back what I said about you resembling Claire!” Alice pointed at her and shouted, “Queen of Hearts, are you only thinking of yourself?!”
“Yes,” said the Queen of Hearts, Claire, as a matter of course. “Because I am the Queen, my happiness is the happiness of everyone else, isn’t it?”
"That's...wrong! Responding to everyone's feelings is the true duty of a king!" Alice drew her longsword. "I will stop you, even if it costs me my life!"
(End of this chapter)