Ryan seemed to think over his words carefully, but he was very pleased on the inside. 'It looks like Stacy isn't as naive as I thought she'd be.'
"And what makes you think you're fit to be my wife?" Ryan asked, half amused, half curious.
Stacy huffed and ran a hand along her hourglass frame.
She puffed out her chest as she made swaying motions with her hips, causing Ryan's brow to raise.
"I'm grateful for the show, but if you're trying to tempt me with your body, it's not going to work," Ryan said, shaking his head.
Ryan had seen countless beauties already, and even though Stacy was alluring, Ryan couldn't be swayed by flesh easily.
Stopping her movements, Stacy grumbled, "Well, if you don't want a girlfriend or wife, what do you want?"
Ryan rubbed his chin, looking at the ceiling. 'Taking Stacy as a servant doesn't seem appropriate, but she's not harem material, at least not yet.'
[Why don't you let her be my servant?] Yoko suddenly asked, causing Ryan to raise his eyebrow.
[Why do you want her to be your servant?] Ryan asked, suspicious of Yoko's intentions.
[I need a servant, and she can tell me all about Master's home world,] Yoko said, not hiding her intentions.
Ryan turned to look at Stacy once more. [Well, that could work, but do you have some way to form a bond?]
Stacy was shaking with anticipation, and when she saw Ryan look at her, her heart seemed to stop.
"It turns out that I require someone with your particular set of skills," Ryan said, trying to make the offer sound better than it was.
"Really?" Stacy's eyes lit up. "What will I be doing?"
"Will I be fighting big monsters?"
She heroically stood up and got into a terrible battle stance.
"Or will I be in charge of all your money?"
Stacy's eyes sparkled with greed as she envisioned herself drenched in Heavenly Credits, her hands rubbing together.
[Yep, I like this one,] Yoko said, seeing a similar greed to a dragon's in the girl's eyes.
"Close," Ryan chuckled. "You'll be taking care of my most valuable…"
Ryan paused as he tried to devise a better word than 'possession'.
"You'll be taking care of someone valuable to me, who definitely needs someone to watch her," Ryan said, thinking it got the wording perfect.
[Who needs someone to watch over them, brat!] Yoko shouted in his mind. [I'll have you know that just because I'm an egg doesn't mean I've lived for countless years.]
Stacy felt a sinking feeling in her chest. "Y-You don't mean your daughter do you?"
Ryan looked at Stacy, confused. "No."
"Oh, that's a relief," Stacy wiped the sweat off her brow. "I was about to say if-"
"Joy doesn't need to be watched. She's a lot smarter than this one," Ryan said, thinking of his adoptive slave, whom he was starting to see as a daughter more and more.
Stacy's mouth dropped open. "What?! You do have a daughter?!"
"She's not my daughter," Ryan shook his head.
Stacy started, "That's a re-" but was interrupted by Ryan again.
"My firstborn will be later this year, although I'm starting to doubt that since she hasn't grown any bigger."
"I'll have to talk to her about that," Ryan muttered.
Stacy started beating Ryan's chest, "You're a big bully! How many women do you have!"
Part of Stacy wanted to hear the answer, while the other desperately wanted Ryan to remain silent.
"Seven. Lizzy, Izzy, Emily, Zoey, Elsa, Grace, and Sienna, all of whom you'll meet in the future."
'Eight if you count Lizzy and Izzy's mom, the Zol'Gan empress, though,' Ryan added in his mind.
"Seven!" Stacy gasped.
"H-How do you manage them all," Stacy whispered. "I heard men on this planet…"
Stacy suddenly looked quizzically at Ryan. "You're a cultivation. Are you also an…"
"Enhancer? Yes."
Stacy narrowed her eyes. "But do you also cum slow?"
"No."
Stacy widened her eyes. "What! Then aren't you, like, overpowered?!"
Ryan chuckled and flicked his raven locs. "It wouldn't be a stretch to think so?"
"Then could you help me gain cultivation?" Stacy asked, blushing as she realized what she had just said.
"I-I didn't mean that," Stacy spluttered.
Ryan grinned and raised an eyebrow. "Then what did you mean?"
"I-"
But before Stacy could finish her sentence, Ryan pressed her against a wall and whispered, "Don't worry. I know what you mean."
===
After Ryan had given Stacy a proper welcome to the 'Emerald Family,' he left the Holy Phoenix Empire.
His main goal was to meet up with the Duchess, Sienna Vanroth, and the Frost General, Ester Frost, who were inside the Kheaweth Empire.
They had been slowly but steadily siphoning their resources out of the Kheaweth Empire and toward the Zol'Gan Empire per Ryan's orders.
Ryan wanted to go to the Kheaweth Empire to check back with the two mature members of his harem and check on a hunch he had.
But before he could go to the Kheaweth Empire, he had to pick up Emily and Velmuuth from their mission to drop off his aunt.
He messaged Emily and received coordinates about ten hours away from his location.
She had said that Aurora hadn't arrived but was expected soon.
Ryan said it didn't matter and that he'd be there shortly.
Ryan could have taken the teleporters to her, but Yoko advised him against it.
So far, he hadn't used a teleporter in the Holy Phoenix Empire, and using out would leave a trace that he had been there, no matter what.
So, in the end, he decided to make the trek on his flying sword.
After flying the rest of the day, Ryan landed in a bustling town less than a minute's walk from the coordinates.
As Ryan landed, he caused quite a stir among the common folk, who parted ways for him and looked at him fearfully.
However, before Ryan had time to take another step, Ryan heard a voice. "You should be more careful. You never know who's watching."