"Rose, you must be alright!"
King Gluck of Oriana sat blankly in his study, holding a portrait of Rose.
The door suddenly burst open.
Princess Rose stormed in directly.
"Father, are you alright?!"
"Rose, am I not dreaming?"
Gluck looked at Rose in surprise. He never imagined Rose would return home at this time.
"Father, this is not a dream. Rose Oriana is right here!"
Rose clearly saw her father's haggard cheeks.
He looked as if he could die at any moment.
Princess Rose regretted even more why she hadn't returned home sooner.
Sino also arrived in the Oriana Kingdom. Since he had given Princess Rose advice, he might as well help her to the end.
Shadow Garden and The Order would sooner or later have a direct confrontation, and Oriana would become the battlefield. Instead of having Princess Rose, who understood nothing, act as the queen in the open, it would be better to let the Old King be this chess piece.
"Rose, how did you get in? Did Duke Doem not send people to stop you?"
"We helped Princess Rose!"
Epsilon stepped forward.
And Shadow Garden behind her.
"Who are you?"
"We are Shadow Garden. The power behind Doem is the Diabolos Cult. The Order is our enemy. We can help you! But the condition is that you will become our puppets!"
Epsilon spoke.
"Why should we be your puppets!" Rose demanded.
Young Rose had no idea about Oriana's current situation.
"Since you refuse, we won't force it! Let's go!"
Epsilon turned and left, and everyone else followed her out.
Princess Rose's mother was also placed on the ground.
"Please wait! I agree to your conditions!" Old King Gluck said.
"Father..."
Princess Rose looked at her father, not understanding why he would agree.
Princess Rose was, after all, a princess. She didn't know many things about the country, let alone the situation of the Oriana Kingdom. In Oriana, Duke Doem could be said to have absolute power.
Other nobles merely observed, completely refraining from interfering with Duke Doem's actions.
Because of the power behind him, most people did not oppose him.
After Shadow Garden left, although the Old King would no longer be drugged, anything he tried to do would be extremely difficult.
He had the prestige of a king, but he had no usable forces under him, nor did he possess the corresponding strength himself.
Oriana needed Shadow Garden's help.
"Is this the purpose of your help?" Princess Rose asked.
"This is called cooperation. We could have stayed completely out of it, in which case the King of Oriana would have become a puppet! A walking dead puppet!"
"What are you talking about?" Princess Rose asked.
"You can ask your father for the details!"
Epsilon took her people and left.
Afterward, the Old King told Rose everything.
Upon learning everything, Rose suddenly felt the darkness of the world. Her father, as the King of Oriana, was being schemed against in such a way.
At this moment, the palace's Imperial Guards burst in.
"Your Majesty, intruders have entered the palace! Are you alright? Why is Princess Rose here too!"
"I'm fine... You may leave!" the Old King said.
"Yes!"
These guards were loyal to the Old King.
As soon as the guards left, Sino appeared in the room.
Sino picked up a cup of tea.
"The tea is good, but it's still a bit lacking!"
"You are... Sino!"
Princess Rose remembered who he was, the person who single-handedly eliminated those men in black in the Midgar Kingdom.
"Your father needs treatment, and I have the ability to treat him!"
"Sino, can you really treat my father?" Rose asked.
"Of course!"
Princess Rose looked at her father, who was sitting blankly in his chair, head bowed, disoriented. He had clearly lost himself and temporarily become a puppet.
"Although I can treat him, you must also pay a corresponding price!"
"What price?"
"Your soul!"
"My soul?"
"You can think of it as a contract with a diabolos. Alexia became stronger because of me! She offered up her soul! I was also the one who had her deliver the message!" Sino said.
"Of course, you can also become stronger!"
Princess Rose shook her father, but he showed no reaction.
He was completely a walking dead.
Princess Rose looked at her father, half-dead, and at that moment, she made up her mind.
"I agree!"
Princess Rose knelt on one knee!
"I, Rose Oriana, Princess of the Oriana Kingdom, swear to you that I will offer everything I have, only asking that you save my father!"
"Extend your hand!"
Rose extended her right hand.
Sino took it.
A surge of magic power began to emerge.
A mark appeared on the back of Princess Rose's hand; it was a golden iris.
The golden iris took root on the back of Rose's hand and slowly began to grow.
It gradually grew and bloomed.
Princess Rose watched this scene in astonishment.
At this moment, black patterns appeared on her body; this was a sign of Demon Possession.
"This is Demon Possession!"
"That's right. If you betray me, Demon Possession will appear on your body. Demon Possession will turn a normal person into a monster!"
A surge of purple magic power entered Rose's body, and her Demon Possession disappeared.
Princess Rose also felt a surge of magic power that didn't belong to her.
That magic power slowly merged with her body, eventually becoming her strength.
At this moment, Princess Rose felt that her strength had increased at least threefold.
Sino walked over to the Old King's side.
He raised his hand and aimed it at the Old King's face.
A surge of purple magic power emerged.
The Old King's body visibly improved, no longer looking as if he was about to die.
His eyes also began to sparkle, no longer showing the blank expression of a walking dead.
Sino withdrew his hand.
The Old King was stunned for a moment.
"My body is better?"
Only Sino and Rose were left there. It was obvious that Sino had treated him.
The Old King stood up and bowed to Sino.
"Thank you!"
"No need to thank me. This is my contract with Princess Rose!"
After Sino finished speaking, he disappeared from the spot.
In a room somewhere in Oriana, Epsilon was there.
Other Shadow Garden members were also there.
This was their temporary residence.
There were only about a dozen members here in total; originally, it was just a surveillance mission, so not many people were stationed here.
Number 599 was also here.
Number 599 was once a devout follower of the Holy Church and a saintess of the Holy Church.
Demon Possession appeared on her, despite her immense piety.
At that time, Sid met her but did not treat her, nor did he appear before her. Instead, he found Sino.
Sino had an agreement with Sid: if Sid encountered Demon Possession, Sino would treat it, and Sid would receive a fee of ten million Zeny.
After much deliberation, Sid chose the ten million Zeny over making a grand display.