Chapter 198 Egh . . . That’s It?

[BONUS]

In reality, these balls are a form of sacrificial ritual, where the Asuka siphon a tiny fraction from the life force of every guest to feed their unnatural health and youth for the next years to come.

The guests feel mildly exhausted after the event, but who wouldn't be after so much laughter, dancing, and feasting?

Serenia, a masterful warlock, has secretly dedicated herself to Faz'nur'thoon, the ancient winged spider-like entity the size of a city with immense power, searching for life force to sustain its eternal hunger.

Her former assassin-turned-husband Ravos was inducted into the ancient ritual centuries ago after slaying Serenia's first and last master, the only warlock ever to dare to take on the immense entity as his patron.

The Asukas have no children and don't intend to give up their standing, wealth, and immortality for centuries to come.

ǁ E N D ǁ

Hmm . . . House Asuka . . . maybe I could . . .

This husband and wife were white and black elf respectively that had a weakness to be exploited. They gave importance to immortality that maybe . . . I could control that Faz-whatever-god, and they would shift to my side.

Not only would I have a great house as my ally, but I would also have the elven race as part of my army.

<Nice thinking, Host! You're finally embracing your evilness!>

I just wanted to protect Amara and the others, and I would do anything to do that.

And besides, it was not a like I would kill anyone here. I would just revert them to become my allies. It looked like the husband and wife didn't care about the kingdom and would rather keep their immortality.

As long as they shifted to my side, then I would have an Elven race as my army, right, System?

<Right Host. As long as a race became your ally, you would automatically mass produce them and add to your army>

Good.

That would make things easier.

I then read further about another great house, House Lionheart.

ǁ House Lionheart ǁ

The late High lady Umara Lionheart was a proud knight of the Crown from a bloodline of loyal paladins who served the kings and queens of the kingdom for generations.

Her sudden and unexplainable death took her whole family by surprise. It had an especially harsh effect on her devastated husband, Lord Zaiden Lionheart, who could not get used to the changes in his family's domestic life, which he found hard to handle.

The count locked himself up in his chambers for several years, refusing to accept food, help, or aid from anyone, including his daughters and sons.

It was a mystery how he sustained himself, but one day he emerged from his room stinking, naked, covered in strange sigils, and with a crazed look in his eyes. The lord's mad contemplations led him to the service of the entity he referred to as Blood Moon.

The crazed noble struck a pact with this patron, which gave him warlock talents and enormous strength to shapeshift whenever the moon was bloody.

He also acquired the ability to sire a bloodline with sorcerous powers of chaos. His numerous children and grandchildren are all born with these magical gifts that helped them spread chaos in the world.

As a result, the family took on strange, occasionally unacceptable, and fouled habits, which caused half of their household to flee, while the other half reveled in their new powers.

In the north, living was hard, especially during winter times, but ever since Lionheart acquired strange powers, winter was a friend to them, for this was the time that the blood moon was frequent.

Lionhearts are considered weird and eccentric by most people, a mad bunch, and most try to stay away from them due to their erratic, unpredictable, and often times, murdering natures.

The town is largely filled with the child from the Lionheart bloodline, who all bear the chaotic blood of their progenitors.

Their primary source of income comes from selling their sword to the king to protect their borders. Despite the fact that they enjoyed carnage and bloodlust to the point that most no longer considered them humans, the Lionheart were renowned for their strength and military might.

ǁ E N D ǁ

This house Lionheart seemed interesting. I thought.

But they were so far north that it was impossible to reach them within weeks of travel.

And finally, I rested my eyes on the last great house, House Larachel.

ǁ House Larachel ǁ

House Larachel is the center of magic and technology. A century ago, their ancestor Hubert acquired the noble status from the previous queen by saving her from the grasp of a giant constrictor snake during one of her hunts deep in the forest.

The grateful queen gifted the gnome and his very extended family of sprites with title, gold, and an estate in Rustin.

Through the generations that followed, the Larachels were either tolerated or just frowned upon in the capital, depending on the social openness of the city to other races.

Some Larachels have attended The Nobles Schools for young masters, but there were times when larger mobs marched on their town and threatened to pull their wings or sell them as slaves.

However, they soon found out that Hubert was a master construct that could build advanced technology using magic, like constructing enchanted objects, runes, alchemy, Warding devices, Enchanted Architecture, and giving life to constructs.

While his adopted family, especially Rosa Larachel, was a powerful elemental fairy that built the Mage Academy from scratch.

Since then, the town of Larachel has prospered like never before.

ǁ E N D ǁ

Hmm . . . this house seemed like a friendly bunch that has their own world.

Maybe I could shift them to my side when the times was right.

There were also other small houses in the kingdom, and Roselake Town, Blue River Town, and Honoka Village were among them.

There was only a short description of these houses that formed most of the minority houses in the Kingdom of Rustin, though.

ǁ BLUE RIVER TOWN ǁ

A pristine town that used its neutral climate to house all kinds of animals in its scattered villages.

Nestled between rolling hills and verdant forests lies the bustling animal farming town. The town is small but lively, with a thriving market square at its center where farmers gather to sell their wares and exchange news and gossip.

The town is surrounded by vast pastures, where animals roam free and graze on the lush green grasses. The people of the town are friendly and welcoming, always willing to lend a hand or share a meal with a stranger. They are proud of their farming traditions, and many of them have been raising animals for generations.

In the evenings, the town comes alive with the sounds of laughter and music as the farmers gather in the local tavern to relax after a hard day's work. The tavern serves hearty meals made from the freshest ingredients, including succulent roasted meats, creamy cheeses, and crusty bread.

Blue River Town is one of the main source of meat, milk, cheese, and other poultry products in the Kingdom of Rustin.

Currently, this town's ruling is given to Lord Beedsby, an ambitious Halfling who came from a commoner descent and climbed his way up to become a noble household name using his fortune during his merchant days.

ǁ E N D ǁ

Huh . . . ? That's it?