Chapter 370 Announcement
Lesia Moni looked at her young sister with a mixture of twisted schadenfreude and a condescending, faint pity, watching her lift her skirt and greet the black-haired young man in a soft voice.
Her father had always been like this, a mercenary, cold-blooded old bastard. His children were nothing more than resources to him, and he might even be less generous and magnanimous towards his daughter than he was towards a capable subordinate. When she lost her value, if the lovers she had worked so hard to cultivate over the years refused to save her, her fate would probably be worse than those experimental subjects.
This girl is quite lucky, Lesia thought jealously. The first man was at least a handsome young man, unlike her who had to hold back her tears and put on a smile to flatter and serve a fat-headed old rich businessman. God knows how much she wanted to pick up the broken porcelain pieces hidden under her pillow, kill him and then commit suicide when that pig was pushing against her.
But this little sister of hers wasn't particularly lucky either. The Limin Army didn't have a good reputation among them; they were a group of cruel and brutal slaves and bandits. Even a handsome bandit leader was still a dirty, crude, and low-class person. It was unclear how long she could maintain this artificially delicate and innocent look on her face.
Victoria's voice was as light as a feather. "Greetings, Mr. Ghost. My father often mentioned you and praised your foresight and wisdom. I never thought I would actually meet you tonight."
The compliments and admiration were not too flattering, but just the right amount of weakness and innocence. She chose her words carefully, with the shyness unique to young girls, as if she had rehearsed this countless times.
Mr. Ghost's gray eyes finally fell on her. There was no contempt, no disgust, no pity... There was nothing in them, just a kind of insightful indifference, so that the expression on the girl's face gradually became stiff. Seeing that her father had not noticed yet, she immediately lowered her head shyly.
Lionel's smile widened, as if he were showing off his daughter's performance, like showing off a piece of expensive jewelry that had been carefully polished. Lesia believed that soon—perhaps tonight—her little sister would be used as part of the phantom's scheme to win over the other party, like a carefully wrapped gift to be delivered to the ghost's bed.
Of course, it is more likely that she would have her beautiful thin neck twisted off alive late at night or early in the morning.
The other party was a madman who had overthrown the city of Osiris and taken over half of the empire in one fell swoop. Lesia herself would not choose such a dangerous target... Unfortunately, her little sister had no choice.
But her father's ambitions were greater than Lesia could have imagined.
"Well, young people should talk more," Lionel said meaningfully. "Forgive me for being so talkative, but I'm just wondering if Mr. Ghost, who's so young and promising, is married?"
Actually, it doesn’t matter if there are any, Lionel thought disdainfully, which successful man doesn’t have a few gentle and considerate lovers outside?
...He didn't know if it was an illusion, but he always felt that the banquet hall was inexplicably cold - were the servants lazy and didn't light the fire?
"I have a lover who I have decided to spend my life with."
The black-haired young man raised his eyes expressionlessly. He heard a low laugh from the person next to him. The sound was like a snake slowly crawling into his ear, soft, lingering, and so itchy that he even trembled slightly - stop it. He couldn't help but poke the guy lightly under the table, but the others seemed not to hear the low laugh at all. They all stared with wide eyes and held their breath, waiting for his and Lionel's next reaction.
...To be honest, he didn't want to discuss his personal feelings in detail with this disgusting old man. He always felt that he would get some disgusting remarks, which might even tarnish his lover and those sincere and precious feelings.
Magnus, watching from the sidelines, couldn't help but blink slowly. The gods' game of pretend wasn't over yet? He was truly the Mad King.
"Which lucky lady is this?" Lionel asked in surprise. There had never been any news circulating in the market that the ghost had a family. Otherwise, those who sought revenge on the ghost would have sold this information for a fortune on the black market. "Could it be the rumored Miss Emilia Carleton, Countess Carleton?"
Hearing this familiar name, Roland Moni suddenly raised his head and glared at the ghost with murderous eyes. He completely forgot to hide his expression and almost wanted to grab the ghost's collar to question him.
But his father glanced at him coldly, and Roland shuddered as if awakened from a dream, and stopped his eager steps. His face flushed, and he subconsciously opened his mouth to explain to his father, but he had already looked away.
Silly boy, you are still too naive, Lionel shook his head secretly in his heart. What does a woman mean? As long as you have money and power, you can get any woman you want.
He supported his son's passionate pursuit of the "Countess" who flaunted her fame and pretended to be aloof. Was he encouraging him to pursue love bravely? How could that be possible? Of course, it was all for the "Dark Green Potion" that she controlled!
"I don't like women," said the ghost coldly.
——Don’t let an innocent girl lose her life.
This time, even Lionel Money's smile froze. He stared at the man who looked so matter-of-fact, completely oblivious to what he had just said. He couldn't help but think with mixed feelings that this man was indeed an aristocrat, his interests were so similar to those of those old-fashioned people...
Lionel instinctively glanced at Roland Mony, who was equally stunned. His penchant for beautiful women of all kinds was now apparent. His son was indeed quite handsome, but it was a shame that raising him had consumed so much of his energy that selling him off like that would be too expensive. Could this be the reason the ghost had abducted Emilia Carleton?
...Well, it's not that we can't talk about it. After all, I still have many sons, but making a deal with a ghost is an opportunity that can't be missed.
Catching sight of Lionel's pensive gaze, Roland's lips trembled violently. A surge of public humiliation and an unprecedented, strange, and unfamiliar sense of shame and indignation surged through him. He no longer had the condescending air he had used to mock his sisters, and he even took a step back in a moment of utter fear.
The mercenary, who was almost completely invisible, silently shifted his gaze between Mr. Ghost and the dragon knight beside him. He felt as if he had learned something extraordinary...
What were they looking at Roland Mooney for? The professor watched the two men's pantomime, bewildered. The faces of those around them produced hundreds of micro-expressions in just a few seconds. Even he sometimes couldn't fathom what went on inside the human brain. When he finally realized what was going on, his eyes instantly turned cold.
"I don't like men either," the ghost added grimly.
Roland's face looked extremely ugly.
He should have been relieved, secretly comforting himself that his father wouldn't be so shameless... but he also felt as if he had suffered some kind of great humiliation, and nothing was right no matter how he looked at it.
Azuka stared quietly from under his hood at these guys who were showing their ugly faces, and his fingertips couldn't help but twitch for a moment.
...So dirty.
"Just say it." The professor finally lost all patience. He sarcastically said, "Besides, what exactly do you want me to communicate with Miss Moni? How can I endure the stench of your impending death?"
Dead silence.
Magnus couldn't help but curl his lips, observing the ever-changing expression on Lionel's face with interest. Humiliated in front of his children, the warm, waxen smile on his face finally cracked, and the admiration and kindness that floated in his deep brown eyes was replaced by a rapidly rising shock and rage.
Except for Ethan, who was watching coldly from the side, all of Lionel's children's faces changed. They knew very well how cruel their father was, and how taboo they were about others mentioning the damn stench that reminded him that he was rotting from the inside out.
Lionel Money's current status could not have been achieved solely through his farsighted business acumen and generous personality. It could be said that every gold coin he earned was etched with the wailing and blood of countless people.
And at this moment, the tycoon who controls a huge business empire finally revealed his cold and hideous true nature.
"...Ghost, sir." Lionel Money slowly stood up. He spoke slowly, word by word, "You rudely sneaked into my home under an assumed name. I didn't blame you. I even graciously invited you to my family dinner and even introduced my precious daughter to you."
——I almost introduced my precious son to Mr. Ghost, the mercenary beside him added sarcastically in his heart.
"But how have you repaid me?" The tycoon's voice grew colder and darker. "You rejected my kindness, teased my children... and wantonly trampled on and insulted my dignity."
"First, you call it an insult, I call it the truth." The guy didn't seem flustered at all. He crossed his legs and leaned lazily against the back of his chair, as if he were sitting on a throne. "Has everyone around you lost their sense of smell? I don't believe it."
Before Lionel could speak, he continued, "Secondly, I didn't tease your children. Please don't slander me."
The mysterious man who had been sitting next to the ghost and whose face was hidden by a hood suddenly moved before anyone could react.
It was as if space itself was slightly distorted for a moment, and without even causing the slightest breeze, he had silently appeared behind the ghost, like a loyal and dutiful knight behind the throne, one hand gently clasped on the black-haired young man's shoulder, showing a very obvious protective... and possessive gesture.
"He said he has a lover."
The god's clear, melodious voice, calmly and majestically, filled the entire hall. Wherever it reached, those already brimming with anger at Lionel Money's wrath paled, pausing to move. Had Azuka not restrained himself, the god's pressure would have been enough to cause a normal person to vomit blood and pass out.
Even Magnus and Ethan, who were not affected, had their expressions slightly changed by the god's hidden anger. The only one who remained calm was one person, who was lazily leaning back in his chair, grasping the hand on his shoulder as if to comfort or prove something, while the other hand elegantly raised the third finger.
"Third, reject your kindness."
"I admit that, Moni." He twitched his lips, as if trying to smile, but it looked more like a sneer. "There really is nothing to discuss between the People's Party and a shameless, inhumane, and deeply sinful person."
Moreover, based on all the information he had obtained, the current "Shelter" company might rashly release the demon called radiation sickness to the whole world at any time.
The ghost's gray eyes showed a strange and solemn brightness in the candlelight.
"—and so far, all I've found is that you deserve to be hanged from a lamppost, Sir Lionel Money."
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