Chapter : 596

"Luna and Risa are the only smart people in this room," Ken announced casually. He stared at the blank television screen. "The Emperor is ruining everything. The peaceful interim period was absolutely flawless. There were no life-threatening missions. There were no crazy royal politics. We just sat around and ate snacks."

Naomi walked into the living room. She wore comfortable dark pants and a simple gray shirt. Her bright red hair was tied back in a neat ponytail. She walked over to the sofa. She smiled a very warm, bright smile. She sat down right next to Ken.

She leaned toward him. She reached her hand into his plastic bag. She pulled out a potato chip and popped it into her mouth.

"Stop whining, Ken," Naomi teased softly. Her green eyes sparkled with genuine amusement. "You knew the break would not last forever. We are in the middle of a massive war. We have points to earn."

"But we missed the beach episode!" Ken argued lazily. He threw his free hand into the air. "It is a basic rule of anime pacing! After a big, stressful storyline, the characters always go to the beach! They play volleyball! They eat shaved ice! We did not get a beach episode! The Emperor skipped straight to the next tournament arc! It is terrible writing!"

Naomi laughed a bright, happy laugh. "We went to the beach a few weeks ago, slacker. You complained about the sand the entire time."

"That was a work trip," Ken corrected her smoothly. He offered a goofy grin. "Work trips do not count. I want a vacation trip. I want to sit under an umbrella and do absolutely nothing."

Princess Iris turned away from the blank television. She looked at her chaotic, wonderful team. She felt a deep sense of pride. They were fully rested. They were ready for the next challenge.

"We need to stay focused," Princess Iris commanded gently. Her voice was calm but firm. "The other Royal factions will be extremely aggressive now. They want to make up for lost time. We must prepare for sudden attacks."

Sayma did not look focused on the war. She did not look at the Princess. She stared down at her neat notebook. She looked incredibly stressed. Her face was pale. She pushed her glasses up with a shaking finger.

Sayma let out a long, very tired sigh. She walked over to the sofa. She stood right in front of Ken.

"The Succession War is not my only problem right now," Sayma stated politely. Her voice pitched up just a tiny bit. "I have a massive personal crisis."

Ken blinked his sleepy dark eyes. He looked at the intelligent Vice-Captain. He slouched deeper into the soft cushions.

"A personal crisis?" Ken asked lazily. He offered her the bag of chips. "Did you run out of ink pens? Because I found a blue pen under the couch yesterday. You can have it."

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"It is not about pens, Ken," Sayma sighed. She declined the chips. She reached into her pocket. She pulled out three crisp, expensive white envelopes. She dropped the envelopes onto the wooden coffee table.

Naomi leaned forward. She looked at the fancy envelopes. "What are those?"

"They are letters from my parents," Sayma explained. She crossed her arms tightly over her chest. She looked very uncomfortable. "They live in the Inner City. They are incredibly persistent. They refuse to let the issue go."

Zinia walked over from the window. "Are they still talking about the arranged marriage? I thought you fixed that problem. I thought you told them you were dating Ken."

"I did tell them," Sayma nodded slowly. She looked down at Ken. "And the fake date we went on last week was very successful. My mother watched us eat street food. She believed the romantic ruse. She told Scott's family that the arranged marriage was officially canceled."

Laxmi tossed her orange spark into the air. She caught it perfectly. "So what is the problem? You won. You are free."

"I am not free," Sayma corrected her. She rubbed her eyes. "My noble parents are highly suspicious people. They cancelled the marriage with Scott, but now they are hyper-focusing on Ken. They want to make sure the relationship is completely genuine. They want more proof."

Ken stopped chewing. He stared at the three white envelopes. He let out a massive, dramatic groan.

"Oh man," Ken complained loudly. He threw his head back. "Rich people are so incredibly nosy. Why do they care? Why can they not just mind their own business?"

"Because you are a commoner, Ken," Sayma stated frankly. She did not mean to insult him. She just spoke the facts. "You do not have a noble title. You do not have wealth. My parents are terrified that I am throwing my life away. They sent their private spies to watch the estate. They know we have not left the house together in days."

"We were on a mandatory suspension!" Naomi argued defensively. "Nobody left the house!"

"Logic does not matter to them," Sayma replied. She pushed her glasses up again. She looked directly at Ken. Her dark eyes were full of a polite, desperate plea.

"I need another favor, Ken," Sayma requested softly. "I need to maintain our fake romantic ruse. I need to prove to my parents that we are deeply committed to each other."

Ken tilted his head to the side. He gave her a goofy, lazy look. "Another favor? Does this favor involve cardio? Because my legs are very tired today."

"It requires a public date," Sayma proposed. She clicked her pen nervously. "We need to go back to the Inner City. We need to walk around a very crowded, highly visible area. I was thinking we could visit the grand botanical gardens. We can walk through the flowers. We can hold hands. We will let my parents' spies see us acting incredibly affectionate."

Ken rubbed his chin. He thought about the proposal. He used his flawless, lazy anime logic to analyze the situation.

"The botanical gardens," Ken mumbled casually to himself. He looked at the ceiling. "That sounds like a lot of walking. But gardens usually have nice wooden benches. I could sit on a bench. And dates always involve food. Food is very important."

Ken looked back at Sayma. He smiled a wide, goofy smile.

"I will accept this mission on one condition," Ken announced lazily. "You have to buy me a massive lunch. I want three desserts. And I absolutely refuse to carry any shopping bags. If you agree to those terms, I will be the absolute best fake boyfriend in the entire Empire."

Sayma let out a huge breath of relief. She smiled a very warm, polite smile. "I accept your terms, Ken. I will buy you as many desserts as you want. Thank you."

"Awesome," Ken cheered happily. He popped another potato chip into his mouth. "This is a great deal. I get free cake, and you get to ignore your parents. It is a flawless strategy."