Lapis, who had been so direct, was now speechless.
When Linde's imposing figure, like that of a god, descended upon her, all her defenses instantly collapsed.
She, who usually had a small appetite, had now completely become a big eater.
Wave after wave, an unprecedented emotion, like a raging storm, had already occupied her mind.
Lapis, whose mind was now completely blank, had nothing left in her eyes but the image of Linde controlling everything.
"My level, it seems to have increased?"
In a daze, Lapis only felt the blood throughout her body begin to boil, every cell cheering with joy.
A tremendous joy directly invaded her heart.
Becoming the Master's Retainer.
It was truly wonderful.
Seeing this scene, she silently came before Linde.
"Master, I want to be with you too. Don't neglect me because of a new pet."
She tugged at Linde's pant leg like an injured puppy.
Among all the Retainers, she was clearly the only pet.
But this little rabbit overlapped with her attributes.
No matter what, she could no longer leave her Master.
Seeing her like this, Linde was slightly taken aback.
It seemed he had somewhat neglected the feelings of some of his Retainers.
He truly hadn't expected Lapis's appearance to be such a blow to her. 723
Linde reached out and wrapped an arm around Lapis's slender waist, while his other hand gave her a head pat.
"Alright, no matter who it is, you are all my most important wings."
"In my heart, all of you are equally important."
Hearing Linde's words, she immediately brightened.
"So, I am still Master's important pet?"
"That's right, you'll always be my good puppy."
"Now, carry out Master's command and assist your new companion."
"Yes, Master."
Once again confirming her status, she cast aside all distracting thoughts.
"Miss?"
Lapis exclaimed, immediately feeling her assistance.
At this moment, Lapis's shyness had reached its peak.
Her hands, her feet, her entire body exerted force simultaneously, as if she wanted to squeeze Linde to death.
"Ugh…"
Linde's pupils constricted. He endured the immense pressure for several minutes.
Lapis was completely exhausted, having lost all her remaining combat strength.
Lapis
Level: LV34
"She directly leveled up by one. That's quite efficient."
Recalling her previous offensive, Linde nodded in satisfaction.
His judgment was indeed correct.
The simultaneous burst of power from her waist and thigh muscles was absolutely not to be underestimated.
That Death Strangle skill almost made him lose face in front of his Retainers/Subordinates.
Fortunately.
He still had the slight upper hand in the end.
"Master, it's my turn to get stronger now."
Setsuna knelt eagerly before Linde, her tail wagging continuously.
"Alright."
Linde nodded, then looked around: "And you all, learn from Setsuna. "
"Have you been slacking off lately?"
"…"
Akame and the others stopped eating, simply moving the dining table out of the way.
When they returned, they were already in a fighting stance.
Seeing this, Linde was very pleased.
Indeed, every one of his Retainers/Subordinates was not a coward.
Without hesitation, Linde began to use his Rubber Body skill, warming up.
The next day at noon!
Linde walked out of his room feeling refreshed, just as he saw Carol approaching.
"What, is something wrong?"
Carol respectfully replied, "Reporting, Lord Linde, I have already gathered representatives from several major races to hold a meeting."
"To jointly discuss the matters of attacking the Demon King's Castle."
"The meeting room isn't far. I will take Lord Linde there now."
"No need, wait a moment."
Linde nodded, immediately casting a communication Magic Circle.
He truly had no interest in such a boring meeting.
Naturally, he had his Retainers/Subordinates to handle such troubles.
"We're attacking the Demon King's Castle here. Esdeath, Norn, Najenda, which three of you are free to come over?"
Esdeath: "Master, I just finished annihilating a country and am free."
"And me, I want to go too."
"Alright, you all come over."
Buzz!
With a flash of light.
Esdeath and Norn slowly emerged from the Magic Circle.
"Master, why aren't Akame and the others here?"
Esdeath looked around, a hint of confusion on her face.
"Yeah, that's not right."
Norn blinked, also looking at Linde with some bewilderment.
Linde coughed and waved his hand, saying, "It's nothing, they were too tired from training last night."
"…"
Esdeath and Norn exchanged glances, both seeing the subtle understanding in each other's eyes.
Alright.
They completely understood.
It seemed that while they were away.
Their fellow Retainers/Subordinates had been having an exceptionally good time.
However.
Hearing their conversation, Carol's heart filled with joy.
"Carol, these two represent my will. The upcoming meeting will be entirely their responsibility."
"Yes, Lord Linde."
Carol dared not delay and immediately led the two to the meeting hall.
As for Linde.
He was just about to go to the dining room to eat when he remembered that it probably needed to be redecorated.
Helplessly,
He could only casually find a chair to sit on and read the magic books he carried with him.
Anyway, with Esdeath's personality.
This meeting shouldn't last too long.
And in fact.
It was indeed so.
Vaguely, Linde could hear the commotion from the meeting room.
"I think the tactics you've devised are useless."
"I agree with Miss Norn. Meeting with you all is a complete waste of time."
"What did you say?"
"Ladies, this is not the attitude for a meeting."
"How can you two humans dictate the affairs of us demons?"
"Chief Carol, what exactly do you mean by having these two humans attend the meeting?"
Linde shook his head and muttered to himself, "As expected."
"Next up…"
The next second, Linde felt a chill, followed by sounds of wailing and begging for mercy.
"It seems it's ending even faster than I expected."
He knew it was Esdeath who had made a move without even having to think.
Except when she was in front of him, Esdeath always acted like a demure young woman.
To everyone else, she was forever that sadistic queen.
Those racial representatives were in for a rough time.
"Master!!"
Esdeath and Norn, having clearly finished the meeting, had already walked over.
Behind them, Carol's face was pale, as if he had experienced some great horror.
"You two, you didn't cause any fatalities, did you?"
Linde put away his magic book and asked with a faint smile.
"No, Big Sister Esdeath knows her limits very well."
Norn said with a smile, "A few of them are more seriously injured, but they'll be fine after lying down for about half a month."
"Hmm."
Linde nodded and asked, "What was the final strategy decided upon?"
After hearing the screams, he no longer paid attention to the subsequent events.
"With Master here, dealing with a mere Demon King's Castle doesn't require any complex strategy at all."
Esdeath said with a smile, "We just need to break through the Demon King's Castle and go straight for the Demon King's head."
"However, I don't know if Master is interested in the Demon King. If not, then leave it to me."
Linde pondered for a moment, then shook his head and said, "Forget it, leave the Demon King to me."
He was the Demon King after all.
He should be able to provide him with a good amount of experience.