A few days later, Alex and the others had gathered in front of the cave's entrance. Millman had fought hard and somehow won despite losing around a hundred people. However, the enemies lost more, and a huge portion of the spies that the other families planted had been extinguished, so this might be the cleanest state of the Luzear Family.
After getting the information from Alex and Aria, Millman checked the aftermath and was convinced that both of them managed to kill Airi and her subordinates. There was a possibility that the Khan Family might use this to open war against them, but Millman already assured them there wouldn't be such a thing.
The first thing he did was to make sure that he was the only one investigating the battlefield, so no one realized that Alex and Aria had killed them. To get away from Airi from this place, they used the traps to deal with them, which surprisingly devastated them more than they hoped for, leading them to a decision where they fought back.
Alex and Aria told the same story until Millman believed it one hundred percent.
Millman then solved the entire situation before resting in front of the cave. Due to the possibility of Nella escaping with Teleportation Array Plates instead of a normal way, the other families decided to not send any more reinforcement, not that they could do it…
The group waited for a few days, and the gate was opened. Nella finally made her appearance and smiled. "I have made all of you go through hell…"
"Young Lady." Millman and the others immediately kneeled on one knee and clasped their hand politely.
Alex and Aria found something different from Nella. Unlike her previous temperament, she seemed to grow a bit more. Not physically, but mentally. Still, the one thing that stuck in their mind was the symbol on her forehead.
There was a small tattoo on her forehead that looked like a spear, albeit a bit shorter. Even so, it created a unique charm on her face, especially with her calmer temperament.
"Nyx, Aria, I would like to offer my thanks because you two were the reason why we won this fight."
Alex and Aria nodded.
"Of course, the warriors here and those who have fallen on the battlefield are our reason too. I am thankful for all of you, and I will make sure that the family of the deceased won't be treated wrongly. You all are my pride." Nella smiled.
"Oh!" They shouted energetically as if they had never fought a tiring battle.
"Since no one will probably ambush us again, let's set off to our home." She smiled. "Millman."
"Yes, Young Lady." He nodded and shouted. "Men! Rise up. This is our triumph return."
"Oh!" The group immediately packed up. They flew toward the city with the same pace while keeping their vigilance.
Fortunately, there wasn't a single enemy appearing in their way, so the group managed to return without any more casualties.
As soon as they arrived in front of the Luzear Family's mansion, they were greeted by Alcea's warmest smile and bow.
"Thank you for coming back alive despite going through the worst. Please go in and rest to your heart content. I will handle the rest myself."
"Yes, Madam!"
Nella suddenly walked toward Alex and Aria before offering to guide them to their previous room.
Alcea was surprised by this, but she understood that something must have happened, so she didn't stop her daughter. The difference in Nella's appearance and temperament also didn't escape from her eyes, so she only let her daughter do whatever she wanted to do and investigated it later.
When Alex and Aria had settled down in their room, Nella immediately left them alone, wanting to talk about it to her mother, especially regarding their reward.
Alex furrowed his eyebrows and felt something was wrong in this matter. He didn't see there was a change in the energy flow inside the mountain, so he had no knowledge that the master of the mountain actually sensed him from inside.
"Nyx, what do you think about this mission?"
"Suspicious." Alex narrowed his eyes. "Of course, I am sure that the Luzear Family will handle everything regarding the three influences cleanly, making sure we are not involved, but I am concerned in one thing."
"What is it?"
"The change of Nella. I don't know why but she feels different as if she is planning something."
"Do we need to escape and abandon the reward? I don't really mind though. Besides, we had gathered all the traps we have set before during the two days we decided to hide for our "Plan," so I believe we can use the Teleportation Array Plate she gave us before to escape from this mansion." Aria suggested.
"I know, but I don't mean something like that." Alex shook his head. "Have you noticed the spear mark on her forehead?"
"Yes."
"It contains a boundless Spear Qi, including Divine Spear Qi. I assume there is a big secret in this mark…" Alex thought for a moment before giving an example. "Firstly, there is a chance that this Spear Mark is a kind of Sword mark in the Sword Stone. These two people had a certain degree of friendship, right? So, there might be a connection with that."
"Are you saying that Nella has acquired the full inheritance of the Luzear Family's Ancestor?"
"Probably, but I don't have the necessary information to claim something like that."
"Then, what is the second possible thing?"
"The Ancestor actually possesses her…But this one is most unlikely for various reasons." Alex fell silent while adding inwardly, 'Of course it's impossible. I would be able to pick it up with my Spirit Eyes if that were the case.'
"The problem is…Are you going to give her the recommendation letter?" She asked.
Alex thought for a moment before handing the letter to her. "If she has the motivation to enter, I don't really mind, but it's not me who will give her, it's you."
Aria instantly realized why she needed to be the one giving the letter. She put a teasing smile. "You don't want to create a misunderstanding? Oh, almighty hero Nyx saved the princess and overturned the whole situation where her country was almost destroyed. Not only did he win the war, but he also brought more and more things to the country and the princess. Thus, the princess is going to marry the hero and live happily ever after."
"Do you want a chop on the head?" Alex released a bit of the pressure before Aria stopped talking and stuck out her tongue.
"Alright. I will be asking if she is interested and give the recommendation letter to her."
Alex nodded. "Then, you can rest first until we get the reward and immediately return to the sect. You will start your training again in mastering the Purgatory Sword before moving to the third step, your Sword Eye."
"I am looking forward to it. I really would like to see your face and everything…I am really curious for so many years." She smiled and nodded. "I don't mind if you torture me more—Gya!"
"That's not a torture. It's training." Alex chopped her head. "The effect of the training is good, but there is a side effect. You might get used to pain in various ways."
"…"
Alex didn't continue and returned to his room to start cultivating to pass the time.
A few hours later after the discussion, Nella came to the room. Alex and Aria noticed her presence and were about to greet her. However, Nella suddenly leaped toward Alex's door and opened it, finding him not far from the door.
Sensing this, Aria halted her steps and smiled as if there would be something interesting happening at this moment. Out of curiosity, she sneaked out and tried to eavesdrop on their conversation.
Alex narrowed his eyes and looked at Nella while thinking, 'Ah, here it comes. What kind of thing does she want to talk to me about?'
"Nyx, I would like to personally thank you for your help during the entire campaign. I have seen your contribution, and much less to say, it's the biggest out of everyone. That's why I would like to know if you have something that you want. If it's within my limit, I won't hesitate to give you, including…" She looked down and blushed.
'So, that's how it is…' Alex sighed inwardly and wondered how they could arrive at such a conclusion. "I don't have anything I want right now, but yeah, I still need a huge amount of resources, so I will be thankful if you are giving me more Spirit Crystals."
Alex decided to ignore it.
"Eh…You only want that?" She widened her eyes before thinking. "Ah, you must haven't understood the Spear Seal on my forehead. This is the symbol of the highest inheritance rank. This will allow me to understand more about Spear and any other things around it, including the Divine Technique that my ancestor used. So, I am sure you know what kind of person you have just escorted, right?"
"Oh?!" Alex nodded. "The reward I want remains the same. It's still the Spirit Crystals. After all, the resources I get will be split with Aria, so yeah, I need more to increase my cultivation."
"Ugh." Nella didn't know why but she felt a bit hurt when she heard this. Although she didn't know whether Alex had an interest in women or not, it still disturbed her how he was so normal in front of her. Her beauty was one of a kind to the point she could boldly claim that she was more beautiful than Aria, but the latter always came out of his mouth.
"Is there any problem?"
"Yes. There are two actually." She nodded with a serious expression.
"Hmm?! Is that so? Then I guess I will be settled with medicinal herbs instead. I am sure there isn't a problem with this one, right?"
"That's not the main problem, though." She gently scratched her cheek embarrassedly. "The first problem is that I am questioning your gender. I mean, you can literally ask everything, including me…And I am sure I have hinted at it…"
"I am a man. There is nothing wrong with that. And please don't expect us to be l.u.s.tful since not all of us are like that. It's true that I appreciate beauties, but I don't have a desire to possess them easily." Alex shook his head. "I don't mean to be rude, but that's my answer."
"Ugh." She looked down. "Mother said that I had many admirers, but it seemed the one I needed the most was unattainable. No, it must be what those admirers think about me? Ehm? Ugh."
"Lady, I don't know what you are thinking, but it's best to forget that objective." Alex sighed while adding inwardly. 'I still need to settle the matter with Evelyn and Letizia. Too much of a problem.'
[Pfft. Even if you accept those two, there are still two more spots that can be filled in the bedroom.]
'You seem to be enjoying my suffering.'
[Your suffering is the dream of most people, you know.]
'And what? There will be a huge problem if there is a war between family members, so even though I am accepting all of you, I am trying to keep it small to make sure the possibility is minimal.'
[It's a matter of education. Do you think we are that easy to accept polygamy? Nope. What do you think is the easiest reason for the world to unite as one? It's simple. They just need one enemy and one simple objective. For us, the enemy is those who want to destroy the family, while the objective is to keep the family going even if we need to sacrifice a little bit. After all, we know that you have sacrificed more in terms of physical.]
'Whatever, let's talk about this later. I need to somehow make sure that this girl doesn't think that way first since I don't want to make a mess in this world.'
[Fine. Good luck.]
Alex could only shake his head against Lin Xingzhi before looking at Nella.
"There is actually a third problem." Nella suddenly thought of something good. "There will be a problem with our cashflow if we give the reward according to your contribution, so we would like to decrease it a little bit and throw a bonus. And the bonus is me…
"Do you happen to need a woman with marriage in mind?"
"…"