Will I Eventually Become a Capitalist? Chapter 34

Russell scoffed at this.

"..."

Black Snake was silenced.

For a long time, ancient Yan Country had practiced monogamy with multiple concubines.

This meant that nobles with the most resources could easily spread a bit more of their genes by accident.

It was indeed pointless to argue about bloodlines with Yan Country people.

"Alright, since you're willing to talk, then you're mine now."

Russell looked at the stunned Black Snake and quickly pulled out a notebook from his pocket, then thrust it in front of Black Snake.

"Quickly tell me how Grand Duke of Baikal and Viscount Kerk prepared to start the Ursus-Yan War, along with the evidence. Oh, and I remember you have quite a bit of inheritance, right? Give me your bank account and resource storage locations."

He couldn't be bothered to mess around anymore.

In reality, his schedule was packed.

Although he said he was going to Victoria for the Face-to-Face Assembly soon, he had taken money from Raikou Ryoma, received talismans from Valmont, and owed Skadi a favor due to Victoria's investigation.

This meant that in the coming period, he had to meet with Raikou Ryoma, help Valmont with his criminal empire planning, and also try to help Skadi deal with the cultists following her...

He was actually very busy and didn't have time to discuss noble etiquette with this old snake.

"Oh, Viscount Russell, do you think these demands are reasonable?"

Looking at the somewhat anxious young man, Black Snake in mid-air seemed to have regained some spirit.

Oh.

In Talulah's memory, Russell was always composed and aloof. To see him acting so desperately...

Thinking of Victoria's predicament and Great Yan's stable political situation, a smile appeared on Black Snake's face.

So that's how it is, you're not doing so well either.

It makes sense, though. Setting up plans in three empires at once, it would be strange if everything went smoothly.

"You want to take over half of the Grand Duke's territory and the Third Army Group without offering any benefits. Don't you think that's utterly preposterous?"

The mist snake said so.

In response, Russell remained silent, merely grabbing a mouse in front of it.

As Black Snake looked on with slight confusion, the man coldly activated his latest skill.

Flesh Mutation. Taste Buds Proliferate!!

As the skill activated, Russell's handsome face turned pale almost instantly.

An unusual aura permeated the air, and an extremely ominous feeling arose in Black Snake's heart.

"Sir, what is this?"

"You've got one thing wrong—"

"I'm not trading with you, I'm threatening you."

Russell placed the kunai and the mouse together, making a declaration that made even Black Snake tremble.

"If you don't give me the things, I'll stuff your soul into this rat's body, filled with taste buds in its gut!!"

Chapter 39: Black Snake, give me your gold!

The power of the Red Dragon was fire, and its royal lineage was akin to a natural disaster. In the face of that desperate flame, even cities would be incinerated.

The Nightmare's ability was the domain of fear. When they charged in groups, riding warhorses, the ocean of fear could easily destroy the minds of the divine.

The Blood Demon Lord could be described as extremely perverse and cruel. He could easily transform his enemies into his own servants, making one man an army.

As an immortal.

Koschei had witnessed many types of Originium Arts.

It believed that no matter how sinister the Originium Arts in this world were, they were merely variations of the Sarkaz Royal Court.

But—

Russell...

Looking at the screaming mouse, even Black Snake fell into a long silence.

From a rational perspective, it could suspect that Russell's words were a scam.

This was because while a person's Originium Arts might have different uses, they were generally confined to one domain.

For example, Talulah could manipulate fire and lava, but she absolutely couldn't manipulate ice.

Frost could create blizzards out of thin air and forcibly freeze enemies, but she absolutely couldn't manipulate fire.

This was because their Originium Arts were determined in direction from the start.

Ice and fire.

Black Snake had seen Russell's Originium Arts through Talulah; they were Mental-type, similar to its own. The difference was that Russell's tended towards guiding cognition, while its own was the transfer of consciousness.

Creating taste buds on a rat's large intestine is undoubtedly a flesh modification ability.

It's not that it's completely unrelated to mental-type abilities, but rather that they're as far apart as can be.

By all common sense, Russell must be deceiving me.

However—

Looking at Russell's face, what came to mind for Black Snake wasn't the near-invincible cognitive distortion from their one-on-one encounters, but the halberd thrusting upwards...

A phantom pain struck, causing Black Snake to instinctively clench its legs.

That strike undoubtedly had a "certain hit" attribute, and "certain hit" clearly has no relation to mental-type abilities either...

Furthermore, while binding consciousness falls within the scope of mental-type abilities, the distance between it and logical distortion is so vast it's like two separate zones...

Russell has already demonstrated Originium Arts in three domains.

"...As you wish, I will provide the help I can."

After a moment of silence, this Black Snake yielded.

In centuries, this might be the first time it directly surrendered without any resistance, raising a white flag.

"Oh, how much in assets do you have left?"

Russell quickly put away the kunai.

Russell was actually bluffing.

He actually only had two abilities: cognitive distortion and Gungnir.

The weapon that binds souls was something he obtained through Huihui from the Crimson Demon Tribe's chief. As for the technique of soul binding, it couldn't be said that he knew a little, but rather that he was completely clueless.

He did have the Sheep Talisman, a tool that could target souls, but limited by his occult knowledge, that talisman didn't have much room to shine.

He just felt that with such a wicked skill, it would be a shame not to use it to coerce others.

So, he put on a whole act.

Judging by Black Snake's reaction, it worked quite well.

I'm such a little genius.

Russell gave himself a thumbs-up.

Then, he very readily handed a small notebook and a pen to Koschei.

Koschei quickly filled the notebook with information. Russell took it and frowned.

"Why is there only information on the Grand Duke of Baikal and Viscount Kerk? Where are your assets?"

Is this thing trying to defy me, who possesses the power of flesh mutation?!

The young man sneered and once again raised his kunai and the rat.

Koschei's mouth twitched. Talulah never asked for money with such righteous indignation.

"I am only Koschei... not the complete Black Snake."

"Strictly speaking, I can't even fully control Koschei's legacy—when I 'died,' other 'Black Snakes' took over my position of power."

"All I can give you is information on the Grand Duke of Baikal and Viscount Kerk."

Koschei said.

The young man opposite him remained silent, but his hand seemed to be slowly reaching into his pocket for the kunai.

Koschei felt a prickling sensation on his scalp.

It seemed Russell was using the Originium kunai as a staff, clearly intending to unleash Originium Arts again.

Whether the young man was about to perform a divine declaration or bind a soul into a rat, it would be a terrifying prospect for Koschei.

"Please don't be so impatient. Although I've lost the territory of Koschei, I still have connections with some officials and nobles. I believe securing ten mines for you should still be within my capabilities."

Under the pressure of "mountain full of chrysanthemums" and "enjoying the beauty of Old Eight," Koschei erupted with a strong will to survive.

Hmm, very good.

That's ten more mines.

Money is like water in a sponge; squeeze hard enough, and it'll come out.

Russell contentedly put away his kunai, feeling as joyous as a plantation owner watching a Black man laboring passionately in a cotton field.

But speaking of which, will ten mines appear all at once?

Ah...

Naruto can handle one, and the Shadowkhan Army gifted by Valmont can also deal with one or two.

What about the remaining mines?

Russell was caught in blissful distress.

Seeing the joyful expression on Russell's face, Koschei breathed a sigh of relief, and a wave of exhaustion washed over it. The events it had encountered today were more troublesome than all the vexing matters it had faced in the past few hundred years combined.

[Ah, I feel like you're becoming Koschei's psychological shadow.]

The prompt issued a message.

Russell thought that was highly abnormal. First, it had taken thirteen of his Thousand Years of Death attacks, then it was forcibly arrested as a Pokémon, and now it was being threatened by him into revealing all its gold. If it still had a good impression of him after all that, then one could only suspect Koschei had some serious issues with its preferences.

[The advantage of this is that Koschei should not dare to confront you in the short term. However, the disadvantage is that it will be difficult for you to get its full assistance from now on. This old fossil understands Ursus thoroughly. If you were to arrange for the Grand Duke of Baikal, you could at most destroy the debt and swallow a small portion of that Grand Duke's assets. After all, you are not the only noble in Chernobyl. If you want to swallow everything, you would have to kill all the other nobles first.]

[But doing so would be purely treating the people of St. John's Fort like monkeys. With all the nobles in the city dead except for you, and you having swallowed a pile of noble assets, you'd probably be wanted by Ursus. At that point, you'd likely have to go to another world, or you wouldn't have a good time.]

[However, if you switched to this old slippery snake, it could allow you to swallow Viscount Kerk's entire assets and at least sixty percent of the Grand Duke of Baikal's assets.]

"What the hell, sixty percent of the Grand Duke of Baikal's assets?!"

Russell spun around, looking at the Black Snake with a burning gaze.

That gaze made the Black Snake's heart skip a beat.

What the hell is this bastard planning now?

Chapter 40: My Black Snake, Crying and Wailing Because of Threats, So Pitiful

"Esteemed Black Snake, as the will of the Ursus nation, you must be able to directly swallow all of the Grand Duke of Baikal's assets."

The young man's eyes were burning hotter than ever before.

The Black Snake gasped.

Swallowing the entire assets of a Grand Duke in one go.

Was this even something a person would say?!

Since the reforms of the former emperor, Ursus's military might had soared to a degree that made its surrounding nations feel as if they were sitting on pins and needles.

However, the current emperor was unfortunately not adept at centralizing power, which directly led to a large number of troops falling into the hands of the great nobles. The Grand Duke of Baikal was a prime example of this.