Chapter 408

Chapter 408 43%

+53 Maybe it was the thrill of Nyx promising not to leave, or payback for her old ghost–story scam, but Erik cut loose big time. He didn’t slack when he worked for her, head down and all in–same deal when he claimed his reward.

Nyx couldn’t figure where he got all that energy. Same human bodies–she turned frail as a breeze, but both her guys were built like oxen. Honestly, they seemed more like monsters than she did.

Chopped trees half the day, dug a huge basket of dirt, carried her ten–plus miles on his back–and still acted like it was nothing.

Meanwhile, she was a wreck–slept like a log ‘til almost noon and woke up already on the carriage back to Hilltop City.

Carriages back then had no shocks–fancy or not, comfort wasn’t in the cards, especially on bumpy dirt roads.

That long haul from Hilltop City to Nevaton had Nyx fighting nausea the whole way, powered through by sheer willpower to see Pale Wolf—and a quiet vow to fix the roads someday.

Right now, someone held her close, her head on his shoulder, body propped steady. She barely felt the jolts in her sleep.

However long she snoozed, Erik held her like that the whole time.

Nyx peeked out the curtain, squinted at the midday sun, then tucked back in, leaning on her partner’s broad chest–deciding to forgive last night’s antics.

The trip back took its sweet time. Expedition General marched back with three hundred thousand troops, hauling the rebel leaders to Hilltop City. They rolled in by early May, summer kicking off.

Warm winds, long days, pomegranate flowers popping bright. Nyx sat in the carriage, curtains down, ear tuned to the crowd’s wild cheers and chatter outside, a small smile curling her lips.

When she’d first arrived, Pale Wolf was the fallen teen general in everyone’s mouths–leg wrecked beyond repair, a crippled has–

been. Now, after a clean, slick rebellion takedown, his star was back on the rise–everyone singing his praises.

The triumphant general rode Cloudie down the streets, flower petals raining on him from both sides.

Though he was married, Erik was still Hilltop City’s hottest young catch. Common girls and noble ladies alike harbored crushes.

Over six feet tall with a drop–dead gorgeous face–his looks alone could melt any woman’s heart.

Sure, some didn’t vibe with his fierce aura or battle–hardened edge, but he was Matay’s sole heir, stacked with war creds and a bright future. No concubines, no mistresses, didn’t even mess with brothels–advantages that blew other guys out of the water.

Except for the super high–and–mighty noble girls, most would’ve signed up to be his side piece in a heartbeat.

Nyx caught an earful of the twittering outside. The women didn’t know she was in the carriage, drooling over her man right to her face. The shy ones just peeked from the crowd; the bold ones let loose, giggling behind their hands, rating him up and down.

“The general’s waist is so solid–bet he’s got crazy strength.”

“Oh my gosh!”

“You’ve got guts saying that!”

“How do you know? You’ve handled a guy before?”

“Never touched a man, but I’ve ridden a horse! That big black one looks tough to ride–takes serious waist power!”

“Makes sense, makes sense?

1/4 16:14 Mon, 17 Mar MOD.

Chapter 408 “If it were me, ten or twenty miles and I’d be too wiped to move. The general rides it into war!”

“Oof.”

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Nyx even heard some lip–smacking–those girls were meat–eaters too, practically starving for him. She rubbed her ears, feeling them heat up.

+53 They were just talking big for fun–she was the one who’d actually tested that solid waist, felt how strong he really was. The kind of power that tamed a wild horse like Cloudie was not average stuff.

The Kellingtown barbarian rebellion got wrapped up–Monka, his foster father, and the other ringleaders all executed, a tribute to the souls of Nevaton’s fallen governor and innocent dead. The rest of the barbarians got spared death, shipped off scattered across the land–no longer a threat.

Expedition General, already maxed out on honors, couldn’t get more titles–just piled up gold, silver, and jewels as a reward.

The reward details didn’t matter–what mattered was the Emperor still treated him like a brother, no hint of tossing him aside once the job was done. Didn’t even mention taking back his army command.

Seeing that, a bunch of capital bigwigs doubled down on hitching their wagons to him–probing openly and quietly, sending their wives and daughters to the duke’s mansion to push their girls in.

Alliances leaned on profit, sure, but tossing in a marriage tie made it feel tighter. The general had a wife already, but no one believed a man like him would stop with just one woman.

Nyx was gorgeous, no doubt, but surely Erik wouldn’t say no to more beautiful women. He’d dodged women before ‘cause he hadn’t tasted them yet–now he’d get it.

Loads of folks swaggered in with that logic, only to slink out covered in dirt.

The ones fishing for hints from Erik just got an icy stare. The ones sniffing around Nyx ticked him off so bad he hit back hard–

friendship off the table.

“No need to test me–I’m not taking concubines,” he said. Three years after dropping that line, Erik still hadn’t taken a single side chick.

The folks waiting for drama, betting he’d cave eventually, finally gave up–convinced he was legit about keeping it clean. The general didn’t take concubines, but the madam picked up a second spouse.

Early that month, the Emperor and Empress tied the knot. The long–empty empress spot got filled–and the choice blew everyone’s minds.

Out–of–town merchants hitting Hilltop City for business were asking around, double–checking if what they’d heard was real. “The Empress, she’s really the same person as the general’s wife?”

That was just too wild to believe. The teahouse erupted in laughs. “It’s true! It’s true!”

“You out–of–towners probably don’t know, but His Majesty and Lady Nyx got engaged way back.”

“Lady Nyx?”

“Hey! That’s the Empress–also the general’s wife. Her name’s Nyx.”

She hadn’t officially joined the court, but over the years she’d rubbed elbows with folks from the ministries–public works, personnel, the imperial college–doing real stuff. Officials called her Lady Nyx out of respect, and the commoners followed suit.

2/4 16:14 Mon, 17 Mar MOD Chapter 408 The foreign merchants were still reeling, faces like spilled paint cans..

“What, you got a problem with Lady Nyx?” The teahouse laughter died down, replaced by sharp stares sizing up the merchants.

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“Forget her helping the general crush the rebellion–just the cement roads under your feet were her idea! Without those smooth, wide paths, you southern newbies wouldn’t even dream of coming up to Hilltop City for business, right?”

In their eyes, Lady Nyx was like an immortal who had descended from the heavens.

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Her skill with numbers and calculations left even the officials of the Ministry of Revenue in awe, bowing in complete admiration.

She’d also improved farming tools, invented something called movable type printing, and written some truly impressive books.

“The books in the shops these days are cheap enough for us farmers to buy,” one said. “My little girl went to a few free classes at the school Lady Nyx set up, and now she can even read them!”

“I heard that if you study well, you don’t even need to take the imperial exams to work for the court–just gotta have the skills.”

“All thanks to Lady Nyx!”

As the crowd grew more excited, the merchants nodded along in agreement, making it clear they had no complaints about Lady Nyx whatsoever.

Leaving the teahouse, a merchant’s teenage son muttered under his breath, “But she doesn’t follow a woman’s proper ways.”

“Shut up!” his father snapped at once.

Compared to her massive achievements, a woman’s proper ways didn’t even matter. Someone like her shouldn’t have to follow those rules anyway. Devoting herself to serving a husband and raising kids would’ve just buried her talents.

Forget everything else–just her work in educating the masses was enough to make scholars and commoners from humble families look to her as their leader, praising her virtues with every flattering word they could muster.

Besides, she’d done so much–no one among the scholars, farmers, artisans, or merchants could say they hadn’t benefited from her kindness.

“The Emperor wants to make her his Queen, General, Read has no objections, the court officials have no objections, and the people have no objections,” the merchant said with a cold laugh, smacking his son upside the head for being so dumb.

“Everyone from top to bottom says she’s great, and you’re the only one saying she’s not—what are you, huh?”

With that kind of reputation, if it belonged to a man, he’d have had no choice but to seize the throne–otherwise, the Emperor would’ve feared him and had him killed. On a woman, though, it didn’t seem all that different.

Thinking of how empty the Emperor’s harem and the General’s household were, the merchant shook his head with a chuckle, “Lady Nyx really is one of a kind!”

Even the Emperor had been won over by her–maybe she really was some celestial being from beyond the skies.

The morning court began. After discussing a few routine matters, no one stepped forward to speak for a while, and it reached the point where anyone with business could report, or they’d all just leave.

Aurelius gently toyed with the scented pouch hanging at his waist, already itching to get back to the palace and have breakfast with Nyx.

3/4 16:14 Mon, 17 Mar M Chapter 408 Suddenly, a young official stepped forward. “Your Majesty, I have something to report.”

Aurelius glanced up at the voice, suppressing his impatience, and allowed him to speak.

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“The Queen’s health is frail and unfit for bearing children,” the official began, his voice trembling slightly as if he knew he was courting death, but he pressed on anyway.

“Your Majesty is the ruler of all under heaven, and the stability of the realm rests on you alone. Without an heir to carry on the line, I fear it’ll unsettle the court and stir unrest among the people. So, I humbly implore Your Majesty to take more consorts.”

The grand hall fell dead silent; even the ministers‘ breathing grew softer.

Through the beaded curtain of his crown, the official could feel the Emperor’s face darken, glaring at him with the look of someone staring at a dead man. Unable to bear the pressure, he shook harder and harder until his knees gave out, nearly collapsing to the floor.

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