It had been some time since they departed from Roswaal's mansion. After deliberately rushing their journey across the kingdom, the convoy finally arrived at the agreed location.
The Gusteko Plains.
They were already very close to the front lines, or perhaps the area had already become an active battlefield. Facing completely unknown circumstances, Julia glanced back at the massive, luxurious convoy trailing behind them, and a wave of worry welled up in her heart. She turned to look at the man sitting lazily beside her on the driver's bench.
"Regulus, are you really sure about this? Wouldn't it be better to leave them in a fortified city further away from the scene?"
"Don't worry," Regulus waved his hand dismissively. "In this entire world, there is absolutely no safer place than right where we are. Wouldn't you agree, Betty?"
"Hmph~ Betty is in a very bad mood right now and doesn't want to talk to you, I suppose," Beatrice pouted, turning her head away, looking extremely displeased.
The reason for her displeasure was very simple.
Regulus glanced at the other Spirit sitting obediently to his other side.
Anileni.
She was Lycoris's friend, a Spirit Maiden who had fallen into a deep coma due to severe injuries and had only just woken up this morning. The only reason she was able to wake up was entirely thanks to the encyclopedia-like knowledge of Echidna, combined with Beatrice's assistance.
Although the newly awakened Anileni was still a bit weak and couldn't fully exert her strength, it didn't change what she fundamentally was. As a Great Spirit of Water, her strength was absolutely incomparable to that of an ordinary mage.
Therefore, looking at the current team, even without counting the considerable baseline strength of some of the noble wives, the combat power gathered here was staggering.
There were two Great Spirits (Water and Yin), one Sword Saint, one elite Knight of the Royal Guard, one incredibly strong close-combat master, and finally, himself—the invincible Sin Archbishop of Greed.
Conquering an entire country with this lineup would be easy. Even unifying the continent wasn't entirely impossible. Even if the Sword Saint in this team, Theresia, was unwilling to proactively harm others, if they were truly attacked, she would certainly not stand idly by.
With her monstrous abilities, holding back the strongest attacker the enemy could throw at them would definitely be a very easy task. Under these circumstances, where in the world could possibly be safer than this exact spot?
Regulus looked down at Beatrice, who wore an expression that clearly screamed, 'If you don't keep comforting me, I will definitely ignore you,' yet she couldn't help but secretly peek at him from the corner of her eye.
"Then what would it take for Betty to feel better?" Regulus smiled, poking her cheek.
"Do you really want to make Betty feel better, in fact?"
"Of course."
"You can. However, if you want Betty to feel better, the prerequisite is to replenish all the mana Betty has consumed," Beatrice said, sitting up straighter on Regulus's lap, a faint blush appearing on her face. "To restore that Spirit, Betty spent the magical energy she painstakingly accumulated for over a hundred years, I suppose."
What she meant was already very clear.
Speaking of which, the fact that Beatrice actually asked for it proactively greatly surprised Regulus.
"Alright, I'll replenish a hundred years' worth of magical energy for you. But based on our... normal circumstances, how many times would it take to fully replenish it?"
Regulus's question made Beatrice ponder for a moment with a serious expression, then she raised one small hand. Her palm was completely open, all five fingers extended.
'This means it will take five rounds to replenish it?' Regulus thought, amused.
Of course, as for whether it could actually be replenished in exactly five rounds, Regulus didn't know. After all, only Beatrice knew the exact amount of mana transferred each time they exchanged "fluids."
"I understand," Regulus nodded solemnly.
"Mm."
Beatrice's mood instantly became very good. Recently, because she was rushing to travel and also preparing for Anileni's recovery, she hadn't had many opportunities to be physically close to Regulus. This way, she could forcefully make up for it all at once.
But would five times be too much? Replenishing a hundred years' worth of magical energy all at once... she wasn't worried about Regulus's stamina, but rather that she herself might not be able to withstand the overwhelming infusion of magical energy and pleasure.
"Um..." A soft voice suddenly spoke up.
Regulus and Beatrice both looked at the girl who had been sitting obediently beside them.
"Anileni, is something wrong?" Regulus asked.
"No need to be so reserved; just say what you want to say," Regulus said gently, reaching out and stroking her long hair.
After the prominent ahoge on top of her head was pressed down by his hand, it immediately sprang right back up. It then swayed left and right as if it had a life of its own, making it very noticeable.
'What would happen if I plucked it?' Regulus wondered internally, staring at the swaying strand of hair. 'Could it grow back, or is it like a certain ahoge king's—a switch for going dark?'
However, after some consideration, Regulus decided against plucking it. The ahoge, which seemed to twitch and change with her mood, was quite cute. It would be a pity if it didn't grow back.
"I want to… I want to replenish my magic too."
Her words were startling. Anileni's bold statement left several people present completely stunned. However, to her, this was perfectly normal and something she absolutely had to do. She needed to quickly recover her full strength.
She had been in a deep sleep before, but she wasn't completely unconscious; she knew everything that had happened in the outside world. She just couldn't make a sound or do anything to help. She could only watch helplessly. This, of course, included the appearance of Regulus, the intimate things he did to her contractor Lycoris, and the terrifying threat posed by the Lust Bishop, Capella.
Especially the Lust Bishop.
Anileni felt she must have enough power to protect Lycoris and the people Lycoris cared about from harm and danger. She had failed to protect them last time, resulting in her coma. But this time, no matter what, she had to protect them.
As for Regulus's relationship with her contractor... she respected Lycoris's choice. As long as it didn't separate the two friends, she naturally had no objections. In fact, not only did she have no objections, but Regulus had saved Lycoris from danger and rescued Anileni from a state of severe injury and near death. She held deep gratitude in her heart.
"Can I?" Anileni pleaded with her words and her large eyes. "I want to recover to my peak condition as soon as possible. That way, I can also help out in the coming battles."
The person she was actually asking wasn't Regulus, but Beatrice.
Because Regulus was Beatrice's official contractor. If Anileni didn't get past Beatrice first, she would never actively touch Regulus out of respect for spirit hierarchy.
This polite deference made Beatrice, who was just about to aggressively refuse sharing her 'mana supply', stop and reconsider. She had already learned about Anileni's situation from Echidna. Her lack of power had led to her failure to protect her contractor—which, for them as Great Spirits, was an extremely regrettable and unbearable failure.
"Hmph~" Beatrice crossed her arms, looking away. "Don't look at Betty when asking about such indecent things, in fact. Just ask the person involved, I suppose."
Softening her stance, Beatrice directly handed the question over to Regulus. This was undoubtedly a sign of agreement. After all, Beatrice knew Regulus would not refuse the beautiful girl by his side. The Spirit Maiden in front of them was very cute, so there was even less reason for that greedy man to refuse, wasn't there?
"Since Betty has already agreed..." Regulus smiled wickedly, turning to Anileni.
"I say, you all can do whatever you want later," Julia interrupted Regulus loudly, pulling back hard on the dragon carriage's reins. "But also pay attention to the occasion! We can already see the people we're supposed to be meeting!"
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