Easy to defend, hard to attack.
"Lamian, welcome to my castle."
"As the master of this place, I sincerely invite you to stay in my home for a few days."
"Then I'll accept your kind invitation."
Lamian lifted her skirt and pushed open the castle gates.
She also wanted to stay here for a few days and properly experience something completely different from Banshee River Valley.
Perhaps because of the lower Originium content in the air, Lamian had felt completely refreshed ever since entering Eden, as if she were soaking in a hot spring during winter.
Even the air was sweet. Here, that was absolutely not an exaggerated description.
"Welcome to the castle, Lamian. I'm the lady of this castle, and this is Silkai, one of its servants."
As a devoted family man, Huang Cao had already informed Warfarin before inviting Lamian to his territory.
"She's such a beautiful and adorable girl. Huang Cao, you have to treat her well."
Lamian smiled gently as she took an obviously priceless necklace from her pocket and placed it around Warfarin's fair neck.
"This is too valuable."
"It's all right. Huang Cao once stayed in Banshee River Valley for some time and helped us a great deal. Consider this thanks for his assistance."
Looking at the gentle woman before her, the last trace of worry in Warfarin's heart vanished without a trace.
Perhaps because it was her first time experiencing love, she was unusually sensitive to many things as a Blood Demon.
Warfarin had just felt that, compared with Lamian, her own looks and figure were not perfect enough.
She had even worried that her treasure might be stolen.
But it was only when she met this woman that she realized how narrow-minded she had been.
Lamian was the dignified Lord of the Royal Court. Why would she compete with her over something?
The two of them were simply friends.
Seen that way, Lamian probably regarded Ah Cao as a junior.
In fact, a certain Blood Demon had forgotten that Huang Cao had told her his age more than once.
Warfarin was old enough to be his ancestor, so in a sense, this Blood Demon was an old cow eating young grass.
Perhaps it was because she had lived for a long time, combined with her excellent state of mind.
From the moment they met until she was taken, Warfarin had always treated Huang Cao as her contemporary.
Huang Cao could not get a word in during the women's conversation, so he simply walked aside with Kal'tsit.
Rather than merely going aside, though, the two of them went to a secluded room with excellent soundproofing.
"Miss Silkai, you've worked hard recently. Take this bag of gold coins and keep it for travel expenses."
"Master, what do you mean? And didn't you say my name was awkward to pronounce?"
Kal'tsit asked knowingly while putting on a pitiful expression.
Huang Cao really wanted to record Kal'tsit's pretentious act. After all, she was always so serious in the future and rarely acted this lively.
The boy shook his head, then his figure flashed. In an instant, he removed the veil from Kal'tsit's face.
"Should I call you Miss Silkai or Commander Kal'tsit? We've known each other for so long. There's no need to keep hiding things from each other, is there?"
"Since you've put it that way, I don't want to continue playing this boring game either."
After they completely understood each other, Kal'tsit no longer affected that manner of speaking.
The voice she had deliberately put on to seem more lively instantly changed into the cold, emotionless voice from the story.
"So, did you get the answer you wanted here?"
"If I had a microscope and a tool capable of damaging that tree, I think I would have made some progress by now."
"I'm asking what you got from the bedsheets in my room."
Kal'tsit was immediately rendered speechless, and her expression turned awkward.
She could hardly say that she had deliberately changed the bedsheets to collect genetic fragments.
Since she could not obtain biological tissue from the Golden Tree, she could only use this boy's genes as a substitute for her experiment.
And because Huang Cao was vigilant while also leading a perfectly normal life, there had been no little story about an evil noble forcing a cat-eared maid to scrub his back.
After thinking it over, that night had been Kal'tsit's only chance to obtain experimental material.
"I admit that your abilities in that area are truly admirable, so I wanted to learn more about you."
Whenever Kal'tsit recalled the night Huang Cao and Warfarin had faced each other honestly, she felt tormented by the sleep she had gotten that day.
But how had this fellow known that she had secretly changed the bedsheets?
As for blushing, Kal'tsit had even more outrageous remarks in her mind that could make the boy back down.
She could even disgust him. The only question was whether she wanted to.
Huang Cao: "...Isn't it just that? I didn't expect you to care about your dignity too."
The corner of Kal'tsit's mouth lifted by a single pixel. "Then, Master, what would you like me to do to your bedsheets?"
"Just talk normally." Huang Cao shuddered. "That old woman really does have a way with words."
Her skin was thick too. As long as she herself did not feel embarrassed, the embarrassment belonged to someone else.
"Fortunately, you're not stupid." Kal'tsit's beautiful brows relaxed.
After all, it was better not to say the outrageous lines she had just come up with. If she did, she would truly have to throw away what little dignity she had left.
"Why are you insulting me now?" Huang Cao pursed his lips helplessly. "By the way, what did you discover? Let me see too."
"Nothing. The sample was contaminated..."
As for why it had been contaminated, that was something the other protagonist—besides the two people in the room—would have to answer for.
Of course, she did not directly reveal that the genes of the Huang Cao before her differed from those of ordinary Sarkaz.
The update came a little late. I spent the entire day writing my thesis, and I'm practically numb~3
The Seed Will Eventually Grow into a Great Tree
"Kal'tsit, what exactly are you pursuing? What sort of conviction can support you, an Immortal, as you wander this land for so long?"
"You're truly a mysterious woman."
"Besides, are you really omniscient? I'm curious."
Kal'tsit wanted to say that she knew everything, but if she did, she would be proven wrong moments later.
Huang Cao might even ask next: What will my future child be called?
How was this cat supposed to answer that?
The people Kal'tsit had met before had been far too serious. If she encountered someone who delighted in mischief, who knew what sort of trouble they might cause her?
"Take it. I've heard about what you've done. Spend this money carefully, and it should cover more than ten years of expenses."
To this day, no one knew what treasures Kal'tsit had hidden away during her thirty thousand years of life.
In Rhodes Island's story, the organization was practically on the verge of bankruptcy, yet this cat still refused to take out an antique to help with the cash flow.
Unless this cat simply had no concept of saving money.
"Although I don't need this, I appreciate your kindness."
Kal'tsit said she did not need it, yet dutifully hung the money pouch from her waist.
Nonsense. Who would complain about having too little money?
Even if this cat did not care about material possessions, she still needed others' help while traveling the land.
Money could solve many problems.
"Where are you going next?" Huang Cao asked curiously, hoping she would give him a different answer.
Unfortunately, the course of history would not change because of one sentence from him. Unless Huang Cao locked Kal'tsit in a tiny room as in some unofficial history.
"I'll continue traveling across Kazdel and see whether this race learned its lesson from its destruction."
"What an arrogant idea."
It really happened after all...
If nothing went wrong, Kal'tsit would eventually meet Theresia in a few years.
It was difficult to say that Kal'tsit had bewitched Theresia, because the two of them were like Stand users, born with an innate attraction toward each other.
Before they knew it, they would drag each other into the same ditch.
"Quoting a philosopher: When you gaze at the stars, please remember to look at the ground beneath your feet as well." Huang Cao could only say this.
The wheels of history were about to turn, and Huang Cao had already made preparations to deal with it.
But now that things had come to this, there was no way his words could change a future that was already about to happen.
Aside from investing more energy into developing his territory, he should also reasonably expand his castle once it built its first High-speed Battleship.
Hopefully, this land would not reach its developmental limit too quickly. It had to last at least until the War of the Four Emperors.
Huang Cao had coveted this historical turning point for a very long time. After all, every country had torn a huge chunk of flesh from Gaul.
Kazdel had not participated in the war, but that did not mean Big T Small T would participate, nor did it mean Huang Cao had no intention of forcing his way into it.
Especially Victoria's side. The War of the Four Emperors had been driven in part by Victoria's new nobility.
It was precisely because the benefits gained after the War of the Four Emperors had stuffed the new nobles to the brim that they had gained the right to judge the king.
And these people trusted him very much now...
The War of the Four Emperors might become the War of the Five Emperors in the future.
"I didn't expect it to be so wealthy."
Lamian's full, firm buttocks sank into the soft sofa, immediately giving her the air of a noblewoman.
When she learned from Warfarin that this sofa alone was worth a thousand gold coins, she was genuinely shocked.
Was this sofa made of gold or silver?
Lamian felt that although the castle was indeed rather small compared with those of the great nobles, the decorations inside made up for that shortcoming.
Every ornament displayed unmistakable luxury. Its wealth was so great that even Dukare could not compare.
However, in the room Huang Cao and Warfarin shared, Lamian saw the clothes she had woven herself.
After Huang Cao had carefully cleaned them, he had placed them in the wardrobe. He clearly treasured the gift.
For some reason, Lamian felt a trace of emotion stir in her heart. At the same time, she cast a hint of envy at Warfarin.
Eden's development shocked her. This was absolutely not something that could be achieved through hard work alone.
If she had tried her best to keep Huang Cao ten years ago, would Banshee River Valley have developed better than it had now?
Would something else have happened between them...?
"Lady Lamian?" Warfarin was somewhat at a loss.
Why had the Banshee Queen suddenly spaced out for no apparent reason?
Lamian, who had abruptly come back to herself, fiercely slapped herself twice in her heart.
Why am I thinking about something like this? This is utterly shameless!
She has a proper girlfriend!
Lamian took a deep breath, trying to calm her complicated emotions.
Actually, she could not be blamed for letting her thoughts run wild.
After all, during the days Huang Cao had spent in Banshee River Valley, he had nearly maxed out the favorability of every Banshee, including Lamian.
Although Huang Cao had been small at the time, he had been exceptionally dependable and hardworking. No matter what happened in the valley, whenever something could not be resolved, Huang Cao would always charge forward first.
He had basically taken care of every matter, large or small, in the valley. On top of that, he possessed an exceptionally exquisite massage technique and had served every Banshee so thoroughly that they were completely satisfied.
Before you continue