The Mind-Reading Mate: Why Is the Lycan King So Obsessed With Me?!

Chapter 554: A Vessel for Something Evil (II)

[I literally just came back from the dead. There’s no way I’m volunteering for that again.]

"Can I do it?" Leofric’s sudden question made everyone look at him. He shrugged casually. "It’s difficult for me to die."

In other words, he was offering himself because he believed he had the best chance of surviving.

For a brief moment, Primrose thought it sounded like a reasonable solution. However, Lorelle immediately shook her head. "This isn’t about finding someone who won’t die," she said.

Leofric blinked. "Then what is it about?"

"It’s about finding the right person." Lorelle tapped the glass lightly. "Someone who can break the skull open without triggering whatever protection was placed on it. Someone who won’t accidentally create an even bigger problem."

"A bigger problem?" Primrose asked.

Lorelle nodded. "If the thing inside absorbs the wrong kind of energy while the seal is breaking, it could become even stronger."

The room instantly fell silent because that possibility was clearly much worse than they had expected.

"So no, Leofric," Lorelle said firmly. "You’re actually the last person I would let touch this skull because your energy is practically endless."

Leofric looked like he wanted to argue, but after a moment, he simply closed his mouth because he knew Lorelle was completely right.

"Didn’t you say the skull once communicated with Edmund?" Lorelle suddenly asked, turning toward Primrose.

Primrose nodded. "Yes, it did. Why?"

Lorelle didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she continued staring at the skull, her eyes moving across the cracks as though she was trying to piece together a puzzle.

"That’s strange," she said at last. "It isn’t even trying to communicate with me, or with Leofric."

Leofric frowned. He turned toward Primrose. "Can you hear its voice?"

Primrose shook her head. "No. Not at all."

As soon as she said it, she realized how odd that sounded. If anyone should have been able to hear the skull, it should have been her.

After all, she had heard the voices of gods before. Compared to Edmund, she should have been much more sensitive to something like this, and yet the skull had never spoken to her even once.

"Maybe the skull has some kind of compatibility with His Majesty," Nina suddenly suggested. "That’s possible, right?"

Lorelle slowly nodded. "Actually, that’s very possible." She folded her arms and continued observing the skull through the glass. "Every magical item and artifact has a certain level of compatibility with different souls. Some people can use an artifact easily, while others can’t interact with it at all."

"Why?" Solene asked.

"There are many reasons," Lorelle explained. "Sometimes it’s because the two souls were connected in a previous life." She paused briefly. "Other times, it’s simply because their energies are similar enough to resonate with each other."

"So you’re saying Edmund and the skull might have something in common?" Primrose asked.

Lorelle gave a small shrug. "There’s a good chance of it, yes. And if they do share some kind of connection, Edmund might be able to break the protection magic without accidentally pouring his own energy into whatever is trapped inside."

Primrose was still struggling to fully understand everything Lorelle had explained, but she managed to grasp the most important part.

"But it would still be dangerous for him, wouldn’t it?" she asked seriously. "That skull already tried to control his mind once before."

"It wasn’t the skull," Lorelle corrected. "It was whatever is living inside it."

She paused for a moment. "But yes. It would still be dangerous for him."

Nina nervously stepped forward. "Maybe we can find a way to keep His Majesty safe?" she suggested. "I mean... it’s not like we have many other choices, right?"

Primrose gritted her teeth. She stared at the skull in silence before finally asking, "How long do you think it will take for the thing inside to fully recover?"

Nina shook her head. "I don’t know exactly when," she admitted. "But it must be soon since Nythar already gave me a very clear vision about this skull."

Her expression turned grim. "Your Majesty, there are too many unknown possibilities right now. After all, we still have no idea what King Averon and his followers are truly capable of."

She took a deep breath before continuing. "That’s why we need to act as soon as possible."

Primrose frowned slightly because she didn’t remember ever telling Nina that the skull had been discovered in the Azmeria Kingdom.

However, after hearing Nina’s thoughts earlier, she realized Nythar must have been the one who gave her that information.

The warehouse fell silent. Everyone turned to look at Primrose, waiting for her decision.

"It’s your call, Your Majesty," Lorelle said suddenly. Unlike before, her voice was much more formal. "This artifact is under your authority now. Whatever happens next depends on the decision you make."

Primrose lowered her eyes. For a moment, she simply stared at the floor, then she slowly shook her head.

"No," she said in a low voice. "This isn’t a decision that should depend only on what I want."

Her gaze drifted toward the warehouse entrance. Edmund wasn’t there, but she could almost imagine him standing beside her.

"I need Edmund’s approval too," she continued. "Not just as a king, but also as my husband. I want to know what he thinks about all of this."

A faint smile appeared on her face. "He’s the one who has been affected by the skull from the beginning. I can’t make this decision without hearing his opinion."

She took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders. "So, if you’ll excuse me," she said, "I’d like to discuss this with my husband first."

Before leaving, she turned to Leofric. "I want you to personally guard this skull," she said firmly. "I don’t want Averon or any of his followers suddenly showing up and taking it from us."

The moment those words left her mouth, Leofric’s entire demeanor changed.

The easygoing smile disappeared from his face, and the playful attitude he had carried throughout the conversation was gone in an instant.

He straightened his back and met her gaze with complete seriousness. "Understood, Your Majesty."