That was right. The only ones who knew he had drunk Lilith's blood were him and Lilith. It had happened while the two of them were doing that, so there was no way he could go around telling anyone about it.
And he believed Lilith would not tell anyone either.
So why did Naomi know?
"Hahaha… just looking at your recovery stats is enough to know what Lilith did for you," Naomi said with a laugh. "Otherwise, how could you recover your stamina that quickly? You even adapted to the prosthetic leg in no time."
"Do you know how long it normally takes for an ordinary person to recover and adapt to a prosthetic leg as complex as this? At least one month, and at most three."
Hearing that, Negut was stunned and asked in a low voice, "Does her blood really have that much of an effect?"
Naomi tilted her head and looked at him, puzzled. "She did not tell you?"
"Heh?!"
Seeing Negut's expression, Naomi sighed softly, then continued, "She really did not tell you. Maybe she did not want you to feel pressured."
"In reality, every drop of blood she lets you drink is crystallized energy of hers. Each drop costs her a huge amount of energy, and to produce a single drop, she has to accumulate it for about six months to a year."
Negut was dumbfounded, his eyes widening in disbelief. He carefully recalled that Lilith had given him at least three drops, which meant she had given him at least one and a half years' worth of her crystallized energy.
"On top of that…" Naomi felt he still was not shocked enough, so she added, "Blood Dragon Lilith's blood is an S-grade treasure. You cannot buy it even if you have money. In the past, all it took was a single drop of her blood to make countless people fight to bid for it."
"In the end, one drop of her blood was auctioned off for more than 500 million Energy Points."
Negut drew in a sharp breath. He had drunk three drops of her blood, which totaled… 1.5 billion Energy Points. Converted to Credit Points, that was 1,500 billion Credit Points.
Even if he squandered it for 300 years, he would not be able to use up that much money.
Negut grimaced in confusion and asked, "Why would she treat me so well?"
"I do not know." Naomi shrugged with a smile. "But I do know one thing… if she is willing to sacrifice that much for you, it proves she truly likes you."
Negut let out a long sigh, not knowing how he was supposed to face Lilith.
"Alright. Stop overthinking it." Naomi spoke up. "Let me check your leg and your health. Once we are done, you can go have breakfast."
"Ah, okay." Negut nodded.
Just as Naomi had said, his recovery stats were extremely promising. Even his lungs showed signs of healing. However, Naomi also added that his lungs would only ever recover to at most one quarter of normal capacity.
After Naomi finished examining him, he wanted to walk down to the dining room on his own. As he walked, his mind was filled only with the image of Lilith letting him drink her blood.
Back then, he had simply thought she was trying to heighten the mood, which was why she did it. Thinking about it now, it felt more like she did it so he would not feel anxious when drinking those precious drops.
"Ack!"
Negut startled when his prosthetic leg slipped on the stair step. Lost in thought, he immediately tumbled forward down the stairs.
Inwardly, he cursed, Damn it. Even after coming to this world, I am still this unlucky?
"Huck!"
Negut shut his eyes, but that sensation of losing his footing never came. Nor did any sharp pain from smashing into the steps.
Instead, he felt a soft yet incredibly solid body catch him in its arms. His head came to rest against an unbelievably soft place that carried a perfume both strong and intoxicating.
"Look what I just caught. A poor little puppy?"
The moment he heard that familiar voice, Negut knew it was Lilith. He wanted to lift his head, but she immediately picked him up in her arms, in that same princess carry she had used when she first took him away.
Tack! Tack! Tack!
Behind them, Naomi stood there holding up her phone, one hand covering her mouth as she snapped picture after picture, her eyes smiling so hard they curved like little crescents.
"Wow. Is this the powerful CEO wife and her weak husband scenario? This is amazing. Seeing it in real life is even more exciting than reading about it in novels," Naomi said as she kept taking photos.
Negut: "…"
He really wanted to ask the god who brought him here, "Hey, God! I remember you said you were sending me to a Fantasy, post-apocalyptic world, right? So why do I feel like you sent me into a romance novel instead?"
Lilith glanced at Naomi and frowned. "You told him already?"
Naomi covered her mouth and laughed. "I only helped the two of you get together faster. When I read novels, I only read the beginning and the ending anyway, so… stop teasing each other and just skip straight to the premium scenes. Whether it is rating 18+ or 21+, I like it all."
Lilith's words carried a hint of displeasure, but her eyes were full of satisfaction, as if she were telling Naomi, "You did very well."
Negut wanted to say something, but Lilith's arms tightened around him and her doting voice sounded. "Lie still. Let me help you."
"This is…" Negut felt rather uncomfortable. He was a man after all, yet being princess-carried by a woman like this made him feel like he was the one who was the girl here.
Before he could say anything else, Lilith was already carrying him toward the dining room. Before leaving, she even winked at Naomi.
Naomi curled her index finger and thumb into an "OK" sign, her face full of satisfied smiles.
Once they reached the dining room, Lilith set him down on a chair, then had the servants bring out the finest dishes to the table.
Seeing the dishes laid out before him, Negut's eye practically sparkled. Just from the aroma alone he could tell that these dishes were anything but ordinary.
"These are all dishes made from Aberrants with high nutritional value, hunted fresh this morning. They are all still fresh." The head maid standing beside him respectfully introduced, "Everything has been prepared especially for Young Master."
"Young Master?" Negut frowned and glanced over at Lilith.
Lilith smiled and said, "From today on, you are also the master of this house."
Hearing that, Negut nodded and accepted it immediately. After all, his reason for living was to live comfortably.
Even if he had to cling to Lilith's skirt, he did not feel that was anything to be ashamed of. While Lilith was still interested in him, he had to enjoy it to the fullest.
Later, once she got tired of him, he could leave with a mountain of money. Even if he cried, he could use money to wipe away his tears. That was also a kind of happiness.
Negut ate, and every bite that entered his mouth turned into energy that nourished his body.
No matter how much he ate, he did not feel full. Instead, he only craved more. Lilith sat beside him, watching him with tender eyes. From time to time, she would wipe the stains off his face with a handkerchief, and even cut up pieces of meat that were too large into smaller bites for him.
When Negut was almost finished eating, Lilith smiled and said, "Once you are done eating, you are coming to the Guild with me."
"Heh?!" Negut paused mid-bite, tilted his head to look at Lilith, and asked in confusion, "Why am I going with you?"
That was right, why was he going with her? He had not yet been officially recognized as an Awakened, and he was only a Class F - 99 Awakened Profession at that. What could he possibly help her with?
Lilith smiled and said, "There are many important things I need you to help me deal with. Without you, they cannot be done."
Negut frowned. Even though he did not know what those things were, he still obeyed her words. After all, she was the boss, the one who had thrown a card loaded with one million Energy Points at his face and, ah, also the one who drained him dry every night.
After they finished eating, he sat in his wheelchair, and Lilith took him out to a custom-built car.
Inside, it was no different from a mobile room, so luxurious that a poor guy like him could only stare wide-eyed. Well, he only had one eye anyway.
Sitting on the most expensive seats, he felt that living like this was simply wonderful.
If someone cursed at him for clinging to a woman, he would just smile brightly and say, "I can cling to her, but you cannot. That is what you call a Skill Issue."