Chapter 612: Curry Their Favor

In the room, Axi Na was still whispering with her mother Mei Di Si.

Lei En, using his Soul Eye to observe her Element, saw Axi Na's cheeks suddenly flush; it seemed Mei Di Si had mentioned something unspeakable, making her shyly shake her head, then curiously whisper a follow‑up question.

The dignified Mei Di Si solemnly admonished her daughter, as if delivering something important.

Axi Na, her face bright red, listened earnestly, nodding now and then to show she remembered.

Without eavesdropping via the Voice of All Things, Lei En could still guess their conversation. His gaze fell on Mei Di Si; the female storm giant appeared calm while speaking to her daughter, yet her emotions surged—reluctance, joy, worry—and her soul's hue shifted constantly.

This is the typical reaction and feeling of a mother watching her daughter about to marry.

From this angle, the habits of storm giants are not that different from humans; they share the same passions, desires, and sound social bonds.

Lei En's mind became active.

Barring surprises, Axi Na will follow him for a lifetime; they are not formally married, but a soul contract is more sacred than marriage, and yet he still has other women.

Especially Ao Xi Li Ya, who has also signed a soul contract with him.

An Element cannot be shared twice; his strongest Elements—Iron Body, Truth Willpower, Key of Doors, and so on—have already been taken by Ao Xi Li Ya.

The most vexing part is that dragons and giants are mortal enemies.

This hatred has persisted from over twenty thousand years ago to the present.

When the contract is sealed later, Axi Na certainly won't be fooled; he still doesn't know how she'll react. Though this was decreed by a Titan Elder and Axi Na herself has no right to back out, to prevent a backyard fire it's best to win her favor in advance, nurture some affection, and coax her into compromising with reality.

And getting along with her family is a good approach.

Axi Na values her mother and younger brother highly; if he can bribe the mother‑in‑law and brother‑in‑law, he doesn't need their support, just that they don't fan the flames when Axi Na gets angry.

"Hmm… what do they like?"

Lei En sat on the stone steps, his gaze piercing the wall toward Mei Di Si and Bo Luo Si, locating their bedroom and observing it carefully.

Sometimes, by inspecting a bedroom one can discern a person's preferences and character.

Mei Di Si's bedroom was arranged very plainly, appearing ordinary at first glance.

Yet within the All-Seeing Eye, nothing hides; he quickly found two massive chests behind a hidden wall door. One chest held a huge collection of gold jewelry, neatly sorted; the other contained several precious magical items.

"Gold ornaments and magical items!" Lei En nodded to himself.

Gold is perpetual hard currency in Ai Lun E Si; whether on the Prime Material Plane or other planes, the vast majority of races have a special fondness for gold, treating it as highly valuable money.

There are only a few hundred storm giants in the temple, and they have no circulating currency.

They use gold as an expensive alchemical material for crafting beautiful jewelry and artworks; its trade value is immense, so Mei Di Si's collection of gold ornaments is normal.

Lei En turned his gaze again toward Bo Luo Si's bedroom.

The gaunt giant mage was still stewing in the room; his bedroom, the largest in the house, was split into a small and a large section—the small for rest and meditation, the large piled with countless books, materials, and metal tools, a chaotic blend of library, alchemy lab, and mechanical workshop.

"Bo Luo Si's talent isn't as strong as his sister's, but he's diligent."

"No wonder he became a rare giant mage."

Lei En thought this while scanning the clutter in that large room; the collection numbered thousands of volumes, mostly written in Giant Tongue, with a few in elf, draconic, and human scripts, and the books placed in the most conspicuous spots were all dog‑eared.

He opened his handheld library and, from over a hundred meters away, copied all those books.

Then he skimmed through them rapidly.

"Uranos Meditation Technique—this is Bo Luo Si's meditation method?" Lei En quickly flipped through the not‑very‑thick book, which recorded an ancient meditation created by a Titan Giant of the Second Era, over ten thousand years old.

Pure casters are rare among giants, so their meditation system is underdeveloped, far inferior to that of elves.

As ages progress, meditation methods evolve.

From a modern perspective, this Uranos Meditation Technique is long outdated, riddled with flaws and many hazards; compared not only to elven methods but even a random meditation text from the Empire surpasses it.

Several other books also record giant meditation methods, likewise discarded by time.

Lei En naturally dismissed those meditation methods.

Judging from Bo Luo Si's soul state, the giant mage clearly knows his meditation is lacking and is trying to improve and patch those flaws.

But this is not something he can accomplish alone, so the effect is very limited.

"Bo Luo Si rose to a twelfth‑level mage thanks to these meditations; his talent exceeds expectations."

Moreover, Lei En found many unique little inventions amid the clutter, likely Bo Luo Si's own tinkering; a few were quite interesting, though useless, they displayed clever design thinking. In Bo Luo Si's collection, the human‑language books mostly concerned mechanical knowledge, but were incomplete and at least a century old, far behind today's mechanical tech.

Lei En already had a plan in mind.

He pondered briefly, then began sorting the contents of the Nebula Ring.

The Nebula Ring, with a capacity of a thousand cubic meters, stored vast amounts of high‑value materials, gear, weapons, assorted tools that might be needed, and gold worth millions of Gold Shields.

A moment later, after finishing her talk with her mother, Axi Na entered the garden, found Lei En, and saw him sitting on the stone steps admiring a distant storm.

"Why are you sitting here?" she asked.

Lei En smiled, gave no answer, stood and said, "Is it over?"

"Mm." Axi Na stepped forward, naturally slipping her arm around Lei En's, cheerfully saying, "Don't worry, mother won't oppose us; she's just reluctant to see me go. Bo Luo Si is the same, but the matter was too sudden for him to accept now; he'll understand later."

"That's good then." Lei En felt indifferent.

This was a decision made by Suo Li Mu; Axi Na's family's opposition was useless—if he hadn't refused to strain the relationship, he could have simply walked away.

The key remains Axi Na's thoughts; he must soothe her family.

"Let me show you around," Axi Na smiled.

The two walked hand‑in‑hand through the vast garden, a place Axi Na grew up in; every corner held memories from childhood and girlhood, good or bad, and she would recount them to Lei En without reservation.

Lei En listened attentively, occasionally asking about Axi Na's anecdotes.

Joyful laughter rang through the garden.

Returning home, Mei Di Si and Bo Luo Si and his mother were already waiting in the hall.

The two giants sat at the table; the stone table had been lowered, set with human‑sized tableware of unknown origin, dozens of large platters filled with abundant food and fruit, portions just right, and leg‑less chairs at the side, perfect for Lei En to sit.

Mei Di Si, beaming, greeted, "Lord Lei En, my earlier hospitality was insufficient, not out of neglect; it's all because Axi Na didn't inform me in advance."

"Madam, you are too kind." Lei En nodded with a smile, "The matter was sudden, I had no preparation either. Just call me Lei En."

"Also, we will be considered family from now on." Medis's eyes showed a smile.

When she spoke, she seriously sized up Lei En, like a mother-in-law examining a son-in-law, the more she looked, the more satisfied she became.

In terms of appearance, even the entire Storm Holy Temple cannot find anyone more handsome than Lei En; even her own son Boluos is far inferior.

In terms of strength, Lei En just defeated Asina.

In terms of status, Lei En is an honored guest of the elder; hearing Asina say, Lei En is a great noble in the Oriense Empire, also possesses a duchy, with a population of millions in his territory, wealthy enough to rival a country, and moreover is a student of a great Holy Soul Wizard.

As for Lei En's small stature, it's not a problem; once he forms a soul contract with Asina and obtains Titan divine power, his stature can become taller and larger than himself.

Lei En's personality is also very easygoing; brief contact feels pleasant to get along with.

Looking across the Storm Holy Temple, Asina cannot find a better match than Lei En, not even someone close; most importantly, Asina herself likes him a lot.

At this moment, an untimely voice sounded.

"Pfft! Who says he's family..." Boluos's face full of displeasure, arms crossed, he snorted with nostrils upturned, appearing indifferent.

"Boluos!"

Medis flicked a bolt of lightning toward her son; the lightning was neutralized by a layer of electric light shield, the shield also collapsed, exposing Boluos's true form, making him tremble slightly, and she admonished in a low voice: "If you don't want to be driven out, shut your mouth for me."

"Yes, mother." Boluos immediately lowered his head obediently, as if encountering his nemesis.

After Medis warned him again with her gaze, she turned to look at Lei En, immediately put on a smile, assumed the posture of hostess: "Lei En, please come sit."

"Thank you, lady."

Lei En sat before the huge dining table; the chairs and table were specially adjusted to a height he could use, but seeing the food piled up like a small mountain before him, he still felt strange.

Asina sat beside him in human form.

Medis and Boluos cannot shrink, so they can only sit cross-legged on the floor; the lowered table for them is like placed on the ground, but they can barely manage to dine together.

Lei En recalled the fairy tale he had read in his previous life.

An ordinary human who inadvertently entered the land of giants, and I am the story's protagonist, Gulliver.

(End of chapter)