Chapter 588: Yes, Director!

Chapter 588 Yes, Chief!

"A dragon?"

Karen’s breath hitched slightly.

Setting aside practical realities, who could possibly refuse the prospect of raising a dragon?

Furthermore, Karen had actually stood upon the carcass of a dragon and witnessed the picture of the Whip-Bearer soaring through the sky atop a frost giant dragon, striking terror into the pirates below.

One had to realize that Lady Augis in her human form and the frost giant dragon were two completely separate concepts;

once that massive physique manifested, the terrifying pressure bore down like an earthquake or a tsunami, capable of plunging anyone into absolute despair.

Most importantly, in the culture of the Maclay language family... no, in almost every cultural circle of this world, quite apart from their inherent power, the dragon race often possessed a higher spiritual symbolism.

To own it, to step upon its back, would grant a sense of dominion that transcended mere physical strength, and that feeling was precisely what intoxicated people the most.

Though the Whip-Bearer made it look casual, using the breath of a frost giant dragon to catch ants, if Karen possessed an adult dragon, he could put on an even more refined and extraordinary display.

"Yes, my Lord, a dragon." Guss did not deliberately stall, but immediately continued, "A dragon about to be born!"

Karen’s gaze focused slightly, his emotions calming down instantly as he asked:

"You don't mean yourself, do you?"

"Of course not, my Lord, but it has some connection to me."

"Oh?"

"My Lord, you should be aware that the primary inheritance of my Crypt Cult originates from those seven founding deities who worshipped the crypt in the previous era. The lineage I inherited belongs to the God of Bone Spirits.

The inheritance of the God of Bone Spirits is not limited to skeletal life forms like myself. According to modern terminology, it should lean toward the undead department. The vast majority of undead believers within the Crypt Cult consider themselves part of the God of Bone Spirits' lineage.

In addition, there is also a dragon lineage within the Crypt Cult, which originates from that rebellious dragon god among the seven founding deities. Currently, the dragons, drakes, and mixed-blood dragons within the cult all consider themselves its inheritors.

A senior of mine, who was my guide—the one who guided me from an ignorant undead creature into a believer of the God of Bone Spirits—was a legend of our lineage, holding a very high status. However, ten years ago, he died."

"But in reality, he did not die. Because he was my guide, he once left a mark upon me, so I can perceive that he still exists.

The reason he announced his death to the outside world is that he is conducting a rebellious experiment. He found a highly suitable dragon corpse in the cult's dragon graveyard, and on the foundation of this corpse, he intends to awaken a believer of the God of Bone Spirits!"

Karen had been listening intently and fully understood Guss’s narrative.

The Crypt Cult possessed seven major inheritances, each corresponding to the seven founding deities. Although they and their successors belonged to the same cult, they were relatively independent of one another, akin to the seven spokespersons in a guild.

To describe it with a high emotional intelligence, a believer of the God of Bone Spirits, in order to strengthen internal communication and integration within the Crypt Cult, proactively initiated a friendly and deep collaboration with a deceased believer of the dragon god, jointly seeking an innovative development model under the context of the new era.

To describe it crudely and directly, a madman from one faction within the same church had secretly dug up the ancestral grave of another faction to conduct dragon corpse experiments.

"Awakening a believer of the God of Bone Spirits from a dragon corpse?"

"Yes, my Lord, a... bone dragon about to be born!"

A bone dragon?

The

"Investigate him," Karen added, "and use the resources of the Department."

"Yes, Young Master. Do you then believe he was not telling the truth?"

"What he said was likely all true, but it was a truth of omissions.

Contact Sinyali and have her assist you in the investigation. I want to know the reality... regarding that bone dragon soon to be born."

"I had thought you were uninterested in it, Young Master."

"I am merely afraid of misjudging it, and later regretting it."

"Understood, Young Master."

"If you do indeed uncover something of significance, you may exercise your own discretion—even arrest and interrogate him."

"But would that not affect the relations between our two Churches?"

"Did you not hear him say it? An affiliated cult has no standing to object."

Karen walked into the bedroom, habitually stepping toward the dog kennel.

Kevin was currently tinkering with that scrap of parchment, a pair of gold-rimmed spectacles perched upon his snout, lending him the distinct air of an expert;

Purr was still sleeping sweetly, Kevin evidently having had no intention of waking her for the night shift.

Karen reached out and gently stroked Purr's head; having long since grown accustomed to his scent and touch, she did not wake at all, but rather out of habit rubbed her cheek against the back of his hand.

The young mistress was ever the young mistress; her way of expressing affection was simply allowing you the privilege of her using your bed while you slept on the floor, and you were still expected to be grateful for her favor.

Yet what would seem utterly insolent if done by anyone else felt entirely natural when she did it—indeed, even the Evil God found it natural.

Thus, genius was sometimes not confined solely to a talent for cultivation; relying on the body of "Karen," he himself had been filled with trepidation when first facing Dis, and even now, he had not truly lowered his guard against this golden retriever;

Yet Purr was capable of receiving the treatment of Dis personally stepping in to avenge her grievances, and Kevin truly doted upon her.

The corner of Karen's mouth could not help but curve into a faint smile:

She actually used to have the nerve to tease him for always relying on his face to win the favor of women and secure perks and gifts, yet she failed to look at herself—wearing a cat's face had hardly hindered her from working her connections.

Karen once more stroked Kevin's bald head; the texture was beginning to feel infinitely close to the wooden spheres atop staircase banisters.

"Good night."

"Woof~"

...

Neo must have spent the entire night studying those "whistleblower materials," and it was anyone's guess whether he had rested well; he himself, however, was well-rested.

Upon rising, Karen washed up unhurriedly, changed into a clean divine robe, and stepped first into the study.

Inside, Kevin was clawing at the edge of the desk while Purr lay curled atop it, her two front paws tucked beneath her in a manner precisely resembling a person tucking their hands into their sleeves in winter.

Before Karen entered, the exchange within the study had been quite fierce:

"Woof!"

"Meow!"

"Woof!"

"Meow!"

Perhaps to them, this was a simpler and more efficient mode of communication, for according to past experience, a single "woof" and a single "meow" often sufficed to represent an entire sentence.

"Oh, my dear little Karen, you are awake."

"Yes. How goes the research?"

"It is a fine thing, yet it is also utterly useless."

"Useless?"

"Indeed. There ought to be twelve sets in total, but your Director Neo... oh no, your colleague Neo;

Well... in any case, the scrap he brought over is merely a single set. He must be quite ignorant of its worth, meow."

"Is it worth collecting?"

"Of course it is. This is a summoning ritual; it should be capable of summoning thirty-six entities in total, though these thirty-six are not mere summons themselves. While they can be used as such, the true ritual actually uses them as a foundation to unfold a genuine summoning.

However, gathering all twelve sets would be far too difficult. If we had six sets in hand right now, it would be worth attempting to acquire the rest—by posting rewards on the black market, for instance, or keeping an eye on the voucher shops of other Churches."

"Then let us collect them. I believe Neo has at least five more sets, if not more."

"Meow?"

"Because he is not a man ignorant of value."

"Ah, quite right, that makes perfect sense; he did inherit Philias's knowledge, after all. But why did he only give you one set?"

"It was not a gift; he wanted you to take a look at it."

"Is this some sort of flirtatious interaction between you two?"

"Enough. I must head to work. I expect things will be very busy for the foreseeable future."

"Oh, little Karen, struggling away from home for the sake of the household; you bear far too much for this family. I have decided that starting today, I require an extra cup of coffee."

"Oh?"

"That way, I shall have more energy to pray for your blessings."

"Heh. Remember to pack up your things; we should be moving houses within the next few days."

"Very well, meow."

Karen walked out of the study, and Alfred approached, speaking in a low voice: "Everyone is waiting for you in the front hall, Young Master."

"Waiting for me for what?"

"Today is the day of your promotion. Furthermore, I have already informed them of what is to come, so everyone wishes to begin the workday in a more solemn manner."

"Mere formalism."

"A well-deserved reprimand, Young Master."

"Let it be the last time."

"Yes, Young Master."

"I shall have my breakfast first. Let them wait a moment."

"Young Master, there is one more thing." Alfred glanced toward the kitchen. "Madam Tangli has arrived. She is in the kitchen."

"Understood."

Karen walked into the kitchen and saw Madam Tangli wearing an apron, wrapping wontons. The moment he entered, he perceived that the barrier already present in the kitchen had been reinforced with an additional layer.

"Siri ought to be doing these things, Grandmother."

Madam Tangli set down the wontons, picked up the rolling pin she had been using to roll out the wrappers, turned, and looked at Karen.

Karen said, "Grandmother, did Siri tell you? Cooking mini wontons requires lard to season the soup base."

Madam Tangli brought the rolling pin down squarely toward Karen's face.

Karen did not dodge, standing perfectly still.

He had originally intended to keep his eyes wide open, but on second thought, such composure might seem a bit too provocative, so he closed them to fit the atmosphere.

Sure enough, the rolling pin came to a steady halt just a hair's breadth away from smashing Karen's head to pieces.

"How much are you eating?" Mrs. Tangli asked.

"One bowl."

"Hmm?"

"Two bowls."

"Still too little, I wrapped quite a lot."

"Grandma, I have things to do today, and eating too much to the point of sporting a bloated belly doesn't look good for photos."

"Very well."

Karen sat down.

Soon, a bowl of wontons was brought over, prepared in the same manner as Xili's, and perhaps even more meticulously crafted than hers.

Karen picked up his spoon and began to eat.

"The one from the Felsher family ate twelve bowls this morning, and it looked to me like she had barely taken the edge off her hunger. With an appetite like that, she will eat her husband's family out of house and home when she marries in the future."

"It is quite normal for her to eat so much, considering her body burns through a great deal of energy."

"She is still growing," Mrs. Tangli corrected. "She is still in the process of enhancing her physical constitution."

"Oh, so that is how it is."

As soon as Karen finished his first bowl, Mrs. Tangli immediately brought over the second, ensuring a seamless transition.

After consuming the second bowl and even drinking the broth, Karen felt a distinct sense of fullness.

"Grandma, I must head to work now, and when we move into the headquarters dormitory in a while, you can come over often to cook for Richard and me."

Karen stood up, and as he turned to leave, he heard Mrs. Tangli's voice rise behind him:

"Matters of work belong to work; whatever dangers you encounter while executing your missions, you must bear them yourself. Personal matters belong to the private realm; the risks you took to help the Felsher girl overthrow her grandmother are also yours to endure.

But, when trouble arises within the family... you ought to inform your elders first!"

Karen turned back around and bowed deeply to Mrs. Tangli:

"Yes, Grandma, you are right, it was an oversight on my part."

"I may be old, and I have given my blade away, but I am not dead yet."

"I acknowledge my mistake, and next time I will ask for your help—regarding family matters, that is."

"Keep it to heart."

"Yes, Grandma."

Stepping out of the kitchen, Karen took a deep breath, realizing that Mrs. Tangli had not come this morning to make breakfast for Richard's teammates... she had come specifically to reprimand him.

Still, this feeling of being shielded by an elder was truly comforting.

As Karen walked into the front hall, every single member of his squad—who had previously been sitting or lounging about—stood in a perfectly neat formation, with even Philomena lining up quite harmoniously.

At a moment like this, it seemed rather inappropriate not to say a few words.

Karen smiled and said:

"The coming period will be very arduous for us, but all the hardship will be worthwhile, for we shall reap a bountiful harvest that is plain for all to see."

Karen raised both hands, elevating his voice slightly:

"Everyone, let us go forth together and earn the era that belongs to us!"

Everyone shouted in unison:

"Yes, Director!"

—

Starting tomorrow, the two-chapter daily update schedule will resume, holding you all close!