2026-04-21 13:24:55
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Chapter 167
I watched them. The Queen of Aven and my Second-in-Command, two women who could probably conquer a continent with a well-placed glare, bickering over me like two siblings fighting over the last piece of Kylan's garlic frog.My heart did a weird little flip—not because of the 250,000 VP bonus, but because for the first time since I woke up in this realm, I didn't feel like a merchant on a mission.I felt... wanted. I felt like I had a home, even if that home was currently a heated argument between a monarch and a maid-assassin. It tasted better than the gold-fizzy wine. It tasted like belonging."Ladies," I said, standing up and brushing the dust off my [CEO-Red] jacket. I felt a surge of genuine warmth that had nothing to do with the fire. "As much
Chapter 166
"You're staring," she said, not looking up from the fire."I'm observing. There's a difference.""Of course there is."She patted the ground beside her. "Sit.""I'm comfortable here.""You're standing. That's not comfortable.""I'm emotionally comfortable.""Sit, Merchant Lord."I sat.The fire crackled. The mountain air was cold and clean and smelled like pine and snow and something ancient. In the distance, an owl hooted. Probably judging me."Tell me about the Keeper," I said, because I needed to talk about something that wasn't flirtation and VP bonuses."She's old. Older than me. Older than my mother. Older than the palace, maybe. She lives in the mountains alone, reading books that should have crumbled to dust centuries ago.""And she knows about the thing beneath the roots?""She knows about everything. That's her job.""How do we convince her to help us?"The Queen—Ariadne—turned to look at me. Her dark eyes were serious now, the flirtation gone, replaced by something heavier.
Chapter 165
She leaned forward, the movement fluid and intentional, and reached into the mini-fridge. The clink of crystal against crystal was the only sound in the carriage besides the rhythmic thud of the horses' hooves.She pulled out two glasses and a bottle of something sparkly that caught the light like trapped stars."Drink?""It's nine in the morning," I noted, my internal clock still screaming about the breakfast burrito I hadn't finished."Time is a construct, Merchant Lord.""I can't argue with that," I sassed, checking the 1.5 million VP balance on my phone out of habit.She poured. The liquid hissed into the glass, a golden, effervescent foam. I took a sip. It was fizzy and sweet, hitting my tongue with a burst of flavor that tasted like summer, expensive mistakes, and the kind of bad decisions that lead to "Hostile Takeovers."Elsa refused hers. She didn't even look at the glass. She was glaring at Ariadne with a violet intensity that could have pierced dragon scales. If looks could
Chapter 164
I sat there for a moment, the gold-leafed air of the VIP dining room pressing in on me, my heart hammering a frantic rhythm against my ribs. The bubbles from the Queen's "bad decision" drink were still fizzing in my throat, but my brain was elsewhere—caught in the static of a long-awaited digital resurrection.Then—Ding.The sound didn't just play; it resonated inside my skull like a silver hammer hitting a tuning fork. It was familiar, horrifying, and absolutely wonderful. My eyes widened, my pupils dilating as the neon-blue light of the VENUS SYSTEM flooded my vision for the first time in what felt like an eternity.I’d missed it. I’d missed the mindless scrolling, the One Piece updates, and the sweet, sweet dopamine of interdimensional shopping.I ignored Ariadne’s piercing gaze and pulled up my HUD with a flick of my wrist, my fingers trembling with a mix of caffeine and pure, unadulterated geek-joy.[SYSTEM UPDATE: COMPLETED][NEW ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: ROYAL FLIRTATION]My jaw
Chapter 163
We spent the night in the palace—actual beds, actual pillows, actual food that wasn't burnt or glowing or screaming. Barnaby cried a little when he tasted the palace bread. "It's so soft," he whispered. "How do they make it so soft?""They use ovens, Barnaby. Not campfires.""Ovens.""Yes. Ovens.""I need an oven.""We'll get you an oven.""I need fifteen ovens.""We'll get you one oven. And you'll be grateful."He was not grateful. He was inspired. By morning, he'd filled three pages of Helda's clipboard with oven designs and bread recipes and something called "sourdough starter," which he kept in a jar that he refused to let anyone touch."Don't touch the starter," he said every time someone walked near the jar."I wasn't going to touch the starter.""Don't.""I'M NOT TOUCHING THE STARTER!"Red the robot beeped and poked the jar."RED!"The robot rolled away. Barnaby chased him. Herbert chased Barnaby. Elsa took notes.I sat on the balcony of my guest room, looking out at the Aven c
Chapter 162
"Aven is weird," Elsa muttered beside me."Aven is enthusiastic. There's a difference.""Enthusiasm and weirdness are not mutually exclusive.""Tonight, they are."The Aven palace was... different.Not Gothic—no obsidian cliffs, no dramatic spires, no architecture designed by someone who hated windows. It was white and gold and open, with columns and gardens and fountains that actually had water in them. It looked like a place where people went on vacation, not a place where people prepared for war."Welcome to the Sun Palace," the lead guard said, gesturing at the building with a sweep of his spear. "The Queen will see you now."
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