After work, start to speedrun the other world-Chapter 608 - 244: The Pinnacle of Puppetry Technology_3

But she couldn’t find it in herself to feel happy about it.

"The Time Witch is ultimately not Ahtal, so there’s no way she could know who Ahtal values more." Evelyn spoke up at just the right moment to console her. She truly appreciated Luwei’s abilities and hoped Luwei could feel a bit better and not keep fretting over whether memories were preserved or not.

In response, Luwei rolled her eyes lightly, then stood up gracefully, pulling the chair back before striding toward the door:

"Let’s go. I’ll take you all to meet the Tiger King."

"Shouldn’t we meet the doll first?" Evelyn asked skeptically, reasoning that it would make more sense to first meet the memory-preserving doll girl.

Luwei replied casually, "She’s still preparing a little surprise."

Ever since the doll girl realized Ahtal’s arrival, she had begun preparing said surprise, though Luwei herself had no idea what the surprise was supposed to be.

And she had no intention of probing further.

...

...

Sometime later.

In a rocky cavern in the forest.

The Tiger King, wearing nothing but oversized shorts, was sprawled on a stone-made lounge chair, holding an uncooked lamb leg and devouring it raw.

Nearby, a still-alive sheep missing a leg bleated pitifully from within an iron cage.

It could be imagined that this unfortunate sheep would soon lose another leg.

"Ha~ What a rare guest. Never thought you’d come looking for me." The Tiger King’s movements with the lamb leg paused slightly as his eyes flashed with surprise, taking in the three individuals who had entered. His gaze first landed on Luwei with her short blue hair, then shifted to Evelyn with her long white hair, before finally lingering on the unfamiliar man.

As their eyes met briefly,

"Lord Ahtal, welcome, welcome." He suddenly broke into a hearty grin, shoving the lamb leg into his mouth, leaving only a small piece of its foot visible, which he swallowed along with the meat and bone in one gulp, so quickly that no one could react.

Xi Mu said with astonishment, "Do you still retain your memories of the future?"

"Of course not." The Tiger King neither hid nor hesitated, answering honestly, "But for Luwei to show reverence, coupled with the Dragon Clan’s little princess being absolutely soaked in your scent—there’s only one man in this world who could manage such a feat."

"Truly deserving of being a bishop of the Church of Death." Xi Mu chuckled, "Your reaction is impressively swift."

The Tiger King scratched his head and replied, "No one else would dare to leave such a heavy scent on the Dragon Clan’s little princess. Anyone with a halfway decent sense of smell could figure it out."

Evelyn: "..."

Even though she’d been very thorough in her bathing, she couldn’t understand how Ahtal’s scent remained on her.

Although she had no intention of pursuing the matter, she merely observed Ahtal and the Tiger King’s conversation momentarily before exiting the rock cavern.

Afterward, they visited Granny Saisi, Koil, Princess Lilith, Alistair, and others in succession.

As night fell, Luwei glanced at the evening sky, found an excuse, and persuaded Evelyn to head back.

She, however, led Ahtal toward the Puppet Kingdom where the doll girl resided.

...

...

The Puppet Kingdom.

This was a world that existed outside of reality, a manifestation of the doll girl’s inner desires, a realm made entirely of dolls.

The moment they stepped inside.

Hundreds of doll maidservants lined the hall in perfect order, bowing to Ahtal as he entered.

"Lord Ahtal, welcome to the Puppet Kingdom." The doll girl, who had silently appeared behind Ahtal at some point, leaned close to him and whispered softly, "Please bear witness to the surprise I prepared for you."

"Since it’s a surprise prepared for Ahtal," Luwei said, placing one hand on her hip and revealing an expression of disdain, "I won’t stick around."

"Don’t worry." The doll girl stepped back slightly, smiling sweetly at Luwei. "I’ve prepared a gift for you as well, as long as you..."

Luwei shook her head indifferently. "Can the gift be exchanged for helping me share my workload instead?"

Pretending not to hear, the doll girl signaled to a doll maidservant, who escorted the reluctant and displeased Luwei out of the hall.

In truth, she had indeed prepared a gift for Luwei—priceless manuscripts about witches and demons, culled from all over the world.

Once everything was arranged,

"Lord Ahtal, please follow me." The doll girl turned her gaze back to Ahtal, her lips curling into a faint smile. "I shall show you the pinnacle of doll-making: a thousand faces, a thousand charms, a thousand loves, and a thousand whispers..."