Category: As a villain, I just want them to behave

Chapter 181: Leisure

As dawn broke, Roden and his two companions sought out the old Dragon King Bolton. The group once again exchanged information regarding the situation in the Abyss.

As per Kailun’s instructions, they would join the main force in attacking the Abyss, pretending to be members of the White Jade Alliance.

“According to Lord Kailun’s plan, it will take about five or six days. We’ll need you to hold back the Abyssal forces during this time, Lord Bolton.”

Roden stood atop a small hill, surveying the Abyssal landscape and formations.

Bolton joined Roden, gazing in the same direction. “According to Old Wolf’s plan, the attack will also be in five or six days. He seems conflicted. He came to me a few days ago wanting to say something, but in the end, he didn’t. Do you think the Abyss still has a chance in Kailun’s eyes?”

Philip, standing beside them, chuckled. “Don’t overthink it, Lord Bolton. If Lord Kailun had given up on the Abyss, he wouldn’t have sent us here to help, right?”

In the past, Philip would have addressed someone like Bolton as “Lord,” but now they were both ninth-rank mages and represented Kailun, so the address naturally changed to “Lord Bolton.”

Kailson interjected, “Our Lord Kailun is the bane of the Temple of the Celestial God. None of his plans against them have ever failed. As his captive, I think I’m qualified to speak on this matter.”

The old Dragon King turned to Kailson, who was hidden under his mage robes, speechless. Was this something to brag about?

He could hear the pride in Kailson’s voice, as if being defeated by Kailun was something to celebrate.

“Wait, your name is Kailson, right?”

Bolton’s eyes widened as he realized something crucial from Kailson’s words.

“Ah? I’m not Kailson. I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Kailson casually denied it, seemingly unconcerned about his identity being exposed.

Kailun had told them to try their best to conceal their identities. It didn’t matter if the old Dragon King knew, but it was crucial to keep it a secret from outsiders.

Bolton: “…”

He felt a sense of bewilderment, as if his brain had short-circuited.

According to the information he had gathered, Kailson was clearly an eighth-rank mage. But now, he was ninth-rank. This was completely abnormal.

Every eighth-rank mage advancing to the ninth rank was a world-shaking event. He didn’t believe Kailson could have advanced silently.

Moreover, Philip, one of the other three, seemed very young, only about thirty-four years old. It was inconceivable for someone so young to reach the ninth rank.

Therefore, Bolton concluded that the key to this mystery lay with Kailun.

“Sigh, I’m getting old. I really can’t keep up with the times. I even feel lucky that I survived last time.”

Bolton sighed and looked at the Werewolf King approaching from the foot of the hill. “When Old Wolf gets here, try to speak as little as possible. Leave him to me.”

Roden nodded and pulled his hood down, covering his face.

“You’re not very loyal, Old Dragon. You didn’t even tell me about the reinforcements. Wouldn’t it seem like we’re neglecting our guests if word of this got out? By the way, where are these friends from?”

The Werewolf King soon reached the top of the hill and patted Bolton’s shoulder like an old friend.

Bolton shrugged his shoulder off and introduced them. “These three are reinforcements from the White Jade Alliance. They will participate in the upcoming attack.”

The Werewolf King’s eyes lit up. “Excellent! It seems that the world has suffered under the tyranny of the Temple of the Celestial God for too long… I heard that another group from the White Jade Alliance is planning to support the Temple of the Celestial God. I wonder if it’s true?”

Bolton’s expression changed slightly. He hadn’t heard about this.

He turned to the Werewolf King with a serious expression. “How did you know that? I believe the allies of the White Jade Alliance wouldn’t betray us. Your words make me think that someone is trying to sow discord. Old Wolf, tell me the source of your information. Don’t make me doubt you.”

Bolton went on the offensive, questioning the Werewolf King first.

Faced with Bolton’s questioning, the Werewolf King calmly explained, “The source of my information is a secret, Old Dragon. Don’t think you can use this opportunity to pry into my affairs. As for your guess, it’s indeed possible. That’s why I’m here to ask our friends from the White Jade Alliance.”

“If the Abyss doesn’t welcome our support, we’ll leave now, without delay. But let me make one thing clear: We represent the White Jade Alliance, over a hundred large forces. So think carefully.”

Roden’s half-truths carried a hint of threat. His attitude made the Werewolf King uncertain.

The Werewolf King waved his hands repeatedly. “No, no, no. I only asked out of caution. As the current leader of the Abyss, I apologize. If there’s anything we haven’t done well, please let us know.”

“No need. We’re just acting in our own interests. The Temple of the Celestial God cannot be allowed to grow stronger. We’re partners.”

Roden casually clarified their relationship, further dispelling the Werewolf King’s doubts.

For the next few minutes, they exchanged pleasantries. The Werewolf King soon excused himself, saying that he had important matters to attend to.

After leaving the hill, the Werewolf King went to a corner and sent out a magic letter.

The situation in the Abyss had spiraled out of his control, and unexpected changes had occurred on the Pope’s side as well.

He felt like he was trapped in a vicious cycle, unable to escape.

The Werewolf King shook his head and sighed, looking at the declining Abyss. As a clan chief, he had to consider the interests of his own people.

The interests of his clan outweighed the interests of the Abyss. Although his conscience was troubled, he had to make a choice.

The Abyss had reached a dead end.

……

“I’m exhausted. I feel like my bones are falling apart. Afra is truly wild.”

Kailun didn’t wake up until almost 10:00 AM. According to the real-time flow, he had slept for a long time.

This was the consequence of having low constitution. He couldn’t even defeat Afra. It was truly embarrassing.

“Did Master really lose to Afra?”

The sudden sweet voice startled the groggy Kailun. He turned his head and saw Carol standing by the bed.

Today, Carol was wearing a revealing maid outfit. She bent forward, exposing her fair bosom. Little Carol had grown up. Kailun looked at her with pride.

He reached out his weak arm and caressed Carol’s smooth cheek. “You could have left these trivial matters to the new elf sisters. You don’t have to revolve around me all the time.”

“No, you misunderstood. Serving you is my reward.”

Carol helped Kailun sit up, blushing as she glanced at him. “Let me help you get dressed.”

Kailun didn’t mind Carol’s gaze. He spread his arms out. “What a cunning excuse. Who did you learn that from? People who don’t know might think I’m taking advantage of an innocent young girl.”

“Didn’t you seduce me?” Carol asked with a smile as she helped Kailun put on his clothes.

Kailun: “… I can’t argue with that. I’m lying down. Do as you please.”

“I feel like you’re different today. Is it because you’ve become weaker and are giving up on yourself?”

Carol fastened his belt and smoothed out the wrinkles on his clothes.

“Probably not. I just feel like I’ve let go of something and become more relaxed. By the way, Carol, your birthday is coming up soon, right?” Kailun suddenly asked.

“You know?” Carol looked surprised.

Kailun flicked her forehead. “Did you forget that I can divine? I can’t hide such a small matter from me.”

“Liar, you’re lying.”

Carol glared at Kailun and stuck her tongue out at him. Facing such a weak Kailun, she couldn’t help but want to push him down.

She was sixth-rank, and Kailun was only third-rank. She could push him down with just one finger.

“I am lying, but you’re also thinking dangerous thoughts. Your eyes are almost overflowing with hearts.”

Kailun lifted Carol’s chin, making her look into his eyes.

He had expected Carol to shyly avert her gaze, but to his surprise, she not only didn’t look away but also pushed him, sending him falling onto the bed.

“Thump~”

Carol fell on top of him. “But I really can’t help myself. I’ve been waiting for over a month. You’re a demon who plays with girls’ hearts. You not only stole my soul but also my heart.”

Kailun propped himself up, amused. “It seems that my Carol has really grown up. Such direct and decisive actions are quite fitting for a final boss.”

“What does ‘final boss’ mean?” Carol tilted her head.

Kailun: “Let me think about how to describe it. It’s probably a bad guy like me, the culprit behind the destruction of the world.”

“Then will you defeat me?” Carol asked.

This time, Kailun couldn’t help but laugh. “You’re such a fool. You should be asking how many cities I will conquer and how many people I will kill. If you really do destroy the world in the end, I deserve at least half the credit. I’ll definitely be the first one to be targeted. From the perspective of fate, we’re already inextricably linked.”

Carol looked at Kailun seriously. She could sense that he wasn’t lying.

Her master, it seemed, was truly a bad guy to the core.

Carol sincerely felt that this wasn’t a bad thing.

“By the way, Fox sent a message this morning saying that they’re about to finish copying the magic circles. They should arrive at the manor this afternoon. Also, Isabella is back. She’s waiting for you in the courtyard. She brought you a gift this time.”

Carol pulled Kailun out of bed. Today wasn’t the best time to “push him down.”

Hearing that Fox was coming back, Kailun’s eyes lit up. “Great! After Fox returns, I can get my revenge on Afra. But why did Isabella arrive just today? Did she encounter any trouble along the way?”

Carol smoothed out the wrinkles on Kailun’s clothes again. “She did encounter some trouble. She said she divined the presence of high-rank spies from the Temple of the Celestial God along the way, so they took a detour to ensure their safety. That’s why they were delayed.”

“I didn’t expect the Temple of the Celestial God to dare to reach out their hands. It seems they’re very concerned about our movements. I hope this war with the Abyss will give them a surprise.”

Kailun put on his shoes and wrapped his arm around Carol’s shoulders. “Let’s go. Let’s go see Isabella first. Have you finished reading the scroll I gave you?”

Carol took out the scroll she had finished reading from her pocket. “It’s ingenious, but not too profound. I’ll be able to cast it once I reach the seventh rank. Maybe I can give you a surprise then.”

“I’ll be waiting for your surprise.”

Kailun smiled and took the scroll from Carol. The surprise he had prepared for her was in the wardrobe.

Putting the scroll into his sleeve, Kailun continued to walk towards the courtyard with his arm around Carol’s shoulders. Their relationship was more like that of friends than master and servant. The title “Master” was just a playful term of endearment.

Kailun had never treated Carol as a servant, but Carol always had the desire to “overthrow” him.

They walked down the corridor, down the stairs, turned left and right, and after two or three minutes, arrived at the courtyard.

Apart from a group of dancers practicing, only Isabella was in the courtyard.

Seeing them arrive, Isabella excitedly stood up from the stone bench, holding a black box bigger than her head.

“Long time no see, Lord Kailun.” Isabella greeted him first.

“Long time no see. I heard you encountered some trouble along the way. Did you get scared?” Kailun walked up to Isabella with Carol.

Isabella shook her head, her gray hair falling to her knees. “It was just a minor inconvenience. Don’t worry about it. I prepared a gift for you when I went back. Please accept it.”

She raised the box in her hands and presented it to Kailun.

It was an ancient box, covered with old patterns, emitting a faint earthy scent. He felt like it had been dug out of the ground recently.

“Thank you for your generosity. I accept your gift.”

Kailun didn’t refuse. He took the box from Isabella and opened it in front of her. Inside were a few ancient books.

Isabella explained, “These are three ninth-rank magic books and two ninth-rank knight swordsmanship manuals. I hope you like them.”

Kailun handed the box to Carol, took a step closer, and touched Isabella’s smooth forehead. “Are you feeling feverish? Why would you give me such valuable things?”

“I’m not feverish!”

Isabella slapped Kailun’s hand away. “Didn’t you say you would show me the parchment scroll if I brought you five ninth-rank magic books? Although I couldn’t find five, I… borrowed two equally valuable knight swordsmanship manuals.”

She had taken these knight swordsmanship manuals from the Loya Ball’s treasury. Because of her status, no one questioned her.

The other three books she had dug out from the ground. In a way, they were her buried dowry.

Other families buried wine. Her family buried magic books. It was a bit abstract.

“So it’s not a gift? I was happy for nothing. But since you’re so sincere, I’ll not only share the parchment scroll with you but also let you see some interesting magic circles. I wonder what your expression will be when you see those lost Fate Magic spells.”

Kailun ruffled Isabella’s hair. This little girl, who barely reached his chest, looked like a child.

Chapter 180: The Tables Turn

“Click!”

Kailun heard the warehouse door open.

He was hiding in a crate in a corner. Although it was concealed, he didn’t feel very safe.

Without the boost from most of his attributes, his stealth abilities had significantly decreased. He could only take the opposite approach and lower his already limited attributes to almost nothing.

His constitution rapidly decreased, his body temperature dropped, and Kailun minimized his presence to the extreme.

He was like a tiger stranded in a plain, vulnerable to even Afra.

Of course, it was just a possibility. Although Kailun currently only had third-rank attributes, he could allocate them all to constitution.

Excluding his boost, Afra’s own attributes were close to the seventh rank, far surpassing Kailun’s. However, her biggest weakness was her sensitivity. Her combat effectiveness would be greatly reduced when facing him.

So overall, it was probably a 30/70 split, with Kailun at 30 and Afra at 70.

But the biggest problem was that Afra might not fight him one-on-one. It was more likely to be a group attack.

“Clack, clack, clack!”

Light footsteps echoed in the warehouse. Judging from the sound, it was probably Afra or Ella.

If it was the latter, Kailun wouldn’t be afraid. He could even easily counterattack Ella, who wouldn’t dare to resist him.

But if it was the former, he could only surrender.

Kailun cautiously lifted the lid of the crate, peeking through the gap to observe.

The dimly lit warehouse, with only a small window, was bathed in faint moonlight. The person who entered didn’t turn on the lights. This was unusual. Kailun suspected that he had already been discovered.

He followed the sound of footsteps and saw a slender figure.

He had a bad feeling. It was probably Afra…

Kailun silently closed the lid and huddled in the corner of the crate, holding his magic book.

“Come out. I know you’re hiding in this warehouse. I’ve sent Chrissy and the others away. You don’t have to worry about being disturbed.”

Afra’s pleasant voice rang out. Kailun could hear the excitement and amusement in her tone.

She chuckled, walking around the warehouse. “Perhaps this is karma. You’ve been bullying me these past few nights, making me look like a weak knight in front of Phils and the others. How should I punish you, my naughty little brother?”

Afra sniffed the air in the warehouse. Logically, the air should have been stuffy after being closed for so long, but the air she breathed was fresh.

This indicated that the warehouse door had been opened recently.

Most importantly, she smelled Kailun’s scent. No matter how well he hid, he couldn’t conceal his “evil” aura.

“Are you really not coming out? I’ll give you two minutes. If you don’t come out, I’ll call Phils and Chrissy over. Didn’t you say in front of me the other night that they were worth dozens of me? Can you defeat both Chrissy and Phils in your current state?”

Afra took out her communication device, casually wrote a magic letter, and attached it to the device without sending it immediately.

Kailun: “…”

He felt helpless. This was probably karma.

Kailun sighed, pushed open the lid of the crate, and stood up. “I’m here. I’m sorry for what I did.”

“So you’ll continue to do this next time, right?” Afra turned on the lights and sent the magic letter.

“Oh, don’t worry. The magic letter I just sent was written randomly. It wasn’t sent to Chrissy or Phils, so you don’t have to be afraid.”

She explained, seeing Kailun frowning.

But judging from her eyes, it was clearly a lie.

Kailun shook his head. “That’s not what I’m worried about. I’m worried about why you look so ‘punchable’ right now. My hands are itching to pin you down and ‘grind’ against you.”

Afra: “Who do you think I learned it from?”

Kailun: “Uh… I don’t know.”

Seeing Kailun’s awkward smile, Afra put the communication device on a nearby shelf. She walked gracefully towards Kailun, pushed him towards the crate, and made him sit down.

She knew that Kailun had trump cards, so she wouldn’t push him too hard. The last time she did, she was the one who was counterattacked, leaving behind a “three-minute” record.

“Tap!”

Afra raised one foot and stepped onto the crate, her long leg, clad in black pantyhose, coming into Kailun’s view.

Under the light, Kailun could almost see her fair skin through the stockings. A faint fragrance drifted into his nostrils.

She looked down at him, her waist and abdomen, covered by a thin skirt, facing him.

If he looked closely, Kailun could even see the outline of her belly button through the thin fabric. It was a different kind of temptation.

“You don’t know? Then prepare to be punished!” Afra said, her face flushed.

As a well-educated knight, she rarely used vulgar language.

“As an older sister, you should be more considerate of your younger brother. Besides caring for him, you should also take the initiative to squat down and say in a gentle voice, ‘Do you want me to help you with that?’”

Kailun pressed Afra’s shoulders with both hands, refusing to back down.

How could he let the dominant image he had carefully cultivated be ruined by an accident? If he gave in today and lost the initiative, he would be ridden by Afra tomorrow, and Chrissy the day after.

Then the tables would turn, and it would be unclear who the “knight” was.

“What kind of books have you been reading? They’re too obscene!” Afra’s face turned even redder.

She grabbed Kailun’s wrists, pinning him in place. “Your thoughts are too dirty. As your older sister, I have a duty to correct you. So…”

Kailun: “So?”

“So… lick…” Afra stammered, her gaze drifting towards her thigh.

For some reason, a bold idea had suddenly taken root in her mind.

She wanted to tease Kailun and make him relax with this “dominant” approach, bringing her own pleasure.

Kailun glanced at the thigh beside his face and then at Afra’s amusing expression. “I didn’t expect Sister Afra to be so adventurous. I underestimated you. But considering how cute you are, I’ll agree. Sit down.”

“Ah? Oh~”

His unexpected answer left Afra speechless. She nodded dazedly and sat down on a large crate opposite Kailun, then placed her foot on his leg and looked at him expectantly.

“Rip!”

Kailun didn’t hesitate. He cupped Afra’s foot in his hand and effortlessly tore her stocking to shreds.

Her delicate toes were now exposed, their pinkish hue making them look somewhat appetizing.

Although Kailun didn’t mind intimate contact, he didn’t want to proceed as Afra had imagined.

So, under her expectant gaze, he gently tickled the sole of her foot with his finger.

“Hmph~”

Afra tried to pull her foot back, but Kailun held it firmly.

Her sensitive foot became even more sensitive under his teasing. She couldn’t muster any strength and could only moan weakly, “Let go of me! I take back what I said!”

“That’s not possible. Sister Afra just asked me to lick your foot, but I’m only using my hands now. You can’t even handle a tickle. Wouldn’t you completely break down if I used my mouth?”

Seeing Afra squirming, Kailun smiled with satisfaction.

“You…”

Afra’s eyes welled up with tears. Her sensitivity made her feel like she was dying.

However, she wasn’t without means of resistance. Afra tremblingly took out a small bottle from her pocket.

This was a potion she had specially asked Hilna to make. Its purpose was to reduce her sensitivity.

She had Kailun to thank for this. If he hadn’t corrected the errors in the potionology book, Hilna wouldn’t have been able to develop it so quickly.

“What are you drinking?”

Kailun frowned. The small bottle in Afra’s hand emitted a strange smell that he vaguely remembered.

“Guess~”

The effect of the special potion was immediate. Afra felt her sensitivity decrease significantly.

The only downside was that the current effect only lasted for an hour and a half, barely increasing her “limit.”

Seeing Afra’s expression return to normal, Kailun tickled her foot again, unwilling to give up.

As expected, it had little effect.

“My pants are moving. I’m not playing anymore. Goodbye, Sister Afra.”

Kailun gave Afra an innocent smile. With lightning speed, he unbuckled his belt and tied Afra’s legs together.

It only took him two seconds. He hoped to stall her for a few seconds.

However, Afra reacted quickly. She forcefully tore off the belt from her legs and jumped in front of Kailun.

“My foolish little brother, where do you think you’re going?”

Afra calmly took off her own belt and tied Kailun’s hands together. He didn’t resist.

“It’s just a temporary setback.”

Kailun smiled nonchalantly. He still didn’t want to withdraw the attribute points he had given away.

Recklessly withdrawing the attributes he had bestowed upon Roden, Kailson, and Philip would put them in danger. Suddenly withdrawing Fox’s mental power would cause mental damage to her, who was focused on copying the magic circles.

After weighing the pros and cons, Kailun decided to accept his fate. He would just fulfill his cute sister’s wish. A bit of “give and take” would make life more fulfilling and long-lasting.

He was willing to be very tolerant of Afra, but he had clearly forgotten that she had reinforcements.

“Sister Afra, is there something you need from us?”

Just as Kailun was comforting himself, Phils and Chrissy pushed open the warehouse door.

“See this tied-up Kailun? Charge at him, pin him down, and become his knights.”

Afra stood aside, letting Chrissy and Phils wear him down first. She wasn’t confident in defeating Kailun on her own.

“Ah? That’s not very appropriate, is it? Hehe…”

Chrissy said she was embarrassed, but she still ran over and started undressing Kailun.

“Although this looks exciting, can we switch the person being tied up? I can provide my own whip.”

Phils raised her hand, suggesting that it was a waste to tie up Kailun. It would be better to tie her up instead.

Afra glanced at Phils helplessly. It was a mistake to call this pervert over.

“Let me just say this: You’re playing with fire.”

Kailun’s facial muscles twitched. He had been outsmarted.

One Afra was enough. With Chrissy and Phils added to the mix, it would be truly dangerous.

“Don’t worry, Master. I’ll be gentle with you. You can’t possibly last less than ten hours, right?”

Chrissy licked Kailun’s lips. She couldn’t wait to “bully” him.

Seeing his “weak” side made her like him even more.

A weak, soft Kailun who could be easily pushed down… Hehehe~

[Your attractiveness to Chrissy has increased. Goodwill +1, Total Goodwill 99]

Kailun looked at the Saint in front of him speechlessly. Was this an unexpected surprise?

But compared to that, he was more worried about losing all his dignity.

Let alone ten hours, he couldn’t even last an hour now… It was best not to mention it.

To avoid the worst-case scenario, Kailun immediately lowered his mental power to 1. With a wave of dizziness, he fainted, landing on Chrissy’s soft chest.

Before losing consciousness, he restored his mental power attribute to normal.

Kailun, who had always been strong-willed, chose neither to withdraw his attributes and endanger Roden and the others, nor to endure the humiliation. He simply fainted.

“Master? Pervert Master? Stupid Kailun?”

Chrissy tried to wake Kailun up, but to no avail.

Afra, who was standing aside, walked over and took Kailun from Chrissy’s arms. “You two go back and rest. I’ll take care of Kailun. I didn’t expect him to be so stubborn. Why can’t he just release some stress in front of me? He had to exhaust himself like this.”

She felt that she shouldn’t have called Phils and Chrissy over. Kailun was a proud person at heart. He didn’t want to show weakness in front of others.

Her wishful thinking had led to a misjudgment.

Afra looked at his youthful face and sighed. “I’m your nominal older sister. Why can’t you act spoiled and complain to me sometimes? I’m such a fool. It’s my fault this time. I’m sorry. I should have been more understanding…”

Afra felt like a failure. Not only had she failed to help Kailun in the grand scheme of things, but she had also failed to share his burdens in life.

She had occasionally wanted to be a supportive older sister, listening to his fatigue, but he always tried to maintain his facade.

She had wanted to take advantage of this opportunity to play with him, to make him rely on her more, but it had backfired.

She felt a sadness she couldn’t describe.

“Sigh, what a missed opportunity.” Chrissy looked at Kailun regretfully.

“Yes, such a pity.” Phils nodded in agreement.

“Go back and rest. I’ll take care of Kailun tonight. Tell Vivian and the others that they don’t have to look for him.”

Afra left the warehouse, carrying Kailun in her arms.

She carried him back to the bedroom and gently laid him on the bed.

Burying her face in his chest, Afra’s emotions overflowed. A sense of helplessness washed over her, and she remembered the despairing dream.

Just as her vision blurred, a large hand appeared on her head.

“Sister Afra is the weak one, always putting on a cold face and hiding everything in her heart. I want to see you laugh and cry in my arms. Don’t overthink things. I will never dislike you. I will always need you. The thing that satisfies me the most is waking up to see you lying beside me. Your exhaustion is my greatest happiness. I like to bully you. I want to make up for all the times I missed before…”

Kailun felt that he should show Afra a wider world, make her express more emotions.

The Afra in his previous life rarely smiled or cried. She always frowned, looking lost and sorrowful, carrying a sense of regret until her last breath.

This regret was also his regret.

Afra was a ray of light in the darkness. She had given him redemption.

Hearing Kailun’s words, Afra looked up, tears streaming down her face. She didn’t know what expression to make. After a moment’s thought, she managed a shaky smile.

Her eyes were filled with tears, sparkling under Kailun’s intense gaze.

“So, to make it up to you, you’re my exclusive knight tonight.”

Kailun held Afra’s hand, their fingers intertwined.

It was no big deal to pamper his “wife” and fulfill her wish occasionally, especially since no one was watching.

His affectionate words ignited Afra’s body. She got out of bed, tore off Kailun’s remaining clothes, and straddled him.

“Idiot, bad guy, demon, siscon… childish brat.”

Afra muttered a string of insults, venting her emotions.

With her vigorous movements, her alluring body swayed on top of Kailun, her ample bosom bouncing rhythmically, like endless waves.

The female knight wielded her “sword” with passion, putting all her emotions into every thrust, not stopping even when she was drenched in sweat.

Her silver hair danced behind her, concealing her beautiful back. Her well-trained body burst with power, her “sword” whistling through the air.

Tears of satisfaction welled up in her eyes again, sliding down her fair skin, leaving sticky trails on the bed sheet.

Their connected hearts could no longer be separated, their intertwined fingers tightening their grasp.

Overwhelmed by her strength, Kailun was no match for the potion-enhanced Afra. This “duel” ended with Afra’s victory.

What Kailun didn’t know was that Afra had secretly placed a recording stone on the bedside table, capturing everything.

To her, this was not only Kailun’s “weakness” but also a precious memory.

She would turn this mung bean-sized recording stone into a necklace and wear it around her neck for the rest of her life, never taking it off.

She wanted to record more, record every lie Kailun told, every kiss he gave, every laugh he shared…

Chapter 179: Shifting Tides

The exhausted Afra lay fast asleep on the bed. Kailun covered her with a blanket and left the room.

He had given up hope on this sensitive knight sister. Calling her a “weakling” might be more appropriate.

With the massive attribute boost, she was far stronger than an average ninth-rank mage, but her limit was only one hour.

If she was in a worse condition, she might not even last an hour.

He had read books all night and only slept for two hours, which was four hours according to the real-time flow.

This amount of rest was enough for him to recover. It wouldn’t affect his mental state.

He had already read most of the ten magic books Bella had given him and had learned nine ninth-rank spells.

An average ninth-rank mage would only master three ninth-rank spells in their lifetime: one for offense, one for defense, and one for escape. Learning each additional spell required a huge investment of time and resources.

He could learn so many ninth-rank spells in such a short time thanks to his immense mental power. It was no exaggeration to say that, with his extreme attribute allocation, his mental power was ten times greater than that of an average ninth-rank mage.

With a tenfold increase in processing power, his learning efficiency was far beyond ten times.

Leaving the small building, Kailun went to a training ground in the manor. This was where knights and mages trained, most of them members of the Silver Moon Knights.

Afra was responsible for training Eve, the young knight, but she couldn’t get out of bed, so this task fell on Kailun’s shoulders.

Entering the vast training ground, the knights he passed bowed to him.

Thanks to their hard work, Kailun could smell a faint scent of sweat.

He didn’t dislike it. The sight of them wielding their swords and sweating was quite beautiful.

Kailun nodded to them, said a few words of encouragement, and then went to the innermost single-person training ground.

There, he saw Eve practicing her swordsmanship. Clad in silver armor, she looked more determined and resilient.

“Whoosh!”

Kailun took an ordinary dagger from a nearby weapon rack and swung it casually. The sound of the dagger cutting through the air reached his ears.

He nodded with satisfaction and lowered his attributes to the same level as Eve’s.

“Eve, have you ever heard of a ‘righteous backstab’?”

Kailun chuckled, covering his face with a black cloth. He held the dagger and aimed for Eve’s kidneys.

“Who’s there?!”

Hearing the sound of wind behind her, Eve turned around, swinging her sword. Kailun’s intense killing intent made her feel like she was falling into an ice cellar, as if she would be stabbed through at any moment.

She was a little scared, but Eve chose to face it head-on.

In such a short time, she couldn’t figure out why she was being attacked in Kailun’s manor. Her sword swung towards the masked man’s head without hesitation.

“Clang!”

The gleaming dagger clashed with the longsword, sparks flying from the impact.

Failing to land a blow, Eve swung her sword again, aiming for Kailun’s neck. Unfortunately, her lack of combat experience made her swing a bit too wide.

Kailun, masked, seized the opportunity. He took half a step forward, closing the distance between them, and slashed at Eve’s neck with his dagger.

At the critical moment, Eve held her sword horizontally, blocking her neck, and bent backward, creating space.

It was a good response, but her opponent was Kailun.

Although this attack was unsuccessful, Kailun was no ordinary person. He changed his target, avoiding the longsword, and aimed his dagger at Eve’s chest.

Because Eve was currently bending backward, the dagger could draw a perfect arc across her chest without injuring her.

“Rip~”

Inevitably, Eve’s clothes and light armor were torn. The taut fabric ripped apart, revealing her snow-white skin, like a blooming white lotus.

Her cute belly button glinted in the sunlight, and the curves of her abdomen seemed to hold unspeakable secrets.

Kailun, who had the same strength as Eve, shouldn’t have been able to cut through her armor, but the cunning Kailun shamelessly increased his strength when the dagger touched her armor.

Looking at the expanse of white skin, Kailun “regretfully” withdrew his dagger.

“Die!”

Realizing that her upper body had been exposed, Eve shouted angrily, swinging her sword.

She swore that she would kill this person, even if it meant her own death.

However, as she raised her head, Eve froze. The assassin in front of her had removed the black cloth from his face.

“Ah! Mas… Master?!”

Seeing the familiar face, Eve’s sword stopped, unable to strike.

His face, his figure, his aura, everything indicated that this person was Kailun.

She addressed him as “Master” because she felt it was more intimate than “Lord Kailun” or “Master Kailun.”

Perhaps because she was too shocked, Eve didn’t even cover her chest with her hands.

“Not bad. It seems Afra has taught you well. Then I, as an outsider, won’t interfere anymore.” Kailun patted Eve’s head.

Kailun had some knowledge of the way of the knight, but it wasn’t as profound as Afra’s, who had a natural talent for it.

The girl in front of him was youthful and slender. Her exposed abdomen revealed alluring abs, the result of her regular training.

Her ample bosom wasn’t exaggerated, just the right size to be cupped in one hand. Her roundness was smooth, like water droplets. The torn clothes and armor partially concealed her most important “assets.”

“Sorry, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have pointed my sword at you.”

Eve quickly sheathed her sword and waved her hands, her face flushed.

“It’s not your fault. I was the one who insisted on testing your training progress. It exceeded my expectations. You’re truly talented.”

Kailun chuckled and messed up Eve’s hair.

Eve’s potential might not match Afra’s, but she was still considered outstanding in the entire kingdom. Such talent was worth his time and resources to cultivate.

“Eve, I heard some fighting just now. Did something happen… Ah! Lord Kailun!”

A female voice came from the entrance. A female knight in her thirties gasped upon seeing Kailun.

Hearing her voice, Eve quickly hid in Kailun’s arms, using his body to cover her exposed upper body.

She couldn’t let others see this. It would be misunderstood.

Her bare body rubbed against Kailun’s chest, her heart pounding.

“Nothing happened. It was just a misunderstanding. I’ll explain it to you later.” Eve said loudly, her flushed face buried in Kailun’s arms.

“I understand. Greetings, Lord Kailun. Farewell, Lord Kailun.” The female knight quickly ran away, following Eve’s words.

To her, Kailun was a high and mighty ruler, an invincible belief. Being too close to him made her uneasy.

Not only her, but in the eyes of the entire Silver Moon Knights, Kailun was an invincible legend.

“She’s gone. You can look up now.”

After the female knight left, Kailun pushed Eve’s shoulders, making her stand in front of him.

Eve hesitated for a long time, but in the end, she didn’t cover her chest with her arms. Not only that, but she also puffed out her chest, looking at Kailun with anticipation.

“You’re not shy at all, are you?” Kailun flicked her forehead.

Eve looked at Kailun with the fervent gaze of a fanatic. “From that day on, I became your possession. You can do anything to me, give me any orders. My body, my mind, my will, all belong to you.”

Her passionate declaration made Kailun speechless.

He had to admit that he didn’t value Eve as much as Vivian and the others, not even as much as Rose.

But Eve’s current attitude made him reconsider.

It seemed that mental contamination was truly a wicked talent. Eve had only been exposed to it twice, and she had already become like this.

Of course, Kailun knew that the effect was so good because she already had feelings for him. After all, he had “tricked” these three young knights back from the Knight Academy with a high price.

“Good attitude. Keep it up.”

Kailun leaned down and kissed her soft red lips. One arm wrapped around her waist to prevent her from falling, and the other hand found its way to her “assets.”

A delicious little knight, a well-trained and curvy girl, a loyal fanatic worth nurturing… This was Kailun’s new impression of Eve.

Kailun kissed her for almost ten minutes before releasing the blushing Eve. When he withdrew his hand, there was a faint red mark on her chest, a sign of his excessive force.

Fortunately, Eve, as a knight, had a strong physique. It would disappear in less than ten minutes.

He took off his coat and draped it over Eve’s shoulders. “No training today. Come back to the small building with me and change your clothes. Then I’ll take you out for a walk and some rest.”

“Okay~”

Eve nodded dazedly, feeling immense happiness, her chest burning with excitement.

Five minutes later, Kailun returned to the small building with the absent-minded Eve and asked Carol to help the young knight change into some nice clothes.

Then he called Bella and took them both for a walk in the Royal City. In a good mood, he “bumped into” a few spies from the Temple of the Celestial God and burned them to ashes on the street.

After dealing with the spies, Kailun secretly went to Chrissy’s small building and exchanged information with her. She sat on his lap, constantly teasing him, but to no avail.

Kailun said he would come over tonight and leave the door unlocked for her.

He also asked Chrissy and Phils to put on a good show in front of Afra, which was truly a psychological attack.

As evening approached, Kailun received a message from Shirley.

She said that the copying work had encountered unexpected difficulties. There was a magic circle that was beyond the norm, and no matter how hard Fox tried, she couldn’t copy it.

Therefore, Shirley asked Kailun for help, hoping that he could increase Fox’s mental power.

Having experienced it herself, Shirley knew that Kailun had this ability, so she made this request.

Kailun didn’t hesitate. He increased Fox’s mental power to above the ninth rank.

The price of doing so was that Kailun’s attributes decreased again. Now, he only had two ninth-rank attribute points left. In two days, he would have to give the last of his attribute points to Kailson and Philip, allowing them to disguise themselves as ninth-rank mages from the White Jade Alliance, along with Roden.

“I have to find a way to sleep separately from Afra in two days.”

Kailun, sitting in his study, looked at the magic letter in his hand and fell into deep thought.

He had bullied Afra quite a bit these past few days. When his strength returned to normal, he might be the one being suppressed.

Even temporarily withdrawing the attribute points he had given her wouldn’t work, because Afra’s own attributes surpassed his unboosted state.

“Forget it. I’ll just bully her again tonight. If she’s scared, she won’t bother me anymore.”

Kailun shook his head and stood up, taking two ninth-rank magic books from the bookshelf and holding them in his arms.

When he arrived at the bedroom, they were already waiting for him.

Tonight, besides Afra, there was Vivian and Winnie. The main force was Chrissy and Phils.

Afra’s eyes were filled with vengeful flames. Vivian looked excited, while Phils was apprehensive.

After the last whipping, Phils was both excited and scared. The dark and desolate environment brought her immense pleasure, but the fear of dying at any moment made her worry about whether she could continue to enjoy it.

When it came to being a pervert, Phils never disappointed.

Kailun glanced at them and smiled. “Can you guys help me tie up Sister Afra?”

Afra: “!!!”

She widened her beautiful eyes. She hadn’t expected Kailun to be so shameless.

If one day she gained the upper hand, she would definitely record Kailun’s “few minutes” and show it to everyone.

……

“It seems that everyone is ready. According to the Pope’s orders, we will go to the mines and stand guard with the two ninth-rank mages we’ve contacted. We will be the mysterious vice presidents of the Xiya Kingdom. Understand?”

At night, Charles gathered Paul and Koya to discuss their plan.

After discussing with the Pope, they had finalized their plan. Thanks to Paul’s efforts, their team had befriended two old ninth-rank mages.

Paul, a master of “green tea tactics,” had successfully charmed the two old men. The price he paid was being groped all over at the banquet.

If it weren’t for the cooperation contract he had signed with Paul beforehand, Charles would have even thought that Paul would use these old men to rebel.

“Pretending to be from the Xiya Kingdom and helping the Temple of the Celestial God? That doesn’t make sense. Our hatred for the Xiya Kingdom is well known.”

Koya shook her head, expressing her doubts.

Charles slapped the table. “It doesn’t matter if others believe it or not. We just need to do it. This way, we can also sabotage the relationship between the Xiya Kingdom and the Abyss. Didn’t Kailun send people to support the Abyss? We’ll use his name to support the Temple of the Celestial God, creating an image of him as a greedy wolf who wants to have his cake and eat it too.”

“I agree with this approach. I’m willing to do anything that can ruin Kailun’s reputation.” Paul also slapped the table.

“Alright, since Little Paul has no objections, neither do I.”

Koya sighed and sat back beside Paul.

She hadn’t killed Harry yet. It wasn’t the right time. She needed to create a perfect alibi, so she had to wait.

She looked at Paul and said in a longing tone, “After we win this war, let’s go back to the Temple of the Celestial God and get married, okay?”

Paul suppressed his disgust and said, “Okay…”

“Ugh…”

Charles shivered, his stomach churning, as if he had eaten too much expired dog food.

He stood up with a dark expression. “That’s it for now. I’ve conveyed the Pope’s orders to you. Go back and prepare tonight. We’ll set off for the mines tomorrow morning and try to reach our destination within two days. This battle might change the world order, so don’t be careless. And remember, everything is confidential. Paul, when you contact those two old men, don’t reveal any important information.”

In fact, he had more important information that he hadn’t told Koya and Paul. The Pope had mentioned in her magic letter that this battle involved not only Kailun but also the Empress, urging him to be extremely careful.

He felt that the situation was becoming increasingly complex, beyond his grasp.

Charles sighed and left the room.

“That nuisance is gone. Let’s go back to our room and rest.”

As soon as Charles left, Koya grabbed Paul’s arm, an unpleasant smile on her aged face.

“No, no, no. We’re leaving tomorrow. I need to rest. Harry is waiting for me to contact him.”

Paul shook off Koya’s hand and fled in a panic.

His strength was far inferior to that of Koya, a veteran ninth-rank mage. In a one-on-one situation, he could only surrender.

However, he couldn’t let Koya know about his “impotence.” Otherwise, she might tear him apart.

“Paul!”

Koya shouted angrily, but Paul didn’t stop.

Watching his retreating figure, Koya became even more furious.

She couldn’t help but want to tear Harry apart. Every time she heard his name from Paul, she would fly into a rage.

“Calm down! Calm down! I can have someone kill Harry during the mission. No one will find out…”

Koya took a few deep breaths, forcing herself to calm down.

Before that, she had to find a way to complete the Pope’s task and clear Paul’s name, allowing him to successfully join the Temple of the Celestial God.

……

Two days passed in a flash. Fox was stuck with the troublesome magic circle. Even with the boost of her immense mental power, she couldn’t quickly break through it.

Roden and his two companions successfully arrived in the Abyss and met with the old Dragon King, pretending to be from the White Jade Alliance.

Charles, Koya, and Paul, along with the two newly recruited old men, went to the mines and joined forces with the people from the Temple of the Celestial God.

The Empress seemed to sense something and wanted to send more reinforcements, but someone suddenly reported that Kailun had repatriated a large number of miners, about ten thousand, and they were all on their way back.

This sudden change made her cautious, and she chose to wait and see.

At this point, various forces had amassed a large number of troops around the second mine. Combined, they might be strong enough to conquer the entire world.

That same day, the new clothes Kailun had ordered for Carol were finished.

However, he didn’t give them to her directly. It wasn’t the right time yet.

Don’t ask him why, because he currently only had third-rank attributes left and was hiding in a secluded warehouse.

Someone had leaked the information that he was currently in a “weak” state.

Of course, this was a “Schrödinger’s(Unknown unless seen directly) weak state.” If something happened, Kailun could instantly withdraw the attribute points he had given away.

However, considering the safety of Roden and the others, he wouldn’t do that under normal circumstances.

Therefore, Kailun could only spend the night studying in the warehouse, holding books in his arms. It was quite a miserable situation.

But he deserved it. He had bullied Afra many times these past few days, even making her cry once.

He had always been successful at being a “bad guy.”

“Have you searched this warehouse? Someone come and check it.”

Just then, Kailun heard Afra’s voice.

Kailun: “!!!”

Chapter 178: Rose Wants to Be a Slacker Queen

“Your Majesty, the capital’s magic circle can only hold for another ten hours. After that, we will lose our strongest defense.”

Late at night, a weary Rose met with an influential elderly female minister.

Seeing the worry on the minister’s face, Rose sighed helplessly. “I understand. You may leave.”

“As you command, Your Majesty.”

The minister bowed and was about to leave when she turned back and asked, “Your Majesty, does the Rose Kingdom still have a chance?”

Rose looked at the minister with determination. “Yes, the Rose Kingdom will not fall. Never.”

The minister didn’t reply. She bowed again and left the room.

Listening to the fading footsteps, Rose’s expression changed from determination to uncertainty.

In reality, she didn’t even know the answer herself. Caught between powerful nations, the Rose Kingdom had lost any hope of turning the tables.

She had contacted her grandfather Bruce but received no response.

She had also contacted her “real” grandfather, Kailson, but still, nothing changed.

Finally, she had even contacted Kailun, but he simply ignored her.

Rose looked down at the communication device Kailun had left her on the table, her heart sinking. Had all her efforts over the past ten years been in vain?

She had finally seized control of the Rose Kingdom, finally made it strong, finally…

The sudden rise of Kailun had disrupted all her plans. Now, he had reached a height she could only look up to.

“So, there’s no escape after all…”

Rose stroked the communication device with her slender fingers, her eyes filled with dejection.

Now, she could more or less guess that Kailun was behind all of this. Without his consent, no one would dare to cause trouble near the Xiya Kingdom at this time.

Thinking bigger, the person behind this “thief” army was Kailun himself.

The more she thought about it, the more likely it seemed. Kailun was a demon. He was capable of such a thing.

So what did he want?

Apart from herself, all she had left was the Rose Kingdom.

But she really didn’t want to give the Rose Kingdom to Kailun.

Rose bit her lip, picked up the communication device, and wrote a letter to Kailun, hoping he would see it when he woke up.

Rose: “I know I was wrong. Punish me, but please don’t torture me anymore. The people of the Rose Kingdom are innocent. They shouldn’t suffer because of me. As a token of my sincerity, I’m willing to be your escort for a year and give you the blueprints for the magic cannons. Please withdraw your troops. I beg you.”

She realized that her opponent wasn’t the thieves and the eighth-rank mage outside the city. Her true enemy was Kailun. Even if she used up all her trump cards and fought the “thieves” to the death, it wouldn’t change anything.

This was a completely unequal war. She was just a plaything in Kailun’s hands. Thinking of this, she lost all desire to fight.

However, to her surprise, she received a reply from Kailun within a minute.

Kailun: “What wrong did Queen Rose do? And why should I withdraw my troops? I haven’t attacked your Rose Kingdom. Don’t accuse me of something I didn’t do.”

Rose: “…”

She was dumbfounded by Kailun’s reply. His words further confirmed that he was the mastermind behind this.

But his refusal to acknowledge his actions made her feel even worse.

Helplessly, Rose could only try a roundabout approach. “I have a proposition. I wonder if Lord Kailun is interested?”

Kailun: “You have five minutes. If you exceed this time, there’s no need to talk. My Afra just woke up and tried to sneak attack me. I caught her red-handed. I need a few minutes to deal with this little fool.”

Rose didn’t know what Kailun meant by “deal with,” but she knew she had limited time.

“Please help me deal with the thieves outside the capital. As a reward, I will give you the blueprints for the magic cannons and willingly become your escort for a year. You can do whatever you want to me, but please spare the Rose Kingdom.”

To make the most of every second, Rose’s fingers flew across the communication device, sending a new magic letter to Kailun at lightning speed.

“Not enough. I said before that you’re not that valuable. Besides the conditions mentioned above, the Rose Kingdom must become a vassal state of the Xiya Kingdom, incorporated into our territory. I will recognize your position as queen and grant you a certain degree of freedom. In addition, I can also give you a gift that will expand your territory several times over. How about it? Interested?”

Looking at Kailun’s magic letter, Rose fell into deep thought.

Becoming a vassal state of another country was no different from being conquered, but the gift of expanding her territory was also very tempting.

Most importantly, did she really have a choice?

Rose: “Please elaborate.”

Kailun: “If you agree to my terms, I will send someone to you with a contract. Then I will arrange for five million gold coins worth of treasures to be transported to the Rose Kingdom. In addition, I will also send an army and an eighth-rank mage to assist you in acquiring the surrounding kingdoms, including the Madden and Kaz Kingdoms. Officially, these will all be your own decisions, nothing to do with the Xiya Kingdom or me. Understand?”

Now Rose understood completely. Kailun was asking her to be his pawn.

This couldn’t be hidden from everyone, but as long as Kailun controlled the narrative, it wouldn’t matter.

As she was pondering, she received another magic letter.

Kailun: “There’s no need to hesitate. Only those with value can earn respect. If you can complete this task perfectly, your territory might even surpass that of the Empress of the Temple of the Celestial God in the future.”

Rose knew it was just empty talk, but her heart couldn’t help but race.

It was better to live than to die. At least the Rose Kingdom wouldn’t be completely destroyed, right?

“I… I… agree.” Rose swallowed nervously, her chest heaving.

Kailun: “A wise choice. Someone familiar will come to you to sign the contract this morning. After completing my task, come to the Xiya Kingdom and be my escort. In a year, you will still be the renowned Queen Rose, and we won’t interfere with each other.”

Late at night, Rose’s heart couldn’t calm down.

This time, she had betrayed herself, betrayed the Rose Kingdom. But the expected pain didn’t come.

She burned the magic letter on the table, stood up, and looked out the window. The moon was bright, and the stars were sparse, casting a silvery glow on the earth.

After making her decision, she felt much more relaxed. The pressure Kailun had put on her was far greater than she had imagined.

When answering his question, she had wondered if being an escort would be easier than being a queen.

Years of perseverance had made her unable to abandon her obsession. She would complete the task Kailun had assigned, be his escort for a year, and then she could retire and be a queen with peace of mind.

Apart from having a secret “superior” that ordinary people didn’t know about, it seemed no different from before.

Thinking this way, Rose gradually felt sleepy. She went to her bedroom, lay down on the bed, and fell into a deep sleep.

At 7:00 AM, she woke up early.

After getting dressed and washing up, she summoned her ministers. The guards at the city gate reported that the thieves outside the city had retreated at 4:00 AM.

“They must have been scared away by Your Majesty’s aura.”

“I think Her Majesty must have found reinforcements. Could it be the Xiya Kingdom next door?”

“Incredible! Lord Kailun of the Xiya Kingdom is a god-like figure. Even the Temple of the Celestial God can’t touch him. If Her Majesty could secure such reinforcements, our Rose Kingdom might become invincible.”

“But what’s the price?”

“I think it must be beauty. Her Majesty is the most beautiful woman in our kingdom. What young man could resist such temptation? If I were a few decades younger… Forget it, forget it. I didn’t say anything.”

“…”

Rose, who had just arrived in the hall, heard the ministers whispering among themselves. Her face darkened. She wanted to throw them all in prison.

“Silence!”

Rose sat on her throne and shouted. She glared at the ministers below. “The retreat of the enemy last night is a confidential matter. You are forbidden to discuss it further. If I hear another word about it, you will be imprisoned.”

Her words silenced the ministers. After Duke Pit was dealt with, Queen Rose’s authority had reached its peak.

“Your Majesty! A large army has suddenly appeared outside the city, estimated to be around 30,000 strong. They are clad in light armor, armed with longswords, and have a powerful aura, like a well-trained knight army. Leading them is an eighth-rank mage named Bruce, who wishes to see you.”

Just as she had silenced the ministers, a soldier ran into the hall and reported the latest situation.

“Grandpa?!”

Hearing Bruce’s name, Queen Rose had a bad feeling. She quickly said, “Let him in. I want to see what this old man is up to.”

She almost gritted her teeth. She strongly suspected that the eighth-rank mage who had been attacking the capital’s magic circle was Bruce.

If that was true, everything made sense. Kailun was forcing her to make a choice.

Soon, a short old man teleported into the hall.

Bruce looked at Queen Rose on the throne and smiled. “My dear granddaughter, did Grandpa arrive in time? I’ve driven away those thieves.”

Rose’s face darkened. “Shouldn’t you change your clothes before saying that?”

His identical attire confirmed that Bruce was the eighth-rank thief from yesterday. This was a trap set for her.

It was laughable. There were no enemies. It was all Kailun.

“Hey, black clothes don’t get dirty easily. No need to change.”

Bruce waved his hand dismissively. The more he looked at Rose, the more satisfied he felt. After all, she was his ticket to the ninth rank.

Count Laurist had managed to build a connection with Kailun by selling his daughter. It was perfectly normal for him to sell his beautiful granddaughter.

“This is too much! You’ve disappointed me greatly!”

Rose was furious. She stood up from her throne and pointed at Bruce.

“Don’t get ahead of yourself. Sign the contract first, then you can scold me all you want.”

Bruce smiled nonchalantly and took out a contract scroll from his sleeve, tossing it to Rose.

The cylindrical scroll flew across the hall and landed in Rose’s hand. She opened it with a grim expression. The terms were almost identical to what Kailun had said last night.

At the bottom of the scroll, she saw Kailun’s mark. The demonic aura sent a chill down her spine.

She hated Kailun the most!

[Queen Rose’s hatred for you has deepened. Goodwill -4, Total Goodwill -90]

However, for the sake of the bigger picture, Rose endured her disgust and left her mark on the contract.

With a flash of light, the contract was officially established.

“A wise choice.” Bruce smiled even wider. “My dear granddaughter, as soon as the treasures from the Xiya Kingdom arrive, I will send troops to help you acquire the surrounding kingdoms. Although the amount of treasure is limited, I believe those kingdoms won’t refuse. They wouldn’t dare.”

Bruce looked at the surrounding ministers and smiled. “We’ll be colleagues for a while. I hope we can work together to expand the Rose Kingdom’s territory fivefold, tenfold!”

“Definitely, definitely!”

“Wonderful! The Rose Kingdom is about to rise!”

“Long live Queen Rose!”

Although they didn’t understand the situation, the ministers cheered enthusiastically.

After all, the short old man beside them was an eighth-rank mage. If he was unhappy, they would all die.

Rose: “…”

He had said they wouldn’t interfere with each other, but why did she feel like she was about to be stripped of her power?

Her heart turned cold, as if she had lost her dream.

Maybe she should just be a slacker queen from now on. Being a queen was too tiring.

……

“It seems that Queen Rose really hates me.”

Kailun closed the magic book in his hand and sighed.

He had to admit that these women were very patient. Even with a goodwill rating of -90, they hadn’t tried to blow themselves up with him yet.

If it were someone more emotional than rational, they might have already dragged him down with them.

No, strictly speaking, it was more like “boiling a frog in warm water.” They had unconsciously adapted to this hatred.

Hilna was a good example. She hadn’t broken down even after being bullied by him to this extent.

Kailun glanced at the tidy bed. Only Afra was left on it with him.

Thanks to the special bed plank, they only needed to sleep for four hours to get eight hours of sleep, so Ella and the others had woken up early.

After tidying up the sheets and taking a bath, they either went to the study or the library. Unable to sleep, they decided to study and work more. They were truly model workers.

Hilna was the fastest to flee. She woke up, wrapped herself in a sheet, and ran, like a fool caught cheating.

She was afraid. She was afraid of Kailun continuing to bully her.

If it happened a few more times, her stomach might even surpass that of a woman who was ten months pregnant.

A prime minister’s belly could hold a boat, but constantly filling it with water could be fatal.

Poor Hilna’s legs were still trembling as she ran away. Perhaps because it was too stimulating, her “fullness” didn’t increase her goodwill at all.

Another noteworthy mention was Afra. Unsatisfied with her defeat in front of the other women, she had challenged Kailun several times.

The first two times, Kailun had withdrawn her attribute points, making Afra so ashamed that she almost died.

She fainted, woke up, and fainted again.

It was only after the third time that the kind-hearted Kailun returned her attribute points. This time, she had surprisingly lasted for half an hour.

According to the real-time flow, it was an hour, but unfortunately, no one witnessed her feat because Anna and the others were all asleep.

Afra’s three battles with Kailun had all ended in defeat. Even in her sleep, she pouted, looking extremely aggrieved.

It wasn’t that Kailun was deliberately bullying her. It was just that Afra looked too cute when she was being bullied.

She was supposed to be an older sister figure, but she always showed a “little woman” expression in front of him. The sense of accomplishment was self-evident.

With her sensitive body, she had slept from 3:00 AM to 8:00 AM. Now, she was finally blinking her eyes, showing signs of waking up.

Kailun lay down beside her, gently teasing her moist red lips with his finger.

Her expression was slightly cold, as if she lacked emotions.

But her true feelings were very delicate. Almost everything she cared about was related to him.

Afra’s love for him was deep and pure, without any impurities.

“Awake? How do you feel? Do you feel stronger? After all, you’re a strong woman who can last for half an hour.”

Kailun teased as Afra opened her golden eyes.

Hearing this, she felt even more aggrieved. She wanted to scold Kailun, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it.

She opened her mouth, but in the end, she could only bite his finger in frustration.

“Alright, don’t be angry. I was wrong.”

Kailun wrapped his other arm around Afra’s naked waist and pulled her into his arms. “But Sister Afra is just too easy to bully. I can’t help myself. So call me ‘big brother.’ Then I’ll let you off next time.”

“No, I’m several years older than you. Don’t even think about it.”

Afra glared at Kailun coquettishly. This was her identity, something she couldn’t compromise on.

She had been an older sister for over ten years. How could she be willing to be Kailun’s younger sister?

“It’s fine if you don’t want to call me ‘big brother.’ Then call me ‘daddy.’” Kailun chuckled.

“Pervert~”

Afra pinched the soft flesh on Kailun’s waist.

“You have no sense of romance. Anna and Ella both called me ‘daddy’ last night. Only you didn’t listen. If you had been obedient, I wouldn’t have withdrawn your attribute points. Regretting it now, Sister Afra~”

Kailun deliberately drawled out the last two words.

“You’re asking for a beating! I’ll tell the Duchess about you when we get back! She’ll teach you a lesson!”

Unable to solve the problem, Afra decided to seek external help.

“No, don’t tell her.”

Kailun chuckled helplessly. “Alright, alright, I was just kidding. By the way, Sister Afra, do you think my parents really raised you as a child bride?”

Afra looked at Kailun’s curious eyes and replied, “They probably had similar thoughts. After all, they never stopped us from bathing and sleeping together when we were young. They even looked happy about it.”

“Sigh, what a pity. If I had known that Sister Afra was my child bride, I would have made my move earlier.”

Kailun looked at Afra’s flawless face from a close distance. “After all, you were also very beautiful when you were young. Every time I saw your innocent body and porcelain-like skin, I couldn’t resist.”

Although Afra was filled with shyness, she still mustered the courage to ask, “So you’ve been hiding your feelings for over ten years? Hmph, you’re just a fake gentleman.”

“Since Sister Afra has said so, I have no choice but to withdraw your attribute points.” Kailun smiled and hugged Afra tightly.

“No! I still have to train Eve!” Afra looked at Kailun in horror.

Kailun smiled mischievously. “Forget about Eve. Train me first. I want to be stronger. I want to be Sister Afra’s knight.”

Afra: “!!!”

Chapter 177: Chrissy’s Intel

Kailun couldn’t refuse, nor did he want to.

This time, he handed the initiative to Carol, letting himself follow her lead.

Carol’s body was warm and soft, like a boneless creature in his arms.

The bright light of the study illuminated her fair face, a faint blush tinting her perfect features.

Her movements were gentle and devoted, her tongue soft and insistent, each touch sending shivers down his spine.

Perhaps because she was too immersed, Carol’s breathing quickened, like a runner nearing the finish line of a long race.

To prevent Kailun from escaping, she wrapped her arms around his back, pressing him firmly against her.

Ten minutes later, Carol, breathless and on the verge of suffocation, released Kailun. She looked at him with her lively eyes, a thousand unspoken words hidden within.

Kailun wiped the remaining saliva from the corner of her mouth with his finger. “I know you have many questions, and so do I. The scenes in your dreams aren’t entirely real. They can only be used as a reference. I believe you will find the answers one day. When that day comes, I hope you won’t call me shameless.”

He chuckled, suddenly finding this situation quite amusing.

With Carol’s potential, there was a high chance she would learn about the events of the past. Would she be angry if she knew he had “claimed” her first?

Probably not. After all, her goodwill was already at 98, just a step away from eternal devotion.

“I might not call you shameless, but I can’t guarantee I won’t do something strange,” Carol said with a smile, holding Kailun’s hand.

Kailun pinched her bottom with his other hand and said menacingly, “Don’t even think about doing anything strange. If you want to be like Phils, I might have to show you what true cruelty is.”

“It’s only natural for Master to bully his little maid, so I’ll be waiting~”

Carol took a step back, picked up the scroll on the table, curtsied with her mini-skirt, and left the study, satisfied.

All she wanted was his acknowledgement, and since she had achieved her goal, she could retreat gracefully.

She could use similar methods to ask for kisses from Kailun tomorrow. As for going further?

If the surprise Kailun mentioned didn’t satisfy her, she might really resort to unconventional means.

Thinking about this, Carol giggled and skipped down the hallway.

“This girl is becoming bolder and bolder.”

Kailun wiped the remaining saliva from his lips, shaking his head with amusement.

But he didn’t dislike this feeling. Carol, with her unique personality, brought him more joy.

Looking at the moon hidden behind the clouds outside the window, Kailun stretched.

A new round of plans had been set in motion, and this time, it was much more interesting.

After analyzing the latest intelligence, Kailun had learned about some of the movements of the Temple of the Celestial God and the White Jade Alliance. It was worth mentioning that “Temple of the Celestial God” here specifically referred to the Empress’s faction.

If nothing unexpected happened, the mastermind behind this was the mysterious Empress.

The unknown was the most worrisome, but the Empress’s intervention actually made Kailun feel more at ease.

He contacted Kailson, Roden, and Philip through his communication device, asking them to prepare for departure and reach the Abyss as soon as possible to meet with the old Dragon King.

After making the necessary arrangements, he returned to his bedroom. Currently, not only Afra, Ella, and Anna were there, but also Illusion and Hilna.

Except for Hilna, who wanted to escape, the others looked eager to try. They believed they could defeat Kailun with their numbers.

Five against one. The advantage was theirs.

“Time is limited. Who wants to fight first?”

Kailun walked to the window and drew the curtains.

Hilna, who hadn’t fully recovered yet, immediately burrowed under the covers and hid.

“Alright, let’s start with the impatient princess. Illusion, help me catch her.”

Seeing Hilna’s panicked expression, Kailun’s smile widened.

“Sister Hilna, you can’t escape this time. Surrender and atone for your sins!”

Illusion excitedly pulled back the covers, grabbed Hilna’s feet, and pinned her down. “Kailun, come quickly! I caught her! Bully her hard!”

“Vivian, what are you doing? Let me go!”

Hilna panicked as Kailun approached. She kicked Illusion with her feet, but couldn’t shake her off.

“No way! Watching you scream in misery is my second greatest pleasure. Kailun, hurry up! I want to see Sister’s belly swell up like a pregnant woman!”

Illusion clung tightly to Hilna’s feet, enjoying this opportunity for revenge.

She hated Hilna. In her previous life, she had even scattered her ashes.

She couldn’t scatter Hilna’s ashes now, but she could take revenge in a different way.

“Fight! Fight!”

Ella clapped excitedly, her shyness forgotten.

The “sisterly battle” in front of her excited her nerves. She wanted to see a good show.

Afra and Anna exchanged glances and sat at the head of the bed, watching the drama unfold with a detached air.

Faced with Illusion’s enthusiastic invitation, Kailun naturally wouldn’t refuse. He walked over to Hilna, pinched her lips, and then, in front of everyone, silenced her.

Unable to speak. This was Hilna’s current predicament.

Her mind in turmoil, Hilna felt like she was broken.

……

The night had just begun, and the city was still bustling.

Tonight, Paul, Charles, and Koya attended the White Jade Alliance’s banquet. Paul had already reached a certain level of cooperation with Charles.

The three of them would infiltrate the White Jade Alliance and try to seize control.

Charles said that if Paul behaved well, the Pope would withdraw the bounty on his head. Paul, still absorbing Henry’s memories, chose to cooperate temporarily to gain Koya’s trust.

Although Koya favored him, she wouldn’t betray the Temple of the Celestial God for him. Therefore, Paul, who wasn’t a true ninth-rank mage yet, made a wise choice.

The three of them signed a contract to ensure the smooth takeover of the White Jade Alliance.

For Charles, this was a last resort. With Koya protecting Paul, he couldn’t kill him. After consulting with the Pope, he had taken a step back.

It was worth mentioning that Koya had been severely reprimanded by the Pope for this incident, and most of her resources for the next ten years had been cut.

“Saint Chrissy sent me some important information. She said that the next conflict might be at the second mine. She also told me that Kailun has already sent a few vice presidents to the Abyss.”

In the banquet hall, Koya took Charles and Paul to a corner to discuss matters.

However, judging from their positions, she was clearly closer to Paul. Her hand was already linked with his arm.

Paul asked, trying to suppress his disgust, “New conflict… Do you mean a new war? Are you saying that bastard Kailun is planning to send reinforcements to the Abyss?”

Koya looked at Paul with affection. “That’s right. Chrissy said in her magic letter that the Abyss is likely to attack the second mine. She asked us to be prepared and catch them off guard.”

“She’s probably trying to borrow a knife to kill, using the White Jade Alliance’s knife to eliminate the Abyss and gain favor with the Pope. By the way, does the Pope know about this?” Charles interjected.

Koya shook her head. “I haven’t told the Pope yet. She left the decision to us, asking if we want to give her a surprise.”

“Actually, I don’t trust Chrissy. I think any woman who gets close to Kailun will fall for him. You know, Kailun is a devil. No woman can escape his clutches once he sets his sights on her.”

Paul tried to pull his hand away, but couldn’t free it from Koya’s grasp.

After reaching an agreement, he had moved Harry to a safe place. Otherwise, Charles might continue to threaten him.

He had been lucky to escape Koya’s advances these past few days, but as time passed, he noticed that her patience was wearing thin.

Charles quickly retorted, “Don’t talk nonsense! The Saint’s loyalty was personally acknowledged by the Pope. She said the Saint is doing this to extract more information from Kailun. Koya, you only received this important intel thanks to the Saint’s efforts.”

Although Charles had his doubts, he still firmly believed in the Pope’s judgment.

‘What a good dog,’ Paul thought to himself, looking at Charles.

Charles seemed to sense something and glared at Paul.

Koya timely stepped in front of Paul, blocking Charles’s gaze. “The question now is whether we should report this to the Pope. My suggestion is to report it and let Her Holiness decide. What we need to do is build good relationships with the people at the banquet and try to use them to eliminate the Abyss and the Xiya Kingdom.”

Koya released Paul’s hand. “Go and dance at the banquet. Didn’t that old man invite you just now? Go on.”

Paul: “I… Alright.”

He wanted to refuse, but he didn’t. He also wanted to contact other ninth-rank mages.

No matter how close Koya was to him, she was still from the Temple of the Celestial God. To gain additional power, Paul had to approach others.

After Paul left, Charles asked, “Just say what you want to say. Your lover boy is gone. I really can’t understand why you would offend the Pope for a sinner.”

“It’s none of your business. You should address me as Senior.” Koya lowered her voice.

Charles: “Senior? No, you don’t deserve that title. Just say what you want to say. If there’s nothing else, I’ll go and contact the other high-ranking members of the White Jade Alliance.”

Seeing Charles’s impatient expression, Koya got straight to the point. “Tell me where Harry is.”

“Why are you asking about Harry’s location?” Charles looked at Koya’s old face in surprise. “Do you want to kill him? Tsk, tsk, tsk. I didn’t expect you to do such a thing. You’re really opening my eyes. But I’m sorry, I don’t know where he is now.”

“No, you do.”

Koya wasn’t angered by Charles’s mockery. She said with a blank expression, “The night we separated, I saw you secretly cast a tracking spell on Harry. Besides Paul, you’re the only one who knows his location. I don’t care who Paul was before or who he met, but from now on, he belongs to me.”

Koya was serious. She could see through Paul’s insincerity, but she had been pretending not to care.

But the more she tried to hide it, the more she cared. She couldn’t resist wanting to possess everything that belonged to Paul.

Charles looked at Paul, who was dancing with the old man in the hall, and asked, “Aren’t you afraid that Paul will find out if you do this?”

Koya also looked at Paul with a doting smile. “What does Harry’s death have to do with us? It’s just that his time has come. What I want to do is take advantage of the situation and capture Paul’s body and soul. Then he won’t be able to refuse me anymore.”

By then, she wanted to indulge in madness with Paul. Capturing his body and soul was her desire.

Koya said seriously, “300,000 gold coins and some ninth-rank resources. Tell me where Harry is.”

Hearing Koya’s generous offer, Charles’s eyes lit up. “As expected of a senior. Your vision is much broader than mine. Let’s sign a contract. I’ll tell you where Harry is hiding after we sign it.”

Charles’s attitude changed drastically. Even he would need some time to save up 300,000 gold coins, let alone ninth-rank resources.

An insignificant Harry wouldn’t affect him. If Koya added a bit more money, he might even tie Paul up and throw him on her bed.

After all, the current Paul was just a flashy ninth-rank mage. He couldn’t defeat Charles.

They glanced at Paul again and then quickly signed the contract. With the contract scroll in hand, Charles revealed Harry’s hiding place to Koya.

After completing the transaction, they rejoined the banquet. They were also tasked with infiltrating the White Jade Alliance.

Paul didn’t realize that his only remaining companion, Harry, had been targeted by Koya.

“Ugh…”

As the old man in front of him wrapped his arm around his waist, Paul almost threw up from disgust. He endured the discomfort and continued dancing, but the old man’s hand was already moving downwards.

If it weren’t for the fact that this old man was considered a powerful figure among ninth-rank mages, Paul would have pushed him away.

Disgusting.

……

“After figuring out the technique, the copying speed has increased significantly. We might even be able to go back tomorrow afternoon.” Fox in the tomb wiped the sweat from her forehead.

Shirley, who was helping her, sighed helplessly. “Do you have to work so hard? You haven’t slept for several nights. Are you missing Kailun and want to go back early?”

Fox glared at Shirley. “Don’t talk nonsense. I’m not sleeping because I’m an eighth-rank mage. Not sleeping for a long time doesn’t affect me much. As for going back to see that heartless Kailun, he’s not worthy!”

Shirley put away the sound recording stone. “I’ve recorded your words. I’ll tell Kailun later. I hope you’ll have the same attitude when you face him.”

“No, no, no!”

Fox hurriedly dropped the parchment scroll in her hand and ran to Shirley, snatching the sound recording stone. “Although I’m not afraid of Kailun, there’s no need to create conflict. You know about this. Don’t tell anyone else.”

“Crack!”

Fox smashed the sound recording stone on the ground.

“Oh, I understand. I have another one. Smash it too.”

Shirley glanced at the broken stone and took out another one, handing it to Fox.

“…” Fox silently took the sound recording stone from Shirley. “I feel like you’ve changed. You’re becoming like that bad guy.”

“Maybe I’ve been corrupted by him. My mind seems to have awakened. I’m thinking more and seeing things from a higher perspective.”

Shirley tapped her head, self-deprecatingly. “It’s like I’ve been living in a daze for almost twenty years and suddenly woke up. Besides, I’ve discovered a strange phenomenon. Anyone who spends a long time with Kailun will be greatly influenced.”

Fox was curious. “What kind of influence?”

Shirley walked around Fox, her gaze lingering on her fluffy tail. “I can’t explain it clearly. It’s more like an influence on their behavior and speech. It’s subtle and silent. That’s why I said I’ve been corrupted by him.”

In a way, Shirley wanted to thank Kailun. If it weren’t for him, she might still be seen as a hopeless fool.

“Strange words. I don’t understand.”

Fox crushed the sound recording stone in her hand. She couldn’t let Kailun hear this, or she would definitely be bullied.

Recalling the memories hidden in her mind, Fox felt that the gentle and sincere Kailun was really attractive.

“If that guy was more honest, I might treat him better. It’s a pity that he only knows how to bully us.”

Fox sighed and returned to her previous position, picking up the parchment scroll. She rubbed her eyes and continued copying.

She had to finish her work as soon as possible so she could go back. If she was late, the “easy” dragon girl might be gone.

It wasn’t that she didn’t want to sleep, but a dream she had two nights ago had scared her.

She had dreamed of things that hadn’t happened, and the most vivid memory was of Kailun dying in a valley in the Xiya Kingdom. She hadn’t even been able to see him one last time.

Out of fear and worry, Fox had temporarily given up on sleeping. It seemed that she couldn’t even sleep well without Kailun by her side.

“Phew~”

Fox took a deep breath and continued writing.

Shirley took out a third sound recording stone. She looked at it, hesitating whether to give it to Kailun. After all, this stone not only recorded Fox’s bold words but also some of her sleep talk from a few days ago.

……

On a quiet night, some were fighting, some were working, and some had already finished their “battles.”

After an unknown number of hours, Kailun was sitting on the bed, flipping through a ninth-rank magic book.

He was surrounded by jade-like legs, a sea of white flesh. With a casual touch, he could grasp a handful of softness.

Currently, only Illusion, who had fallen asleep, was in his arms. Her petite figure made her the perfect pillow.

Kailun glanced at Illusion, who was sitting on his waist, and focused on the magic book.

They were all too weak. He should invite Phils and Chrissy tomorrow.

And he had to criticize Afra. She had almost broken her record for the shortest duration.

She said that with so many people watching, her body was more sensitive, but Kailun didn’t believe her.

Chapter 176: Carol’s Gambit

The quiz on potionology knowledge lasted for just over an hour, mainly because it was almost time for lunch.

During this time, Hilna not only made numerous mistakes but also let out some regretful moans that shouldn’t have been there.

Kailun believed she must be regretting her ignorance. If she had more knowledge, she wouldn’t be in this predicament.

“Snap!”

With a snap of his fingers, Kailun ended the quiz and casually cast a spell to purify the air.

Normally, everyone ate their meals separately, only occasionally gathering for a meal at a long table.

Kailun didn’t have many requirements. As long as they didn’t cause him trouble, everyone was free to do as they pleased.

“Your performance was very disappointing. Study harder this afternoon. I’ll quiz you again in my bedroom tonight.”

Kailun closed the book with a look of regret. The time was too short, and he wasn’t satisfied yet.

The new bed not only had the effect of slowing down time but was also much larger. Adding Hilna wouldn’t be a problem.

“Can you spare me? I really can’t answer any more questions. You can ask Winnie. She won’t refuse.”

Hilna weakly wiped the drool from the corner of her mouth with Kailun’s shoulder. It wasn’t her fault; it was a natural reaction when she rolled her eyes and looked at the ceiling.

Kailun had become much stronger again. No matter how hard she tried to catch up, she couldn’t.

The gap between them was infinitely wide. Just an hour of questioning almost took her life.

For a moment, Hilna felt like she was really dead. That feeling of floating in the air, weightless and empty, couldn’t be achieved by a living person.

She tried to stand up, supporting herself on Kailun’s shoulder, but after several attempts, she collapsed back down, causing secondary damage.

“Ugh~”

Hilna moaned. This time, she really couldn’t stand up.

The sensation was still there, and Kailun even twitched slightly.

“No need to get up. I’ll have someone bring lunch over. You can feed me.”

Kailun waved to a passing maid, asking her to tell Carol that lunch would be served in the courtyard today.

“I was wrong. I’m willing to fulfill my previous promise and send Shirley to you.”

Hilna, sitting on Kailun’s lap, looked into his eyes, tears streaming down her face.

“Your attitude is acceptable, but I don’t want Shirley anymore. I find bullying you more interesting. And weren’t you enjoying yourself while answering the questions just now?”

Kailun wrapped his arms around Hilna, his hands measuring her slender waist.

Hilna’s waist was very thin, probably small enough to be encircled by his hands. Sometimes, Kailun wondered if he would break it.

Fortunately, she was very flexible, so that wouldn’t happen.

Hilna could only glare at Kailun pitifully.

Pitiful, weak, and “inedible.”

“Yes, that’s the look I like, the look of grievance that can’t be expressed. I enjoy it the most. Remember to keep it up. If you ever stop hating me, I’ll lose a lot of fun.”

Kailun pressed down on Hilna’s waist, pushing her down a bit further.

Hilna’s eyes became even more hazy with desire. “I will always hate you, forever, for the rest of my life.”

Kailun nodded with satisfaction. “Good, that’s the attitude. I can feel the change in your heart, the tightening grip as if you’re trying to strangle me. If you’re even more ruthless, you can try to bear me a daughter and have her divide my power. If you’re even more ruthless, you can even pester me with questions day and night, depriving me of my time. Of course, this is only if you can handle it.”

Kailun chuckled and picked up the potionology book from the table, handing it to Hilna. “Take a look. I’ve corrected the mistakes.”

Hilna, lost in thought, took the book from Kailun and casually flipped through a few pages. She noticed many changes in the content.

They seemed reasonable and without any major issues, but they still needed to be verified through experiments.

At least for now, Hilna felt that Kailun had just done it casually. After all, as far as she knew, he hadn’t studied potionology before.

As Kailun’s potionology teacher, she knew that he wasn’t interested in this subject before.

She was his teacher at the Magic Academy, but after just over a month, the roles had reversed. It felt a bit strange.

She looked up at his young face, his deep gaze making her feel lost for a moment.

She was much older than Kailun, already in her early twenties, but compared to him, she wasn’t mature enough.

Her former pride had been completely shattered, leaving only a submissive attitude. But as her knowledge grew, she was surprised to find that her hatred for Kailun was gradually diminishing.

Now, their positions were no longer antagonistic. Strictly speaking, it was more like a subordinate relationship. She had lost all initiative.

When she came back to her senses, she realized that one of her hands was already on Kailun’s cheek, as if she were caressing a lover’s face.

“It seems that Her Highness is already brimming with spring love.” Kailun commented.

“Pervert!”

Hilna cursed as she felt Kailun “thrust” into her.

“Let’s eat. Carol and the others are here.”

Kailun smiled, looking at Carol and the others approaching the courtyard with lunch.

Not many people were joining them for lunch today. Besides the dangerous-looking Carol, there were only Illusion and Vivian. Afra was probably giving the young knights extra training, and Winnie and Bella had disappeared somewhere.

After lunch, Kailun “released” Hilna, who was trembling. He comforted the slightly angry Carol and then immersed himself in studying the parchment scrolls.

Carol sat beside him, meditating with a box of magic crystals in her arms. Occasionally, he could hear the “crunch” of her crushing the crystals.

Fortunately, she was only crushing the crystals after absorbing their energy, not wasting them. Otherwise, Kailun might have to quiz her on her studies.

Later, Chrissy came to find Kailun secretly with Helena. After some flirting, she didn’t achieve anything, so she had to take Helena to the warehouse and exchange some supplies she needed.

Recently, the Pope had explicitly ordered her not to have too much contact with Kailun, so she couldn’t stay at the manor for long. She left a letter for Kailun and then sneaked out of the manor with Helena through the back door.

At 5:00 PM, Edlin found Kailun with the contract. She stammered, asking what the punishment was.

Kailun told her to play chess with Carol. She would earn 100,000 gold coins for every win and lose 1,000 gold coins for every loss.

For such a “rewarding” punishment, Edlin agreed without hesitation.

However, in the next two hours, Edlin suffered a miserable twenty-game losing streak, losing all her remaining gold coins.

20,100 gold coins. That was all she had left.

“How did you know I had over 20,000 gold coins?”

Edlin knelt before the chessboard, tears welling up in her eyes.

Kailun put down his communication device. “I didn’t know you had 20,000 gold coins, nor did I know you would lose twenty games in a row. Your performance really surprised me. But it’s not your fault. Carol’s chess skills are indeed far superior to that of ordinary people.”

Carol, hearing Kailun praising her, puffed out her chest proudly, a satisfied look on her face.

“If I had known…” Edlin wiped her eyes with her sleeve.

Kailun interrupted her. “Don’t say ‘if I had known.’ This is your own choice. How about this? I’ll give you another chance. Play chess with me. You’ll still get 100,000 gold coins for winning and lose 1,000 for losing. Do you want to take it, Dean Edlin?”

“Slap!”

Edlin immediately slammed the chessboard on the table and said with a gleeful smile, “Let’s start now. But no cheating! You can’t let Carol give you hints.”

“Calling you a gambling addict is an understatement. Time is limited. I’ll only play one game with you.”

Kailun set up the chess pieces and made the first move.

“I’m not a gambling addict! I just need a lot of money! I have to make the Pope pay for what she did!”

She moved her piece, her voice firm.

“Just the Pope is too narrow-minded. You should set your sights on the entire Temple of the Celestial God.” As he spoke, Kailun captured Edlin’s piece.

The petite Edlin looked at Kailun’s move with confusion. She thought for a long time before capturing one of his pieces in return.

It felt like he was giving her free pieces, not taking the game seriously.

To avoid being distracted, Edlin shut her mouth and focused all her attention on the chessboard.

However, as the game progressed, she realized that Kailun was really giving her free pieces. In less than five minutes, he was on the verge of losing.

“Sigh, what a pity. I lost. Should I flip the board?”

Kailun dropped his last piece and leaned forward, looking at Edlin with an aggressive gaze.

“Are you going back on your word?!” Edlin was startled.

She thought Kailun was going to break his promise, as they hadn’t signed a contract.

“Of course… I’m just kidding.”

Kailun pushed a handwritten note towards Edlin. “Take this note to Phils. She’ll give you 80,000 gold coins. As for why it’s 20,000 less, it’s because you lost 20,000 to Carol just now.”

The unexpected answer confused Edlin even more. This obvious act of throwing the game didn’t fit Kailun’s personality.

Was there a hidden motive?

She took the note from Kailun and asked tentatively, “How about I spend the night with you? I don’t feel comfortable taking this money otherwise.”

Edlin wasn’t sincere about selling herself, unless Kailun was willing to write off her debt.

Kailun seemed to see through Edlin’s intentions. He reached out to her. “Sure, I just happen to have some new furniture. It would be nice to have someone test it out.”

“No, no, no. I was just kidding. Don’t mind me. By the way, Lord Kailun, I’ve accepted the job you mentioned. I guarantee I’ll complete the task. Time is tight, and the task is heavy. I have to make some preparations tonight. Excuse me, see you next time~”

Edlin gave Kailun a charming wink and then ran away with the note.

She believed that her charm had a slight effect on Kailun. Given time, she might be able to sell herself for a good price.

If Kailun knew what Edlin was thinking, he would definitely burst out laughing. Her thinking had been completely misled from the start.

“Master, why did you give Edlin money? Do you really like her?” Carol walked over to the table and started clearing the chessboard and pieces.

Kailun shook his head. “No, the truth is, Edlin will need a lot of money to successfully send those miners to the Temple of the Celestial God. Her remaining gold coins aren’t enough to complete the task. Of course, I’ll have Phils transfer the 20,000 gold coins you earned to you as pocket money.”

To send ten thousand people to the Temple of the Celestial God in a short time, they would need to use teleportation magic circles. The cost wouldn’t be small.

Moreover, smuggling the miners into the Celestial Empire might also cost a lot of money.

Edlin would also have to spend money hiring people to guard and escort them. Therefore, Kailun was considering the bigger picture.

“I understand. By the way, Master, can I see Edlin’s special magic?”

Carol suddenly remembered something and approached Kailun curiously.

She didn’t care about the 20,000 gold coins as pocket money, because she belonged to Kailun.

“I can show it to you, but do you really want to learn it? I don’t think this magic is necessary for you right now.”

Kailun glanced at Carol’s figure.

Carol: “No, I just think this magic is worth studying.”

Kailun: “Alright, the scroll recording the special magic is in my study. I’ll give it to you later. Also, your new clothes are already being made. You’ll see them in two days.”

Carol moved closer. “Is it a new maid outfit?”

Kailun patted her head. “No, it’s a surprise.”

[Edlin successfully received 80,000 gold coins. She thinks you’re the kindest person in the world. She wouldn’t mind if you forced her to spend the night with you. Goodwill +5]

An hour later, Kailun received a goodwill notification from Edlin. For a gullible former Saint like her, Kailun didn’t even bother using deception to get her into bed.

For a money-grubber like her, he just needed to cover the bed with gold coins, and then he could “bully” her while watching her count the coins with a gleeful smile.

Hopeless.

More people joined them for dinner tonight. Besides Afra, who had returned, there were also Anna and Ella, who had been busy all day.

They sat at a long table for dinner. Kailun sat at the head of the table, with Afra and Carol on either side. The two elves stood behind him.

Since they were all familiar with each other, there weren’t many rules at the table. They ate and drank freely. Winnie and Bella seemed to be the happiest, while Hilna was the most troubled.

After dinner, Kailun announced the news of the new bed and invited Hilna and Illusion to join the “inspection” that night.

Some were happy, and some were worried. Illusion was happy, while Hilna, Bella, and Vivian were worried.

Vivian played with her unfinished wood carving, her face sullen. Bella looked at Winnie with regret. They needed to work harder.

As for Hilna, she was even more miserable. She had only finished one-fifth of the book in the entire afternoon and couldn’t handle Kailun’s quiz at all.

Carol secretly kicked Kailun under the table. She wasn’t happy with this arrangement either.

“Ahem.” Kailun coughed awkwardly. “I know the new ‘prop’ has a powerful effect. It can accelerate everyone’s growth. However, it has a limited capacity, so we can only take turns using it. For now, we’ll follow a rotation system to ensure that everyone can enjoy the special boost. It’s worth mentioning that daytime is a free period. Bella and Carol can use it during the day, so your progress will be faster.”

Afra and Anna were regulars. Ella had the ability to provide a percentage increase in attribute points, thanks to her “Natural Charm” talent.

Even a mosquito’s leg was still meat. Kailun was willing to improve slowly.

If Isabella joined them later, would his daily improvement increase even more?

Kailun didn’t think further. The current Isabella was just a partner. He didn’t have any other thoughts about her. He couldn’t muster any interest in her extremely petite body.

It would be too sinful, even more sinful than with Vivian.

“Ugh, vulgar!”

Vivian blushed and ran away with her wood carving. Just as she reached the door, she turned back and added, “Let me make it clear, I don’t want to sleep with you. I just want to become stronger. Don’t misunderstand.”

Vivian saw the teasing looks in Illusion and Kailun’s eyes and couldn’t help but cover her face and flee.

She had said all that hoping Kailun would feel guilty and stop her, but the bastard not only ignored her but also laughed at her.

Hilna wanted to ask to switch with Vivian, but Kailun stopped her with a look.

Leaving the task of cleaning up the table to the elf sisters, Kailun took Carol to the study.

“Master, what is this world really like?”

Carol asked as Kailun went to the bookshelf to retrieve a scroll.

He took Edlin’s scroll and placed it on the table, asking in return, “Have you been having strange dreams again?”

“Yes, I dreamed of some strange scenes.”

Carol walked over to Kailun and opened the scroll with her hand. “I’m sure I’ve never been to the Abyss, but I remember the scenery there. I even saw Bella. It was a bit blurry, but I’m sure it was her.”

Kailun: “Did you dream of me?”

“Yes, you taught me a lot of magic in the dream, but it felt very strange. Like it was real, but also fake.” Carol rarely looked worried.

“So why are you asking this question?” Kailun asked gently, stroking Carol’s hair.

“I want to be closer to you, so I want to know your secrets. Is that okay?”

Carol took another step forward, stood on her tiptoes, leaned close to Kailun’s face, and stuck out her tongue, trying to lick his lips.

She expressed her attachment without reservation, her innocent appearance endearing.

Kailun couldn’t answer this question right now, so he responded by sticking out his tongue.

This was Carol’s gambit. She knew he wouldn’t answer, but she still asked, just for a kiss.

Chapter 175: Old Dragon King: I Don’t Understand!

“You’re saying you found reinforcements, and they’re from the Xiya Kingdom? Are you taking me for a fool, Old Wolf?”

Deep within the Abyss, the old Dragon King, Bolton, looked at the gray-haired Werewolf King with a skeptical gaze.

Such a lie might fool the others in the Abyss, but trying to deceive him was pure wishful thinking, especially since his granddaughter was currently staying at Kailun’s manor.

If Kailun had any plans regarding the Abyss, Bella would definitely know.

For Bolton, leaving Bella with Kailun served two purposes: first, to protect her from the worst-case scenario. He didn’t want to see Bella die at such a young age.

Second, to gather information about the Xiya Kingdom. Although he was old, he could sense the crucial role Kailun played in the recent changes.

Looking at the entire world, almost all kingdoms and forces had been affected by him. Valuable knowledge, through cheap books, had spread to every household, and a large number of talented individuals had gathered in the Xiya Kingdom, forming a new power.

The old forces, under pressure, had established the White Jade Alliance, but their seemingly powerful union was merely for self-preservation.

Even the arrogant Temple of the Celestial God had become more cautious, their repeated setbacks forcing them to maintain a certain level of rationality.

From any perspective, Bolton wouldn’t believe the Werewolf King’s words. He believed his own intelligence network was far more comprehensive than the Werewolf King’s. If Kailun truly wanted to provide support, he wouldn’t have contacted the Werewolf King.

“Believe it or not, they will arrive in the Abyss in five days. We need to be prepared to attack and reclaim the mines in one swift strike.”

The Werewolf King remained unfazed. He walked up to Bolton and patted his shoulder. “Don’t overthink things. The world is constantly changing. Only those who adapt can survive. Times have changed. The Abyss is no longer the same.”

“What do you mean by that, Old Wolf?!”

Bolton was enraged by his words. He pushed the Werewolf King away and growled, “Your clan is still intact, with over two million members. Of course, you don’t care. After all, your hatred isn’t that deep. But don’t even dream about persuading me to let go of anything. The Dragon Clan has dwindled to just Bella, a single seedling. Are you going to compensate for our losses?”

When he mentioned this, Bolton realized something. The Abyss wasn’t united. Some races harbored deep hatred, some had been completely wiped out, and some remained intact.

Due to various factors, the Abyss was divided into several factions, with the Werewolf King representing the conservative faction.

Looking back now, Bolton even felt that these well-preserved races had been deliberately spared by the Temple of the Celestial God.

This feeling hadn’t been obvious before, but after losing the mines, he felt that many people had changed.

“Hey, old man, you’re really stubborn. I never said we wouldn’t fight the Temple of the Celestial God. Why are you so worked up?”

The Werewolf King wagged his tail and changed the subject. “By the way, where’s that little girl Bella? I haven’t seen her for a while. Without Bella and Fox, the entire Abyss feels less lively. It’s a bit strange.”

“It seems you really don’t know. That’s to be expected. If your intelligence network was strong enough, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

Bolton sneered and walked away, leaving the Werewolf King standing there with a sly smile.

He felt that he should make plans early, as the Werewolf King had already given him a clear hint.

Just as he took a few steps, Bolton received a message from Bella. She informed him through a magic letter that Kailun would send reinforcements from the White Jade Alliance to help them win the war.

Bolton: “???”

The Werewolf King had received support from Kailun, and he had received support from the White Jade Alliance, which was being manipulated by Kailun… So would the next step be the Temple of the Celestial God sending troops to fight against themselves?

What was going on?

He wondered if he was too old to keep up with the times. Why did these simple words, combined together, form a book he couldn’t understand?

……

Meanwhile, Bella didn’t know how much mental trauma her message had caused the old Dragon King. She was just following Kailun’s instructions.

Kailun had told her to inform Bolton in advance so he could be mentally prepared. The reinforcements would arrive in the Abyss in three days.

After completing Kailun’s request, Bella went to the library and found Winnie and Hilna buried in books, diligently absorbing knowledge.

Hilna, with her sharp senses, was the first to notice Bella’s arrival. She brushed her red hair aside and asked, “Bella, are you here to read?”

Winnie, hearing Hilna’s voice, also turned around and looked at Bella curiously.

They both had a good impression of this naturally approachable girl and were very kind to her.

“Um… Well… I have some questions I’d like to ask you seniors.”

Bella swayed her slender dragon tail and shyly poked her index fingers together.

Hilna chuckled. “We’re not really seniors. Your strength far surpasses ours. You should be the senior here. But feel free to ask us anything. If we know the answer, we’ll definitely tell you.”

Winnie closed her magic book and smiled sweetly. “Me too.”

“Then I’ll ask…” Bella first looked embarrassed, then stepped closer and asked curiously, “Seniors, do you have any ways to trick Lord Kailun into bed? I want to have children with him, lots and lots of little dragons!”

Bella’s eyes sparkled with an unmissable light, so bright that Hilna, the “defeated dog,” couldn’t bear to look.

However, what was even more heartbreaking than the light was Bella’s question. Hilna asked herself, she was just Kailun’s plaything, always led by him.

Asking how to trick Kailun into bed?

She had never experienced that because she was the one being controlled.

Recalling those nightmarish days, Hilna shuddered.

“Sorry, I don’t know the answer to that question. You should ask Winnie. I’m leaving!”

As if reminded of something unpleasant, Hilna grabbed a book on potionology and left the library.

“Did I offend Senior Hilna?”

Bella’s tail drooped listlessly. She felt like she had done something wrong.

Winnie, seeing Bella’s expression, couldn’t help but feel a surge of maternal instinct. She thought it would be interesting to have a daughter as well-behaved as Bella with Kailun.

Thanks to their occasional “tasks,” Winnie’s goodwill towards Kailun had reached 70. This kind of goodwill, born from intimate contact, was more intense than ordinary goodwill, so she would consider things from a long-term perspective.

“It’s okay. She probably just remembered something unpleasant.”

Winnie pulled Bella to the seat Hilna had just vacated and patted her head. “I can give you some advice about your question, but I can’t guarantee it will work.”

She thought for a moment, tilting her head. “In my impression, Kailun is a very strong-willed person. He has a purpose for everything he does. He might seem carefree, but he’s actually in complete control. He’s good at understanding people and manipulating their emotions. However, when it comes to genuine feelings, he’s more passive. At least, that’s how I feel.”

“What do you mean, Senior Winnie?!”

Bella leaned closer, listening attentively to every word.

This elegant young lady gave Bella a sense of warmth, like she had found the maternal love she lacked.

“I feel that Kailun only takes the initiative under special circumstances, such as with people he dislikes or wants to target. Otherwise, he’s more passive with others. Carol and Afra are prime examples. So I think you should play hard to get and not be so ‘easy.’”

Winnie patted Bella’s head with a serious expression. “For a psychologically twisted pervert like Kailun, you need to use a different approach. Otherwise, you’ll just be like everyone else.”

“Teach me, Senior Winnie!”

The more Bella listened, the more excited she became. She felt that this young lady must be someone who had “been there, done that.”

However, she didn’t know that Winnie was just sharing her own thoughts, ideas she hadn’t had the chance to test yet.

“Hehehe, listen carefully. We must proceed step by step, secretly advance our plans, strike at the root, encircle and attack…”

Winnie puffed out her chest proudly. She suddenly felt a sense of recognition.

To lead Bella to the “promised land,” she would definitely take the lead and try it herself.

……

“Thump!”

Hilna bumped into Kailun at a corner in the corridor. He caught her by the waist, preventing her from falling, but the book in her hand dropped to the floor.

“Kai… Kailun…”

Her pupils constricted. Speak of the devil, and he shall appear. She was doomed.

“So it’s the little puppy. I thought it was an assassin.”

Kailun released Hilna’s waist and bent down to pick up the book. In fact, he had already sensed Hilna’s approach, but he hadn’t chosen to avoid her.

He casually flipped through the book and glanced at its contents. “It’s good that you’re studying, but human knowledge of potionology hasn’t progressed for a long time. There are many mistakes in this book. I’ll update it later.”

Kailun had learned a lot of knowledge during his time with Fox, and potionology was one of the minor subjects.

The book in his hand hadn’t been updated for many years. It was far behind the Abyss’s progress.

“Sorry, I have something to do. I’ll take my leave.”

Hilna bowed her head to Kailun and turned to leave, but he grabbed her wrist.

“You don’t seem as confident as before. That’s not a good thing.” Kailun pulled her closer. “Remember the bet we made? You still owe me one. We agreed that you would personally carry Shirley to my bed. Let me calculate the time. Shirley and Fox should be back in about three days after finishing their copying work. That’s when you’ll fulfill your end of the bet. Understand?”

As soon as he finished speaking, Kailun felt someone pinch his waist. He didn’t need to guess to know it was Carol. The little girl must be angry about his “favoritism.”

“So you still remember…”

Hilna opened her mouth, her beautiful face filled with worry. She clung to Kailun’s hand. “Can we change the terms? I can replace Shirley. You can do whatever you want to me.”

Kailun tugged at the chain around Hilna’s neck, pulling her closer. “A bet’s a bet. It’s disappointing that you, a princess, don’t even have this much grace. Besides, do I need your permission to do whatever I want to my pet?”

“…” Hilna bit her lip, her face full of grievance.

She didn’t want to talk about Kailun with Bella because she felt that she was special to him.

He seemed to bully her tirelessly, never satisfied.

She had indeed targeted Kailun, but none of her plans had succeeded. Unless… the things in her dreams were real to a certain extent.

Hilna suddenly recalled her previous dreams. The occasional touch of reality made her feel something different now.

“Are you spacing out again? You don’t look well. But I can help you cheer up.”

Seeing Hilna spacing out, Kailun simply picked her up and tucked her under his arm. He could still bully this disobedient princess many more times.

He might have been a bit busy recently and hadn’t paid her enough attention, but with the new bed, Kailun felt that he could balance things out.

However, Kailun didn’t take Hilna back to his bedroom. He took her straight to the courtyard.

It was only a little past 11:00 AM, not lunchtime yet, so Kailun felt that he could spare some time to “comfort” Hilna and revise the book at the same time.

Carol didn’t follow Kailun to the courtyard. She found the two elf sisters and decided to personally prepare a sumptuous lunch for him.

Of course, adding some “special ingredients” was standard procedure.

Kailun arrived at the courtyard and sat down, letting Hilna straddle him.

To avoid being thrown off, she had to tightly grip Kailun’s waist with her long, shapely legs, as if trying to break his back.

However, this not only failed to avenge her earlier humiliation but also made Kailun feel even more comfortable.

Her figure was mature and seductive, a rare beauty.

Fortunately, Hilna was wearing a long red dress today, so the bright skirt could conceal many “unsightly” marks.

Kailun slipped one hand under her skirt and opened the potionology book with the other. “I don’t need to teach you what to do, do I?”

“Can you be normal? This isn’t good for your health. Or can we do it tonight?”

Hilna panted slightly, her arms wrapped around Kailun’s neck. He had her completely under his control.

Although one hand wasn’t enough to fully “control” her, he could constantly change his grip, each attempt bringing a different experience.

“You don’t need to worry about me. I’m confident in my constitution.”

Kailun chuckled and allocated his attribute points to constitution and mental power.

The former was necessary preparation, and the latter was needed to revise the potionology book. It had been a long time, and many details had become blurry. Without the boost of his strong mental power, he might not be able to remember them.

“You know I hate you. Why do you still like doing this? Shouldn’t this kind of thing be more enjoyable with someone you love?”

Hilna complained, but to avoid further trouble, she still reached under her skirt.

Kailun had given her the initiative. If she didn’t do anything, she would probably face a more severe punishment. Compared to the unknown punishment, Hilna, who was already used to this, didn’t resist much.

“Ugh~”

Hilna first arched her back, then couldn’t help but moan. When she opened her eyes again, she was already sitting down.

Feeling satisfied, Kailun shifted his attention to the potionology book on the table. He took out his pen and started revising, lost in thought.

The content hadn’t been touched for a long time, so his writing was a bit rusty at first. It took him about ten seconds to get back into the groove.

However, once he started writing, a kind of mental inertia took over. As long as he progressed step by step, he could freely navigate the ocean of knowledge.

He could adjust his writing speed at will, fast or slow, shallow or deep. Even his grip on the pen could be easily modified.

“Flip!”

Soon, Kailun turned the page, indicating that he had finished checking the content on that page. It took him one minute.

However, this slow speed was only temporary. Soon, Hilna showed her adaptability.

To avoid disturbing Kailun, she wrapped her arms around his neck and placed her mouth on his shoulder.

Hilna nibbled on his shoulder with her teeth, effectively suppressing her moans.

But as Kailun’s revisions accelerated, the sound of flipping pages and Hilna’s gasps could no longer be contained.

The “flipping” sounds became faster and louder. There seemed to be other sounds mixed in, but they were hard to discern.

Kailun was extremely focused. Even the beauty in his arms couldn’t disrupt his rhythm.

His control over speed and pressure had reached a meticulous level. If he focused even more, he might even be able to pierce through the deepest layers of the book with his pen.

However, Kailun didn’t do that. Seeing Hilna’s distracted expression, he patted her bottom and said, “Pay attention to the book. If you see any mistakes, point them out.”

“I… I can’t. My mind is a mess. I can’t understand anything.”

Hilna shook her head, releasing Kailun’s shoulder. She felt like she was constantly being tossed and turned. Occasionally, when she glanced up, she could only see afterimages of Kailun’s hand movements.

Let alone pointing out mistakes, she couldn’t even clearly see the content on the page.

“That’s a pity. How about this? I’ll quiz you on the content later. For every mistake you make, I’ll add one minute.”

Kailun sighed. The foolish princess was truly useless.

The only consolation was that she was pleasant to “use.” If this idiot couldn’t improve, she could only be used as a “plaything.”

“I’ll die!”

Hilna, in a daze, quickly protested. “You can’t quiz me like this! I’ll definitely die from the quiz! I’m not familiar with the content of the book. I can’t handle such a quiz.”

“Is that so? Then let’s make it five seconds per mistake. I’m going to speed up the quiz now.”

Kailun cleared his throat, flipped to the first page of the potionology book, and asked quickly, “In what year did the concept of potionology originate? Who was its founder?”

“I know… It’s… It’s… Ugh~”

Hilna wanted to cry. She knew the answer, but she couldn’t say it.

Flushed with shame, she could only bite Kailun’s shoulder again.

[Hilna’s Goodwill +10, Total Goodwill -35]

Chapter 174: Repatriated Miners

After a sweet and stimulating breakfast, Kailun had the two elves clean up the table.

Fortunately, he had a strong constitution and didn’t get Carol’s skirt wet as she clung to him.

Kailun finished his last glass of milk, stood up, and looked at Bella. “I won’t comment on this method of repayment, but considering your hard work, I’m willing to put more effort into the plan. Also, if you have any questions about technique, you can ask Winnie. She’s quite skilled in certain areas.”

With the hope that Bella would continue to improve, Kailun pointed her in the right direction.

Then he took Carol back to the bedroom and had her change into a more conservative maid outfit.

After ten minutes, Kailun took Carol to the manor’s entrance to meet Roden, the old butler he hadn’t seen for a while. Thanks to Kailun’s generous provision of resources, Roden’s strength had improved, but he was still far from reaching the eighth rank.

Although he was still full of white hair, he looked much more energetic.

“Master Kailun, most of the plans you instructed have been prepared. Are there any other orders?”

Roden looked kind and familiar, as always.

Besides kindness, the look of relief in his eyes was even more apparent. Kailun’s growth in just over a month seemed magical and unbelievable to him.

“Thank you for your hard work, Old Roden. I couldn’t have done many things without your help.”

Kailun walked up to Roden and shook his hand.

Roden was impeccable in both ability and loyalty. His only problem was his age.

However, thanks to his increased strength, he had gained a longer lifespan, so he was technically “younger” now.

A smile appeared on Roden’s aged face. “You flatter me, Master. I’m just doing some trivial tasks. If you need me for anything else, please let me know. I will do my best to accomplish it.”

Kailun understood Roden’s personality, so he didn’t beat around the bush. He got straight to the point. “I called you back to finalize the previous plan, but now there’s something more urgent. I need you to take two people and disguise yourselves as ninth-rank reinforcements from the White Jade Alliance to support the Abyss. This task will probably take about ten days.”

Hearing the words “ninth-rank,” Roden frowned slightly. “Master Kailun, wouldn’t it be easy for me to be exposed if I pretend to be a ninth-rank mage? After all, there’s a huge gap between my strength and a true ninth-rank mage.”

“Is the gap really that big? Feel your current physical condition carefully.”

Kailun snapped his fingers, and power comparable to a ninth-rank mage surged into Roden’s aging body.

“This is…”

Roden clenched his fist, feeling the immense power filling his body. As his strength swelled in a short time, he had an illusion of invincibility.

“This is incredible! Is this the power you possess, Master?! Although I’m not a true ninth-rank mage, with this power, I believe I can perfectly disguise myself as one.”

Roden’s eyes sparkled. The magical power Kailun displayed gave him a glimpse of a glorious future.

Kailun: “Don’t worry, Old Roden. You just need to maintain the disguise, no need to fight. I’ll have Kailson assist you. You will pretend to be members of the White Jade Alliance, and the old Dragon King of the Abyss will be in charge of contacting you…”

Kailun briefly explained his plan, and Roden quickly understood his intentions.

After ten minutes, Roden bid farewell to Kailun. He needed to make some preparations.

Carol watched Roden’s retreating figure, tugged at Kailun’s sleeve, and asked, “How many people are you going to send to impersonate the reinforcements from the White Jade Alliance?”

“Three. Besides these three, I’ll also make other arrangements. There will be four or five ninth-rank mages in total.” Kailun replied casually.

Now, Paul had provided him with almost one and a half ninth-rank attribute points. The Pope, with her strong personal power, had provided him with even more attribute points than an average ninth-rank mage. And the one in the jade coffin had also contributed quite a bit.

Adding up all the scattered attribute points, Kailun could support five people at most.

Of course, this was under extreme allocation. Their actual combat power was naturally far inferior to that of true ninth-rank mages, but it was enough for a disguise.

For some reason, Carol’s eyes lit up when she heard this. “So, will your strength decrease significantly?”

The quick-witted Carol realized that every time Kailun granted power to others, his own strength would decline. Allocating power to several ninth-rank mages at once would definitely drain his own strength.

Then wouldn’t she be able to take advantage of this opportunity to do something?

“Ugh!”

Carol suddenly clutched her head and groaned.

“Don’t think I don’t know what you’re thinking. With your little sixth-rank body, I can suppress you with just a fraction of my power.”

Kailun flicked Carol’s forehead and then pinched her cheek.

He hadn’t expected this little girl to become so cunning. She didn’t have these thoughts before.

“I’ll be seventh-rank in half a month!” Carol retorted.

“So fast.” Kailun was a bit surprised by Carol’s progress. It was much faster than he had expected.

“So, are you going to reward me?” Carol moved closer to him, pulling away from his hand.

Kailun chuckled. “I can reward you with more magic crystals and high-rank scrolls. You can ask me for anything you need.”

“Is that all?” Carol pressed.

Kailun teased her, knowing full well what she wanted. “Let me think. I can also let you see the newly unearthed ninth-rank scrolls.”

He would tell her about the other rewards later as a surprise.

Carol: “…”

She knew he was teasing her, but she couldn’t help but want to pounce on him and bite him.

However, before she could pounce, Kailun took out his communication device. “The Rose Queen next door has tried to ask for my help. It seems like she’s under a lot of pressure.”

After glancing at Queen Rose’s magic letter, Kailun put away the device.

It seemed like he had another “toy” to play with. Kailun didn’t pay much attention, hoping to see a more interesting expression on Queen Rose’s face when they met again.

Kailun stretched and held out his hand to Carol. “Let’s go. Let’s go to the Royal Magic Academy and assign the new tasks to Edlin and Kailson.”

Carol didn’t hesitate. She grabbed Kailun’s hand with both hands, not giving him a chance to shake her off.

Her eyes held a hint of resentment.

……

“Janice, do you think I’m doing the right thing?”

On the way back to the Xiya Kingdom, Isabella asked her guard, Janice.

“Sorry, I can’t give you a definite answer. Although Kailun is a bad guy to the core, his attitude towards you seems okay. As you said before, his potential is not something a loose alliance can match.”

Janice had no good feelings for the demon who had taken Isabella away. In her eyes, Kailun was a greedy person who had not only taken Isabella but also the precious Loya troupe.

However, she couldn’t deny his excellence.

Transforming the ordinary Xiya Kingdom into its current state in just one month could only be described as a miracle.

“Indeed, you also think he’s more suitable. Those high-ranking members of the Loya Ball only care about their power. They can’t keep up with the times.”

Isabella tossed a gold coin high into the air, catching it with the back of her left hand as it fell.

Removing her right hand, the coin landed heads up on the back of her hand.

“I have to confront that guy when I get back. He threw me out of Kuye Town last time, making me miss an opportunity.”

She muttered to herself, as if finding a good excuse.

During her time away from the Xiya Kingdom, she had foreseen some new changes, the source of which wasn’t the Xiya Kingdom but the Temple of the Celestial God.

She felt a bit uneasy, a bit worried.

Her Fate Magic had made significant progress during her stay in the Xiya Kingdom. She could now grasp some of the threads of fate.

They were like thin threads, entwining the entire world, seemingly chaotic but with traceable patterns.

Fate was a magical thing. Isabella felt that she was getting closer to the truth.

“By the way, Janice, do you think there’s magic in this world that can make the body bigger or smaller?”

Isabella suddenly thought of something, her eyes filled with longing.

As a world-renowned “pure desire” woman, very few people had seen her true face. Even her relatives and the high-ranking members of the Loya Ball had only seen her wearing a veil.

She had extraordinary talent, but her physical condition held her back.

Apart from a few perverts, very few people would be interested in a girl of her size.

Not to mention, Isabella felt that even a big pervert like Kailun wouldn’t be curious about her.

Thinking of this, she felt even more depressed.

“I’ve heard of it, but as far as I know, that kind of magic has been lost for a long time.”

Janice pondered for a moment. “In my memory, this kind of magic originated from some shape-shifting races in the Abyss. As they gradually evolved to resemble humans, this magic gradually disappeared from history.”

Janice glanced at Isabella’s chest. “So, it’s probably impossible to achieve the kind of size change you’re thinking about.”

“Hey! Where are you looking?!”

Isabella covered her chest with her arms and glared at Janice. “I don’t have such vulgar thoughts. Don’t look at me with those dirty eyes.”

“Sigh, it seems that Miss Isabella has grown up. You’re starting to care about your body now.”

Janice teased Isabella.

Isabella clenched her small fists and threatened, “Janice, if I hear you say anything like that again, I’ll introduce you to Kailun.”

Hearing Kailun’s name, Janice’s pupils constricted. “Sorry, I admit I was a bit loud just now. Please forgive me. I won’t state the facts in front of you again.”

Although Janice was Isabella’s guard, they had a good relationship after spending so much time together and would occasionally joke with each other.

But today, Janice clearly hadn’t realized that her joke had crossed Isabella’s limit.

“It’s okay, I was just kidding. You’re so old, Janice. Kailun probably wouldn’t be interested in you. That’s right, in his eyes, you’re not even as good as those young and beautiful singers. After all, he took everyone else last time and left you behind.”

Isabella, influenced by Kailun, had learned how to be hurtful with her words. After saying that, she felt much better.

Janice awkwardly twitched her lips. Isabella had really changed after being with Kailun. She wouldn’t have said such hurtful things before.

She touched her face. Although she was a bit older than Isabella, she wasn’t that old.

But even if it were true, it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. She was genuinely afraid of Kailun.

The more she learned about him, the more distorted his image became.

For those who knew him but weren’t very familiar with him, Kailun was a true demon.

……

Soon, Kailun arrived at the Magic Academy with Carol. He first had someone contact Kailson, who was teaching a class, and then went to Edlin’s office.

Edlin had taken his advice and shifted her focus to managing the academy.

To Kailun’s surprise, Edlin, short of money, had naturally increased the tuition fees for the students. Although the money hadn’t been collected yet, he had already heard about it.

That was to be expected. It was very much in line with Edlin’s personality. She was hopelessly greedy.

“Bang!”

Kailun pushed open the office door and saw Edlin sitting behind her desk, going over the account books. His sudden appearance made her eyes widen.

Aside from her unique aura, the petite Edlin looked more like a student.

“Well, well, well. If it isn’t our Vice Dean Edlin. You look like you’re about to strike it rich.”

He walked into the office and stood in front of Edlin’s desk, looking down at her.

Carol, following behind him, thoughtfully closed the door and cast a soundproof spell.

“I’m not! I haven’t! You misunderstood!”

Edlin quickly hid the account book behind her back, cold sweat dripping down her forehead.

“Oh, so I misunderstood? I heard that Vice Dean Edlin has imposed high tuition fees on the students. It seems that’s not the case.”

Kailun sat on Edlin’s desk, picking up a pen and playing with it casually.

“That’s just a rumor, or someone using my name to collect fees. I know nothing about it.”

Edlin quickly denied any involvement, her panic making her sense something was amiss in Kailun’s words, but she didn’t think too much about it.

Kailun put the pen down on the desk with a blank expression. “Is that so? It seems I have to investigate this personally. I can’t let our Vice Dean Edlin suffer injustice.”

The pen in his hand pierced the desk, burying itself deep in the wood. In Edlin’s eyes, it wasn’t the desk that Kailun had pierced, but her body.

She hugged her chest, her heart pounding against her ribs.

“No, no, no. There’s no need for you to investigate this personally.”

Edlin quickly stood up and approached Kailun, asking obediently, “Is there anything I can do for you?”

She wanted to change the subject. If they continued to dwell on this matter, she felt like she would really die.

Before doing this, she had realized that she might be targeted by Kailun, but the greed deep in her bones made her choose to gamble again.

It wasn’t an exaggeration to call Edlin a gambler. This was an obsession, a disease.

Kailun slapped his forehead. “Right, I came here to ask you to find someone to do something for me. I need to send a batch of disobedient miners to various corners of the Temple of the Celestial God, the more scattered the better. There are a total of ten thousand miners to be repatriated. I’ll pay a hundred gold coins for each successful repatriation.”

“Gasp!”

Edlin’s breath quickened upon hearing Kailun’s offer.

She could earn a hundred gold coins for sending one miner back to the Temple of the Celestial God. Sending ten thousand miners back would earn her one million gold coins.

If she could complete this task, not only would she be able to pay off her 500,000 gold coin debt to Kailun, but she would also make a profit of 500,000 gold coins.

It wasn’t difficult to repatriate some miners to the Temple of the Celestial God. At least, Edlin didn’t think it was a difficult task.

“Don’t worry, Lord Kailun. I will definitely find the right people to do this for you. I guarantee that they will be delivered to the designated locations on time and in full. However, the Temple of the Celestial God is very far from our Xiya Kingdom. It will take some time, at least eight days.”

Edlin poured Kailun a cup of tea with a flattering smile. Glancing at Carol, she thoughtfully poured her a cup of hot tea as well.

A former Saint, reduced to this state by the Temple of the Celestial God. Kailun sighed inwardly.

Kind-hearted Kailun took out a contract from his pocket and handed it to Edlin. “Complete my request within nine days. If you fail to do so, I will demand that you settle all your debts. If you can’t afford to pay, you’ll be my exclusive coachman for life.”

Edlin took the contract from Kailun and glanced at it. The content was normal. The only thing worth noting was that she had to compensate for any missing or dead miners, at a cost of a hundred gold coins per miner.

“Lord Kailun, will there be any danger along the way?” Edlin asked cautiously.

Kailun pulled the pen out of the desk and handed it to Edlin. “There might be danger, so you better divide these miners into smaller groups and send them back to the Temple of the Celestial God from different directions. And try not to let the Temple know about this before they return safely. After all, this is a surprise.”

Edlin was capable and worth nurturing, but her personality had major flaws.

Kailun’s assessment was that she just needed to learn a few more lessons. He would give Edlin a memorable experience.

If a debt of one million gold coins couldn’t wake her up, then he would make it five million, ten million…

“I have a feeling your smile is dangerous. Maybe we should let someone else do this…”

Seeing Kailun’s mischievous smile, Edlin hesitated for the first time.

“No rush. I’ll give you some time to think about it. Come to me this afternoon with your answer. By the way, I’ll take the account book for now. Come and get it yourself this afternoon. I’ll give you a chance to admit your mistake then.”

Kailun tapped Edlin’s head with the black account book.

Edlin: “!!!”

Her secret accounts were in there!

Her head felt dizzy and ached. Edlin had a feeling she might be severely “disciplined” this afternoon.

Chapter 173: Bella’s Future

According to Bella’s account, the Werewolf Clan was a large clan in the Abyss, with a population of about two million. The old Werewolf King was a powerful figure among the ninth-rank mages.

Among the remaining Abyssal races, the Werewolf Clan was the most well-preserved.

The Werewolf Clan had undergone significant changes compared to ten thousand years ago. Their most prominent features were the wolf ears on their heads and the wolf tails behind them. Their extendable claws were their primary weapons.

Their cultivation method was similar to that of warriors, focusing on enhancing their physical bodies with magic power.

It was worth noting that two other clan chiefs in the Abyss were supporters of the Werewolf King. The three of them held considerable influence.

However, none of this mattered to Kailun. What he cared about was the impact their reckless actions would have on him.

Such irrational decisions were usually driven by someone behind the scenes. Kailun could think of many possibilities, but he couldn’t be sure.

In his previous life, the Abyss had Carol as their trump card and could hold on with hope. But this time, their greatest advantage had been snatched away by Kailun.

Without their trump card, the Abyss had undergone unexpected changes, their decisions bordering on madness.

Before figuring out anything else, it was crucial to identify who would ultimately benefit from this situation.

Thinking about it this way, the answer was obvious. The Temple of the Celestial God was the Abyss’s opponent, and they were the ones who would gain from this.

Currently, the only forces capable of conquering the Abyss were the Temple of the Celestial God and the newly formed White Jade Alliance.

However, the latter could be ignored for now. They weren’t a cohesive fighting force yet.

The Pope’s forces were scattered and couldn’t guarantee a victory, so the remaining possibility was obvious. The word “Empress” appeared in Kailun’s mind once again.

Although it was just a guess, Kailun naturally thought of her.

He had mentioned before that the Temple of the Celestial God was composed of two parts: the Celestial Empire and the Holy Temple, ruled by the Empress and the Pope respectively.

The Holy Temple was undoubtedly the more prominent of the two, so most people considered it the main part of the Temple of the Celestial God, even viewing them as a single entity.

However, in reality, they were two separate entities. The Empress governed the Empire, stabilizing their foundation, while the Pope wielded faith and harvested believers from all over the world.

Their strength was comparable, and under normal circumstances, they would help each other.

But interestingly, the current Pope and Empress were both women, which went against the normal succession of the Temple of the Celestial God.

Thinking about this, Kailun’s mind raced. He looked at Bella with a mischievous smile. “Actually, solving this problem is very simple. It depends on whether the old Dragon King is willing to swallow his pride.”

“Do you really have a solution?”

Bella looked at Kailun with wide, sparkling eyes.

“The solution is simple. Since the Abyss wants to reclaim the mines, we’ll secretly help them. Oh, no, it should be the White Jade Alliance that helps the Abyss reclaim the mines.”

Kailun rubbed Bella’s soft cheeks, a mischievous idea forming in his mind.

Illusion and Vivian exchanged glances and shook their heads, clearly not understanding Kailun’s thoughts.

The current Xiya Kingdom didn’t have the strength to confront the Temple of the Celestial God head-on, not even with the Abyss’s help.

“Explain it clearly. Don’t be so cryptic.”

Vivian stretched out her small foot and gently kicked Kailun under the table.

Kailun glared at Vivian, hinting that she would pay for this later. Then he said to Bella, “It’s very simple. Let’s ignore the fact that the Werewolf King might have lost his mind. Focus on the mines and help the Abyss achieve their goal. Then it doesn’t matter if the mastermind behind this is the Empress or the Pope. The Werewolf King, who is possibly connected to the Temple of the Celestial God, will inevitably be suspected. Once he’s in the hot seat, he’ll have to become a ‘good citizen,’ whether he wants to or not.”

Currently, it seemed that the so-called Werewolf King had most likely reached some agreement with the Temple of the Celestial God.

“Are you saying that the Temple of the Celestial God is behind this?” Bella asked, touching Kailun’s hand.

“It’s just a guess, but it’s probably true. Even if it’s not, it doesn’t matter.”

Kailun shrugged. Whether it was true or not wasn’t the key. The key was to help the Abyss win this war and further weaken the Temple of the Celestial God.

To avoid igniting a world war, this war would end quickly according to Kailun’s plan.

“You’re going to help the Abyss? But this is detrimental to the Xiya Kingdom’s current position. You just declared that the Xiya Kingdom is absolutely neutral.”

Vivian questioned, fiddling with the unfinished wood carving in her hand.

“Slap!”

Kailun felt someone kick him under the table again. He reached out and slapped the foot.

“Ouch!”

It was Illusion who jumped up. She felt like her foot was red from the slap.

Kailun looked at Illusion in surprise. “If you’re naughty again, I’ll take you to Kano Prison and bully you for ten hours in front of Vivian. You won’t even have a chance to say stop.”

“I’ll be waiting~”

Illusion thought Kailun was joking and winked at him.

Kailun smiled kindly at Illusion, saying nothing.

Phils was still avoiding him today. He was curious how many hours Illusion could last. If he was in good condition, he might be able to “extend” her time for a whole month.

Bella blushed, looking at Kailun. She hadn’t expected them to be so “bold.”

“Back to the topic. The Xiya Kingdom is indeed absolutely neutral. That won’t change. So what does it have to do with me, Kailun, that the old Dragon King, Bolton, sought help from the White Jade Alliance?”

Kailun spread his hands, washing his hands of any involvement.

Only then did they understand why Kailun had asked the old Dragon King to sacrifice some of his pride.

But there was still a crucial question. Even with the support of the “White Jade Alliance,” could the Abyss defeat the Temple of the Celestial God?

Kailun quickly provided an explanation.

Kailun: “Under normal circumstances, they definitely can’t win. After all, the White Jade Alliance won’t actually send six powerful reinforcements. But I, out of kindness, will send a batch of disobedient miners back to Alaye, the headquarters of the Temple of the Celestial God. I believe the Pope and the Empress will warmly welcome them.”

Vivian, who knew some inside information, exclaimed, “Are you planning to have those people set off fireworks in Alaye? Are you crazy?”

“Who said I want to set off fireworks? Am I that kind of heartless person?”

Kailun fiddled with Bella’s dragon horns. “I’m really sending these miners back out of kindness. It’s none of my business if the Temple of the Celestial God overthinks it. However, given their ‘enthusiasm,’ they’ll probably keep a lot of forces there as a precaution. This will significantly affect the balance of power on the battlefield.”

He wasn’t lying. Setting off fireworks in Alaye would undoubtedly trigger a decisive battle prematurely, which wasn’t what Kailun wanted.

Sending a batch of ordinary miners without the ability to set off fireworks was enough to divert their attention. He had to make the Temple of the Celestial God keep their main forces at their headquarters.

Illusion gave Kailun a thumbs-up with her foot. “… As expected of you.”

Her small foot, wrapped in white silk stockings, had a pinkish hue under the sunlight. Her slightly spread toes were small and cute, like crystal clear white grapes.

“I don’t quite understand, but it sounds amazing. Can this really help the Abyss?”

Bella’s eyes sparkled. Kailun’s image in her heart grew even taller.

Kailun: “I can’t say it’s a sure win, but there’s room for error. Even if something goes wrong, they can retreat safely. At the same time, this will also force some people in the Abyss to clear their minds. And the White Jade Alliance, who are observing the situation, will also be dragged into it. I can’t see any downsides. Perhaps the only problem is how Little Bella is going to pay for my advice.”

“Ah… Would I do?”

Bella was stunned by Kailun’s question, then she smiled slyly and puffed out her chest.

“Master, your breakfast is ready.”

Just then, Carol squeezed past Bella and sat on Kailun’s lap, glancing warily at the “easy” dragon girl beside her.

If Bella snatched away something she hadn’t even tasted yet, she wouldn’t be able to live with herself.

Carol sat in the remaining space between Kailun’s legs and subtly scooted back, rubbing her bottom, clad in a miniskirt, against him.

The well-placed stimulation made Kailun’s hand tremble. He first said to Bella, “You, Bella, are certainly good enough, but it’s not enough. I’ll discuss the distribution of the mines with your grandfather later.”

He wouldn’t let go of this “easy” dragon girl, but he also had to fight for more benefits. The share of the reclaimed mines

would be considered Bella’s dowry. The Abyss wouldn’t lose out.

Without his intervention, the Abyss would either be destroyed or suffer heavy losses this time.

Before he and Carol fully matured, the Abyss couldn’t fall.

“Oh~”

Bella obediently responded to Kailun’s request. She wouldn’t interfere in matters at such a high level. As long as Kailun could protect the Abyss for her sake, it was enough.

[After hearing your plan, Bella thinks you’re omnipotent. Goodwill +5, Total Goodwill 87]

The little dragon girl took another big step on the path of “offering herself.” Perhaps it wouldn’t be long before she took another step forward.

“Excuse us, Master. This is your breakfast. Please enjoy.” Louise, the elder elf sister, said.

The elf sisters appeared behind him, carrying a sumptuous breakfast.

Kailun nodded at the two sisters. “Just put it on the table.”

“As you command.”

The elf sisters obediently placed the breakfast on the stone table.

Now they were wearing maid outfits similar to Carol’s.

Their miniskirts barely covered their spring scenery, and their low-cut tops exposed a large expanse of their fair skin. To save fabric, the thin material had been modified at the sides of their armpits, causing their ample side breasts to spill out under the pressure of the clothing.

They had never worn such revealing clothes before and didn’t even dare to leave their room the first time they put them on.

Fortunately, Kailun was the only male in the small building. After realizing this, they became a little bolder.

Initially, they thought Kailun would eagerly “devour” them, but that didn’t happen. Instead, their first task was to build a special large bed.

They were a little disappointed, but after seeing all the beauties in the small building, they felt relieved.

Not to mention, even the dancers they often encountered were exceptionally beautiful, let alone those who received Kailun’s special attention.

Realizing that their beauty wasn’t that rare, the elf sisters began to focus on their work.

“Let me feed you, ah~”

Carol scooped up a spoonful of porridge and brought it to Kailun’s mouth.

Perhaps because of Carol’s rare initiative, Kailun reacted a bit slowly. By the time he came to his senses, she had already put the spoon in her mouth and then fed him mouth-to-mouth.

Direct and bold, she had the aura of a true villainess.

Kailun didn’t refuse, as the girl’s tongue was too soft and sweet.

The only problem was that he had to ask Carol to add less sugar to the porridge next time. It was too sweet.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk!” Illusion covered her mouth with her sleeve, the sound of her tongue clicking clearly audible.

Vivian glared at Kailun. “Vulgar pervert!”

She then grabbed the unfinished wood carving in one hand and pulled Illusion’s sleeve with the other, leaving the courtyard.

She couldn’t watch this scene any longer. If she did, she would be unable to resist getting involved.

Vivian secretly stuck out her tongue and licked her lips. Why did it taste a bit bitter?

Bella, the only one left, looked at Carol enviously. Her gaze lingered on where their lips met. Besides the thick porridge, she seemed to see some other liquid.

Bella’s agile dragon tail slipped under the table and wrapped around Kailun’s foot. After a moment’s thought, she decided not to back down and secretly slid her tail up his trouser leg.

Soon, Bella skillfully found her target with her tail.

“Ugh~”

Carol suddenly pulled away from Kailun’s mouth, covering her mouth in surprise. He had bitten her tongue.

Tears welled up in Carol’s eyes. It wasn’t because of the pain, but because she didn’t understand why he had bitten her. She was worried that he disliked her for being too forward.

“Sorry, sorry, my fault.” Kailun quickly apologized.

It was purely an involuntary reaction. After all, the cool touch of the dragon tail always brought unexpected stimulation.

Carol, with her sharp senses, quickly noticed something was wrong. She glanced at Bella and then down at her tail, realizing that she had been “attacked from behind.”

It was as if Carol was determined to compete with Bella. Ignoring her slightly red tongue, she took a big gulp of warm milk, her cheeks puffed out like a cute hamster.

Before Kailun could admire her cuteness, she leaned in again and transferred the milk into his mouth.

Taking advantage of the moment he swallowed, she entangled her tongue with his, like two intertwined snakes.

Bella, on the other side, refused to be outdone. She increased the pressure of her tail, wrapping it tighter and tighter around him. Her cool and slender tail was surprisingly strong.

The elf sisters behind Kailun covered each other’s eyes. “See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil.” Little maids shouldn’t watch this.

However, their eyes were fixed on the scene through the gaps between their fingers, a sense of forbidden pleasure filling them. Their bodies felt warm.

The two sisters began to wonder if the elf race was really as depraved and lustful as outsiders said.

……

Chapter 172: I Want to Live in Your Heart

At 3:00 AM, the Pope, who had just fallen asleep, received the latest news from Charles.

The message stated that Paul, the current Saint, had taken advantage of Charles’s absence to call Koya and open the door. Henry, the previous Saint, who had been turned into a bird, was successfully devoured by Paul.

Now, Paul had successfully advanced to the ninth rank, and Koya had also sided with him. This left Charles, alone, unable to take action against Paul.

Fortunately, Charles had been quick-witted and captured Harry as a hostage, giving him leverage in the confrontation.

“Are they trying to drive me crazy?!”

The Pope clutched her head. She wanted to rush to Charles and Koya, scold them both, and then crush Paul’s head with her foot.

Henry, worth three million gold coins, had been devoured just like that!

They were all ninth-rank mages of the Temple of the Celestial God, yet they had been outsmarted by a mere Saint. Wouldn’t they become a laughingstock if word of this got out?

Upon learning of this, the Pope could no longer sit still. She wanted to set off immediately.

However, one wrong move could affect everything. She couldn’t leave the Temple recklessly. She had to make many preparations before leaving.

She had to consider the Empress. If she left and returned to find herself stripped of her power, she wouldn’t even have a place to cry.

Most of her forces were currently deployed outside, mainly focusing on blockading the Abyss and developing the mines. Charles and Koya were also valuable assets.

There were very few top-tier forces left at Alaye, their headquarters. Her departure would leave them vulnerable.

The world was changing rapidly. She had to be wary of the Empress. After all, the existence of both of them was detrimental to the continuation of the Temple of the Celestial God.

The Empress clearly knew more secrets than she did. She must have her own plans, keeping them from the Pope.

“The Temple’s Destiny Divination Device hasn’t been repaired yet, Chrissy is sacrificing herself, and Charles’s mission has encountered problems…”

Troubled by a multitude of issues, the Pope got out of bed, wearing her clothes but barefoot. She walked to a wall in her room and looked up at a huge map.

It was a world map, depicting not only the Temple of the Celestial God and the Abyss, but also the Xiya Kingdom, marked in red.

She had also marked the distribution of forces in each region. There were six marks on the Xiya Kingdom’s territory, representing the six mysterious ninth-rank vice presidents.

There were also six marks on the Abyss’s territory, indicating that the Abyss had weakened to the point where only six ninth-rank mages remained.

She had once suspected that the mysterious ninth-rank mages of the Xiya Kingdom were actually from the Abyss, but this suspicion didn’t last long. The Cardinals stationed outside the Abyss had pinpointed the locations of four individuals from the Abyss.

Then she looked at the newly formed White Jade Alliance’s territory. There was a conspicuous question mark on the map.

The Pope had a vague estimate of their number of ninth-rank mages, but she couldn’t be sure.

After staring at the world map for half an hour, she walked barefoot to the table and picked up her communication device.

She quickly wrote a magic letter to Helena, wanting to know about Chrissy’s situation.

She never doubted Helena’s loyalty. Even if Chrissy betrayed her, Helena wouldn’t.

In her eyes, Helena wasn’t afraid of death.

About ten minutes later, she received a reply from Helena. The content was simple, just one sentence: “Saint Chrissy is working hard.”

……

The world could change overnight.

Rose slept soundly and didn’t wake up until 9:00 the next morning.

At 9:30 AM, after getting dressed and washing up, Rose was about to have breakfast when she suddenly received news. A maid told her that the capital was surrounded by a group of thieves.

Yes, a group of thieves.

Rose repeatedly confirmed with the maid before believing that her vast capital was actually surrounded by a group of thieves.

Moreover, it was said that there was an eighth-rank mage among them.

It was utterly ridiculous! An eighth-rank mage was powerful enough to be a king. Why would they be a thief?

Rose hurriedly went to the city wall and saw a well-organized army lined up in front of the city.

They were dressed like thieves, but their aura was completely different.

There were only about 30,000 soldiers, but their disciplined appearance was clearly not something ordinary thieves could achieve.

Initially, Rose thought that the army in front of her came from the Madden and Kaz Kingdoms, but looking at the heavily concealed figure at the front of the army, she felt a sense of familiarity, but she couldn’t remember who it was.

Rose’s appearance couldn’t be hidden from the “thieves.” A knight beside Bruce stepped forward and shouted, “We heard that Queen Rose is stunningly beautiful and the most desirable woman in the world. Our lord wishes to have a taste of your beauty. If Queen Rose is willing to surrender, we will spare the lives of the people in the capital.”

“Is the lord you’re referring to the eighth-rank mage beside you?” Rose asked coldly from the city wall.

The current Rose Kingdom didn’t have the strength to fight an eighth-rank mage. Even her capital could only hold out for a day or two with the help of defensive magic circles.

To solve this problem, she needed external help. However, she had been banished by Kailun and couldn’t rely on his power.

Gritting her teeth, she couldn’t believe that she had been rejected as an escort even with her beauty.

“It’s not the lord beside me.”

The knight beside Bruce pointed at him. “This lord is the vice-captain of our thief group. Our captain is someone else. That lord is a radiant being. It’s your honor to submit to him. So, Queen Rose, have you made your decision?”

Rose: “…”

This scene felt familiar.

She remembered!

Last time, her grandfather Bruce had also tricked her like this, saying that there was a lord who could save her from her predicament. But in the end, she discovered that the one who saved her and the one who harmed her were the same person.

Now, hearing the title “lord” again, she had a bad feeling.

“Lord Kailun of the Xiya Kingdom is backing me. If you don’t want to be targeted by him, retreat now. I can pretend that this never happened.”

Rose tried to intimidate them with Kailun’s name, which already carried a strong deterrent effect.

However, the other party remained unmoved. The knight chuckled. “Queen Rose, you probably think we didn’t do our research before coming here. Unfortunately, we did. We not only know that you schemed against and killed a duke from your own kingdom in the Xiya Kingdom, but we also know that you were abandoned by Lord Kailun. So, having lost the support of the people and your backing, do you still intend to resist?”

Rose tried to explain, “I…”

But Bruce calmly waved his hand.

“Boom!”

A loud explosion came from the capital’s magic circle. A huge fireball rose into the air.

Although it was blocked, Rose felt that the magic circle above her head wouldn’t last long.

Cries and wails filled the city, as if the sky was falling. The deterrent power of an eighth-rank mage successfully intimidated the commoners.

Bruce didn’t want to talk anymore. He just needed to exert enough pressure, as Kailun had instructed.

“Stop! Let’s talk things over…”

As soon as she spoke, Rose saw countless cold eyes staring at her.

Both the knights below and the vice-captain at the front looked at her with pity.

Although there were still dozens of magic cannons on the city wall, Rose felt no sense of security.

Should she fight back?

She glanced at the trembling soldiers and hesitated.

At this moment, Kailun’s smiling face flashed through her mind once again.

……

“Not bad. I managed to finish a scroll in one night. I’m truly a genius.”

At 10:00 AM, Kailun put down the scroll in his hand and stretched.

Carol had woken up earlier and had been massaging his shoulders for several hours.

“The elf sisters finished assembling the new bed and delivered it to your room two hours ago. Also, there are rumors in the city that you killed the eighth-rank mage from the Temple of the Celestial God and kept the one million gold coins for yourself. The Chamber of Commerce’s reputation has been slightly affected.”

Seeing Kailun relax, Carol reported some of the day’s events.

“Don’t worry about such a minor impact. Have the Loya Ball handle it.”

Mentioning the Loya Ball, Kailun thought of Isabella. He had already obtained Edlin’s magic and was curious about what Isabella would look like after being “enlarged.”

“I asked Isabella. She’s already on her way back and should arrive at the Royal City in two days. However, it’s worth noting that the attitude of the Loya Ball’s leadership is ambiguous. They joined the White Jade Alliance a few days ago.”

Carol rested her chin on Kailun’s head.

“I know. As for the Loya Ball’s leadership, don’t worry too much about them. Even combined, they’re not as important as Isabella. Besides, it’s a good thing that they joined the White Jade Alliance. I might be able to infiltrate the alliance through them.”

Kailun leaned back, resting his head on Carol’s soft chest.

He had already found the location of the White Jade Alliance’s headquarters through Henry. He could go there anytime.

Although they were powerful as a group, they weren’t united and posed no real threat.

He believed that the Pope had sent Charles to the White Jade Alliance to infiltrate it. If Paul could cooperate with Charles, they might have a chance.

But unfortunately, with Paul’s personality, it was unlikely that he would cooperate.

With the addition of Koya, a ninth-rank mage, the Temple of the Celestial God’s forces within the White Jade Alliance were already quite strong.

On the contrary, their headquarters in Alaye must be much weaker now.

It was a pity that Alaye was located within the Empire. Otherwise, he could find time to sneak in and have some fun.

He had already figured out the Pope’s trump cards, but the mysterious Empress had never shown her face.

She rarely made any moves, so rarely that Kailun had no impression of her from his previous life.

In the past month or so, he had stirred up a lot of trouble and had clashed with the Temple of the Celestial God at least three times, but the Empress had never intervened.

This wasn’t normal.

“Carol, is there anywhere you want to go?” Kailun looked up at her.

Carol nodded. “Yes.”

Kailun: “Where?”

“Here.”

Carol gently poked Kailun’s chest with her finger. “I just want to stay by your side, live in your heart.”

Kailun was stunned for a moment and then smiled. “I almost fell for your trick. I didn’t expect you to learn how to be so cunning. But it doesn’t sound bad. You can say more nice things like that.”

He didn’t doubt the sincerity of Carol’s words. Her goodwill was as high as 98, just a step away from breaking through 100.

Kailun had never deliberately tried to increase her goodwill. He treated her with sincerity. This was his affirmation of this “final boss.”

After flirting for about ten minutes, they left the library. On their way to the dining hall, they encountered Bella, her eyes slightly red.

“Kailun, those idiots in the Abyss have lost their minds and are planning to do something stupid.”

Bella cried as she threw herself into Kailun’s arms, her dragon horns poking his chest.

Kailun gasped and silently increased his constitution attribute. He gently stroked Bella’s head with his trembling hand. “Don’t worry, you can tell me anything. Let’s talk in the courtyard. It’s more private there.”

He supported Bella’s exposed shoulder and gently pushed her forward. She looked tearful, as if she had experienced a major upheaval.

“I’ll go prepare breakfast for Master. Please wait a moment.”

Carol took a step back and curtsied, her skirt swaying slightly as she retreated.

Kailun glanced at her. Hmm, her miniskirt had ridden up.

“Thank you.”

Kailun responded to Carol and then led Bella towards the courtyard, away from the dining hall.

After about two or three minutes, he arrived at the courtyard with Bella.

The courtyard was quiet. Only Illusion and Vivian, who looked exactly alike, were sitting at the stone table, studying the art of carving.

Phils, Anna, Ella, and Afra were all busy with work. It was thanks to their efforts that Kailun could focus on more important matters.

It was a joke that Eve, the young knight, had planned to find an opportunity to “play” with Kailun, but she had been dragged away for training by Afra.

Kailun sat down on the remaining empty seat with Bella. “Now you can tell me what happened. Take your time, don’t rush.”

Illusion and Vivian looked at Bella when they heard Kailun’s words. They also had a good impression of this beautiful dragon girl.

They were all on the same side, so Kailun didn’t need to avoid suspicion. He chose to talk in the courtyard because the environment was more pleasant.

“After some discussion, the Abyss’s high-ranking members decided to fight a decisive battle with the Temple of the Celestial God. They want to take back the lost mines. Grandpa objected, but he couldn’t stop them. In the end, he was forced to participate in the plan. Grandpa told me to stay by your side and not go back. He said the Abyss has changed.”

Bella sobbed as she buried her face in Kailun’s chest. “It’s not rational! It doesn’t make sense at all! They’re not usually this reckless! This is suicide for the entire Abyss!”

She knew the difference in strength between the two sides. The Abyss’s high-ranking members couldn’t possibly be unaware. Therefore, Bella couldn’t understand their decision.

This time, Kailun didn’t push Bella away. He pondered, “It is indeed irrational. This isn’t how the Abyss usually operates. Moreover, they didn’t inform me, completely ignoring me, their potential ally. It doesn’t make sense from any perspective. Currently, the forces deployed by the Temple of the Celestial God at the mines should be on par with the Abyss. They don’t have a guaranteed victory.”

Kailun made Bella look up at him. “So the more irrational something is, the easier it is to solve. Do you know who proposed this plan? How many of their clansmen are there in the Abyss? What is their relationship with others like? How high is their status?”

Bella wiped her eyes with Kailun’s sleeve and looked at him with affection. “The leader of this plan is the Werewolf Clan King…”