Blessed by Abundance, Scourge of Terra

"I need to get my hands on some precision lab equipment..."

Huang Cao mused to himself as he served the Banshees.

He completely ignored the strange sounds coming from the Banshee currently under his hands, who was enjoying the massage a little too much...

"Could you find me some cloth in a few days? I'll make you clothes that actually hold things in place," Huang Cao said softly to the Banshee beneath his hands.

Considering the Sarkaz people's average chest size, it was a wonder this hadn't been invented yet.

Damn! Too much war, as expected!

New Tree sapling seeks support, thank you all!

Chapter 11: Theresia Gets Mocked for Her Figure

Luckily, it was deep winter, and on top of that, he was the only man in the area.

Under Lamian's orders, the Banshees didn't indulge too much in the pleasure.

Huang Cao couldn't exactly pour all his energy into massaging Banshees either.

Accumulating knowledge and experience through treating illnesses was his main goal.

Maybe he could even make a fortune with this skill someday—this land was never short of quacks practicing without a license.

Having a skill to fall back on was better than having nothing at all.

Huang Cao's destructive power was currently immense. If he moved his body and pulled out all his roots, the resulting tremor could shake mountains.

It looked impressive, but at best, it was only good for clearing out mooks. The area damage was maxed out, but it couldn't break through elite units' defenses. He'd still have to rely on Originium to strengthen himself later.

So he wrote on the clinic's sign: Starting today, massage services will be available two days out of every five. The remaining days will be for treating various difficult and complicated illnesses.

Regardless of difficulty, each treatment costs five copper coins. No evening hours unless there's an emergency. In case of emergency, please shake me awake from my sleep.

Running a business and being a doctor at the same time might have been manageable, but the distance between the two just didn't allow it.

Splitting his focus to control another body while busy with one—and neither body was even physical—put too much mental strain on him, not to mention the unexpected accidents that could pop up midway.

So to be safe, Huang Cao decided to take it easy. If he overdid it and messed up, it'd be awkward.

Some busybody might even write it into unofficial history.

Huang Cao lay on the bed and instantly shifted his consciousness to the general store. It was already late, and the streets were empty.

He casually placed a few lamps to spruce up the storefront, then hand-wrote a sign and set it by the door:

Starting today, this store will only be open from 10:00 PM to 12:00 AM. Discount rules remain unchanged. We are also hiring one female shop assistant with excellent figure and appearance. Room and board provided, salary fifty silver coins per month.

He hung the sign on the right side of the door and put a wooden cover over it to keep snow from crushing it.

But there was clearly no one around right now. The general store had been closed for over a week.

Because the Banshees' chests were just too generous, what was supposed to be a week turned into Huang Cao indulging himself for a few extra days.

This led the townsfolk to assume the store owner had met an untimely end.

After all, in times of chaos, anything could happen.

He dug out a few prepared wheat seeds from the soil, pulled an Originium shard from the cabinet, and used his power to rapidly grow them. Before long, the entire warehouse was piled high with grain.

He arranged the grain on the shelves, floated to the front counter, and started checking the ledger and the silver coins in the cabinet.

A week had passed, and the coins hadn't been stolen yet.

Huang Cao was still in the same getup—a black robe hiding his body in shadow. Even if someone lifted the robe, they couldn't see his face.

For now, only the Banshees knew his true appearance.

"Dear guest, you've been waiting out there so long. Won't you come in and show yourself?"

"Sir, your eyes are truly sharp."

The newcomer was also in a black robe, covering themselves completely.

But the gentle, water-like voice let Huang Cao preliminarily judge that this was a woman.

Though he didn't need to judge—he already knew it was Theresia.

Seriously, as the leader of a nation, you've been hanging around here for a week. Don't you have anything to do?

Or were the people here just too simple, without any Ursus troublemakers?

Huang Cao couldn't imagine a normal national leader loafing around eating and drinking all day with nothing to do.

If this were his past life, let alone modern society, even in ancient times, an emperor who did this would get thoroughly roasted by his ministers.

Theresia didn't say much next. She just walked around the store, running her hand over the grain piled high on the shelves.

Her pupils were full of shock. How did he get so many supplies in here?

For an entire week, she hadn't seen a single convoy pass through this town. She'd carefully observed every aspect of this general store, including underground, and there were no tunnels either.

Theresia wasn't the kind of woman who'd never dirtied her hands. As a Demon King who rose through war, she knew far more than most...

"Sir, may I ask your name?"

"Names mean nothing to me. I have no need to reveal my true name to you. Buy something or leave."

"Please pack all of these for me. I'll take everything."

Theresia was exceptionally generous, spreading all the silver coins from her pocket across the counter, with a few gold coins mixed in among them.

Huang Cao merely glanced at it, then spat out two words: "Still far from enough."

"But isn't there a discount?"

"Do you not understand my discount rules?"

"Discount rules..."

Only then did Theresia recall that the shopkeeper's so-called discount rules seemed rather peculiar.

In short, food and lust are human nature.

Theresia naturally couldn't reveal her identity; otherwise, news of her sneaking out would spread throughout all of Kazdel before long.

"Sir, do you not think my figure is good?"

Theresia pulled her loose robe tight around her waist, revealing a very slender lumbar curve.

Indeed, by ordinary standards, this Demon King's figure was quite excellent—especially her waist. After all, a person can't keep thrusting their hips forward like in their initial character art forever.

Unfortunately, Huang Cao's XP System wasn't into that.

Theresia's heart wasn't entirely absent, but compared to the Banshees, it was like a minor sorcerer meeting a grand master.

"Please look at the wooden sign by the door. I'm recruiting someone with a seductive figure. Right now, you're covering yourself with a rag—how the hell am I supposed to know if you're good-looking or not?"

"To put it bluntly, even if Her Highness Theresia herself graced this place wanting to be my clerk, she still wouldn't catch my eye."

When Huang Cao uttered those four characters—Theresia—the owner of that name nearly lost her composure.

What do you mean, wouldn't catch your eye? Am I not good-looking enough?

Theresia had initially wanted to reveal herself directly and lay all cards on the table.

But if the other party really was a Sarkaz...

Of course, as a Demon King beloved by her people, Theresia never compared herself to anyone.

Huang Cao was also a shrewd one. He didn't directly call out her identity but instead hinted at his meaning through innuendo.

Even if the Demon King herself came, she couldn't change my mind. At worst, I'll just run.

After all, I'm a soul body—let's see if you can catch me faster than I can flee.

Chapter 12: Me, Do This? Really?

"Welcome to visit again. Please close the door on your way out."

Forced into a corner, Theresia had no choice but to keep paying up.

Delighted to receive another gold coin, Huang Cao waved farewell to this benevolent Demon King.

Though he couldn't make out Theresia's expression, Huang Cao guessed it wasn't pleasant.

Not only had he thoroughly dissed her appearance, but he'd also shut her out cold.

Huang Cao had no intention of interacting too much with the Demon King for now. Before he finished developing, he'd stall as much as he could.

"Oh dear, did the goddess not give me spatial abilities? How am I supposed to carry all these silver coins?"

Huang Cao looked at the counter piled high with coins, his heart full of worry.

The silver coins kept piling up, but if he didn't spend them, they were just scrap metal.

Money was ultimately just metal, but money wasn't only metal—it was only because the physical properties of these precious metals made them the best carriers for currency.

Money only counted when it was spent; otherwise, a few tons of gold might as well be a rock in some people's eyes.

"I need to figure out how to spend these things, or find a place to store them. Speaking of which, does this place have a bank?"

In any world, banks were never a new industry.

But given Kazdel's current ecological state, forget banks—there probably weren't even pawnshops.

"Should I buy a piece of land and become a duke myself?" Huang Cao muttered to himself, but the idea felt increasingly feasible.

Speaking of which, did anyone lease land in Kazdel? Or better yet, just sell it outright to him?

Huang Cao searched directly in the Originium Database and discovered that the prototype of Mobile Cities already existed in this world, but they were extremely rare. For now, only major nations like Victoria possessed them.

After all, when the multinational coalition led by Kazimierz destroyed Kazdel, the Steam Knights were already around, but the current Mobile Cities could hardly be called habitable.

Network technology hadn't been developed yet either, though basic physics had likely been flourishing for some time.

So, to sum it up, without Mobile Cities, the people living on Terra's land had very weak control over other territories.

Natural disasters caused information to travel at a snail's pace; messengers might die halfway through their journey.

With Mobile Cities, major nations could at least move their armies to quell rebellions in certain areas, or dispatch troops when disasters struck.

The natural disasters on Terra's land had turned a considerable portion of the territory into nearly uninhabitable wasteland.

Much of this land belonged to nobles, who simply couldn't be bothered to develop it.

It seemed he needed to look into the relevant information...

Time trickled by like flowing water, and before long the heavy snows of winter had passed. Countless lives had been lost in the snow, and just as many might revive in the green of spring.

Time in the river valley moved slowly. The banshees who lived here had ample time to ease the aftereffects of war.

"What? You're saying a fellow banshee is about to give birth, and she wants me to deliver the baby? And she's having complications on the way?"

Huang Cao, just shaken awake, felt his mind go numb at the news.

The banshee race no longer dwelled solely in the river valley. Many banshees, upon reaching a certain age, chose to venture out into the world.

They would marry and bear children with members of other races. But no matter what, if the offspring displayed banshee traits, they had to be handed over to the clan for raising.

If the mother wished to raise the child herself, she had to return to the clan. Outsiders were not permitted to enter the clan's territory.

It was a very conservative approach, but this conservatism had allowed the banshees to survive and thrive to this day, unlike other Royal Courts that had vanished entirely.

However, the urge for genetic expression on this land was far stronger than what Huang Cao had known in his past life.

Sarkaz genetic expression was very weak. The banshees' genes were the exact opposite. Male banshees in history were exceedingly rare.

The banshee about to be carried into the clinic had left to explore the world decades ago. Only recently, with Kazdel stabilizing and her pregnancy advancing, had she chosen this time to return to her homeland and entrust her daughter to her people.

Thus, as spring began, the Banshee River Valley welcomed a new life.

Huang Cao looked at the anxious pregnant woman, briefly burned the room to sterilize it, and then began the delivery procedure.

Fortunately, the banshee on the operating table did not resent Huang Cao for being a man, nor did she question why a stranger had appeared within the clan.

Nothing mattered more than the child!

Thankfully, Huang Cao hadn't been coasting these past few months. He had learned more than a little.

For instance, lacking a sterile operating room, he simply covered his house with iron plates and set a fire inside to burn everything clean.