Chapter 392: Chapter 392 The Princess in the Tower and the Dragon’s Treasure_1
At 8:50 p.m., in the library of the Rose Iron Prison Core Zone, more than half of the reading room seats were occupied by inmates quietly flipping through books under the watch of the guards, with only a few near the bookshelves whispering to each other as they searched for books.
During the evening in prison, there was a short period of time designated for inmates’ free activity. Although called "free" activity, it actually consisted of limited options such as attending extra skills courses in the education room or visiting the library to read books, all under the constant supervision of the guards.
Many inmates chose to go to the library, as reading was one of the few entertainment options allowed in the prison. The reading room was also much brighter than the cells, and as long as one had a normal treatment grade, one could typically choose to sit in the reading room in the evening and then borrow one or two books to continue reading back in their cell.
At this moment, the librarian Asenna was seated at her desk, handling the checkout procedures for the books. As activity time neared its end, inmates who wanted to borrow books had already formed an orderly line in front of the reception desk.
When the last inmate finished borrowing books, the 9 p.m. activity time bell rang right on time. The inmates in the library promptly formed a queue at the door and, after being counted by the guards, marched back to their cells.
Asenna and Sera both stayed in the library, performing the final organization and inspection of the bookshelves.
This type of meticulous work would usually be sufficient for Asenna to handle alone, but Sera strictly followed Aiden’s advice, aiming to stay close to Asenna, and therefore also stayed to help.
While arranging the bookshelves, she glanced again at the necromancer who had been giving her the cold shoulder and couldn’t help opening her mouth at last, "Miss Asenna..."
"What is it, Your Highness?" Asenna didn’t even look at her.
Sera heard the sarcasm in the other’s address, but the term "princess" still made her shiver.
Although the other inmates had left, there was still a guard waiting by the door for them to come out. Now, because of her identity, she was being hunted, and with others listening, hearing someone call her that would make her involuntarily anxious.
Moreover, in the past, only Heinz would call her that. Just listening to this address would make her feel as though her emotions had suddenly become heavy as lead.
"Please don’t call me that..." Sera pleaded in a low voice.
"How strange, many girls would wish to be addressed so and don’t get the chance," Asenna retorted.
"What, exactly, do you think I’m lacking?" Sera carefully brought up the question she had intended to save for when she returned to her cell.
From the previous conversations, she felt that Asenna seemed to have seen through the crux of her emotional burden and had... seemingly found some sort of answer.
However, after their earlier chat, Asenna, who was already quite aloof, became even more distant, leaving Sera completely puzzled.
But she was too eager to know Asenna’s answer and had no choice but to pluck up the courage to find an opportunity to speak with her.
"Initiative," Asenna answered without hesitation.
"Do you think I lack initiative?" Sera blinked.
"I made it pretty clear last time. You are just like those princesses in fairy tales, always waiting in a high tower for someone to come rescue you; beyond that, you do nothing," Asenna said unmercifully, "You completely hand over your destiny to the Prince who comes to save you, and once the Prince gives up on you, you are left with nothing but a dead end."
"You—" Sera instinctively wanted to raise her voice, but then realized that the guards were present and lowered her voice again, "You have no idea what I’ve been through! I’ve fought tooth and nail just to survive. I’m not like you, gifted with special abilities; I’ve been hunted from one city to another by dozens of people until I had no choice but to commit a crime deliberately to hide in prison. What do you think I could have done?"
Finally, Asenna turned and glanced at her before speaking, "That’s it?"
Sera was taken aback.
"You want to talk about hardships? You think people who have fought desperately just to cling to life are rare in this prison? Many apprentices to necromancers were orphans picked up by chance when necromancers collected bodies from plague areas. And this wasn’t out of charity; sometimes the plague was released by the necromancers themselves..." Asenna said indifferently, "That’s how I was taken as an apprentice. Had I become infected with the plague back then, or had I not learned the art of necromancy well afterward, I would have long been dead. Such experiences are not uncommon among the serious offenders in the Core Zone. You should be thankful that the Warden didn’t send you to that vicious Dragonborn; if she knew about your attitude, she would definitely rip off your jaw... So please, stop acting here like a noble who came to sympathize with the common folk, even though you are indeed a noble."
Sera was stunned; she did not remember having told her about her identity, the Warden had not mentioned it at that time, and Asenna had expressed no interest in inquiring.
"You think it’s hard to notice? When I used to research how people’s behavior in life affects necromancy, I incidentally learned about some noble etiquette," Asenna continued slowly, "Your choice of words doesn’t give you away that easily, but the way you speak, every move you make, shows that you’ve received some noble education. Even if you are not a noble, someone has taught you noble etiquette. Am I right?"
Sera fell silent, the noble etiquette she had been taught was limited, but she had been quite serious when she learned it.
Because the person who taught her was Heinz.
Asenna continued, "Don’t be nervous, I don’t have a particular dislike for nobles or the upper class, after all, everyone ends up mostly the same in death. I just don’t like your self-pitying attitude here, it’s out of place. You say your Prince was helpless to save you; then why don’t you come up with your own plan? Just waiting here for the Prince to change his mind certainly doesn’t show initiative. What exactly did he ’reluctantly’ give you up for—status or wealth? Nevermind, it doesn’t matter. How much allure can a vase-like princess have compared to a dragon’s hoard? You’re not an unparalleled beauty; why should the Prince bother attacking the Wizard’s tower rather than storming the dragon’s lair?"
As Sera listened, she felt increasingly suffocated, unable to muster any words of rebuttal.
Just then, a voice called out from behind them: "I envy you two, busy toiling away over this mess outside, and here you are having a leisurely chat."
Both turned around, with Asenna directly greeting, "Warden, are you on the night shift today?"
The guard at the door had been dismissed by Aiden at some point, and now, besides the two women, there was only Aiden standing there.
"I was off duty, but I came back," Aiden said, looking toward Sera, "There’s something I want to discuss with you; I’ve encountered the person you mentioned before."
Sera’s eyes widened immediately.
Asenna glanced at her, fell silent for a moment, raised her hand to Aiden, and asked, "Would it be alright for me to listen in, Warden?"
