Chapter 39: Yes, Your Majesty the Queen

Night

Maple Leaf Castle.

Count Robert was alone in the study, feeling very displeased.

He didn't read books, didn't look at documents, didn't seek amusement with the pretty maids, but just lay back in the sturdy chair, blankly staring at the spiral crystal lamp hanging from the ceiling.

The Winter Veil Festival was just around the corner, and as it turned out, the trading company he had invested in in the Kaowangguo Kingdom went bankrupt.

All seventeen giant sea vessels under the company's name were sold off at low prices, and the proceeds were snatched up entirely by other investors.

He was far away and got the news late, ending up with nothing to grab, suffering a pure loss of 430,000 ogre! All his initial investment went down the drain, the dividends he should have received also came to nothing, and for this year's Winter Veil Festival he had to think of ways to cut expenses.

Of course, there was still money on the books; if he spent sparingly, he could still get by.

After worrying for a while, the count again thought of Princess Selena.

Her beauty had faded considerably, and now she had become the wife of a minor baron.

Although the sage had sworn to protect her, all he needed to do was use a little trick, and that minor baron would surely be willing to offer up his wife willingly.

But having said that, he wasn't really interested in the current Princess Selena either.

Because she was no longer the lofty, elegant, beautiful princess.

He then thought of his own wife.

"Kailinna~"

He had deep feelings for his wife; they had been a couple since their youth, accompanying each other for nearly twenty years and raising five smart and beautiful children.

But his emotional need from his wife was companionship and understanding, whereas his wife, as always, wanted to possess him exclusively.

If his wife had remained young and beautiful, he wouldn't have minded, but reality was not so—his wife, this flower, had withered greatly, leaving no enjoyment at all.

Nowadays, they would snap at each other at the drop of a hat, the family warmth had vanished completely, making him feel increasingly annoyed, even somewhat hateful.

"If it weren't for the sake of the Count of High Mountain County, I'd sigh~ forget it!"

The Count of High Mountain County is his father-in-law, so he must give face.

The children also need a complete family, and his wife Kailinna hasn't committed any major fault; there's really no need to break ties.

But this cold, oppressive family life is really hard to bear.

Just then, the door was knocked, and the voice of the butler Abulu came from outside.

"Master, the lady has come."

"Come in."

Although he said that, the count felt a flash of annoyance in his heart.

The children were already asleep, and he sensed that he and his wife were about to have another big argument.

Click~

The door opened, then with another click it was locked from the inside.

The count lay motionless in the chair, using a book to cover his face: "Linna, why did you lock the door?"

"Because I want to have a good talk with you."

"Go ahead and say it."

The count had already braced himself for an argument.

But instead of waiting for his wife's barbed remark hidden in cotton, he heard footsteps steadily approaching, extending from the doorway to his side.

The count felt a bit strange, reaching to take the book off his face, but his wife pressed down his arm, and a guilty voice came to his ear.

"Gelante, I want to apologize to you."

"Apologize? Why apologize?"

The count didn't insist on moving the book away, so the couple conversed in this strange way, separated by a book.

Kaiselinna's voice was much gentler than before, almost like when she was young.

No, it should be more maternal, also carrying a peculiar, lofty tone.

"I've only ever cared about myself, often neglecting your true feelings; I'm very sorry."

The count's tense nerves instantly relaxed considerably; how good, tonight we won't have to repeat those meaningless arguments.

His mood improved considerably, and he also felt a bit strange: "Linna, why are you suddenly saying these things?"

"Because I suddenly realized that my guardian knight is no longer young either; many fine lines have appeared unnoticed on his forehead and the corners of his eyes."

The count felt somewhat moved: "Mm~ it's true I've gotten a bit older, but I'm not old yet. Mm~ what are you doing sitting on me?"

"How come, it's fine for those outside girls to sit on you, but I, your wife, can't?"

The count gave a bitter laugh: "Of course you can."

He felt a bit disappointed, having thought his wife's attitude had changed, but in the end she was still the same as before, trying in various ways to relive old dreams with him.

But to him, those old dreams were long devoid of any enjoyment.

But he also didn't want to refuse, for if he did, the storm that had just calmed would erupt instantly.

"Ah~ just treat it as dealing with duties."

The count sighed in his heart, waiting without any passion.

In the midst of a soft rustling sound, he suddenly sucked in a breath of cold air, his face full of surprise: "Linna, is that you? You're quite different today."

He reached out and took the book off his face, and saw his wife sitting facing him on his lap, wearing only a fiery red silk cloak.

Under the soft glow of the crystal lamp, the fiery red silk and her snow-white skin complemented each other, her dense hair and shining eyes enhancing one another, painting a captivating scene.

The count was stunned, eyes wide: "Linna, is that you?"

He looked somewhat like his wife in her youth, but with an added mature, alluring charm she didn't have back then—truly like a lofty queen.

The count's heart fluttered.

The last person who made his heart flutter like this was still someone in Dawn Castle, cough cough~~ basically a lady of extremely high status.

Kailina saw her husband's gaze and also felt the changes in his body.

She immediately knew Luosen's Transformation Technique had taken effect, and her heart was instantly filled with joy, thinking silently: "Anna's apprentice's skill is truly extraordinary." Not only was the Transformation Technique used extremely cleverly, but her grasp of her husband's thoughts was also extremely precise.

Then she is now the noble queen! She looked down from above at her husband, extended one hand, gently pinched the Count's chin, lifted it slightly, and, somewhat barbarously, said: "My knight, say, from now on you belong to me alone!"

The Count felt humiliation, but for some unknown reason that humiliation gave him an indescribable pleasure, so he obeyed.

"Yes, Queen, I serve only you."

"No, it's not service, it's conquest!"

"What I need is conquest by the strong, not obedience from the weak!"

"If you lack the ability to conquer, I'll have to find another knight."

The Count heard this, his blood surged: "Your Majesty the Queen, I will now let you taste my power!"

After a storm‑like conquest, everything calmed, and the Count, coming back to his senses from the frenzy, said: "Madam, what exactly is happening to your body?"

It looked like a Transformation Technique, yet no trace could be found; it was strange, but it made him unable to put it down.

"It's a secret medicine, the Adrian family's secret youth elixir, which can restore one's appearance to that of youth. Selena gave it to me; the effect is extraordinarily good, isn't it?"

"Exactly, the effect is superb!"

The Count nodded repeatedly, savoring the recent experience, and instantly felt that the maids he had sought had completely lost their appeal.

Those maids, the better ones born into minor noble families, the poorer ones were just commoners; no matter how much they tried to imitate, they could not compare to his wife, the Princess of High Mountain County.

"How long does this medicine's effect last?"

"His Highness said it lasts a year per dose, and after a year she will give me another bottle."

"Oh~ so that means it can stay like this forever?"

"Exactly."

"Oh~~ this is really great, I must thank His Highness properly."

The Count's reaction filled Kailina with joy, but she couldn't help recalling Luosen's words.

"Madam, that's a man's nonsense; the real meaning behind it is that the Transformation Technique wasn't used well enough, allowing him to notice the flaw."

She felt both admiration and respect: "Ah~ this little mage has seen right through my husband."

She also recalled the Food‑Creation Technique, and a sense of urgency rose in her: "This little mage is clearly a formidable person, otherwise he wouldn't have won the Princess's affection."

"Since he thinks Rukawado is a fraud, then Master Kao is most likely problematic."

"This is a business worth hundreds of thousands of Ogres; it cannot truly be swindled by him."

With that thought, Kailina said immediately.

"Of course we must thank them properly, and Selena also told me that her Baron husband may not have high magical cultivation, but his knowledge is extremely profound."

"In the past ten years, the Baron has devoted almost all his time to studying alchemy, achieving astonishing results in alchemy."

"And the Food‑Creation Technique is a branch of alchemy; he has equally deep research in this field, not necessarily inferior to the Master."

The Count, half‑believing, half‑doubting, asked: "Is that so?"

The Count's wife said seriously: "My husband, think carefully—if the Baron were truly a worthless mediocre, why would the Princess favor him?"

"Why would Sage Levin be willing to bless their marriage?"

"Moreover, he is a genuine master of victory chess, which shows he has an exceptionally brilliant mind."

"He is also Anna's apprentice; isn't that more trustworthy than a group of unfamiliar mages coming from Kao?"

That argument is, of course, very reasonable.

But the Count is a very stubborn person.

Once something is decided, he hopes it can proceed step by step, smoothly, without any mishap along the way.

Now it is exactly so.

Even though he knows his wife's words are correct, he feels strongly resistant to change.

"Madam, the matter is far more complicated than you imagine. In short, stay out of it; I will handle it properly."

The Count swung his hand forcefully, not wanting to hear any discordant noise.

Kailina furrowed her brows.

She now greatly admired Luosen's tactics; seeing her husband ignore her advice, anger rose within her.

She reached out, grabbed her husband's soft ribs, and glared at him viciously.

"Knight Grant, I command you to give Luosen a seat at the conference as an observer, understood?!"

The Count, his vital point restrained, tensed up anxiously and pleaded repeatedly: "Madam~ softer~ softer~ don't crush it."

Kailina not only didn't ease up, but she increased the pressure slightly.

"Knight, if you don't obey me this time, we'll each go our own way from now on. You find your pretty maid; I'll go outside to find my handsome young fellow."

If it were earlier, this wouldn't be a threat at all; the Count would have welcomed his wife doing so, as it would let him comfortably seek pretty girls.

But times have changed; the thought of his beautiful, noble, queen‑like wife being fiercely conquered by a stranger knight caused a sharp pang in his heart.

No, this must not happen.

Never!

Thus, he yielded.

"Stop stop stop~~ Madam, no, Queen~ Your Majesty, I'm arranging—I'm arranging, is that not enough?"

"That's about right."

Kailina nodded in satisfaction, and a secret joy rose in her heart: "Haha~ this new body is truly handy."

But if it's only this one body, she still feels insecure, because over time her husband will surely grow tired of it, yet Luosen had previously provided her with as many as ten beautiful bodies.

She can keep switching.

Thus, she silently decided: "It seems I must maintain a good relationship with this little mage."

(End of chapter)