The Mighty Mage
Chapter 292: Qi Zhaoyu’s Entry

Chapter 292: Chapter 292: Qi Zhaoyu’s Entry

A murmur of doubt rippled through the crowd. Some people glanced uncertainly at Gu Jin, their expressions wavering.

Gu Jin could feel the doubt setting in. She watched as people exchanged uneasy glances, a few of them shuffling back from her.

"Is... is it true?" someone in the crowd murmured, "Could she be lying?"

"Why would someone lie about something like this?" another person asked, casting a wary look at Gu Jin.

Auric seized the opportunity, her voice rising with righteous conviction. "Exactly!" she said, her tone almost triumphant.

"Who lies about risking their life to save others? Only someone who craves attention and glory." Her blue eyes sparkled as she sneered at Gu Jin. "You’re nothing but a fraud."

Gu Jin sighed inwardly, fighting the urge to roll her eyes.

Her patience was already stretched thin, and this charade wasn’t helping.

She took a slow step forward, her voice cool and unwavering.

"If you saved them, Auric," Gu Jin said calmly, "why did my warriors report to me just now, confirming the mission’s completion?"

Auric’s smirk didn’t waver. "Your warriors?" she scoffed.

"Those mindless puppets would say anything you tell them to say. Unlike you, I don’t need a horde of undead to do my work."

One of the older women in the crowd furrowed her brow, glancing between Gu Jin and Auric, clearly perplexed.

"But... we saw Miss Gu Jin’s warriors fighting off the parasites," she said hesitantly. "Didn’t we?"

Auric’s eyes narrowed.

She took a step forward, lifting her chin defiantly. "Oh, of course, you did," she replied, her voice laced with bitterness.

"Because she stole my warriors, my tactics, my entire plan. She just has to be in the spotlight, doesn’t she?" She glared at Gu Jin.

"Don’t think I haven’t seen you steal my methods before, Gu Jin."

Gu Jin’s patience finally wore thin. She let out a harsh laugh, her eyes glinting with a steely resolve.

"Stealing from you?" she echoed, her tone sharp and cutting.

"Please, spare me the delusion. If you were capable of leading even a handful of soldiers, you wouldn’t need to resort to this pathetic smear campaign."

Auric’s eyes flashed, her fists clenched tightly. But before she could respond, a small voice piped up.

"Miss Gu Jin saved me!" The little girl who had tugged on Gu Jin’s clothes earlier spoke up

"I saw her! Her soldiers helped me escape!"

Auric’s gaze hardened as she looked at the girl, her blue eyes cold and unforgiving. "Oh, did she?" she said, feigning sweetness.

"Well, children have such... vivid imaginations, don’t they?"

"If any of you truly believe her lies," Auric said, her voice dripping with disdain, "then go ahead, follow this impostor. But if you want the truth, if you want to follow the real savior, then follow me."

Gu Jin raised an eyebrow and asked,

"So you are telling me I stole your method?"

"Yes!"

"Then your soldiers should have helped the crowd, right?" Gu Jin asked.

Auric glares at Gu Jin and continues to say,

"Or what? In fact, my subordinates were the ones who helped others, your subordinates on the other hand were just showing up in front acting as if they were the real helpers."

"So, your subordinates helped while mine stood by, acting like they saved the day?" Gu Jin asked.

"Yes," Auric spat, seizing the crowd’s attention again. "They just showed up to take the credit, like you always do."

Her soldiers were bound by her command, loyal to a fault.

There was no question of them taking credit they hadn’t earned. She took a slow breath, giving Auric a cool, unhurried look before replying.

"So, your subordinates should be more powerful than mine, right?" Gu Jin asked with a smirk.

Auric’s expression froze, the crowd turning their gaze to her expectantly.

She lifted her chin, her voice confident but defensive.

"I don’t know," she replied curtly.

"And if you’re suggesting I fight you now, you’ll have to wait. I’m exhausted from my battle against the parasites."

She turned to face the crowd, her eyes brimming with feigned tears.

"I asked my subordinates to help the citizens while I fought, alone, to kill every last parasite in Fujio City. Who would have thought an impostor would swoop in and steal my victory?"

A man in the crowd cleared his throat, addressing Auric with cautious curiosity.

"But... if you were the one who killed the parasites, then why is Miss Gu Jin’s name the one being celebrated everywhere?"

Auric’s face softened, tears rolling down her cheeks as she replied.

"Auric means ’gold,’ and gold in Chinese is ’Jin,’" she said, her voice thick with sorrow.

"This imposter used that as a loophole and told my rescued soldiers that their savior’s name was Gu Jin. She deliberately created this misunderstanding to claim my glory!"

A hush fell over the crowd as they processed this new revelation.

Gu Jin, however, rolled her eyes, a flicker of amusement dancing in her gaze.

"Really, Auric?" she drawled.

"And did you know that some of the higher-ranking military officers saw me face-to-face when I saved them?"

Auric’s face twitched, but she quickly responded, her voice sharp.

"They were lying," she hissed. "They’re under your brother’s influence—his subordinates!"

Gu Jin froze momentarily, then burst into laughter, the sound sharp and cutting through the crowd’s murmurings.

"Biggest lie of the night, Auric," she said with a smirk. "I’m an orphan. I have no brothers."

A flicker of shock crossed Auric’s face, her eyes widening slightly as if realizing her mistake. But she quickly recovered,

"Oh, so that’s what you’d have them believe," she sneered, her voice filled with disdain.

"Then those officers must have been bribed. It’s the only explanation."

Gu Jin chuckled, shaking her head as she looked at Auric with disdain.

"Make up your mind, Auric," she said coolly. "You keep changing your story with each question."

The crowd started to murmur.

"Is that woman named Auric telling the truth?"

"But... she said Gu Jin was just an imposter," one woman whispered to her neighbor.

"But if Gu Jin’s an orphan... How could she have bribed military officers?"

"And why would soldiers follow her if she was just some fame-seeker?" another man muttered, scratching his head in confusion.

"Seems more like she’s earned their loyalty."

Auric’s expression twisted as she realized the tide was turning against her.

She took a shaky breath, struggling to regain her composure.

But her voice faltered, and the tears that had once seemed so genuine now appeared forced.

"I... I don’t have to explain myself to you," she stammered,

Auric’s face paled, her eyes darting around the crowd as if searching for support.

But the expressions she met were no longer filled with sympathy but with suspicion and disappointment.

An elderly man stepped forward, his voice wavering but steady.

"Miss Auric, if you truly were the one to save us, then why would we see Miss Gu Jin’s soldiers fighting the parasites?" he asked, his gaze unwavering. "We know who stood by us."

Auric opened her mouth to respond, but no words came.

"You...you all! How can you insult your own savior? You will all regret it later!"

As the murmurs and accusations buzzed through the crowd like the drone of angry bees, a low, manly voice sliced through the noise.

"Enough!"

The command rang out, clear and powerful, capturing everyone’s attention. Heads turned, and a young man stepped forward.

He was familiar to many in the crowd, a face they recognized from the very beginning of the rescue efforts—his name was Qi Zhaoyu.

"It’s Qi Zhaoyu! He’s been helping us since day one!" one woman murmured, clutching her hands together.

Another man beside her nodded.

"He’ll know what’s true and what’s not. Qi Zhaoyu doesn’t just take sides—he speaks the truth."

Auric’s expression faltered for a fraction of a second as Qi Zhaoyu’s gaze fixed on her.

His face held no warmth, no sympathy, only quiet, piercing scrutiny.

One of the crowd members spoke up, his voice tinged with hope and desperation.

"Qi Zhaoyu, you were there from the start! Did you see it? Can you confirm the truth?"

Another woman nodded, echoing the man’s question.

"Yes, please tell us—you’re the only one we can trust to be honest!"

Qi Zhaoyu gave a solemn nod, his eyes not leaving Gu Jin’s face.

"I was there," he began, his voice steady and unwavering. "And I saw everything with my own eyes."

"There is no doubt," he continued, gesturing with a decisive hand towards Gu Jin.

"This woman before you, Gu Jin, was the true savior of Fujio City. She is also the real ’Auric.’"

Gu Jin’s eyes gleamed with quiet amusement, and a faint chuckle slipped past her lips as she looked down, muttering softly,

"Fate indeed has a strange sense of humor."

She remembered the brief, unexpected moment when she had inadvertently revealed her face to Qi Zhaoyu, and now, here he was, the very witness whose testimony held the power to dismantle Auric’s lies.

Auric’s face contorted with anger.