Chapter 196: Talking to a Brick Wall
“Tell Isabella that the magic seems to work well, and her figure looks great. Ask her to teach Vivian and Illusion.”
After cleaning the room with magic, Kailun spoke towards the bathroom.
In terms of attractiveness, Isabella in her magically enhanced state could rival Ella. Now, she might be worthy of the title “Pure Desire Goddess.”
However, this magic had a time limit. She still had to maintain her usual form most of the time.
“I told you, I’m Isabella’s older sister.”
Isabella, hiding behind the door, denied it again, her face flushed.
[Isabella accepted your compliment. Goodwill +10, Total Goodwill 40]
Seeing the change in her goodwill, Kailun couldn’t help but chuckle. Another one who didn’t mean what she said.
“That’s all for now. You can wash up. I’ll have someone bring you some suitable new clothes. I hope to see you again next time, Isabella’s older sister.”
Leaving those words behind, Kailun left Isabella’s room and closed the door.
Although he didn’t get the answer he wanted, he had witnessed an interesting scene.
Taking advantage of the ample time in the morning, Kailun went to the dungeon to find the Pope and give her some important instructions.
According to the plan, the Pope would stay in the dungeon for the next two days. Two days were enough for Roden and the others to return from the Abyss.
Then he would have them accompany the Pope back to the Temple of the Celestial God. To break through the Empress’s blockade, they needed sufficient strength. The Pope still had two injured ninth-rank mages under her command. With the addition of Roden and his companions, the number of ninth-rank mages returning to Alaye would reach six.
The Pope herself was powerful and could be considered equivalent to three ordinary ninth-rank mages. With internal and external support, recapturing Alaye shouldn’t be a problem.
If it wasn’t enough, they could ask for reinforcements from the Abyss. They had plenty.
Under Kailun’s pressure, the poor Pope could only helplessly agree to his demands. She was sinking deeper and deeper into this path of no return.
Chrissy had been visiting the Pope frequently these past few days. As they interacted, she realized that her way of thinking was actually starting to align with Chrissy’s.
This wasn’t normal. It was dangerous!
Therefore, Chrissy, who had come to see her this morning, was mercilessly driven away. She didn’t want to listen to Chrissy’s “preaching” anymore. She was the Pope!
Just as Kailun was having a “pleasant” conversation with the Pope, Anna ran over and whispered something in his ear.
Kailun first frowned and then smiled with delight, making the Pope’s scalp tingle.
Fortunately, Kailun didn’t target her anymore. He casually tossed the food box aside and left the dungeon with Anna.
“Clatter!”
The Pope touched the slave collar around her neck, wanting to ask Kailun when he would remove it. Recalling his sinister expression, she held back.
Just two more days. In two days, she would be the high and mighty Pope again.
“Grrr…”
The Pope, who hadn’t eaten in three days, was feeling hungry. She rubbed her stomach and sighed.
“Fine, I’ll eat something for now, just to fill my stomach.”
The Pope comforted herself and squatted down by the door, reaching out to retrieve the food box.
To her surprise, when she opened the box, there was no food inside. Instead, she saw a parchment scroll and a note.
“Memorize the teleportation magic circle on this scroll. This is the magic circle you need to set up to return to the Temple of the Celestial God.”
Pope: “…”
Seeing Kailun’s handwriting, she fell silent, feeling a surge of anger at being toyed with.
[Pope’s Goodwill -1, Total Goodwill -89]
……
“Are you sure there’s no problem with these ingredients?”
Queen Rose looked at the list of ingredients with a thoughtful expression.
She had disguised herself and secretly found Doreen, the manager of the “Lucky Potion” factory, this morning to confirm the ingredients once again.
“It should be these. This is the ingredient list written by Lord Kailun himself. However, the final packaging process is confidential, so there might be some differences.”
Doreen hesitated and looked at the cloaked figure in front of her. “Your Majesty, when are you planning to rescue me? I can’t stay here any longer. If I’m discovered, I will be executed.”
She was truly scared. She had chosen to side with the Rose Kingdom because it was stronger than the Xiya Kingdom.
But she hadn’t expected that in just over a month, the Xiya Kingdom would rise to power and sweep through the surrounding kingdoms, even the powerful Rose Kingdom couldn’t resist.
Doreen knew that her actions were tantamount to treason. If Kailun found out, she would be sent to the mines and forced to work sixteen hours a day.
That future was too terrifying. She would rather be hanged in the streets than go mining.
She had heard that some miners fainted from exhaustion, and within a minute, high-rank magic would be used to heal them, ensuring they wouldn’t die.
Then the fainted miners would get three hours of rest and would have to work nineteen hours straight to make up for it.
The record for the most fainting spells was eighteen, held by a former subordinate of the First Princess.
Now, she could only pin her hopes on Queen Rose, hoping that she could rescue her.
Queen Rose looked at Doreen and nodded. “I understand. I will definitely find a chance to rescue you. Now I have to go back and verify the accuracy of this list. Just wait for my good news.”
She pulled her hood down, concealing her face.
She only wanted to cause trouble for Kailun, not rescue anyone.
She had said that she would return and “self-destruct” with Kailun, but ordinary methods wouldn’t be effective against him. So she decided to attack him economically.
If this list was real, she would have her people manufacture and sell the “Lucky Potion” at a lower price.
It was a shameful tactic, but it was her only means of resistance.
“Lord Kailun is coming for an inspection. He said someone reported that we’re not working hard.”
Just as Rose was about to leave, Doreen’s confidante ran into the hall and warned her.
“What?!”
Doreen panicked. She quickly grabbed Rose’s hand and pulled her towards a corner of the hall. “Quick, hide! If Lord Kailun finds us, we’re finished.”
Rose didn’t have time to think. She didn’t want her plan to be ruined, so she let Doreen push her into a secret room in the hall.
As soon as Doreen sent Rose away, she saw Kailun entering the hall with Anna.
“Greetings, Lord Kailun. Greetings, Lady Anna.” Doreen quickly bowed to Kailun.
“No need for formalities. I’m here to understand the current situation. I heard that your work efficiency has been low recently, and you often fail to complete the assigned tasks. Is that true?”
Kailun asked with a smile, looking at Doreen kindly.
“Lord Kailun, everyone has been working hard. We haven’t been slacking off. If there are any issues, it must be slander from our enemies.” Doreen’s forehead was covered in cold sweat.
Kailun nodded with satisfaction. “You’re doing well. Your attitude deserves my trust. So I’ve decided to transfer you to the mines as a supervisor. My requirements are not high. You just need to supervise those prisoners and ensure they complete their work on time.”
“Just that?”
Doreen looked at Kailun in disbelief. It was too simple. Wasn’t he here to punish her?
“Yes, just that. Do your job well, and I might promote you in the future.” Kailun smiled.
He didn’t tell her that if the prisoners didn’t complete their tasks on time, she would have to personally join them in the mines until the target was met.
In other words, the prisoners might only have to work sixteen hours, while she might have to work twenty.
“Thank you for your generosity, Lord Kailun. I will work hard and serve the kingdom.”
Doreen bowed again. Although she was filled with doubts, she could only obey his orders now.
After all, what job could be worse than mining?
“Go. I’ve already prepared a carriage for you.”
Kailun waved to Doreen, signaling her to leave quickly. He didn’t want to waste too much time on her.
After Doreen left, Kailun casually inspected the factory and gave some unimportant instructions.
For the current Kailun, this kind of deceptive business could be temporarily shut down.
He didn’t have much time to spend on auctions. There were more important things for him to do.
If Rose hadn’t taken the initiative to expose herself today, he might have chosen to ignore her for a while.
Rose was simply unlucky today, running into Kailun when he had some free time.
About half an hour later, Rose noticed that it had become quiet outside. She cautiously peeked her head out and, after confirming that Kailun had left, emerged from the secret room.
To be safe, Rose went to the back door of the factory. As long as she left this place, she would be safe.
“Creak!”
Pushing open the heavy wooden door, she saw a luxurious carriage parked outside.
Kailun, sitting inside the carriage, waved to her. “Long time no see, Queen Rose. I didn’t expect to run into you here.”
Rose: “…”
Her emotions were complicated, so complicated that she wanted to “self-destruct” with Kailun.
But with her strength, even if she self-destructed, it wouldn’t harm Kailun. Thinking of this, her emotions became even more complicated.
“What are you waiting for? Get in.”
Rose, her head lowered, hadn’t come up with an excuse when she heard Kailun’s urging voice. She could only get into the carriage under his amused gaze.
Because Anna was sitting beside Kailun, she had to sit opposite them. She nervously placed her hands on her knees, looking very uncomfortable.
The current Rose didn’t look like a ruler of a kingdom but more like a little girl being lectured by her parents.
Kailun reached out and removed the hood from Rose’s head, then looked at her beautiful face and asked, “Tell me, what did you do wrong? If you admit your mistake with a good attitude, I might go easy on you.”
Queen Rose was ten years older than Kailun. She looked mature and intelligent, possessing a charm that young girls like Anna didn’t have, but she acted like a timid little girl.
Rose stammered, “I… I was just curious.”
She avoided Kailun’s gaze, unable to meet his eyes. After only half a month, she felt that the pressure he exerted on her had increased significantly.
Kailun had become stronger. She thought that pretending to be timid might allow her to escape unscathed.
People always changed. Rose had made her own compromise.
“Curiosity is normal, but why are you hiding from me? Doreen hasn’t gone far. Should I call her back and ask her?”
Kailun’s hand moved past Rose’s hair, caressing her ear.
“I was curious about the Lucky Potion and wanted to take a look, but I was afraid of being scolded by you, so I hid.” Rose replied half-truthfully.
“Oh, is that so? Since you’re so curious, I’ll take you to see the real production process next time. There’s an essential ingredient in the Lucky Potion that only Chrissy possesses.”
Kailun pinched Rose’s ear. It felt nice and smooth, no different from a seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl.
Rose asked with confusion in her voice, “An ingredient from Saint Chrissy?”
“Pfft!”
Anna, covering her mouth, couldn’t help but laugh. The ingredient in the ordinary Lucky Potion was, of course, Chrissy’s tears.
But the “ingredient” Kailun was referring to was probably another substance with the same effect. She had not only seen it but also witnessed the production process. The meaning behind his words would only be clear to Rose if she saw it with her own eyes.
This bad guy was definitely up to something. She was curious what Rose’s expression would be when she learned the truth.
Kailun glared at Anna, signaling her to be quiet. Then he said to Rose, “I’ll find an opportunity to let you participate in the production process in a couple of days. I hope you perform well and don’t disappoint me. As for the working hours, it depends on your physical condition. It’s hard to say.”
“Working hours? How long will it be?”
Rose felt that something was amiss with Kailun’s words, but she couldn’t pinpoint what it was.
Kailun chuckled. “It depends. Some people have a strong physique and can work intensely for ten hours, while others, due to their sensitive bodies, can only work for a few minutes. So I hope you’ll be a ‘ten-hour’ person, not a ‘few-minute’ person.”
Rose’s expression changed when she heard that Kailun wanted her to work for ten hours. “Ten hours is too long, isn’t it? Isn’t the usual working time eight hours?”
She didn’t want to work for Kailun, not even for a minute.
“Actually, eight hours is already impressive. Even I can’t do it with all my effort.” Anna interjected, blushing. She really couldn’t last for eight hours.
“Just because you can’t do it doesn’t mean Rose can’t. Don’t underestimate others. Maybe Rose can even break through ten hours.” Kailun flicked Anna’s forehead.
However, Rose waved her hands repeatedly in denial. “No, no, no. I’m just an ordinary person. I can’t even last for a minute.”
The current Rose just wanted to shirk her responsibilities. If she could, she wanted the working hours to be zero.
However, after she said that, both Kailun and Anna looked at her with strange expressions. She suspected that she had said something wrong.
“What an unconfident person. I’ll call Chrissy and Hilna over tonight. They’ll teach you how to ‘work.’”
Because of Rose’s words, Kailun changed the uncertain time to tonight. They would find out if she was up to the task.
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