Player's Journey In Anime World

Upon seeing the situation, Ryou's victorious smile flickered briefly. For two evenly matched opponents, even the slightest advantage can swiftly turn into the fruits of victory. His quick thinking had not been in vain. When he realized he couldn't break the deadlock, he shifted his focus onto Julius, who stood behind Anastasia. Clues from the original work hinted that this gallant, purple-haired knight harbored a secret admiration for his mistress. However, constrained by their statuses and positions, it was destined to be an unfulfilled love.

In a flash of inspiration, Ryou decisively turned his probing into flirtatious advances. Though Anastasia herself remained unmoved, effortlessly deflecting his overt and subtle hints, Julius took the bait. It made sense; unless one had an emotional issue or was simply uninterested in women, how could a normal man not feel at least a little affected when another man flirted with the woman he secretly admired? Thus, Ryou deftly used the jealous Julius to break the stalemate.

If the deadlock had continued, it would have been more disadvantageous for Ryou, as he needed allies to free up his hands for the next steps of his plans. Anastasia, on the other hand, didn't necessarily need to ally with Emilia. Although the terms Ryou offered were tempting, Anastasia was not some vulgar merchant with eyes only for money; she was a highly visionary business magnate.

However, when it came to business negotiations, Anastasia was anything but cute. Once the conversation began, the two started discussing the alliance between their camps. That's when Emilia, standing nearby, realized that what had just transpired was merely an appetizer. The real game was just beginning.

Both Ryou and Anastasia presented their arguments, each maintaining an air of indifference toward the alliance while constantly probing the other's bottom line. It wasn't until Ryou faced Anastasia head-on that he realized this girl, with a meticulousness unique to women, was dissecting every detail of their potential alliance.

Take, for example, the issue of mining rights for the magic crystal mines. Normally, this would be a straightforward matter: the Emilia camp would sell the mining rights, the Hoshin Company would provide the labor, and both sides would split the profits according to a predetermined ratio. However, Anastasia not only fiercely negotiated the profit-sharing ratio, but she also brought up details such as the mine's security personnel, the facilities, the sharing of burden in case of accidents, and how price fluctuations of magic crystals at different times would affect the contract.

This gave Ryou a headache, forcing him to patiently discuss each point with her. Following this, a series of agreements with the Hoshin Company were negotiated with the same meticulous care, line by line.

The negotiations, which began in the morning, dragged on until five in the afternoon. By then, Puck, who had been napping in Emilia's hair, sleepily returned to his magic crystal. Only then did the negotiations finally conclude. In the end, the representatives of both camps, Anastasia Hoshin and Emilia, signed their names on a magically binding contract.

On the surface, both parties appeared satisfied, but in reality…

Once Anastasia and Julius left the Mathers mansion and disappeared from Ryou's sight, a cold smile appeared on his face.

"Cunning woman…"

Meanwhile, in the dragon carriage, Anastasia's peaceful smile gradually faded, replaced by a thoughtful expression. Across from her, Julius opened his mouth as if to say something but remained silent.

Sensing her first knight had something on his mind, Anastasia spoke up. "What's on your mind, Sir Julius?"

Julius hesitated for a moment, then bit his lip and spoke.

"Your Highness, forgive my frankness, but that man named Ryou is not someone who can be trusted."

Unexpectedly, Anastasia's expression remained calm.

"I know."

"Then why, Your Highness…"

Julius asked, somewhat surprised.

"Just as he doesn't trust me in the slightest, I have never trusted him either. This contract, rather than being an alliance, is more of a commercial agreement that could be torn up at any moment."

"…"

"Besides, I am not just one of the royal candidates; I am also the president of the Hoshin Company. Securing such a large deal, earning a mountain of Holy Coins, and expanding the company's influence — why wouldn't I do it? As a competent merchant, I would never turn down a chance to make a profit."

Anastasia playfully winked as she said this.

"Your Highness, you truly are…"

Julius's expression became one of helpless amusement.

...

A few days after the alliance between the Emilia and Anastasia factions was formed, Ryou immediately placed a large order with the Hoshin Company for goods such as furniture, food, weapons, and armor. Meanwhile, the Hoshin Company's mining survey team had already begun surveying the magic crystal mine in the Mathers territory.

Seeing Ryou spending vast sums of Holy Coins, the Mathers family couldn't sit still. After all, all of the Mathers family's most promising heirs had been taken by Roswaal as vessels for his reincarnation, leaving behind only lazy, greedy, and incompetent individuals. In their eyes, the money Ryou was spending belonged to the Mathers family — money that would soon be theirs!

Before long, they set aside their internal disputes and began pressuring Emilia as one. Under the weight of these greedy nobles, the kind-hearted Emilia found herself in a difficult and embarrassing situation. To strengthen her resolve, Ryou deliberately left Emilia to handle them on her own.

During this time, Emilia couldn't help but long for the guidance of her two political mentors, Ryou and Semiramis. The two had completely different styles: Ryou preferred open strategies, relying on overwhelming force to crush his opponents and appear dominant. Semiramis, on the other hand, was ruthless and cunning, like a venomous snake lying in wait. She seemed harmless on the surface but would deliver a deadly strike at the critical moment.

The image of Ryou casually chatting with Anastasia remained deeply imprinted in Emilia's mind, becoming something she aspired to. However, just as the Mathers family was exerting immense pressure on her, Ryou, through a series of dazzling maneuvers, threw the Mathers family into disarray.

Using the Hoshin Company's connections, Ryou contacted a wide range of individuals from all walks of life in Lugunica, including black market merchants, gang leaders, and those who lurked in the shadows, like street rats and thugs. His goal was to use these people to set traps for the Mathers family. However, after meeting these various unsavory characters, Ryou came to fully understand the dark side of the Dragon Kingdom, Lugunica.

On the surface, Lugunica was a prosperous and flourishing kingdom, but in reality, its people had become complacent, and overly reliant on the power of the dragon. As a result, the kingdom's citizens lacked the drive to improve themselves. After all, whenever a major problem arose, the dragon would step in to solve it. This passive attitude had led to a state of decay in Lugunica, like a tree whose roots had rotted away, leaving it on the verge of collapse.

As people's ambition waned, their desire for pleasure grew. As a result, Lugunica's nights were ruled by gangs that controlled brothels, drugs, and casinos. These gang leaders were the true, uncrowned kings of Lugunica's nightlife. With these shady individuals handling things, the Mathers family's harassment was quickly neutralized. Several prominent family members were either swindled by unscrupulous merchants, lost their fortunes, got caught up in scandals, or were blackmailed.

One particularly unlucky branch family lost everything to a gambling scam and ended up deeply in debt. The wife, due to her looks, was forced into a high-end brothel, while the husband donned women's clothing to entertain clients with peculiar tastes in an upscale club. It was truly a tragic tale. With such underhanded methods, the Mathers family quickly found themselves overwhelmed and no longer had time to trouble Emilia.

Now that Ryou had freed up his hands, he immediately began preparations to head to the Sanctuary and resolve Beatrice's contract. No one knew the exact location of the Sanctuary, only that it was in a Lost Forest surrounded by a barrier. To reach it safely, one needed a specially trained ground dragon to guide the way. Even Ryou had to admit that this was an effective method of concealment. Not even a sorcerer skilled in soul-searching spells could do anything. After all, could they cast a soul-searching spell on a dragon? Who knows what kind of memories they'd extract.

After breakfast, Ryou and Anastasia arrived at the mansion's entrance. At that moment, Rem approached Ryou, lifting her short skirt in a formal curtsy, completely ignoring the fact that her pale thighs and garter belt were fully exposed to Ryou's gaze.

"Master, the dragon carriage is ready. Shall we depart now?"

Ryou nodded, and Rem immediately went to prepare the dragon carriage. As he watched her leave, a satisfied smile appeared on his face. The credit for making Rem so obedient and well-behaved went to none other than Semiramis, the master of discipline.

Even Elsa, a cruel, bloodthirsty assassin with severe psychological issues, had been trained into submission by Semiramis. How could the twin sisters of the Oni tribe possibly escape the same fate? Moreover, Ryou had placed a curse of shared sensation and life on them, meaning that when one sister was trained, both experienced the pleasure, doubling the efficiency.

Originally, Rem and Ram had been filled with hostility and resentment toward Ryou. But now, both were showing the proper submissiveness expected of maids. However, Ryou knew this was only on the surface. Neither Elsa nor the Oni twins had been completely broken. Their wills remained intact, and they had not lost their sense of self. They were merely bowing to Semiramis' overwhelming power… for now.

Ryou preferred it this way. If they lost their sense of self, they'd just be empty shells resembling their former selves, which would be pointless.

As Ryou and Anastasia waited for Rem to bring the dragon carriage around, the sound of hurried footsteps approached. The front door swung open, and Emilia, dressed in a traveling cloak, appeared before the two of them.

"Thank goodness! I made it in time!"

Emilia patted her not-so-flat chest, smiling in relief. Ryou's brow furrowed slightly.

"Emilia, what are you doing?"

"Of course, I'm going to the Sanctuary with you."

Emilia's tone was matter-of-fact as if it should have been obvious.

Ryou struggled to maintain his patience.

"I told you, I'll handle this. Your priority right now should be studying."

"But didn't you also say that I should combine knowledge with practical experience?"

Emilia blinked innocently.

Ryou was momentarily taken aback. He hadn't expected her to use his own words against him.

"My daughter can go wherever she wants. It's none of your business!" Puck, who had been hiding in Emilia's hair, leaped out and chimed in, backing Emilia up.

Ryou sighed in exasperation.

"Besides Beatrice, you're also concerned about the demi-humans living in the Sanctuary, aren't you?"

His words hit the mark, causing Emilia to look a bit sheepish and embarrassed. Ryou understood her feelings. As a half-elf who had been ostracized by many, it was only natural that she would care about the mixed-blood individuals living in the Sanctuary. This didn't surprise him at all.

"Please! Let me come with you!"

Emilia clasped her hands together, closed her eyes, and bowed her head, as if too afraid to look at him.

Ordinarily, Ryou would have agreed. After all, it would just be one more person, and with both him and Anastasia around, who could harm her?

"Sorry, but no." His refusal was firm.

"Why!?"

Emilia's face fell in disappointment.

Of course, Ryou couldn't tell her that she was likely created as a vessel for Satella's reincarnation and that the Sanctuary was Echidna's territory. Considering Echidna's hatred for Satella, there would almost certainly be measures in place to target Emilia. Going there now would be akin to walking into a death trap.

So, Ryou carefully chose his words and replied, "The Sanctuary's barrier repels the souls of mixed-blood individuals, causing them to lose consciousness and preventing them from leaving the area. It doesn't affect pure-blooded humans, though. So even if you came along, you'd pass out as soon as we entered the barrier, and then we'd have to assign someone to take care of you."

Emilia's face paled. Ryou had all but called her a burden right to her face.

"Lia, maybe we should wait until they've lifted the barrier before going," suggested Puck, who, despite feeling a bit sorry for her, was more concerned with keeping her safe.

In the end, Emilia was persuaded. Meanwhile, Rem had brought the dragon carriage to the front door.