novelraw Chapter 56
Chapter 56
Episode 56
She wanted to eat as much as possible, but if her vessel hadn't grown large enough, she might just end up with a stomachache instead of properly absorbing it.
'Expanding the vessel is the priority.'
Flora reluctantly withdrew her longing gaze and held the fruit precious.
Anyway, now that she had Shalias in her possession, she could worry a little less about money in the future.
'I'll adjust the supply appropriately so it doesn't harm Finny Orphanage, and I can sell the fruit for astronomical prices.'
Maybe she could even hire an apothecary directly to make it into an ointment and sell it under the guise of a special ointment.
There were probably other uses besides ointment, so it would be good to think about that part too.
"First, once we make money, we need to repair the castle. We'll replace all the lighting too...... Ah, Janet!"
"Yes, what is it?"
"Why do people get taken away when the ducal castle lights are on at night?!"
"Ah...... It seems I did such a thing before falling asleep."
"You didn't know it's passed down like a legend?"
Janet shook her head briefly.
"I didn't know. And even if I had, I wouldn't have cared. Shall I never do it again from now on?"
Remembering the unjust experience she had on her first day at the ducal castle, Flora began to scold her.
"Of course not! I want to wander around at night too, you know!"
"I didn't realize my little mischief would harm my master. I promise I will never do such a thing again."
"Good, that's a very good attitude! Oh, and did you release the magical beasts in the mountains and the mineral veins too?"
"That wasn't me. It was because the magical beasts moved about freely."
At the hastily added answer, Flora's eyes widened sharply.
"Get rid of them all!"
"Yes, I'll make sure none of them even come near that area."
Satisfied with the answer, Flora finally relaxed the intensity in her eyes and nodded.
"Oh, by the way, did you know there's a gold vein in the mountain that lies beyond this forest?"
"What?"
"I saw it when I first came here. It was discovered after this place became the Demon Forest, so since the humans haven't developed it yet, it's probably still there."
"Wh-wh-wh-why are you only telling me this now?!"
Flora let out a shriek, then threw her arms around Janet's neck, overjoyed, and leaned back.
Janet held her back tightly to keep her from falling, and Flora burst into delighted laughter.
"Janet, you're the best!"
"……There's also a mine behind this Ice Castle where a considerable amount of magic stones are deposited."
"Gasp, really? How, how? Am I going to be rich now?"
"Yes, it all belongs to you, master."
"You're really the best! I'm so happy!"
Flora couldn't contain her joy.
The only businesses currently operating in Lucifer were the lumber business and the mineral business. And even those were on the verge of being discontinued because of the magical beasts.
The coniferous trees were of good quality and sold for a good price, but the copper from the north wasn't very marketable.
That was because copper could be found in many places besides Lucifer territory, so it couldn't be sold for a high price.
But a gold vein, not copper?
And even a magic stone mine, which is harder to obtain than gold?
It was like a windfall of money, so how could she not be ecstatic?
She could now bid farewell to the sad past of being poor and let it go without regret.
"Great, that means our business can proceed smoothly now!"
The damned Imperial Family wouldn't easily grant business permits, and the setup costs were enormous, causing mountainous worries, but now there was no need for that.
'I'll make sure to wipe the smug looks off their faces.'
Money would overflow in abundance, so she would make the business a success somehow and laugh at them with all her might.
Then, she would amass more money to fund the annihilation of humanity, starting with the Imperial Family and the damned enemy families, and bring about humanity's destruction.
"Fufufufu."
As Flora laughed evilly, Janet also smiled contentedly, pleased by her happy appearance.
But that lasted only a moment. Janet looked up briefly, then frowned without hiding her displeasure.
"My, it seems we have intruders."
"Intruders?"
Janet waved her hand, and an ornate, round mirror made of transparent ice appeared before her.
When she infused it with power, something soon began to appear on its surface.
When the blurry image became clear, Flora shouted with a happy face.
"It's Oppa!"
What appeared in the mirror was Athanas with a stern expression.
"Oppa is here too?"
And behind him were Benio and a large group of heavily armed knights.
Soon, Athanas shouted with a grim, shadowed face.
- Today, we will slay the demon of this forest!
As if in agreement with Athanas's cry, the knights raised their sword-holding hands with determined expressions and let out a battle cry.
- To behead the vile demon who kidnapped my daughter and restore peace to our territory!
- For that cause!
"......"
Flora, feeling awkward, glanced sideways at Janet to gauge her reaction.
Fortunately, Janet was snorting in derision rather than getting angry.
"But why is Oppa here? He should still be in the capital."
She thought she'd heard it would take about a month, but hadn't it only been about three weeks?
Knowing that traveling to and from the capital took quite a bit of time, she was puzzled. The answer came from above.
"It seems he came looking for you, master. He must have rushed here upon hearing you were kidnapped. How dare he try to take the noble king away from me."
She finally began to get angry.
Her black eyes filled with murderous intent and glowed red, like a slaughterer waiting for the order to butcher them immediately.
Seeing this, Flora smiled awkwardly but spoke firmly.
"You can't kill my Oppa."
"......"
"You can't kill my other Oppa either."
"......"
"And you can't kill the knights who came to rescue me."
"Then......"
The murderous intent filling Janet's eyes disappeared, replaced by a sullen expression Flora had never seen during their time together.
"Am I to be left alone again? Will I not be able to serve the king?"
Seeing her eyes shimmering as if she might cry at any moment, Flora was surprised at first, then smiled gently.
"That could never happen. Why would I abandon my subordinate?"
"Then......"
"I said we'd conquer the world together, didn't I? Was that a lie?"
"Of course not! I will follow the path the king walks, even if its end is death!"
At the blind devotion, Flora reached out and stroked her head.
"You have to stay by my side and conquer the world together. Our goal is the annihilation of humanity, the overthrow of humanity!"
"Yes."
"I want to walk that path with my family. So please understand a little, Janet."
"Yes, I am perfectly fine with that. I don't mind sharing you with them, so please, don't abandon me. Please don't leave my side."
Finally feeling that Janet understood her intention, Flora nodded satisfactorily.
"Ah, you're so clever."
Flora praised Janet enthusiastically, then looked into the mirror and said.
"So, to be together from now on, shall we put on a little play?"
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · · · · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
When Basilian opened his eyes, he saw a familiar ceiling.
'Where is this......'
Dazedly staring at the ceiling, Basilian slowly traced back his memories.
'I was definitely in the garden...... Why did I go to the garden? Uh, ah……?'
"Flora!"
Remembering the person he had forgotten, he tried to sit up abruptly, but someone pressed down firmly on his chest.
Lifting his trembling eyes, he saw Athanas looking down at him.
"If you sit up suddenly, your wounds might worsen."
"Duke......"
Athanas was standing by Basilian's side, dressed in the same clothes he had worn when he left the territory.
"……Duke, have you already returned from the Imperial Capital?"
"I arrived a short while ago."
As Athanas bent his knees to sit, Basilian waved his hand to indicate it was fine and asked what he was most curious about.
"What happened......"
Basilian recalled the situation before he lost consciousness.
Elena had suddenly asked for help to save Flora, and he had fought an assassin to protect Flora.
Compared to the highly skilled assassin, the still-lacking Basilian had been toyed with and sustained wounds all over his body.
'That power was definitely......'