NPC Code: Red Riding Hood

(Back to Red Perspective)

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"Who are you?" The mother wailed while grasping her child in her arms.

In a panic, the queen gazed around. The queen consort swelled her eyes in horror as if she saw death itself, peering at her body. I was in front of her, still gawking at her eyes. She looked at the two of us with her hands raised for a fight, defending her daughter. I saw brilliant magic circles forming at each of her fingers, ready to attack us.

"Do not be afraid. We are here to help you," I exclaimed while dropping my hands.

The wagon continued to drive, despite my hands perched beside my pockets. I told Match to stay close beside me since the queen might hurt her. If we are not careful, the wagon could fall off the viaduct.

Her eyes glided across my fingers, gripped with the dagger. I nudged my weapon back and hid it from her view. I did not want to scare them, but I did. The queen jerked back and sheltered her daughter. With a chant, we saw something coming out of her palms.

Mystical flames materialised from her arms up to her head, guarding the two royalties. I saw nothing like this from the players I met before. Although less powerful than the others, I cannot scoff at the spell. It was a unique arcane passed by from the royal lineage, my system explained.

The temperature rose suddenly inside the carriage, but not enough to ignite the cart. The queen controlled the ember as if it was nothing but air. Her flames did not touch the straws, but it continued swirling around them.

However, the world surrounding me felt like I was a piece of meat inside a kitchen. If this goes on forever, I might end up a cooked human being.

I sensed my sweat dripping down my nape, but I remained silent. I can even taste the salty liquid wetting my lips. The queen commanded her arcane to swivel around them, creating a thick and bright barrier in front of me.

Mother did not teach me about magic, so I cannot defend myself on my own. She only taught me to farm and collect fishes near the pond. I did not know how to fight, so my system commanded my body to move.

My eyes stared at the crowned ruler and her daughter, thinking of a backup plan. Match and I would face trouble if the situation gets out of hand. I already sheathed the dagger beside me. I never intended to kill them as well. All I wanted was their cooperation.

"We are here to save you, your highness."

"You are lying!" The queen cried.

She knew the elite knights and the coachman, but not me. The queen never trusted other people besides her subordinates. I knew that information from the start. However, the ruler should trust me now since I am the only one she has.

Match, the little girl, scurried to their direction and confessed. She was at the same age as the princesses staying beside the queen. The fire barrier opened up a path for Match as she entered their domain. The queen did not want to harm such an innocent child, so she let her through.

"Red is not a bad girl! She saved the two of you from the battle!" claimed Match.

Match only believed my words from the inn. The little child knew nothing about the battle or the person who killed the king. Match only knew one thing; we needed to save these two and bring them to the Elven Kingdom.

As soon as she saw these two inside the caravan, Match thought I saved them from their disaster.

The queen and her daughter raised their eyebrows, dubious about her statement. The princess did not utter a word. She continued observing the situation while gazing into my eyes. I paid it no mind and focused on the road.

However, the two royalties cannot land a hit against Match. She was just a little girl in her villager clothes. If Match was playing dumb, she could have killed them already. But she was not an assassin sent to kill the two, but a mere villager caught up by this mess.

If Match were a player, then these two royalties would not believe her. But as soon as the queen used her scan to Match and me, she lowered her head.

Match and I were both non-player characters, after all. The queen saw it in our status window, available for everyone to read. With our titles as non-player characters prominent, the queen finally believed our words.

Little did she know I used [Trickster], a skill that can change the appearance of my status window. I needed that to conceal my player title and reveal my NPC status.

"I apologise for the crude introduction." The queen said, asking for forgiveness.

My body twitched as I waved my hands. "Lift your head, your majesty. We are eternally grateful for your deeds for the kingdom."

The queen lifted her face and beamed at us with a smile. Match and I returned her beam, accepting her apologies. She then glanced at the window and observed the morning skies. A tear drifted from her eyelids as she turned her face to me.

She knew there was something missing.

"Where are the others?" The queen asked, and looked around.

I whipped the rope and answered, "They are all dead. None of the soldiers survived the blast from the player, your majesty."

"No! It cannot be! I saw my husband with my own eyes beside me!" The queen denied all of my statements.

I shook my head and replied, "An arrow pierced his throat. I tried saving the old man, but my effort was too late."

The queen and her daughter gasped in despair as they heard the news. Her daughter cried a thousand tears and hugged her mother. The queen stared at the window in silence, unsure how to react upon hearing such news. I left the part where I slit the king's throat, leading to his death. If they knew I was the perpetrator, they would never believe me.

The queen might even kill me if she sees an opportunity if the word goes out. I kept my mouth shut and avoided my doom.

"Is this really true?" With the last ounce of strength, the queen asked.

I lowered my head and confirmed the statement. All of us fell into silence, not wanting to say anything to the topic. The queen knew the kingdom would fall in the next few days. The neighbouring empires would take this opportunity to govern the land.

"Who killed my husband, Arthur?"

"The players," I answered.

Her disconcert eyes turned into insanity. The queen was a woman made of steel and elegance. She mastered the sacred art of using the fire element like her ancestors had taught her for generations. The king chose her to be his bride since they were a powerful force that nobody could stop, not even the dragonewts.

The two were mortal enemies inside Code.

"Thank you for telling me."

I bowed my head to the queen and responded, "You are always welcome, your highness."

The queen wiped the tears in her eyes and flashed me a smile. She shifted her eyes towards the window, looking at the orange woodland. I followed her gaze and locked my eyes at the forest we escaped. We saw a wildfire happening in the distance.

I hope the knights cannot chase us here on the bridge.

"By the way, who are you and the kid?" She asked, and caressed Match's round head.

The queen finally addressed me as someone she could trust. Her eyes observed my figure, looking at me as a friend she can depend on with her life. I returned her gaze while focusing on the road ahead.

She thought that someone trained the two of us from the kingdom.

I continued controlling the asses and answered, "My name is Red Rose, a villager inside the Freiy Kingdom. The little girl is Match. I found her in the forest. The monster also destroyed her village, so we have nowhere else to go but the mainland."

"Dear me, you must have gone through a lot." The queen replied and acknowledged our story.

I can only nod to her statement as I whipped the ropes again, motioning the horses to move faster.

I noticed her apologetic eyes looking at the ground. The queen must have heard about the downfall of the empire and the disastrous mission. It was a task sent by the game developers to the game for the players.

These developers were the ones who killed the villagers. They killed my sister, Clementine.

The royalties assisted our tiny village, but they were too late to react. They came a long way from the mainland to our kingdom, so I cannot blame them for their actions.

According to the queen, the mainland also experienced the same threat as the Freiy and Match's village.

It was just reasonable for the queen to feel disheartened upon hearing the now ruined city of Freiy.