Chapter 465: Bribing Evelyn [Bonus - ]

Chapter 465: Bribing Evelyn [Bonus Chapter]

Reina closed her eyes, taking a deep centering breath.

Her hands began to glow with a brilliant golden light that rapidly overtook her natural green mana.

"Beast..." Reina muttered, her voice echoing with magical resonance. "...Arrest."

Instantly, a wave of pure concentrated golden energy erupted from Reina’s body.

It didn’t shoot forward like a spell... instead, it wafted outward, blooming into the air like the opening petals of a massive ethereal golden flower.

The glowing pollen of the spell drifted gently across the paddock, descending like falling snow to touch the bowed heads of the forty-six beasts.

She had used this exact skill, [Beast Arrest], in the Umbral Basin to initially subdue them and make them join her.

But now, within the confines of the territory, she was using the Skill’s secondary function... establishing the foundational tethers required for a formal Contract.

The moment the golden floral energy latched onto the wolves, a sharp crystalline chime rang out in Silas’s mind.

A glowing blue holographic window materialized directly in his field of vision.

[Territorial Event Triggered!]

[46 Umbral Wolves want to join Blessed Land as Mounts.]

[Would you like to allow? Y / N]

Silas let out a slow, heavy sigh, watching the prompt hover in the air.

’It’s happening...’ Silas thought, bracing himself for the massive expenditure of internal mana.

He raised his hand and tapped the Y.

VUUUUUUUUUUUM!

The instantaneous reaction was catastrophic.

Silas’s Gold Core, sitting perfectly in the center of his dantian, violently throbbed.

"Haah..."

A staggering wave of pure mana erupted from his chest as the beam shot forward, instantly shattering into forty-six separate pillars of pure energy that violently crashed down onto the kneeling Umbral Wolves.

"AWOOOOOOOO!" the wolves howled, not in pain, but in overwhelming evolutionary shock.

The transformation followed...

The corrupted, jagged midnight-black and ash-gray fur that covered their bodies began to rapidly dissolve, burning away like ash in a furnace.

In its place, thick luxurious coats of pure radiant silver and brilliant gold began to rapidly grow.

Their jagged infected scars faded into smooth, pristine muscle. Their feral sickly yellow eyes shifted into glowing intelligent hues of sapphire and amber.

The evolutionary process took time.

The volume of mana required to purify forty-six Tier-2 anomalies simultaneously was staggering.

The air in the pavilion crackled with heavy static as the golden light completely blinded everyone in the room.

’It’s not that much to my reserves to be honest..’

But Reina didn’t look away.

She stood perfectly still, her hands clasped to her chest, basking in the terrifying, magnificent glory of it.

She watched the golden light pour endlessly from Silas’s chest, her heart hammering with reverence.

’My Lord... is truly a different beast completely,’ she thought in pure awe. ’No normal Lord could output this level of mana without collapsing.’

Slowly, the blinding golden light began to die down, retracting back into Silas’s chest.

The dust settled over the stone tiles.

Kneeling perfectly in the center of the paddock were forty-six magnificent Blessed Wolves.

Their platinum-silver and gold coats shimmered beautifully under the pavilion’s lighting, their frames radiating a clean aura that entirely matched Valkyrie and Luna.

For a second, there was complete silence then, the women lost their minds.

"THEY ARE SO FLUFFY!" Clara shrieked, completely forgetting her earlier embarrassment as she and a dozen other girls rushed forward, throwing their arms around the massive, kneeling wolves, burying their faces in the incredibly soft fur.

The wolves let out happy rumbling chuffs, leaning into the affectionate scratches.

As the girls celebrated, a rapid sequence of chimes echoed in Silas’s mind.

[Territorial Integration Successful!]

[Species Evolution Triggered: Corrupted Umbral Wolves have been purified.]

[New Species: Blessed Wolves.]

[Hidden Mission: Gain 50 New Species In Your Territory has been completed!]

[Reward: Mystery Box]

[Pact Established: Master-Slave Territorial Contract.]

[Note: As the Sovereign Lord of the Blessed Land, you hold absolute authority over these entities. You may revoke their contract and banish them from the territory at any time.]

Silas casually swiped his hand through the air, dismissing the contract tab.

He had seen the Master-Slave warning before before when binding the last set to the territory, so it didn’t concern him in the slightest.

But his blue eyes locked heavily onto the fourth notification.

’A Hidden Mission? Gain 50 new species...’ Silas thought, a spark of intense intrigue lighting up his mind. ’Between the various crops Eluned planted, the different livestock, the elemental slimes, the dire wolves, and now the cavern spiders incubating in the back... I must have finally hit the threshold?’

He looked at the digital icon of the Mystery Box hovering in his inventory space.

The urge to tap it immediately and see what cosmic reward the world had generated... was it strong?

’No,’ Silas decided, forcibly closing his inventory interface. ’A mystery gift from a Hidden Mission could be anything from a legendary weapon to a massive architectural blueprint that might spawn right on top of my head. I should roll it when I’m in private... My office, later tonight.’

Besides, he still had somewhere crucial to be.

There was a very specific reason Evelyn had braved the freezing blizzard to storm up to his Keep earlier that afternoon, and he knew exactly what it was.

’I need to apologize, too,’ Silas thought, running a hand through his dark hair as a spike of genuine guilt hit his chest. ’I definitely should have sent a priority message to her warning her that the Princess of the world was residing in my Keep. I was too focused on other stuff...’

Silas turned, preparing to leave the bustling pavilion as he waved a hand in the air.

"I leave the rest to you, Reina!" Silas called out over the joyful chatter of the girls. "Make sure they are fully fed and integrated with the original pack!"

Reina snapped a sharp salute. "Leave it to me, Lord Silas!"

As Silas turned to walk toward the exit, his eyes locked onto Vala.

The raven-haired woman was standing near the edge of the fountain, casually wiping down one of the newly evolved wolves, but her sharp eyes were fixed directly on him.

Silas didn’t speak.

He caught her gaze, holding it for a fraction of a second, and deliberately mouthed the words.

’Meet me in the office in the evening...’

Vala’s hands paused on the wet towel.

A sudden deep flush of red crept up the back of her pale neck, coloring her cheeks but she didn’t say a word, nor did she make a grand gesture, but she offered him a single imperceptible nod of confirmation before quickly looking back down at the wolf.

Silas smirked, turning on his heel and marching out into the driving snow.

’Now how can I settle with Evelyn?’

...

Knock! Knock!

The heavy sound echoed through the luxurious velvet-lined guest quarters in the apartment.

Sitting in a plush leather armchair near the frost-covered window, Evelyn let out a long exhale.

She was currently on her fourth cigarette of the hour.

She pinched the filter between her lips, pulling a fresh one from the silver case resting on the side table.

"Haah..."

Without reaching for a match, she simply snapped her fingers.

A tiny spark of violent mana ignited at the tip of her thumb, lighting the end of the cigarette with a sharp hiss.

She took a deep dragging pull, the cherry glowing bright orange before she exhaled a thick cloud of blue smoke toward the ceiling.

"Fuck... Fuckk..."

She was stressed, beyond stressed even.

’My identity... What do I do now?’

The diplomatic nightmare of having her true identity as Lord Sky compromised was giving her a massive throbbing headache right between her eyes.

"Come in," Evelyn called out, her voice slightly raspy from the smoke.

The heavy wooden door clicked open, and Silas stepped into the room.

Evelyn immediately huffed, crossing her arms over her chest.

She opened her mouth, fully prepared to unleash a devastating, expletive-laden tirade about his lack of communication and his generally punchable face.

’Why is the Princess even here in the first place? Isn’t she unawakened?’

But before she could even utter a single syllable, Silas moved.

He extended his right arm forward, presenting a large chilled crystal cup directly into her line of sight.

The cup was filled to the brim with incredibly thick, rich, perfectly churned vanilla cream, drizzled with dark chocolate syrup and topped with crushed nuts.

"Kaelia’s first successful attempt at making actual ice cream," Silas announced smoothly, his voice sounding incredibly casual.

Before Evelyn could even react to the cup, Silas shifted his left arm, producing a beautifully arranged silver platter.

Stacked high on the polished metal were freshly baked, steaming cinnamon buns dripping with white icing, thick glazed doughnuts, and several slices of incredibly dense, moist chocolate cake.

"She was baking this afternoon," Silas added, offering the platter forward like a peace offering to an angry deity.

Evelyn completely froze.

Her stormy gray eyes darted from the chilled cup of artisanal ice cream to the massive platter of steaming, sugar-glazed pastries, and finally up to the handsome slightly apologetic face of the younger Lord standing in her doorway.

The corners of Evelyn’s lips involuntarily crinkled.

’Is he...’ Evelyn thought, the absurdity of the situation temporarily overriding her boiling rage. ’Is this bastard seriously trying to apologize to me with a tray of baked goods?’

It was infuriating... but it was also very patronizing.

And, if she was being entirely honest with herself... it was incredibly cute.

Evelyn had a notoriously massive weakness for high-quality sweets, a fact that was incredibly difficult to satisfy when she was in the Sovereign Realm.

’Sure, I have chefs but not to this level...’

The smell of the warm cinnamon and the chilled vanilla cream was assaulting her senses, completely shattering her aggressive posture.

’Maybe...’ Evelyn thought, her stormy eyes softening just a fraction as she looked at the glazed doughnuts. ’Maybe I don’t want to kick him in the balls that much.’

Evelyn let out a long defeated sigh.

She reached up, plucking the lit cigarette from her lips and tossing it into a nearby crystal ashtray.

"Alright..."

She reached forward, completely abandoning her anger as she accepted the heavy silver platter with one hand and the chilled cup of ice cream with the other.

Silas smiled.

He stepped fully into the room, casually kicking the heavy wooden door shut with his heel.

Evelyn didn’t waste a single second.

She sat the platter down on her lap, immediately biting into a thick glazed doughnut.

Her eyes fluttered shut as the warm, sugary dough practically melted on her tongue.

"My gods," Evelyn moaned softly around a mouthful of pastry, her professional Lord persona completely evaporating. "The culinary infrastructure in your territory is disgusting... This is one of the best things I have tasted in three months."

"I’ll pass your compliments along to the chef," Silas chuckled, walking over and leaning casually against the edge of her wooden writing desk.

He watched in mild fascination as Evelyn took a spoon, scooped up a massive dollop of the vanilla ice cream, and slapped it directly onto the top of her half-eaten doughnut before taking another massive bite.

Silas kept his smile perfectly polite, but inwardly, his mind was reeling.

’Who the hell chainsmokes several cigarettes in a row, and then immediately starts eating ice cream stacked on top of a hot doughnut?’ Silas thought, genuinely impressed by the chaos of her digestive system. ’Her internal organs must be forged from vibranium or something.’

Evelyn chewed happily, swallowing the absurd combination of hot dough and cold cream before wiping her mouth with a napkin.

Her stormy gray eyes locked back onto Silas as the fierce intelligence returned to her gaze.

"So," Evelyn said, gesturing with her spoon. "Before we get into the absolute disaster of your lack of communication regarding the Princess... I should probably congratulate you."

Silas raised an eyebrow. "Congratulate me? For what?"

Evelyn took another bite of cake.

"For the fact that your ’Lord Vespera’ network account just officially crossed forty million active followers this afternoon. The global network is completely losing its mind over your mysterious female alter-ego. We might actually have to coordinate and post a video of her soon just to keep the engagement metrics high."

Silas blinked, his jaw dropping slightly as he almost choked on his own spit.

"Forty million?" Silas asked in disbelief. "She is that popular?"

Evelyn snorted, rolling her eyes as she scooped more ice cream.

"Are you joking? Silas, you created a breathtakingly beautiful and mysterious woman who single-handedly crushed the Unmovable Wall... Your female disguise is currently the most popular sought-after woman in the entire world."

Silas rubbed his temples, a headache beginning to form at the logistical nightmare of managing a globally famous alter-ego that didn’t actually exist.

"But that is not why I came to your Keep today," Evelyn continued, her tone suddenly dropping the casual banter.

She set the spoon down with her expression turning incredibly serious... She was serious.

Evelyn looked directly into his eyes.

"The World Council has officially gotten in contact with my secure terminal," Evelyn stated, her voice quiet but echoing loudly in the silent room. "They are demanding a formal face-to-face summit regarding the aftermath of the Lord War and the rising influence of Blessed Land."

She paused, leaning forward in her leather chair.

"We need to decide on a date."