W did not know what had come over her. There was something familiar about the feeling Felix gave her, something that tugged faintly at her heart, yet she could not grasp it.
After their earlier intimacy, she lay limply in bed, staring at the scenery beyond the bedroom window.
A moment later, Felix stepped out of the bathroom, a towel draped loosely around him. Water droplets traced the lines of his well-defined muscles. Faint bite marks and hickeys were still visible across his skin, evidence of W's untamed temperament. In bed, she was like a wildcat that refused to be domesticated.
W's face flushed. She turned her head away quickly. Every time she saw him like this, her body reacted against her will.
"Where are we going after Kjerag?" she asked, deliberately changing the subject.
As one of Felix's companions, W had tried her best to improve herself. Though she had dropped out of Kazdel's school, she regularly attended the study sessions aboard the Venus. Because of the nature of Tomorrow's Development, many minors and children traveled with the landship. Felix treated everyone on board the same as those in Kazdel. Teachers were provided so that children could attend classes alongside their assigned duties, enriching their knowledge and literacy.
Without knowledge, a person was little different from a beast. To survive in this world required more than strength; one needed benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trust.
Felix disliked labeling Kazdel as a "bad and remote place," yet he could not ignore reality. Many talented individuals who later fell into crime had emerged from impoverished regions. It was not something that could simply be blamed on individuals. Kazdel had once been the largest example of such a place. The first batch of students recruited by Kazdel School had mostly been children of mercenaries, second-generation fighters raised in an environment where combat was a way of life. From a young age, they were either fighting or preparing to fight. They would have felt embarrassed to leave home without weapons at their belts.
It was a long-standing Kazdel tradition for children to begin martial training early, preparing for the harshness of the future. W herself had grown up that way.
Felix sought to guide these second-generation mercenaries, talents who might otherwise have drifted into prison or obscurity, toward new possibilities for Kazdel's future. Farming and herding could be learned quickly. Shu had taught them for only a few months before they became competent. But fields like construction, medicine, and economics held far greater promise.
This phenomenon was not unique to Kazdel; it existed throughout Terra. Whenever danger arose, Felix chose to intervene.
He believed his heart was as hard as iron, yet it still retained a trace of warmth. As king, he could not afford excessive personal sentiment, nor could he risk his life recklessly to win loyalty as he once had. Even if he wished to, his subordinates would stop him.
"We'll return to Kazdel and transfer power," he replied.
He dried his hair with a towel, his broad chest and abdomen illuminated under the lights.
"Hoederer has written to me repeatedly. He wants to travel with the Venus." Felix sighed softly. "He's done excellent work. The problem is finding someone to take his place."
"Huh? Is Hoederer planning to bring his son aboard for early education?" W grinned. She had attended Hoederer's mercenary-style wedding and had recently heard that he and his wife had welcomed a healthy baby boy.
"Who knows? He's been with me for a long time. Granting him this small wish is nothing."
Felix shrugged and leaned back against the sofa, still loosely wrapped in his bathrobe. Under the light, his physique seemed almost unreal. W nearly felt her nosebleed coming on just from looking at him.
He glanced at her distracted expression. Anyone with even basic political sense would understand that Hoederer's decision to step down was prudent. Kazdel belonged to Felix, the King of Liberation. Hoederer was merely an executive. But if, over time, people began to favor the operators more than the king, complications could arise.
Such thoughts might be unlikely, yet caution was always wise. Hoederer had once been simple and straightforward, but he had learned much. He understood the sensitivity of his position. Advancing or retreating would both be awkward; resignation was the cleanest solution.
His wisdom lay in knowing that Felix would understand his intentions. Moreover, Hoederer's desire to board the Venus was not a sudden whim.
"So the new acting governor of Kazdel is about to be chosen?" W blinked.
Felix smirked. "Interested?"
"No. I just want to stay by your side…"
Her small fangs flashed before she realized how sentimental she sounded.
She quickly spat twice in embarrassment. "I just think you're overworking yourself. I can help you here on the Venus, okay?"
"But your trip to Kazdel will also ease my burden."
"I'm talking about you!"
W suddenly jumped off the bed and dropped onto Felix's lap, straddling him as she stared straight into his eyes.
At such close range, even Felix, usually composed, could not help but twitch slightly. "About me…?"
"What will you do," W interrupted, "if your harem members aren't by your side and you start feeling lonely?"
Felix found her reaction more amusing than threatening. "Are you the lonely one, or am I?"
Seeing the teasing glint in his eyes, W bit down on his shoulder in frustration.
The instant their skin touched, heat rushed through her body again.
Before she could recover, Felix lifted her effortlessly and tossed her back onto the bed. She gritted her teeth and turned her face away, cheeks flushed bright red.
"Didn't you just take a shower?" she muttered.
"I'll wash again later."
When designing the Venus, Felix had paid particular attention to soundproofing.
The next morning, after getting dressed, Felix glanced at W, who was sleeping like a log, and quietly left without waking her.
The messenger from Kjerag had arrived.
While eating breakfast in his office, Felix opened the letter and began reading.
It was from Enciodes. He thanked Felix for accepting the invitation as an ally and, as host, warmly welcomed him to Kjerag to celebrate the New Year together. The letter concluded with a proposal to discuss the future cooperation between Kjerag and Kazdel.
To be honest, Felix had never considered Kjerag an adversary.
Was there any real need to conquer a nation composed of only a few scattered cities, none of them mobile?
Military strategy favored befriending distant states while dealing cautiously with nearby ones. Though this was not an era of constant war, Kjerag lay far from Kazdel and posed no direct threat. Enciodes had long since become his partner and ally. Incidentally, he had also been the first six-star operator Felix pulled in Arknights.
No need to ask how. It was free.
Thinking of Enciodes's True Silver Slash and Schwing in the game, Felix could only marvel inwardly.
Setting personal feelings aside, the Venus also carried the blessing of Kjeragandr, and Miss Kjera, a clergy member of Kjerag is on board too, he would never take up arms against Kjerag.
On a strategic level, there was even less reason for aggression. Kjerag's geographic position was unfavorable. Its proximity to Victoria had effectively made it a backyard of the Victorian nobles. If Kazdel were to forcefully annex Kjerag, it would invite immediate joint pressure from those nobles.
There was no reason to pursue a course whose risks outweighed its benefits.
Felix folded the letter and began drafting a reply.
As someone who jokingly considered himself part of Kazdel's incubus, he was well practiced in the art of relationship-building through correspondence. By now, nearly everyone on Terra understood what Tomorrow's Development represented. Some respected him, others mocked him, yet few could deny his capability as a leader.
Much of this reputation stemmed from player enthusiasm and the praise of operators. In their words, Felix was not only responsible but genuinely considerate toward his subordinates. The organization offered generous benefits and ample paid leave. Criticism gradually faded, and the reputation of Tomorrow's Development continued to spread.
Branches of Tomorrow's Development were taking root across different cities. Though their sizes varied, their numbers grew steadily each month.
Felix was pleased to see Tomorrow's Development expanding. The hardest period had passed, but the harvest season had yet to arrive. He understood that the idea of "allowing the infected and non-infected to coexist harmoniously" was no longer sufficient.
It had been his starting point, borrowed almost word for word from Rhodes Island Pharmaceuticals. In this life, he had even absorbed many of their former personnel. But that slogan suited a multinational pharmaceutical company. It did not fully suit Kazdel or Tomorrow's Development. It was too narrow.
"What is Your Highness contemplating?"
Ines had temporarily taken over Loughshinny's duties as secretary. Loughshinny, along with most senior executives, had been placed on leave by Felix. With the year drawing to a close, many of them had not taken a single break since Siesta.
Felix did not see himself as a ruthless capitalist. When he saw his employees working tirelessly, his first thought was whether the expansion efforts had placed too much strain on management. Yet he handled similar responsibilities himself and could maintain a regular schedule. Why, then, were the senior executives not taking their leave?
When gentle persuasion failed, Felix resorted to stronger measures, requiring the senior staff to use their accumulated leave before the New Year. In the end, they had no choice but to comply.
As for Ines, she had already taken several days off to shop with W in Kawalerielki. Although she was technically on leave this time as well, she volunteered to serve as Felix's temporary secretary, which was why she stood here now.
"I've been thinking about Kazdel's new direction," Felix said.
"A direction…?"
"I'd rather call it an ideal than a goal." He leaned back in his chair. From his angle, he could see Ines's pale thighs beneath the hem of her short skirt. He did not remember her wearing this outfit before. Looking away, he continued, "When you were a mercenary, what was your ideal?"
"In those days…" Ines gave a faint, self-mocking smile. "I wanted to buy a small shack in one of Kazdel's mobile cities and open a shop. As a mercenary, I lived from one job to the next, so my dreams were simple. Some wanted to earn enough money to retire. Others wanted to leave Kazdel forever and escape the wars. None of it was complicated."
"How could that be?" Felix replied. "If a person has no ideals, what drives them forward? It is natural to have ideals, or at least desires."
He recalled his first visit to Kazdel. "When I arrived there, I learned that both the Infected and the Sarkaz were equally despised. If hatred could be ranked, they would stand on the same level."
Ines fell silent, then sighed softly.
"I saw the Infected exhaust themselves until they crystallized into Originium fragments and scattered into the wind," Felix said quietly, his gaze distant. "I also saw Sarkaz mercenaries fight desperately for their next meal, only to die on the battlefield without anyone to claim their bodies."
He paused.
"At the time, I thought that even death should have dignity."
A faint smile touched his lips.
"But now, I think it is a greater ideal to let them live with dignity."
Ines looked at him in surprise.
"Ines, can you imagine a day when Sarkaz walk into a city and are treated like ordinary citizens, without anyone looking down on them?"
"That… feels like something that exists only in imagination."
"Then why not turn imagination into reality?"
Felix smiled and took out another letter, a confidential message from Laterano. The sender was Velliv, an old classmate. After boarding the landship, she had been received by Mostima and the others. He had not yet met her in person.
The letter itself had been handwritten by His Holiness the Pope. It outlined the preliminary terms for holding a Summit of Nations next year. The Pope made it clear that, for now, only the Papal Court was aware of the matter. Another envoy, representing multiple nations, would be dispatched to Kazdel next year to coordinate the arrangements. The envoy's name was Oren Argiolas.
Felix knew him well. Nominally, Oren was a messenger of many nations. In truth, he was a traitor. They had corresponded long ago. Oren had even made private dealings with Andoain. He admired Felix's resolve to step beyond familiar borders and expand into new lands, once declaring that he would follow him to the very end.
Having such a man under his command would not be a bad thing.
It was time for Felix to gather followers who shared his vision. He intended to accomplish what Cliff and Father Agenir had failed to achieve.
He needed allies from the Sankta.