Imperial Crown.

Chapter 555 Truly Not Affectionate About Women (Part 1)

Clatter clatter
The high heels clicked softly on the carpet. The newcomer carefully approached Raven, extending her two delicate hands, each with the index and middle fingers joined like swords, and gently massaged Raven's temples. She was not only afraid of hurting Raven, but also afraid of waking him.

Their cautiousness is heartbreaking.

The saying goes, "You can recognize a woman by her fragrance." The moment the woman opened the door, Raven, though he didn't open his eyes, knew who she was from the subtle orchid scent. Raven reached out and gently massaged her soft hand on his shoulder.

It was this action that emboldened the woman slightly. She circled around from behind the sofa and gently lay down in Raven's arms. Looking at the man before her, whose face was resolute and whose expression, though devoid of anger, exuded an imposing aura, the woman couldn't resist. Half tentatively and half timidly, she leaned in and lightly pecked him on the cheek.

"Patty, have you ever thought about settling down?"

"My lord, I miss you," she uttered, words she had mustered with all her strength and courage, before she could overcome her shyness and speak them aloud. Her words were like a chilling drench poured over her, chilling her to the bone. Patty trembled, her limbs numb and her hands and feet ice-cold as if struck by lightning. She had a premonition, but she hadn't expected this day to come so quickly, so unexpectedly, so swiftly. Patty couldn't remember how long it had been since she had been with her lord. Since Lady Nancy's death, Lord Raven had never favored her again. And Lady Nancy had been dead for nine years. How could Patty not remember? She remembered clearly, vividly, and… chillingly. Indeed, now that her lord was a marquis, he naturally didn't want to share a bed with someone of such low birth. He no longer needed her as he had in his youth.

"Bah"

Patty wisely tried to get up, but her heart was pounding and her mind was blank, leaving her completely powerless. She fell heavily to the ground with a soft groan as she tried to rise.

The cough startled Raven, who quickly opened his eyes and picked her up, placing her on the sofa. Touching her icy hands, Raven smiled. "I was just asking because I was afraid you might have something to say but didn't. I'm not trying to kick you out. If you don't want to, you can stay here for the rest of your life."

“Thank you, sir,” Patty said weakly. Then she slowly lowered her head, tears falling like pearls, and sobbed, “I understand, I understand, sir. I’m over 30 now, and I can no longer be like I was when I was a child…” She choked on her words and could no longer continue.

After all, they'd been inseparable for years; it would be a lie to say there were no feelings between them. Looking at the heartbroken Patty, Raven felt a pang of sadness. He pulled a decorative silk handkerchief from his pocket and wiped her tears, then pulled her into his arms. "Silly girl, what are you saying? My Patty is beautiful." "Don't cry," she said. "It's just that right now I'm focused on cultivating and breaking through my limits." "So..."

Praising Petty's beauty was absolutely not a flattering remark. Although Petty was indeed not young, she had been with Raven since childhood and had lived a life of luxury in Eagle City for many years. Her temperament and appearance completely surpassed those of ordinary people. With Petty's poise and conversation, people would probably believe she was a viscountess if she were outside. However, she was, after all, of servant birth, and it was unrealistic for her to expect a future from Raven.

The longer it dragged on, the more it would hurt her. Raven had long realized this, so over the years, he had never let Patty serve him again.

"I only hate myself," "I'm so useless," "I didn't give you any children." Patty cried harder and harder, as if releasing all the pent-up grievances she had kept inside for so many years. She spoke haltingly, gasping for breath. If anyone else had said these words, like Mrs. Doreen, Raven would have only felt disgusted. After all, Raven knew that she wanted children only to tie him down. But when Patty said these words, Raven could hear the extreme resentment she felt towards him.

Strangely enough, aside from the time he unexpectedly conceived Melove after breaking through with a seventh-tier magic core, Raven was unable to conceive with anyone else. This sometimes led Raven to wonder, late at night, if there was something wrong with his body.

"Sigh, don't cry, grandma." "I really didn't think much of it." Raven tried to comfort her for a long time but to no avail, and could only say with a headache, "I'll come find you tonight."

"Really?" This trick worked! Patty immediately stopped crying. Her makeup was ruined from crying, and she asked with panda eyes.

Raven nodded. "Actually, if you knew me, you'd know that I'm really not interested in women." He then smiled sheepishly. "Go, go and call Hyena over here."

Patty nodded vigorously. "I know, sir. I've always known." With that, she got up and swayed away like a cat.

Soon, a hyena, clad in armor and nearly 1.9 meters tall, entered and said in a deep voice, "My lord, you wanted to see me."

Raven nodded. "This is the Battle Mother Potion. You and Link each get one bottle. Break through as soon as possible; the storm is brewing."

Over the years, Bloodstone Territory has only managed to refine six bottles of Tier 3 Battle Mother Potions. One bottle was used as a reward for hosting the [Raven Arena Tournament]. One bottle was given to Mansani. That leaves only four bottles. Now, after giving one to Hyena and Link, only two bottles remain. However, Raven hasn't decided who to give them to yet.

Both he and Eric have already broken through to the fourth level of transcendent, so this potion is no longer needed. It can only be used on second or third level transcendents.

"Yes," the hyena replied succinctly.

“Go and call William and Paine up,” Raven said.

"Yes, sir." The hyena turned and left.

tuk tuk tuk

Half an hour later, there was a knock on the door.

"Go in," Raven said without looking up.

William walked ahead, with Pain close behind. William, adorned in angelic feathers, was only slightly pale and somewhat inhuman; otherwise, he looked more like a model than Raven, his entire aura visibly elevated seven or eight levels. Pain, on the other hand, remained in his "robe," somewhat resembling a monk's patched-up cassock, a style of clothing unique to the Kingdom of Podomichre.

“Master.” “Benefactor.” The two spoke one after the other. However, unlike William, Paine bowed slightly.

Raven gestured for the two to sit down. "William," he said, "how long have you been with me?"

“Uh…” William was taken aback. He clearly hadn’t expected Raven to ask this question so suddenly. He rolled his eyes and thought for a while before saying, “About 14 or 5 years.”

"Time flies," Raven sighed. In the blink of an eye, William had already been with him for 14 years.

“This is your magical contract.” Raven took out the soul contract and tossed it into the fireplace. “Today, I return your freedom.” The magical contract was burned by the flames, turning into white ash. A faint light appeared and fell upon Raven and William’s heads. The two instantly felt a weight lifted from their souls. It was a wondrous feeling that could only be understood intuitively. It was also one of the few magical soul contracts Raven possessed.

Only now did a look of emotion appear on William's pale, plaster-like face. He knelt down with a thud, "Thank you for your kindness, Master." "You... will you stay or leave?" Raven asked in a deep voice. To be honest, Raven was somewhat reluctant to part with a powerful fourth-tier fighter. But Raven had his own principles; he always kept his word and fulfilled his promises to his subordinates.

"..." After a moment of contemplation, William stood up and looked up. "Master, I'd like to go home and visit first."

“No problem.” Raven nodded. It seemed William was indeed somewhat hesitant. Raven waved his hand. “Let’s go.”

“William will always remember your kindness.” William bowed again, then looked up and hesitated for a moment before saying, “Master, I also have a small territory in Slaver’s Bay.” As he spoke, William took out a blood-red seal. “This is a token. If you need it, you can use it to take over the territory.”

"Huh?" Raven's interest was piqued. He picked up the palm-sized seal and examined it. It was incredibly heavy, and a strong, nauseating smell of blood emanated from it, as if it had been soaking in a pool of blood for ten thousand years. "How come you have territory?" Having known William for so long, Raven had never heard him mention it even once. This kid's mouth is so tight!
“You’ve forgotten… when we first met, I told you I was a vampire viscount. How could a viscount not have his own territory? It’s just a bit small and a bit out of the way.” William’s face showed a smug expression. “I learned that from you, always leaving yourself a way out, isn’t that right?”

"Tch," Raven chuckled speechlessly, weighing the seal in his hand. "You really want to give it to me?"

"We two who and who!!" William stood up straight and shouted loudly. But there was a hint of "tragic" in his voice.

Raven: ...

Raven tossed the stamp back. "I appreciate the sentiment! But I don't need the gift. All good things must come to an end. Let me know when you're leaving." It wouldn't make a difference if William left a little longer; Raven was even thinking of throwing him a farewell party.

William smiled, said nothing, put away the seal, transformed into a streak of blood-red light, flew out of the window, and disappeared into the vast night.

Raven's smile froze. "This guy." He shook his head with a hint of disappointment. He'd forgotten that most farewells in life don't involve grand send-off ceremonies, warm goodbye hugs, or heartfelt goodbyes... only silent departures. The future... may not be long, and the mountains and rivers... may not lead to reunions. And those who cherish the past are destined to remain forever in yesterday.

Composing himself, Raven smiled at Pain and asked, "Pain, are you settling in well here?"

“Much stronger than the Orc Empire, my benefactor,” Pain said humbly. Looking at Raven, now young and full of energy again, Pain was already numb with shock. He had always heard that Raven was very young, but when he actually met him, he realized that this guy, who looked only in his early twenties, was already a marquis in the ancient empire of Keynes. This kind of impact could never be truly understood without experiencing it firsthand.

“Just call me sir.” “No need to keep calling me benefactor. Haven’t you heard the saying, ‘The greatest villains are like loyal ones’?” Raven said meaningfully.

"Yes... sir," Pan En hurriedly said, even more respectfully.

“No need to be nervous.” Raven picked up his coffee and lightly clinked it against the other man’s glass. “You should know why I asked you to come back with me, right?”

“I know, my lord.” Pain took a small sip of Angel’s Tear. “It’s for the Bloodstained Highlands.”

Raven nodded. "That's right! This is what I promised Sliver, even though he betrayed the contract and deserved to die! But since I've signed a contract with his daughter, I'll naturally keep my promise." "I'll have Margaret take you to the Bloodstained Highlands. You can survey the area and then designate a piece of land there as werewolf territory. Remember, the area must be vast and large!" Although the Bloodstained Highlands are vast, they are resource-poor and have always been a ticking time bomb lurking behind Raven's territory. Especially after he migrated from his ancestral lands to Snowmaple Territory, the safety of his ancestral lands became even more precarious. The last time this bomb exploded, it directly killed Nancy. Raven never wanted to experience such a tragic and painful event again.

Bandits are a never-ending problem. After all, next door lie Slaver's Bay, the Insa Empire, and the sea creatures and orcs of the deep sea. Many bandits are even deliberately and secretly cultivated by the Insa Empire. Therefore, the only truly effective solution is to establish a safety barrier, also known as a buffer zone. While this wouldn't guarantee complete security, it would at least provide Raven with an extra crucial and predictable safeguard. Pain is an extremely intelligent man, and Raven's words were quite blunt; he will surely understand Raven's true intentions.

“I understand.” “I understand, sir.” Pan said cryptically, “I’ve been telling myself that the Bloody Highlands have long been unclaimed territory. Don’t worry, not only werewolves, but even goblins and eaglemen would likely be interested.” “Setting up a presence in the Bloody Highlands isn’t entirely without merit; at the very least, it allows us to monopolize trade.”

"Wow!" Raven patted Pain on the shoulder excitedly. "Pain, I must say, you're a truly exceptional person." This guy's brain is just too sharp! If all his subordinates were as cunning as Pain, Raven's life would be so much easier! It's just that he's not very loyal. He's the same to everyone. But Raven can handle him like a little chick, and he's not afraid of him betraying him.

"You flatter me, sir," Pan En said modestly.

"Speak, what do you want?" Raven naturally understood that simply whipping without giving a carrot was not a long-term solution.

"My first thought, of course, is revenge." A predatory glint flashed in Pain's eyes. Who raised him to adulthood, and who turned him into a eunuch… he remembered it all perfectly. "However, perhaps the timing isn't quite right now." Pain smiled, regaining his composure. "Then I'd like to try becoming a transcendent or a magician." "I wonder if my lord could grant my wish?"

Raven hesitated for a moment. He had now completely broken ties with the Church of Light, and Thomas would certainly have nothing more to do with him. But that wouldn't be a problem for Raven, since he had cultivated the ancestral magical plant, the Spirit Illusion Fruit. This thing was comparable to a magic-forging potion. The only difficult thing was the divinely bestowed potion. However, the elven saintess Daiyunyi had given him the recipe for the divinely bestowed potion, but to refine it, he would need a large amount of raw materials, and time for experimentation and trial and error; it would just take a long time. Moreover, Raven didn't know whether the potion recipe was genuine or not.

"If it's difficult..." Pan Enduo was good at reading people's expressions. Seeing Raven's silence, he immediately took the initiative to smooth things over.

“No,” Raven interrupted him. “You’ve misunderstood. It’s just that the divine potion might take a little longer to work.”

"Oh~~" Pan En breathed a sigh of relief. He had thought his request was too unreasonable and had displeased Raven. "Master, what's a ten or eight-year wait for such extremely scarce cultivation resources?" Seeing Raven readily agree, Pan En changed his form of address for the third time. Forget about having your cake and eat it too; even a baron would have to empty his coffers for over a decade to obtain a bottle of divinely bestowed potion. Pan En believed that with Raven's current marquis status and position, he would never try to fool him with a first-tier demon-forging potion and a divinely bestowed potion.

This is similar to how Eric yielded to Nancy and revealed information to her back then. Many people were disgusted and even incomprehensible. But they didn't consider what a magic-related potion really meant to Eric, who wasn't even a knight at the time! Loyalty? What was it worth... Besides, Eric was doing it for his son, not for himself.

"Then I wish...we a pleasant collaboration?" Raven extended his palm.

"It's a pleasure to cooperate, Master." Pan put down his wine glass and clasped his hands together tightly and firmly.

Immediately, the two colluded... no, they exchanged knowing smiles.

……

(End of this chapter)