Annan's corruption worked differently. He scattered bait along the Ratfolk's path, lured them to a magnificent manor, then threw an arm around their shoulders and told them, "Follow me, and all this is yours." Getting the Ratfolk to work for him willingly was far more effective than their methods.
By then, Annan would command a Ratfolk Clan and a Ratfolk Legion, with a Rat King Cub at his side. Who could say he wasn't the High Priest of the Ratfolk Fourteenth Clan and the Great Horned Rat's Holy Son?
After spending dozens of minutes plotting with Olmedo in the office and settling every detail of their plan against the Moon-Eater Clan, Annan came out and followed a servant to his eldest sister in the garden.
She wasn't strolling through the garden as he had imagined. She sat in a wheelchair beneath the Otherworld Tree, with Silly Cat sprawled across her lap.
"Why are you still in a wheelchair?" Annan asked, puzzled.
"Walking is so tiring," Idelia said with a sheepish smile. "Sitting suits me better."
Annan's gaze dropped to Silly Cat, lounging on his eldest sister's lap, and he guessed the real reason. "Silly Cat, her legs have only just recovered. She needs to practice walking!"
"I'm working hard too, you know." Silly Cat raised her head lazily.
Annan made a deal with Silly Cat: she could spend no more than eight hours a day on his eldest sister's lap. The allowance reset at midnight and could not be carried over. She also had to make sure Idelia walked for an hour every day.
"I'm a god!" Silly Cat protested at Annan's harsh terms.
"What kind of god spends all day lying on her Saintess's lap?" Annan wouldn't budge. "If you don't agree, I'll have no choice but to make