A stay-at-home Dads Retaurant

1397

Chapter 1397: Boss Mag, Please Marry Me

"I can even have a complete set of dentures with ivory?" Vanessa looked at the elephant tusk in Irina's hand, shocked.

"Of course. Why else do you think we have elves that are over 700 years old with a perfect set of teeth? Their teeth started falling off when they're around 600 years old, so they basically all got ivory dentures at 700 years old." Irina nodded with a smile, and said, "Besides, you'll be just like a hound when you've gotten your set of ivory dentures."

"What has this got to do with hounds?" Vanessa asked curiously.

"Your teeth would be as clean as a hound's tooth," Irina said with a smile.

Vanessa was stunned, while Mag and the rest could not help but crack up.

"Even though it sounds very impressive, I think I would still want to keep my teeth. Big Sister Irina, can I trouble you to use the elephant tusk to do the ivory filling for me, please?" Vanessa looked at Irina sincerely.

Her dental problems had troubled her for many years. Although she always told herself in consolation that she had no friends to show her teeth to, who wouldn't want to be in the limelight, standing in a beautiful evening dress at the most lavish palace banquet?

She did not want to be the ugly monster who was afraid to face the world. She did not want to hide alone behind the palace walls outside Rodu.

Of course, the most important thing was that she really wanted to have a taste of the spicy hot pot and spicy grilled fish!

"Open your mouth." Irina lifted Vanessa's chin with a finger, and used the paring knife to carve out small bits from the elephant tusk. She curled her finger, and the ivory bits floated up and were enveloped by a golden glow. They softened quickly, and were inserted into each cavity.

The process of softening the ivory and inserting it into the cavity was very quick. It took only around two to three minutes in total. When Irina retracted her finger, Vanessa's cavity-filled teeth were completely mended.

Furthermore, there was no difference between the color of the ivory and teeth, so there was no trace of any dental filling. Even the curve of the surface of the teeth looked perfectly normal.

"That's great! Your— Young Mistress, your teeth have been mended, and they are now neat and white," Lola exclaimed as tears of joy welled up in her eyes.

Vanessa raised the mirror and looked at her pearly white teeth for a while, stunned, before tears started rolling down her cheeks.

"Aren't you satisfied?" Irina asked, after going over to take a look.

Vanessa shook her head as she lamented, "No, look, what a beautiful young lady, how did the beauty get overlooked by the teeth?"

Irina nodded, and said, "Yeah. If you've cured your dental problems sooner, you might have been betrothed to a demon king. The kind with eyeballs all over his body."

Vanessa paused for a while from the shock. Even her tears stopped falling. She looked at Irina with fear.

"I was kidding." Irina caressed Vanessa's head with a smile. Before the latter could react, Irina continued, "The Roth Empire is on okay terms with the Fear Demon Tribe. You might end up with a forest troll prince that has lizards crawling all over his body."

"Wah!" Vanessa started wailing. She covered her mouth, and said with grievance, "I'm scared of lizards. I don't want a fear demon prince or a forest troll prince. I don't want to marry a prince..."

Vanessa glanced around the restaurant and finally looked at Mag. She looked at him with plea in her eyes and said, "Boss Mag, please marry me."

"Hm?" Mag, who was just watching the show, was stunned. Why did she suddenly cue him to marry her?

"Would he dare to?" Irina smiled and looked at Mag.

"I wouldn't dare to do that. I'm worried that Duke Abraham would tear me apart." Mag waved his hands quickly and laughed awkwardly. If he dared to nod, Irina alone could tear him apart.

However, after mending her teeth and solving her dental problems, Vanessa could really be considered a beautiful woman. She had perfectly inherited the good looks of the royal family and bloodline.

Mag met the queen at a palace banquet before. Vanessa had inherited her beauty and charisma. She was tall and had a long, slender neck like a swan.

"Ding! Congratulations on completing Vanessa's teeth-mending mission! Mission reward: One recipe for durian pizza." The system's voice rang in Mag's head.

Mag raised his brow. It had been a long and arduous mission. Thankfully, with Xixi and Irina's help, it was finally completed, and he could finally be rid of the tooth decay threat.

Vanessa, who was rejected by Mag, was a little disappointed. Did Boss Mag not have a bit of interest in her even after her teeth were back to normal?

"Vansa, your teeth have recovered, so you can eat whatever you want. You just need to maintain the good habit of brushing your teeth once every morning and night, and you won't have to worry about dental problems anymore," Mag said with a smile.

"Yeah!" Vanessa's eyes lit up, and a bright smile appeared on her face again. She looked at Mag, and said, "Then can I try the insanely spicy grilled fish and spicy hot pot?"

"I won't stop you if you want to give it a try." Mag nodded.

"That's great." Vanessa smiled radiantly. She thought for a while, quickly got Lola to open her bag, and pulled out a thick envelope filled with cash. She passed it to Mag, and said, "Boss Mag, this is just a little something to thank you for helping me treat my teeth. I am very grateful."

"You're welcome." Mag accepted the heavy envelope happily. It was not bad to take this experience as a form of transaction. In any case, the relationship between them was quite awkward. His father and her father and two brothers were enemies, so he was already very kind to her.

Vanessa then removed a white jade pendant that she had on her and passed it to Xixi, gratefully saying, "Big Sister Xixi, this is my favorite jade pendant. Thank you for helping me treat my teeth."

Xixi looked at the jade pendant. It was very smooth, and there were even beautiful patterns on the surface. She thought for a while, and decided to accept the jade pendant. "Thank you."

Vanessa looked at Irina, and thought seriously for a while. She was in a dilemma.

"It's alright. Considering our relationship, just 10 or 20 million will do," Irina said with a smile.

"In that case... I'll have to go back and ask my father for it," Vanessa said with distress.

"Then you can just put it on your tab for now, and get him to send the money over. You're in my hands now anyway," Irina said in a relaxed manner.

"That's true. Then I'll write him a letter tonight." Vanessa nodded.

Mag looked at Irina as though she was trying to cheat a little child of her money, and pretended that he did not know anything. Of course, he did not dare to ask anything as well.

Vanessa left happily, and Xixi also took her leave. Only Mag and Irina were left in the restaurant.

Mag stared at Irina and weighed the envelope with his hand before emptying it out on the table. A pile of dragon coins rolled out. Smiling, he said, "That's not a bad transaction."

"Are restaurant owners nowadays so concerned about their customers' dental health? I saw a few old men with bad teeth today," Irina asked with a smile.

Chapter 1398: Pack Up And Run

"We've watched Vanessa grow up. I do feel a little sorry to see her become so unhappy because of her teeth. That's why I've decided to help her," Mag said calmly.

"Mm-hmm, that's good. I've already had the intention to help her with it. I just had no idea how to get rid of the black stains. She really looked just like when she was young when she smiled." Irina nodded with a smile.

Mag closed the door and sat in front of Irina. He asked, "About the elves that came back two days ago, are they still getting along fine?"

"Those who joined the Night Elves have similar experiences. They gather together for warmth, and that's pretty good." Irina nodded, but she still seemed a little down.

Mag got up, and told her, "I've just gotten the latest news about the different tribes from the Gray Temple. There's also news about the Wind Forest. Do you want to take a look? I haven't had the time to take a look at it yet."

"Sure." Irina got up and followed Mag upstairs to the study.

Mag pulled out a chest from a hidden section, and unlocked the lock on it before opening the chest.

There were eight envelopes inside, each representing the eight tribes. Under the envelopes was a smaller wooden box. The box should be the one that contained the unreleased information that Rolan had told him about.

"Information about the Wind Forest." Mag pulled out one of the envelopes, and handed it to Irina. There should be a record of news on what happened in the Wind Forest over this period.

Irina received the envelope, and sat down in front of the study table to read the document.

After coming to Chaos City, her source of information was cut, and so first-hand news like this was extremely valuable.

On the night before the allied forces started their attack, most of the Night Elves would travel between the crypt and the Wind Forest via an underpass to spread the message of the Night Elves' mission. She was the most concerned about their current situation right now.

Mag pulled out the envelope on the Demon Islands, and sat down on another chair to read the document. He was also very curious what kind of impact their trip to the Demon Islands had on the demons.

Two hours passed by very quickly. Mag was still reading about the comparison between the forces of the fear demons and the shivarras. Irina was already done reading. She looked at Mag, and said, "I want to go to the Wind Forest."

"Hm?" Mag looked up at Irina, a little surprised. "Did anything happen?"

"Helena will officially crown Sally as the Princess of the Elves and burn all the rebels they've caught during this period three days later," Irina said coldly.

"The night elves?" Mag heard Irina mention that the batch of night elves who had been with her for the longest time had already gone back to the Wind Forest in preparation to rope more elves in to join the Night Elves.

"Yes. The night elves spread the message of freedom, and there are more and more elves joining the group as they feel freedom beckoning them, making the Night Elves grow in number. This has been happening in various parts of the Wind Forest like sparks ready to ignite catching on fire. Helena and the other ruling elves could already feel the threat, so they captured a batch of night elves, and labelled them as rebels to kill them to serve as a warning for the other elves," Irina said with a nod.

"You intend to save them?" Mag was a little surprised at the rate the Night Elves had been spreading and developing. For the tiny sparks of night elves to quickly start a flame showed that the elf tribe was already rotting from the inside.

"I have to go," Irina said with certainty.

"Alright, I'll go with you then," Mag said. After the breakthrough to the 9th-tier, when he had Ah Zi with him, Mag would be strong enough to protect himself. Even if he could not provide Irina with much help, at least he would be able to assert some awe.

"Mm-hm." Irina looked at Mag and smiled a little. She did not know when she had started getting used to him accompanying her.

"Their motive this time, other than deterrence, might also be to set a trap for you. We need to be prepared before we go," Mag said with a slight frown.

"I am stronger than they think in the Wind Forest. The Tree of Life would be on my side." Irina appeared very relaxed.

"That's great." Mag was not in the least doubtful of Irina's perception. The Tree of Life, as the Elves' sacred tree, had already been around for thousands of years. With it on Irina's side, they should have a higher chance of winning.

Of course, there were still some preparations to be done. He had to guarantee Irina's safety.

Mag looked at the time before going downstairs to prepare for dinner opening. The dinner opening period was the longest and busiest.

***

"Where's the crayfish restaurant? How did such a huge place disappear?" Tony howled in desperation while standing at a land of ruins.

"This..." Steve was also stunned. How did the crayfish restaurant disappear in a night?

The fishermen who were on their third trip here with pails of crayfish to sell were also dumbfounded when they saw the crayfish restaurant reduced to nothing.

They wanted to make a windfall from selling the crayfish to the restaurant, but they did not expect that the crayfish restaurant would disappear today, leaving behind a pile of ruins.

"Oh no, oh no. The article that we sent out is already confirmed and printed. I reckon they are already on the way to distribution... If the article gains popularity but the crayfish restaurant is gone, do you think the readers will tear me apart?" Tony asked Steve as he grabbed the latter in a fluster.

Steve glanced at the pile of ruins, then back at Tony, and nodded while saying, "I suggest you should stay low for the time being."

He could even imagine how the readers, who rushed over excitedly, would flip upon seeing this pile of ruins.

With Tony's influence, there would definitely be many demons coming over to Carapace Island to try the food out.

"Boss Hades has done me in! He didn't even let me know in advance that he was going to pack up and go. He's just pushing me into a fiery pit!" Tony pulled a long face and felt completely at a loss for what to do.

I am such an unlucky man.

"Why don't you go over to Chaos City to hide for a while? When you tide over this period, I will write to you and tell you to come back," Steve suggested.

"I guess this is the only thing I can do right now." Tony nodded. He could already see how the customers would vent on the pile of ruins and go hysterical when they could not try the crayfish. If his readers came over as well, they'd probably vent their anger the exact same way.

"I had better not see Boss Hades ever again in my life. Otherwise, I will definitely pin him to the ground and wallop him before making him give me an explanation for all this!" Tony clenched his teeth, and turned to leave with a face full of grudge.

He had to pack up and leave.

Chapter 1399: I Want To Drink And Get Wasted

"Uncle Abraham, my teeth are fixed!"

Vanessa could not contain her happiness as she called out the moment she stepped into the yard.

"Your Highness, you have to mind your behavior..." Lola reminded softly while beaming ecstatically.

"Your teeth... They're fixed?!" Abraham dashed out of the house in such a hurry that he only had one shoe on. He stared at Vanessa, and asked, "Your Highness, are your teeth really fixed?"

"Here, take a look." Vanessa opened her mouth to show Abraham her set of pearly white and clean teeth.

"They are fixed, indeed. Clean and neat." Abraham's eyes lit up. He clapped agitatedly. "This is great! Our little princess has transformed back into a beautiful young lady. If Their Majesties were to find out, they would definitely be elated."

He had watched Vanessa grow up, so he was very clear how much she had suffered because of her dental problems.

"I am a beautiful young lady to begin with, alright?" Vanessa said with a laugh.

"Did Boss Mag treat it for you?" Abraham asked.

"No, Boss Mag, Big Sister Xixi, and Big Sister Irina treated it for me together." Vanessa shook her head.

"I see, Princess Irina also helped." Abraham was not too shocked, since he knew that Vanessa and Irina were quite close.

"Yeah. I've already paid Boss Mag and Big Sister Xixi, but not Big Sister Irina. Do you have 100 million copper coins with you?"

"100 million!" Abraham's eyelid twitched. Although it was not a large amount for him, 100 million to cure dental problems seem like a scam.

He had heard about Irina setting up the Night Elves to rebel against the Wind Forest. He could understand that she might be tight on cash since she had so many mouths to feed all of a sudden.

"Since you're not saying anything, I'll write a letter to Father and ask him for the money. I think he should have enough," Vanessa said.

"You don't have to look for His Majesty. It's just 100 million. I'll take it as I'm paying for your dental fees," Abraham said with a smile. He pulled out his leather wallet, took out a 100 million copper coins Buffett Bank check, and passed it to Vanessa.

"Thank you, Uncle Abraham." Vanessa took the check with a smile, and said, "Then let's go try the insanely spicy hot pot tonight."

"I-insanely spicy!!!"

***

"Boss Mag, next time if you're going to bring little Amy out for more than three days, please let me know beforehand. I am still rather fit, so I have no problem going around with you. I can even be little Amy's bodyguard. I can also help you settle any problems or help if you meet any formidable ingredients," Krassu said with a smile to Mag as he walked to the entrance the moment the restaurant was open for dinner. He looked rather amiable, but his smile was artificial.

"Er..." Mag raised his brow. Although having Krassu along was like having an extra bodyguard, it was not convenient at all, since their time together as a family of three was very precious.

"If I am around, I will freeze any ill-intentioned fellows who even dare to come within 200 meters' radius of Amy," Urien said coldly as he walked over.

"If there's a chance, I will definitely call both of you along," Mag said with a smile guiltily. After all, he brought Amy out and skipped five days of classes. Krassu and Urien were probably thinking of skinning him alive.

"These two masters are really sticky." Amy sighed helplessly with Ugly Duckling in her hands.

Krassu's and Urien's face turned bright red. They did not think that their most beloved disciple would say that of them one day.

The braised crayfish had successfully gained a reputation among customers. This new dish was a pleasant surprise to all the customers, and even the people staying in the inland Chaos City could also enjoy the fresh and delicious taste of crayfish.

Matching braised crayfish with beer also quickly spread, and the two had almost become a set.

A bite of crayfish butter and a gulp of refreshing cold beer was the way to go.

Mag handed the entire designated hot pot area over to Rena because she could already easily create the different hot pot soup base while he focused on the other dishes. His workload was thus greatly reduced, and the restaurant's profits went up at the same time.

After the dinner operating hours, Miya and the rest left after cleaning up the restaurant.

Mag walked to the entrance, and was about to lock the door when a hand stopped him from closing the door.

"Camilla, you haven't gone back?" Mamy Restaurant pulled the door open and saw Camilla, who was standing by the entrance. He was slightly surprised to see her since she was in charge of preparing the ingredients, so she should have left before the restaurant even started operation.

"I can't sleep. I want to drink and get wasted. Do you want to keep me company?" Camilla leaned against the door frame and looked up at Mag. She sounded insistent as though she was not taking "no" for an answer.

Mag looked at Camilla, who was dressed in a black skirt with a high split. Her long legs were exposed, and she was exuding a sensual and alluring aura as she raised her brow slightly.

What should he do when a beautiful lady invited him to drink, the kind where they would get wasted?

This did not seem like a very friendly situation.

"Wasted?" An oppressing voice sounded from behind Mag. The half-opened door was pulled open, and Irina stood beside Mag with what seemed to be a smile as she said to Camilla, "I'll keep you company."

"Wh-what are you doing here?!" Camilla looked at Irina, startled. Her aura was completely gone, and she was just like a mouse caught by a cat. She jumped back subconsciously and looked at Irina in disbelief, and then at Mag again before saying, "What's the relationship between the two of you?"

"What a coincidence, I can't sleep too, and I happen to need someone who would get wasted with me. Looks like we've found each other," Irina said with a smile. She put her right arm on Mag's shoulder, behaving like a diva as she smiled victoriously.

"Then... you two can go ahead." Camilla looked at Mag complicatedly before turning to leave.

"Why, are you afraid?" Irina smiled.

Camilla stopped in her tracks. She gritted her teeth. That's too much! She calmed herself down, turned back once again to look at Irina, and relaxedly said, "What is there to be afraid of? Are you going to eat me up?"

"That's hard to say. Come on in." Irina smiled meaningfully. When she turned, she glanced at Mag and sat on a random chair.

"Hmph." Camilla also glanced at Mag as she walked past him before going over to sit in front of Irina.

Mag: "╮(╯▽╰)╭"

What did I do? I didn't do anything at all!

"Two cups of beer and any barbecued food," Irina said as she raised her hand. She looked at Camilla, and asked, "Do you have any special requests?"

"Me? I'll just drink," Camilla said calmly.

Chapter 1400: The System Mocked

Mag did not know why he had to continue cooking, preparing the kebabs, grilled fish, and grilled prawns for the two ladies even after operating hours.

Although barbecue and beer went really well together, as the oppressed party, he was also quite lost.

Mag stood by the grill and took a bite of a beef ball. He chewed on it and allowed the fragrance to spread in his mouth before taking a sip of beer. The experience of having the chilled beer mix with the piping hot beef ball was such an enjoyment. All the while, he was observing the two women who slowly got into the mood after a couple of pints of beer.

Alcohol gave one courage. After finishing a few pints, Camilla slowly regained her aura. She looked at Irina, and said, "You... tell me. Why are they making use of me? Am I just a thing that can be used in exchange for benefits to them? Even my father could betray me time and again. Don't you think it's funny?"

Irina was also starting to get tipsy. She stabilized herself by holding onto the table, and looked at Camilla as she nodded seriously. "Not just funny. You're pathetic."

Camilla was stunned. After that, she started wiping her tears. "Tell me, how am I pathetic..."

Mag could guess why Camilla wanted to get wasted tonight based on what she said. It seemed like the return to the Demon Islands this time hit her with quite a huge blow, and she had no one to talk to. Therefore, she came over here in the middle of the night to get wasted.

"It's okay. For vampires, these little setbacks are nothing. At least you haven't experienced people watching you eat greens," Irina comforted. "Why don't you give it a try? Maybe you might become the ancestor of vampires."

"You mean Uncle Dracula became the ancestor of vampires because he had greens?" Camilla was a little unconvinced.

"You'll never know if you don't try," Irina said with a smile.

Camilla thought for a while and nodded. After that, she turned her head and shouted to Mag who was in the kitchen, "Boss, give me a plate of greens!"

One should try their best to fulfill a drunk woman's request to the best of their ability to avoid trouble. That was the wisdom Mag had accumulated after years of experience. Therefore, he placed a plate of lettuce in front of Camilla, and retreated back to the kitchen to watch the two women drink.

Camilla stared at the fresh green lettuce on the plate in front of her and squinted. As a high-class vampire from a noble family, she had never eaten any greens, since going vegetarian was considered shameful.

"Go on, you might become the first ancestor of vampires after eating it," Irina continued to tempt her.

Camilla swallowed. If she really could become the ancestor of vampires, no one would be able to force her to do anything.

With power, she would be able to enjoy high status within her race. Even her father would have to be respectful to her.

What a tempting vision.

Camilla reached out for a piece of lettuce, and slowly put it into her mouth.

Mag pulled out a photostone silently. This was the second vampire that willingly ate greens, and might even be the ancestor of future vampires. It was a scene to be remembered.

Crunch.

The tender lettuce let out a crisp sound when Camilla bit into it. The strange texture made her a little uncomfortable, but it was not as disgusting as she'd thought. Instead, it was rather refreshing.

After making sure that it was a taste that she could accept, Camilla started chewing. Although the texture was a little strange, the leaf actually tasted pretty sweet and refreshing. It was surprisingly good, and was a great way to cleanse her palate especially after having so much oily food.

"How's it?" Irina asked.

"I can't believe that it's actually quite good." Camilla nodded as she threw the other half of the lettuce into her mouth.

"That was also what Dracula said when he first had greens back then," Irina said with a smile.

Mag had a strange expression. He could imagine it: that was how Dracula was talked into eating his first veggie, and he went down the path of a vegetarian from then on.

N years later, Camilla would walk down the same path.

"Really? Uncle Dracula's and my tastes are rather similar." Camilla nodded before looking at the beef kebab in front of her. She used her chopsticks to pull a piece of meat off the bamboo skewer, and wrapped it up with the lettuce. After that, she put the meat wrap into her mouth. After chewing for a while, her eyes lit up. The oil and fats from the barbecued beef were absorbed by the lettuce, but that did not affect its taste, and instead, it became even more refreshing and delicious.

"I can't believe greens are so good. It tastes better wrapping it around the meat," Camilla said with surprise.

"Really?"

Camilla passed a piece of leaf to Irina. "Try it."

Irina wrapped a piece of beef with the leaf and put it into her mouth. The combination of greens and meat indeed made the barbecued beef even more refreshing. It was a rather good way of eating. Irina nodded in approval. "It's really a good way to eat. You are quite talented when it comes to eating greens. I'm expecting a lot from you in the future."

It's just wrapping the meat with a piece of lettuce. That's such an overreaction. Mag glanced at the remaining few pieces of raw lettuce at the side. He picked up a piece of lettuce and wrapped two pieces of beef with it before putting it into his mouth. It did taste a little like Korean barbecue.

After finishing the plate of greens and another two pints of beer, the two women lay on the table, drunk. Although they were already in la-la land, they still continued the conversation.

"Look at that, don't talk about getting wasted. You're just offering yourself to men," Mag muttered to himself as he put his beer mug down and walked out from the kitchen while looking at the two women.

He carried Irina back into their room, and placed her on the bed. After that, Mag went downstairs and looked at Camilla, who was still laying on the table. It was already so late at night, so he could not possibly throw her out. Who knew if anyone would bring her away and do something to her. But if she were to stay...

Mag carried her upstairs, placed a mattress on the floor of the master bedroom, and put her on the ground.

It was a simple logic for survival. No matter which room he put Camilla in, there would always be a possibility of him trying to do something to her while she was drunk.

However, if he put her in Irina's room, there would be no problem.

Irina would not believe that he would have the guts to do anything in front of her.

Just as Mag put Camilla down, and was about to go downstairs to pack up, he suddenly felt his arm being grabbed. At the same time, he heard Camilla mumble, "I don't want to marry that good-for-nothing Noak. I'd rather marry the pervert boss than him. Even if he's not good in bed, at least he cooks well."

"???" Mag.

How was he not good in bed?

Mag pulled his arm out as he looked at Camilla sleeping soundly. After that, he went down, baffled.

That was really an insult to him. If God wasn't watching, he would prove to her today if he was good in bed.

"Hehe, coward," the system mocked.+++

Chapter 1401: The Correct Posture To Choose A Durian

"Haha. You don't have a weiner," Mag replied with a smirk.

"This System doesn't need something like that to be a system."

"Haha. I bet a eunuch consoles himself like that too."

"Host, please respect this System!" the system said sternly.

"You don't have it, while I have it. Hence, this is the perfect proof that I am your father." Mag smiled.

"..."

Mag went downstairs to clear up the mess left behind by the two drunk women before going upstairs to wash up. He then lay on the bed, and took out the Photostone to have a look.

The little black hut, whip, candle...

Oh dear. Mag only realized he took out the wrong photostone after watching it halfway. He kept that "nasty" photostone, and took out the other one, in which Camilla was happily eating the lettuce in her hand and nodding her head with satisfaction. The picture was very clear, and her expression was very on point. It was indeed a worthwhile souvenir.

If Camilla had really become a Vampire Ancestor many years later, Mag could give her this Photostone as a present.

Her first grass-eating experience.

After keeping the photostone away, Mag closed his eyes to calm down for a moment before clicking on the durian pizza experience bag.

Mag's attitude toward durians was accepting, but not really being a fan of it.

The durian had a unique scent that was incredibly stinky and intolerable to many people.

However, after one accepted the scent and tasted the durian itself, most people would be amazed by that astonishing texture and taste.

This experience was rather similar to the stinky tofu.

The combination of pizza and durian should be rather new as he couldn't remember if he had ever criticized durian pizza before. Why did the system reward him with its recipe?

Tons of information flooded his brain, and he obtained the skills of a top pizza chef within a short period of time.

"I wonder, will Amy like this?" Mag murmured. It wasn't easy to obtain this recipe, so there was no way he would put it aside. It looked rather easy, so the rest of the time could be used to fortify his strength.

Mag concentrated hard, and then pushed open the test field for the God of Cookery. He felt nothing under his feet, and fell straight into a pile of durians. The spikes of the durians made Mag leap up high into the air. He then landed onto the spikes again with his naked feet. He was, in fact, dancing a waltz on the pile of durians.

"Holy f*ck!"

Mag couldn't help swearing as he tried his best to locate an empty space at the edge and stood on one leg. He roared, "System, are you trying to murder your father?"

"The most important step of making a durian pizza is to choose a durian of excellent quality. The quality of the durians dictates the quality of the durian pizza. Hence, in order to let the host understand how to choose a good durian, this System has prepared 10,000 durians of varying quality for the Host to select. Only 50 of them are able to meet the standard of use. Could the Host please pick up at least 10 excellent durians out of them?" The system's voice sounded.

Picking 10 out 10,000, with 50 correct answers.

Mag stared at all the durians on the ground as 10,000 alpacas[1] ran across his heart.

He was almost sure that the system was taking revenge for its private grudge.

However, the system became completely silent after it finished speaking.

Mag had already received the methods of choosing durians in the information that he had received previously, and it didn't seem to be very difficult.

Choosing durians in simplified terms was to look first, smell second, and press lastly.

Look: it was to see if the durian was round and supple in shape. Also, was the color bright and the size not too small?

Smell: it was the scent of the durian from its naturally open gap. The ripe durians usually had a rich and enticing aroma.

Press: it was to press two neighboring spikes on the durian shell together and see if one could easily press them close together. A ripe durian would have a soft shell.

Was it easy?

It sure looked very easy.

But you wouldn't think that when you were facing 10,000 durians.

Mag took a look around him. This was an enclosed space. Just like in his previous missions, he wouldn't be able to get out if he didn't complete the mission.

"Alright, it's just selecting 10 durians. It's no big deal." Mag brought the durian at his feet to his face. Half of the durian was sunken in, so he tossed it to a corner straightaway.

Durian selecting was a tough job. He was pricked by the spikes and trapped in a completely enclosed space with 10,000 durians; the smell was almost suffocating.

If a durian lover was trapped here, he would probably faint with happiness.

Mag ruled out more than half of the durians with the observation method. Then, he began to press the spikes together, and ruled out all those durians that were too soft or too hard.

Mag had no idea how much time had passed when there were finally just about 500 durians left in front of him. They were all big and supple. In the corner behind, there was already a big pile of durians, and some were even smashed onto the wall.

"Alright, now let me smell you little devils. Which one of you is suitable?" Mag picked up a durian randomly and smelled it. The aroma was very rich, and it was the scent of a mature durian.

"Pass?" Mag frowned. Wasn't it too easy when any durian that he randomly picked up passed? After a moment of hesitation, Mag moved the durian in his hands to the pending area.

Then, he picked up a second durian.

This durian smelled even better than the previous one, with a tinge of sweetness in the aroma. However, there wasn't a very obvious difference. He had no idea which one would taste better after they were opened up.

"Pending." Mag placed that durian in the pending area too before picking up the third durian.

"Pending."

"Pending..."

Mag went one round and placed 499 durians in the pending area while eliminating one durian.

"Haha." Mag stared at those durians in the pending area and smirked. There wasn't any f*cking difference at all, okay!

How was he going to differentiate between a stronger scent, lighter scent, grassy scent... in such a small space where there were 10,000 durians? The scent was overwhelming, and he was not Connie!

After taking a moment to ponder life, Mag suddenly realized something, and asked, "System, the durians that you supplied to me are the best, right?"

"Of course, the durians provided by this System all came from the Durian Islands in the Boundless Sea Realm, where the land is fertile and there is plenty of sunshine. The durians there are way better than the Musang King durians. They are all allowed to mature and fall off the trees in their own time, and all the durians have gone through many selection procedures to select the best and then delivered to the Host," the system replied confidently.

"Then why the hell are you still asking me to choose here?"

Mag rolled his eyes as he considered tearing this system apart.

[1] [Annotation text missing]

Chapter 1402: A Letter From Wind Forest

After getting the acknowledgement from the system, Mag simply lay down on the spot and refused to look at that pile of durians no matter how the system coaxed him. Anyway, there was no point for him to learn this skill, as he would never get to use it.

After a while, the durian space disappeared, and Mag appeared in the kitchen.

Ha. You're still too inexperienced if you want to challenge your daddy. Mag curled his lips and walked toward the kneading table. All the ingredients were already prepared, and there was a giant golden durian at the side. He could smell a rich durian aroma as soon as he got close to it. Even though Mag had just come out of the durian space, he was still amazed by this aroma.

Mag had eaten the Musang King durian before, and it was indeed way better than the normal golden pillow durians in terms of texture and taste. However, its aroma was still not comparable to this durian's.

Mag washed his hands and changed into his chef's suit. He flexed his fingers, grabbed that durian, and cracked open a gap with minimum strength.

The rich durian aroma tickled his nose immediately. The yellow flesh was supple and ripe. It made him want to bite into it right away.

"It's indeed very much perfect." Mag nodded as he suppressed his urge to eat the ingredient. Such unprofessional behavior couldn't manifest on such an exceptional chef like him. He removed the durian flesh with his knife and set it aside. The knife sliced across the flesh, and the seed that was about the size of a coin was removed. The flesh had almost taken up all the space.

The most difficult part of making the pizza was kneading the dough. Making the dough that fulfilled all the requirements was a test on the chef's skills and techniques.

Therefore, Mag decided to use the kneading machine.

Pour in the flour, add in the water and dry yeast according to proportion... then press the start button.

Mag had completely ignored the system's instruction of having him knead with his hands.

As time advanced, machines became good assistants for humans, and had the advantages of high efficiency and stability. Even though this was a backup plan, it was obviously much favored by Mag.

Mag had done a test before. The results of using the system's kneading machine and kneading with expert hands was 99% similar.

Although he insisted on kneading with his hands for youtiao, he decided to use the kneading machine for the pizza. He decided to use a more Westernized method for this dessert which was leaning more toward a Western style dessert.

Baking a delicious durian pizza was also very demanding on the control of heat. However, since he would be using an oven, he only needed to control the time and heat, and he could make a good pizza accurately.

Mag began to practice making the pizza according to the steps in his brain. He could already foresee that it would be a sleepless night of durians.

***

Rodu. The Royal Palace.

At the top of the tower, Andre, who was in opulent clothes, was staring to the southwest with furrowed brows.

"Your Majesty, the Demon Islands are already in a mess with internal conflicts arising everywhere. I'm afraid they can no longer unite against external forces and continue their alliance with us. As for the Wind Forest, there are uprisings everywhere, and just handling their internal upheavals alone is enough to keep them busy. Do we need to look for reliable allies again?" an old courtier said respectfully behind him.

"Those who are not our kin are sure to be of a different heart. The Roth Empire never had a reliable ally. All we ever had are fake friends who used one another." Andre smiled sarcastically. "However, I am really quite curious who are the ones that stir up the situation. Are they Alex and Irina? Or those discontented fellows in Chaos City?"

"According to the investigations, Alex and Irina did appear on the Fear Islands that day. Furthermore, Alex even killed Bashir with a weird lightning magic. However, they should've been there to rescue the elves as the latter were brought back to Chaos City. There isn't any evidence proving that they were linked to the battle between the abyss demons and flaming demons," that courtier replied.

"Since they were at the Demon Islands, given Irina's character, how could they not get involved? No evidence is the most suspicious evidence." Andre smirked.

"This..." That courtier was stunned. After some thoughtful consideration, he replied, "Then, shall we inform the abyss demons and flaming demons? If they stop their war, there is still a possibility that the pro-war faction could be reorganized."

Andre turned around, and sarcastically asked that courtier, "As there is no evidence, how do you plan to tell them? Moreover, the two tribes are already deeply entrenched in their war. It's already meaningless for them to know who started the war. They only need to know that their chief died in the hands of the other party, and that is enough to keep them fighting for years."

That courtier lowered his head in fear.

"The Roth Empire doesn't need any allies. As long as the giant dragons do not leave Dragon Island, this world will be mine sooner or later," Andre said coldly.

***

The elven embassy in Chaos City.

"This is the letter that the chief asked me to pass to you. Our clan is already standing at the crossroads of destruction. We hope you will make an appropriate choice." Yngwie gave a letter to Blour, and then turned to leave.

Blour stared at the familiar handwriting on the envelope as he stood at the threshold for a while. Then, he went in and closed the door.

There was a lit oil lamp on the desk in the room. There were two beds—one big and one small—in the bedroom. Anna was already asleep on the small bed.

Blour walked to the desk quietly, and tapped on the envelope lightly. A light golden beam flashed, and the golden light shield on the exterior of the envelope disappeared.

He opened the envelope, and took out the light yellow paper from inside.

"Blour, I haven't heard from you for a long time..."

15 minutes later, Blour put down the letter in his hands, and frowned a little as he sunk deep in thought.

A gust of cold wind suddenly blew open the window and came right in.

Blour waved his hand, and the windows were shut up again. He also crushed up the letter, and then reduced it to shreds which fell onto the desk.

A letter from home and a commission.

The fate of his clan had landed on his shoulders.

Blour laughed at himself a little. When did he start to have such capabilities? He was that useless son his father was ashamed of.

***

The elves' territory. The Brewster Family's domain.

In a castle, Elliot was talking to Sally, who was wearing opulent clothes and standing in front of the windows, in a low voice. "Sally, you should take High Priestess Helena's advice and cancel your betrothal with Blour. The elven queen doesn't need a husband. It would dilute your power."

Sally turned around, and replied, "Really? I remember this betrothal was made on my behalf by you, Father. You said Blour was quite a good choice, and I would be happy if I married him."

Elliot choked, and said with an unnatural expression, "That... That's because the family was in a difficult situation then, and we had no choice but to betroth you to Blour. He is just a weak and useless fellow. He's simply not good enough for you. We will go to the Baibilly's tomorrow to annul this betrothal. We have to distance ourselves from them before you are officially conferred with the title of princess. The high priestess will help us eliminate them if they dare to resist. Anyway, they are already on the list for elimination."

"No. I will never annul this betrothal. I think that Blour is a brave elf, and I am willing to marry him," Sally said to Elliot calmly.

Anger flashed across Elliot's face, and he spoke in a harsher tone, "Sally, for the family's benefits, you have to annul the betrothal with Blour. The two of you belong to two different worlds."

"You don't get to decide my affairs." Sally's voice turned cold too.

"You!!" Elliot raised his hand.

Sally simply looked at him coldly, and said, "I will be the elf princess in three days. Remember your identity, Father. I will never annul this betrothal."

Elliot's raised hand trembled in the air before he finally lowered it.

Sally walked by him and disappeared at the threshold.

Chapter 1403: Jerk!

"Who am I? Where am I? This floor... why is it so familiar???"

Camilla opened her eyes with a spinning head. She looked around her in a daze before her gaze landed on the floor, and she felt a sudden familiarity.

Then, last night's memories began to flood Camillia's mind like a tide. She, who couldn't sleep, came to the restaurant to drink with Mag. Irina was present, so she ended up drinking with Irina.

"Drinking..." Camilla patted her drowsy head lightly. The hangover was indeed uncomfortable. She usually only had a small glass of red wine as a nightcap, but she seemed to have drunk many mugs of beer yesterday.

"Wait a sec... Did I do anything weird when I was drunk?" Camilla began to widen her eyes slowly. She seemed to have eaten grass?!

The young and tender lettuce leaf wrapped over the freshly roasted beef cubes...

Oh my heavens!

As a vampire aristocrat, she had actually eaten grass! Moreover, she asked to eat it herself!

Camilla wanted to burrow into the ground to escape from her embarrassment. This was really humiliating to her status!

She was going to lose face if this got out.

However, why did this floor still look so familiar?

Camilla's gaze was fixed on the floor again, and she suddenly realized she couldn't remember a single thing after she was drunk last night. Perhaps this was what the humans called blacking out. Then... then... she could vaguely remember that she was being carried.

"Could it be the Boss?!" Camilla's expression tensed up, and she looked under the blanket. Her clothes were all in place. Apart from being wrinkled as they were slept in, there weren't any signs of being undone and torn apart.

"Ha. He really couldn't get it up." Camilla felt a relief. However, she felt an inexplicable sense of disappointment at the same time too.

She already recalled why the floor was so familiar—she had spent a night on this floor before. In the same position, in the same angle, and on the same floor.

"A**hole. How dare he let me, a countess, sleep on the floor again?!" Camilla sat up angrily. Just as she wanted to unleash her fury on Mag in the bed, she came into contact with two pairs of bright blue eyes.

"You're awake, Big Sister Camilla," Amy, who was crouching on the bed, smilingly said to Camilla.

"You slept rather well on the floor too." Irina leaned against the head of the bed lazily with a smile on her face.

Camilla was dazed for a while before she instinctively asked, "Then, why could you lie on his bed?!"

"Because those who are good-looking get to lie on the bed," Irina replied with a smile.

"Then why am I lying on the floor?" Camilla asked perplexedly before she suddenly realized something, and her expression changed slightly. She said through clenched teeth, "That fellow actually thought I should be sleeping on the floor with my looks!"

"However, Big Sister Camilla, why are you sleeping on our room's floor again?" Amy was confused.

"Hmm?" Irina and Camilla looked at Amy simultaneously.

Camilla got a little panicked. She didn't want to reminisce... that particular night.

A hint of danger appeared in Irina's gaze. "Again" meant this wasn't the first time. It seemed like such a late-night date wasn't the first, and it had already proceeded to the bedroom.

Knock, knock.

There was a knocking on the door, and Mag's voice appeared on the other side. "Are you all awake? It's time for breakfast."

"Ah, I suddenly feel so hungry. Let's go have breakfast." Camilla got up from the floor agilely. She pulled down her skirt that had ridden up and strode to the door.

Why is she feeling guilty? Irina narrowed her eyes in curiosity.

Camilla opened the door, and saw Mag standing at the door. She glared at him before walking past him and stomped at his foot.

"???"

Mag removed his foot in time and stared at Camilla's back in confusion. Did this woman get up on the wrong side of the bed? He simply came to get them down for breakfast.

As soon as Mag turned around, a pillow landed right on his face.

He removed the pillow from his face, and Irina was standing right in front of him. She asked him with a weird smile, "How many times have you done it?"

Amy popped her head out, and solemnly said, "Leniency to those who confess, severity to those who resist."

Darn it. Mag panicked. He didn't expect trouble would come looking for him so soon. He thought he'd made an excellent arrangement, but never expected it would backfire. The previous incident of Camilla staying over must have gotten out of the bag.

"Twice. She was drunk previously, and I let her sleep on the floor too," Mag confessed. Anyway, he didn't do anything wrong, so his conscience was clear.

Irina stared into Mag's eyes for a while before keeping away the folding chair in her hands. After stretching, she asked, "What are we having for breakfast?"

Mag's eyes roved over Irina's curves under her pajamas, and he heaved a breath of relief. Leniency was indeed given to him who confessed. Smiling, he said, "As long as I know how to make it, I will make whatever you like to eat for you."

Irina curled her lips. After thinking for a while, she said, "One helping of sweet tofu pudding, one helping of Yangzhou fried rice, one bowl of soybean milk with one piece of youtiao."

"I would like to have whatever she is having." Amy raised her hand.

"Alright. You two go and wash up first." Mag nodded before going downstairs.

Mag walked to the kitchen's entrance, and he saw Camilla holding a glass of water as she pondered life with her hair down.

"Are you still alright?" Mag asked. Listening to her experience of being forced to marry twice made him a little sympathetic to this countess who had a tough exterior.

Camilla suddenly looked up at Mag when she heard him, and nervously asked, "What should we do now? Irina knows that we have slept together."

"???" Mag.

"No way. When did we ever sleep together? You have to take responsibility for your words, Miss. You cannot smear my clean reputation like this." Mag's eyes twitched. Why was she scaring him like this so early in the morning?

Camilla also realized there was a problem with her phrasing. She quickly waved her hands. "No... I meant she knew that we have slept in the same room before. I am a chaste vampire, alright."

"And I am a chaste man." Mag rolled his eyes as he was astonished at this girl's train of thoughts. He reached out to press down on her quivering shoulders and gazed into her eyes. "Remember, nothing happened between us. You only spent a night on the floor. Hence, if you keep quiet and she keeps quiet, nobody will ever know about it."

Camilla looked at Mag while she calmed gradually. Then, she angrily said, "Jerk!"

"Huh?" Mag looked at Camilla with a confused look. Why was he a jerk when it was the floor that spent the night with her?

Chapter 1404: Only Children Choose

"Why is Irina sleeping on your bed?" Camilla turned around to question him with a recalcitrant look. Although Irina was as beautiful as a goddess, she was also very beautiful. So, why was she sleeping on the floor, while Irina was sleeping on the bed?

"Furthermore, you have slept with Alex's woman. Are you not worried that he would hack you?" Camilla lowered her voice as she felt she had grasped a very important matter. Even her expression tensed up.

"What do you mean by I slept with Alex's woman? I didn't, okay!" Mag rolled his eyes. Moreover, how was Alex going to hack him? By cutting away his own weiner?

Looking at Camilla's sneaky expression, Mag could already guess what she was thinking about. Helpless, he said, "Princess Irina has been staying in the restaurant for days. Because she doesn't have an appropriate place to stay in Chaos City at the moment, she is staying in the restaurant temporarily. Taking her identity and status into consideration, she is occupying the master bedroom, while I slept in the small bedroom next to it."

"Hmm?" Camilla was a little dazed. Why didn't she know about that?

"You guys are awake, Boss." Gina yawned and came down the stairs right at that moment. Seeing Camilla at the kitchen's entrance, she said with surprise, "You came so early, Big Sister Camilla?"

"Is Princess Irina staying in the restaurant, Gina?" Mag asked.

"Oh, yes. Aren't Princess Irina and Amy staying in your room?" Gina nodded before continuing, "Boss, if you're feeling lonely, you can move to my room."

Camilla, who was a little embarrassed initially, glared at Mag again. "Jerk."

Mag: "╮(╯▽╰)╭"

What could he do? The mermaid princess from Lantisde was just that friendly and hospitable.

Irina brought Amy downstairs, and Miya and the rest had arrived too. After sending the piping hot congee with pork and century egg to the cleaners and eating their own breakfast, Mag was about to send Amy to school.

"Boss, I would like to apply for a long leave of absence." Shirley caught up with Mag at the door.

"Hmm?" Mag looked at Shirley in surprise. The Night Elves and Irina were both in Chaos City, so why did he need to apply for a leave?

"I need to go home to settle some matters." Shirley looked at Anna, who was standing nearby, with an apologetic look before saying to Mag, "I will bother you to take care of Anna."

Mag didn't pursue it, since he saw that Shirley didn't want to say too much about it. He nodded after a brief consideration. "Sure. I will take care of Anna. You take care of your safety too."

"Sure." Shirley nodded before walking over to Anna. She crouched down and hugged her gently as she whispered into her ear. Then, she went over to talk to Irina privately before saying her goodbyes to everyone, and left right away.

"I will be waiting for you to return. Please, you've got to come back," Anna said with reddened eyes as she rushed to the door and stared at Shirley, who was already on her horse's back.

"Don't worry, I will return. I promise." Shirley turned around to smile at Anna, and that was a breathtakingly beautiful smile. Then, she rode away.

"Miss Shirley, are you leaving again?" Constantine, who dashed out from the lines, shouted at Shirley's back. However, the one he loved was already gone.

"That's a sad story." Mag gave Constantine a piteous look, and then rode off to send Amy to school.

The Wind Forest was going through a reform right now. Mag had already found out Shirley's, or one should say Blour's, identity from the Gray Temple's information. Being the young master of the Baibilly Family and having a betrothal with Sally, he must have his reasons for choosing such a tumultuous time to return to the Wind Forest.

Blour chose to return, and Mag would respect his choice.

However, since Blour had decided to be a member of the Night Elves, they would definitely meet again in the near future. Or, he should say that they would be fighting on the same side.

On their way to Amy's school, the little one hugged his waist, and curiously asked, "Father, do you like Mother or Big Sister Camilla? Or Big Sister Gloria? Whom would you choose if you got to choose from one of them?"

"Only children choose." Mag chuckled with contempt. "And for me, besides your mom, whom else do I dare to choose?"

"If you choose others... you might get beaten to death," Amy said after some thought.

Mag sighed, and gravely said, "It's good that you know this. Don't ever use the word 'again' in the future."

"Okay." Amy answered before continuing, "But Big Sister Camilla was really sleeping on the floor again?"

"Okay, okay. Let's not talk about this." Mag shook his head helplessly. He returned to the restaurant after he sent Amy to school.

The doorbell rang soon after the breakfast service was over.

Mag, who was about to drink a cup of tea and take a break, went to open the door. He was shocked by the hundreds of lava demons standing at his door.

"Errr..." Mag's gaze landed on Sargeras, who was standing right in front, and he asked, "Chief Sargeras, is the Burning Legion recruiting again?"

Sargeras answered, "They are all my people, Boss Mag. They're also members of the Burning Legion. From today onwards, we would have to bother you, Boss Mag."

Mag noticed that there were both young and old, male and female among the lava demons. It seemed like Sargeras had brought the entire Lava Demon Tribe to Chaos City.

However, the lava demons who used to rule over a territory only had such weak members left. It made him feel a little emotional.

Furthermore, Mag could also sense something different from Sargeras. Apart from breaking through 9th-tier, there seemed to be a change in his presence. Perhaps he began to look more like a ruler.

"Please don't say that." Mag nodded with a smile. He seemed to have seen a group of roujiamo fanatics.

Sargeras had told him frankly about the benefits roujiamos brought to the lava demons.

Sargeras had a straightforward personality, and was very dependable, so Mag appreciated him very much. If the roujiamos could help this declining tribe and let them rise up again as the Burning Legion, he would be very happy to assist them within his capability.

"However, there's no need for so many of you to come personally if you want to buy the roujiamos in bulk. It would be more convenient for you, and also wouldn't affect the other customers in the line," Mag reminded him again. Otherwise, the restaurant would be full of the Burning Legion members in the future.

"Alrighty. We will at most have 10 people lining up in the future." Sargeras nodded with a humble smile. The rise of the Burning Legion was no longer a dream after obtaining Boss Mag's acknowledgement.

After sending the Burning Legion away, Mag could hear the sounds of striking iron from next door. He suddenly remembered the machines that he had ordered from Mobai. The Night Elves had nothing to do at the moment, so why not put them to work. They could support themselves while making some contribution to the Burning Legion.

Chapter 1405: Glorify The Humans!
"You came, Boss Mag." Mobai came out from his workshop after he heard some sounds. He used a towel to wipe his face as he smilingly asked Mag, "The machines are almost done. When do you need them? I'll get someone to deliver them to you."

"Of course the sooner, the better if they're already done. The factory can start its work as soon as the machines are ready," Mag replied smilingly. He was very satisfied with Mobai's work process.

"What kind of machine are these spare parts going to make up? It looks like something formidable?" Mobai asked curiously.

"A spinning machine, but it would be operated by a steam engine. It's much more efficient than spinning with hands." Mag smiled. Scheer had already delivered the steam engines, and after these spinning machines were installed, the factory could start its operation.

"Spinning machine?" Mobai scratched his head as he didn't quite understand Mag.

The two of them discussed the delivery of the spare parts, and after confirming that the spare parts would be delivered in the next two days, Mag returned to the restaurant.

Irina went to the factory to train the Night Elves, while Gina followed Miya and the rest to the ice cream shop. Hence, Mag was alone in the restaurant.

Mag made himself a cup of green tea, brought it upstairs, and placed it on the study desk. He opened the box that Rolan had given him, and continued to read through the information.

The threat of the Demon Islands was temporarily removed, and Mag's expectation was basically achieved. At least they wouldn't be able to unite and make trouble before the next peace negotiation.

However, the demons were not the only pro-war race. The most powerful Roth Empire was still getting ready to strike, and the orcs were expanding and reorganizing rapidly. They were prepared to stir up trouble during the peace negotiation. The forest trolls could no longer stand rotting away in the dark forest, and planned on expanding their territory.

Mag knew the Roth Empire best out of all of them. Although the situation of Josh and Sean fighting to be the heir was getting tenser by the day, as long as Andre was alive, the Roth Empire would remain unified.

Killing Andre was a good idea to split up the Roth Empire, but Andre was perhaps the most difficult person to kill in this world. The Magus Tower was situated close to the palace, and nobody knew how many 10th-tier powerhouses were incognito around him.

In the past 100 years, the speed of the Roth Empire's advancement had exceeded everyone's expectations. Whether it was the number of 10th-tier knights or the number of 10th-tier magic casters, it had reached a very terrifying number.

Even though the humans didn't have very powerful physical gifts, their exceptional abilities to learn, their continuous efforts to optimize training methods, and the large-scale cultivation mechanism for producing powerhouses allowed the number of powerhouses in the Roth Empire to grow rapidly in the past 100 years.

If one wanted to advance to the 10th-tier, apart from cultivating correctly, natural talent was very crucial. Hence, there was a maximum limit to the number, after all.

However, the Roth Empire's mid-range and high-end combat power that was overlooked by the other species was, in actuality, the existence that all the other species should be afraid of.

Alex had once been a senior commander in the Roth Empire's army, so Mag knew the exact numbers of 6th-tier to 9th-tier knights and magic casters from his memory. This huge number of mid-range and high-end combat power was sufficient for the Roth Empire to annihilate any of the species.

As for why the orcs seemed to be well-matched in strength at the borders with the Roth Empire, the orcs didn't know that all the military zones in the Roth Empire would secretly rotate every single year for the past few decades. The never-ending border conflict with the orcs was simply an actual combat training ground for the Roth Empire.

Andre's diplomatic policies had always been extremely restrained ever since he ascended to the throne. His focus was on development.

Even the giant dragons had never expected that the once weak humans already had the power to challenge their position as overlords of the sky when Krassu used a fireball to strike a dragon off the sky and Alex chopped off a dragon's head with his longsword.

As a human, Mag felt extremely proud and honored for that.

The history of the humans' survival was a heart-wrenching story, just like every weak species: some disappeared in the long river of history, while others became vassals to others.

The humans had paid an extremely heavy price to survive in the racial war and flourish.

They would be truly respected only when they were powerful enough, and only then could they survive in this harsh world.

Till now, Andre had displayed all the attributes and capabilities that a proper king should have. Even if there were some maneuvers that were stained with blood and conspiracies, the Roth Empire already had the power to withstand any war.

But what made Mag unsettled was that after obtaining such a powerful strength, this ageing king was no longer satisfied with his own territory. He was prepared to set out on the journey to conquer the world.

The victims then had turned into the perpetrators. Such behavior made them no different from those species who mutilated the humans in the past.

100 years had already passed. To the ordinary humans, it was cruel to start a war in which they were destined to lose for just the king's ambitions and old grudges.

Even if the humans managed to rule this world in the end, nobody knew how many years it would take to heal the scars of this war and how many innocent species would perish in it.

Mag hated war. He hated a world that was about to be plunged into a total war.

He wanted to popularize the model of Chaos City to the whole world. If all the species could open their borders, co-exist peacefully, and diminish the barriers and boundaries in between them, the sword of Damocles that was hanging over the world's head would then really disappear.

"The Roth Empire is indeed unassailable if Andre doesn't die." Mag sighed as he closed the file in his hands. However, once Andre died suddenly, regardless if it was Josh or Sean who ascended to the throne, it would most likely accelerate the current developments. Neither of them were peace-loving rulers. Sean was even ready to move on the orcs for a long time.

Putting the information on the Roth Empire aside, Mag took up the information on the orcs. The most conflicted and urgent matter that needed to be settled right now was the orcs.

The orcs' power was equally strong. Even though they were formed by many separate tribes, they could unite together rapidly in times of war due to their totem belief.

Mag's next target was the orcs. Once the Aug Tribe gained control over the Falk Tribe, the orcs would become a race that was completely controlled by a pro-war tribe, and they would pose an imminent danger to the dwarves.

The Falk Tribe's internal integration had entered the final stage. The people who were loyal to the former chief were mostly imprisoned in the dungeons or killed. 10 days later, they were going to publicly execute the chief's son, and then officially coronate Gary as the new chief of the tribe.

"10 days," Mag murmured. That assassin who was still looking very hard for her directions most likely had no idea about that.

Chapter 1406: I Would Rather Die Than...

"What's going on, Connie? Didn't we simply ask you to return to the restaurant to get an apron? Why are you so sweaty?" Miya asked Connie, who just walked in all sweaty, with amazement as she passed the ice cream cone to a child.

Elizabeth and the rest were also staring at Connie, puzzled.

Connie urgently spoke, "Do you all know that the restaurant is missing? I walked along the square, and I couldn't find the restaurant even after walking around many times. I only saw a shop that sells pots. Did our restaurant disappear?"

"Disappear?" All of them were shocked to hear that. How could a restaurant disappear? Moreover, next to the restaurant was a blacksmith shop, and not a shop that sells pot.

"Connie, did you turn right after you got out of the door?" Babla asked after some thought.

"Wasn't I supposed to turn left?" Connie nodded with conviction.

All of them began to look at Connie with an increasingly complicated expression.

"I'm sorry, Connie. I shouldn't have given you that mission. It's too difficult for you," Yabemiya said apologetically.

"It's hard to imagine how difficult it is when you go out for delivery," Babla said with a sad look.

"Therefore, it is indeed her limit to deliver one meal a day." Rena chuckled and everyone else smiled too.

"Did I get the directions wrong again?" Connie tapped her fingers together with a blush.

***

"How about we have durian pizza for lunch today?" Mag murmured to himself as he went down the stairs after he came out of his study. He still hadn't tasted the durian pizza that he learned last night. However, he wondered if Amy and the rest could accept the taste of it.

As for the official release, Mag had decided to delay it for another one or two days. He needed to consider how to release such a dish with an acquired taste. Should he set up a designated area like the stinky tofu, or simply release it in an open area? It was a problem that he needed to consider.

Firis and Camilla arrived just as Mag went downstairs. Because they were responsible for preparing the ingredients, the two of them always arrived earlier than the rest.

"Boss." Firis greeted Mag with a smile.

But Camilla only glared at Mag before walking past him to get into the kitchen.

Mag cocked an eyebrow. He had no idea how he angered this madam. She came asking for a drink, and it was Irina who got her drunk and made her eat grass. He even carried her upstairs, and let her spend a night on the floor.

She was not going to find another man who was as kind as him anywhere else, right?

"Boss, did you anger Big Sister Camilla?" Firis asked softly as she threw a glance at Camilla who was chopping the ingredients while she tied her apron.

"Maybe she's a little heated up. She should eat more vegetables to help her cool down." Mag smiled. He said it just loud enough for Camilla to hear.

This fellow must have seen me eat grass last night! A blush rose up on Camilla's face. A cucumber was cut into shreds instantly.

Mag looked at that cucumber that ended up in a pathetic state and immediately shut his mouth. He slowly walked past Camilla with his back facing her.

The durians were already delivered into the corner partition of the fridge. The durians were indeed of excellent quality as they were golden, round, and supple.

A rich aroma of the durian was released as soon as Mag opened the fridge's door.

"What's that weird smell?" Firis, who was about to start cutting the ingredients, looked around. The strange smell that suddenly appeared went straight into her nose, and it was a little pungent.

"It's so smelly!" Camilla covered her nose right away as her face turned green. She retreated toward the entrance while pointing at Mag, who was standing next to the fridge and holding onto a round and spiky thing, and said with horror, "What are you holding in your hands?!"

"Durian. A very expensive and delicious fruit," Mag answered honestly. As an evolved durian fan, he was already salivating at that fabulous aroma.

Camilla backed all the way out of the kitchen. She only removed her hand from her nose and took a deep breath after the scent was segregated. She stared at that weird-looking durian in Mag's hands with lingering fear.

As a noble vampire with mysophobia, she absolutely couldn't tolerate any stench.

For example, the stinky tofu. She always felt like vomiting whenever she smelled that stench. Therefore, she would always leave the kitchen in advance whenever Mag was about to make the stinky tofu.

And the stench of this durian was almost as bad as the stinky tofu's. Just a sniff of it was enough to suffocate her.

Although Firis' reaction wasn't as exaggerated as Camilla's, from the way she tried to suppress her expression and her slowly scrunched-up face, she, too, couldn't accept the durian's smell.

She had accepted the scent of the stinky tofu after a period of time, and her resistance toward that stench had completely disappeared after tasting it.

However, would this fruit that was equally bad-smelling be as tasty as Mag described? She couldn't help having doubts about it.

Mag had already anticipated their reactions. He could imagine how the customers would react after they smelled it. It was indeed better to be cautious about this new product. There would be extremes in their likes and dislikes.

"This is an important ingredient for a new dish. It's called durian. We will be having this for lunch." Mag smiled.

"Eat this?!" Camilla glared as she realized that the situation was a little off. Just the stench alone was enough to put her off. Let alone asking her to eat this, he might as well kill her.

Mag threw a look at Camilla before putting the durian on the stove at the side. He pressed on the shell, and it was split open. Two full sides of the durian flesh were revealed.

The durian's smell got richer and richer. The supple durian flesh had just ripened.

"How should we eat this?" Firis asked curiously as she came up, already a little used to the smell. She was rather interested in the new product that Mag was talking about because he always had astonishing ideas but presented amazing delicacies.

Mag took a spoon, dug out a big piece of the durian flesh, and passed it to Firis. Smiling, he said, "You can eat it right away."

"Eat it right away?" Firis received the spoon with doubt as she hesitated about eating it.

"It's sticky, yellow, and soft... Such a horrible shape and outlook, and that weird smell. Can this really be eaten?" Camilla stood at the entrance and stared at that scoop of durian flesh in Firis' hand. She thought with conviction, I would rather die than eat that durian or anything that contains it!

Chapter 1407: Whoever Had Eaten It Before Would Definitely Have Lingering Feelings For It

"Yes. Just eat it straight away like an ice cream cake," Mag said to Firis in a gentle tone of voice as if he was the snake that was enticing Eve to eat the forbidden fruit.

Firis still thought this scent was a little weird. However, after smelling it for a while, it didn't seem as pungent as before. But she still wasn't able to describe the scent. It was rather special and different from all the scents that she had smelled before.

Firis hesitated for a moment after hearing Mag's words. She looked up straight into that pair of gentle eyes, and everything seemed to melt in them. A blush appeared on her face, and then she fed the spoonful of durian that she was holding into her mouth.

Firis actually ate it! Camilla, who was standing at the kitchen's entrance, stared at Firis in shock with wide eyes.

She couldn't even stand the smell, and Firis actually put that weird durian's flesh into her mouth.

"Ugh!"

Firis was shocked too. She only wanted to take a small lick to taste it to give Mag some face. However, due to her nervousness, she fed herself the whole spoonful of durian.

However, the anticipated weird taste didn't explode in her mouth, and a sweet taste blossomed gradually.

She pressed her lips together gently, and the durian flesh simply melted away. The smooth texture was comparable to the tofu pudding.

And there was a rich sweetness that followed after, which filled up each and every taste bud.

That kind of sweetness was different from the sugar syrup's. It seemed to have constructed a scrumptious seal with the taste, which was then suddenly slapped onto her.

She could accept the scent of the durian suddenly. It was no longer a weird scent, but an extremely exquisite aroma!

The aroma was so rich that it was pungent, but after you tasted it, the aroma that was within and out of your body seemed to have reached a certain kind of balance, and applied some kind of filter on you, which allowed you to suddenly feel that sweet aroma.

She swallowed the durian's flesh, but the aroma still lingered on the tip of the tongue.

Firis closed her eyes, and her tongue flicked across her lips instinctively with a satisfied smile on her face.

Irina walked into the kitchen and then backed out, covering her nose. She looked at Firis, who was still reminiscing about the taste, with a dreary look. "Did you eat poop, Bean Sprout?"

"Huh?" Firis opened her eyes and looked at Irina, who was standing at the entrance with a disbelief look. She then looked at the spoon in her hand, and swiftly wiped away the tiny bit of the yellow durian at the corner of her lips. She shook her head. "No... oh no... Princess, you're mistaken..."

Irina sighed, and piteously said to Firis, "Even though the Night Elves are having a tough time now, you don't have to force this on yourself. How am I going to face you after you did that..."

"Princess, I really didn't eat..."

"Alright. I will pretend I didn't see anything today. Remember to brush your teeth. You still have to cut the ingredients for the customers." Irina waved her hand and then glared at Mag. "Why didn't you stop her?!"

"I..." Mag had an innocent expression. What was that?

Irina didn't give them a chance to explain themselves. She walked toward the stairs as she said, "I'm tired, so I will be taking a nap. You three enjoy your food. Wake me up for lunch later."

Then, the three of them were left staring at one another, at a loss for words.

"Ahem. She didn't understand what was going on, so let's take it as nothing has happened." Mag cleared his throat to alleviate the awkwardness before asking Firis, "So how's that, Firis? What do you think about the taste of the durian?"

Camilla was also staring at Firis curiously. The feeling of eating something with such a gooey texture had to be horrible?

"I've never eaten a fruit like this. It's so shockingly scrumptious. The extremely rich aroma, smooth texture, and sweet taste are all unbelievable. I could say it was the most delicious fruit I had ever eaten, even all the fruits in Wind Forest aren't comparable to it," Firis replied honestly. Now, her throat already couldn't help moving, and her body craved another bite as she smelled the aroma.

"H-how could that be?" Camilla, who was expecting Firis to describe some horrible experience, stared at Firis in disbelief.

Firis turned around and smiled at Camilla. "Big Sister Camilla, do you want to try? This durian is really very delicious. It's just like stinky tofu. You can only appreciate its scrumptiousness after you taste it for yourself."

"I... I reject." Camilla crossed her arms. Stinky tofu was also a food that she couldn't accept. No matter how many people said how delicious it was, it was a food that she wouldn't want to try.

As for this so-called durian, it was a food that was on the same level with the stinky tofu to her. Don't even think of asking her to try it.

Mag didn't want to force Camilla, since she really didn't like the durian. He placed the durian on the workbench before turning on the kitchen's regional scent segregation system, and purified the air in the kitchen at the same time. Then, he said to Camilla, "You may come in now. I've already controlled the scent within the workbench's area."

Camilla stretched out an arm into the kitchen, grabbed a handful of air, and smelled it. After making sure there was no weird stench, she returned to the kitchen and continued preparing the ingredients with Firis.

Mag shook his head rather helplessly. As expected, durian was a food whose fans praised as fragrant, while its haters said it stunk.

However, he still had to make the durian pizza, or else how were the people going to know about the scrumptiousness of the durian?

He took out the pieces of durian flesh, removed the seeds, and crushed them into a paste before taking out all the other ingredients to make the durian pizza.

Firis kept looking over at Mag. She was rather curious. The durian itself was already so delicious, why did they have to process it? Also, what was a pizza?

Mag placed the durian pizza in the oven, and Miya, Amy, and the rest soon returned to the restaurant one after the other. They were all rather expectant when they heard Mag was going to make a new product for them at lunch.

Amy went into the kitchen. As she pointed at the durian on the workbench, she curiously asked, "Father, what is that thing that looks like a porcupine?"

"That's the shell of the durian," Mag, who was making the tofu pudding now, answered without even looking over.

"Durian? Lingering feelings[1]? Who would have lingering feelings for such a weird ugly thing?" Amy was puzzled.

"Whoever had eaten it before would definitely have lingering feelings for it," Firis said softly as her throat moved.

[1] [Annotation text missing]

Chapter 1408: A Real Tip-Top Durian Pizza!

"Oh?"

Everyone's eyes lit up when they heard Firis give such a high review. The new product that Mag was making seemed to be very delicious.

"It's indeed an unforgettable smell." Camilla diced the last green beans into rice grain-sized pieces before removing the short and narrow blades on her fingers, and said to Mag, "My work is done. I'm leaving now."

"Why don't you leave after lunch?" Mag asked.

"No. I don't think I will like the taste," Camilla answered very decisively, and began to remove her apron.

"Huh?"

Everyone began to look at Camilla with a perplexed look. Firis was heaping praises on the new product, but Camilla didn't seem to like it. She was even unwilling to stay for lunch. An incident like this had never happened before.

Such a huge contrast was befuddling.

Ding!

Right then, the reminder chime of the oven sounded, and Mag opened the oven's door.

A strong aroma rushed out together with the heat, and went toward the restaurant's entrance.

"Wow! It smells great!!!" Amy's eyes lit up, and she stared at the oven in surprise.

"What a weird smell. I can't describe it, but it's just so weird." Babla covered her nose and frowned.

All of them had different expressions. Although they weren't too exaggerated, they were all staring at the oven with a mildly shocked face. What was this smell?!

Meanwhile, Camilla instantly disappeared from the kitchen. Only the apron was falling to the floor gradually. She was already standing at the restaurant's door and prepared to leave.

"Wait a minute," Mag called out and walked toward Camilla.

Camilla halted her steps as she turned to look at Mag with furrowed eyebrows. She held her breath at the same time.

Mag came to Camilla, and smilingly said, "Leave after you have lunch."

"Ha. I will never touch that weird stuff." Camilla had a "I would rather die than submit" expression.

Mag got close to Camilla, and whispered next to her ear, "Last night, as I was recording my handsomeness with the photostone, I accidentally recorded some weird images too. The taste of beef cubes wrapped in lettuce should be rather good, right?"

Camilla's eyes immediately widened, and she stared at Mag who was smiling. But in her eyes, there was a hint of treachery in his smile.

"Leave after you have your lunch. I have included your portion for lunch," Mag asked again with a smile.

"Despicable! Shameless! Jerk!!!" Camilla whispered and stomped her foot angrily as she clenched her teeth. She walked back to the kitchen reluctantly.

She hadn't expected Mag to take advantage of her moment of weakness. He even took pictures of her eating grass with the photostone. If that got out, her reputation would be destroyed.

Why is she so stuck on the 'jerk' part? Mag cocked an eyebrow. It was fine she skipped the durian, but she got to try the durian pizza.

Everyone could sense that weird smell. Even though it wasn't very strong, it was indeed very weird and very dissuasive. They were all puzzled why the new product was giving out such a weird smell.

"Have a seat," Mag said to everyone before walking to the kitchen. He put on the gloves, and then removed four 12-inch pizzas and one small 6-inch pizza. He cut them up equally with a knife.

Then, he carried the tray over to the big circular table, and placed the pizza in the center.

There was a layer of golden durian on the giant pizza. Its surface was a little crusty and golden brown due to the baking. The aroma of the butter, together with the aroma of the durian, was spreading everywhere along with the heat.

"Gulp." Amy swallowed. She was already salivating.

Firis was also staring at the durian pizza in astonishment. She didn't know that the delicious durian could be made into such an exquisite and beautiful food. It looked just like a cake but much shorter.

Everyone was amazed by the look of the durian pizza. The aroma of the durian and butter mixed together was much milder than the aroma of the durian alone. To everyone present, the aroma was only mildly weird.

"Are we eating this for lunch today?" Irina came down and looked at the five durian pizzas on the table. She frowned a little as she looked at Firis with doubt.

"This is the durian pizza, my new product. Please appraise it." Mag nodded with a smile.

"Princess, this is the durian pizza," Firis repeated to Irina again.

"Therefore, you were eating this durian earlier?"

"Yes." Firis swiftly nodded, feeling acquitted.

"It was indeed a very weird smell." Irina sat next to Amy with furrowed brows.

Amy tilted her head and asked Mag with glowing eyes, "Adults eat the big pizzas, while the child eats the small pizza, right?"

"Yes. This small pizza is specially prepared for Amy." Mag nodded. He reached out to place that small 6-inch pizza in front of Amy.

"This is fantastic. Then I'm going to start eating now." Amy's eyes lit up as she reached out to grab a piece of triangular-shaped pizza. Long strings of cheese were pulled out as she grabbed the pizza. The durian's flesh was almost fused together with the pizza.

Amy lifted that piece of pizza up high as she used her mouth to catch those long strings of cheese. She was eating the stringy cheese like a lamb before taking a big bite of the pizza.

"Mmm!"

Amy let out a soft sigh, and then continued to chew on the pizza happily. She had a blissful smile on her face as if she was eating sweets. She immediately took another bite after she swallowed. The long strings of cheese were pulled out again, and it was tempting to sever them. Amy's eyes lit up. She quickly swallowed the pizza, and continued to nibble on the cheese as if she was playing an interesting game.

Everyone's throats couldn't help but move when they watched Amy eating the pizza happily.

As expected, Amy was Mag's best partner. No matter what food it was, as long as she tried it, it would feel very scrumptious.

"Help yourselves." Mag put on the disposable gloves and picked up a piece of pizza. The long strings of cheese looked very enjoyable, and the shape and color had both reached the stage of perfection.

This was a real tip-top durian pizza!

Mag opened his mouth and took a big bite of the pizza.

The aroma of the durian and the butter filled up his mouth instantaneously.

The slightly toasted crust collided with the smooth and soft durian fillings in between the teeth. They seemed like a perfect match in that instant, and brought upon an extremely decadent feast to the brain and the taste buds.

Mag felt as if he had fallen into a durian's encirclement. That was a swamp which had a boundless attractive force that made one want to remain submerged in it.

Chapter 1409: I Think All Of You Are Playing Me

The durian's texture became softer and smoother after it was baked. People simply couldn't ignore it and its scrumptiousness.

The slightly crispy pizza was excellently paired with the durian. As a non-lover of the durian pizza, Mag felt that he was falling in love with that delicious dish.

Mag continued eating one mouthful after another. He didn't want to waste any time giving comments, because even pausing was disrespectful to this dish.

Looking at the father-and-daughter duo enjoying the pizza, Firis, who was still thinking of the durian, took the lead and picked up a piece of durian pizza. She was still very curious about how the durian would taste after it was made into a pizza.

Firis' eyes widened as soon as she took a bite. The durian's exquisite texture didn't disappear because it was heated, and it felt as if it was catalyzed by the heat instead. The texture was sweet and mild yet very impactful. The mouth was completely submerged in the durian's aroma.

Meanwhile, the pizza crust that was underneath the durian served as a perfect foil with the crunchy texture and the rich butter aroma. This mouthful of durian brought upon a very robust texture.

"Although it looks very weird, it seems quite alright." Irina also reached out to grab a piece of pizza. She took a bite with furrowed brows before slowly unraveling them. Then, she showed an astonished and mesmerized expression.

Compared to the smell, this so-called durian pizza's texture and taste were extremely unique and scrumptious.

"Mmm. I didn't expect that it would be so tasty. Moreover, after eating it, this smell feels completely different. I'm able to feel this scrumptiousness suddenly."

After getting the verification from four people, all of them, besides Camilla, could no longer wait. They all reached out for a piece of pizza, and then took a big bite.

Sighs and laments began to appear. The durian pizza's scrumptiousness was even more direct than its aroma. The sweetness that melted straight away in the mouth was unexpected and yet irresistible.

Can that thing that gives out such a weird smell really be so delicious? Camilla thought doubtfully as she looked at all of them who were already mesmerized by the durian pizza with a frown, but she quickly smirked in her heart. Ha. I think all of you are playing me.

"Camilla, everyone is eating. Why don't you try it out?" Mag smiled at Camilla. With curled lips, he continued, "Or maybe I should go make a salad separately for you? With lett—"

"No need. This is fine!" Camilla interrupted Mag as her voice rose a few pitches higher. At the same time, she swiftly grabbed a pizza in front of her, and swept a murderous look across Mag's neck. If looks could kill, Mag's neck would have been severed for at least 18 times.

Threatened with the exposure of her grass-eating incident, Camilla stared at the durian pizza in her hands, and smelled that scent that assaulted her nose together with the heat...

On second thought, it didn't seem too bad?

No, no! I have sworn earlier that even if I die... Camilla shook her head with conviction, and then paused. But if the grass-eating incident got out, it would be worse than death.

Furthermore, Mag had deliberately kept the images of her eating grass, so he had to be plotting something. He wanted to keep her with him with the stuff in the photostone even if he couldn't get it up. Her boss wanted her to be a decoration or something even worse.

She had heard before that those people who couldn't get it up would have some weird hobbies. Judging from the perverted smile on his face when he was playing with the whip, he definitely wasn't a good man.

Ah. Isn't it just a piece of terribly smelly durian pizza? I would rather seal my sense of smell and eat it with my eyes closed than allow your evil plan to succeed! Camilla said in her heart and clenched her teeth before taking a big bite of the durian pizza.

The smooth durian flesh and the crispy and slightly chewy pizza skin brought on a completely different sensation in the mouth.

And the durian's flesh even melted away right on the tongue, and the sweet taste blossomed instantaneously.

The intense aroma and taste made her brain crash, and she lost her ability to think in that instant. She couldn't fathom how such a sweet and exquisite taste existed in this world.

How is it so delicious? Camilla's brain was in a daze, but the taste buds on her tongue were extraordinarily sensitive and clear.

They began to welcome that beautiful and sweet taste hungrily. The sweetness of the durian, the fragrance of the cheese and butter, and the chewiness of the dough, and her soul and promise were all lost in her chewing.

"Phew~"

Camilla couldn't help sighing after swallowing the mouthful of pizza. She felt she had almost died of suffocation because she had forgotten to breathe.

"It's so divine!" Camilla lamented sincerely.

"That's right. It's a good thing that Father made you stay. Otherwise, you would have missed a scrumptious dish, Big Sister Camilla." Amy smiled. She was already working on her third pizza.

"I..." Camilla was stunned. She didn't expect her psychological defense line to be destroyed by this heavenly pizza so easily, and she even made such a heartfelt comment.

She got increasingly annoyed as she looked at the smile on Mag's lips, and a blush began to creep up her face gradually. This fellow has done it deliberately! He deliberately used that weird scent to make me misunderstand and then prove me wrong.

However!

This durian pizza was really too scrumptious!

Moreover, after tasting the pizza, the scent instantly felt completely different.

It indeed wasn't putrid, but was a fragrance that was so concentrated that people simply couldn't accommodate it.

Looking at the pizza with the crescent-shaped bite in her hands, she couldn't resist taking a bite again.

"Mmm..."

Whatever grass-eating, whatever rather die than submit, whatever sleeping on the floor... she no longer cared about them. She simply wanted to soak in this marvelous taste and wish that time would move slower.

As expected. No one is able to resist the scrumptiousness of the durian pizza. Mag retrieved his gaze and continued to enjoy the delicious pizza. Judging from everyone's reactions, they were very receptive of the durian pizza. However, the biggest problem was getting everyone to accept the initial taste.

Of course, Mag didn't really mind if one or two dishes weren't selling very well. He could keep them for himself.

"Ding! The Host's pessimistic attitude toward food was detected, and a secret mission was triggered: could the Host please sell 100 durian pizzas within three days!

"Mission success: you will receive the title 'Durian Popularization Ambassador' and a chance to spin the God of Cookery's wheel.

"Mission failure: all the ingredients and utensils for the durian pizza will be taken back!"

The system's voice sounded in Mag's mind.

Chapter 1410: Durian Popularization Ambassador

What? Durian Popularization Ambassador? Mag cocked his eyebrow, and almost blurted it out loud.

"The popularization of every single type of food is a step toward greatness, especially for the kind of food that is as controversial as durian. Making the public accept it is a very difficult matter, but every kind of food is worth to be tried and loved. This would need the ambassador to promote it tirelessly—"

"Shut up. It's not as if these useless titles could be collected and exchanged for gifts. Why do I need to collect them?" Mag interrupted the system. He was completely uninterested in the useless titles. However, he was very interested in the chance to spin the wheel. He remembered he hadn't used his previous two chances, and now he could save up for the third to exchange all three chances for a high-end dish.

He had no idea what the system meant by a high-end dish, but it should be rather good if it was on the same level as the 'Buddha jumps over the wall'.

"A chef's title represents the crowning glory. How could you measure it with gifts!" the system said severely. After a pause, it continued, "I've flipped through the manual. After collecting 10 titles, you could claim a big mystery gift from the system..."

"Hey? Really?" Mag's eyes lit up upon hearing that. Although he had no idea what was in the mystery gift, since it could only be claimed after collecting 10 titles, the things in it shouldn't be too bad.

However, these titles only appeared after the hidden missions were triggered, so they were very random. Those he already had were: "You Are A Good Person", "Guardian of the Base"... etc. He was still far from collecting 10 of them.

100 pizzas within three days. If he introduced it formally tomorrow, he would only have two days time.

Selling 100 durian pizzas within two days...

Mag accepted this mission confidently after some pondering.

At most, he would do it mysteriously. He would only tell the customers after they ordered it.

He wasn't afraid of the customers making trouble in the restaurant, because there were a bunch of experts present in the restaurant now. They would have to eat it obediently after they ordered it.

As long as it made its way into their mouth, Mag was confident about their satisfaction.

Camilla, who was licking her fingers and eyeing her second piece of pizza, was the best proof.

Whoever ate it would love it. How difficult could it be to sell the durian pizza which inspired lingering feelings?

The five durian pizzas were soon finished. Everyone was licking their lips, still not feeling satisfied.

Mag served each of them a helping of tofu pudding according to their preferences. The lunch was considered completed.

"Boss, this durian pizza is very delicious. Is it the new item that we are introducing today?" Yabemiya asked curiously while clearing the table.

"Mm-hmm... Yes, we're introducing it today." Mag nodded. He suddenly remembered that he had to go to the Wind Forest with Irina the day after tomorrow. If he delayed the release of durian pizza to the next day, he would only have one day to complete the mission, and the mission would get much more difficult.

After clearing the dining table and taking a small break, the busy lunch service started again.

***

"It was so comfortable to stay on the island with the gentle sea breeze, but now I have to come to Chaos City to wait for the incident to blow over before I could return to redeem myself." Tony pressed his straw hat down, and then leaped off the flying steed. He walked toward Chaos City's gates with a luggage and a helpless expression.

Damn that Boss Hades. Don't ever let me see you again! Tony thought angrily, but a hint of grievance soon appeared on his face again, and he sighed. "But I really do want to see him again. No one apart from him could make such an exquisite taste like the crayfish.

"Chaos City, here I come. I hope you won't disappoint me in the coming few months." Tony pressed his hat down and hastened his steps. He had heard of a very popular restaurant in Chaos City recently. It appeared in gourmet magazines repeatedly. That magazine, "Vegetarianism", even created a sales miracle because of it.

He wasn't very interested in vegetarian food and meat, as he only liked seafood. However, since he had come to Chaos City, he had to go try out that restaurant.

He had serious reservations about the capability of that colleague of his. What was there to boast about a vegetarian dish? Eggplant with garlic sauce[1]. Wasn't fish a kind of seafood? Why did he insist that it was a vegetarian dish? The threshold to enter the industry was getting lower and lower. What was wrong with this world that even a magazine of such low standards could break the sales record?

He hailed a horse-drawn carriage after he got into the city. Since he was hungry, he straight away told the coachman, "Bring me to your best restaurant."

"Do you mean Mamy Restaurant? They should be closed if we go there now, and you're not going to make it." The coachman smiled.

"Do they close so early? Is this how they run their business?" Tony was stunned. It was only noon now, and he was starved after getting off the flying steed.

"It takes 30 minutes to get to Mamy Restaurant from here, and they close at 1 pm sharp. Hence, we are not able to make it," the coachman replied.

"You seem to be their regular customer? You know a lot about them?" Tony looked at the coachman with surprise.

"How could that be possible? Their food isn't something that people like me can afford daily. I could afford to buy a roujiamo secretly after I saved up 300 copper coins. However, that taste is truly unforgettable," the coachman described excitedly as he gulped secretly. He patted his pocket and chuckled. "I will be able to go and have it again in two days' time."

The coachman's reaction made Tony very curious about Mamy Restaurant. He gave a gold coin to the coachman right away, and said, "Keep the change. Just send me to Mamy Restaurant. Since they're running a business, they wouldn't reject their customers. Moreover, I am To... To..."

"To... what?"

"I have towed such a big luggage here with me." Tony squeezed out a smile forcefully. This feeling really sucked.

"Alrighty. I'll send you there right now. If they're closed, I will send you to somewhere else." The coachman didn't bother to dissuade Tony anymore since he was so generous. He kept the gold coin and drove the carriage away.

About 30 minutes later, the carriage stopped at Mamy Restaurant. The coachman lifted up the curtains, and said to an almost-dozing-off Tony, "See, isn't it already closed? Should I send you to other restaurants for lunch?"

Tony shivered in the cold wind. He looked out after he heard the coachman's words. He could see a big restaurant with an exquisite facade and decor that set off its uniqueness and chicness perfectly. However, the restaurant's door was tightly shut with a wooden plaque hanging on the door that said: "Closed".

"I don't believe that they won't receive customers who are already at their door." Tony jumped off the carriage, strode to the restaurant's door, and tugged on the bell.

[1] [Annotation text missing]

Chapter 1411: The Joy Of Cooking Cannot Be Measured By Money

The crisp rings of the bell, together with the stomach's growling, were sounding at the restaurant's door for quite some time. Tony grabbed the yarn as he suppressed his urge to pound on the door. He retrieved his hand awkwardly. This wasn't simply not receiving him, they didn't even take a look at him.

"This is your first visit, so you have no idea about this boss's temperament. It's not just you, even if the city lord came beyond the operation hours, Boss Mag wouldn't receive him." The coachman smiled at Tony. With a sense of pride in his eyes, he continued, "This is the number one restaurant in our Chaos City. It's our pride without a doubt. Boss Mag has even taken the number one spot as the 'God of Cookery' in the Roth Empire's banquet. Of course he would be a strong character."

"Alright. I guess I will have to return in the evening." Tony returned to the carriage helplessly, but he secretly complained in his heart. What number one 'God of Cookery'? Could he create food that was as delicious as the spicy crayfish? In his eyes, Hades was the real number one 'God of Cookery'. Just those three crayfish dishes were enough to confer him as the God of Cookery.

***

"The locomotive's drive is normal. The bumps are within the acceptable range. The lane-changing sensitivity still needs to be fine-tuned. The braking system has met the braking requirements..." Mag stood on the locomotive and spoke to Scheer confidently.

Chief Bourell and a group of the steam train's engineers were listening attentively, nodding and frowning every now and then. But most of the time, they had an excited glow on their face.

Mag paused for a moment, and then smiled. "This current test is very successful. You all simply have to improve on the minor problems that I mentioned earlier, and we can cut into the actual track test run."

"That's fantastic!" Bourell clenched his fist. Even though he tried his best to control himself, veins still popped up on his reddened face.

"We did it!"

"We finally did it!!!"

Cheers erupted in the locomotive base instantly. The engineers and staff members were tossing their hats up in the air and shouting excitedly. Some even shed tears of excitement.

In order to make the steam train that could run on the tracks manifest into a real object from the drawings, this group of people had put in an incredible amount of effort. They pulled countless all-nighters, and hadn't returned home for months. All their hard work had received the best reward in that very moment.

Mag, too, felt exhilarated when he witnessed that scene and heard their excited shouts.

Perhaps that group of great people felt exactly the same when they watched the mushroom rise up into the air then.

"You all have created a miracle," Mag said gravely to Bourell and all the engineers on the spot.

Even though he provided the blueprint, this group of people had no idea what a steam engine locomotive was and why it could pull a bunch of wheels, goods, and people forward. They made the steam engine locomotive out little by a little, which was indeed a miracle.

Scheer watched them with a smile too. Although she didn't understand the lines on the blueprint, she knew how much these engineers had done.

Furthermore, the steam train was completed two weeks ahead of schedule, and that gave them even more time for their plans. Perhaps nothing was more important than time right now.

"Everyone will be able to return home after the steam train passes the railway trial run. You will have a month of paid leave, and besides the monthly salary that will be paid to your families, you all will receive a bonus." Scheer smiled at everyone.

The cheers halted for a moment before an even louder cheer erupted among the crowd.

The bonus from Miss Scheer had never disappointed.

Going home with a big bonus and salaries that had increased manyfold in the past few months after leaving home for months was comparable to years of work. Moreover, a month of paid leave was enough to compensate for the time that they were separated from their families.

Bourell and Mag discussed some technical problems before Mag left the base in the same carriage with Scheer.

"I feel we should have a drink together," Scheer said smilingly to Mag, who was sitting on the opposite side.

"That's a pretty good suggestion. It's a pity that I need to go back to prepare for the evening's operation." Mag looked at his watch smilingly. However, today was a good day as Mag could sense the dawn of a new era when he watched the steam train move on the alternate world's railway tracks and listen to the crunching sounds.

The steam engine locomotive that was spitting out white steam would definitely change the world drastically, and accelerate the integration process of this world.

Violence was no way to resolve problems. The territories that were unified by the first emperor of China had never been peaceful.

Then, he might as well break up the borders, and make everyone integrate with one another.

People didn't want to travel in the past, because transportation was inconvenient.

If they could simply buy a train ticket at their doorsteps which allowed them to travel and see the world, they wouldn't be easily led into a war.

There were so many beautiful places and great food in this world for them to enjoy besides killing one another, so why put their lives in danger for others?

Mag couldn't grasp this world by its throat, but he could throw a bunch of croton tiglium into its throat.

As for how things developed in the future, he could only do his best to stand on the same side as Chaos City and control technology, this double-edged sword, as it pushed forward the world's integration. He couldn't let it ruin the world.

Scheer looked into Mag's eyes. That pair of eyes was still as calm as forever, as if the running of the steam train had nothing to do with him. Those calm and relaxation were what she couldn't compare to.

Although she seemed to be very calm now, only she knew how she felt when her heart accelerated at the moment she heard Mag declare the test run a success. This could be an important moment that could change the world. Her brain was still fuzzy even after she returned to the carriage.

The steam train's idea was Mag, the blueprint was drawn by him too, and even the first model was made by him. But besides the slight excitement that he showed in the cave when the engineers were cheering, there wasn't much change to his expressions and emotions.

"You might be a tycoon that controls 10% of the world's transportation in the future. Why do you still care about cooking for your customers?" Scheer said, looking straight into Mag's eyes. Maybe he didn't grasp the importance of what happened earlier.

"When you have a certain amount of wealth, money simply becomes a bunch of numbers. I believe Miss Scheer has a better understanding of that than me." Mag smiled at Scheer, and smilingly continued, "On the other hand, the joy of cooking cannot be measured by money. Cooking for the customers and watching them immersed in eating is very blissful."

"****."

The system bleeped.

Chapter 1412: Our Family Is Just A Normal Family Too

Scheer was taken aback, and she began to look at Mag in a different light. There was curiosity, astonishment, and a feeling of "like knows like".

Yes.

Ever since she was born, money was simply a number to her.

Nobody knew how much money the Buffett Bank had. That was a number which was huge enough to make the giant dragons and kings envious.

She knew.

That was a bunch of meaningless numbers. At least, they were to her.

"Yes. In fact, what's the use of money and wealth? I have never touched money before, and I'm not interested in it." Scheer laughed at herself. "They thought that I worked hard to make more money, but is there a difference when there's one more or less zero at the end of that bunch of numbers?

Mag suddenly went deep in thought as he looked at Scheer.

Hmm.

It seemed like he had met his match.

The way that rich people showed off was always so similar.

But one simply couldn't rebut them. After all... he thought the same back then too.

"Yes. No difference." So, he nodded in agreement.

"Actually, our family is just a normal family too. There's nothing special about us besides having a bigger house," Scheer said with a hint of helplessness. "But I would lose a few friends every time I brought them home. Is it a big deal to get lost in your friend's house?"

"Not really..." Mag shook his head. If it was him, his young heart most probably couldn't take such a subtle way of showing off, either.

"Mr. Mag, you're indeed very special." Scheer chuckled and touched a small protruding ball right next to her hand lightly. Her secretary soon walked into the carriage, and retrieved a bottle of red wine and two crystal wine glasses from the carriage's side panel. He removed the cork, and a rich red aroma spread in the carriage. After decanting the red wine for a while, he poured the wine into the glasses, and placed them on the table that was in between Mr. Mag and Scheer. Then, he bowed and retreated back out of the carriage.

"Hence, I would like to have a drink with you." Scheer picked up the wine glass and swirled it around as she looked at Mag smilingly.

Mag looked at the wine glass in front of him and Scheer, who was looking at him. After a moment of hesitation, he reached for the wine glass.

"Then I will accept deferentially rather than decline courteously." Mag tapped his glass against Scheer's gently before taking a small sip. This was Buffett Winery's best V-grade wine which was rich and smooth. Although it was not as good as the system's special brew, it was still one of the best wines.

On the way back, Scheer was more chatty than usual. Although she was rather reserved and avoided talking about personal topics, Mag could sense that she was obviously less guarded against him.

"Showing off is perhaps a good way to show affection?" Mag couldn't help murmur as he watched the opulent horse-drawn carriage slowly drive away.

Mag turned around and saw Irina, who was leaning against the door and appraising him with a judging expression.

"Where did you go?" Irina already strode over just as he was about to speak and took a sniff. "There's an alcohol smell on you. Did someone ask you to go drinking in the day?

"There's a perfume's scent too. Female?

"Who is that woman in the carriage?"

The series of questions and the hint of danger that was flickering in that gaze made Mag tense up quickly. He confessed, "Scheer Buffett, the current boss of Buffett Bank. I went to discuss a business deal that cost a few hundred millions with her in the afternoon. It's normal to drink some wine during a business discussion."

"A few hundred millions?" Irina narrowed her eyes slightly as if countless knives seemed to fly around in it.

Mag sensed a chill crawling up his back, and swiftly said, "It's not the kind you think it is. Come, let's go in and I'll explain to you slowly."

"You'd better explain to me, what posture did you use to discuss this hundred-million-deal?" A dangerous curl appeared on Irina's lips as she turned and walked into the restaurant.

"I... I simply sat there." Mag had an innocent expression. What other kind of posture could he have used to discuss it?

Mag locked the restaurant's door after they went in. After making sure there was no one else in the restaurant, he went to sit opposite Irina.

"Can a rich woman make you happy?" Irina asked as soon as Mag sat down.

"Still alright. We had a pleasant discussion. The results were excell..." Mag nodded and then paused. He suddenly felt the words were a little misleading.

"Haha."

When he saw Irina take out a folding chair gradually, Mag quickly stood up and explained, "Hey, hey! Don't be mistaken, Dear. We were really discussing proper business.

"Do you still remember the steam engines that were delivered to the factory a few days ago? Miss Scheer is the collaborator in my steam engine project. Apart from that, I have also co-developed a railway project with her and Chaos City. We're using the steam engine locomotive to pull the trains, and the trains will run on the railway tracks that lead toward the goblins' Vic Mountain. I went to the locomotive base to do a test run this afternoon, and it has basically reached the operating standard. Therefore, we drank a little wine on our way back."

"Steam engine locomotive?" Irina lowered the folding chair slowly as she looked at Mag with bewilderment.

"It's like a giant horse-drawn carriage that would never get tired. It could move hundreds of people on the paved railway tracks, and it doesn't need to rest during the journey or to be fed with grass."

"Then, what does it eat?"

"We simply need to give it some coals."

"Isn't this a little too much?"

"It's fine. We'll give it some water too."

"That's more like it."

Mag heaved a breath of relief when he saw Irina keep away the folding chair. He took his seat again and smilingly nodded. "Because the base is located beyond the city, Miss Scheer sent me back. Nothing happened between us."

"I will take it as the truth," Irina said calmly as she threw a glance at Mag.

That was the truth, okay! Mag complained in his heart secretly. However, based on the principle of "the fewer complications, the better", he smiled. "You must have had a tough time training the Night Elves today. Tell me, what do you want to eat and drink? I'll make it for you right now."

"I want to eat durian pizza, with one pot of green tea," Irina said after some pondering.

"Sure. I will make them for you right now." Mag walked to the kitchen right away. He came out with a pot of green tea, and poured one cup for Irina before going back to the kitchen to make the durian pizza.

Irina propped her chin on one hand and watched Mag, whose back was facing her as he was busy in the kitchen, through the hot steam. A smile appeared on her lips.

He looked so handsome when he was holding the sword. Yet, he was even more mesmerizing in an apron and holding a cleaver.

He, indeed, is my man.

Chapter 1413: Are Your Meal Times Here Always So Exciting?

The 6-inch small durian pizza was perfect as an afternoon tea snack.

Irina's mood lightened up as she ate the durian pizza. Her body began to sway rhythmically too.

"Backswing?" Mag looked at Irina, who was swinging forward and backward like a tumbler. Irina would take a bite of the pizza whenever she swung backwards. It was similar to how Amy would sway left and right uncontrollably whenever she ate something tasty.

"You can have... one piece," Irina said to Mag hesitantly after looking at the half-eaten pizza.

"I heard the amount that one could eat is linked to one's familial status." Mag sighed as he picked up a piece of pizza.

Irina threw a glance at Mag before calmly saying, "In that case, you are only allowed to lick the plate."

"Huh?" Mag was stunned. He felt as if he was shot in the heart by an arrow.

Had his life reached such a difficult stage now?

"Why is Chaos City so actively promoting your so-called railway? Isn't it just a carriage that eats coal? Isn't a horse-drawn carriage the same too?" Irina asked while eating.

"All the races are going to hold peace talks soon. If they could reach a consensus and extend the peace treaty, there wouldn't be any bad influence on Chaos City. However, if the peace talks break down, the Norland Continent will be plunged into conflicts and wars again. Chaos City, which was built after the previous war ended, will be thrown into a very awkward situation. So far, the possibility of them re-signing the peace treaty is low. The several races that have become more powerful in the past 100 years want to redraw their territories again, or wipe out the few weak ones.

"Hence, Chaos City has to do something to change this situation. Laying the railway and trying to run a steam locomotive is a way to show the world a kind of possibility in the future. The travels and interactions between all the races would become smoother and easier. Economy would also take off following the laying of the railway. Apart from war, there are still other ways that all the races could grow and prosper," Mag explained. This was also the reason he gave Scheer the steam engine in the first place.

Having a certain level of technology would solve the problems of poverty and traveling in this world, and conflicts would ease by a lot.

"Sounds like a good idea. But, the rulers are not going to give up the chance to rule the whole world simply because there's a new way to travel." Irina shook her head at Mag. "They always use the flying steeds when they travel."

"This, indeed, is a problem." Mag nodded in agreement. "However, we are not changing the mentality of the rulers, but the mentality of the normal people, who make up the majority of the population. War only brings harm and no benefits to them at all. They won't gain any benefits even if they're on the winning side, and if they're not willing to get stuck in the quagmire of war, then the possibility of the whole world sinking into a total racial war like it had 100 years ago will be greatly reduced."

Irina looked at Mag and thought for a while before finishing the last piece of pizza in her hand. She smiled. "It sounds rather interesting. I will go have a trial ride when that train starts running."

"Oh, yes. There are people sending some metal spare parts to the factory from noon today. They said you custom-made them. So, are those the machines you mentioned?" Irina suddenly remembered that.

"Yes. Tomorrow, I will go to the factory and teach the Night Elves how to assemble the machines, and after they are assembled, we can start working." Mag nodded.

The afternoon was over, and Mag cleared the table. Soon, Firis and Camilla came.

Mag wrote a notice about the new product on the announcement board before hanging it on the door. He had to complete the mission of selling 100 helpings of durian pizza.

Everyone in Chaos City knew Mamy Restaurant now. It truly was the number one restaurant. As for the Ducas Restaurant which used to hold the number one spot, it began to fade into the background.

There were people who separated the restaurants into two categories in Chaos City: Mamy Restaurant and others.

And the huge fame brought a growing number of customers.

The management of Aden Square even created a small path in the green area in front of the restaurant to allow the line to extend into the square to facilitate the customers lining up.

Furthermore, the popularity of Mamy Restaurant energized the boring southwestern corner of Aden Square. Many of the old shops were bought with a high price, and new shops and restaurants began to open gradually. A new business circle hot spot had appeared.

After all, those customers who were too late to join the line went to those restaurants, and they gained many customers through that.

It's only 4.30pm. Isn't this too much? Tony stood at the restaurant and looked at the long line that extended into the square. He thought coming to line up 30 minutes in advance was enough to show his respect. He didn't expect that he'd still underestimate the coachman's words: "You have to go and line up early. Otherwise, you don't even get the chance to line up!".

I really want to find out if the taste justifies this long line. Tony strolled to the end of the line. He was rather calm as he wasn't hungry now.

"Quick, hurry. The line is going to reach its limit soon. We can only eat the spicy hot pot tomorrow if we miss it." A group of people jogged past Tony, and ran toward the end of the line.

Such a hurry? Tony frowned and looked behind him. There were still 10-odd people running toward him with a ferocious expression.

"Darn it!" Tony began to hasten his steps instinctively. He couldn't help but start running frantically when he sensed the sounds of panting getting closer and closer behind him. He finally reached the end of the line, and stood in it before he breathed a sigh of relief.

As expected, a pretty maiden walked over with a wooden plaque after three people joined the line after him. She asked that customer to hold the sign to show that the line stopped there.

"Miss, are your meal times here always so exciting?" Tony asked Vanessa who was panting in front of him.

"We went out to play today, and didn't pay attention to the time, so we almost missed it. We usually come to line up one hour in advance so that we are in the front and get to the delicious food fast. I wonder if we'll still get to get the hot pot by the time it's our turn?" Vanessa lamented as she looked at Tony, an energetic middle-aged demon.

"Hot pot? Is a pot that gets hot by itself?" Tony was rather curious because it was his first time hearing this name.

"No. It's a form of cooking. Is this your first time at Mamy Restaurant? Then, you should try it. It's very delicious." Vanessa smiled and revealed a mouthful of beautiful teeth.

Chapter 1414: Are The Readers Nowadays So Terrifying?

"Alright, I'll be sure to keep that in mind." Tony nodded with a smile. He was rather amazed that this human maiden wasn't afraid of him.

Chaos City was indeed very special. One could see all the different species everywhere. Everyone was getting along harmoniously. He didn't receive any weird looks since he got here. Even the elves wouldn't avoid him or show animosity when they saw him.

Lola threw a wary glance at Tony as she tried to get the princess to stand next to her, but the few lava demons who were standing in front of her seemed to be even more ferocious. So, after considering all the factors, she kept her silence.

However, Abraham, who was standing in the other line, wasn't worried at all. He, too, loved the ambiance in Chaos City, and Mamy Restaurant's ambiance was like the epitome of Chaos City. It was an ambiance that was further improved by the rules.

The people were gathered here because of the delicacies. They put aside their own prejudices, accepted one another, and interacted as equals.

Such an opportunity would never present itself in Rodu. Given Vanessa's and his status, nobody would talk to them as equals.

He could see that Vanessa also enjoyed such a lifestyle. Hence, in the letter that he sent to the king yesterday, he promised he would send Vanessa back personally after she spent another month in Chaos City.

"Mister, you don't look like you are from Chaos City? Where did you come from? Did you specially come here for Mamy Restaurant?" Vanessa asked Tony curiously. Her curiosity that was suppressed for years slowly emerged after she came to Chaos City.

And she was particularly interested in others' stories, so she would always find an opportunity to chat with the other customers while lining up.

The stories and experiences that she heard from these people were usually very different from those she read from the books written by the literati. They might be ordinary or exciting, but they were always more realistic and full of life.

"I am To—" Tony arranged his clothes, but he choked on his words as soon as he spoke.

He loved to introduce himself and then watch the other party reveal expressions of shock, surprise, or being graced by fortune after hearing his name.

But he was a person who came here to avoid the attention now, so he couldn't reveal his identity. Who knew how many of his fans were in the lines, and if they would be trying to kill him.

"To?" Vanessa looked at Tony with bewilderment.

"Yes. I am Tomas. I've just arrived at Chaos City from the Demon Islands. I've heard this restaurant is quite good, so I came to try it out. But I didn't come especially for it," Tony continued. Well, he had no choice but to come up with a name first. He didn't forget to add, "There is only one restaurant in this world that I would specially make a trip to, but it isn't in Chaos City. It's on Carapace Island of the Demon Islands."

"Are you talking about the Ayi Crayfish Restaurant on Carapace Island?" Vanessa asked smilingly.

"Oh?! How did you know about it?!"

Tony leaped a step back and glared at Vanessa. Had this maiden recognized him?

Vanessa smiled. "I read Master Tony's article in 'Eat The World' magazine yesterday, and Ayi Crayfish Restaurant of Carapace Island was mentioned in it. The spicy crayfish, garlic crayfish, and thirteen-spice crayfish made me so hungry in the middle of the night. He wrote exactly what you said earlier, if there's a restaurant that he would specially pack up and travel to, it would be that one on Carapace Island."

"Oh, I see." Tony heaved a breath of relief. So, this maiden had read the article that he wrote. He couldn't help smiling smugly.

As a food reviewer, his favorite praises were none other than that his words made people hungry. Perhaps this felt the same to the chefs who created dishes that were praised.

"I've heard many people were on their way there. If it doesn't taste good, they're going to organize teams to go hack up Master Tony." Vanessa nodded.

"Are the readers nowadays so ferocious?" Tony stared in a panic.

"Haha. Didn't the magazine have readers' comments highlight every week? There seemed to be many food critics who were hacked because they had recommended the lousy dishes. Furthermore, I've heard there was a food critic who went on a date with a female fan who turned out to be a drag queen. In the end... In the end, that food critic disappeared for a period of time, and when he reappeared, his style of writing became rather effeminate." Vanessa nodded. She seemed to transform into an entirely different person when she talked about the gossip in the culinary circles.

"Terrifying." Fear flashed across Tony's face. Had writing food reviews become so dangerous now?

"However, I like the articles that Master Tony wrote about seafood. I think he's really the food reviewer who knows seafood the best in this world. But I do not agree with him when he wrote about the restaurant that is worth packing up and traveling to. That has to be Mamy Restaurant," Vanessa said with conviction.

"How could that be. Master Tony has to be right. How could there be other food in this world that tastes nicer than the crayfish from Ayi Crayfish Restaurant?" Tony wasn't convinced. Although this maiden was his fan, he wouldn't back off when it concerned his principles.

"Seems like you're a fan of Master Tony too?" Vanessa looked at Tony with a hint of surprise before continuing, "I feel Master Tony is very good, but his greatest problem is that he's very prejudiced against other dishes. Furthermore, he only stays on the Demon Islands and refuses to explore other places, so there are still some limitations in his outlook. If he could come to Mamy Restaurant to try Boss Mag's cooking for himself, I believe he would take back his words.

"Moreover, Boss Mag has released the braised crayfish recently and it is amazing. I believe it wouldn't lose out to the crayfish from Ayi Crayfish Restaurant."

"Impossible. How could there be any prawns in this world that taste nicer than the crayfish from Ayi Crayfish Restaurant? That is already the pinnacle of prawn dishes, and a pinnacle that can't be surpassed." Tony waved his hand in disbelief as he simultaneously lamented in his heart, It's most likely a swan song too.

"It seems like we're not able to reach a consensus. Then, we will resume our discussion after we ate the crayfish," Vanessa said after some pondering.

"Then we will try it. Master Tony's judgement is never wrong. He is the person who knows seafood best in this world, after all." Tony chuckled a little disdainfully. An inland city that couldn't even get fresh seafood. How dare it say it could have scrumptious crayfish that was comparable to Ayi Crayfish Restaurant's?

Although Boss Hades had run away, he would be the one to defend the honor of Ayi Crayfish Restaurant!

People who had never eaten fresh seafood by the sea were not qualified to make judgement like this.

Chapter 1415: Who Would Know That He Was...

"Today's new product preview: a strange fruit with a mysterious scent. What kind of scrumptious taste would it develop in my hands? Please look forward to today's new product: durian pizza! Starting today. Limited to 100 helpings!"

The notice hanging on the door had been read countless times by the passing customers. It got strengthened in the customers' memories every time they read it.

"Limited!"

This was a very crucial term because it usually meant best-selling and hard to get.

Just like the tofu puddings that was recently limited to 400 helpings. They could still miss it if they joined the line late.

And now, a limited item had appeared again. Moreover, it was limited as soon as it was introduced. Apart from tofu pudding and 'Buddha jumps over the wall', this was very rare in Mamy Restaurant.

Many people were already guessing what that mysterious fruit was. Given Boss Mag's usually cool demeanor, this new product's introduction was rather rare too.

All the guesses piqued the customers' curiosity and sparked infinite reverie for that so-called durian.

"Huh? The new product is actually limited to 100 helpings. We have no chance at all." Vanessa sighed with disappointment when she heard the customers in front discussing it. She suddenly regretted going out to play in the afternoon and missing the time to line up. Was there anything more important than eating in this world?!

"Isn't this simply a release of a new product? Why is everyone so agitated?" Tony was a little perplexed.

Vanessa turned around to seriously say to Tony, "Because there will be one more delicious dish in this world whenever Boss Mag releases a new product. Isn't this something very important?"

"If this is the case, then it indeed is a very important matter." Tony nodded gravely too. As a food reviewer, if it was indeed as described by this young lady, then it was really a very important matter.

"Boss, can the customers stand the smell of durian?" Miya worriedly asked Mag, who was tying up his apron. Although the durian pizza was extremely tasty, it was difficult to accept its smell for the first time.

"Don't worry. We just have to focus on selling it. They will have to eat it when it is served. As long as they put it in their mouths, they will lose." Mag curled his lips. Judging from the customers' expressions, the article that he wrote was already beginning to work.

"They will definitely love its taste after they try it." Miya nodded in agreement. The durian pizza had an amazing charisma that made it unforgettable.

"Alright. Let's prepare ourselves for business." Mag straightened his chef's suit and strode to the door. He pushed the door open, and smiled at the customers in the lines. "Welcome to Mamy Restaurant."

"Boss Mag, you get more and more customers coming here." Krassu smiled as he walked through the door.

"I'm glad that my customers like me," Mag answered, smiling as well. He had no idea where all these customers came from, either. This was even after the filtering of the restaurant's high price.

Harrison walked in, and curiously asked, "Boss Mag, what is today's durian pizza? Vegetarian dish? Meat dish? Or a dessert?"

Many customers who were about to file in looked at Mag curiously too. They had been brainwashed by the mysterious new product for one hour, so now their heads were full of durian pizza.

"There's a picture in the menu, and everyone can find out about it after you take your seat." Mag smiled, but he didn't let the cat out of the bag right away.

All of them quickly took their seat after they heard that, and then rushed to flip open the menu. They found the new product today under the dessert's category—durian pizza.

The round pizza was cut into six equal triangles. There was a hint of toast brown among the golden brown. The bright color looked very enticing and drool-worthy.

However, the price of this durian pizza wasn't that friendly: 6-inch durian pizza—500 copper coins; 12-inch durian pizza—1,000 copper coins.

This price was enough to make some customers who wanted to try give up on the thought. After all, it was just a dessert. 500 copper coins was enough to pay for a set of roujiamo with tofu pudding.

But this wasn't enough to stop the impulse of the majority of the customers trying to order it.

Harrison looked up at Yabemiya who approached him, and said, "I want a 12-inch durian pizza, please."

"A 12-inch one is meant for two, three people. Are you sure you want to order the 12-inch durian pizza?" Miya asked. Gjerj didn't come with him today.

Harrison gave it some thought before replying, "In this case, I think I want to order another beggar's chicken, or else it isn't enough to fill me up."

"Alright, please wait a minute." Miya nodded and walked to the next door.

"Father, look at the one lining up behind Big Sister Vansa. Doesn't he look like that mister who frequented us on the island?" Amy whispered into Mag's ear. She had run a loop at the restaurant's entrance before running back to Mag, who was standing at the restaurant's entrance.

"Oh?" Mag straightened himself and walked to the end of the line. His gaze landed on Tony, and his eyes lit up. "Hey, so it's that food reviewer. Did he come to take shelter here?"

Mag specially bought a gourmet magazine after he returned, and read Tony's article in it. Frankly speaking, it was rather well-written, so it was normal that he was popular. He was different from the food bloggers like him who depended on his looks to survive in the trade.

Of course, not everyone could depend on their looks for survival like he had.

However, why did this critic—who said that he would die on the Demon Islands, and never step out of the seafood holy land—come to Chaos City?

Mag turned, went into the restaurant, and told Yabemiya to sit the customer behind Vanessa in the alfresco area before telling Jane to stay in the restaurant during service and not go out.

Their family of three didn't have to worry about being exposed, as they had had disguises on. After removing the pincers and beard, who would know that he was... Hades.

Amy had changed her clothes too, so she wouldn't be recognized easily, either.

As for Irina, she wasn't even in the restaurant right now. She had gone off to train the Night Elves again. Those elves who had been imprisoned and enslaved had never cultivated themselves before, so she had to teach them to cultivate and battle.

Hence, Jane was the only point of penetration whereby they could be recognized.

Of course, Mag wasn't too worried about Tony recognizing them. He had already thought up many excuses for Jane. If that didn't work, then he would have to silence him.

To his colleagues in the same trade, Mag was still more merciful.

Of course, his colleagues in the trade now were chefs.

Chapter 1416: There Are Also Times When Boss Mag Fails?

Not long after, there were already more than 30 orders for the durian pizza. Mag nodded with satisfaction before officially starting to make the durian pizza.

Because of the unique smell of the durian pizza, Miya made some slight adjustments to the customers' seating arrangement so those who did not order the durian pizza would not be affected by the smell.

Although Mamy Restaurant would rarely go wrong with their new products, many customers would still be a little skeptical, and wait for others to try and give their reviews before deciding if they wanted to order it. That would obviously be the safer choice.

"Luna, are you alright?" Vivian looked to her side at Luna, who appeared rather pale. "Is your tummy still aching a lot?"

"I'm fine." Luna shook her head as she pressed her tummy with her hands. Her forehead was seeping with perspiration. She bit on her lip so hard that it was turning a little colorless.

Luna and Vivian agreed to meet up to shop and eat because they did not have lessons in the afternoon. However, ever since they started lining up, Luna's stomach had been in pain. It was a pulsing kind of pain, so intense that she could not stand properly.

When they sat down in the restaurant, the pain was still a little overwhelming. It seemed like her period was about to come two days earlier this month.

Ever since her period started when she was 14, she had been having colds and pains, and such symptoms had been going on even until now.

Those few days every month would always be the most painful period.

Therefore, she would always take leave on her period to lay at home with a hot water bottle the entire day. After the most painful two days, she would go back to class all energized.

"Why don't we head back first? You don't seem quite well." Vivian helped Luna wipe away her cold sweat with a handkerchief. Both Luna's hands and forehead were icy cold, and even her expression didn't look too good.

She knew about Luna's condition. However, she did not say anything about it just now when they were lining up. Now, after sitting down, Luna really could not endure anymore, and let it show in her face. Vivian could not bear to watch her like that, so she wanted to quickly send her home to rest.

"No. Didn't you just order the durian pizza? You always love Mr. Mag's new products. It's such a shame to leave now." Luna shook her head and forced out a smile. "I'm alright. I'll be fine after a while."

"You..." Vivian felt a little helpless seeing Luna's obstinacy. She quickly raised her hand to beckon Miya over, and requested, "Big Sister Miya, could you please get me a glass of warm water? Luna isn't feeling very well."

"Alright, hold on." Miya looked at Luna, who was not looking too good, and quickly nodded before going into the kitchen. She quickly came back out with a glass of warm water, and placed it in front of Luna.

"Thank you," Luna thanked. She reached out for the glass of water, and the warmth from the glass dispelled much of the chill within her. The pain also felt more bearable.

"Do you feel better?" Vivian asked nervously.

"Mm-hm. I'm fine. I'm already used to it after so many years. You know it too."

Vivian glared at her, and self-reproachfully said, "I'm worried precisely because I know. The pain is enough to kill you. If I'd known your period would come today, I wouldn't have asked you out."

"I'll sleep when I go back later. I'll be fine tomorrow," Luna said with a gentle smile.

Vivian looked at Luna. Her heart ached for her, but there was nothing she could do. Even the doctors did not know what to do about it. They always said it was because of her body constitution, so all she could do was endure the two days, and all would be fine. However, there would be no way of solving it.

Therefore, she was just going to grab a bite and send Luna home to rest as soon as possible

Amy came over to greet Luna and Vivian. After that, she ran over to play with Ugly Duckling.

"Teacher Luna didn't seem quite well," Miya prompted as she walked into the kitchen to take the food out.

"Hm?" Mag turned back to look in the direction of the dining area upon hearing that. He saw Luna holding a cup with one hand and pressing her tummy with her other hand, looking very pale. She appeared very unwell indeed.

Mag clicked open Luna's information, which he skipped, and saw that her condition was getting worse.

Mag thought for a while, and asked, "Did Teacher Luna order pizza?"

"Yes. A 12-inch pizza." Miya nodded.

Ding!

The timer rang for the oven just at the same time.

"Serve the other customers' pizzas according to the sequence. Pass this one to Teacher Luna first." Mag pulled out the durian pizzas from the oven. He had baked eight 12-inch durian pizzas all at the same time in the oven.

"Alright." Yabemiya nodded. She covered the durian pizza and brought it out, serving them to each of the customers and the eighth one to Luna.

"12-inch durian pizza. Please enjoy," Yabemiya said with a smile before lifting the cover.

A rush of steam together with the rich smell of durian and butter started wafting across the enclosed space.

"This smell!" Vivian and Luna pinched their noses upon smelling the weird smell, just like the other customers who received their durian pizzas.

The customer at the side was even more exaggerated. He leaned back suddenly, and fell backward together with the chair. Even when lying on the ground, his face was still filled with horror and shock.

Many customers jumped straight up from their chairs, and retreated away from the dining area to take in huge gulps of air.

"Isn't that a little over the top?"

"Could it be as smelly as stinky tofu?"

"Would you pay 1,000 copper coins for something that's inedible?"

The other customers watched on curiously. Some were shocked, while others were gloating at other people's misfortune, thinking that they'd made the right choice not to be rash in ordering.

"This smell is a little too much!" Although Harrison was still seated, his expression was not very pleasant. He could not really describe the smell. It's not smelly, but it's also not the kind of fragrance that one could accept. In any case, it's a really awkward smell.

"Could... there also be times when Boss Mag fails?" Vivian could not help muttering under her breath when she looked at the pizza, even though she was still seated.

Luna did not know how to start. She took a slight sniff, and said with her eyes brightly lit, "I think it's alright. It's a very nice golden brown, fresh from the oven. It looks very appetizing, and when you take a good sniff, it's actually a very peculiar fragrance that has a tinge of buttery smell. It should taste very good."

"Really?" Vivian released her nose a little and took a little sniff. After hearing what Luna said, it did seem that the smell was not that bad after all. However, she was still a little unwilling to try such a strange-smelling pizza.

"I didn't really want to eat this, but the smell made me a little hungry. Let me give it a try." Luna took a slice of the pizza after seeing Vivian's reaction. She pulled it upwards, and a long string of yellow was pulled out. From the cross-section, one could see the thick durian meat on the pizza that made up more than half of the pizza's thickness. The smell wafted over together with the heat, and that made her forget her pain momentarily.

"I'm taking a bite," Luna told Vivian before biting into the pizza.

Chapter 1417: Gynae God

The soft yet firm texture spread across Luna's teeth.

The sweet and fragrant durian meat melted almost immediately in her mouth. It was an astonishing taste that assailed her taste buds without any warning.

The smell was so rich and thick that one just could not help but immerse themselves in the deliciousness and continue eating.

The crust was slightly burnt, and the buttery fragrance made it irresistible.

The sense of satisfaction exploded with one bite.

"Mm." Luna subconsciously covered her mouth in case she made any strange sounds. She looked up at Vivian, and said, "This pizza is delicious!"

"Really?" Vivian was still in a little disbelief. However, Luna never lied.

"Mm-hm." Luna nodded. What was even more amazing was that after she swallowed the pizza, warmth started spreading in her tummy, as though there was a fire lit in her cold body. The pain in her lower abdomen was relieved all of a sudden, and it was no longer that unbearable.

What a strange effect. It could even relieve my pain. Luna's eyes lit up. She took another bite off the pizza, and the taste exploded at the tip of her tongue. After swallowing it, the pizza became a ball of warmth, spreading in her body.

She took one bite after another, and the pain was quickly dispelled. The tastiness had already taken over the pain, and she was no longer thinking about anything other than to immerse in the delicacy.

That looks really good. Vivian looked at Luna who could not stop eating, and could not help but pick up a slice of pizza. She took a deep breath in, and started taking her first bite.

"This... this taste!" Vivian's eyes lit up immediately. The sweet durian with its thick texture melted at the tip of her tongue. The fragrance assailed every corner of her mouth, as well as her taste buds.

It was a completely different experience from the tofu pudding, but there was a little similarity in terms of texture. However, compared to the soft and fine tofu pudding, the durian meat was more intrusive with its rich scent, just like a king hurling attacks at you, making you bow in defeat.

Vivian knew that she was defeated, completely defeated.

Her insistence was completely ineffective in the face of the durian's attack.

Her taste buds had been completely conquered, and it was just as though her sense of smell had been completely changed at that moment. The strange fragrance was suddenly very attractive. Coupled with the taste, the durian became even more irresistible.

The most satisfying part would probably be that thick layer of durian. It was not just a little topping for the pizza. It was the main character of the dish. Meanwhile, the crust, the bottom-most layer, was the best compliment to the durian. It was slightly crispy yet soft on the inside. It had a strong smell of milk, and it happened to remove the smell from one's mouth.

"What a surprisingly great taste hidden so deeply beneath all this facade. How mischievous," Vivian muttered under her breath. She could not help but take another big mouthful of pizza as she immersed herself in the joy that the durian pizza brought.

Seeing Vivian and Luna, the two pretty ladies, enjoying the food, the customers who were thinking of asking for a refund hesitated, and went back to the seats.

"Take care of my seventh uncle!" Harrison picked up a piece of pizza and took a huge mouthful.

"Holy f*ck!"

He quickly got lost in the taste of the durian. His brain was completely blank, and only the f-word could express what he was feeling at the moment.

Compared to its strange smell, the taste of the durian pizza was way more acceptable.

Or rather... it was easier for someone to give in to its taste.

Mamy Restaurant boasted several kinds of deliciousness, but only the durian pizza's deliciousness was irresistible.

"Bro, is this pizza really that good?" a young demon at the same table asked as he gulped, watching Harrison finish the pizza within a few bites.

"Good? That's not a strong enough word. It should be scrumptious! The durian pizza is dope!" Harrison gave a thumbs up. From that day on, he would be the first follower of the durian pizza.

Harrison's exaggerated way of eating and his sincere praise for the food made the hesitant customers start to try it for themselves. Harrison was the restaurant's regular, so most people had seen him around. There really was no reason for him to lie.

"This durian pizza is awesome?!"

"Is this made of tofu pudding? How can the texture be so sick!"

Very quickly, praises for the durian pizza started sprouting from different areas of the restaurant. After trying for themselves, everyone had completely changed their impression of the durian pizza. They fell deeply in love with it, and were willing to bow down to its divine taste.

Ah, that irresistible taste.

The huge contrast after tasting the durian pizza caused the other hesitant customers to start ordering the pizza too.

However, there were still some customers who took a step back after smelling it, and chose something else that was easier to accept.

Mag looked at the order lists for durian pizza and smiled. This was not a bad start. Maybe he could finish the 100-helpings mission tonight.

Although tonight's announcement might be a little deceptive, everyone would be willing to step into the trap of delicacies.

"Boss Mag never disappoints." Vivian licked her finger and burped with satisfaction which could be seen all over her face after finishing half the durian pizza. That was simply bliss.

"I'm stuffed too." Luna stroked her slightly protruding stomach guiltily. Suddenly, she froze.

"What's the matter? Does it still hurt?" Vivian suddenly remembered that Luna's tummy was hurting. However, because she was too busy eating, she completely forgot about it.

"No, it doesn't hurt anymore. I don't feel the pain after eating this pizza." Luna shook her head in amazement.

"Really?" Vivian grabbed Luna's hand in shock. Her hands which had been cold just now were very warm. Vivian's eyes lit up. "It's really the case. Even your hands are warm now. I didn't think that this durian pizza could have such a miraculous effect."

"Yeah. That's a first." Luna nodded. She had been tortured by this symptom for years, and didn't think that half a durian pizza could successfully suppress it.

"Boss Mag really is a God of Cookery, Doctor of Strange Ailments. Should we give him a Gynae God signboard?" Vivian whispered to Luna.

"Don't do it. Otherwise, I wouldn't know how to face Mr. Mag in the future." Luna glared at Vivian.

"Alright, alright. After all, our Teacher Luna still has to maintain her elegant teacher image in front of Boss Mag." Vivian nodded with a smile, and said, "Why don't we do this: let's come over for the durian pizza again tomorrow. We'll have it for three days in a row, and see what effects it has."

Chapter 1418: I Heard That Real Men Take On The Insanely Spicy Level

"How long do we have to wait? When can we finally eat our dinner?" Tony wasn't hungry at first, but he grew hungry as he waited.

The line was moving slowly, but the speed was too slow. They'd been waiting for almost two hours, but they were nowhere near the front of the line.

If this was the Demon Islands, he wouldn't need to line up. The restaurant owners would all welcome him in with open arms. This was the first time in his life he lined up for so long.

"I've counted. It might probably take another half an hour before it's our turn. A pity we would only be left with half an hour to eat. I guess we wouldn't be able to try the hot pot today. The new product would definitely be sold out already." Vanessa craned her neck forward to look as she stood on her toes. She looked energetic, and didn't seem to think that lining up was very tough. It was just a pity that she could not get to enjoy the hot pot and the new product.

Meanwhile, Abraham hung his head low as he nodded off. He was slowly moving forward with the line completely unconsciously.

"Half an hour..." Tony glared at the calm customers in the line. Even the temperamental demons were lining up obediently. He could not help but diss in his mind, I'll see what's so special about this restaurant that can make so many customers line up and wait willingly. Also, the crayfish. Hmph, how can there be crayfish better than those at Ayi Crayfish Restaurant?

Around half an hour later, they could finally see the front end of the line.

Yabemiya looked at Vanessa, as well as the demons behind her, and came out to greet them with a smile. She guided them to a table outside the restaurant, and said, "There are currently no tables available in the restaurant, and we have already stopped taking in new customers at the designated hot pot area, so please take a seat here. Take a look at the menu to see what you want to order."

"Big Sister Miya, do you still have the new product launched today?" Vanessa asked excitedly the moment she took her seat.

"We're already completely sold out for the 100 durian pizzas. If you want to try it, you can come over earlier tomorrow." Yabemiya shook her head slightly.

"Then is there no more tofu pudding as well?"

"Yes, the tofu pudding is sold out as well." Yabemiya nodded.

"Ah, it's true that you can be late for anything, but you can never be late to eat at Mamy Restaurant!" Vanessa sighed. She felt as though she had missed out on a priceless treasure.

Tony joined tables with Vanessa. Although he still found it a little strange to dine outside the restaurant since the restaurant was so beautiful, there were quite a lot of open-air restaurants on the Demon Islands, so he did not think much about dining outside. Tony reached for the menu and flipped it open. His gaze fell on the pictures in the menu, and his eyes lit up immediately.

There was a picture of every dish, and the image was very realistic, as though it was captured by a photostone. Just the picture of the food alone was enough to work up an appetite.

What shocked him the most was the price of the dishes. He glanced through the prices, and the cheapest dish was the soybean milk, which cost 100 copper coins. The most expensive dish was the "Buddha jumps over the wall" at 10,000 copper coins!

"10,000 copper coins!" Tony's eyes widened as he stared at the price in disbelief. The food in this restaurant was so expensive. He had never seen a menu like this in all his years on the Demon Islands.

"What a rip-off! I can already have a spicy crayfish at the Demon Islands with 100 copper coins, but here I can only get a bowl of soybean milk," Tony grumbled under his breath. Actually, he was not short on money. As a highly paid gourmet, he had enough money to order everything on the menu, but he just felt his heart ache a little for his wallet.

His gaze landed on the braised crayfish, the bright red crayfish with huge pincers in the image, and his eyes lit up. Surprised, he said, "Isn't this the same crayfish as the one in Ayi Restaurant?"

After that, he looked at the price.

"F*ck! (‵o′)凸"

Braised crayfish—1000 copper coins for one!

That's a good 10 times more expensive!

Vanessa looked at Tony with a smile as she asked, "Mister, what do you think? Don't you think the price Boss Mag set for the crayfish is super reasonable?"

"Reasonable? Heh. The crayfish on Carapace Island is 10 times cheaper." Tony rolled his eyes.

"But this is Chaos City. It's a landlocked place, so it's super difficult to have fresh seafood here. You can probably only get fresh seafood here at Mamy Restaurant," Vanessa said with a smile.

"Once the sea creatures leave the sea, they will die quickly, so it's impossible to have completely fresh seafood at Chaos City. Selling a dead crayfish for 1,000 crayfish is a little too expensive in my opinion. After all, the crayfish at Ayi Crayfish Restaurant is only 100 copper coins, and it's already the best." Tony shook his head to show that he was not agreeable to what Vanessa said.

"That's not necessarily the case. I've tried the freshest seafood, but I don't think it tastes anywhere as good as Boss Mag's braised crayfish. I think 1,000 copper coins are really worth it. Besides, I don't think Boss Mag's braised crayfish would be worse than the crayfish Teacher Tony recommended," Vanessa insisted. After that, she looked at Yabemiya, and said, "Big Sister Miya, I'll have a braised crayfish, and then a large insanely spicy grilled fish!"

"Then I'll also have a taste of this crayfish." Tony was a little indignant about it, so he also ordered one crayfish. He saw beer at the drinks section, and ordered a pint of cold beer to see if the beer in this restaurant could be on par with that of Ayi Crayfish Restaurant.

Abraham, who was thinking of what to get for dinner, suddenly sat up straight when he heard Vanessa's order. He pulled a face, and told her, "Insanely spicy again! Let's... let's discuss this first. You just had the insanely spicy hot pot yesterday. We might not even be able to take the super spicy..."

"But the insanely spicy level is the best. Especially the feeling where your tongue gets all tangled up from the spiciness. Don't you find it especially interesting?" Vanessa looked at Abraham innocently.

"It's not interesting at all. All I feel is that my butt is no longer mine..." Abraham looked up into the sky, and he suddenly missed the Vanessa who was still undergoing treatment for her teeth. Middle-aged men like him should not be taking things that were insanely spicy.

"Insanely spicy?" Tony was rather curious about the flavor.

"Mister, have some later too. It's a flavor that Boss Mag created. I heard that real men take on the insanely spicy level. Do you want to give it a shot?" Vanessa asked with a smile. She added, "Most people wouldn't dare to try it."

"Heheh. It's just a little spicier. Easy," Tony said relaxedly. What a joke. Could there be food in this world that he would actually be afraid of?

It doesn't exist!

Chapter 1419: The Darn Tastiness!

The warm and gentle lights brightened up the open-air dining area. It appeared as though there was a spellwork set up so that the chilly wind would be blocked out, making the place very warm and cozy.

Tony leaned into his chair relaxedly. It seemed that this place wasn't unreasonably expensive.

Although there were customers of various races all around, there was no noise at all. Even when the demons and dwarves were chatting, their voices were very hushed and soft. Eating at a place like this would make one feel very relaxed.

This was not something one would find in other restaurants.

"Hello, this is the braised crayfish you ordered." Not long later, Yabemiya came over with a tray, and placed the crayfishes in front of each of them.

"It smells so good!" Tony sat up straight and looked at the red crayfish served on the big black plate. His eyes opened wide. "Isn't this spicy crayfish?"

The crayfish, which had a pair of large pincers, looked exactly like the one he had at Ayi Crayfish Restaurant. He almost couldn't tell the difference between the two, be it in appearance or size.

Tony suppressed his shock and took a serious sniff. There was a slight difference in terms of the smell.

The garlic crayfish had the fragrance of garlic, and the spicy crayfish had a spicy tinge to it, while the thirteen-spice crayfish had a very rich smell. This so-called braised crayfish had a lighter smell. It did not seem as spicy as the spicy crayfish or as rich as the thirteen-spice crayfish.

However, the smell would make one even more curious about the taste hidden behind it.

That's strange. Could the owner have gone to Carapace Island to get the ingredients? Or are there other places that produce such crayfishes? Tony had many questions inside. After living on the Demon Islands for so many years, he had never seen a crayfish that looked like this before he ate at Ayi Crayfish Restaurant. He didn't think he would see it again after coming to Chaos City.

"Today's crayfish still smells as good. I'm digging in," Vanessa said with a smile. She picked up one pincer, pulled it out, peeled the shell off, and planted a large bite into the full and juicy pincer meat as she indulged in its taste.

It seems like the way you eat it is almost the same, Tony thought. He looked away from Vanessa and toward the crayfish in front of him, thinking, Heh, even though it looks almost the same, appearance isn't that important. This crayfish is definitely not fresh. It can never be on par with the one made by Boss Hades.

Tony reached for the crayfish's head with the mentality of just giving it a try before throwing out sarcastic remarks.

"This smell!" A rich scent wafted over, making Tony's eyes open wider. It was an unexpected fragrance.

After that, he put the crayfish head to his mouth and sucked on it.

"Oh...

"This darn tastiness!

"How can this crayfish butter be so sweet and delicious!"

Tony was filled with shock. He looked at the crayfish's head in disbelief. The crayfish butter melted in his mouth, and it did not have any fishy smell. It was fresh and sweet, with a tinge of spiciness. The fragrance of the entire dish was perfectly brought out in this mouthful of crayfish butter.

Fresh!

It was the most direct and best way the word was presented.

As a self-proclaimed best gourmet who knew about seafood, Tony knew very well that the crayfish was absolutely fresh when it was cooked. It was so fresh that it was still waving its pincers right before it was put into the pot.

Other than that, the taste of the dish also caught him by surprise.

It was different from the garlic flavor of the garlic crayfish and the fragrance of the spicy crayfish, and it was even more different from the rich layers of flavors of the thirteen-spice crayfish. This braised crayfish gave him a different feeling. The spices and the tastiness of the crayfish were trapped within the meat of the crayfish. Only when one broke open the hard shell could they enjoy the tastiness within.

It was a surprising taste.

How can this be so delicious? Even though there was a slight difference in its taste and cooking method, this actually is comparable to Boss Hades's. It was a complete change of mindset that he had before.

After finishing the crayfish butter in the head, Tony pulled out one pincer, and took a bite from it.

The meat was springy, and had a distinct freshness that came from the sea, so Tony was even more certain that this crayfish could not get any fresher. It was not even an exaggeration to say that this crayfish was just fished out of the sea.

The fresh crayfish meat was soaked in the gravy, bringing out the freshness completely. It was completely different from its dry appearance. One bite into the meat was enough to send the gravy squirting around.

Love it.

Tony only had one thought left. That was to continue taking bite after bite to satisfy his indulgence.

After finishing the two pincers, he took a mouthful of the beer. That was simply... sick!

"Mister, how is it? Isn't Boss Mag's crayfish super good? Isn't the crayfish super fresh?" Vanessa asked with a smile.

"This..." Tony blushed. Just a while ago, he had been refuting whatever Vanessa had said, but after trying this crayfish for himself, he was speechless.

"I admit that this crayfish is very good, and it's unexpectedly fresh. It's not too much at all to say that it was just fished out of the sea. I take back my words." Tony nodded. As a gourmet, he had his own professional ethics, and he could not bring himself to say something he did not mean.

Vanessa continued, "Then what do you think about it in comparison to Ayi Crayfish Restaurant at Carapace Island? I've seen your essay, and I'm pretty interested in the three crayfish flavors. I would like to try it if there's a chance."

"This crayfish tastes completely different, but if I really had to compare, I guess I would base it on the price. For the same price, you can have 10 crayfishes of the same quality at Carapace Island." Tony looked at Vanessa with a slightly awkward look, and said, "However, I would not really recommend you to go to Carapace Island. After all, it's pretty chaotic on the Demon Islands, and Carapace Island is the real chaotic island. It's not really a place a pretty young lady like you should go to."

He was afraid that this young lady would join the mob to slaughter him.

Besides, Carapace Island was really very chaotic. If such a beautiful human lady went there, anything could happen.

"Yes, yes, yes, why should a young lady like you go to the Demon Islands? Is it that the tofu pudding isn't good enough, or the spicy grilled fish isn't spicy enough for you here?" Abraham concurred. He had enough stress on him when she came over to Chaos City. If she were to go all the way to the Demon Islands, the king would probably tear him apart.

"Really? I don't think so. Before I came over to Chaos City, I also heard that it was very chaotic in Chaos City. But after coming over, I realized that this place is pretty good. Carapace Island might not be a bad place too," Vanessa said innocently.

"Young Mistress, there's no hot pot on Carapace Island," Lola reminded her softly.

"Then I'm not going," Vanessa blurted out without even thinking.

Chapter 1420: Feels Miserable. Feels Like Crying

Tony quickly finished the crayfish, and even wanted more.

The seafood he had at Chaos City gave him an unexpected surprise.

After Ayi Crayfish Restaurant had disappeared for no rhyme or reason, he was still lamenting that he could no longer have such delicious crayfish anymore. He didn't think that after leaving the Demon Islands, he could have an equally delicious braised crayfish here.

To be honest, this crayfish was on par with the spicy crayfish, garlic crayfish, and thirteen-spice crayfish.

If he was not on the run right now, he would definitely write an essay about this crayfish tonight!

Tony put down the empty beer mug, and curiously asked Vanessa, "Is seafood so readily accessible over here?"

The crayfish was way too fresh, and with so many customers ordering it, where did the large amount of fresh crayfish come from?

"Also, is the beer a specialty here?" He found this beer very familiar. It was very similar to the beer at Ayi Crayfish Restaurant. When he was eating the crayfish and sipping the beer just now, there was a moment he thought he was back at Carapace Island.

"I don't know about the seafood, but I don't suppose it's very easy to get it. As for the beer, I don't drink, so I don't know if it's a specialty here. Is it good?" Vanessa shook her head. She looked at Tony's beer mug curiously, looking as though she wanted to give it a try.

"It's not. It's bitter. Children should not drink it," Abraham answered her. He would never let Vanessa try drinking.

"Really? But everyone seems very happy when they drink." Vanessa did not really buy it.

"Adults go through all sorts of hardships and bitter suffering. The bitterness of beer is nothing compared to all those, and that's why drinking some would make them feel a little better," Abraham said calmly.

"Alcohol is something meant for adults. If children drink it, they won't grow up," Tony added.

"Alright. I think I should stick to fruit juice." Vanessa nodded, and looked at the beer as a sly thought flashed across her mind.

"The insanely spicy grilled fish." Yabemiya cleared everyone's plates, and quickly served a huge grilled fish.

"What is this? Why does it sting my eyes so much?"

Ton leaned back the moment he felt the heat surge towards his eyes. The spiciness and sting made him tear uncontrollably.

Abraham, who was sitting at the side, had long shifted back a little. He looked at the spicy grilled fish as though he saw the devil. Something deep within his soul started shaking. His weak, fragile a*shole... could it go through one more round of torture?

Vanessa, on the other hand, leaned forward happily and took in a deep whiff. She smiled happily, and told Tony, "This is the insanely spicy grilled fish. It's super-duper good. The fish is so huge, have some with us, Mister."

"I..." Tony waited for the sting in his eyes to subside a little before looking at the grilled fish that was covered with red hot chopped chili. He could already feel his throat burning before he even ate the fish. Do the people in Chaos City eat chili like that?

Even the spicy crayfish that he thought was unbearably spicy was nothing compared to this!

It really was his first time seeing a dish that could sting his eyes with just the smell alone.

"Don't tell me you don't dare to eat it?" Vanessa blinked.

"How is that possible? This level of spiciness is just normal for us demons," Tony scoffed.

"Wow, that sounds impressive." Vanessa's eyes lit up.

"Heh, heh." Tony faked a relaxed laugh, but he was already regretting inside. He should not have boasted without thinking...

"Then let's dig in. It tastes the best fresh from the grill." Vanessa picked up her chopsticks eagerly. She put a piece of fish meat into her mouth, and her face flushed red immediately. However, she seemed to be enjoying it—enjoying the feeling of her taste buds suffering from the insane spiciness.

Could it be that it doesn't taste as spicy as it smells? There isn't much reaction from this young lady, so I guess it shouldn't be a problem, right? Tony thought to himself. He did not want a young lady to look down on him, so he also picked up his chopsticks, and brushed the chili aside. After that, he picked up some fish meat, thought for a while, and decided to dip it in the gravy before putting it into his mouth.

Immediately after the meat entered his mouth, there was nothing much. The meat was soft and tender under the crispy skin. That was a very superb grilling technique, and it was rare to be able to eat such a perfectly grilled fish even on the Demon Islands.

However, the moment the gravy touched his taste buds, he could no longer remain calm!

Was it spicy?

No!

It was pain!!!

It felt as though someone had pulled his tongue out, and then a dwarf blacksmith started waving his hammer, smashing his tongue.

His delicate tongue and those sensitive taste buds were so heavily beaten that he almost forgot who his mother was.

His face flushed red instantly. It did not turn a little red, but glowed as red as a tomato. There was even steam coming out of his head.

He felt as though every single cell in his body was raging and causing chaos.

After the momentary pain, the spiciness kicked in.

That was not the normal spicy...

The spiciness was really insane!

It was as though a magic caster threw a ball of flame on his tongue, and then poured boiling oil in his mouth. The flames burned and wreaked havoc in his mouth while slowly expanding down his throat.

Tony felt the need to spit the meat out, or he might be burnt to death. As for his ego...

F*ck the ego!

"Mister, is it good?" Vanessa suddenly asked.

"Er..." Tony opened his mouth, and the meat glided down his throat. His neck turned red immediately as the meat went down his throat and into his stomach.

Tony blanked out for a while. After that, he picked up Abraham's beer, which was at the side, and took two large mouthfuls. Next, he even chewed on the ice in the mug and swallowed it before feeling a little better. The clothes he was wearing were already completely drenched in sweat, and he was dazed.

Abraham raised his hand as he looked sympathetically at Tony, and told Miya, "Two more pints of chilled beer."

Wait... how can such a scary level of spiciness exist in this world? Besides, why can this young lady enjoy it so much?! This is not the normal standard of spiciness a demon can take!!! Tony looked at Vanessa in shock, and felt as though he was cheated.

Feels miserable. Feels like crying.

Chapter 1421: Tossing You, Ugly Duckling!

"Is this super delicious?" Vanessa asked Tony smilingly.

"Still a-a-alright..." Tony felt his tongue was tangled up, and he couldn't speak properly.

Vanessa's eyes lit up, and she continued, "Then you should have more of it. My uncle and Lola can't have too much of this. I usually eat half of it by myself, which is no fun at all."

"That... that... that..."

"That's right. Go for it." Vanessa picked up the chopsticks, and continued to immerse herself in the grilled fish.

"Let us encourage each other in our endeavors." Abraham lifted his glass at Tony with a touch of sympathy in his eyes.

Tony picked up his mug, and gulped down a big mouthful of ice-cold beer. He didn't feel like talking.

Tony finished this dinner in the midst of pain and enjoyment.

However, frankly speaking, after getting over the initial pain of the insanely spicy, he could taste the scrumptiousness of the grilled fish gradually at the end. The crispy fish's skin, tender and fresh meat, and those condiments that were soaked with the gravy were all exquisite and heavenly.

Tony had to admit that none of the grilled fish that he had eaten before was comparable to it.

If the insanely spicy was changed to normal, he should be able to taste the scrumptiousness of this grilled fish more delicately.

There are indeed very good reasons that this restaurant is so loved by its customers and praised by so many of my colleagues. Tony pondered. Be it the restaurant's environment, ambiance, or taste, this was the best restaurant that he had ever seen.

"Bill, please," Abraham said.

Anna came over with a small box.

Abraham smiled. "I will pay for everything on this table."

Anna thought for a moment before saying, "Four braised crayfish, one big grilled fish, six mugs of beer, and four cups of fruit juice. The total is... 8,800 copper coins."

Abraham dug out eight dragon coins and gave them to Anna. "Keep the change."

Anna looked at the dragon coins and pondered before saying, "You need to pay me another 800 copper coins."

"Huh?" Abraham was stunned, and then blushed as he swiftly took out another two dragon coins. "My arithmetic skill has deteriorated ever since I'm getting older... You may keep the change now..."

"Thank you." Anna nodded slightly while she kept the coins, and walked to the next paying customer.

"Thank you for paying." Tony nodded at Abraham. He saw a kindred spirit in him as they were both middle-aged men who were tortured by the insanely spicy level.

Even though Tony was still curious about the boss of this restaurant, he only wanted to return to the hotel to have a hot water bath now and change into comfortable clothes. Hence, he got up, bid farewell to Vanessa and the rest, and left.

"Rena, is your mother getting better?" Mag asked Rena, who was tidying up the stove after the dinner was over, as he removed his apron and hung it on the peg.

"Mm-hm. My mother has recovered fully after Princess Irina's treatment. She's still a little weak. But after drinking the bone broth for the past few days, she's getting better." Rena nodded as she looked at Mag with a grateful gaze.

"That's good." Mag nodded smilingly before asking Jane who was assisting at the side, "Jane, are you adapting well here?"

"Mm-hm." Jane nodded and smiled. "I like Mamy Restaurant, Chaos City, and the customers."

"I'm glad you like it here." Mag was still worried initially that Jane wouldn't get used to the life in Chaos City, but looking at it now, such worries were needless.

"Anna, which big sister are you going to sleep with tonight?" Mag asked Anna, who was counting money together with Amy, as he turned to her.

"I..." Anna turned and looked at all the big sisters, who were all smiling at her, hesitantly.

"Of course she's going to sleep with Little Sister Amy. I love sleeping with Big Sister Anna," Amy said happily as she grasped Anna's hands.

"Mm-hmm." Anna smiled and nodded.

"Alright. Then you will sleep with Amy tonight." Mag also nodded smilingly. Anna had been staying alternately at the restaurant and the dormitory after Blour had left. She had been sleeping with Yabemiya and the ladies for the past two days, but since Anna wanted to sleep with Amy, Mag naturally agreed.

"Everyone has worked very hard today. Tomorrow is our off day, so we can all sleep in. Have fun." Mag smiled at all of them.

"Boss, it's only been three days since you came back. Will the customers be angry if we have a break right away?" Yabemiya asked, feeling a little concerned.

"This is our official off day. Of course our happiness is more important." Mag shook his head with a smile.

It was a very "Boss Mag" answer, and it sounded perfectly fine, so Yabemiya nodded. It was rather nice to have an off day.

The ladies all bid farewell and left just as Irina returned. Her hair was a little messy, but her demeanor was still demure and holy.

"What happened?" Mag asked Irina, who seemed to have just returned from a battle, as he locked the door and fetched a glass of water from the kitchen.

"I went out of the city and killed some scumbags. These fellows are so daring to have come to the vicinity of Chaos City to catch the wandering elves," Irina said calmly as if she'd only done some small errands after she took a sip of the warm water.

"Are they the terrifying demons?" Anna asked softly. She had been hurt deeply by the demons before.

Irina smiled at Anna. "They're demons, but they're not scary at all. They are simply scumbags who bully the weak. As long as you are strong enough, you can destroy them easily with a wave of your hand."

Anna looked at Irina with her mouth slightly agape. She still couldn't imagine how to kill the terrifying demons with a wave of the hand.

"I know how to do that. You just have to release a fireball before you wave your hand to toss the fireball over. Then, the demon bad guys would all be destroyed," Amy hinted.

"Oh, I see." Anna pondered. She had seen Amy use the fireball magic before, and could imagine that scene right away.

"Maybe we could catch Ugly Duckling and toss it out when we wave our hands. Its weight would then crush those demon bad guys." Amy looked at Ugly Duckling and smiled. "While tossing it over, we could also shout, 'Tossing you, Ugly Duckling!'"

"Meow~" Ugly Duckling whined aggrievedly.

"Oh, I got it now." Anna's eyes lit up as her gaze landed on Ugly Duckling. She was able to throw Ugly Duckling, so could she try it out if she ran into the scary demons in the future?

Ugly Duckling could sense the attentive gazes, and it slowly backed off to hide behind Mag's legs. It looked at Amy and Anna with an innocent expression and a hint of sadness.

Mag was also amused at Amy's metaphor. He patted the two little ones' heads, and said, "Alright, let's go up and wash up for bed. Children shouldn't stay up too late."

"Mm-hmm." Amy and Anna nodded obediently and skipped upstairs, holding hands.

Ugly Duckling hesitated for a moment before deciding to follow after the two of them. Then, it was caught by Amy.

"Ugly Duckling, why can't you fly even after you grew a pair of tiny wings?"

"Maybe it has eaten far too much."

"What a disgrace. Tossing you, Ugly Duckling!"

"Haha, I caught you. Tossing you, Ugly Duckling!"

"I caught it too. Tossing it to you again."

"I caught—"

Splat...

"Oh dear, we dropped it on the floor..."

Chapter 1422: Birth Of The Demon Child

Mag followed them up the stairs, and smilingly picked up Ugly Duckling, which had a grim look on its face, from the floor.

He had no idea what species it was, and if it would really grow a pair of wings and turn into a white swan.

However, its body was developing toward the round shape.

After filling up the bathtub with hot water for the two little ones, and putting a few yellow ducklings and one Ugly Duckling in, Mag left the bathroom.

The two little ones had already learned how to bathe themselves, and Anna was a very responsible big sister. She would take care of her little sister.

Mag came out from the bathroom to see Irina standing in front of the room's door. He approached her, and whispered, "The timing is fixed. Tomorrow at noon, the elves would have the ceremony to confer Sally as the new elf princess officially, and execute the Night Elves that were caught during this time."

"What do you think about it?" Irina asked.

"If I've guessed correctly, this should be another plot against you. The news to execute the Night Elves was released by the Wind Forest deliberately. It's to tell all the elves and the whole world their attitude and then see if you—who are deemed by the Night Elves their savior and spiritual leader—would appear at the ceremony to save all the Night Elves as they hope you would."

"Everyone knows that I will be going."

"Then this will be a trap that has been perfected. You most likely wouldn't make it back if you went. After all, this is a trap that is set by the entire race."

Irina fell into a silence. Although Borg was dead and the elf queen had gone into seclusion, the elf race was still a powerful species. If they had laid a trap with all their might, it was almost impossible for a single person to rescue the Night Elves from them.

"I still have to go," Irina said to Mag calmly.

A smile appeared on Mag's face. This was an answer that he anticipated, and the whole world knew about.

"Do you think the tinder that you scattered in the Wind Forest would turn into blazing fires tomorrow?" Mag asked.

"Do you mean... light up the tinder?" Irina's gaze narrowed slightly.

"No. The tinder is already lit. All they need now is a gust of wind to turn them into a blazing fire."

"Ignite a formal battle between the Night Elves and the Wind Forest?"

"It's too early to have a formal battle. But it's time to fire the first shot in the Wind Forest's interior." Mag shook his head. "Our strength is not sufficient, and involving too many foreign powers in the elves' internal struggles could cause the development to proceed beyond our expectation.

"But this upcoming conferring ceremony would attract the attention of all the elves. If the Night Elves did nothing, then that tinder would be extinguished due to disappointment. You and the Night Elves have to show your attitude and lead the elves who were scattered among the forest into a formal uprising. Let the tinder of freedom ignite the entire forest, and provide a cover for our actions during the ceremony."

Irina furrowed her eyebrows, and worriedly said, "The power of the Night Elves is still too low. The power of the peasants elves is far too weak compared to that of the ruling class. Asking them to start a resistance now may cause casualties in vain."

"Revolution has always been bloody. Moreover, you shouldn't underestimate the yearning for freedom from all walks of life. Elves from different castes would only be able to join the ranks in the fight for freedom if the revolution breaks out completely in the Wind Forest. The Night Elves would then be able to get stronger in the bloodshed." Mag shook his head and smiled. "Shirley and Sally are the best examples. Although they are from noble families, they are full of sympathy for the lower caste elves, and are willing to dedicate their lives for the freedom of the whole elven species."

"I need to go out for a while." Irina pondered, and then disappeared with a flash of green light underneath her feet.

"System, calculate for me. If we accelerate the mobile restaurant to its maximum speed and then crash it to the ground, what kind of energy will it produce? And what level of damage would it cause if we translate it to the level of magic attack in this world?" Mag asked in his brain.

"Wastrel! The mobile restaurant is such a sophisticated object, how could you use it like that?! This is a high-tech existence that could exchange for an aircraft carrier!" The system's agitated roar appeared in Mag's brain.

"It's fine that we don't crash it. Then, you will sell me a few missiles that could aim wherever I want." Mag raised an eyebrow. His heart was also aching at the thought of using the supersonic and space-altering mobile restaurant as a missile too.

"Host, please retract your unreasonable request. The missiles shouldn't appear in this world, as it will cause a confusion in the power system and a series of severe problems!"

"Then continue to calculate that earlier question. If I am going to die, then a confusion in the power system would not matter to me anymore. You can't be making me start all over again, right? I have to be alive to utilize the mobile restaurant." Mag pursed his lips.

The system fell into silence for a while before a row of small words appeared in Mag's brain.

The impact shock wave that could be created by the mobile restaurant travelling at the speed of Mach 5 crashing into the ground and the explosion of the restaurant's internal nuclear device is equivalent to the immense damage created by more than ten 10th-tier magic casters doing a combined attack. It would cause a severe environmental deterioration within a diameter of 5 km. The Host has to proceed with caution!

"This is really a big killer move." Mag's eyes lit up. But this was an indiscriminate attack that was highly damaging, so he couldn't use it unless he really had to.

Furthermore, what bothered Mag the most was that he had such a great killer move, yet he couldn't use it to threaten others.

The others also wouldn't believe that he had such a big killer move.

"If only I had two mobile restaurants," Mag lamented. He could bomb one to let the people know its power, and his threat would sound more convincing after.

Besides the mobile restaurant, Mag could only think of Lantisde right now. However, he had already asked them to send all their powerhouses to help save the Night Elves earlier. Hence, asking them to enter the Wind Forest to fight it out with the elves would have way exceeded their initial promise.

I can only hope that the tinder of freedom that the Night Elves had been spreading is enough to create the sparks. Otherwise, this could probably be a dark day for the Night Elves, Mag thought.

"Father, we're done." Amy, wearing a towel, opened a crack in the door.

Ugly Duckling poked its wet head out and shook hard. It crouched there licking its wet paws with an aggrieved expression.

"Alright, I will blow dry your hair for you." Mag picked up the dry towels that he had prepared in advance, and dried the two little ones' hair first before blowing them dry with a hair dryer.

Amy, with her silver hair loose around her, hugged Mag's arm as she whined, "Father, can we sleep with you tonight? Big Sister Anna and I would like to listen to your 'Nezha' story."

"Birth of the demon child." Anna was also looking at Mag expectantly.

Chapter 1423: This World Is Not Going To Reason With You

"Actually, you didn't have to come back."

In the dark room with only one single oil lamp, Vincent, who had aged visibly, looked at Blour with a complex expression.

"You knew I would come back," Blour replied calmly.

The room was plunged into silence as the light of the oil lamp danced weakly.

Vincent worriedly said, "The Baibilly Family was plunged into danger like never before. Elliot wants to destroy the betrothal between you and Sally, and he's prepared to destroy the whole Baibilly Family to achieve that. Our only hope now is for you to maintain your betrothal with Sally and then marry her."

"You said exactly the same thing when you made me agree to this betrothal." Blour curled his lips into a sneer.

Vincent looked at Blour. He opened his mouth and closed it after his throat moved a little. He sighed with a downcast expression.

"You should know about the Night Elves, right?" Blour asked.

"The Baibilly Family's warriors and I were there when Borg's army attacked the underground cavern." Vincent nodded.

"I was in the underground cavern that you all surrounded then." Blour smiled at Vincent.

"You..." Vincent's pupils constricted as his gaze became fixed on Blour. His expression only managed to calm down after a while. He seemed to age suddenly, and his voice became lower as he said with a complicated expression, "I've guessed it, but I didn't really think you would really be there. I almost lost a son."

"Freedom was there. Princess was there. As an elf, shouldn't I be there as well? You almost lost a son, while the elven race almost lost its future. A future that was almost snuffed out by you all."

"You know very well that the Baibilly Family has been struggling for survival for the past few years. We simply couldn't reject Borg's order, nor could we reject Helena's order. Freedom is an extravagance for us. As the family head, my most important task is to ensure our clan survives, and not just talk about whatever future," Vincent said despondently.

"So, do you think living like this has a meaning? Is this really the life that we elves want to lead? Our people have even forgotten what freedom is! Even we, the so-called nobles, have shackles around our necks. Even when we are served by servants, when did we ever have freedom? Was the Wind Forest like this 100 years ago?" Blour confronted Vincent.

Vincent paled, and took a step back instinctively.

100 years ago, the elf race had paid a terrible price to chase the invading demons out of the Wind Forest, and then build the current Wind Forest under the planning of the elven queen and the high priestess.

At that time, no elf could have anticipated that the elf race would become like this.

The elves who had always pursued freedom even during the horrifying war were all turned into slaves by the decadent practice and the system that shackled them.

Yes. Even he, who was the leader of a clan, was still living in fear.

This kind of fear didn't originate from external enemies, but from his own people—people who had fought with him in battles before.

Everyone was living in desire and fear, struggling and fighting with one another. They gave up the freedom that they had upheld for thousands of years for power that the elves hadn't even given a care to before.

"Recently, the youngsters are beginning to behave mysteriously. They would gather secretly after everyone is asleep and talk about freedom with a glow in their eyes." Vincent looked up at Blour. "Their expressions are exactly like yours."

Blour narrowed his gaze slightly, and clenched his fists instinctively.

"Helena has caught many young people recently. She calls them traitors and Night Elves' infiltrators. She also issued secret orders to each aristocrat's territory to catch whoever talked about freedom and lock them up in the dungeon." Vincent glanced at Blour's fists, and continued, "Tomorrow, on Sally's conferring ceremony, these young people would be publicly executed to shock and awe those elves who are ready to make trouble."

Blour bit his lip, and said in a low voice, "This is despotism."

"This world is not going to reason with you. For example, to stop this betrothal, the Brewster Family's assassins are already on their way here right now. In order to become an existence like Borg, Elliot would kill anyone who stands in front of him, regardless of the price that he would have to pay." Vincent shook his head.

Blour stared at Vincent in silence before unclenching his fists gradually, and as calmly as possible said, "You didn't catch those young people or send them to Helena."

"Yes. This is so unlike me." Vincent nodded as his gaze landed on the oil lamp at the side. Looking at the flickering candlelight, he softly spoke, "What's wrong with pursuing freedom? Wasn't freedom what we had fought so hard for then..."

***

In a secret chamber of the Brewster Family, five to six elves were sitting together, with Elliot taking the place of honor. The dancing candlelight made his gloomy face look even scarier.

Everyone in the secret chamber had a stern expression. They were all quietly waiting for something.

An elf wearing all black quickly strode in, knelt down, and respectfully reported, "Chief, the assassins have arrived. Should they set off now?"

Elliot smirked coldly. "That old fool, Vincent, doesn't know what's good for him. Don't blame me for being ruthless since he's not willing to cancel the betrothal. Since his son has appeared, then let's kill them. A dead man will not be able to marry our princess."

"Yes," that elf acknowledged, and turned to walk out.

"Chief, a secret missive from High Priestess Helena." Right then, an elf jogged in, and presented a missive with a starry sky seal.

All the elves in the secret chamber looked at the secret missive in Elliot's hands.

"Hmm?" The starry sky magic seal on the envelope was automatically disarmed when Elliot received the missive. A black letter paper fell into Elliot's hands.

Elliot lowered his head to read the letter with an unreadable expression. Finally, he crushed the letter angrily, and turned the letter into dust in his hands.

All the elves stared at one another consciously. They didn't know anything, nor did they dare to ask about anything.

"The plan is canceled. Let's keep him alive for a while longer," Elliot said in a low voice with indignation.

***

"About this Nezha, we have to first talk about the Chaos Pearl that was born out of Heaven and Earth..."

Before Mag could finish the story of Nezha, the two little ones were already fast asleep in his arms. Ugly Duckling was also sleeping soundly, hugging his leg.

Mag smiled with resignation as he got up carefully. He put the two little ones on the bed, covered them with a blanket, and tossed Ugly Duckling in between them. Then, he heaved a breath of relief.

"Come to my room," Irina said at her room's door before she turned around and walked in right away.

Chapter 1424: The Beauty In His Arms

"Huh?"

Mag was taken aback, and he struggled to believe his ears.

A midnight invitation. She must have a script to show me. As a prim and proper gentleman, at this time... Mag looked at himself who had just bathed and changed into a Hawaiian shirt in the mirror. His shirt was only half buttoned up, and his chest pecs and abs could be seen vaguely. His semi-dry hair was sexily messy and that pair of melancholic eyes...

Hmm?

Didn't he say he wanted to be a gentleman?

Why did he change his clothes so naturally as if he was already prepared way in advance?

Mag stood up straight, buttoned up his shirt, and combed his hair. He couldn't help but sigh when he saw his gentleman-looking self in the mirror. He was already so proper, and yet he was still the attractive middle-man that innocent young girls wanted to throw themselves at.

What to do? He simply couldn't control how he looked.

"Oh yes. System, do you have that you-know-what?" Mag suddenly remembered something.

"That thing for seven times in a night?"

"What the heck is that? Do I look like I need something like that?"

"The rumors are all saying you cannot get it up."

"Who is spreading the rumors? Don't they know that they could be charged for spreading fake news?"

"But it's not against the law to speak the truth," the system rebutted.

"Piss off!"

Mag still bought a book on industrial textile skills from the system, and then brought it over the adjacent room.

Mag pushed open the familiar bedroom door. He cleared his throat before walking in.

Irina wasn't in the room, and the showering sounds could be heard in the bathroom at the side.

"Hmm?" Mag raised his eyebrow slightly. A very familiar tempo. Was it going to be forgetting to bring her towel in next?

"You, give me the towel." Indeed, after the sounds of showering stopped, the bathroom room opened slightly, and Irina's voice could be heard.

"Alright." Mag picked up the towel at the side and walked toward the bathroom. He couldn't help ranting in his heart, Oh please, girl. You're a 10th-tier great magic caster. You simply have to cast a drying spell. You don't need a towel.

Of course, Mag would never voice it out. After all, girls were usually shy. They wanted something to happen, but they didn't want to show too much initiative, so they would do something that seemed rather silly.

Mag placed the towel in front of the door's gap, and was about to say something like: why don't we wash together...

The towel disappeared, and the bathroom door was tightly shut again. The hand that he had expected to reach out and pull him in didn't appear.

"Hmm?" Mag touched his nose awkwardly. It seemed like it was him who had overthought.

Very soon, Irina walked out of the bathroom in a night dress. She waved her hand, and her wet hair was dry instantly. She faced Mag who was sitting on a chair next to the bed, and said, "I have already sent out the message, but I'm not sure how many elves are going to answer the call."

"Helena is setting a plot against you and me with the power of the entire race. Their power in all the domains must be weak now. We won't ever get another chance like this. The Night Elves in the Wind Forest must know that as well as we do," Mag said casually. "Helena wants to give us a surprise. I hope we're giving her an even bigger surprise."

Irina went to sit down on the bed, and then leaned against the headboard lazily. She looked at Mag with her blue eyes, and smilingly said, "Your bed is hijacked by the two little ones. So, where are you planning to sleep tonight?"

"Come to think about it, this is actually my bed. When do you intend to return half of it to me?" Mag asked Irina smilingly.

Irina blushed a little under Mag's stare. She snorted. "The bed is mine. You will sleep on the floor."

This is so unreasonable... Mag lamented in his heart. But what to do. He couldn't win in a fight with her, and even if he could win, would he ever dare to lay a hand on her?

Hence, he could only lay the mattress that he kept earlier back on the floor again, and lay on it obediently.

With floor heating and a thick mattress, sleeping on the floor wasn't terrible at all. However, there was a weird feeling psychologically.

"So, good night then," Mag mumbled, and turned off the light gently.

"Mm-hm," Irina answered.

It was all quiet in the room. The moonlight came in through the semi-closed curtains.

Mag closed his eyes and tried to relax, but his heart was beating so rapidly that he simply couldn't go to sleep.

This was their first time sleeping together in the same room. Even though they were not lying on the same bed, they could hear the rhythm of each other's breathing.

This was a very special feeling.

He knew she wasn't asleep, because he could sense her breathing getting quicker too.

Irina tilted her head to look at Mag with displeasure on her face. She was secretly annoyed. This block of wood. Is he really going to sleep on the floor?

Mag started to hypnotize himself. She is only pitying me who doesn't have a place to sleep, so she's letting me sleep on the floor here. Quick, go to sleep now...

Just as Mag was getting drowsy and about to fall asleep, he heard some rustling, and then a soft and warm body was tucked into his. A faint fragrance began to tickle his nose too.

"Hmm?" Mag was stunned before he realized she had snuggled under his blanket and into his arms.

At this time, there were usually two choices.

Push the other party away, and then tell her gravely that he isn't a loose person. You cannot treat me like this.Hold the other party, and then let things take their natural course. Then, make her take the responsibility.

As an adult, of course Mag hugged her naturally. The soft yet voluptuous body seemed to be made of water.

"Do you think we would die?" Irina asked softly.

Mag's hand paused, and he was silent for a moment before he whispered in her ear, "Yes, but not right now."

Irina's lips curled upwards as she revealed a dazzling smile. She leaned on the sturdy chest comfortably. "It's so warm."

"Because this heart is still blazing hot for you." Mag pulled his arms close together, slowly hugging her tighter.

All his messy thoughts disappeared at that very moment. He just wanted to hug her quietly and tightly as if everything was perfect.

"Mushy," Irina said with a slight disdain. She pressed her blushing cheeks against his warm chest, and listened to that strong beating heart. She couldn't hide the smile on her face.

***

It really only costs 998 for one box...

A row of rice-grain sized words slowly floated across Mag's mind...

Chapter 1425: Am I No Longer Your Precious Little Baby?

Beautiful things were happening every day. Just like the big and small elves lying in his arms when he woke up.

His life seemed to be complete at that moment~

Hey? Something's not quite right?

Stunned, Mag lowered his head to look at Amy, who was suddenly in his other arm, staring at him with her bright blue eyes.

"Father, you're really too much. How could you sneak over here and hug Mother to sleep but dump me aside? Am I no longer your precious little baby?" Amy said with an aggrieved expression.

"How could that ever happen..." Mag was rather embarrassed. He didn't expect he would get caught right on the spot.

"Tell me, is this little cutie who spends your money, lives in your house, and snuggles with you more important or am I?" Irina, who was also awake, asked Mag smilingly.

"Only children choose. To me, you're both as important." Mag chuckled as he hugged Amy and Irina in his arms.

"Humph, I don't care. Little Amy is not happy, and needs to be appeased with lots of good food." Amy snorted.

"Alright, alright. Father is wrong. Father is getting up now to make nice food for Little Amy. Tell me, what do you want to eat? Father will make it all for you." Mag got up with a laugh as he tidied his crumpled clothes.

"I want to eat..." Amy considered for a serious moment before saying, "Youtiao, soybean milk, beggar's chicken, and... durian pizza!"

"Alright. Father will go make them for you right now." Mag rubbed Amy's hair with a chuckle, and then lovingly said to Irina, "Then, I will go make breakfast for you."

"I also want nice food," Irina said to Mag in a firm tone, but there was a hint of coyly cuteness in her expression. This was different from her usual queenly presence.

"Alright. I'll make them all for you." Mag nodded with a smile and walked out of the room.

He saw Anna coming out from the next room bare-footed with Ugly Duckling in her arms as soon he reached the door. She asked Mag in a perplexed tone of voice, "Uncle Mag, did you see Amy?"

"Amy is in the room. She's hungry, so she came to wake me up to make her breakfast." Mag smiled.

"Oh, I see." Anna nodded with relief. She took a look at the room, and then curiously asked, "Did Uncle Mag sleep in this room last night? So, where did Princess Irina sleep then?"

"Huh...?" A hint of panic flashed across Mag's eyes. The question that this little girl asked was tough. "I didn't sleep in the room, actually. I slept in the study. Amy went to wake Princess Irina."

"Oh. You two went over together, right?" Anna nodded with a thoughtful expression.

"Does Anna want to eat anything for breakfast?" Mag smilingly asked as he bent over, picked up the little shoes at the threshold, and put them on for Anna.

"I... I'll have whatever they're having. Everything that Uncle Mag makes is super delicious." Anna smiled sweetly.

"Little one, you must have eaten honey since your mouth is so sweet." Mag rubbed Anna's hair smilingly before he went downstairs.

Anna followed after Mag with Ugly Duckling in her arms. She softly asked, "Uncle Mag, can I ask you a question?"

"Hmm?" Mag halted his steps at the kitchen's entrance and turned to look at Anna.

"Do you know why Big Brother Blour left?" Anna looked at Mag perplexedly. Princess Irina was already in the restaurant, so why did he still leave?

"Anna, adults will sometimes have a busy period. He will return after he finishes his matters," Mag consoled her.

From the information that he received from the Gray Temple, Blour should be preparing his marriage to Sally. The circumstances of this political matrimonial alliance for the two families had completely changed from the time that it had been agreed upon.

However, when the Brewster Family decided to revoke the betrothal contact, Sally—who could already be called the new elf princess—chose to carry on with it, and announced the betrothal publicly at the conferring ceremony.

If someone said the two of them shared an undying love, Mag would never believe that.

It was most likely to protect the Baibilly Family and Blour that Sally chose to continue this betrothal.

It was still a political betrothal, but it had veered off from the two families' original goals.

Mag didn't know how to explain all these things to Anna, and since Blour chose to conceal it, he had no reasons to reveal it.

"Mm-hm." Anna's gaze darkened as she nodded slightly.

"Amy said she wanted to eat durian pizza earlier. Does Anna want to try the durian before it is made into a pizza?" Mag asked.

"The durian before it is baked?" Anna's eyes lit up with curiosity.

"Yes. Durian is actually a fruit. You can eat it without baking." Mag nodded and walked into the kitchen.

Anna placed Ugly Duckling on the floor, and then went into the kitchen. She was really curious what the durian looked like and how it tasted before it was made into a delicious pizza.

Ugly Duckling approached them, and shook its tail at Mag. Its little mistress wasn't around, so this was a great opportunity to ask for a little more. Otherwise, it would be punished and forced to run again.

Mag took out a small durian from the fridge, and the durian's aroma dissipated in the kitchen instantly.

"Meow!" Ugly Duckling's fur bristled right away, and it dashed out of the kitchen immediately. It glared at the durian in Mag's hands with a horrified look. What the heck was this smell?!

"It smells so good." Anna's eyes brightened up instead as she stared at the durian that looked like a porcupine in Mag's hands.

Mag placed the durian on the workbench, split it open at a crack, and revealed a row of durian flesh. The supple flesh looked very enticing, and the durian's aroma in the air had also gotten richer. Mag got a small plate and took out a piece of durian flesh. He gave Anna the plate of durian along with a small spoon and smiled. "There you are."

"Thank you, Uncle Mag." Anna received the plate and dug out a piece of the durian flesh with the spoon. She could feel its smooth texture before she put it into her mouth.

The chilled durian flesh had the same smooth texture as ice cream, and its unique sweetness was displayed perfectly in the pure fruit flesh.

It was as if a naughty child was bouncing around in her mouth and then releasing an astonishing scrumptiousness.

A blissful smile appeared on Anna's face. The durian before it became part of a pizza was equally amazing.

"Smells fantastic." Amy suddenly appeared downstairs and skipped into the kitchen. Her gaze landed on the durian in Anna's hands. She scrambled forward and pouted coyly. "Big Sister Anna, can you please let me have a bite? Just a small bite will do."

Chapter 1426: Leaving Their Name In History

After the sumptuous breakfast, Mag sent Amy and Anna to the ice cream shop, and asked Miya to look after them for one day before returning to the restaurant.

"Are we ready to leave now?" Irina asked Mag.

"Yes. Let me go upstairs to change first." Mag nodded, and went upstairs to change into the full set of his gear, including the face mask.

"Let's go." Irina grabbed Mag's hand, and the two of them disappeared from the restaurant after a beam of green light flashed under their feet.

***

An elf strode into the Starry Cave, and spoke respectfully to Helena on the platform, "High Priestess, the spell formation is already set up. As long as Irina and Alex dare to come, we will definitely capture or kill them."

"Don't be complacent. The Wind Forest has already been the butt of a joke once. I don't want the same thing to ever happen again," Helena said coldly.

"Yes!" That elf tensed up, and then retreated out of the cave with his body bowed.

Helena looked at the biggest star that was flickering in the starry sky, and quietly murmured, "Your Majesty, I do not have a choice. For the elves' future, I have to do that. All those people who tried to destroy what we built deserve to die..."

In the Wind Forest, the aristocrats were wearing their fineries and going to Life Square in their opulent carriages.

Today was the conferring ceremony for the new elven princess. The ceremony would be held in front of Life Square, and Sally would receive the blessing and recognition from the Tree of Life.

After Princess Irina was deposed, the Wind Forest no longer had a princess. Hence, this was a very important matter to the Wind Forest. Almost all the elves knew about this, but only the nobles were allowed to attend the conferring ceremony. The servants and slaves had to continue working in the house, while the ordinary elves were kept out of the ceremony's area as they weren't allowed to watch it.

However, even though the ordinary elves had no rights to watch the conferring ceremony of the elven princess, they were allowed to watch the 100-odd elves sentenced to death for treason up close. The execution platform was set up beyond the restricted area.

Those elves who were deemed traitors were locked in metal cages, and their limbs were chained up with heavy metal chains. There were dozens of wounds on their bodies left by the interrogating and whipping.

But there wasn't any fear on the elves' faces and in their eyes. They were just like silent rocks that were trapped in the metal cages as they looked at their people with a resolute gaze.

Those elves beyond the cages were also looking at their people in them. Looking at the black metal railings, they couldn't differentiate if they were in the cages or beyond the cages in a moment of confusion.

"Mother, why are they locked up in the cages? Are they the bad guys?" a little boy asked softly, tugging on his mother's clothes.

That young elf shook his head, and softly said, "No. It's because they're seeking their freedom."

"Freedom? What's that?" that young boy asked curiously.

"Shhh." The young mother covered the boy's mouth and looked around her nervously. After making sure that no elves around had noticed them, only then she whispered, "That's something we don't say out loud."

"Oh." The little boy nodded as if he understood. Although he didn't know why his mother was so nervous, that had to be a terrifying thing, and that was why those elves were locked up.

The grand ceremony was under preparation, and the new princess was going to take her place. But there wasn't any happy ambiance in the Wind Forest. Instead, there was a hint of tension.

The elves who were the guards had already nocked their arrows as they looked at the ordinary elves watching the prisoners nervously.

The entire forest was full of hidden tension.

"The order has been confirmed. Sally will formally announce your betrothal with her at the conferring ceremony today. This means that you will very likely become the queen's consort in the future and enjoy a high status in the Wind Forest." In an opulent carriage, Vincent was talking to Blour, who was wearing luxurious clothes and sitting across from him.

"At the same time, hundreds of Night Elves are going to die." Blour lifted a corner of the curtain and looked out. The ordinary elves were already kept out of the square. He said with a sad and sarcastic expression, "When I was small, I once heard Grandmother said countless elves died here in their attempt to guard the Tree of Life, and then Life Square was built. I wonder if the descendants of those elves who gave up their lives for the eventual victory were blocked and not allowed to enter the square."

As if he hadn't heard Blour's words, Vincent continued, "The Baibilly Family is going to gain a special status because of you. We will also receive the princess's protection. In this case..."

"You know very well what I may do." Blour let down the curtain and looked straight into Vincent's eyes.

Vincent remained silent for a moment before he looked into Blour's eyes and revealed a miserable smile. "Are you trying to write the Baibilly Family's name into the history of elves with another method?"

***

"Miss Sally, Lord Elliot is out there. He said he wanted to see you. What do you think about it?" an elf respectfully asked Sally, who was grooming herself in front of the mirror, as she walked into a luxurious palace.

Sally looked at her reflection in the mirror, and coldly said, "I don't want to see him."

That elf opened her mouth and then quickly closed it again. She acknowledged and then turned to walk out. She bowed to Elliot at the door, and said, "Lord Elliot, Miss Sally is getting ready now, and it's not convenient for her to see you. If you need to talk to her, please do so after the conferring ceremony."

"This fellow..." Green veins were throbbing on Elliot's forehead. He didn't expect Sally would dare to lock him out. Looking at the doors of the new princess' palace and the elven warriors standing in front of them, Elliot forcefully suppressed his anger, and nonchalantly said, "I see. She's indeed very busy now. Then, I shall see her after the conferring ceremony."

"Chief, Young Mistress has refused to see you, so what will we do now?" the elf following after Elliot asked softly with a nervous look.

"I'm afraid we cannot do anything today. But I've heard that Vincent's youngest son has been very weak since he was young. Hence, it wouldn't be a surprise if he suddenly dies of an illness in the future, right?" Elliot smirked.

"Not a surprise at all!" That elf's eyes glowed and he nodded.

***

"I can teleport myself to the Tree of Life directly, and I will leave the rest out there to you," Irina said to Mag as the griffin landed at the periphery of the Wind Forest. A green teleportation portal appeared underneath her feet.

"Alright." Mag nodded and watched Irina leave. He patted the griffin's neck lightly. "Ah Zi, the rest will depend on us."

Chapter 1427: All Of You Are Free Now!

"Comrades, I received a secret missive from the princess last night. The chance that we've been waiting for while lying low has finally arrived. Those aristocrats have brought their best soldiers with them while they locked their servants and slaves in the dungeons. We're going to burst into the dungeons, rescue our brothers and sisters who are locked up, and liberate this land!"

In a dark cellar, an elf spoke with agitation in his voice as he looked at all the young faces in front of him.

"Liberate the land, liberate the slaves!" All the elves acknowledged him quietly with an equally agitated expression as they grasped their weapons and magic staffs.

"The conferring ceremony is about to begin, and it's time for us to act. The princess and our brothers who are captured will try to buy us time, but all that is going to happen in the domains will have to depend on us." That elf drew out his sword gradually, and said in a low voice, "For Freedom!"

"For Freedom." All the elves stood up with their weapons raised up high, and followed that leader elf out of the cellar to begin their operation.

Similar events were taking place all over the domains in the Wind Forest. Those elves who had regained their faith in freedom began to gather as they answered the Night Elves' call. They then picked up their weapons, and broke into the heavily guarded dungeons as they commenced their operation to liberate the slaves.

There were the low-caste elves among them, and also the noble elves who were deeply inspired and the elves who were guarding the domains.

The elven guards were either captured or killed. There were even many of them who chose to join the other side after learning about their agenda.

The chains in the dungeon were smashed open, and the slaves and servants locked in there were liberated. The heavy chains on their limbs were broken.

"All of you are free now!" the Night Elves shouted at those elves who were still in a daze.

"Freedom!" A gleam flashed through the eyes of those dejected elves. As if they had begun to make sense of something, their expression slowly became excited too.

"Now, we're going to leave here, leave the Wind Forest and go southward to Chaos City. Princess Irina has already set up a base there, and we will lead a free life there," the leading Night Elf said as he brought all the slaves and other elves out of the dungeon. They brought along all the ordinary elves and the elven guards who chose to join them willingly as they broke into the nobles' stables housing horses and magic beasts. They then made their dash toward the south on the backs of those mounts.

Those elven guards who tried to resist were either killed or locked in the dungeons.

Black smoke began to rise up everywhere in the Wind Forest. That was the distress signal from all the nobles' domains, and it looked as if a razing fire was now burning everywhere in the Wind Forest.

"Seems like the infiltration was very successful. What a spectacular scene." Mag sat on Ah Zi's back and looked down on the Wind Forest, which was set ablaze, with a smile on his face.

The Night Elves' performance had far exceeded his expectations. He had flown by a few elven domains earlier, and there wasn't any need for him to interfere at all.

Because the Night Elves had already rescued the slaves successfully. They broke into the nobles' stables, and brought the slaves on their long expedition.

Their good execution and the empathy of the ordinary elves made this operation much smoother than anticipated.

On the other hand, the conferring ceremony had formally begun at Life Square right now.

The aristocratic elves in their opulent clothes were standing in the square according to their status. The leaders of the eight major families stood in the forefront, and Elliot was standing right in their center.

Everyone knew clearly that the Brewster Family would be the most noble family in the Wind Forest from today onward.

Vincent was standing in a corner. The Baibilly Family was also the focus of the conferring ceremony today. However, the gazes of the elves didn't stop at Vincent for long. They all landed on Blour next to him.

Blour, who was wearing an aqua-blue robe today, looked even more outstanding with his aloof and handsome looks. Even among the elves who were generally very good-looking, he still stood out among the crowd. This made many noble maidens' eyes widen as they glanced at him secretly.

Nobody had expected that this third young master of the Baibilly Family who had a bad reputation was in fact very handsome. Moreover, he had a 7th-tier power just like Miss Sally, so he was also very gifted.

Those elves who had initially thought that the Baibilly Family had attempted to punch above their weight started to reassess the situation again. Could it be that our Princess Sally really likes this Master Blour?

Blour stood there with an aloof expression, but he couldn't hide the panic in the depths of his eyes. He, too, had received a letter that came from Chaos City last night.

It was a very bold operation, but it matched Princess Irina's character to a T.

His comrades among the Night Elves should be already making their move right now. After the elite forces were assigned to guard the conferring ceremony, all families' internal defenses were very weak. This operation might really succeed.

Once the operation to free the slaves succeeded, it would definitely be an operation that cut the ground from under the elves' feet.

A huge change would take place in the current structure. The lowliest base that was exploited would be completely removed, so how would the nobles react after they lost their slaves? This was definitely a tough problem for the rulers.

He couldn't do anything right now. The entire Baibilly Family would lose their lives if his identity was exposed.

However, a hint of coldness and sneer flashed across Blour's eyes as he watched those elven aristocrats laughing, joking, and showing off their extravagant clothes, servants, and slaves. All these things were going to disappear. He hoped these people wouldn't suffer too badly after they fell from their pedestals.

Dong...

A low chime of the bell rang, and Life Square gradually quieted down.

There was a flash on the platform in front of the Tree of Life before Helena appeared on it. She looked down on the aristocrats below, and declared in a calm voice, "Today, I will be hosting the conferring ceremony of the princess on behalf of Her Majesty The Queen. We will be officially conferring Sally as the new elven princess."

A white jade carriage pulled by nine pure white unicorns stopped in front of the square. Sally, who was wearing an opulent silver long dress, emerged from it. Her gaze swept across the elves present and landed on Blour. She retrieved her gaze shortly after, walked down the white jade steps slowly, and proceeded to the platform gracefully.

"No wonder she is the elf chosen by the high priestess. Princess Sally's grace is just like the queen's!"

"We, the elves, finally have our very princess again. This is such great news!"

The elves were looking at Sally with ill-concealed fervor in their expressions.

Helena was also watching Sally with a relieved smile. The regret of her inability to control Irina would become history. She would groom Sally into the queen that she envisioned, and ensure the elves had a stronger future.

Chapter 1428: Are You Worthy Of It?

The music sounded, and the elves' fervent gazes were locked on Sally, who was walking up the platform slowly.

They were witnessing the making of elven history right now. The elven princess was about to take her place, and she might even be the new queen in the future.

However, most of the elves had forgotten that this music had once sounded over the Wind Forest, and was known as the Sound of Freedom.

The Tree of Life's hundreds of thousands of branches were swaying downward gently as if they were reminiscing about the past.

An excited gleam was flickering in Elliot's eyes. Every step that Sally took meant one step up in the status of the Brewster Family. Among the eight major families, the Brewsters' status was going to be really different from the rest when Sally became the elf princess.

Vincent looked at Blour with a complicated expression. He was feeling a little guilty.

Sally finally made it to the platform. She stood at the same height as Helena as she looked down with a calm expression. She wasn't ecstatic about her imminent promotion to the elven princess. It was as if all this had nothing to do with her.

Helena was looking at Sally with satisfaction. Even though Sally's power and talent were not as good as Irina's, her presence and attitude had already far exceeded her peers'. This was also the reason that she had chosen her.

She didn't have much time left, but it was enough for her to groom Sally into the elves' real queen.

As for Elliot? A hint of derision flashed through Helena's eyes. Nobody could control the elven queen. She couldn't, and neither could this idiot Elliot. However, his and the Brewster Family's presence would allow Sally to control all the families more easily.

Helena raised her arms, and all the elves quieted down instantly. Only then she spoke. "Her Majesty The Queen is still in her seclusion, but we couldn't leave the post of the elven princess hanging like this. Hence, today I shall host the conferring ceremony on Her Majesty's behalf, and declare Sally as the new elven princess under the witness of the Tree of Life!"

All the elves were staring at Sally with an intense gaze. Irina had insolently tried to overthrow the elves' system and bring them to the ground.

Now, they were going to have a new princess who would lead them to extend their glory and let them continue to enjoy their high status.

Helena's gaze swept across the elves' faces as she said in a cold warning tone, "After the princess takes her position, she'll give the order to hang all the traitors who tried to overthrow the Wind Forest to show our determination to defend the ruling authority and warn those bewitchers that those who resist meaninglessly will only be killed, and not bring any changes."

Pity flashed across some of the elves' eyes, while others evaded Helena's gaze in a panic, but the majority of them had fanaticism and joy in their eyes.

Everyone would know that the Night Elves who threw themselves into the dark were going to die today, but they hadn't expected that the order would be given by Sally.

Helena's gaze stopped on Blour.

Blour, too, didn't evade her gaze. He was looking back at Helena calmly, without any pity or joy, as if he had no reaction to Helena's words.

A hint of astonishment flashed across Helena's eyes. She had investigated all the young people in the elven tribe. She didn't notice much about this third young master from the Baibilly Family who didn't have a good reputation. She only found out more about him after Sally requested to continue with her betrothal. Looking at him now, he was better than what the reports said.

If he is obedient enough, he would be a good choice to be the male elf behind the queen. None of the youngsters in the elf race is good enough for Sally now. Helena pondered.

Sally's fingers moved when she heard Helena's words. Although she remained calm on the exterior, it was obvious that her inner self wasn't calm at all.

"The transfer of power is usually bloody. If you want to gain the respect and support of those elves down there, you have to show them enough will and guts for them to stand on your side," Helena said to Sally in a voice that only the two of them could hear.

Sally looked at her and said nothing.

Helena didn't care in the least. She raised her right hand, and a beam of silver light slowly converged in her palm. A silver crown emerged on her palm, giving off glowing silver beams.

The music stopped suddenly, and the square fell into silence instantly too. The elves looked up at that silver crown with an increasingly respectful gaze.

The queen wore the golden crown, while the silver crown belonged to the princess.

Wearing the silver crown would mean that Sally was the new elven princess, and had a noble status that was just below the queen.

"Sally, come forward," Helena said to Sally.

Sally looked at that hovering silver crown, and hesitated for a brief moment. Eventually, she still slowly moved in front of Helena.

"Sally, are you willing to become the princess of the elves, and protect the Wind Forest and all our people?" Helena asked loudly, looking into Sally's eyes.

Her voice reverberated throughout the interior and exterior of Life Square. Even those elves watching at the periphery could hear her clearly.

All the elves held their breaths as they watched Sally, waiting for the historical moment to come.

Sally looked at Helena and hesitated for some time before her gaze became resolute, and she nodded gravely. "I am willing to protect the Wind Forest and all our people."

Her voice, too, reverberated throughout the Wind Forest, and she specially emphasized the last three words.

"Very good. Then, I shall declare you the princess of the elves on behalf of the queen. You will take important responsibility to protect the elven race." Helena nodded slightly as she placed the silver crown on Sally's slightly lowered head with a solemn expression.

The silver crown was glistening under the sunlight.

Sally—standing on the platform in a long silvery dress—suddenly gained some noble queenly presence. In a trance, all the elves seemed to have seen the image of Irina.

"Princess Sally!"

"Your Highness, Princess Sally!"

The elves in the square were kneeling as they paid their respects to Sally. Next, cheers erupted everywhere.

They had just witnessed an historical moment. They finally had a new princess after Irina deserted the Wind Forest. A princess who would stand with them.

Most of the elves had a relieved smile on their faces. It was very much in line with their expected development. Many years down in the future, they and their descendents would continue to rule this forest and enjoy a high status.

Helena raised her hand, and the square slowly quieted down again. The elves slowly stood up, and looked at the Tree of Life with a fervent gaze.

Every elven princess would receive the blessing and protection from the holy Tree of Life and an enhancement of strength.

"The great Tree of Life, your sincere believer and servant prays for your testimony. Please acknowledge Sally's identity and become her guardian tree." Helena knelt in front of the Tree of Life and prayed sincerely.

"Are you worthy of it?"

A sarcastic voice appeared above the Tree of Life.

Chapter 1429: God Of Life, Please Grant Me The Strength

"Irina!"

The square was plunged into a silence instantly. All the elves looked at Irina, who suddenly appeared in the crown of the Tree of Life, with disbelief on their faces, and then paled immediately.

Sally looked up with surprise, but she soon went white as she recalled all the traps that Helena had already prepared in advance. She began to tense up.

The princess has indeed come... Blour looked at Irina, who was wearing white as usual, with a smile on his lips.

This was the Princess Irina that he knew. Even when the whole world knew this was a setup for her, she would still come as long as she believed in it.

She couldn't sit back and watch the Night Elves being executed publicly, so she had appeared here.

Although it looked unreasonable, it was, in fact, very reasonable.

"Instead of living on in a silent degradation, isn't it better to leave our names in history?" Blour whispered with his head tilted to one side.

Vincent's pupils suddenly constricted, and his body tensed up uncontrollably. He looked at Blour's profile, and then at Irina at the crown of the tree. He was silent for a moment before he suddenly smiled. "Very good."

Blour turned his head to look at Vincent, and gravely said, "Father."

"Mm-hmm." Vincent only gave an acknowledgement in a low voice.

"Damned Irina, you have come to destroy our affairs again." Elliot watched Irina with his teeth tightly clenched. He waved his hand, and a few elves next to him quickly strode off.

The elves in the square were looking at Irina with fear and disgust, but there was a glow in many young elves' eyes. There was even a hint of fervor in them.

Irina, who was standing on the top of the tree, swept her gaze across Helena kneeling on the ground and those in the elves. She sarcastically said, "You dare call yourselves the God of Life's sincere believers? Did the God of Life give you a revelation to enslave your own people or take the lives of your own people at will?"

Irina's words reverberated clearly throughout the Life Square and beyond it, reaching the ears of those elves who were barred from the square and those Night Elves held in the metal cages.

Many elves lowered their heads in shame as they avoided Irina's gaze.

There were also many elves who were staring at Irina as if she was a troublemaker who was trying to overthrow everything that they had.

"Princess Irina... has actually come?" The elves who were kept from entering the square were now looking at the top of the Tree of Life with shock. Although her identity as the princess was removed, and she was even labeled as a traitor, in most elves' eyes, Irina still had an irreplaceable position.

Moreover, the Night Elves' declaration of freedom had indeed spread through the Wind Forest rapidly recently. Even though most of the elves were still keeping their distance from it, after hearing Irina's words, they began to look at those elves locked in the cages with pity and sympathy.

"The princess is here!" The Night Elves who were locked in the metal cages finally had a change in their demeanor. They suddenly had a light in their eyes as they all looked toward the Tree of Life.

They had not been deserted. Even when it was extremely dangerous, the princess had still come.

Irina, this former princess, had appeared at the conferring ceremony of the new princess. Hence, how was this conferring ceremony going to proceed? This had become an issue that all the elves were very concerned about.

"Irina, you really came." Helena got up slowly and looked up at Irina. There wasn't any surprise in her gaze, but her expression was unusually cold.

"The whole world knew I was coming. Wouldn't I have disappointed this world if I hadn't appeared?" Irina gave a dazzling smile to Helena.

"Then you should know very well what is going to happen to you when you've come here." Helena raised her hands, and complicated spell formations began to light up with the Tree of Life as their center. They formed many barriers that engulfed Irina and the Tree of Life within them.

The 10th-tier experts from the eight major families appeared at the boundary of spell formation with their weapons and magic caster's staffs, and they were all looking at Irina nervously.

Even more advanced elven magic casters began to appear at the spell formations' boundary with their magic caster's staffs, and aimed at Irina at the top of the Tree of Life with equally tense expressions.

The elven race had put up all their race's power to deal with Irina. Such a battle array had never appeared in the elven race before, apart from the previous instance of the underground cavern's siege.

All the elves looking at this scene were astonished by High Priestess Helena's arrangement.

Could this conferring ceremony have been an ambush aimed at Irina right from the start?

Meanwhile, among the elves that were present, those young elves who were influenced by the idea of freedom began to tense up. They were interacting with their gazes in the midst of the chaos, attempting to do something.

Irina was looking at Helena with a relaxed expression and a sneer as she said, "Helena, you're really feeling very confident in yourself. You have activated the entire race's power to deal with me. Then, isn't it a huge loss to the elves if you get rid of me? Aren't you afraid the elven race will be shamed by your actions?"

Many elves lowered their magic caster's staffs instinctively after they heard Irina's words. There was a hint of shame in their address.

Those 10th-tier elves who were already very established also had shifty gazes. They had already lost all their face in the battle at the underground cavern. If the news of today's ambush got out, they, the elven powerhouses, would be utterly disgraced on the continent.

"Moreover, how could you all be so confident that you can kill me?" Irina lifted her magic caster's staff up with a smile, and the Tree of Life suddenly glowed brightly with green light. The branches that hung down gently began to slowly rise up, and then swirled around Irina's feet like a green vortex. Green beams of light began to twirl around Irina as if they were adding on a green armor for her. They even formed a green crown on top of her head.

"Princess Irina!"

"Princess Irina is the real princess that is recognized by the God of Life!"

"Only freedom is the elves' faith and the revelation of the God of Life!"

The Night Elves in the cages shouted loudly with ferocity in their eyes.

"My people, cages and shackles couldn't stop us from pursuing freedom. The God of Life blessed us with the abilities and talent to get close to nature. He gave us the Life Force to bring warmth to the world. I hope you all can find the real faith of Life and understand what freedom really is," Irina said with a solemn expression before raising up her magic caster's staff, and chanted, "God of Life, please grant me the strength to cleanse all the darkness and shackles, and let all your people regain freedom!"

Chapter 1430: F Key To Load The Tank

A huge amount of vitality gushed out from the Tree of Life, and was injected into Irina's body. At the same time, it spread out everywhere.

The spell formation barriers that were engulfing the Tree of Life began to vibrate vigorously before they were burst open. They looked so vulnerable in front of the massive vitality.

Irina's magic caster's staff was emitting a bright green light, and she looked just like a fairy who was standing upright at the canopy of the tree. A terrifying power was consolidating within the magic caster's staff.

All the elves began to get nervous as they watched this scene. The Tree of Life was obviously still on Irina's side, and the tremendous Life Force proved that the God of Life still favored her. This made all the elves a little hesitant if they should act against her.

Helena looked at the layers of spell formations that were burst open, and coldly shouted, "Irina betrayed the elves and colluded with the other species in an attempt to overthrow the Wind Forest. As the high priestess, I order you all to kill her on the spot!"

"But, High Priestess, the holy Tree of Life is right under Irina. If we launch an attack together, we might harm the holy tree," an elf reminded.

All the elves started to look toward Helena. This was what everyone was wary about. The holy Tree of Life was the symbol of the elves and the only conduit connecting the elves to the God of Life. If the holy Tree of Life was affected in the battle, no one would be able to undertake that responsibility.

Helena looked at Irina, and coldly said, "How could you all be able to harm the holy Tree of Life? Irina has confused the holy Tree of Life and the God of Life. We shall kill her today so we can return peace and harmony to the Wind Forest. That is what we, as the God of Life's believers, should do."

All the 10th-tier elven magic casters were the first to raise up their magic caster's staffs and chant spells. All kinds of colorful light began to converge on the magic caster's staffs as they aimed at Irina.

Although the other elves still looked a little hesitant, they still raised up their magic caster's staffs and bows, and aimed at Irina after they heard Helena's words.

The elves in the square broke into a commotion. Irina, who had suddenly appeared, disrupted this conferring ceremony, and the elves couldn't wait to escape from the impending battle.

Even a small shock wave from a battle of the 10th-tier powerhouses could seriously injure them. Hence, many of the elves were running in the opposite direction in an attempt to get out of the epicenter of the battlefield.

But, there were also many elves who were looking at Irina with a complex expression. The elves had directed a lot of expectations and emotions to her during all her years as the elven princess. They all believed that she would one day take over from the queen, and continue to protect the Wind Forest.

However, no one had expected that she would stand on the opposite side, and become the so-called leader of the rebels.

The sudden appearance of the Night Elves and the flag of freedom had ripped the elven race apart like a sharp knife. It wasn't just the elves from the base and the slaves—many among the nobles also began to have serious reservations, and even joined the Night Elves secretly.

Therefore, when almost everyone was retreating, some chose to stay and even go against the flow.

"Protect the holy Tree of Life!"

"You cannot harm the holy Tree of Life!"

Many ordinary elves who were blocked at the periphery of the square began to try to attack the cordon and push against those soldiers who prevented their advancement. If freedom was the faith that many elves had forgotten, then the God of Life and the holy Tree of Life were the elves' inviolable faith.

Sally stepped forward, and shouted at Helena and all the powerhouses, "The holy Tree of Life only has a tremendous Life Force, and doesn't have the slightest defensive ability. We had paid a terrible price in the past to protect the holy Tree of Life. If we attack the holy Tree of Life with all of our race's might, wouldn't we be destroying the holy tree and cutting off our connection with the God of Life ourselves? The elven race would lose our faith and our guardian god forever. High Priestess, everyone, please tread lightly!"

"This..." All the elven powerhouses halted their movements when they heard that.

No elves could withstand losing the protection of the God of Life, and that was something they were not willing to do.

Furthermore, Sally who was about to be conferred as the new elven princess said that, so the words carried even more weight.

Helena looked at Sally with a meaningful gaze.

Sally's eyes didn't evade her at all, and she looked at her with a worried look.

"Helena, release all the Night Elves. I will bring them away and I will not pursue today's matter. If you insist on fighting me to the death, I wonder if you, the high priestess, will be able to withstand the aftermath causing the elves to lose the protection of the God of Life? And how are you going to explain it to Her Majesty when she comes out of seclusion?" Irina said to Helena in a cold voice.

"I've never been threatened," Helena answered coldly.

"It's the smoke beacon!"

"There are smoke beacons everywhere!"

"Could this be a foreign invasion!?"

Right at that moment, the elves in the square finally discovered the black smoke that was rising up from every part of the Wind Forest. As they were so close together, the entire forest looked like it was on fire, and all the elves were plunged into panic.

Blour looked at the thick smoke and lowered his magic caster's staff gradually. A hint of elation flashed across his eyes. The princess didn't disappoint them at all. It seemed like he didn't need to interfere today.

The elves who were retreating stopped, and watched that scene with astonishment. As if they were reminded of something, excitement was flashing in their eyes.

An elf in black robes appeared next to Helena, and whispered rapidly into her ear. Helena's expression darkened instantly.

The worst had still happened. She used the whole race's might to attack Irina and Alex, who she had anticipated would appear too. In the end, she still ended up falling for Irina's plot.

Irina looked at all the smoke beacons that appeared everywhere with a smile, and declared, "The elves never had slaves. The queen has ordered to abolish the slave system and give freedom back to all the elves herself, but you all have completely ignored the queen's order, and continued to enslave our people after she went into seclusion. Today, I am going to release all the slaves and give them their freedom back. If anyone dares stop me, that will be blatant disobedience."

The nobles present all paled. Nobody was willing to take on the accusation of blatant disobedience. However, they were all worried about their domains right now. They were all used to being served. If they were to lose all their slaves and servants... they were not willing to withstand that, either.

"Kill her and then catch and hang all those fellows who attempted to overthrow order and resist!" Helena ordered in a cold voice, and then raised the crystal ball in her hands over her head. The Starry Sky Domain instantaneously engulfed Irina and the Tree of Life. Day turned into night and stars crowded the sky.

***

"F key to load the tank."

Meanwhile, Mag was driving the mobile restaurant that had transformed into a giant tank, and was trying to crush a troop of elven soldiers who were pursuing a group of slaves.

Chapter 1431: That Man Had Finally Come!

Able to change its form at will was one of the mobile restaurant's iconic capabilities. This was also the first time Mag had tried to transform it into a tank form. He didn't expect it would move so well in this mountainous terrain.

Moreover, the metal giant that appeared suddenly also gave the pursuing elven troops a shock.

After making sure that this giant that had a metal gleam was here to stop them, the elven troops attacked the tank.

However, apart from creating some sparks on the tank's surface with magic and arrows, they didn't even leave a scratch on it.

"This armor is so fearsome!" the elven leader exclaimed.

All the elves stared at the metal giant beast that was rolling toward them in terror. Helplessness and fear took over them, and they scattered away with no intention to pursue any longer.

"These elves' psychological diathesis is worse than I expected," Mag mumbled as he looked at those escaping elves from the control room.

"Host! You are recklessly wasting god's good gift! You're thrashing this system's great invention!" The system's angry voice appeared in Mag's mind.

"System, your tank is just an empty shell, right? It doesn't even have a button to launch a projectile round, isn't it a little low-class?" Mag said disdainfully, and began searching through the control panel as he ignored the system's anger.

"No matter what form the mobile restaurant transformed into, it can function normally. The main cannon of this tank has a firing range of 150 km. The accuracy within 100 km is 100%!" the system declared proudly. "However, the Host does not have the permission to activate the main cannon. Hence, the firing button is concealed."

"Hoho. You don't have to bluff me. Don't tell me that it's concealed. If it is really so formidable, I will pay for 10 rounds myself to try if it really is as accurate as you said," Mag said with disbelief.

"Host, please do not doubt a meticulous system!

"Ding! 10 rounds of projectiles are delivered!

"Ding! 1,000,000 copper coins are deducted!"

Mag looked at the red button that rose up on the control panel and curled his lips slightly. However, he still said with a disdainful expression, "Ha, then I will see if it is indeed that interesting."

Mag drove the tank up a slope rapidly, and pointed the five, six meters long main cannon toward the Tree of Life. Following the closeup of the telescope, he could see all the elven powerhouses that were surrounding the Tree of Life.

Hundreds of elves surrounded the Tree of Life, and all kinds of spell formations and magical screens had engulfed the Tree of Life and Irina. It was obvious that they were bullying her with numbers, and all the people who were not involved in the battle had evacuated.

"They're really very despicable. Then, I will try the cannon on you then." Mag aimed the cannon at Helena, and then pressed the firing button.

Boom...

A loud bang and a huge recoil made the tank shake backward violently. A fireball exploded at the cannon's opening, and the projectile flew toward Helena at a speed that couldn't be traced by human eyes.

"Krassu?" Helena, who was holding up the crystal ball and preparing to launch the Starry Sky Domain at Irina, suddenly turned around. Her pupils constricted when she saw a red fireball fly over at a high speed. She raised her hands to set a few defensive barriers in front of her.

Boom!

As soon as the barriers were formed, that fireball immediately arrived and crashed into them. The rotating spiral tip had actually pierced three barriers before exploding.

A gigantic fireball rose up into the air. The huge power from the explosion crashed onto the Starry Sky Domain from the outside, and caused the stable Starry Sky Domain to shake violently. Signs of instability began to appear.

Meanwhile, the aftershocks of the explosion rushed outward, and sent those elves who weren't prepared for them at all flying back. It almost cleared all the elves in that area.

Before those elves could react, another two fireballs exploded next to the elves, and they fell from the sky like dumplings dropping into a boiling pot. The ambush formation was instantly disbanded.

Right then, a holy light tore through the dark night and lit up the Tree of Life again. The tremendous Life Force transformed into Irina's power, and shot out at the surrounding elves. The elves who were unprepared for it were seriously injured.

Mag retrieved his gaze from the messy battlefield, and focused at the elven troops which had begun to scatter everywhere. They should be under orders to suppress and arrest the resisting lowly elves.

Therefore, he turned the cannon around, aimed at the clusters that had larger numbers of soldiers, and pressed the firing button.

"How is it? Isn't the power and accuracy of the tank produced by this system very powerful?" the system said smugly.

"It's only so-so. There's nothing fun about it," Mag said calmly before keeping the mobile restaurant away and whistled. Ah Zi descended from the sky.

Mag leaped onto Ah Zi's back, pressed the Tian Du sword at his waist, and patted Ah Zi's back gently. "Ah Zi, it's time for us to show our faces. Remember to strike a handsome pose."

"Howl..."

Ah Zi tilted its head back and let out a howl that reverberated throughout the entire Wind Forest. All the magic beasts in the forest went mute, and the entire forest was plunged into a choking silence.

Terror appeared in all the elves' eyes when they heard that roar. This was a griffin's roar, and the only griffin that would appear in the Wind Forest now would have to be Alex's purple-striped griffin.

That man had finally come!

After the earlier round of firing, the combat power of the elves in Life Square had basically been eliminated by Mag. The elven healers were trying their best to save the injured.

The purple-striped griffin's gigantic wings glided across the sky of the Wind Forest, and those elves who were pursuing the escaped slaves instinctively halted in their footsteps. Meanwhile, those elves who were still continuing in their deadly pursuit were torn to shreds by the purple-striped griffin.

One human, one sword, and one griffin.

They were hovering above the elves in the sky, and the troops dared not continue their pursuit. It had the imposing manner of "one man can hold the pass against 10,000 enemies".

On the other hand, with Mag breaking off the standoff and bringing great support to the Tree of Life, Irina managed to hold up Helena and the elves, and got them stuck.

The elven slaves were freed from the cellars, and then they followed those elves who craved freedom in their dash to the south.

The nobles' handsome steeds and magic beasts became their transportation, and war broke out in the Wind Forest completely. A massive escape from the Wind Forest was happening in every single piece of land right now.

At the periphery of Life Square, the metal cages that held the Night Elves were smashed open, and young elves overpowered the guards. They carried those tortured Night Elves on their backs and quickly escaped.

There were also some noble elves who brought their families and joined the caravan southward in the midst of the chaos.

"A single spark has already started a prairie fire," Mag lamented softly as he watched the scene.

Chapter 1432: Thank You For Waiting

Irina borrowed the strength from the Tree of Life, and drew in all the elven powerhouses that were surrounding her.

And because they were afraid to hurt the holy Tree of Life, all the elves restrained themselves when they attacked. Even though Helena had ordered them to give it their all, nobody wanted to be responsible for the aftermath of destroying the holy tree.

That person would definitely become the sinner of the elves, and no one knew what punishment he would face after the queen came out of her seclusion.

The Night Elves rescued from the cages had successfully escaped with the help from the other elves. They rode horses and magic beasts, and joined the south-moving caravan.

This was an uprising on a massive scale that almost blazed through the whole Wind Forest. There were even many noble elves taking part in the action, providing cover and helping the lowly elves to escape.

And those private soldiers who attempted to pursue the elves stopped after Mag struck down the nobles leading them.

Who was that?

That was Alex!

Nobody had the courage to face him without a 10th-tier magic caster leading them.

The escaping elves began to converge, and their numbers had already exceeded 10,000. Under the arrangements of the Night Elves' core members, they began to get into a formation. The elves who had no combat abilities were protected in the center, with elites leading the way in the front and covering their backs. They were no longer in a disarray.

Although these lowly elves were mostly not too powerful, there were still plenty of 5th-tier and 6th-tier magic casters and archers among them. When there was a big number of them, the minor nobles who came with their soldiers had to stay away from them.

After making sure that all the elves who left willingly had joined the caravan, Mag hovered above them on the purple-striped griffin's back and escorted them out of the Wind Forest toward the goblins' territory in the south.

Yesterday, Irina wrote a letter to the goblins' chief, asking for permission to go through their territory. Although she didn't receive a reply, judging from their previous situation when they borrowed the underground cavern, passing through their territory shouldn't be a problem.

As long the Night Elves entered the goblins' territory, they were basically safe.

The relationship between the goblins and the elves was not harmonious. Their friendliness toward the Night Elves was based on the idea of "the enemy of my enemy is my friend".

However, the goblins would never allow the pursuing troops from the Wind Forest to enter their lands.

"We've got to move faster." Mag looked at the sky above the Tree of Life that was dyed with all kinds of colors by magic with a severe expression. Although there was the reinforcement from the Tree of Life, he could still imagine the intense battle that Irina was experiencing right now.

After stopping three troops of elven soldiers from getting close, and making sure that the elven leader could lead all the elves out of the Wind Forest, Mag turned around on Ah Zi's back, and rushed to the Tree of Life.

The intense sounds of explosions got increasingly loud and clear. Life Square had already been turned into a ruin with rubble and craters everywhere, and many high-ranking elves were moaning on the ground.

And right at the center of that combat zone, Irina was standing just above the Tree of Life, holding her magic caster's staff. Holy Light erupted every time she swung it. It collided with countless crashing spells before exploding amid dazzling sparks.

The Tree of Life was emitting a dazzling green light as it formed an orb-shaped green barrier around Irina, and repelled most of the magical attacks, giving her a powerful protection.

However, the light of the green barrier was getting weaker rapidly, as if it was going to burst open any time.

Once the barrier broke, those countless magical attacks would land on Irina, and this battle would be over too.

Helena had already received the latest situation report. The slaves' riots occurred very suddenly, and they almost took place simultaneously. This was completely beyond her expectations.

Furthermore, Alex's obstruction had caused them to lose the chance to rectify the situation. Currently, the Wind Forest was in total chaos, so there was no way she could personally lead a troop into the goblins' territory to pursue those traitors.

"Irina, I was right about you. Compared to the other youngsters, your tactics and methods are already more mature than Her Majesty The Queen's then." Helena looked at Irina with regret in her eyes. She had once pinned high hopes on her, and even now she didn't announce the fact that she had a child with Alex.

"If the queen wants to blame someone, then let her blame me. In order to protect this forest from invasions happening ever again, I will have to kill you today," Helena said with a cold expression. She reached into the crystal ball in front of her, and slowly retrieved a pure black magic caster's staff.

Her presence instantly became as deep as the starry sky. The Starry Sky Domain that was torn apart by Holy Light began to consolidate again, and the stars started to light up and move across the sky.

Looking at Irina's fragile barrier, the eyes of the elves taking part in the combined attack lit up. Their efforts were indeed still effective.

"Helena has indeed concealed her power. Princess Irina may not be able to hold on any longer." Vincent at the periphery of the battlefield watched Helena draw out her black magic caster's staff, and then looked at Irina's barrier that was about to crumble. He grabbed Blour who was about to rush forward by his arm, and stuffed an amulet into his hands. He looked into his eyes, and said in a low voice, "Our people should be already in the caravan moving southward. I don't expect you to make them rich and prosperous, but I hope you can lead them to a life of freedom. Leave this to me. Go now."

"Father." Blour stared at the chief's amulet in his hands, and then looked up at Vincent as his eyes became red immediately.

"Let me be the one to leave our name in history." Vincent pushed Blour hard, and then retrieved the silver longsword at his waist. He leaped onto a white eagle that dove down, and then dashed toward Elliot, who was the closest to him. He was a rare 9th-tier knight in the elf race.

And at the periphery of the battlefield, dozens of elves that were hiding rushed toward the center of the battlefield, nocking their arrows and lighting up their magic caster's staffs as they attacked those elves that were attacking Irina.

Bam!

Right then, the barrier that the Tree of Life provided for Irina finally shattered after withstanding countless magical attacks.

"Thank you for waiting."

Right at that moment, a low voice exploded next to all the elves' ears as a purple lightning flew over from the sky afar, and dove straight into the Starry Sky Domain, aiming at Helena. It appeared in front of her in an instant.

The Tian Du sword was unsheathed, and the razor-sharp blade tore open the pitch-black Starry Sky Domain before swinging downward at Helena, who was raising her magic caster's staff above her head.

The purple-striped griffin also revealed its sharp claws and swiped at Helena.

An obvious hint of panic flashed across Helena's eyes. It was very dangerous for a magic caster to let a close combat knight get close to her. Numerous one-time magical barriers appeared around her, and the magic caster's staff that was pointing at Irina was retrieved, and then pointed at Mag as she shouted, "Falling Stars!"

Chapter 1433: Father

The longsword landed on the magical screens, and dazzling sparks rained down as if it was striking against multilayered metal sheets. The layers of magical screens were disappearing at a visible speed, which made the attack look rather unstoppable.

The purple-striped griffin's golden claws were also grabbing hard at the magical screens, accelerating the annihilation of the magical screens.

Although it looked like a hot knife cutting through butter, nobody knew that Mag's hand that was grasping his sword was already trembling underneath his robe.

He only had a 9th-tier power now. Even though hacking 10th-tier magical screens had sparks flying all over, only he knew the pain within.

Hence, when there were only three thin but toughest layers of the screens left, he suddenly stopped and pressed gently on Ah Zi's back, and made it glide across Helena from the side.

Almost at the same time, three silver meteors crashed down on the spot where the griffin was at previously, leaving three big craters on the ground.

Meanwhile, after the purple-striped griffin avoided Helena, it dashed toward a 10th-tier elven magic caster who was consolidating his power nearby. It sent him flying with him watching it coming right at him with his terrified gaze. Even when he had set three, four magical screens in that very instant, he was still sent flying hundreds of meters backward. He was completely buried after he crashed into a big patch of trees.

The purple-striped griffin transformed into a purple lightning, and dashed amongst the elven magic casters like a wolf in a herd of sheep. With the purple-striped griffin's immense speed and power and Mag's talking down, they had completely disrupted the combined attack's formation.

The elves who were good at magical attacks panicked at entering close combat.

They couldn't even manage to protect themselves, so they could no longer attack Irina effectively.

"Vincent, are you going to betray the elven race with your whole family?" Elliot took a few steps back and smirked at Vincent, who was holding his longsword, with elation in his eyes.

"Princess Irina is right. The elven race doesn't need any power or ranks. What we truly need is to return to our true nature and freedom. Without them, elves would be no longer elves." Vincent grabbed his sword with both hands as his sharp gaze became fixed on Elliot. "I think what you all are doing now isn't right, so I am leading the Baibilly Family back onto the right path. This is not a betrayal. This is a correction."

"Ha. Since you chose to stand on Irina's side, that means you have declared the demise of the Baibilly Family. In this case, the betrothal between Sally and Blour naturally no longer stands." Elliot pointed his magic caster's staff at Vincent and smirked. "Then you shall die along with your family!"

The space was frozen immediately, and the Ice Burst Magic killed that white eagle instantly. Vincent landed on the ice lightly. He tapped on the ice lightly as he evaded the countless icicles and exploding ice orbs. He swung his sword to slash open the ice wall in front of him, and then closed up on Elliot rapidly.

Similar melees were taking place on the battlefield everywhere at the same time. Those elves that chose to support Irina attacked those elves ambushing her without any regard for their own safety. They were relentless even when they were not strong enough.

Blour grasped the amulet, and retreated with red eyes.

"Go." Sally suddenly appeared beside him. She grabbed his wrist and pulled him into the forest at the side.

"The princess will definitely find her way out of here. You have to leave right now. Otherwise, you won't be able to escape after the princess and Alex leave," Sally said to Blour. "A battle of this scale is already beyond our control. However, today will definitely be written into the history books of the elves."

Blour calmed down gradually, and said to Sally, "What about you? Are you coming with us?"

Sally shook her head. "I am going to stay. Although the slaves were liberated, there are still a lot of problems with the elven race. I'm still useful to Helena, so maybe I could still make some changes for the elves."

"Take care." After casting a final glance at Sally, Blour turned to leave.

"Oh, yes. Say hi to Boss and Amy for me. I rather miss the taste of the rainbow fried rice," Sally said softly.

"Alright." Blour didn't turn around, and swiftly disappeared in the forest.

Sally looked at the direction in which Blour had disappeared, and softly murmured to herself. "Perhaps... we can only meet again after a very long time."

She looked at Alex dashing in and out of the elven crowd on the griffin's back seven times. Would the one meant for her eventually appear? Or maybe all she wanted was a warm man who could cook?

Even though the battlefield was in a mess, Helena still had the upper hand. She quickly gained control of the civil unrest, and stabilized the situation with her advantage in manpower.

"Go now, Princess!" an aged elf shouted at Irina while he was pierced through the heart by many arrows instantly. He collapsed to the floor with his eyes wide open.

Similar scenes were happening everywhere on the battlefield. They weren't strong, but as they were determined to buy time for Irina to escape, they were prepared to sacrifice their lives heroically.

Mag chopped off an arm of a 10th-tier great magic caster with a swipe of his sword. He turned to look at those dead elves who sacrificed themselves heroically yet silently with a solemn expression. He looked at Irina, who was trying to assist those elves from the crown of the Tree of Life again. He turned the griffin around and flew toward her.

"Let's go!" Mag shouted as the griffin flew close to the Tree of Life.

Irina hesitated for a brief moment before leaping onto the griffin's back.

"We should go now." Mag looked at those elves who were surrounded again with a sunken heart. Darkness had descended again, and the starry sky magic was getting stronger.

"Mm-hm," Irina answered with a sorrowful expression.

"Ah Zi, let's dash out of here," Mag said as he grasped his longsword with both hands and slashed it forward. A tear was ripped in the black screen.

"Ow..." Ah Zi let out a long howl before spreading its wings, and dashing out from the tear.

Mag flicked a glance backward, and he saw an elven knight chop off Elliot's arm. He was also pounced on, bombed, and buried by magic almost at the same time.

He had read about this knight from the elves' information. Vincent, the patriarch of the Baibilly Family, a timid and overcautious elf, and Blour's father.

The purple-striped griffin burst out from the gap in the Starry Sky Domain, and swiftly flew southward.

The Wind Forest, with the smoke beacons burning all over, seemed to have just gone through a calamity. There were burned and damaged buildings everywhere.

"Change is never a simple matter." Mag tilted his head and softly consoled Irina, who was silent.

"Mm-hmm," Irina answered softly. She then hugged Mag gently from the back, and burrowed her face in his back.

Chapter 1434: I Have Something That I Wanted To Say To You For A Long Time

At the border of the goblins' territory and the Wind Forest, tens of thousands of goblin soldiers were lined up in front of the grand canyon.

A goblin general looked at the elves that were dashing over toward the canyon from afar. He narrowed his eyes before raising his hand, and said, "Remove the barricade and let them pass."

The giant rock that was placed across the canyon was shifted, and a smooth path was revealed.

The Night Elves who were right at the front had been already instructed by Irina. They led the caravan into the canyon, and went through it rapidly.

The caravan of almost 20,000 elves completely entered the canyon soon. The goblin soldiers swiftly sealed the canyon, and faced the direction of the Wind Forest alert and combat-ready.

A purple-striped griffin glided by above the canyon, and followed the elves southward.

"Boss, the person sitting on that purple griffin must be Alex, right?"

"Besides him, who has another purple-striped griffin? Who could make Princess Irina hug him?"

"Hey? Boss, you sounded a little jealous."

"Piss off!"

The elder goblin slapped the younger goblin's hand away, and retrieved his envious gaze. He grasped his longbow tightly and stared at the elves hovering on the other side of the border. The atmosphere at the border became rather tense.

However, this standoff didn't continue for too long. After 30 minutes, the elves seemed to have received the order to retreat. Although they looked very indignant, they still quickly left the border.

***

After making sure that the Wind Forest didn't choose to continue the pursuit, Mag heaved a breath of relief. Looking at the elves below, he commented, "I wonder if Chaos City will take in so many Night Elves? Once they do, it will mean completely breaking off with the Wind Forest."

"This is Michael and Rolan's issue. If they're not willing to take them in, then I will find a place outside Chaos City to be the Night Elves' base temporarily. With these 20,000 elves, the Night Elves already have enough confidence to survive in this world," Irina said calmly. She wasn't worried at all.

"That's fine too." Mag nodded. The elves' field survival skills were incredible. As long as they stayed away from the Wind Forest and avoided going head-on with the main elven military force, their survival wouldn't be a problem at all.

"You will return to cook lunch for Little Amy and Anna first. I will follow them southward to prevent any trouble," Irina told Mag.

After some pondering, Mag nodded. "That's a good idea. Then I will leave Ah Zi to you."

The purple-striped griffin stopped at a nearby mountain's peak. Mag leaped off the griffin's back and watched Irina go away before summoning the mobile restaurant. He boarded the mobile restaurant that was in the flight mode, and clicked open the automatic return mode before he closed his eyes to rest.

20,000 elves was a big number, and it obviously wasn't practical to recruit all of them into the factory. He had to seriously consider how to make arrangements for them so that the Chaos City's residents wouldn't be annoyed, and the elves wouldn't feel aggrieved, either.

***

"Where did Boss go?" A maiden with cat ears was looking very hard into the restaurant through the French windows, cupping her face with her hands. However, she couldn't see inside the restaurant through the usually transparent window at all, and nobody was answering the doorbell.

"What are you doing? a voice said behind her.

"Woah..."

Connie got a shock. She turned around, pressed herself against the window and looked at Mag, who suddenly appeared, with a terrified expression. "Why did you suddenly appear, Boss?"

"I've already been here for quite some time. It's you who was too engrossed." Mag shrugged and helplessly looked at Connie, who had changed into a long cotton dress and was wearing a mask. "Isn't today an off day? Did you lose your sense of time together with your sense of direction too?"

"No, I knew today is the day off." Connie removed her mask and blushed. She swiftly shook her head as she looked at Mag with a hesitant look. After checking that nobody was around, she went up to Mag, and whispered, "There's something I want to tell you. Can we go somewhere alone for a while?"

"Hm?" Mag looked meaningfully at Connie who was blushing very hard. Was this lass really going to confess her love?

Although she was a cute cat-eared maiden, and her body was soft and easy to overcome, he was a married man, and was not in the least interested in little girls.

"Come on in," Mag said as he opened the restaurant's door.

Connie quickly caught up with him, and closed and locked the restaurant's door.

"Hmm?" Mag glanced at the locked door and then at Connie, whose embarrassed expression slowly evolved into a weird smile, and her shy gaze began to glow with enthusiasm. He had a bad feeling about this.

"Come on," Mag said, crossing his arms.

"Come? Where are we going?" Connie was stunned as she looked at Mag perplexedly.

"Ahem." Mag also realized that there was something wrong with his expression. Furthermore, didn't this lass want to...

He cleared his throat. "Did you want to tell me something?"

"Yes, I do have something to tell you." Connie's eyes lit up as she looked at Mag with glowing eyes and slowly got closer to him. "Boss, I have something that I wanted to say to you for a long time, but I never got a chance to. Today, I have to tell you..."

"You... try to talk in a proper manner. There's no need to get so close. I can't even see your face." Mag was already forced into a corner unknowingly. He looked down at Connie, who hadn't even reached his shoulders. Because she was so close to him, he could only see her pinkish-white cat ears.

Because Mag's breath was too hot, that pair of pinkish-white cat ears twitched and then blushed.

"Can't see me? Am I that short?" Connie was a little angered as she jumped up and placed both her legs and hands against the wall. She was now half a head taller than Mag, so she smugly said, "What about now?"

"I can see you now. Say it." Mag looked at Connie who suddenly trapped him against the wall using a cicada block, and nodded with an exasperated smile. This maiden's train of thoughts was indeed rather different.

However, this was such an intimate position. Could this maiden be thinking about...

Connie stared at Mag for a long as her face became redder and redder. Her limbs began to tremble after holding on for a long time. A drop of cold sweat slid down her forehead, and then landed on Mag's shoe.

Mag was getting tired as he stood pressed to the wall, so he consoled her, "It's alright, just relax. There's a first time for everything. Just say it bravely."

She was just a little girl, so he should be more considerate. He even placed his love letter in the wrong drawer when he confessed his love for the first time in the past. In the end, he was called a jerk for a whole year by the little fat girl who sat next to his love interest.

┓( ́∀' )┏

Life was always so unexpected.

"I-I forgot what I was supposed to say..." Connie's arms lost her grip, and she fell off.

Chapter 1435: Ding! 'Good Person Card' +1!

Mag quickly reached out to catch Connie, who then held onto his arm. He resignedly said, "Alright, don't hang on me like a monkey. You're not going to die even if you fall from this height."

"Even if I won't die, it's still going to hurt," Connie said confidently after getting off Mag.

"Alright, alright. You have your reasons." Mag didn't want to argue with this maiden. After all, this wasn't the first time that she had forgotten her lines. He asked Connie, "Why don't you sit down and wait for lunch, and then you think about it properly?"

"That's a good idea." Connie nodded before she went to find a chair. She sat down and began to ponder seriously.

Mag looked at Connie, feeling rather exasperated. He flicked a glance at the clock, and it was already 11am. It was time to prepare lunch.

He had already showered on the way back, so he simply went upstairs to change into his chef's suit before he went back to the kitchen.

"I remember, Boss!" Connie suddenly dashed to the kitchen's entrance and blocked Mag. Then, she raised up her right arm, and said, "Look at my hand."

Mag peered at Connie's right hand. Although her fair and chubby fingers were a little short, it still looked rather cute. He nodded. "The fingers are a little short, but it's alright. It shouldn't deter you from eating."

"No. It's this." Connie suddenly clenched her fist, and three razor-sharp white claws sprung out from her knuckles like daggers. They were about 20 cm long each.

"Wolverine?" An idea instantly popped up in Mag's brain.

Compared to Wolverine's black blades, Connie's white claws looked much gentler. In fact, they looked more like a cat's claws. However, the blades pointing downward were still very sharp.

Connie waved her claws, and smugly said, "Isn't this very cool?"

"Yes, this is quite cool." Mag nodded. This seemed like a new talent that Connie had just discovered.

However, she behaved so secretively by locking the door and trapping him against the wall. Did she do all that just to show off her little claws?

"Actually, what I want to say is, I am going to leave now." Connie retrieved her claws. Her expression became sullen as her voice lowered.

"Leave?" Mag was a little stunned.

"Where are you going?" he asked Connie, who was looking down.

"Actually, I've never told you all the truth. I came from the orcs' Falk Tribe. I'm the daughter of the Falk Tribe's chief. My uncle, Gary, started a rebellion. He killed my father and mother, captured my big brother, and took over the Falk Tribe. I am the only one who got out," Connie said to Mag apologetically. "I heard Gary is going to kill my brother eight days later and proclaim himself the new chief. I have to go back to save my brother."

Mag had already known about all this, including the fact that Gary was a powerful 10th-tier orc. He looked at Connie with a frown. "Can you even do it?"

"I am very formidable now. I could sneak into the 18th level of Bastie Prison without getting caught." Connie nodded.

"No. I'm just worried that you would get lost at home." Mag sighed.

"But I grew up there..." Connie glared, but she didn't look very confident. "Although I did get lost occasionally, that was rather rare."

"If you are going to rescue your brother, are you going alone, or is your master going with you?" Mag continued to ask.

"Of course I am going alone. Master said I have to do this alone. He is an outsider, so it's not appropriate for him to get involved," Connie replied as matter of fact. However, there was a hint of helplessness in her expression, and her shoulders stooped down unconsciously.

Mag placed his hand on Connie's shoulder with a smile, and said, "I think we should discuss this matter with everybody. You're a part of our restaurant, so I believe everyone would be willing to help you."

"But..." Connie looked up.

"But today is an off day, so let's discuss this when everybody is here tomorrow. Your opponent isn't one single bad guy, it is a group of bad guys instead. If you choose to fight alone, we might not even be able to get your body back." Mag shook his head, interrupting Connie's words.

"Boss..." Connie looked at Mag, who had a warm smile on his face, and movingly said, "You really are a good man."

"Ding! 'Good Person Card' +1!" The system's voice sounded in Mag's mind.

Mag pulled his lips, feeling a slight toothache.

"Then, let's agree on this. I am going to cook lunch, and you will go to the ice cream shop to ask them to come back for lunch." Mag went into the kitchen. He had been thinking about how to handle Connie and the Falk Tribe's matter lately. He had come up with many plans, but he hadn't decided which one to use yet.

However, Connie's intention to return to the Falk Tribe to rescue her big brother had given him some new inspirations.

"Alright," Connie answered, and walked toward the door.

Mag poked his head out to remind, "Turn left after you walk out of the door. You will get into the prison if you turn right and climb over the wall. So, don't turn right out of habit."

Connie, who was about to turn right after she walked out of the door, quickly halted. She touched her ears, and then awkwardly turned left.

Shortly after, Amy and Miya came to the restaurant.

Amy dumped Ugly Duckling onto a chair nearby, and searched through the restaurant before curiously asking Mag, "Father, where is Big Sister Irina?"

"Her? She might have gone out. We will have lunch without her first." Mag smiled. It would at least take two days to travel from the Wind Forest to Chaos City, even if they were riding unicorns. Irina had to escort the Night Elves southward, so she definitely wouldn't be back today.

"Oh." Amy was a little disappointed, but she still went to wash hands obediently, and then sat at the table.

"Boss, the ice cream shop's menu hasn't been refreshed for a while now. Could we add some other things in? Something like a dessert?" Miya asked Mag when they were eating lunch.

"About this..." Mag pondered. He really didn't have a dessert that he could add to the menu. However, he still hadn't utilized a 100% chance to win a top-tier recipe at the wheel yet, and he had no idea what he would get out of that. Hence, he could only shake his head. "Currently, I don't have any great ideas for desserts yet. Let me think about it first."

"Alright." Yabemiya nodded, and didn't pursue the matter.

After lunch, Amy and Anna followed Miya to the ice cream shop again as there were many children they could play with. So, Mag was left in the restaurant alone.

"Alright. Let me see what top-tier recipe I will get from this wheel." Mag closed the restaurant's door and sat down on a chair. He went into the wheel's interface in his mind, and looked at the one chance indicated there. He used his thoughts to push hard on the wheel.

The wheel began to spin, and the words on it gradually got clearer and clearer: Sichuan Mapo Tofu, West Lake Fish in Vinegar Gravy, Feilong Chicken Soup, Wuwei Smoked Duck, Dongpo Pork, Steamed Multiple Preserved Hams, Sichuan Style Spicy Chicken, Dong'an Chicken, Steamed Wuchang Fish...

Chapter 1436: A Classic Of The Sichuan Cuisine

"Ding! Congratulations, Host, for drawing a classic of the Sichuan cuisine—sliced beef and ox tongue in chili sauce!"

The wheel slowly stopped, and the system's voice sounded at the same time.

"No. System, didn't you say it is a top-tier recipe? Could this sliced beef and ox tongue in chili sauce be considered as a top tier recipe?" Mag cocked an eyebrow. Although he didn't mean any disrespect for the dish, compared to 'Buddha jumps over the wall', this didn't seem to be par with it?

"Host, the cruelty level of this Sichuan cuisine classic 'sliced beef and ox tongue in chili sauce'[1] is only second to 'wife cake'[2]. It has an extremely high and unique status in Sichuan cuisine, and an authentic great 'sliced beef and ox tongue in chili sauce' is second to none..."

"Did you use real husband and wife?" Mag asked.

"..." System.

"Sliced beef and ox tongue in chili sauce," Mag murmured softly when he opened his eyes. He wasn't really disappointed. The restaurant didn't have marinated dishes yet, and he could also show the chowhounds in this world the depth of Chinese cuisine.

However, whether this dish would trigger some bad associations, that would be beyond his control.

Mag looked up at his watch. It was still early, so he decided to do some reading upstairs. The mystery of the Great Old One still engulfed this world, so he needed to seek more inspirations from the Cthulhu Mythos.

Ding.

Right then, the bell at the door rang.

"Hm? Don't the customers know that today is an off day?" Mag raised his eyebrow. Out of courtesy, he still went to the door. He looked out through the peephole, and then opened the door in astonishment—Gloria was standing at the door. He asked, "What are you doing here, Miss Gloria?"

Gloria presented a golden invite to Mag with both her hands and smiled. "Mr. Mag, I've specially come to give you the invitation. It's the Chamber of Commerce's year-end celebration the day after tomorrow. As one of the board members, I can invite some friends to join me. I hope you and everyone in the restaurant could come for the event."

Mag received the invitation. He was so busy recently that he had forgotten all about that. Gloria had said before that she would like to invite him to join her, so naturally he couldn't reject her now. He nodded. "Sure. If there's nothing happening on that day, we will definitely go."

"I look forward to your and everyone's coming." Gloria smiled before she bid her farewell and left.

"Miss Gloria is a commercial genius. However, I wonder how she is doing with the Board now?" Mag mumbled as he watched Gloria go away. However, he didn't think too much about that, because he didn't have the extra energy to help her now.

***

"Young Mistress, the Dodges should be already plotting with Marquises, and they will be standing on Cyril's side at the year-end celebration. They will vote to remove your seat on the board of directors." Mars was sitting across Gloria with a black notebook. He continued, "We need to go see board members Thomson and Cassis in the afternoon. Our chances would be better if they chose to stand on your side."

"Alright." Gloria nodded before pondering. "However, I need to make a trip to Teacher Luna's in the afternoon. I've promised to supply the second batch of winter wear, and I need to confirm the children's garment sizes. I heard there was an increase in the number of children."

"We should be able to meet all of them." Mars nodded as he looked at Gloria. The business talent and growth rate that Young Mistress had displayed had amazed him, but it was most gratifying that she didn't lose her kindness.

Gloria was silent for a while before she suddenly asked, "Mars, do you think we will fail?"

"No matter from which point of view, you're already very successful. Even if you couldn't continue to be the Chamber of Commerce's board member and the heir of the Moreton Family, you and the Blue Suede Fashion that you founded would still become a great company. It could even surpass the Moreton Family's current achievements in the future." Mars smiled.

"Really?" Gloria looked at Mars with astonishment.

"The premise is that you have to maintain your current passion and serious attitude towards your career." Mars nodded.

"I think I will." A confident smile appeared on Gloria's face.

Mars also smiled at Gloria. His father had assisted Master Jeffree in the past. Now, he might be on the same path.

***

In a luxurious private room, the dim light shone on the faces of men and women drinking and fooling around.

Cyril was hugging a blonde girl as he raised his wine and gestured to everyone. "For our friendships. Cheers."

"Cheers!"

Everyone raised their glasses.

"Young Master Cyril, you will be the Moretons' only heir after Gloria is kicked out at the year-end celebration. You will be the patriarch of the Moretons and the president of the Chamber of Commerce. We will all have to depend on you in the future," a rotund middle-aged man said with a smile.

Everyone else in the private area was also trying to butter him up.

All the praises got to Cyril's head and he nodded. "Alright, alright. As long as we succeed two days later, I, Cyril, won't forget you all."

Ha. You are still too young to fight with me, Gloria. I will chase your whole family out after I become the chief of the clan. You guys are nothing without the Moreton Family's protection. Cyril smirked in his heart as he drank his wine and hugged the woman in his arms. He seemed to have seen the scene where Gloria was deposed in the year-end celebration three days later.

***

Night had fallen, and Mag was telling Amy and Anna a bedtime story. After the two little ones were asleep, he switched off the lights and snuck out of the room. He was going to catch up on his reading.

"You have another woman's scent on you." A cold voice came behind Mag just as he closed the door softly.

"Woah!" Mag got a fright. He turned around, and saw Irina sniffing all over his body. There was a hint of danger in her beautiful eyes.

Mag was amazed with Irina's nose's sensitivity. He took out that invitation proactively, and explained, "Miss Gloria came by and gave me an invitation this afternoon. She was inviting me to take part in the Chamber of Commerce's year-end celebration on the day after tomorrow."

"You didn't join that Chamber of Commerce, so why is she inviting you?" Irina glanced at that invite. The woman's scent had come from that.

"Perhaps because I am her chief designer and business partner. As a board member of the Chamber of Commerce, she's entitled to invite some friends along."

"Ha. Maybe that's because she has no friends." Irina chuckled.

"Erm..." Mag actually didn't know how to refute that. He kept the invite, and asked, "Have the Night Elves arrived at Chaos City already?"

"No. I found a place for them to rest first. Because of the huge numbers, they will most probably arrive on the day after tomorrow." Irina shook her head before seriously saying to Mag, "I'm starved. You, go make me some scrumptious food."

"Alright. What do you want to eat? Tell me." Mag nodded smilingly and walked toward the staircase.

"I will have a beggar's chicken first. I saw many wild chickens on the road today," Irina said without thinking.

"What a poor chicken." Mag raised his eyebrow as he observed a minute of silence for the chicken that took the wild chickens' place.

[1] Transliteration: husband and wife lung slice.

[2] A traditional Cantonese pastry with a thin crust of flaky pastry, made with a filling of winter melon, almond paste, and sesame, and spiced with five spice powder.

Chapter 1437: We Could Conquer the Wind Forest Within 10 Days

One beggar's chicken, one spicy grilled fish, and one 6-inch pizza.

Mag sat across Irina, and watched her munch on a chicken thigh gracefully. He smiled. "I want to buy the land next to the factory, and then build similar factories there to form a big industrial area that could accommodate 20,000 elves. Then, we will build a few more different factories. What do you think about that?"

"If we could let them settle down and earn their living through working at a dignified job, this is quite a good idea," Irina said after a moment of pondering.

"Then, I will go take a look at the land tomorrow." Mag nodded. Most of these elven slaves were not powerful, and neither were they good at fighting. Hence, it was obviously impractical to ask them to put on armor and fight against the Wind Forest. They couldn't even be considered as cannon fodder on the battlefield.

"It's fine. I will go to the city lord's castle directly. I am very wealthy now." Irina shook the space magic bracelet on her wrist. "I was bored on my journey yesterday, so I went back to clear two of their gold vaults. This is overstuffed now, so I gotta make some space for it."

"You turned back?" Mag was amazed with his wife's skills and guts. He simply wondered who was that unlucky lord. Not only did all his slaves escape, he lost his gold too.

"That's good too. I will gradually finalize specific projects in the next few days. Let's make sure they have a place to stay first." Mag agreed on the second thought. People were going to be suspicious if he got too deeply involved.

Furthermore, the most important aspect of this matter was whether the city lord's castle would agree to it. After all, the number of elves was huge this time round.

Irina went upstairs to wash up after dinner, and she quickly fell asleep as she was exhausted.

Mag went to read in the study before returning to his room, and lay on his bed.

He intended to master the sliced beef and ox tongue in chili sauce tonight. He clicked open the shiny experience bag, and all the experiences of making sliced beef and ox tongue in chili sauce went straight into his mind, and were rapidly absorbed and digested by him.

About 10 minutes later, Mag pushed open the door of the test field for the God of Cookery.

***

"Royal Father."

At the top of the tower, Sean, who was in his military gear, bowed as he greeted Andre, standing at the window.

"You have just returned from the northwestern border, so have you heard about the elves?" Andre asked as he turned around to Sean. His gaze was still fixed on his dusty armor.

Sean nodded. "I have already heard about it on my way back to the palace. There's a civil strife in the Wind Forest, and the slaves have rebelled. They are already travelling southward under Irina's protection."

"What do you think about this matter?"

"The elves' constitution must be greatly undermined by this event. What's even more important is that they're no longer united. Irina has a unique status among the elves, and she has fallen out with Helena publicly while gaining the support of many lowly elves. After this battle, she already has the capital to go head-on with the Wind Forest," Sean said to Andre in a low voice. "Your son believes the elves no longer have the capability to be Roth Empire's ally. Maybe we could invade the Wind Forest with our cavalry during their civil strife now, and then rule over the elves."

"Oh?" A hint of surprise appeared in Andre's eyes.

"Royal Father, please forgive your son's recklessness." Sean panicked as he realized he had made a wrong comment.

"It's fine." Andre lifted his hand, and instead smilingly asked, "How many troops does the Roth Empire need to send to take over the Wind Forest if we are going to invade the elves?"

"If we take advantage of the Wind Forest's state of anxiety now, we only need 100,000 of the northwest's elite cavalry along with five 10th-tier knights and five great magic casters to launch a surprise attack on the Wind Forest. We could conquer the Wind Forest within 10 days," Sean replied after a moment of pondering.

"Haha. You've vastly underestimated the Wind Forest." Andre chuckled, but he was looking at Sean with an increasingly satisfied gaze. "The demons sent 300,000 allied troops to invade the Wind Forest then, and yet they couldn't even reach the Tree of Life. Although the elven queen has gone into seclusion, you shouldn't think she is already dead."

Sean lowered his head, and humbly replied, "Yes. I didn't consider every aspect well enough."

Andre turned back to look at the starry sky out again before he suddenly chuckled. "But that is possible if we double the number of people."

Sean suddenly looked up with a gleam in his eyes.

"However, why should we act against them? They're simply a bunch of people who have learned a tiny bit of our stuff. We will let them entertain themselves in normal times, and use them as cannon fodder when we need them. Isn't that better?"

"Yes," Sean replied thoughtfully, and nodded respectfully.

Andre lifted his hand. "You're exhausted too. Go back and rest now. When you're free a couple of days later, go to Chaos City to fetch Vanessa."

"Vanessa is in Chaos City?" Sean was a little taken aback, but he soon regained his composure and agreed respectfully. Then, he left this tower that was on par with the Magus Tower.

"Sean does indeed resemble me more, but he's still too overconfident and needs to be polished," Andre said softly after Sean left as if he was murmuring to himself or talking to a person.

***

The president's office at the top of Magus Tower.

"What do you think I should do now, President? This b*tch Helena didn't listen to me, and now Irina has already gained 20,000 elves, and is no longer fighting alone." Josh smashed the crystal glass in his hand in a fit of anger as he talked to Richard, who was sitting across him. His complexion was sickly pale, and his eyes were bloodshot as if he hadn't had a good rest.

Richard cleared the crystal shards on the floor with a wave of his hand, and then said to Josh in a low voice, "Your Highness, you should remain calm, especially during a time like this. Otherwise, how are you ever going to achieve anything great? You must remember that you're the one who is going to be the king of the Roth Empire. How could you lose your cool over a woman?"

"But I feel indignant! Why does Alex, that useless freak, get to have her? I'm obviously better than him in every aspect, but she kept slipping through my fingers! And I have already maimed him!" Josh said through clenched teeth with indignation written all over his face.

Richard snapped his fingers, and a water droplet flew toward Josh. It exploded on his face just as if a glass of cold water was splashed over his face. He said in an icy cold voice, "Your Highness, you have to know that everything in this world will be yours if you become the king of the Roth Empire. If you fail, you will not only lose Irina, but everything you own now, including your life. And people like us who are following you have pinned our hopes and lives all onto you."

Josh shivered after being splashed by the cold water. He suddenly became sober after looking at the somber Richard. He quickly stood up and bowed respectfully like a student as he sincerely said, "Master, your student knows his mistake now."

Chapter 1438: His Arguing Skill Is Comparable To Three 10th-Tier Great Magic Casters

The Orcs' Falk Tribe.

"Chief, all the arrest teams reported that they haven't found Princess Connie." An orc strode into a cave, and respectfully reported to a tall and lanky orc sitting on the throne.

"Trash!" Gary threw the plate next to him at that orc after hearing that, and furiously said, "A bunch of useless fellows. You all can't even catch a little girl! Of what use are you all to me?!"

That orc's head was smashed by the stone plate, and he bled profusely. However, he didn't dare to hide or move back a single step. He simply knelt on the ground nervously and motionlessly.

"It's fine that we failed to catch her. She is just a useless girl. What could she do?" Gary soon calmed down, and revealed a smug smile on his face. "I will be the real chief of the Falk Tribe in a few days' time. After killing that lovely nephew of mine, I will be the only heir."

***

Early in the morning, Mag woke up and switched off the ringing alarm clock. He swiftly went to wash up and change into a clean chef's suit. He then arranged his hair in front of the mirror. After making sure that he looked clean and neat, he went downstairs to make breakfast for everyone.

Everyone began to arrive at the restaurant. During breakfast, Mag told all of them, "Before we start eating, I would like to discuss something with you. I would like to see what suggestions you all have."

"Is Father going to make something nice again?" Amy asked curiously.

Everyone looked at Mag curiously. Recently, he had been frequently releasing new items.

"No. It's about Connie." Mag shook his head with a smile, and gestured to Connie sitting at a side.

Connie stood and waved to all of them awkwardly before sitting down again.

Mag was also rather befuddled by her awkward gesture, but he decided to continue, "Connie told me yesterday that she is going to leave."

"Leave? Where are you going? Are you going home?" Babla looked at Connie nervously. They had gotten along quite well lately.

"Yes, Connie. Where are you going?" Miya and the rest were all looking at Connie too.

"I..." Connie opened her mouth and looked at all of them, but she didn't know how and where to start at that moment.

Mag raised his hand to gesture for them to quiet down first before he continued, "Let me say it. This is what happened..."

He told all of them about what happened to Connie briefly and her intention to return to the Falk Tribe to rescue her big brother and kill the enemy who killed her father.

After hearing Mag's words, the restaurant fell into silence instantly. Everyone was looking at Connie with a sympathetic gaze, but they didn't know how to console her in that moment.

"I thought it was something big. Since you already have a target, plan, and time, just fight your way back." Irina ate a spoonful of tofu pudding before saying to Connie, "You're not their match? I will help you."

Connie looked up at Irina with glowing eyes. She had the urge to call her "boss".

"Don't, don't. Such actions are not popular now. We want to be harmonious now." Mag quickly stopped her. She almost spoiled the whole plan.

"Yes. Isn't it simply a prick uncle? He has a lot of men, our restaurant has a lot of people too." Babla nodded too. She placed a hand on Connie's shoulder, and seriously said, "I will help you beat him up too!"

"I-I want to go too." Gina put her hand up.

"If you are all going, count me in then," Camilla said calmly, picking up her bowl of congee with pork and century egg.

Miya put up her hand. "Although I'm still not very formidable now, I can still carry all of you there."

"Count me in too," Elizabeth said coldly. She had long wanted to beat up a bad uncle, and she could take this as a practice.

Amy put up her little hand, and seriously said, "Ay the Assassin is prepared!"

"Everyone..." Connie looked at all of them who had pledged themselves with red eyes. Tears were already glistening in her eyes.

Mag said to all of them, "Since everyone has already declared their intentions, our Mamy Restaurant will send out a special operations team for Connie's brother's rescue mission. Jane, Rena, and Anna belong to noncombat personnel, so they are excluded from the combat unit. We have to come up with an operation plan for the rest of us to complete the rescue mission with the premise of protecting ourselves first."

"Boss, shouldn't you be considered as part of noncombat personnel too?" Miya asked.

Everyone began to look at Mag. Although Mag had always given them the impression of wise and strategic, if considering his combat abilities, he was indeed just an ordinary man who knew how to cook.

"Erm..." Mag lamented. It was all because he had been concealing his abilities all this time. Now, it became a problem to prove that he could be of help. He couldn't be telling them that he was Alex, right?

"Even though he can't fight, his arguing skill is comparable to three 10th-tier great magic casters." Irina chuckled softly.

Everyone nodded after thinking about that for a moment. If it came to reasoning, nobody was the boss' match.

"..." Mag.

What could he do? He was in despair too.

His eligibility to participate in the battle was actually obtained with his arguing skill.

"The Falk Tribe is the number two tribe among the orcs. Although their power has decreased because of the coup, they still have three 10th-tier powerhouses. We only have a few days to prepare, and we need to set up a complete plan. Don't say a word of this matter to anyone else. I hope all of you remember that," Mag said to all of them severely.

After the breakfast service was over, Mag rode his bicycle to the city lord's castle.

After the guards made his presence known, he was swiftly invited into the city lord's castle and brought to Michael's office.

"Princess Irina just left, and then you arrived, Boss Mag." Michael got up from behind his desk and chuckled at Mag.

Mag's mouth twitched. This wily old fox's words had a hidden meaning. However, he continued to speak with a calm demeanor, "Oh, really? I didn't hear the princess say that she was going to come to the city lord's castle at breakfast."

Michael made a gesture for Mag to take a seat before he smiled. "You still may not know, Boss Mag. Princess Irina did something great yesterday. She came to purchase a piece of land from me this morning, preparing the base for 20,000 elves to settle down in Chaos City."

"This is good news for Chaos City. After all, quality talents like elves are rare. The other cities don't even have the chance to attract them there, and yet they came to Chaos City of their own accord. They even buy their own land to build their housing. That is rather rare." Mag was smiling too.

"I agree. The city lord's castle happens to need money after building the railway. Princess Irina is offering us timely support." Michael nodded in agreement.

"City Lord, I didn't come here to buy land today. I came to discuss the Falk Tribe's matters with you." Mag didn't continue to joke with Michael, and got straight to the point.

Michael, too, stopped smiling, and asked, "Has Boss Mag come up with a good idea about this matter?"

"I need a proper excuse for the employees of Mamy Restaurant to appear at the Falk Tribe's chief's conferring ceremony," Mag said.

Chapter 1439: The Elves Who Burn The Boiler

After coming out from the city lord's castle, Mag immediately went to the factory in the north of the city.

All the machines had been assembled according to his requirements. Steam spinning machines had been set up in the spacious workshop. Although they looked very humble and shabby when compared to the modern machines, it was the second combination of steel and steam engine in this world. It had an epoch-making significance.

Mag was certain that this batch of machines could complete their spinning mission, and their efficiency was at least 100 times that of the normal weavers'.

However, because the elves had no idea how to use these machines, they left them idle. They were currently practicing their archery and magic under their captain's, Ashley's, lead.

Mag found Ashley. The captain was rather storky when compared to the normal elves. She was one of Irina's most trusted elves, and was also the existence that restrained the Night Elves' behavior and trained them whenever Irina left them on their own.

"How can I assist you, Mr. Mag?" Ashley asked. She was always very respectful to this human who had given plenty of assistance to the Night Elves.

Mag smiled. "It's like this. I plan to teach you all how to use the machines in the factory today so we use the machine to spin efficiently. Then, the factory will be able to start its operations."

"Please give me a minute to gather the Night Elves." Ashley turned to walk away.

"Wait a sec." Mag quickly stopped. He took two steps forward and shook his head. "There's no need to assemble everyone now. Because the restaurant is rather busy now, I would like to teach 10 elves who are nimble and have good memory in a small group first. They will then teach the other elves after they are familiar with it."

"Alright. Please wait here for a moment, Mr. Mag. I will go get 10 elves right now." Ashley nodded and strode away. Soon, she returned with 10 elves.

Mag took a closer look at those elves. There were five males and five females, and their power was all above 6th-tier. They were considered rather exceptional as the Night Elves in the factory had rather low power, after all.

"Do you think they are suitable, Mr. Mag?" Ashley asked.

"Of course. Ladies and gentlemen, please come with me." Mag swiftly nodded. It was just spinning fabric, and if a group of 6th-tier and 7th-tier elves were not good enough, wouldn't his requirements for weavers be a tad too high?

Mag brought them into the manufacturing workshop. They went to the boiler room first. Mag introduced the steam boiler, and explained the steam engine's principle of operations that drove the boiler to them.

"May I ask, can we really make those metal monsters out there move by burning a fire in here?" a female elf asked curiously. They had seen how humongous those machines were earlier.

"Yes. This is the wonder of the steam engine." Mag nodded with a smile. However, he didn't explain too much of the scientific fundamentals to this group of magic casters. After making sure that the three male elves who were in charge of burning the boiler were taught how to operate it and given a boiler manual each, he brought the rest of the elves to the manufacturing workshop.

Mag was just like a teacher. He explained to the elves how to use the textile machine to turn the cotton wool into bales of complete cotton cloth.

Mag didn't show any emotions outwardly when he sensed all their gazes of admiration, but he was still a little smug.

Although he was standing on the shoulders of giants, it showed that he hadn't forgotten all that stuff that he had learned earlier.

"The operation and explanation are roughly like this. I hope all of you have remembered them. However, if you all want to be qualified weavers, you will still need to be continuously honed on the assembly line." Mag smiled at all the elves. "Hence, we will start a formal operation now."

Although the elves were rather surprised that Mag let them try it out so soon, they still quickly returned to their respective positions according to their previous arrangements.

"Can I bother you to start burning the boiler in the boiler room first?" Mag said to the elf in charge of the overall planning.

That elf quickly left, and black smoke soon began to appear from the boiler room's chimney. Steam poured into the workshop through the pipeline and into the cylinder of the textile machine. Accompanied by the sounds of the catching of gears, the steam spinning machine began to move. The cotton wool that was tossed into the spinning machine's mouth was swiftly swallowed up. The sophisticated and complicated machine moved back and forth, and fine cotton yarns began to appear. They spun around a spool themselves, and they soon filled up one spool fully.

All the elves present were staring at this scene with their eyes wide open. It was only after some time that an elf reacted and went forward to remove the spool of yarns that was done, and wrapped the cotton yarn around another wooden spool.

"Oh, this is so incredible. We just have to toss the cotton wool into that opening, and the machine will spit cotton yarn by itself. Furthermore, it is much more delicate and softer than the cotton yarn spun by ordinary female workers!" An elf drew out a cotton yarn, and was amazed by it.

"Yes. Such yarns could make very good cloth, and they should sell for a very good price, right?"

"What's most terrifying is its spinning efficiency. Even the most skilled textile worker isn't 1% as fast as this machine. Furthermore, we don't have to do much. All we have to do is to toss the cotton wool in, and change the spool after it is full of yarns."

All the elves were discussing excitedly. At first, they were wondering what these metal chunks were for, and they finally saw these big guys in action now. These machines could actually spin even more delicate cotton yarn than female workers. All the elves had abandoned their doubts, and all they had now was admiration for Mag.

What kind of amazing machine was this?!

With them in existence, were those textile workers going to lose their jobs?

Mag picked up a spool of yarn to have a closer look. The quality of the yarn was indeed rather excellent, with an even thickness and a soft texture. He could see that the machine was very stable.

Watching the machine spin out spools of cotton yarns, Mag suddenly realized the introduction of these yarns might have a devastating impact on the textile industry in this world.

This world was still in the state of the low efficiency of the primitive single cotton yarn spinning. The steam spinning machine was equal to jumping two big steps forward by leaps and bounds, and leaving the entire world behind them.

While the production efficiency is improving, the labor costs have dropped sharply. This is going to have a disruptive impact on this industry. This seems to be a rather good dagger for that unassailable empire. Maybe I could try giving it a stab. Mag pondered with a smile on his lips.

The Roth Empire was this world's largest textile producer. 70% of this world's cotton yarns were manufactured in the Roth Empire. Those landowners who controlled countless weavers and textile workers had relied on this to amass a great deal of wealth.

Chapter 1440: Tonight I Am Playing With My Daughter, Closed For The Day!

After coming out from the factory, Mag returned to the restaurant on his bicycle. He changed into his chef's suit, and started the lunch prep straight away.

He already had an idea what the rest of the 20,000 Night Elves could do after they arrived at Chaos City. He could start to prepare the weaving factory that supported the spinning factory now, and after the train entered into commercial use, they would have to invest a great deal of manpower to build trains and tracks. Scheer and he could build a steam train processing plant together, and place the 20,000 elves as workforce there.

Irina didn't return for lunch at noon. She should have gone to the north to continue escorting the elves on their journey southward.

After lunch, Amy went to Mag, and softly asked, "Father, can you bring me to a place tonight?"

"Where to?" Mag asked.

"To Jessica's. It's her birthday today. I want to bring an ice cream cake to her house to celebrate her birthday and give her a surprise," Amy whispered into Mag's ear secretively. "I told this only to you."

"So it's Jessica's birthday today." Mag suddenly realized. Mag rather liked that pretty little girl with short hair. She was also one of Amy's good friends. Looking at the expectant Amy, he nodded after thinking for a brief moment. "Alright. Then we will go give her a surprise with an ice cream cake tonight."

"Father, you are fantastic!" Amy hugged Mag around his neck, and gave him a kiss hard on his cheek. She ran around the restaurant with her arms open, and then sent Ugly Duckling, who jumped at her excitedly, flying through the air with a kick.

"Meow~"

Ugly Duckling stuck onto the wall with a splat before it slowly slid down. It looked at Amy with an aggrieved expression.

"You can't blame me for that, Ugly Duckling. I didn't see you coming at me." Amy shrugged innocently before disdainfully saying, "However, I really think you should slim down. You seemed heavier than usual when I kicked you."

"Meow." Ugly Duckling covered its eyes with its paws before flipping backward, and lay on the ground flat.

Even though it was a little abrupt, as a father, of course Mag would try his best to accommodate all his daughter's wishes.

Hence, before the lunch service started today, Mag wrote a notice and then put it out.

"Tonight I am playing with my daughter, only the designated hot pot area is open."

The customers were staring at the notice hanging on the door with a weird expression.

"Although it seems alright, I still feel something isn't very right?"

"That is the Little Boss. You know nothing, nor do you dare to ask about anything."

"That's a very super adorable daughter. If she was mine, I wouldn't be opening a restaurant. What's wrong with playing with her every day?"

Although the customers felt a little aggrieved, they couldn't say anything when they thought about the adorable Little Boss.

"But... I want to eat grilled fish..." a weak voice said, but it was soon ignored.

In the afternoon, Mag custom-made an ice cream cake for Jessica personally. The figurines in the center were based on Jessica and her mother, and they were both smiling.

"I'm back." Amy pushed open the restaurant's door, and placed her school bag behind the counter. She immediately ran to the kitchen where Mag was putting the ice cream cake into the box, and she expectantly asked, "Father, is the ice cream cake ready?"

"See, it's already packed. We can just bring it along with us." Mag raised the ice cream cake box up to show her. The pink box was tied with a very cute big bow.

"I saw it earlier. It's a very adorable ice cream cake." Miya joined in with a smile.

"Why don't you hold the birthday party in the restaurant? Then we could have the pretty and delicious ice cream cake too." Connie stared at the cake in Mag's hands regretfully.

"I will make a cake for all of you tomorrow." Mag smiled before he picked up the cake, and took Amy out.

A long line had already formed in front of the restaurant's entrance. Everyone was looking with an aggrieved expression at Mag who came out with a cake, especially those ladies who failed to have their tofu puddings.

"Enjoy your meal, everyone. Father and I are going out to play." Amy followed Mag out of the door. She grabbed one of Mag's fingers, and waved her right hand at the crowd with a smile.

"She's so adorable!"

Everyone was looking at Amy, who was wearing a small magician robe with two buns on her head and two dimples on her face, with glowing eyes. Their tiny bit of resentment toward Mag also disappeared instantly at that moment.

Well, such a cute little precious. What's wrong with spending time playing with her? Isn't this what he should do?!

Hence, Mag flagged down a horse-drawn carriage very smoothly, and went away with Amy.

"I finally got it. Boss Mag already began to use Little Boss' cuteness to stop us from blaming him," Harrison lamented with a sigh. What else could he do? He could only eat the hot pot tonight.

The carriage stopped in front of the miners' families settlement. Mag paid the coachman, and then alighted with Amy with the cake in his hand.

"Did you prepare a present for Jessica, Amy?" Mag asked as he took Amy's hand in his.

"Mm-hm. I did." Amy nodded. She took out a gift box that was simply wrapped from the magic caster's staff.

Krassu and Urien had designed and added in a storage function when they made the magic caster's staff. Therefore, the magic caster's staff also became Amy's giant pocket.

"Let's go." Mag smiled as he looked at Amy who was hugging her gift seriously. He, too, was a little curious about the gift that the little one had prepared for Jessica.

The houses and roads in the miners' families settlement had been rebuilt. The environment and the people had been rectified too. He could finally see smiles on the people walking on the road.

Mag and Amy stopped in front of a house whose door was tightly shut.

"It's here," Amy said as she went up to knock on the door gently.

After a while, a little hole opened on the door, and a bright eye flashed across it. Then, the door was quickly opened, and a surprised Jessica with her mushroom-shaped bob hair said, "Amy! What are you doing here?!"

"Happy Birthday, Jessica." Amy walked up, hugged Jessica, and smilingly said, "I remember today's your birthday, so I brought Father here to celebrate your birthday."

"Happy Birthday, Jessica." Mag smiled at Jessica, who was tightly hugged by Amy.

Chapter 1441: Silly, If You Say Your Wish Out Loud, It Won't Come True

Jessica looked at Amy and Mag and smiled happily. With a nod, she said, "Thank you, Amy. Thank you, Uncle Mag."

"Mr. Mag, Amy, you're here." Rebecca walked to the door, and was a little shocked to see Mr. Mag and Amy. She quickly said, "It's cold outside, quick, come in."

"Okay." Mag walked in with the cake. Although the house was still rather run-down after the renovation, at least there was a wooden table with four benches in a good condition in the room.

Mag placed the ice cream cake on the table gently. It seemed that Rebecca and Jessica were having dinner. There were still half a bowl of rice and two simple boiled vegetable dishes on the table.

"Father made you an ice cream cake. Why don't we have the cake first?" Amy said as she pulled Jessica's hand.

"Alright." Jessica nodded. With a smile, she said, "It's my first birthday with a cake."

"You must have spent a lot of money," Rebecca said, feeling bad while clearing the table. She had been hearing news about Mamy Restaurant recently. There was news of hundreds lining up at the restaurant every day and of dishes that cost hundreds of copper coins. To her, all this seemed like a completely different world from the one she was living in.

Today was not the restaurant's day off, so to have Mr. Mag bring Amy over with a cake to celebrate Jessica's birthday meant a lot.

"Little Amy and Jessica are very good friends. I'm also quite surprised that she would remember her birthday. Of course we should celebrate her birthday together," Mag said with a smile. He was really quite shocked since the little fellow would usually only think of food, so he didn't think that she would actually remember her friend's birthday.

After Rebecca cleared the table, Mag put the ice cream cake at the center of the table, and opened the box to reveal the cake inside.

"Wow, what a beautiful cake!" Jessica's eyes lit up when she saw the exquisite cake. What made it a more pleasant surprise was the two small figurines on the cake. They were her and her mother. She looked up at Mag, and said, "Uncle Mag, this is so impressive. These two figurines really look like me and Mother."

"Yeah, it's so life-like." Rebecca was also looking at the two figurines curiously.

"According to our tradition, making a wish and then blowing out the candle will make your wish come true," Mag told Jessica with a smile as he lit up the candles.

"Will it really come true?" Upon hearing that, Jessica closed her eyes earnestly. After a while, she opened her eyes, and then blew out all the candles in a breath.

"Jessica, what wish did you make?" Amy asked curiously.

"My wish is to be best friends with Amy forever," Jessica said with a smile.

"Silly, if you say your wish out loud, it won't come true." Amy stroked Jessica's head with a pampering smile, and said, "However, I can help you fulfill this wish. We will definitely be best friends forever."

"Mm-hm." Jessica also smiled joyfully.

"Oh, right. I have to give you the present I prepared for you." Amy took out the present, and passed it to Jessica.

Jessica received the present. After Amy told her to open it up, she opened the box to reveal the golden conch inside.

"Wow, it's beautiful! Is this a conch from the beach?" Jessica's eyes lit up as she picked up the golden conch the size of both her hands gleefully. The conch was a bright and glittery gold all over, as though it would light up on its own.

Amy nodded, and said, "Mm-hm. This is the prettiest conch I found at the beach. If you put it by your ear, you'll be able to hear the sea."

"It's true! I can hear the sea!" Jessica looked at Amy with surprise after putting the conch to her ear. "I love this present. I love the sea. Thank you, Amy."

"You're welcome. I am very happy that you like it," Amy said with a smile. She put the conch by her and giggled.

Mag smiled at the scene. The two little fellows built their friendship under very harsh conditions. It would be very beautiful if they could really stay like this forever.

After removing the candles, Jessica and Amy cut the ice cream cake together. The two little fellows ate the cake happily, and talked about the happy children's things.

Rebecca looked at Jessica, who was full of smiles, and her eyes started to turn red.

"Madam Rebecca, are you still adapting fine at Blue Suede?" Madam asked with a smile.

"Yes. Miss Gloria is a very kind employer. My work at Blue Suede has been my best job yet." Rebecca nodded.

Mag looked at the smile that came out naturally, and could tell that she really liked this job.

After staying for almost two hours at Jessica's place when the two kids were done playing, Mag left with Amy.

"Father, I'm very happy today," Amy said joyfully as she lay on Mag's back.

"Then should I play with you more often in the future?" Mag said with a smile. He walked down the street while piggybacking Amy. There were almost no horse-drawn carriages on the streets.

"Alright!" Amy's eyes lit up. She then thought for a while and shook her head, saying, "No, that way, all the uncles and aunties who are coming for the delicious food will be very upset."

"It's alright. I will try to make more time for Little Amy next time." Mag felt a little sorry for being so busy with all the other things and the restaurant. He really didn't spend enough time with Amy.

"It's alright. Amy will be very happy to eat the food Father makes every day," Amy said softly with satisfaction.

Mag continued walking forward with Amy on his back. They didn't see any horse-drawn carriages even after walking down a few streets.

"Help! Help!"

Just then, a horrifying shriek came from the alley beside.

Amy shot right up and looked around. "Father, I think there's a bad person bullying a big sister at the side!" She pointed to the little alley on the right.

"Let's go take a look." Mag ascertained the direction where the sound came from. It was the dark little alley on their right, and they walked over quickly.

The shrill came from quite a distance away from them. It sounded as though the person was running away, or she was being kidnapped.

Chapter 1442: Skirts Are So Pretty. Why Can't You Wear It?

"This direction." Mag listened carefully, and navigated the small alleys quickly. He could first tell that the shriek came from a frightened young girl. A shriek in the slums at this time of the day meant that the young girl was probably in danger.

Mag was very fast. He stopped at a crossroad in the alleys. Although he could not see anyone, he knew that she should be nearby since the shriek sounded close.

"No... don't come over. Please, don't come over..." A horrified female voice came from somewhere.

"It sounds like it's behind." Amy had already pulled out her magic caster's staff, and she pointed at the alley on the right excitedly.

"Yes, it's that direction." Mag nodded. He put Amy on the ground, and walked quickly and silently over.

Just then, a small figure suddenly dashed past on top of a high wall at the side. The figure ran past Mag, and jumped off the high wall like a nimble little cat.

"You..."

Suddenly, the voice of a horrified male voice sounded, followed by a crisp sound of a sharp object hitting the wall.

However, the fighting sounds stopped suddenly, and there was a sound of something heavy falling to the ground as another horrifying shriek broke the silence.

"Aaah..."

Mag brought Amy over to that alley, and saw a tall orc with his pants halfway down lying on the ground. His hands were covering his throat, where blood was gushing out from. His eyes were wide open, and it was apparent that he was no longer breathing. The fatal wound was the one to his heart.

It was a very clean and professional method of killing. Although the orc could react in time, he still did not manage to show any effective resistance.

Meanwhile, a young girl with her clothes all untidy was cowering in the corner, shivering. A small silhouette's back was facing Mag. A few drops of blood were dripping from the sharp claws that came out from her knuckles. She looked a little embarrassed as she consoled the young girl, "Are you alright? The bad guy is already dead. I should be the good guy here."

The young lady looked at her, dumbfounded, and her fear was suddenly reduced by half.

"Hm?" Mag found that silhouette in black very familiar, and he was shocked to see the pink and white cat ears.

"Big Sister Connie, what are you doing here? Have you lost your way again?" Amy asked in shock.

"Boss! Little Amy! What are you two doing here?" The small orc girl turned around, and seemed even more shocked to see Mag and Amy. She said with embarrassment, "I... I just came out for a walk. I'm not lost."

"Really? I almost believed it. We walked past here on our way home," Amy said. She glanced at the orc on the ground. "But you've already killed the bad guy. Now we have no bad guy to beat up. What a pity."

"We heard a lady's shriek when we walked past the alley outside. That's why we came in," Mag said. He took off his coat and walked to the human young lady cowering in the corner.

The young girl looked barely 13 or 14 years old. Her clothes had been ripped apart, and there was even a red handprint on her pale face. Mag covered her up gently with his coat, and said, "Little girl, don't be afraid. I am Boss Mag from Mamy Restaurant. This is my daughter, Amy. This lady who saved you is an employee from our restaurant. Let us send you home."

The coat that still had Mag's body warmth dispelled the chill and embarrassment from the torn and tattered clothes. The young girl looked up at Mag. This gentleman's smile looked very warm and gentle. There was also an angel-like little girl beside him. Suddenly, she did not feel so afraid.

Besides...

Mamy Restaurant? Isn't that the very famous restaurant? This gentleman is the owner of that restaurant?

"Mm-hm." The young girl stood up slowly with the help of the wall. She reached out to grab the collar of the coat. Her pale little face still showed some fear as she tried to avoid looking at the corpse lying on the ground.

"Let's go. Let's leave this place first." Mag turned to the side a little to block the corpse from the little girl's view. He made a soft glow on the tip of Amy's magic caster's staff, and led the young girl out into the streets.

Connie retracted her claws and followed behind Mag quickly, afraid of being left behind.

Mag turned to the little girl on his right, and gently asked, "What's your name? Where do you leave?"

"Kelly. My house is just up in front, past three alleys," the young girl said softly as she pointed in front.

"Alright. Don't be afraid. That bastard deserved to die anyway. We'll send you to your doorstep." Mag looked at the young girl, who was still shivering a little, and felt upset. Even in Chaos City, sexual assault was still a risk that girls had to face.

"I... I shouldn't have gone out at night. I just wanted to buy a sweet for my younger brother..." Kelly said with a whimper.

"Kelly, you're not to blame. It's those evil scumbags who are at fault." Mag paused in his tracks, and looked into Kelly's eyes. "It's your freedom to go out at night. That should not be the reason for those scumbags to harm you."

Kelly looked into Mag's eyes and was a little lost, and a little touched. She had never heard anyone say that before. She had always heard people saying: wrap yourself up and don't go out at night...

It seemed as though the reason for all crimes was because they wore a skirt that showed their calves, or because they did not reach home before nightfall.

"Yes, skirts are so pretty. Why can't you wear it? The stars are so beautiful at night. If you stay at home, you won't get to see them." Amy nodded, and said, "As for the bad guys, just beat them to death."

Kelly looked at how confident Amy was, and could not help but feel a little envious, for she did not even have such courage.

"However, it seems like there are quite a lot of scumbags around here. I've seen quite a few these days," Connie interrupted.

Kelly remained silent. She would often hear stories of unfortunate things happening to girls living in the slums. A weak young girl like her would be completely incapable of resisting when she met with sexual assault from other races.

"Don't worry. This will change. Girls will be able to wear a skirt without worrying, and they can also look at the beautiful starry sky," Mag said with a smile. He already had a plan. Since the city lord cannot do anything about the night-time safety of the people living in the northern slums, he would do something about it.

He sent Kelly to her doorstep. When she was just about to knock, the door opened, and a small boy of around one to two years old toddled over, and dived into Kelly's embrace as he called out to her.

"Here's your sweet." Kelly released her clenched fist, and passed an ordinary sugarcane sweet to the little boy.

"Sweet." The little boy grabbed the sweet happily as he licked it.

"Kelly, what happened to you? Who are they?" A middle-aged woman and man walked out quickly from a room and saw Kelly, who had a coaton, with her hair all messy and a red handprint on her face. They immediately stood in front of Kelly, shielding her from Mag.

Chapter 1443: Burn That Trash!

"Mother, this is the owner of Mamy Restaurant. I just met a bad guy on the way, and they saved me," Kelly explained quickly.

"How could you run out without telling us? You could buy the sweet tomorrow." The middle-aged woman looked at Kelly's swollen face with reddened eyes, and said, "What should your father and I do if something were to happen to you?"

The man went in to get a chopping knife, and said to Kelly, "Where is that bastard who dared to bully my daughter? I am going to fight it out with him!"

"The bad guy is already dead," Amy said.

The man and woman were stunned. They started looking at Mag differently.

"Thank you for saving Kelly. Please, come in and have a sit," the woman said gratefully as she bowed deeply.

"I... I'll buy some alcohol." The man scratched his head as he put the chopper behind him.

"It's alright. We just happened to pass by, and did what we should." Mag smiled and shook his head. He continued, "That fellow deserved it. You don't have to be afraid. However, since there is a murder case, the Gray Temple and city lord's castle will investigate the matter. If they look for you, just tell them to come for me at Mamy Restaurant."

Mag rejected their warm reception. He left with Amy and Connie after Kelly changed and returned him his coat.

"Are you out for live training?" Mag asked curiously as he looked at Connie's full-black outfit.

Connie nodded proudly, and said, "Yeah. Master told me that there isn't much meaning for me to keep practicing breaking in and out of Bastie Prison, so he told me to come over to the city's north to do some live training on some jerks. I've already killed 10 such bastards today including this one."

"I see." Mag was a little surprised at Rex's training method, but it was not a bad idea, since they could rid this society of vermin through the training.

"Wow, Big Sister, that's really impressive." Amy gave a thumbs up, and eagerly said, "Can you bring me along next time? I'm also very good at beating up bad guys!"

"Err..." Connie was a little hesitant. She looked at Amy, and said, "Although I would like very much to bring you along, I have to run on top of the walls, and I'm afraid you might not be able to catch up with me."

"It's alright, you can run on the walls. I can fly." Amy spread her arms out, and a pair of translucent wings appeared on her back. Her wings flapped gently and she started to fly, even circling around Connie nimbly. With a smile, Amy said, "Look, isn't this super convenient?"

"Wow, is Little Amy a little flower fairy?" Connie said, surprised and envious, as she looked at Amy, who was suspended in mid-air. With a nod, she said, "If that's the case, there's no problem at all."

"Little Amy, come down." Mag beckoned Amy.

Amy kept her wings, and landed nicely in Mag's embrace.

"You can't use your wings so casually, alright?" Mag whispered to her, and looked around cautiously. Amy's wings were given to her by the pope. Although the church's influence in the Roth Empire was not great, such a supernatural gift felt more like it was of another level. Therefore, he didn't want Amy to show her wings in front of others for the time being.

"Oh." Amy shrugged. She was a little disappointed, but she quickly looked at Connie, and said, "I still have my wind fire wheels. Even though they might be a little more eye-catching at night, it would be no problem to keep up with your speed."

"Alright. Then let's go together tomorrow," Connie said with a nod.

Mag looked speechlessly at the two who agreed to beat up bad guys. He did not feel right to stop such a positive agreement. As he walked along the street, Mag asked Connie, "Are you going back with us, or are you going to continue training?"

"It's too early now. I'm not tired at all. Besides, now is the peak period for those scumbags to act. I intend to keep watch on this area for a while more. You guys can go back first." Connie shook her head, and leaped onto a high wall at the side. She waved goodbye, and quickly disappeared into the night.

"I..." Amy watched Connie leave as she opened her mouth to speak.

"You want to go back to sleep. You have lessons tomorrow." Mag continued walking forward with Amy in his arms.

After walking for a short while, Mag managed to hail a horse-drawn carriage, and they took it back to the restaurant. When they got back, they happened to meet Irina, who came back from outside.

"Mother." Amy let go of Mag's hand, and leaped into Irina's embrace.

Irina picked Amy up, and then looked at Mag, saying, "I'm hungry."

"I'm hungry too." Amy raised her little hand.

"Alright. I'll go make supper now." Mag opened the restaurant door with a smile, and poured two cups of warm water for them. After that, he went into the kitchen.

Amy lay in Irina's embrace as she told her mother all about Jessica's birthday celebration and the bad guy they met.

"Oh, I didn't know there are so many bad guys in Chaos City. That's interesting." Irina's eyes lit up after hearing Amy's story.

"Mother, should we form a team to beat the bad guys up?" Amy suggested excitedly.

Irina nodded, and replied, "Sure. Why don't we get everyone at the restaurant to go beat the bad guys up together? We can take it as training."

"That's not a bad suggestion," Mag agreed as he peeked his head out from the kitchen. Why didn't he think of such a constructive idea? He thought for a while, and said, "If that's the case, we will need a uniform and a very cool team name, what do you think?"

"We're just beating bad guys up. Is there a need for all that?" Irina scoffed, and said, "Why don't we call ourselves the Anomaly Judges?"

"The FFF gang?" Mag raised his brow. "Then we would still need to prepare black robes and chainsaws?"

Irina thought for a while, and said with a nod, "It sounds pretty good."

"What about our chant?"

"Burn that Trash!" Amy raised a torch.

"Hm? That's not bad." Irina's eyes lit up. "Then should we catch all the baddies and burn them to death?"

"That way they won't be able to harm innocent big sisters anymore." Amy nodded.

Mag smiled. He returned to the kitchen to finish cooking. To oppress the baddies, they had to use force, and if the need arose, they had to show them their prowess.

***

The next morning, people from the Gray Temple arrived.

"Mr. Mag. An orc was murdered in the northern part of the city yesterday. According to our investigations, you and your employee are involved in this case. We hope that you can provide us your assistance in our investigation," a young inspector said to Mag, who opened the door.

Chapter 1444: Gentlemen's League

Mag looked at the two young inspectors from the Gray Temple. They were not aggressive. He then took a look at the customers who had started to form a line outside. Since it was not very convenient to let others find out about Connie, he turned to the side, and said, "Please, come in and talk."

"Okay." The two inspectors nodded, and entered the restaurant.

Mag closed the door behind him. He looked at the young inspectors, and hesitated to speak.

"Mr. Mag, we've already gotten a rough grasp on the situation. The orc who was murdered yesterday was a convict that we had been after. He had claimed seven lives, and last night he was stopped and murdered while sexually assaulting a young lady. The person who did it was an employee from your restaurant, and you were also at the scene last night, is that right?" the inspector who had spoken previously began.

Mag raised his brow. That sounded as though that fellow deserved it, and they were just getting rid of a vermin. Mag smiled and nodded. "Yes. The three of us were in the northern part of the city to celebrate the birthday of my daughter's friend. On our way back, we heard cries for help, so we rushed over to the scene. My employee had no choice but to kill him in order to ensure the safety of the young lady, because he was too aggressive."

"I thank you for stepping out bravely to protect the citizens of Chaos City. There have been many cases of perpetrators of sexual assault being stopped in the northern part of the city recently. I assume your employee is related to these cases. Can we meet her for a while? We are about to begin choosing this year's top 10 citizens. We were thinking of applying for a spot for her," that inspector continued.

Mag raised his brow, and said with a sigh, "She is a very meek lady, and is afraid of attention. I don't think it's suitable for her to appear among the top 10 citizens. She isn't even willing to face people with her true self. If you think what she did wasn't wrong, let her continue doing it."

"But..."

"She has a little problem up here." Mag pointed to his head, and lamented, "She's such a great young lady. She should have a beautiful youth, but if she suddenly received too much attention, I'm afraid it would worsen her condition, or even..."

The two inspectors exchanged glances, and hesitated for a while before one of them said, "Alright, since that is the case, we will not force you. Please help us convey our gratitude. If you need any help, do inform the Gray Temple immediately."

"Sure. This way, please." Mag nodded, and sent the two inspectors off.

"Father, what's wrong with Big Sister Connie's head?" Amy, who had been watching by the side, asked curiously.

"Dementia that came too early," Mag said with a sigh. However, he could not hold back his laughter.

Although Mag had expected the issue with the Gray Temple would be resolved smoothly, it still showed that the Gray Temple was agreeable with citizens taking it into their hands to stop violence.

After the morning operating hours, Mag brought a letter of commission to the mercenary union.

He walked straight into the union building, and arrived at the mission area.

The staff behind the counter was busy, and there were many people filling in mission forms.

Mag followed the line, and arrived in front of the counter. The staff member passed him a form without even looking up, and said, "Hello, sir, please fill in this mission form and choose the type of mission you want, the specific requirements, mission date and time, as well as the specific reward you want."

"Alright." Mag took a pen, sat down in front of the counter, and started to fill in the form.

After around five minutes, Mag passed the form over, and said, "I'm done. Please take a look and see if there's anything else I need to add."

The young staff member glanced at Mag's form, and her eyes lit up. It was the first time in her three years working here that she saw such beautiful handwriting.

However, after taking a close look, she let out a soft gasp and looked up at Mag.

"Is anything the problem?" Mag asked with a smile.

"No... are you sure this is what you want to commission?" that staff member asked. She sounded a little awkward. It was the first time she saw someone commission something like that.

"Yes. I want to start a Gentlemen's League. I want to commission all the rich and chivalric mercenaries and residents to protect those who need to be protected, to do their best to eliminate all the ruffians who make use of the darkness of the night to harm the weak. I am willing to pay this amount as the reward." Mag nodded with a smile. "Is this against the regulations?"

Upon hearing Mag's words, many people who were filling in forms at the side looked up in shock at him. That was an unexpected commission.

"This is the first time I've come across such a commission. Please hold on for a while. I'll have to ask my manager." That staff member was a little uncertain, so she quickly informed Mag and left.

A while later, the staff member came back with a tall and skinny middle-aged man.

"Boss Mag, I didn't think it would really be you." That tall and skinny man smiled immediately when he saw Mag.

"I didn't think you were from the mercenary union." Mag also smiled at the middle-aged man, Cartera, who could be considered one of the restaurant's regulars. He would dine in the restaurant every other day, and his favorite dishes were the beggar's chicken and the beef kebab.

"I heard that you want to set up a Gentlemen's League to help eliminate assaulters?" Cartera asked Mag.

"Yes. I met one who was trying to sexually assault a young lady yesterday. Such a thing happening in Chaos City really shocked me. I hope Chaos City could become better. I want the city to be safe, even if the sunlight could not shine into the night, even if it was in the slums, even if it's amongst the lower-class and ordinary people. I hope that everyone can be respected and protected." Mag nodded seriously.

Cartera's smile faded away, and his expression became serious as well.

"Isn't it great that a man could think this way?" The female staff member standing at the side was looking at Mag in a completely different light. She had already unconsciously started to admire him.

At the same time, the people who were filling in the forms at the side slowly put their pens down and looked at Mag thoughtfully.

"Of course, I am willing to fork out this amount as the reward. I just require the members of the Gentlemen's League to capture the video of the process of punishing the bad guy and obtain the Gray Temple's acknowledgement of the event and the bad guy's identity. According to the severity of the matter, I have set up 10 tiers of rewards, and the individual will be rewarded accordingly. In addition, he would also receive a corresponding status on the Board of Gentlemen. Today, I am going to put in 5,000,000 copper coins as the initial reward pool for the Gentlemen's League," Mag said with a smile.

Chapter 1445: Can I Attend With My Helmet On?

Mag walked out of the mercenary union, and hugged the certificate a little tighter as he pushed his bicycle with a smile.

The process went very smoothly. When Mag left, the Gentlemen's League commission was already on top of the board of commissions, done manually, and that caused quite a commotion at the missions area.

Mag didn't know what kind of impact his actions this morning would bring to Chaos City. However, as a part of this city, he had done whatever he could.

He had made the Gentlemen's League fund's income public, so anyone who wanted to support this initiative could also add to the fund.

What was the most critical was the number of people who would answer his call and join the Gentlemen's League.

Judging from the commotion just now, there should be some people who would do something.

***

"The Gentlemen's League..." Michael paced up and down the meeting room with his brows tightly knitted together.

Smiling, an official from the city lord's castle said, "Mr. Mag is really interesting. He actually thought of releasing a mercenary mission as a way to protect the residents in Chaos City."

"Interesting?" Michael looked at that official with a grave expression, and said, "I don't think this is funny. It's a wake-up call. The law and order that we pride ourselves on are unable to protect the people at the lower level, and a citizen has to release a mission as a way to uphold the security. Tell me, doesn't that mean that we've done our job poorly?"

The officer quickly stopped smiling, and sat upright with his head hung low.

The atmosphere in the meeting room suddenly became tense and still. All the officers became very serious.

"Sir, we have limited manpower at the city lord's castle and Gray Temple. We've already done our best at patrolling and sentry duties, but we still cannot cover every area. The bad people would always be able to find loopholes and blind spots. That's where we fail at our duties. But I'm afraid it's difficult to solve this problem in a short time," an official answered.

Michael nodded, and said, "I am aware of this too. We've already done all that we could for patrolling and sentry duties, but we are seriously shorthanded. Start recruitment quickly to fill in the turnover for the patrollers. We need to ensure that we can cover the entire area."

"Sir, then about the Gentlemen's League, should we intercept it? This might actually clash with the law and order of Chaos City," an official raised his concern.

"This is about protecting our residents and punishing the perpetrators. Why should we intercept it? Don't you think we should support and encourage people to join this initiative?" Michael shook his head. He smiled. "If the citizens could join in to curb crime and violence, we would not have to fret over manpower shortage."

***

"Did you hear? A Gentlemen's League appeared in the mercenary union today. If you join the league to stop and punish evildoers in order to protect the people, you will be able to receive a reward."

"I saw it at the union this morning. It's not just the reward, there's even a gentleman point system. Apparently, there's a board of gentlemen, and doing missions would give you mission points, which is how you can leave your name on the board of gentlemen."

"I didn't think that there would be so many scumbags around. That's got my blood boiling. I will guard the northern part of the city tonight. If I were to meet any of these scumbags, you bet I would knock all his teeth out. I don't want the reward. Instead, I'm going to add another 100,000 copper coins into the fund so more people will join in."

"Bro, count me in."

"Bring me along, I want to beat those scumbags up too."

At the entrance of Mamy Restaurant in the afternoon, the sweet gang and the savory gang made peace momentarily as they came together to discuss the rapidly spreading news of the Gentlemen's League.

After the mission was released, it was pushed to the top by the mercenary union. Therefore, the mercenaries who went to the union today all knew about it, and it soon spread among the mercenaries.

Chaos City's law and order were completely different from those in any other place in this world, but people would rarely take note of the lives of the people living in the slums in the northern part of the city and what problems they faced.

Most people actually didn't know that there was a group of people in this city living in poverty, without their dignity, and still having to face all sorts of danger and suffering.

Therefore, when all these realizations were presented to them, it dealt them a huge shock, and made them furious.

"The customers outside were all very worked up. I think they are talking about some Gentlemen's League. I heard that someone released a mission at the mercenary union to reward those who punish evildoers." Miya came in from outside, and agitatedly said, "This is a very good thing. If everyone is willing to participate, those evildoers will become pests of the city, and they won't dare to continue staying in Chaos City."

"Yeah. I think that's pretty good. You can earn money by beating baddies up. That would definitely make you feel good," Babla concurred.

"I wonder who came up with this good idea?" Rena was a little excited. As someone who grew up in the slums, she knew what kind of fear the night meant for them. However, if everyone was willing to help, things would definitely be different.

"Ahem, it's yours sincerely," Mag, who stood at the kitchen door, said a little proudly after clearing his throat softly.

Everyone looked at Mag.

"Boss, were you really the one?" Miya looked at Mag in shock.

"Yes. Last night, on my way back, Little Amy, Connie, and I met a young girl who was almost hurt. And such incidents often happen in the darkness in the northern part of the city. Since the city lord's castle and the Gray Temple cannot solve this problem at the moment, I thought of doing a little something." Mag nodded. He looked at everyone with a smile, and said, "Of course, I've discussed it with Irina last night, and we thought we could take this as a form of training before we go to the orcs. We can use this to work on our team chemistry."

Boss is really a nice person, Rena thought to herself. It's really good news for girls living in the slums.

"If that's the case, there's not enough to go around..." Connie muttered. Although the northern part of the city was a very large piece of land, and she could not cover the entire place on her own, she somehow felt as though a slice of her cake was being shared.

"Oh, right, we are invited to attend the Chamber of Commerce's gala dinner tonight, so we will be closed for the night. Is everyone willing to go?" Mag asked.

"Me, I'll go alone." Camilla raised her hand. She was not willing to attend the gala as a part of the restaurant. Otherwise, she would not be able to hold her head up high anymore, and she would probably be worse off than her Uncle Dracula back then.

Connie raised her hand, and asked, "Can... Can I attend with my helmet on?"

She was a little excited. It was her first time attending any interesting event since she came to Chaos City.

"You can if you're okay with it." Mag nodded.

Chapter 1446: Boss, Can I Remove The Helmet?

"Closed for business tonight to support the Gentlemen's League." Mag hung a sign on the door before the lunch service commenced.

It drew the customers' bemoaning once again.

"Boss Mag, we won't even get to eat the hot pot tonight, right?" Vanessa asked Mag piteously.

"Yes. The restaurant is completely closed tonight." Mag nodded with a smile.

Well, he had no choice, as he had already agreed to go to the Chamber of Commerce's year-end celebration. He couldn't leave Rena alone in the restaurant to make hot pot while the rest of them went out to play.

"Even Mamy Restaurant has joined the Gentlemen's League. Seems like we have to go do something tonight." The customers' interest in the Gentlemen's League was piqued while they lamented the closure of the restaurant tonight. Many of the customers were going to try it out.

After the busy lunch service was over, Mag said to all the ladies, "If you ladies don't have appropriate clothes for tonight's banquet, you may go take a look at Blue Suede Fashion. Just tell them you are Mamy Restaurant's employees and put the tag on me for all the clothes that you buy. I will go pay for them later. Just take it as my gift to all of you for your hard work during this time."

"We can buy new clothes?!" All the ladies' eyes glowed.

Mag smilingly said, "Yes. We have four hours before the banquet starts. You all may move around freely now. We will gather at the restaurant later at 5 pm before we set off together."

"Thank you, Boss," all the ladies happily said, and after saying goodbye to Mag, they all left together. They even brought Anna along with them.

"Looking at the time, the elves should have arrived at Chaos City by now?" Mag went up to the study. Irina had already settled the issue of the Night Elves' accommodation with City Lord Michael, so there was no need for him to get involved too much in case it attracted unnecessary attention to him.

As for the matter of building the factory, Mag intended to talk to Scheer when he saw her tonight. After all, he had given her the authorization to use the steam engine. Be it the funds or the promotion of the products in the future, it would be much easier if Scheer worked with him.

Profits should be shared. Mag understood that rationale very well.

As an unqualified businessman, he didn't want to do every single thing by himself. It would be perfect if he could earn money without doing anything.

As for the Night Elves, the sudden influx of 20,000 in the workforce in Chaos City was naturally the best choice for the newly built factory.

***

The Moreton Manor.

"Cyril, this bastard, actually ganged up with Bowen and Harvey. This is akin to bringing the wolves into our house!" Jeffree said annoyedly as he smashed his glass on the floor. His chest was rising up and down rapidly due to his anger.

Manard, the chief secretary, lowered his head.

Jeffree finally appeased his anger after a while. He looked up at Manard. "How many board members are supporting Gloria now?"

"If the Marquises' and Dodges' board members are supporting Young Master Cyril, and disregarding the Buffetts' board members, the board members who support Miss Gloria are less than 10," Manard answered.

"There are a total of 68 board members in the Chamber of Commerce..." Jeffree furrowed his brows worriedly.

Manard suggested, "Master, should we assemble all the board members and tell them your standpoint? After all, Miss Gloria has just appeared in their sights recently, they might have some prejudices and misunderstandings."

"There's no need to. We would be simply adding onto the joke." Jeffree shook his head, and his expression slowly became calm. "If she can't even pass this test, she wouldn't be able to hold up the Moreton Family."

"Yes." Manard nodded.

***

In a moving carriage.

"Young Mistress, according to your request, the Buffett's 21 board members have agreed to vote for Gloria," the secretary told Scheer, who was resting with her eyes closed.

"How many votes has she gotten now?" Scheer asked casually without opening her eyes.

"From the news, the Marquises and the Dodgeses are already ganging up with Cyril. They should have at least 30 stable votes in their hands. Furthermore, given Cyril's work in the Moreton Family and his unique identity as the heir, he should be receiving more than Gloria from the Moretons' board members. As for the remaining independent board members, we still do not know their stand yet. The confirmed votes that Gloria has now should be around 25," the secretary swiftly answered.

Scheer curled her lips and revealed a sneering smile. "Come to speak of it, shouldn't I be supporting Cyril instead? Given his stupid action of collaborating with Bowen and Harvey, if he takes over the Moreton Family, I don't even have to do anything, and he will waste the Moreton Family away by himself."

***

Irina returned to the restaurant in the evening.

"I have sent all of them to the factory," Irina said as she ate the beggar's chicken Mag made for her.

Mag asked, "What about their accommodations at night? We don't have enough dormitories now."

"I got them to bring some logs back on my way here. They should be building houses right now. We are elves, the species who know the wood element best. When it comes to building wooden houses, even the dwarves aren't as good as us," Irina said confidently.

"Alright." Mag nodded. Since he didn't have to worry about it, he wasn't going to pursue the matter. He then said, "The Chamber of Commerce has a banquet tonight. Everyone in the restaurant is going. Do you want to come along?"

"Are you in charge of cooking?"

"No. I am considered an invited guest, so I don't have to cook."

"Then why should I go? The food that the other chefs make is atrocious." Irina shook her head, and took a bite of the chicken thigh. "I am going over to the factory to do some arrangements for them."

"Alright." Mag nodded. The Night Elves' matters were more urgent. It wasn't necessary for her to go to this banquet.

Irina left straight after filling up her tummy. She had plenty of things to do in order to settle 20,000 elves.

Mag went upstairs to change into a casual suit after looking at the time. Considering that the outdoor temperature was a little low, he added on a gray coat.

There was someone knocking on the door as soon as Mag got downstairs. He opened the door, and a group of beautiful maidens were standing at the restaurant's entrance, smiling at him.

"Look at our new clothes, Boss. Blue Suede's clothes are beautiful and warm. Moreover, they're as light as feathers and so comfortable on the body," Miya said happily.

"Errrr..."

Mag stared at the smiling maidens in down jackets, and he was at a loss for words.

Even though the Blue Suede's down jackets were very chic and also light and comfortable on the body, they were going to a banquet, after all. Wasn't it a little weird... when all of them attended in down jackets?

"Yes. It's so warm that it fogged up. I can't see anything." Connie, who was following after them, was talking to a tree seriously. "Boss, can I remove the helmet?"

Chapter 1447: You Can Squeeze Ugly Duckling For While

"No. You're going to bring both your helmet and your brain along with you." Mag went over and turned on the defogging mode for her.

Connie, who could immediately see clearly, saw that tree in front of her. Her expression became awkward instantly, and she smiled embarrassedly. "Aright, I will bring the helmet and my brain to the banquet with me."

Mag still felt weird looking at all the ladies in their down jackets. However, it wasn't realistic for them to go change into extravagant evening wear at this point in time anymore.

"I am back!" Amy's voice appeared behind them.

Everyone turned around to look at Amy, who was wearing her magician robe and skipping over. Her two buns were swaying gently, and she looked absolutely adorable.

"Woah. Is everyone wearing new clothes?" Amy looked at all of them with bright eyes before turning around to ask Mag, "Father, do I have new clothes too? I want to wear the same clothes as everyone."

"Alright. Then we will go in and change now." Mag looked at the expectant Amy, and nodded with a smile. He had prepared a lovely cocktail dress for Amy initially, but the cocktail dress was obviously not as attractive to her as the down jacket now. Anyway, everyone was already wearing down jackets, so he might as well let Amy wear a down jacket to the banquet too.

Furthermore, this was Blue Suede's new product, so he guessed it was still considered trendy in this world, right?

After a while, Amy, who had changed into a short purplish-blue down jacket, skipped out of the door and joined the down jacket group. The light and puffy cutting with a pair of little rabbit ear muffs made her look super adorable.

"Let's go. It's time for us to set off now." Mag lifted up his wrist to look at his watch. It was almost five o'clock, and the three horse-drawn carriages that were prebooked were already waiting at the door. All of them got into their carriages respectively.

"Father, where's Big Sister Irina? Isn't she going to the celebration?" Amy asked after Mag and she got into the same carriage.

"She's probably very busy. After all, she still has to be responsible for so many Night Elves." Mag shook his head with a smile.

"Alright." Amy was a tad disappointed.

Apart from Irina, Shirley didn't go too.

On that day in the Wind Forest, he saw Blour's father, Vincent Baibilly, chop an arm of Elliot before he died by the combined attack of the elves.

However, Mag didn't see Blour on the battlefield that day, so he couldn't bring him back.

Anna's expression was rather grave too. She propped her chin up with her hand as she looked out of the window through a small gap in the curtain, deep in thought.

"Don't worry, Anna. Shirley will return as usual. She will remember her promise with you." Mag placed his hand on Anna's head gently as he softly consoled her. This little one had a sensitive heart that didn't match her age.

"Mm-hmm," Anna replied softly. However, her expression didn't become more cheerful because of Mag's consolation.

"Big Sister Anna, you can squeeze Ugly Duckling for a while. Whenever you are unhappy, you can squeeze its mushy face, and you will feel much better." Amy tossed Ugly Duckling into Anna's arms and smiled.

"Meow???"

Ugly Duckling looked puzzled. Why did they squeeze it because they were unhappy?

Anna held Ugly Duckling's soft, warm, and fat face in her hands. She squeezed with both her hands at the same time, and its round face slowly became flat. The face changed into another shape after she squeezed.

"So cute!" A smile appeared on Anna's face. It was as if she was holding a hot water bottle, and it felt so soft and comfortable.

Ugly Duckling glared with its innocent big blue eyes, but because it was suppressed by Amy's tyranny, it could only let Anna toy with it.

Mag looked at Anna, who was slowly getting more cheerful because she was playing with the cat, and smiled too. Indeed, only a child knew what a child liked.

***

The square in front of the Chamber of Commerce was fully parked with all kinds of opulent horse-drawn carriages. Almost all the members of the Chamber of Commerce had gathered for today's year-end celebration, so all the business leaders in Chaos City were present.

Cyril—wearing luxurious black and red robes and a green hat with a giant red ruby on top—was standing at the hall's entrance and greeting the businessmen.

However, only the Chamber of Commerce's board members could make Cyril greet them proactively.

As for the normal businessmen, they were all trying to get to know him with an ingratiating smile. However, most of them were ignored by Cyril.

Cyril couldn't stop smiling. As long as he got Gloria fired from the board today, he would be the only heir of the Moreton Family.

Furthermore, Bolton had agreed that when he became the head of the Moreton Family, he would partner with Harvey to make Cyril the president of the Chamber of Commerce.

The three families were working together, so Cyril was fully confident that he could depose Gloria.

As for the Buffett Family, he didn't believe that Gloria could convince Scheer to support her.

After he became the head of the family, he would find a reason to get Blue Suede back. He heard Gloria had expanded her factories again. It had only been two, three months, and the monthly profit was already over 1,000,000 just with the sales of the clothes alone. Everyone could see the potential of this shop.

Although that was still inconsequential when compared to the Moreton Family's wealth, he simply didn't want them to have a good life after they left the Moreton Family. The slum at the north of the city was the best place for their family to live.

"Board Member Downsell." Cyril smilingly reached out to shake the hand of a balding middle-aged man. They chatted politely for a while before exchanging a knowing smile.

After Cyril was done chatting with Downsell, he saw Mag walk past him with a bevy of beautiful ladies.

What is this fellow doing here again? Cyril frowned. It was this fellow who made him lose face during the previous year-end celebration. Moreover, he was getting along very well with Gloria. He didn't expect him to come again today. He remembered that he didn't join the Chamber of Commerce, and had even said that he wanted to overthrow the Chamber of Commerce.

"Wow! Those ladies are so beautiful! Their clothes are so special too. They look so cool."

"If I am not wrong, the clothes that they are wearing should be the new designs that Blue Suede Fashion hasn't officially released? I think they're called down jackets!"

"My heavens! They actually got the presale design! Aren't those not for sale yet?! Could they be the staff members of Blue Suede?"

"The jackets look fantastic on them! They seem super light yet very warm!"

All the women's attention was attracted by the down jackets on Yabemiya and the ladies. Many of them were loyal supporters of Blue Suede Fashion, and had been eyeing the new winter wear that was going to be released three days later. They hadn't expected someone would wear it to the banquet today, and it was a bevy of beautiful young maidens.

Chapter 1448: Is There A Rule That Limits The Number Of Family Members? Allowed

All the intense gazes made the ladies from Mamy Restaurant slightly uncomfortable.

Yabemiya blushed a little as she softly asked Elizabeth, "Is my makeup smudged? Why are so many people staring at me?"

Elizabeth looked at her face seriously before calmly replying, "It's not. It still looks good."

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Jane hid among the crowd with her head slightly lowered. It was terrifying for her to be stared at by so many people. She just wanted to hide away.

Babla looked very collected instead. She was already used to being the center of attention. This was only a small occasion.

Mag was walking right at the very front, holding a cute lolita on both his sides and followed by eight beautiful young maidens. He emitted a presence of a successful man.

The server took the invite from Mag. After verifying it carefully, he looked at the big group of beautiful ladies, and hesitantly said, "Sir, the invite is authentic, but according to the rules, only family members are allowed to attend the banquet. You have brought so many people with you..."

"Yes. They're all my family members. Is there a rule that limits the number of family members allowed?" Mr. Mag asked with a smile.

"This..." That server and all the surrounding men sucked in a breath of cold air. Their gazes that were focused on Mag changed, and they became green with envy.

"Animal!"

The men looked at the bevy of beautiful young maidens. There were an innocent elven maiden, an energetic half-dragon maiden, cool and aloof dragon maiden, sexy mermaid...

Meanwhile, Miya's and the ladies' expressions were also a little weird. There seemed to be something wrong somewhere?

"There's no such rule. Please enter," the server said with a complicated expression as he returned the invite to Mag.

"Thank you." Mag kept the invite and continued on.

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"Wait a sec. Could this lady please remove the unidentified object from her head? This may cause distress to other guests." The server noticed Connie in the crowd, and put up an arm to stop them again.

Everyone's gazes began to land on Connie too. She looked like a petite maiden from her figure, but she was wearing a weird object that covered her whole head. They couldn't even see her eyes, let alone her face. It was indeed rather peculiar.

"Do you know what she is wearing on her head?" Mag asked that server as he waved his hand, gesturing for Connie to come over.

"No, I don't." The server shook his head.

"Then, do you know that her clothes are from Blue Suede Fashion, and their presale price is more than 15,000 copper coins?" Mag continued to ask smilingly.

"An expensive suit of clothes." The server's attitude became even more respectful.

"Then, do you know the price of this latest headwear that she is wearing is 10 times that of her clothes?" Mag continued asking.

"10 times!" That server moved his Adam's apple before looking at that helmet which was gleaming with a blue glow. The helmet seemed even brighter than it was before.

"This headwear looks rather cool. Where can I buy it?" a young man behind him asked curiously.

Is this the latest trend now? Covering up the entire head? A wealthy lady who had lots of hair accessories made up of gold and gemstones in her hair secretly noted that down in her heart. She was going to get someone to custom-make one for her when she got back.

"Does the banquet have a requirement on the guests' headwear?" Mag asked.

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"Esteemed guests, please enter." The server bowed humbly.

Mag nodded slightly before leading the ladies forward on the red carpet.

"If we are all family members, so we are one family?" Amy asked curiously.

All the ladies looked at Mag. Some with a judgmental gaze, while there were a few other expectant gazes.

Mag nodded with a natural expression. "Yes. We are one family from Mamy Restaurant."

"Yes. This is great." Yabemiya smiled. "I, too, like this feeling of one family."

The others were smiling too. They seemed to be rather satisfied with Mag's answer.

Mag heaved a breath of relief in his heart. Even though it was simply to go through security, he still had to give his wits a thumbs up.

Going through the long corridor, they arrived at the huge banquet hall. Countless candles lit up the banquet hall, and people were chatting in small groups. The banquet hadn't begun yet.

Mag brought the ladies to a position near a corner. Such banquets were rather boring. If it wasn't for Gloria and Cyril having a vote-off, he wouldn't be interested to come.

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He noticed Cyril standing by the door when he came in. That green hat was so bright that it was impossible to ignore him[1].

When compared to Gloria, apart from being a male, Cyril was not Gloria's match in every other aspect.

In this world, patriarchal attitudes were still deeply rooted. Scheer, who became the head of a clan, was still an exception.

However, Mag would be happy to see Gloria become the next head of the Moreton Family, and it wasn't simply because they were friends. He, too, had some selfish thoughts.

Once Gloria became the head of the Moreton Family, regardless if it was Scheer or Cyril[2] who became the president of the Chamber of Commerce, the Chamber of Commerce would be different from now. It was equal to accomplishing what he had set out to do at first.

All the ladies were rather curious about the banquet. In particular, Yabemiya, Gina, Jane, and Rena who had never been to a banquet like this before were looking around curiously.

Beautiful maidens were always the center of attention at a banquet, especially when they gathered together. Even if they were in a corner, they still became one of the main focuses.

"Boss Mag, I didn't expect you would be here. Moreover, all the beautiful ladies from the restaurant are here too. Is it possible that we would be very fortunate to eat Boss Mag's cooking at tonight's banquet?" a voice spoke from the side.

Mag turned around and saw Robert, the president of the Food Association, coming over with a glass of red wine in his hand. He smiled. "What a coincidence to meet President Robert here. I'm simply here to join the occasion today. I'm not in charge of the catering."

"Oh, I see. It's such a pity," Robert said rather regretfully. However, he didn't comment too much on that topic. After making some small talk with Mag, he was brought away by others who came to talk to him.

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After that, there were restaurant's other regulars coming over to greet Mag as well. Mamy Restaurant was Chaos City's most famous restaurant now, so it wasn't surprising that members of the Chamber of Commerce always frequented it. After all, normal families couldn't afford to eat there every day.

After the ladies got Mag's approval, they, too, began to move around the banquet hall. Amy led Anna to the buffet area, and began to eat to her heart's content.

"I'm warning you now. If you continue to touch me with your filthy hands, you are going to have an ugly death." A voice with a tinge of coldness and disgust appeared at the side.

Mag turned around, and saw Babla staring at a young man with yellow hair who was blocking her way.

[1] "Wearing a green hat" is a figurative expression in Chinese that means a man is being cheated on by his wife. Iirc, there used to be a law during one of the later Chinese dynasties that forced either family members or husbands of prostitutes to wear green hats, hence the phrase. If you're going to China and have a green hat or cap, never, ever put it on.

[2] I think the author meant Gloria.

Chapter 1449: Does Your Family Own The Bastie Prison?

"Ha. Which family's young mistress are you? I am giving you face when I ask you. How dare you talk to me like this? Are you not afraid that I will kick you and your parents out of here?" That young man with yellow hair sneered at Babla. Because he was a head taller than Babla, he had a sense of condescending arrogance.

The commotion attracted the surrounding people's attention.

"Isn't that Young Master Roy from the Dodges Family? Which family's young mistress is that maiden? How did she antagonize this rogue?"

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"I heard Young Master Roy loves petite girls the most."

"Tsk. Isn't he a perverted lolicon[1] then?"

"I'm not sure if he is a lolicon, but this young master is most definitely a pervert. This young maiden must be down on her luck to meet him today."

Very soon, people began to recognize that young man, and began to talk about him softly.

The Dodges Family? Mag raised his eyebrow slightly. He wasn't worried about Babla, because, after all, her highness the Moon Nation's princess was also a powerful 7th-tier spatial magic caster. Killing this notorious young master would be no different from killing an ant to her.

Instead, he was worried that Babla might be too hardhanded. It would be a mess if a human life was lost.

Of course, Babla's identity was many times more respectable than that of a merchant family's young master.

However, this world's understanding of the moon was still stuck in the times of legends and daydreams. If he said Babla was the princess of the Moon Nation, and applied for immunity for her in court, he would most likely be beaten to death for contempt of court.

Roy looked at the maiden in front of him, and insuppressible urges began to surge in his heart. This height and this figure... were totally his type!

He hadn't met such a lovely girl for a long time. Even his so-called girlfriends in the past could not hold a candle to her.

Even the way she looked when she was furious was cute to him.

As one of the Four Young Masters of Chaos City and the sole heir of the Dodges Family, he had never failed at getting a girl that he liked.

After girls found out about his identity, their eyes would begin to glow. That was also his favorite instant.

Roy lowered his head to look at Babla as he smiled arrogantly. "Now, I'm giving you a chance to kiss my hand and beg for my forgiveness. As the heir of the Dodges Family, I will consider giving you a chance and forgive your stupid mistake."

"Kiss your hand and beg for your forgiveness?" Babla flicked a disgusted glance at Roy's short and stubby fingers. Indeed, not every man's hands were as good-looking as her boss's. Now, she was going to euthanize this shameless fellow.

As for whatever Dodges Family, who did they think they were?

"Yes, it's your honor to kiss a noble hand like mine." Roy lifted his right hand and looked at it against the light before smiling at Babla obscenely. "Of course, if you let me squeeze your cheek, this matter will be considered over."

After speaking, Roy reached out for Babla's cheek. He could almost see this maiden's coy look under his ministrations.

"Eat sh*t, you cursed man!"

Before Roy's hand could touch Babla's face, Babla already gave him an uppercut on his chin.

He was KO'd instantly by a lolita who was a head shorter than him. He flew backward and landed in the center of the banquet hall three meters away.

A commotion broke out in the banquet hall, and the guests all quickly backed off as they stared at Roy who was sent flying back with a shocked expression. Who was it that dared to antagonize this young master on the Chamber of Commerce's year-end celebration? The Dodges Family were one of the founding families of the Chamber of Commerce, after all.

Roy held his swollen chin as he teared in pain. He tilted his head and spat out two shattered teeth while he accused Babla with a crying tone, "You... You hit me..."

Babla lowered her fist as she coldly said, "You would have been dead if your filthy hand had touched me."

"Who is this maiden? She's so fierce."

"She's done what I've always wanted to do if I ain't been afraid of the Dodges Family's retribution."

"Someone actually beat up Young Master Roy. Seems like there is more than one good show today. Today's so interesting."

People began to discuss among themselves as they looked at Roy on the floor with his teeth out and Babla who was petite but had a powerful presence.

"Oh no. Babla is in trouble." Miya found Babla in the crowd, and wanted to get over to her quickly.

"Don't worry. That fellow can't hurt her." Elizabeth held onto her wrist gently, and softly said, "Let Boss settle this. We're not suitable to appear in the limelight here."

"Mm-hm." Yabemiya gave it a brief thought, and then nodded. She wouldn't know what to do even if she went forward.

Jane covered her face in the crowd. She taught Babla one phrase from her hometown two days ago after her constant bugging. She didn't expect she would utilize it so soon. However, she began to look at Babla worriedly. Would she get into trouble for hitting someone?

Mag nodded with satisfaction after he saw that scene. Only two teeth were lost. It was a very reasonable and perfect ending.

After straightening his clothes, he prepared to get out there to alleviate the tense atmosphere, and then resolve this matter.

Roy looked at Babla, and felt a chill up his back. He had a feeling that this fellow wasn't joking.

However, Roy knew his reputation was tarnished as so many people saw him get beaten up by a girl. He would be laughed at in the future even if he went about with the name of one of Four Young Masters of Chaos City. Hence, he got frustrated immediately, and screamed, "Guards! Guards! Arrest this crazy woman and send her to Bastie Prison! I want her to stay there for the rest of her life."

A few guards dashed out, and looked at Babla hesitantly. Even though Roy's identity was noble, they had no idea about this maiden's identity. People who came to this banquet were mostly people they couldn't afford to offend.

"Roy, my boy. W-what happened to you?" Right then, a stout middle-aged man quickly walked out from the crowd and came to Roy, who was lying on the floor with half of his face swollen. There was a bloodstain in the corner of his mouth, and the two broken teeth covered with blood on the floor were especially glaring.

Roy teared even more when he saw that fatty. He pointed at Babla as he cried, "Father, that woman! That b*tch hit me... She even broke my teeth. You cannot let her off..."

That fatty turned to look at Babla, and furiously said, "A*shole, how dare you beat my son? Guards, you useless people. Go arrest her, and then send her to the Bastie Prison! Lock her up for 50 years!"

Although all the guards were a little hesitant, it was Harvey who issued the order, so they still surrounded Babla.

"They're indeed father and son. Even the way they speak is identical." Right at that moment, Mag walked out from the crowd and stood next to Babla. He looked at Harvey and Roy, and sarcastically said, "Does your family own the Bastie Prison? Can you decide on how many years a person should be locked up?"

[1] Person whose fetish is small girls or those who look like one.

Chapter 1450: I've Been Formally Trained

"Who is this mister? He looks so suave standing in front of that maiden!"

"The boss of Mamy Restaurant, don't you know him? It's the most popular restaurant recently. Boss Mag's food is super delicious!"

"Boss Mag is still as tough as ever. However, would he get thrown out because of this?"

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The guests looked with bright eyes at Mag who'd come forward. Many of them even laughed because they had disliked the tyrannical behavior of Harvey and Roy for a long time. Everyone was discussing it softly. Some young ladies were even looking at the cutest height difference with glowing eyes.

"What a bother. Isn't it better to euthanize such a scum right away?" Babla looked at Mag's back with annoyance flashing through her eyes. After a moment of pondering, she slowly lowered her right hand, which was already open up.

"Who are you?! How dare you talk to me like this?" Harvey stared at Mag with a somber gaze. As the Chamber of Commerce's vice president and the head of the Dodges Family, he enjoyed a very high status in the Chaos City's business world, so he had never been laughed at in public.

Mag smiled. "I am Mag. Chaos City respects freedom of speech, so how is talking to you something very brave? Perhaps you could still lift up that fat arm of yours and jump up to hit my chin?"

The banquet hall fell into a silence for a brief moment. People were staring at the short and fat Harvey, and then the banquet hall burst into laughter. Many people were turning their heads around, trying to control their facial expressions.

A mister in a severe outfit took out a silk handkerchief to clean the clothes for the lady standing opposite him apologetically. "I've been formally trained not to laugh no matter how funny things are... unless I really couldn't control myself."

Harvey's face flushed and turned pale alternatively. The sounds of the surrounding laughter felt like slaps on his face. He had never been humiliated like this before. He clenched his fists, and coldly said to Mag, "Boy, you are playing with fire here."

"Playing with fire?" Mag chuckled. "My daughter is very good at playing with fire. If you ask politely, I don't mind letting her play with you for a while."

"You..." Harvey pointed at Mag with a trembling finger. He sucked in a few deep breaths to calm himself down before smirking at Mag. "Do you know how long she is going to spend in the prison for aggravated assault?"

"Aggravated assault?" Mag innocently asked the surrounding guests. "Excuse me, ladies and gentlemen, may I confirm that what happened earlier was a tall and fat young master trying to harass a weak and helpless lolita who had no choice but to raise her dainty little fist in resistance?"

Mag's gaze landed back on Harvey as he gravely asked, "Do you know how many years he could be locked up for molesting underage girls? How many strapping men he has to pick up soap for? As an accessory to his crime, don't you think you would be required to join him in there for a period of time?"

The guests' expressions became a little weird.

It sounded like the truth initially, as Roy did try to touch Babla and take advantage of her first... yet while this maiden looked petite, that was a mighty strike, okay?! Which part of her was dainty? She KO'd a bulky 90-kg man with a single punch. Not many of the guests present were able to do that.

But after Mag's analysis, it became very rational and successfully occupied the commanding heights of morality and law. And the talk about "picking up soap" was even too wonderful for words.

As expected, both father and son paled upon hearing that. They had been used to bullying people in their daily lives, so they couldn't react to someone who stood up to them.

"Father, I don't want to go to prison... I don't want to pick up soap..." Roy said terrifiedly as he grasped Harvey's sleeve with a pale face.

Harvey calmed himself down, and then told Mag, "You... You are sprouting nonsense! How could my son do anything to her in public? But everyone saw her beat him up. Don't think that you can twist the facts simply because you are eloquent. There are many witnesses here today. You guys are not getting away with this!"

"Getting away? Why should we get away? If you think you can alter the truth because you have more people on your side, you might have overestimated your influence and underestimated the Gray Temple's capabilities?" Mag smiled. If they were going to use connections, he really wasn't afraid of him. After all, he was holding a secret position with the city lord's castle—he was part of the system.

Harvey stared at Mag, who refused to accede to either threats or enticements, with an angry red face.

However, those guards were halted by Mag's words. They didn't dare to get involved in the big shots' fight, so they had no intention to help Harvey at all.

Boss is so formidable. He scared all of them without having to do anything. Yabemiya was looking at Mag with glowing eyes. Compared to him, she felt as if her mouth was fake.

Elizabeth was also looking at Mag with admiration. Although she was rather surprised at Mag's eloquence as he was completely different from his usual gentlemanly behavior he showed while he was with them, being tough to external threats was a good character trait.

Tsk. Seems like my help is not required. At the second floor's railing, Camilla swirled the red wine in her glass as she chuckled softly. Mag looked rather handsome when she looked at him from this particular angle.

Something's not right? What's wrong with me? Why would I find a man attractive?! Men are all trash! They're not good! Camilla swiftly shook her head to get rid of the weird thoughts in her head.

"What's going on?" Right then, a sinister voice spoke.

The guests gave way for Cyril, who was wearing bright red clothes and a green hat, to come through. He threw a glance at Mag and frowned. What was this fellow doing here?

Then, his gaze fell onto Roy, who was still sitting on the floor with a swollen cheek, and Harvey who was flushed. His demeanor changed as he asked, "Vice President Harvey, what happened to you?"

"This fellow. They hit my son and then maligned me and my son. They even said they wanted to send us to Bastie Prison." Harvey pointed at Mag and complained first even when they were the guilty party.

Great. This is the opportunity that I've been waiting for! Cyril's eyes lit up as he turned and frowned at Mag and Babla behind him. "You are not in the Chamber of Commerce, so how did you make your way in? Perhaps you are a thief who came here for the free food and drinks? Now, you are even hurting Roy maliciously and slandering the Chamber of Commerce's vice president. Guards, tie the two of them up and send them straight to the Gray Temple!"

Cyril was after all the president's son, and had always been deemed the Moreton Family's heir, so the guards had to act when they heard his orders. They surrounded Mag, and someone even took out a rope.

"Wait a minute!" Right at that moment, a melodious voice spoke up beyond the crowd.

At the same time, the host at the door announced, "Board Member Gloria has arrived!"

Chapter 1451: I Beseech You To Be Kind

Everyone parted to make a path for Gloria. Wearing a blue evening gown, Gloria was still as beautiful as ever tonight.

The guards halted in their steps. They looked at Gloria and then at Cyril before retreating to their original position.

Cyril watched Gloria come over with furrowed brows. He knew Mag and Gloria were connected. He wanted to embarrass them before Gloria came so Gloria would be embarrassed as well. He didn't expect she would arrive so early.

The guests were also looking at Gloria. Everyone knew the main characters of tonight's year-end celebration were Gloria and Cyril. The fight to be the heir of the Moreton Family between these two was already in the heated stage, and the result might be known tonight.

And, the show seemed to be starting right now.

Gloria came over to Mag, and nodded to him apologetically before saying to Cyril, "Uncle Cyril, Mr. Mag and everyone from the restaurant are guests that I invited. Please do not use the term 'thief' to describe them. This will make you look unreasonable and arrogant."

The guests showed hints of enlightenment. So this mister was invited by Miss Gloria. In that case, it could be explained why Cyril targeted them.

"Ha. I am unreasonable and arrogant? I think these several so-called guests of yours are the arrogant ones. They even dared to assault Vice President Harvey's son, Roy." Cyril smirked at Gloria, and aggressively said, "Gloria, as one of its board members, don't you know the Chamber of Commerce's rules on the banquet? Didn't you do a background check on them before you invited them? I think you are not up to standard as a board member."

After the guests heard that, they began to look at Gloria with thoughtful judgement. Although Scheer had already proven that being young and being female didn't mean that she didn't have the capabilities, compared to Scheer who had shown immense talents ever since young, this Miss Gloria, who suddenly appeared out of nowhere, seemed to be rather inadequate in the area of capabilities.

According to rumors, a board member meeting would be called on today's year-end celebration. Cyril had already formally requested to initiate a vote to depose Gloria as a board member, and the board had agreed.

The current situation made some neutral board members start to judge Gloria seriously.

Most of the board members didn't know this young mistress, who'd suddenly appeared to fight with Cyril for the position of the Moreton Family's heir, very well. They only knew that she had set up a rather profitable clothing store recently.

However, earnings of millions were nothing to them. It still wasn't enough to prove that she had the ability to be the Chamber of Commerce's board member and the heir of the Moreton Family.

"Mr. Mag is the boss and chef of Mamy Restaurant. He has once received the honor of being titled the best chef at the king of Roth Empire's court banquet, and raised the status of Chaos City's culinary scene among the cities of this world single-handedly. He persists in providing free breakfast for the cleaners every morning and spends a huge amount of funds to sponsor the poor children to go school. Is there a problem with such a kind and chivalrous man's character?" Gloria's gaze landed on Roy, who was still sitting on the floor, and she said in a loud voice, "As for Vice President Harvey's son Roy's character and reputation, I think everyone present has heard about them before. If the year-end celebration had a criterion for character before one is allowed to enter, the first person who couldn't enter has to be him, right?"

"Y-you are sprouting nonsense!" Roy shouted at Gloria furiously.

"I heard a few days ago that someone was galloping on his horse within the city. He knocked over a pregnant lady and caused her to miscarry. He later compensated her with a huge amount of money, and even threatened her before this matter was covered up and not escalated to the Gray Temple," Gloria said, looking at Roy.

"Something like that happened?"

All the guests appeared to be shocked. There was a rule that forbade riders from galloping on horses' backs within the city. Furthermore, knocking over a pregnant lady and causing her to miscarry was a serious crime. Even though Gloria didn't say out the name, could this matter be related to Roy?

"Hmm?" Mag, who hadn't said a word ever since Gloria appeared, was looking at her with astonishment. This girl came well-prepared.

"This..." Cyril went white too as he looked at Harvey and his son with uncertainty. He had never heard about that incident before.

Roy paled as he haltingly tried to explain, "S-she was jaywalking on the street. That's why I..."

"Shut up!" Harvey slapped him across his face. He even wished he could slap him all the way back to his mother's womb. He could have denied it completely, yet he had admitted it. Harvey looked at Gloria with his face flushing and paling in turns. He had settled this matter very secretively, so how did she find out about this?

"Seems like the rumor is true. That pregnant lady who was about to give birth was knocked down by you! Galloping in a busy city and causing the death of a child who was about to be born, yet you're not in the least remorseful, and even tried to malign the poor mother. You pretend nothing happened and came to attend the banquet. Moreover, you even harassed an underaged girl publicly, and then accused the other party when she resisted. Have you no shame at all?" Gloria was asking Roy in an agitated and indignant voice.

Roy hid behind Harvey instinctively with a shifty expression as he avoided Gloria's gaze.

"He's a f*cking scum!"

"What a poor child, what a poor mother. This is no different from murder!"

"One can indeed do whatever he pleases when he has money. He can even hide such a horrible crime."

The guests started to look at Roy with anger and disdain. Their emotions instantly switched over.

Gloria turned to gravely speak to Cyril who had a dark expression. "Uncle Cyril, you were defending a baby-killer and a maiden-molester by twisting the facts around in an attempt to paint the aggressor as the victim. Is this what you should have done as the Chamber of Commerce's board member? How could you, a father of two girls, have uttered those words earlier?

"I respect you as my elder, but I beseech you to be kind."

"I..." Cyril opened his mouth in an attempt to defend himself, but his mind was in a complete mess now. He had no idea how to handle this totally unexpected change of events.

The guests were also looking at Cyril with disgust and repulsion. Cyril was obviously on Roy's side. Birds of a feather flocked together. He wasn't a good man, either.

A few elderly board members were shaking their heads at Cyril, and they were looking at Gloria with an increasingly appreciative gaze.

Seems like I don't need to worry about this girl at all. In time, it's completely possible for her to vie with Scheer on equal footing. Mag, too, was looking at Gloria with approval, and he began to change his mind about weaving and textile factories. Gloria might be a more compatible partner.

Chapter 1452: We Will Need A Little Black Hut

"You..." Harvey pointed at Gloria. He wanted to say some harsh words, but after meeting the surrounding disdainful gazes, he was immediately deflated. He pulled Roy, who was covering his face with a panicked gaze, and quickly strode out.

"Very good. You're smarter than I anticipated." Cyril approached Gloria, and said in a low voice, "However, all your efforts will be in vain. You're going to lose everything tonight. I still prefer the way you looked with your head all covered up, hiding in a dark room. You should've stayed like that for the rest of your life."

"Then I'm sorry to disappoint you. I will never go back there since I decided to step out." Gloria smiled. "Besides, I am different from you. Everything that you owned was given to you, but everything that I have was achieved by my own hard work. You could never take it away from me."

"I hope you can smile later." Cyril clenched his fists as he left in a fit of anger.

Gloria heaved a breath of relief, and relaxed her tense body. She then realized her palms were all sweaty.

"Apart from being beautiful, this big sister also has good life values. She's fantastic."

"Sis, she's the boss of Blue Suede. The clothes that those ladies are wearing earlier in their latest collection are about to be released. Seems like they're really working together with Blue Suede. No wonder they are able to get the latest collection."

"The boss is actually so young! And so beautiful!"

Some maidens were looking at Gloria with appraisal and amazement. Then, the topic soon became how to get a full set of the latest Blue Suede's products.

"It seems like the rumors about Miss Gloria out there were a little biased. Her impromptu adaptability and how she conducts herself in public are way better than Cyril. In the younger generation, apart from Scheer, no one would be her match." An old man with white hair was chuckling in a private room on the second floor.

"Yes. In this case, Scheer is going to have a competitor, just like me and Jeffree then." Ian Buffett nodded with a smile. He was also looking at Gloria with appreciation. A hint of reminiscence flashed through his eyes when he brought up the past.

The way Gloria refuted Harvey, Roy, and Cyril gained the admiration of most of the guests present. After all, due to Harvey's and Cyril's identity, many of them didn't dare to speak up earlier even after witnessing what happened.

Gloria turned around to apologize to Mag and Babla. "I'm sorry, Mr. Mag and Miss Babla. You have been wronged."

"Big Sister Gloria, why should you apologize? You are not in the wrong. Besides, I've already taught that fellow a lesson," Babla said with a relaxed expression, but she was looking at Gloria with a friendly gaze. After all, they had just chosen their beautiful new clothes in her shop that afternoon.

Moreover, what made her even more respectful to her was that she defeated those fellows verbally. She made everybody stand on their side with her reasoning. Such an ability was really formidable, right?!

"This is nothing to us. But that was an excellent debate." Mag was also smiling at Gloria. Obviously, Gloria had already investigated Roy's matter way in advance, but their conflict with Harvey and Roy was not planned. Gloria could refute the other party and paint Cyril in a bad light at the same time. Her amazing adaptability to changes and vision of the overall situation had renewed his understanding of Gloria.

He had watched this girl remove her veil, begin her life as a normal person, get out of her house, and enter the business world. He had witnessed her growth personally.

Her fast speed and strong learning abilities had touched him.

"Thank you." Gloria blushed. Receiving Mag's praises made her even happier than refuting Cyril earlier.

"Go get yourself busy. We will take care of ourselves. Tonight is crucial to you." Mag smiled.

"Alright. Please come look for me immediately if you all need anything." Gloria nodded. She did have plenty to do now. For example, she had to meet some of the board members she hadn't met before and fight for their votes. Although Scheer promised to stand on her side, her current vote count was still rather precarious.

Damn that fellow. How dare he seduce my Miss Gloria again?! Camilla glared at Mag, feeling as if her heart was bleeding.

The guests began to arrive. Mag heard some familiar names, and met some familiar customers too. After making some small talk with them, he sat in a corner, and began to enjoy a glass of wine by himself.

"Why didn't we just kill that fellow earlier? Why were we wasting our effort arguing with him?" Camilla suddenly sat down next to Mag and took a sip of her red wine. She smiled at Mag. "You can ask me if you are not his match."

"We're civilized people. You should learn from Gloria how to resolve problems with words. Don't kill people on a whim," Mag said calmly. His gaze was following Gloria who was talking and socializing to people in the crowd gracefully. "What a nice girl."

"Aaaaah! Don't you look at her!" Camilla got up in a flash and blocked Mag's view.

"Countess Bartoli, people are watching us here." Mag looked at Camilla with a smile. He knew she liked Gloria, so he was toying with her.

Camilla also realized her action of blocking Mag's view was rather childish. People would have bad associations if they saw her, so she returned to her seat, and said through clenched teeth, "Don't force me."

"I am a man with two photostones," Mag calmly said.

"You..." Camilla blushed instantaneously, and she glared at Mag with anger and embarrassment. How did she get involved with this pervert who carried photostones with him everywhere he went?

Her handle was in Mag's hands, so Camilla chose to keep quiet and brood.

Mag leaned toward Camilla while using the wine glass to camouflage his movement, and softly said, "Speaking of it, I do have one person to kill tonight. Are you interested in joining me in the action?"

"Whom are we killing?" Camilla's interest was immediately piqued.

"Caster. An information vendor. He has been loitering around the restaurant lately. He should be after Connie." Mag used his wine glass to point at a middle-aged man wearing purple tights to the right.

"What an unchallenging target." Camilla simply flicked a glance at that man before retrieving her gaze boringly.

"Before killing him, I need to get some useful information from his mouth. Hence, we will need a little black hut."

"Little black hut!" Camilla's eyes lit up instantly, and she revealed an excited expression again. "That... is my forte."

Chapter 1453: Is He Dead?

Caster was flirting with a blonde girl. He was touching the short beard on his chin habitually, but his gaze was secretively sizing up Connie, who was crouching and drawing circles in a corner.

Even though her head was completely covered by the helmet, that petite figure began to slowly merge with that of the princess in his memory.

After this period of investigation, he was basically certain that this Mamy Restaurant's employee who had never shown her face was the Falk Tribe's Princess Connie.

As he was an excellent information broker, his intelligence network was spread all over the Norland Continent, and he had friends everywhere too.

His philosophy was: as long as he was paid, there wasn't any information that he couldn't get or people he couldn't find.

Before the rebellion happened in the Falk Tribe, he had supplied a series of information to Gary, including all the life habits of the all former chief's family members, to ensure that Gary's people could capture or kill everyone.

Gary's rebellion was very successful. The chief and his wife were killed on the spot. Their children and supporters were also either captured or killed.

If that little girl hadn't escaped, that operation would've been another one of his masterpieces on his resume that was worth boasting about.

It was a pity that the chief had created an escape path for her forcefully before he died, and allowed her to escape from the Twilight Forest to Chaos City. She had even managed to shake off all the orcs who pursued her.

In order to remove this tiny stain, he came to Chaos City personally. After lying low for half a month, he finally locked on his target.

He hadn't had a chance to strike before. He didn't expect to bump into her at this banquet. This was a good opportunity.

It would be the day of Gary's formal ascension a few days later. If he could deliver Connie to him, it would definitely bring him a fortune.

"Come with me, Connie." Mag went to Connie, and patted her shoulder gently.

"Huh?" As she couldn't eat with her helmet on, and making small talk with people felt weird, she could only crouch and draw circles in a corner. She quickly caught up after she saw Mag walk out.

Leaving? Caster saw Connie walking to the side door, so he smiled at the blonde lady that he was talking to, indicating that he needed to excuse himself. He then moved toward the side door stealthily. If he could catch her alone, today's banquet would be considered over for him.

That chap is indeed a bad guy. Camilla looked at Caster, who followed after Mag and Connie. Her gaze turned cold as she put down her wine glass and walked toward the side door calmly as well.

"Where are we going, Boss? Shouldn't we stay in the banquet hall?" Connie asked Mag softly, walking behind him.

"We need to find a little black hut now," Mag calmly replied.

"Little black hut!?" Connie tensed up, and her steps began to falter as she looked at Mag's back with tension and wariness. "Please don't do that, Boss. I'm not that kind of person."

"Hmm?" Mag halted his steps and turned to look at Connie. He suddenly realized this maiden most likely got the wrong idea. He held onto her helmet, and made her continue walking forward as he said, "Someone is following us. We're going to find a little black hut to catch him so we can find out what he is up to."

"Really?" Connie wanted to turn her head when she heard that.

"Don't turn around so he won't get suspicious." Mag lifted a finger from his hand on Connie's shoulder, and placed it against her helmet to stop her from turning her head.

"Oh." Connie acknowledged and stopped moving around. She let Mag bring her forward.

Where are they going? The banquet is starting very soon, and yet they chose to venture out now. Is there a secret between the two of them? Caster hid in the dark and watched the two of them disappear at the staircase at the end of the corridor with bewilderment. After waiting for a while, he quickly followed after them.

The second floor was the Chamber of Commerce's office area. Everyone was at the banquet hall, so the office area was pitch dark without a single person. It was perfect for him to strike now.

Caster came to the staircase and listened for movements. After making sure that no one was on the stairs, he snuck up gently as he withdrew the dagger at his waist with his right hand with a wary expression.

He had the power of a 6th-tier knight, which was more than enough to handle that Princess Connie. That princess had never cultivated herself before, so she was just a hapless chick in front of him.

Caster came to the second floor's stairs landing, and placed his ear against the wall to listen intently. Vague footsteps could be heard coming from the far right of the corridor. He slowly poked his head out to look at the end of the corridor.

The long corridor appeared in his vision, and a giant black shadow soon followed. In the one second before he fainted, he could deduce that it was a giant club.

Bam!

A dull thud. Camilla looked at Caster, who was unconscious on the floor, and tossed the big black club onto the floor casually before clapping her hands. "Done."

Mag walked over from the other side of the corridor with Connie. He raised his eyebrow after seeing that big black club. He, too, had been a victim of this black club once.

Come to speak of it, Camilla indeed excelled at ambushing.

"Is he dead?" Mag gave Caster a kick.

"No. A professional like me wouldn't have killed him so easily." Camilla shook her head matter-of-factly.

"That's good." Mag reached out to drag Caster by his collar to the end of the corridor. He pushed open the door to a storeroom, and then locked it after the three of them had stepped in.

This was obviously a small place for putting random stuff, with solid walls on all sides. Hence, it suited Mag's requirement for the little black hut.

Camilla lifted her hand to set a soundproof barrier, and stuck two luminous pearls onto the wall at the same time. The little black room lit up instantly.

Connie removed her helmet, and went to have a closer look at Caster. She frowned slightly. "Why do I find him familiar?

"...I remember. In a previous banquet, he was right by Gary's side. So, he had taken part in the rebellion too!"

"In Gary's rebellion, he was the one who supplied him with information," Mag softly said.

"Bastard! I'm going to kill him!" Razor-sharp claws sprung out from Connie's knuckles, about to stab Caster's heart.

"We need to get some information from him. You can kill him after we're done." Mag grabbed Connie's wrist before asking Camilla, "How can we wake him?"

"That's easy. It just has to be painful enough." Caster stepped on Caster's crotch with her hard stiletto heel.

Chapter 1454: How Are You Going To Return?

"Ow..."

Caster almost jumped up from the floor. However, before he could even close his mouth, he was bundled up by a rope and tied to a pole in the corner.

The pain in his crotch made him suck in cold air, and his mind went blank.

Mag, who was standing at the side, put his legs together instinctively. He was suddenly glad that Camilla hadn't woken him up with this method in the past. Otherwise, the story would have gone in the other direction.

"Tell me. How do you want to die?" Camilla coldly said. She took a set of whip and candles out of nowhere, and then snapped the whip across Caster's face, leaving a deep bloody mark.

Caster was totally awakened by the whip. Although the pain in his crotch was unbearable, he still tried his best to close his legs together and look at Camilla. With a panicked expression, he said, "Countess Bartoli, this has to be a misunderstanding—"

Smack!

Camilla didn't waste her breath as she whipped him again.

Caster clenched his teeth tightly together from the whipping because the whip was filled with spikes. Flesh was removed by it, and the pain was unbearable.

Connie came forward with tightly clenched fists, and asked Caster, "You came to look for me, right?"

"May I know who you are, Young Mistress? We may have some misunderstanding..." Caster told Connie, trying his best to smile despite the pain. He was very afraid, trying his best to think for a way out. He didn't expect he would fail and get caught today.

"Liar. You are Gary's lackey without a doubt. I saw you standing next to Gary on a Falk Tribe's banquet! You guys murdered my father and mother, and my family members!" Connie smashed her fist into Caster's chin, sending a few of his teeth flying.

"Cough, cough..." Caster spat out two mouthfuls of blood, and innocently said to Connie, "I think you got the wrong person. I don't know you, nor any Gary. I am just a normal merchant... Please let me go. I still have parents and children to support..."

"You..." Connie looked at Caster with a hint of hesitation on her face. Could she have made a mistake?

"Caster, also known as 'Vulture', from Donsner Town in the Roth Empire. He escaped from the empire in his early years because he killed his wife while he was drunk. Then, he began to wander around the continent, and became an information broker. He set up an enormous information network that covered every part of every species, and gained immense profits through selling information and intelligence. The 'Vulture' is very mysterious. Very few people know what he actually looks like. According to rumors, he even altered his looks several times, so he already looks vastly different from his early years." Mag smiled at Caster. "How many layers of skin do you have under this layer?"

Caster stared at Mag as his face began to twitch slightly. There was also fear in his eyes. This fellow was indeed not a simple chef and restaurateur as he had guessed. But looking at the situation now, he might never have the chance to find out his real identity.

Mag saw Caster acknowledge his words, and smilingly continued, "If you tell us how you helped Gary plot the rebellion and kill the chief of the Falk Tribe honestly, I can grant you a clean and quick death."

"Since I am still going to die, why am I wasting my breath with you? Did a donkey kick you in the head?" Caster smirked at Mag. "Are you trying to help her get the chief's position back? Ha, let me tell you this, you're never going to succeed. Gary already has full control of the Falk Tribe. How are you going to fight with him?"

Smack!

Camilla's whip landed on him again, and tore a strip of flesh off along with a piece of his clothes.

"Aaah..."

Caster was already shaking in pain. Interrogating was one of his fortes. It was just that he had never expected he would also be tied up and the whip with spikes would land on his body one day.

"Don't waste your breath, or else I am going to kill you slowly with my whip. Based on this efficiency, I would need at least 1001 strikes before I can tear all the flesh off from you. However, you should be still conscious then, and you can't die even if you want to. I will use healing potions to heal your injuries and repeat everything again." Camilla smiled at Caster with an enthusiastic glow in his eyes.

"You... You cannot do that to me..." Caster broke down instantly. He struggled to move, but it only earned him two more strikes with the whip.

The intense pain came from his wounds. Caster swayed left and right, but he wasn't able to loosen the ropes on his body.

"I'll tell... I'll tell you everything..." Caster cried when he saw Camilla lifted the whip up again.

Smack!

The whip still landed on Caster, and left a bloody mark on his thigh.

"Excuse me, I didn't realize you are so useless. You can't even endure for three seconds." Camilla wasn't apologetic at all. She still held the whip, and didn't have the slightest intention to keep it away.

Caster was in immense pain, but he dared not utter an angry word. His gaze landed on Connie. "Yes. I helped Gary plan the rebellion and kill the chief, his wife, and all the orcs who supported him. I supplied Gary with all information on them, which allowed him to kill all the orcs who could alter the outcome of this rebellion with the most efficient method in the shortest time.

"And you are the only accident in this plan. If you hadn't escaped, I would've already been sitting in your Falk Tribe's palace as Gary's close adviser and Falk Tribe's most esteemed guest," Caster shouted angrily at Connie through clenched teeth. "Why did you run? You should have died along with your damned father! Why did you survive on your own?"

"I..." Connie took two steps back instinctively with pain and sadness in her eyes. She backed off, shaking her head as she didn't want to recall what had happened that night.

Right then, a hand pressed against her back, and stopped her from backing away as Mag gently said, "You're not at fault."

"B-but Father was killed because of me..." Connie couldn't stop her tears from flowing. She couldn't forget how her father pushed her out of the palace and used his body to block the door. If it wasn't because of her, her father could have escaped. Boundless guilt flooded her.

"Making sure that you survived was your father's greatest consolation." Mag shook his head. He pointed at Caster as he gravely said, "And killing these bad people to avenge your parents and rescue your brother is what you should do from now on. If you can't even take your enemies' nasty words, how are you going to return?"

Chapter 1455: You Can Ask Me To Teach You

The little black room's door was slowly shut, and everything in it was returned to its original position. Apart from a puddle of water that was slowly drying up in the corner, the cleaners who were going to come here to get their tools tomorrow wouldn't find anything unusual.

Connie kept that hand-drawn map properly on her as she perplexedly asked Mag, "Boss, how did you know that he knew where my brother is locked up?"

She already knew what she was going to do when her sharp claws stabbed into that bastard's heart.

"First, we can't be sure this map is real. This may be a trap set by the other party when he knew he couldn't escape, so we can't believe it fully.

"Secondly, whatever he has said earlier was our actual purpose. If our rescue mission is a success and we manage to overthrow Gary's rule, the stuff in this photostone will be the evidence of Gary's crimes and allow you to gain the trust of your people quickly again." Mag tossed the photostone to Connie.

This pervert does indeed bring photostones with him everywhere he goes! Camilla watched Connie catch the photostone, and was even more sure of her speculation.

Mag didn't care about Camilla's gaze, and continued to say to Connie, "However, since he could recognize you by your figure, I'm afraid you cannot go along with us even if we obtain the legal identities to go to the Falk Tribe. The mission will fail as soon as you're recognized."

"Mm-hm." Connie nodded.

"Let's go. The banquet should be starting soon." Mag was the first to go downstairs. Music could already be heard from the banquet hall.

Flattering was naturally a part of the year-end celebration. The four major families that founded the Chamber of Commerce were lavishly praised before dishing out the awards to the individual businessmen who improved greatly in the past one year. The ambience was rather boisterous.

Mag sat in a corner and looked at this scene nonchalantly. He remembered the times when he was watching his family's company's year-end celebration in his mother's arms, sitting in the very first row.

The company wasn't big then, and there were no big celebrities at the celebration. His dad would even get up on stage to sing with his employees. The programs weren't excellent, but it was warm with a human touch. The employees were the main characters.

After that, the show got bigger and bigger. The lights on stage resembled those from a concert, and A-list singers were invited to perform. The ambiance was boisterous, but the year-end celebration no longer seemed to be about the employees, and he had never taken part in it again.

"Father, do you want to try this fruit? It tastes sweet and sour, and is super delicious. Furthermore, the teeth would become purplish-red after eating it." Amy ran over to Mag with a small fruit plate and smiled widely, revealing a row of purplish-red teeth.

"Look at your purplish-red teeth." Mag chuckled as he looked at the pea-sized purplish-black berries that resembled blueberry on the small fruit plate. Before he could reach out for it, Amy already grabbed one, and fed it to him on her tiptoes.

Mag opened his mouth to accept the berry. The thin skin burst when he bit down lightly, and the sourish sweet taste blossomed. Its texture and taste was in between a grape and a blueberry. It was really rather delicious.

"Isn't it very nice?" Amy asked expectantly.

"Mm-hm. It's sourish-sweet and indeed very nice." Mag nodded with a smile as he patted Amy's head. "Go and play. Don't run around and knock into people."

"Mm-hm. Then I will leave this plate of berries here for you." Amy nodded obediently, and placed the small fruit plate onto the table in front of Mag before skipping away.

"This little one." Mag's gaze followed Amy until she joined her little friends. Gina had already taken up the role of the children's playmate now. She was playing with the children who followed their parents to the banquet. He could see that she really adored kids.

"Let's talk about our terms. What can I do to make you stop pestering my Miss Gloria?" Camilla asked in a low voice, sitting across from him.

"There's nothing between us. You cannot say otherwise to tarnish our reputation," Mag replied calmly, tossing a berry into his mouth.

"Do you think I will believe you when you say that?" Camilla rolled her eyes.

"That would be up to you. Go and pursue her if you really like her. If you don't even have that courage, what's the point of attacking your imaginary enemy? You can ask me to teach you if you don't know how to." Mag smiled.

"Ha, I don't need you to teach me. She will be mine soon or later!" Camilla snorted and turned her head around.

She did want to pursue her, but her earlier actions seemed to have frightened Gloria. Not only did it not have any positive effects, it even pushed her toward Mag.

Even though she turned her face to the other side, her gaze couldn't help looking at Mag as she secretly wondered, Although this fellow is a little perverted, he seems to be rather attractive to women. Perhaps he really has some secret techniques? If l learned them, would I be able to change Miss Gloria's opinion about me?

"I thank all members for their support and contribution to the Chamber of Commerce in the past year. It allowed the Chamber to enjoy a great business reputation throughout the continent. I also wish everyone a wealthy and prosperous new year." Jeffree gave a concluding speech for the awards ceremony as the president of the Chamber of Commerce.

There was a warm applause from the audience. Most of the members present were beaming and proud.

Jeffree was about to get off the stage after giving his speech.

"Please wait a minute, President!" Cyril, who was seated close to the center of the stage, got up, walked onto the stage, and said to Jeffree, "Today's the Chamber of Commerce's year-end celebration, and according to the Chamber's regulations, we can hold a board members' meeting if we have important matters to discuss, right?"

Jeffree looked at Cyril with slightly furrowed brows.

All the audience's gazes were also fixed on Cyril. Apart from the board members, the normal members present had no idea what Cyril wanted to do. He actually wanted to call for a board members' meeting.

"As one of the Chamber of Commerce's board members, I believe Board Member Gloria, who was recently promoted, isn't suitable to be a board member. Neither her qualifications nor abilities were sufficient to be the Chamber's board member, and her previous promotion wasn't discussed and voted on by the board members, so I suspect it for noncompliance," Cyril said to Jeffree loudly. "Hence, I suggest that the president calls for a board meeting now and votes to decide if Gloria should continue to be a board member of the Chamber. If more than half of the votes are against her, in accordance with the constitution of the board, we should immediately rescind her board member's position."

The banquet hall descended into a complete silence as all the guests stared at the father and son duo on the stage with shocked expressions.