Chapter 24: That Night
Buck and his four brothers immediately walked over, but Hesse frowned impatiently and said, "Don't get so close. Don't make me stand out. Keep a low profile, low profile!" Buck and his brothers could only force a smile, greeting Hesse subtly from a distance.
"Tsk, tsk."
Hesse savored his wine and immediately slipped into a corner of the hall. When he encountered envoys from various kingdoms or empires, he would raise his glass to them as well. He showed none of the demeanor of a deity-level expert.
"Hesse." Suddenly, a cold, clear voice rang out.
Hesse looked up, and an awkward smile involuntarily appeared on his face. The speaker was none other than Rosalie, the Saintess of the Ice Goddess Temple. Rosalie stared at Hesse, letting out a few sniffs through her nose, but said not a second word. Hesse felt like he was sitting on a bed of nails and could only play dumb with a smile.
"Even after reaching the deity level, you're still like this." The icy beauty Rosalie actually had mist forming in her eyes.
Hesse forced a faint smile. "Rosalie, isn't it good for you to be the Saintess? Ah, I'm just a wanderer, drifting everywhere, enjoying myself wherever I like. I can't take care of you." Hesse's heart was somewhat bitter.
"Lord Hesse?" Linley also spotted Hesse.
"Don't go." Desri pulled Linley back, a mischievous smile on his face. "Those two are together. Why would you want to butt in?"
"Together? Isn't she a Saintess?" Linley was a bit stunned.
"Who says a Saintess can't have a man?" Desri glanced at Linley. "Rosalie is also someone close to becoming a god. Serving the Ice Goddess Temple is already a great favor to them." Desri looked cheerfully at Hesse and Rosalie in the distance.
Linley and Delia exchanged a smile. "Linley, is this the Lord Hesse you mentioned?"
Linley nodded.
"It seems this deity-level expert also has some romantic debts," Delia said, covering her mouth with a soft laugh. Linley shook his head with a smile. "Lord Hesse, well, how should I put it... he's a bit of a playboy."
...
The day was quite eventful, especially for Desri's group, as well as George, Yale, Reynolds, and the others... After dealing with everyone, it was already past midnight. Linley finally headed toward his and Delia's room—
One advantage of being a Saint-level expert was that, despite drinking so much wine, Linley wasn't drunk at all.
"Linley?"
Before he reached the door, someone called his name. Linley looked up and saw Hesse lying on the eaves, drinking. "Linley, how could you get married? Sigh, knowing you got married, I really feel sorry for you."
"Sorry?" Linley was taken aback.
Hesse stood up, floating lightly into the air. "Sorry, another man has stepped into the grave!" With that, Hesse's figure had already reached the high sky. "Oh, and by the way, happy wedding to you. Alright, I'm off." Hesse's voice echoed in Linley's ears.
Suddenly—
"You big pervert!" A crisp scolding rang out, and a graceful white-clad figure flew out, chasing directly after Hesse.
Hesse's flying speed immediately increased dramatically.
"Ah, it's better to step into the grave after all." A hint of a smile played at the corners of Linley's mouth as he headed toward the bridal chamber. Soon, he arrived at the door. Two pretty maids stood there, respectfully opening the door.
Linley waved his hand. "Both of you, withdraw."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
********
In the quiet bridal chamber, only Delia sat by the bed. At this moment, Delia was very calm, simply looking at Linley, waiting for him to speak. Linley finally opened his mouth—"Bebe, come out."
"Hehe, Boss." Bebe actually emerged from under the bed at that moment.
"Bebe?" Delia was both amused and exasperated. Bebe had disappeared early today, and she never expected him to be hiding here.
Linley looked at Bebe with a mix of amusement and confusion. "Bebe, what are you doing?"
"Preparing a gift for you, Boss," Bebe said, holding his head high.
"What gift?" Linley asked, puzzled.
Bebe grinned, his little paw handing over a black stone. "This is from my good friend, the purple-gold Saint-level mouse I told you about last time. I'm too young and don't have much to offer, so my buddy gave me this."
"What is this thing?" Linley took the black stone doubtfully. "Is it some kind of precious ore? No, what use is a small piece of ore?" Linley examined it closely but couldn't figure it out.
"I don't know either," Bebe said, handing it to Delia. "Delia, first drip a drop of blood on it."
"Drip blood?" Linley raised an eyebrow.
Anything that could be bound by blood was definitely a treasure—like Linley's Bloodviolet flexible sword or the Dragonblood Ring. Even the heavy sword of blackstone wasn't qualified for blood binding. Generally, only specially crafted items required this process.
"Alright." Delia trusted Bebe. A wind blade grazed her finger, creating a tiny wound.
A drop of blood fell onto the black stone.
The black stone immediately transformed into a beam of light, enveloping Delia. Linley was shocked... The light from the black stone seemed to merge into Delia's body. The black stone that had just been there vanished without a trace.
"What's going on?" Linley was greatly alarmed.
He had never seen such a strange thing. Bebe was also dumbfounded. "I don't know either."
"Delia, how do you feel?" Linley immediately asked.
Delia shook her head in confusion. "No particular feeling... Hmm, it seems my sensitivity to the surrounding elements has increased a lot. Yes, that's it." Linley nodded to himself. Generally, even if something were evil, once bound by blood, it wouldn't harm its owner.
Linley was somewhat reassured about that.
But... what exactly was this thing?
"Bebe, why did that magical beast mouse give you this black stone? It seems like a treasure," Linley asked. Of course, he had only discovered one thing so far—a greatly enhanced elemental sensitivity.
Bebe quickly shook his head. "Boss, my good friend really gave it to me. He said it's very useful for mages."
"Very useful for mages?" Linley understood in his heart. Perhaps this was some special item that could improve elemental affinity, useless to Saint-level magical beasts, so it was given to Bebe. But Linley had a feeling—
That black stone wasn't that simple.
"Alright, Bebe, do you still plan to stay here?" Linley stared at Bebe.
Bebe's jet-black little eyes rolled around a few times, then he sniffled twice. "Boss, now that you have a wife, you've forgotten Bebe. Boohoo..." Linley kicked at him, but Bebe had already turned into a blur and shot out of the room.
The door closed.
The bridal chamber fell silent. Linley and Delia sat side by side on the bed.
"What are you looking at?" Delia seemed a bit shy.
Linley smiled. "I'm thinking... how many children we should have in the future." Delia was taken aback, and Linley immediately hugged her, lying down on the bed. The red quilt tumbled, and clothes were tossed out one by one.
"Mmm..."
...
A sleepless night.
"Phew." Linley lay in bed, while Delia rested on top of him, her head pressed against his chest. Sweat had plastered her hair to his body. Linley looked down at her face, her slightly flushed cheeks like a little kitten's.
Her crystal-clear little nose twitched slightly.
Linley gently stroked Delia's smooth back, the scenes from moments ago still vivid in his mind—the nervousness when he entered her body... Linley had to admit, it had been a bit too wild. A full three hours had passed.
"Delia, what's wrong?"
"I'm crying." Delia hugged Linley's chest. "I just feel like crying now. Thinking about your past with Alice makes me want to cry. Thinking about waiting ten years for you makes me want to cry. Boohoo..."
Linley covered his head.
Women—forever so unfathomable.
"Linley, can I tell you something?" Delia said softly.
"Hmm?" Linley looked down at her.
Delia looked up at him with a serious expression, then whispered, "You... you're hard down there!"
"Ah."
Linley was momentarily speechless.
"Delia, Wharton and Nina's child will be born in a few more months. Don't you think we need to work harder?" Linley said in a low voice.
"Huh?" Delia was stunned.
"So, I need to plow the fields more diligently," Linley said, flipping over and pinning Delia beneath him.