Reincarnation Paradise Park

Chapter 1204 - 19: The Little Princess Assassinated

"Investigate this matter before dawn tomorrow, everyone involved must die."

The Old King’s hand rested under the table, holding a small pendant crafted from gold in the shape of a lion, something that represented the Old King himself to some extent.

Su Xiao accepted the Golden Lion Pendant, and Reincarnation Paradise’s prompt appeared.

[Prompt: Hunter has activated a side quest.]

[Side Quest: Sharin’s Death]

Difficulty Level: Lv.23

Quest Description: Find the murderer of Princess Sharin Herbert within 18 hours.

Quest Deadline: 18 hours.

Quest Reward: Gem of Wisdom (Light Gold)

Quest Penalty: Slight decrease in trust from the Old King.

...

Su Xiao activated another side quest, making him suspect that whenever he worked for the Old King, there was a certain chance of triggering a side quest.

Su Xiao spent a total of 16,000 World Merit points to exchange for the identity of Iron Hand, which possesses neither wealth nor military authority. Now it seems that besides the high status, there may be additional benefits for triggering quests.

The murder of Princess Sharin Herbert was an unusual event. In power struggles, it is common for princes or princesses to suffer casualties, but the Old King responded with city lockdowns, dispatching Hershel to the front lines, and granting Su Xiao temporary power of life and death, seemingly making a mountain out of a molehill.

The reality is different, because if any other prince or princess were harmed, the Old King might turn a blind eye. But not for Princess Sharin Herbert, not because of any special affection, but because she was too young.

Princess Sharin Herbert was only 13 years old, a princess born to the Old King in his later years, which was unexpected for everyone.

Before the age of 15, Sharin Herbert would spend her childhood and teenage years in the Royal Palace, and would receive her own territory thereafter, though given the current situation, her chances of receiving a territory were not high.

This 13-year-old Little Princess was evidently uninvolved in the power struggle, having no legitimate right to participate, making her murder a royal assassination that must not be left unchecked.

The Old King appeared calm outwardly, but was furious inside. Whoever did this, if they were still within the kingdom’s borders, must die, as this was a provocation against the Royal Family and the entire power structure.

"Where is the body?"

Su Xiao asked, engaging in his typically brief conversations with the Old King.

"In the garden."

"..."

Su Xiao stood up and walked out of the banquet hall, followed by Bubu Wang. Within less than two minutes, what was a group of five drinking together dwindled to just the Old King alone.

Watching Su Xiao leave the banquet hall, numerous officials and wealthy businessmen were puzzled, and even the Big Prince and Third Prince were slightly baffled.

"Brother, there seems to be a major incident in the Royal Capital."

The Big Prince approached his brother with a wine glass, maintaining a gentle smile.

"Your smile is still so insincere; don’t you know what’s happening?"

The Third Prince glanced at the Big Prince, pretending to toast him, as they appeared amicable but their conversation was filled with underlying confrontation.

The departure of Su Xiao and the others left the Big Prince and companions uninterested in continuing the banquet, yet the Old King remained present. With the Old King not leaving, none dared to leave first.

Just as Su Xiao exited the banquet hall, five Guards in black armor were already waiting by the door.

"So, it’s you."

Su Xiao’s eyes swept over the five. These Guards had acted with Su Xiao last night; their execution ability alone was top-notch.

No need to think too much; these five were sent by the Old King.

"Let’s go."

Su Xiao took Bubu Wang and the five Guards toward the rear of the Royal Palace, where Princess Sharin Herbert’s body was found.

As they walked toward the garden behind the Royal Palace, Su Xiao started contemplating the overall situation of this matter.

First, this side quest differed from the previous clean-up quest, which had a high difficulty but simply required completing a few target eliminations. The ’Side Quest: Clean-Up’ was not difficult, given one had strong combat strength.

The current side quest was different, clearly a deduction-type task. Based on past experiences in the Demon Castle World, Su Xiao had a clear understanding of his deduction ability; while not weak, it was merely above average level, definitely not on par with Conan.

Thus, Su Xiao was mentally prepared for the possibility of failing the side quest, though he wouldn’t give up, considering the quest’s reward is a precious light gold gemstone, whose rarity speaks for itself.

After wandering around the Royal Palace a few laps, Su Xiao arrived at a relatively small garden.

The garden was covered with a large number of vine plants, lush and thick; the Old King was fond of such vegetation.

Standing on the soft grass, Su Xiao made his way to the garden’s central area, which housed a massive fountain, with its water sound echoing far and its mist cooling the garden significantly. One wonders how this world managed to build such a thing given its technological level.

"Sir, the body is over here."

Following a Guard’s guidance, Su Xiao reached the garden’s rear section, composed of several stone-built flowerbeds with a faint fragrance in the air, mixed with a heavy scent of blood.

Beside one flowerbed lay a young girl of about 1.3 meters, dressed in a white gown blood-stained considerably; this was Princess Sharin Herbert.

This was evidently the primary scene; around a dozen Royal guards maintained the site, preventing any tampering, their expressions were grim since the Royal Palace was under their protection, yet Princess Sharin Herbert was killed under their watch.

Su Xiao ignored the dozen guards, who, knowing his purpose, made way for him.

"Let me... go over, to see... Sharin."

A female voice echoed, clearly choked full of tears.

"Queen, please calm down, Iron Hand Sir will find the culprit."

"Get out of my way, go away, what have you been doing every day? Why did Sharin die in the Royal Palace’s garden, she never even left the Palace! She’s so young..."

Amidst a group of guards’ protection, a woman on the verge of fainting from grief staggered forward; the guards wanted to halt her but could only kneel together to block her path.

"We’re to blame."

A Guard adorned in ornate armor knelt before the woman; he was the Royal direct guard’s legion commander. Many legion commanders existed within the kingdom, but the highest official tier belonged to Hershel. Besides the royal direct legion, most legions were under Hershel’s supervision.

The Royal direct guards’ legion commander was named Kalon, robust in stature, around 35 years old.

Squatting by Sharin Herbert’s corpse, Su Xiao signaled to one of the Guards beside him to come closer, which that Guard immediately did.

"Keep them quiet."

"Understood."

The Guard didn’t concern himself with the Queen or Commander Kalon, directly approaching the group, and gazing at them.

"Silence."

Commander Kalon’s face slightly changed upon seeing the Guard, though the Queen didn’t care, continuing her loud cries.

This crying caught Su Xiao’s attention, raising some doubts: If she had been overwhelmed with grief previously, he could understand, but now, even a fool could see he was examining the body, and pointless wailing seemed less vital than identifying the real culprit. Do not mistake queens for ordinary women; they were daughters of high-ranking officials or Great Nobles.

Even more intriguing was that Sharin Herbert’s body had been moved; despite exceptional covering, it couldn’t fool Bubu Wang’s sense of smell; moreover, given the Queen’s level of eye swelling, she must have cried here for a long time, which didn’t add up.