"I don't think it was necessary to expose your strength like this…" Liu Ye muttered in complete darkness, realizing Queen Luna brought them both underground. "What if your Uncle learns about it?"
Although she could easily take them away, it created a whole lot of complications that Liu Ye was trying to avoid. Not only did she call him babe in public which could lead to gossip, but now everyone could find out the true power of NPC's.
"Don't worry, it was just a simple tornado," Queen Luna assured while lighting up a fireball on top of her palm. "There are many Airbenders who can do it so I doubt it will be connected to me. We will just get to the safe location and leave the capital without wasting time."
She moved closer to him and added, "Since we couldn't kill them, I preferred to cut it short so we can finish the mission today. I don't have all day to spend."
The light disappeared right after and Queen Luna stomped on the ground, pushing the tunnel further ahead. He had no way to react when the earth behind him filled back up and knocked him forward. The only support ahead of him were Queen Luna's shoulders which he grasped to avoid falling down.
"Can you warn me next time?" Liu Ye asked with a sigh as he pulled away but Queen Luna only giggled and continued without any comment. It was obvious she was doing it on purpose but there was nothing he could do.
'Once the Quest is over, I need to stay away from her…' Liu Ye thought, realizing Queen Luna was even more dangerous than Avi and could really ruin his game plan if she wanted. The only thing that kept him relieved was her being an NPC, easing his danger in real life.
If he were to have another Avi to deal with, his days would become hell.
"This should be the spot," Queen Luna called out after a minute of digging and they finally moved upwards. She built steps for them before they casually walked out into the blinding sun.
It turned out they weren't exactly far from the trap location and simply sneaked into another main street. This time they didn't make the same mistake and instead used the roofs until they arrived in the Teleportation Station.
"Please, show your faces and display your permits," the Station Official greeted them as they approached the right teleport platform and Liu Ye stepped forward.
He leaned over and whispered without revealing his identity, "I'm the Queen's envoy and we are on a secret mission. Please be quiet when you see the Queen."
The Station Official raised his eyebrows in surprise only to widen them in the very next second when Queen Luna looked up from under her white hood. She didn't speak and instead pulled Liu Ye by the hand to the middle of the platform.
"Send us to our destination please," Liu Ye asked politely and added, "If anyone asked, you didn't see us. It's an order."
"Y-yes… Right away," the Station Official nodded in panic and didn't hesitate to activate the teleporter. The platform lit up in a familiar manner and Liu Ye breathed out deeply as their surroundings changed to a new location.
He was already happy to avoid spending gold on transportation but his mood improved further when he couldn't spot a single player in the area. Barely anyone had earned enough gold for a permit and even fewer players would travel to distant cities where they wouldn't guarantee a good place to farm levels.
The reaction from the Station Officials wasn't any different and they were able to smoothly leave without setting alarms. To Liu Ye's surprise, Queen Luna became serious and no longer tried to tease him anymore.
"Let's go. You did your part, so I will lead the way now," Queen Luna called out as they went straight for the City Gates. "It should take us two hours to get to the Dragon City if we run all the way there. The Monsters on our path are not that strong so we shouldn't have any problems with them."
"Let's do it then," Liu Ye nodded in satisfaction, wanting her to become professional from the start. Unfortunately, just as he thought the travel would proceed smoothly, that thought crumbled when he saw the dangers outside the gates.
They ran along the main road filled with stone rocks and hills when four thieves jumped out from behind two large boulders. They didn't carry any weapons on them but instead aimed head-sized rocks at their faces.
[Red Desert Thief - Lvl. 35]
[HP: 2350/2350]
[MP: 1250/1250]
Just the fact that the first opponents they met were 35 level Earthbenders explained why no players occupied those lands. It could only get worse if they traveled further but Liu Ye wasn't worried. He wouldn't improve if he wasn't pushed to the limits.
"Give us 100 gold or we will hurt you!" Red Desert Thief yelled out seeing Liu Ye stop at their sight. "Don't try anything stupid!"
It seemed like they couldn't tell Queen Luna was an expert which worked in their favor. Or at least that's what he thought.
"Alright, go defeat them and show me you are worth the money," Queen Luna ordered as she casually stepped back while patting him on the shoulders. "You have to impress me according to our deal or else you won't get any treasures."
Liu Ye wanted to roll his eyes at her but he had no time as the thieves heard her clearly. They glared at him and kicked the rocks like bullets in his direction. He had to lung to the side to dodge them while Queen Luna only flicked her finger to change the rock's trajectory.
"Good luck," Queen Luna wished playfully and launched herself in the air to watch the scene from the nearby rock formation. It was her way of saying he would have no help from her whatsoever.
Jokes on her, it was precisely Liu Ye's comfort zone.
'You want to be impressed? Sure,' Liu Ye thought determinately and challenged the thieves. "Hey! What was that aim? Even my grandma can aim better! I bet a 1000 gold you can't hit me without getting closer!"
