I've Decided To Be This Tyrant's Dark Moonlight - Chapter 78

Arrows whistled through the air. Instinctively, Wei Ying bent down and wrapped her arms around the emperor, her body pressed into a single line.

The arrow brushed past her back, slicing open the ribbon that tied her hair. The ribbon drifted down gently as her long black hair scattered like flowing ink.

Yunshao, trapped in the small space between them, leaned back against her, her breath filled with Wei Ying’s scent. She couldn’t help but laugh softly, ignoring the deadly tension surrounding them, her gaze fixed solely on the beauty who had just loosed an arrow.

Wei Ying narrowed her eyes, turned, and loosed another arrow in return, striking down a man in black.

In the blink of an eye, countless men in black surged out from the forest, their formation even more menacing than during the previous assassination attempt.

Wei Ying’s eyes grew colder. In her mind, the palace-struggle system beeped rapidly:

“Beep beep beep—Special Scenario! Special Scenario! Mission: Ensure the emperor’s safety and successfully escort her away from danger. Reward: Fusion Points!!! A guaranteed blue-card draw!!!”

Fusion points?

Wei Ying: Oh no.

Her gaze toward the assassins immediately softened into one of benevolence.

She quickly pulled out a “Diamond Body” card from the system, slapped it onto the emperor—who was still staring dazedly at her—to ensure she would be invulnerable for a short time. Only then did she shoot down several more men in black and spurred her horse toward the hunting grounds.

But soon, she realized something was wrong.

More and more assassins kept pouring out of the woods. Ahead, ropes had been strung among the thorny undergrowth.

An arrow shot down from above, striking her steed. The frightened horse bolted straight into the trap, crashed into the ropes, and fell with a heavy thud.

Wei Ying clutched the emperor and rolled across the ground several times. After shooting down a black-clad attacker, she snatched a dagger from his corpse, grabbed the emperor’s hand, and pulled her back.

Suddenly, Yunshao cried, “Careful!” and threw herself in front of Wei Ying.

A volley of arrows sliced through the air with a fierce wind, reaching them in an instant.

The assassins’ faces lit with joy, their steps pausing—success was within reach!

The arrows shot straight for the emperor’s neck, chest, and abdomen. Just one heartbeat more, and their mission would be complete.

They held their breath, waiting for blood to spurt forth—

But… where was the blood?

The three arrows snapped cleanly in half against Yunshao’s body, falling neatly to the ground.

Yunshao stood still, confused—the pain she expected never came. She slowly opened her eyes and whispered, “Yingying… am I dead?”

“You’re not dead, Your Majesty. You’re perfectly fine.”

Seizing the moment, Wei Ying loosed three more arrows in rapid succession, then dragged the dazed Yunshao along as they fled. The assassins, startled at first by the broken arrows, quickly recovered and mounted pursuit.

To shake them off, Wei Ying pulled the emperor along rough back paths, forcing their way through trees and thickets. Finally, they managed to lose their pursuers—only to find themselves utterly lost.

Yunshao, weak in body, was gasping for breath, her cheeks flushed red with sweat streaming down. She leaned against a tree and refused to move.

“Huff… huff… Yingying, I can’t run anymore. Let them catch me—I don’t care, I can’t run anymore, wuwuwu…”

She would rather be captured than keep running.

Wei Ying tossed her hair back, tore off a strip of cloth to tie her hair anew, and rose to study the towering trees around them.

They had wandered into the deep forest without realizing it. Getting lost here could be dangerous. Wild beasts were said to roam these woods, and all she had left was a bow with only a few arrows and the dagger she had stolen.

Still, beasts weren’t what worried her most.

Wei Ying glanced back at Yunshao, her expression complicated. She regretted it—why had she used the highest-level card on the emperor without thinking? Now Yunshao had a lasting “Diamond Body,” while Wei Ying’s system points were almost entirely drained.

Regret. Deep, painful regret.

But… the emperor hadn’t known she was invulnerable, and yet had still thrown herself in front of Wei Ying.

What if she hadn’t used the card on Yunshao? What if, in that moment, the arrows had struck true?

Wei Ying’s gaze lingered on her, heart tightening with lingering fear.

Yunshao was still patting herself down in confusion. “Yingying, those arrows really did come at me, didn’t they? I didn’t see wrong? How come they just broke? Or… was it you, secretly protecting me?”

Wei Ying’s tall figure cast a shadow before her. Yunshao looked up into her searching eyes, tilting her head. “Yingying?”

“Your Majesty, why did you rush in front of me?” Wei Ying asked.

Yunshao blinked at her serious expression, frowning slightly. She whispered, “Did I ruin Yingying’s plan? Are you upset with me?”

Seeing her anxious face, Wei Ying sighed and placed a hand on her shoulder. “Your Majesty, your safety is what matters most.”

Yunshao’s lips curved into a smile. “But Yingying’s safety matters most of all! Still…” She touched her unharmed neck with bafflement. “What just happened?”

“…Because Your Majesty has the protection of dragon’s qi,” Wei Ying replied.

Without waiting for more questions, she moved aside, studying the growth of the trees to judge their direction. They had to return to the hunting grounds, but the direct route would surely be trapped again.

Sunlight streamed through the leaves, spilling shimmering light across the forest.

Yunshao pulled two flatbreads from her robes and ran over to offer one. “Yingying, eat!”

Wei Ying frowned slightly. “Why are you carrying these, Your Majesty?”

Yunshao grinned. “I was afraid I’d get hungry during the hunt.”

Despite being chased, she sat happily on a fallen tree, water flask at her side, nibbling bread as if on a carefree picnic.

Wei Ying took a few bites but her mind wandered back to the scene of Yunshao standing in front of her without hesitation. She had always been the one to shield others—this was the first time someone had shielded her.

Her heart skipped two beats.

Yunshao leaned closer, half-closing her eyes in contentment. “If only I could stay here with Yingying forever.”

“In here? Your Majesty, there are wild beasts in this forest,” Wei Ying replied.

Yunshao laughed. “I’m not afraid. I have dragon’s qi to protect me—I can protect Yingying!”

Wei Ying felt her chest tighten under the weight of that iron-clad faith. She pursed her lips and tried to edge away, only for Yunshao to bump her head right into Wei Ying’s chest.

Wei Ying: …

She felt like she was about to suffer internal injuries.

“Yingying, you’re not allowed to step back. I took those arrows for you—won’t you at least give me a hug?” Yunshao demanded.

So Wei Ying hugged her—hugging what felt like a lump of iron, her hands aching. She silently admired the card’s quality; no wonder it could snap arrows clean through. At the same time, her heart bled for the hundreds of points she had spent… all for just three arrows.

Such waste!

Even a lower-tier card would have bought them some time. But she hadn’t been certain she could defeat the assassins in just a few minutes. To be absolutely sure the emperor was safe, she had used the most expensive orange card.

This mission was doomed to be a losing bargain.

Wei Ying clutched her chest, both literally and figuratively aching. If only she could reuse that card…

Unaware of her turmoil, Yunshao leaned against her and smiled. “Don’t worry, Yingying, I know the way.” She pointed south. “If we keep going this way, we’ll be fine.”

“South? Not back to the hunting grounds?” Wei Ying narrowed her eyes.

Yunshao smiled faintly. “No. Commander Wei of the hunting party is compromised. If we go back, we’re walking into their net. Don’t worry—if we don’t return, he’ll only escort the imperial consorts back to the palace. He won’t dare act further. The Pei family’s two ministers are pillars of the court; even the Empress Dowager wouldn’t touch the consorts.”

Wei Ying nodded slowly.

Yunshao went on: “If we return, we’d only drag danger onto them. I suspect the assassins before were sent by the Empress Dowager. If I die during the autumn hunt, it gives her the perfect chance to elevate Prince Luling. With the new policies gaining ground, once the spring examinations are held tomorrow, the Gong family will have no place left in court. That’s why the Empress Dowager and my so-called teacher summoned Prince Luling here.”

As she spoke of her closest kin betraying her, her face remained calm, her dark eyes half-lidded as she gazed at the sunlight filtering through the canopy. Her tone was steady, free of bitterness—only clear-eyed understanding.

Wei Ying hugged her tighter, though… it was still like holding a rock.

That slight embrace made Yunshao smile like a child, innocent and bright. “Don’t be afraid, Yingying. The more they act like this, the more it shows their fear. The Gong family once ruled with unmatched power. When I first returned, I was even forced to acknowledge Gong Hongbo as my teacher. I…”

Her smile faded, her eyes dimming with tears. “…But I didn’t want to. The only teacher I ever recognized was Yingying. But… but…”

But it had been too hard. She had to pretend to be weak, foolish, and close to the Empress Dowager just to survive in the palace. She had to wait—for Yingying to come back. She couldn’t die too soon.

Wei Ying sighed softly. “I understand your suffering.”

When no answer came, she looked down. Yunshao’s lips were pressed tight, her face streaked with tears.

She buried her head in Wei Ying’s chest, sending another jolt of pain through her as if struck by an iron hammer.

Wei Ying swallowed back the blood rising in her throat. …Fine.

She thought grimly that if the emperor kept pressing against her like this with her diamond-hard body, Wei Ying could soon add “chest-smashing stunts” to her list of side jobs—entertaining the palace women like a street performer. The thought almost made her laugh.

She wrapped her arms around the little emperor, resting her chin on her head, letting her cry out six years of pent-up sorrow.

Yunshao’s shoulders shook silently as she clutched Wei Ying’s sleeve, tears falling in silence.

“Yunshao misses her teacher so much… I hate the palace. Yingying, let’s run away to Jiangnan and never come back, okay?”

Wei Ying was about to reply when a beast’s roar echoed through the forest. She looked up sharply.

Yunshao lifted her head too—only to bump it into Wei Ying’s jaw with a loud crack. She didn’t feel a thing, but when she looked up, she was startled to see tears glistening on Wei Ying’s cheeks.

“Yingying, what’s wrong? Why are you crying?!” she asked, panicked.

Wei Ying, jaw nearly broken from the iron headbutt, couldn’t stop the tears of pain. After a long pause, clutching her chin, she managed to choke out: “It hurts… I’m hurting for Your Majesty.”

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