A Wager with L'Mera

Besides, Huang Cao would never give only verbal rewards like Theresia did. At the very least, he had never docked anyone's military pay.

Overall, joining the Abundance Army within Eden brought plenty of benefits. Not only was it harder to die, but one could also achieve great things.

There was even a way out. Huang Cao truly was an excellent lord.

As for the price, there was only one: the foremost requirement for joining the Abundance Army was surrendering one's freedom.

Huang Cao never hid this. Before recruiting anyone, he explained all the drawbacks in full.

What he wanted was a truly loyal army, not one he merely believed was loyal.

Actually, establishing this restriction was unnecessary. Its fundamental purpose was not to prevent his subordinates from rebelling, but to stop someone from losing their mind and walking straight into a pit.

Huang Cao had never forgotten his principle: I should live comfortably, and so should everyone else. I just need to live a little better than you do.

An army that was utterly loyal, possessed formidable combat strength, and was extremely difficult to injure—what country would dare confront it head-on?

It was far superior to the Hosts Mephisto created.

Huang Cao had ample confidence that the army he personally trained would remain loyal to him, but he truly could not praise the intelligence of the residents in his territory.

The people of Kaztun were all rather simple-minded, especially the Sarkaz who had grown up in his territory.

They had never seen weapons or warfare from childhood onward. What if they went out and were accidentally led astray by a spy?

These were all things he had to consider.

Under this restriction, he could also quickly understand how events were developing whenever something unusual happened.

After thinking it over, Huang Cao had a large pile of tiny green pellets in his hand.

Swallowing these pellets would grant one a portion of Abundance's power.

Of course, basic screening was still necessary. First, they had to be unafraid of pain. Only after that came being unafraid of death.

Making soldiers overcome their fear of death was something every elite unit had to do before it could be established.

Fortunately, most of the former professions of the residents in Huang Cao's territory had been mercenaries.

The issue of instructors could be set aside for now. Any randomly selected person would be more than qualified.

Besides, there was no need to worry about the instructors holding anything back. After all, their own children would probably be among those being trained.

Their experience as mercenaries had taught these parents that hiding things from their children would only get them killed on the battlefield.

They wished they could train every one of them to death. If they did not die from training, they would keep training.

Recruiting an army was no difficult task either. Huang Cao had inoculated these people against the idea from the very beginning of Eden's establishment.

The Sarkaz had long since grown accustomed to it. A large number of them wanted to restore the glory of the Tikkaz of old, and they were more than willing to fight, whether to protect their homeland or wage war.

"I'm a little tired~" After making arrangements for everything that lay ahead, Huang Cao felt a wave of relief in his heart.

My career is flourishing!

Since he had already developed the army and the city, why not take things one step further?

He could make some Abundance-style weapons, such as explosive mushrooms and cherries.

But for now, it was better to proceed one step at a time. One could not become fat by eating a whole giant in a single bite.

"Time to eat. You've been in there all day."

Just as Huang Cao was planning to make something else, a knock suddenly sounded at his door, accompanied by Warfarin's concerned voice from outside.

Huang Cao instinctively looked up and saw the sunset blazing outside.

So it was already the evening of the next day.

"As expected, putting one's effort in the right place really can make one forget the passage of time. The last time I worked this hard was right before that exam."

Ever since entering university, Huang Cao had rarely worked this hard. Even at school, he had simply drifted along and slacked off.

"Coming."

Work was over. Next came the time to live!

Huang Cao stretched, rubbed his slightly disheveled hair, and opened the door, only to see Warfarin looking at him with concern.

It was not strange for this vampire to be worried. Huang Cao had always worked for half a day and played for half a day, while resting all night.

He also took the occasional day off and left his work to others.

He had never spent an entire day in the studio before. Today was a first.

"I am indeed a little hungry."

"Then let's eat first. Lady Lamian is waiting by the dining table."

"Actually, I'm hungry in a more spiritual sense."

Huang Cao gently placed both hands on Warfarin's shoulders from behind and spoke in a solemn tone.

Warfarin's pretty face reddened. She did not resist, and then answered in a tiny voice:

"All right, all right. I know you've been working hard lately, but you should at least wait until Lady Lamian has gone to bed tonight before thinking about that sort of thing."

"It's fine. Tonight, I'll try something gentler."

Huang Cao's hands grew somewhat unruly, sliding downward along the young girl's shoulders.

She was just about to be treated as an appetizer.

A few minutes later, under Huang Cao's masterful massage, Warfarin could only collapse limply all over.

But by the time the fellow behind her finished, the food on the table would probably be completely cold...

Yet the satisfaction Warfarin had expected never came. Huang Cao had merely teased the vampire, and then did nothing further.

All that remained was Warfarin, sprawled helplessly on the floor after being teased, so weak that even her legs trembled when she tried to stand.

"You really are awful. Just you wait—I won't drain you dry tonight~"

Warfarin thought viciously.

Chapter 61: The Bet with Lamian

"Miss Warfarin, did you sprain your ankle? You seem to be having some trouble walking." Beside the dining table, Lamian glanced at Warfarin, who had to lean against the wall just to walk, and asked in confusion.

"Nothing. I just got a little too comfortable after Huang Cao massaged me with both hands."

Huang Cao wiped his hands with a wet tissue, completely ignoring the look from Warfarin beside him that seemed ready to devour him.

In a sense, he would indeed be eaten today as well—but he would definitely be the one eating this vampire.

Although Lamian was a mature adult, she had no experience in such matters, so she could not understand the other meaning hidden in Huang Cao's words.

If Kal'tsit had been sitting beside the dining table at that moment, she probably would have cast a contemptuous glance at the young couple before silently putting on earplugs before going to bed.

Lamian could only be said to be insufficiently ancient. After all, she was a very young Lord of the Royal Court.

"Sister Lamian, are you leaving tomorrow morning? Can't you stay a little longer?" Warfarin washed her face with cold water and spoke while forcing herself to remain calm.

Lamian nodded. "My original itinerary was to leave after the Royal Court meeting, and stay no more than seven days at most. I never expected to remain there for an entire month, just like Huang Cao."

Lamian had not participated in the battle that annihilated the Leithanian army. She had merely silently cheered on those who took part in it.

After a simple dinner, Huang Cao thought that after some time, he should set up a telephone line connecting Banshee River Valley and his territory.

This era had no communications equipment, yet its technology tree had developed in a frankly bizarre direction.

There was no communications equipment, but there was communications-based Originium Arts. The latter, moreover, required a master-level expert to use and was extremely inconvenient.

Using Originium Arts for communication was far too troublesome. Setting up a telephone line would be much more convenient.

"Let's do it according to your idea. Banshee River Valley will always be Eden's most trustworthy partner," Lamian said.

The most trustworthy partner? If, in the future...

"Sister Lamian, to be honest, in the future I want to..."

"I know what you want to do in the future. The moment I arrived in Eden, I knew that you definitely did not merely want to become a Lord of the Royal Court."

So it has finally come to this...

Lamian took a deep breath and voiced all her thoughts.

"Has Theresia really done such a poor job? Perhaps we can choose a gentler method..."

"Without a doubt, Her Highness Theresia has done very well, because she truly set her sights on the Sarkaz people, and even on every lifeform across this land."

Lamian asked in confusion, "Isn't that a good thing?"

"But it is unfair to the Sarkaz. If Theresia's personality had been born into Victoria's imperial family, she would undoubtedly have become a wise monarch, perhaps even making the country a beacon of all Terra's civilization."

"But this sage was born in Kazdel, the one place she should never have been born."

Lamian asked, "But how do you know Theresia will not change in the future?"

The young Banshee still did not understand why the person she would treasure most in the future would come to clash with her in battle.

Could they not simply sit down and have a proper discussion?

"Other countries will not sit down and talk things through with Kazdel. The country's circumstances remain perilous even now."

"The struggle over the beliefs of the Sarkaz people far exceeds our imagination. Some birds are destined to fly toward the sky."

Huang Cao had never believed that his advice and eloquence alone could make Theresia change her mind.

By the time Kal'tsit discovered Theresia, the pink-haired one's thinking had already changed greatly.

Where had that change come from?

Huang Cao did not know, nor did he want to investigate.

"I don't believe you."

"Then let's make a bet."

Huang Cao knew Lamian would not choose a side.

Even during the civil war between Big T and Small T, the Banshee Queen had never favored either side, despite essentially leaning toward the Tower of Babel's side.

Yet for the sake of her people, she had ultimately stood by and watched Small T die.

Her people came above everything else in Lamian's heart.

"I bet that in two hundred years, all of Kazdel will be swept up in a war."

"Another war of invasion?" Lamian asked.

"A struggle over the nation's foundation. In short, a civil war—and one between the siblings Teresis and Theresia."

Lamian could not help exclaiming, "How is that possible?"

For a moment, even she lost her elegance. She simply could not believe that the siblings would turn on each other in the future.

Yet she could not help believing the young man before her—not only because of his extraordinary abilities, but also because of the confidence with which he spoke.

"Let's make the bet. Will you believe me, or believe that Theresia will change?"

Lamian thought for a long time, but in the end, she chose to believe her good friend.

After all, it was incredibly rare to find a Demon King so pure and kind.

"I still believe Theresia will lead this country toward a better future."

"I bet a civil war will definitely break out in the future."

Lamian pursed her lips and said, "If the two Highnesses truly do wage a civil war in the future, what will you do?"

"I will become a third-party participant in the war and do my best to emerge victorious."

"If you win, what will you do to the two Highnesses?"

"..."

Huang Cao was speechless. To be honest, he had not thought about that question. After all, there was still a long time to go.

A sadness welled up in Lamian's heart. "If your prediction truly proves correct, then once the civil war breaks out, I and the entire Banshee Royal Court will acknowledge you as the new Demon King."

"If I lose, I will devote myself fully to helping Theresia build Kazdel, without holding anything back."

Huang Cao gave his own promise as well, because he had ample confidence in his judgment.