Dragons,
were mostly rich.
Ordinary dragons liked collecting gold and jewels, but the ancient dragons had more refined tastes.
Besides gold and jewels, these nostalgic creatures also liked collecting antiques.
Naturally, the antiques that caught an ancient dragon's eye were usually worth a terrifying amount.
Countless divine treasures, rarely seen in the outside world even once in a hundred years, were piled up like trash in their lairs, hidden from the light of day.
If only these creatures were a little weaker, they would become targets for every intelligent being in the mortal world to hunt down at all costs.
When Rhine was preparing to find Constance a powerful piece of equipment,
the first thing he thought of was the treasure guarded by an ancient dragon.
This was something the Rhine of the past would never even have dared to dream of.
Because ancient dragons could not only pin demigods to the ground and beat them senseless, but, most terrifyingly, these creatures were even immortal.
If anyone dared to take their things, they could expect to be hunted to the death by these immortal mythical beings.
But now,
things were different!
Rhine had thrown in his lot with the Dragon of Lust. Now, he had an ancient dragon princess backing him!
Olivia had the authority to strip her subjects of their immortality.
As long as he could get Olivia's approval, Rhine might achieve a feat no one had managed since the beginning of the new era.
Killing an ancient dragon.
Olivia said, "Obadiah, I've been sick of that little bastard for ages. But, well, with my status, I can't exactly do the job myself."
Rhine nodded. "As long as Your Highness can strip him of his immortality, leave the rest to me."
"Really?"
Olivia asked with a smile, "Even if I remove him from my protection, an ancient dragon still isn't something a demigod can handle, you know?"
Rhine said, "It's fine."
"You're certainly confident. Very well, then. As you wish."
Olivia promised Rhine, "If you can kill Obadiah, I'll grant you all of his collection in the name of Olivia, the Ancient Dragon Princess."
This was exactly what Rhine wanted.
Rhine said, "Thank you for your generosity."
Olivia said, "I need to kill a bastard, and you need Obadiah's treasure. We both get what we want, and we'll each do our part. No need to thank me this time. But speaking of which..."
Olivia was a little curious. "Obadiah may be a junior, but he has quite a collection. Tell me, how much would all his junk be worth among you humans?"
"How much would it be worth?"
Rhine gave the question some serious thought.
Rhine said, "Do you know Hela Hain?"
Olivia said, "Mm, one of your country's Imperial Guards, right?"
Rhine said, "That's right. Her lifelong passion is collecting all kinds of equipment and gear."
Rhine said, "There's a weapon in Obadiah's collection that I have my eye on. If I gave Hela all the remaining junk..."
Olivia said, "If you gave it to her?"
Rhine answered without joking, "She'd probably clutch her stopped heart, weep with excitement, then drop to her knees trembling, grab my pant leg, and call me Daddy."
"Wow..."
Olivia's eyes lit up.
So, Rhine's hunt for an ancient dragon would not only help arm Constance, but also let him rack up a huge boost to his relationship with Hela, one of the Imperial Guards?!
If Rhine could fill up Hela's affection quickly,
then Olivia would naturally get to enjoy that wonderful moment sooner, too.
Olivia licked her lips.
She was craving it again.
"Move it!!"
23. The Imperial Guard's "Daughters"
At a manor on the outskirts of the Imperial Capital,
Hela Hain, an Imperial Guard, was reclining comfortably on a sofa in front of the fireplace, enjoying the servants' attentions.
Beside her, several girls in maid outfits who looked a lot like her were silently massaging her feet.
Like all the Imperial Guards, Hela's divinity took the Crystal Goddess Order as its divine core. But the pillars that bore that core differed from one Imperial Guard to another.
Hela's pillar came from the Spirit God of old—life.
These girls, whose appearances resembled Hela's,
were demigod dolls she had created using herself as the mother.
Or, rather... her daughters.
At that moment, Hela was examining her spoils,
the Dragon Soul Sword she had gotten from Constance.
For a gold-grade weapon, the sword was exceptionally well-made. The dragon soul it was forged from had an exceptionally pure lineage, with even a trace of ancient dragon in its makeup.
Hela was very satisfied.
"Here."
Hela handed the Dragon Soul Sword to the doll massaging her shoulders.
"You can use this from now on."
But the doll glanced at the sword and firmly shook her head.
"I don't want it."
Hela said, "What?!"
The doll declared righteously, "You extorted this from Miss Shia. It's stolen property. Miss Shia needs it more than we do."
Hela was a little baffled. Why were the dolls she had split off from her own blood so much more ethical than she was?
Hela shoved the Dragon Soul Sword into the doll's hands. "Shia has spare weapons. Don't worry about her!"
The doll still refused to accept the Dragon Soul Sword. She slammed the sword that Hela had forced on her onto the floor.
The doll's face was stern as she looked down at Hela, as if judging her soul.
"But Miss Shia only has one gold-grade weapon. You know that perfectly well!"
"Ugh..."
Hela had no answer.
At that moment, she guiltily turned her face away.
Unlike her other sisters, Constance never sought any benefits for herself, so she didn't have much to her name.
This gold-grade Dragon Soul Sword was her only gold-grade piece of equipment.
The doll was not only a model of morality, but could even lecture their mother in turn.
"Hela, if you keep bullying your sisters like this, you'll have no friends."
Hela gave in. "...Then give it back to Constance."
"That's so childish!"
Another doll criticized her. "Miss Shia may be very forgiving, but if you take the sword away and then turn around and give it back as charity, how will that make her feel?"
Hela said, "Great! Aren't you all just so considerate!"
I really wish you considerate, kind lot would stop hiding behind me and using me as a meat shield on the battlefield next time, thanks a lot!!
Then the dolls came up with a sensible solution for their clueless mother.
The doll massaging her shoulders said, "You should go find Prince Rhine and make a deal with him. Sell him the sword at a low price, then let him return it to Miss Shia."
The doll massaging her feet said, "That way, you won't be losing out, right?"
The idle doll looked eager. "And we can see His Highness the Prince again, too. Isn't that killing two birds with one stone?"
At the mention of Prince Rhine, the other dolls also looked excited.
When they met the prince today,
it wasn't just Hela who had been captivated by his charm. Her doll daughters, hidden in the rifts between spaces, had been captivated, too.
They had only caught a glimpse of the imperial heir through the rifts separating space and time, yet the prince's astonishing charm had made their hearts flutter.
It was a strange feeling...
The dolls and Hela couldn't help wondering.
Could... that be the result of the prince's deal with the evil dragon?
If so,
then the deal wasn't so bad after all.
Hela didn't mind whether Rhine was using the power of an evil god to control her. After all, what people called charm was simply a blessing that made someone more attractive.
Besides...
Never mind whether he was an evil god or not.
The prince these days
was seriously horny!
Just then, Hela sensed something and looked up at the window.
The alarm system around the manor had been triggered.
A visitor had arrived.
24. Miss Hela and Her Daughters' Choice
Hela had little trouble figuring out who the visitor was.2
Her perception was a constant blessing. In theory, if someone wanted to discuss something with Hela, they only needed to call out her name at home and get her attention.
Then,
they could get down to a pleasant transaction.
But mortals, by habit, still preferred to pay a visit in person. Apparently, they thought it made them seem more sincere.
In truth, such sincerity was worthless to an Imperial Guard. Their powerful intelligence-gathering abilities were enough to accurately analyze a person's motives and demands from all kinds of evidence.
Whether someone was sincere was obvious at a glance.2
Hela looked at one of the dolls. "Go."
The doll nodded.
Then the doll girl's body dissolved into a rift in space and traveled to the manor's exterior.
The doll returned soon after.
She had a document in her hand. "It's the Prince's envoy. Looks like the Prince is still holding a grudge over you killing his men."
A doll who had stayed inside asked, "Is the Prince here to cause trouble?"
Before you continue