After Mia departed along with Aria, Harry, Paul, and Delya from the dining hall.
Jeff also left with another large group. That included Galathor, Valdren, Oswald, Agnes, Elspeth, Baldwin, Shawn, Silva, Selene, Veronica, Jenna, Ruby, Isolde, Trainy, Daisy, Dimancy, Jamica, Rosa, and the rest of the family members. His workload was by far the heaviest.
First, he had to secure a massive amount of oats from the granary and portion them into ten-pound pouches. He had no solid estimate of how many families from the duchy might show up tomorrow during the ascension ceremony.
Second, he needed to collect silver coins from the treasury. Along with every pouch of grain, each family was to receive four silver coins. After tomorrow's ceremony, all of it would be distributed and donated to the townspeople.
All in all, Jeff's task was the most rigorous. With only one day left, he desperately needed extra manpower.
Meanwhile, Allen left with Guntor, Jasper, and Talmora. Their responsibility was to oversee the remaining preparations and welcome the arriving guests.
Once they were gone, the people still present in the hall were:
- Jason, Oriana, and Tristian from the Velmora house
- Jeffrey, Fifi, Rkliona, and Fobila from Kielname
- Branson, Desmond, Nad Kevlon, Gloria, Von Miller, Stuart, and Nyx from Holygrill house
- Cinthia, Sherek, Everard, Ambrose, Jackvert, Lisa, Lilly, Furia, and Regisa from Florence house
- Deford Redlife with his eighteen wives and two daughters, Aelema and Fiji, from Redbarn house
- Duke Gelvin with his eleven wives and daughter Lorisa from Weilhiem Duchy
- And finally, Duchess Velora, her main husband Nicole Kidman, and her younger brother Kinru from Livingstone Duchy
Sixty-one people in total.
Gelvin looked toward Jason, Tristian, and Oriana, a thin, mocking smile already curling his lips.
"What's now? Everyone who matters has already left. Who's going to show us the so-called credibility of those little pills of yours?"
Tristian took the lead without hesitation.
"Aren't we still here? We're the hosts. You're the guests. It's obvious we'll be the ones demonstrating."
Gelvin's smirk widened, eyes glittering with open disdain.
"Then what are you waiting for, boy? Let's begin the show. Or are you stalling because even you don't believe the garbage your side has been spewing?"
"What's the rush, Duke?" Jason cut in. His eyes gleamed with a shrewdness far too sharp for his age....."From the very beginning I've watched you, your wives, and half the people from the other households—except Florence and Kielname, of course—doubt everything my big brother created. Is it really so hard to believe what Sister Silva already told you?"
Gelvin let out a short, cold laugh and stepped closer, deliberately looking down at the boy.
"Truth be told, little brat… from the events that unfolded earlier, we understand Lucifer is powerful. Beyond our comprehension, even. Fine. I'll grant you that. But even if that's true, don't you think it's pure absurdity to brag that these pills can do things never before seen or heard of across the entire continent? Changing the structure of a body? Switching gender with a single swallow? That's the kind of claim only a madman or a liar would make."
Jason nodded slowly, an ambiguous smile creeping across his face.
"Neither I, nor my nephew, nor Sister Oriana were present yesterday to witness whatever my big brother showed you. But if he truly revealed something that left even a duke like you shaken… then he only showed a fraction of what he normally hides from the world.
So tell me, Duke—if my brother can do things beyond your comprehension, does it really seem impossible that he could create pills that look absurd to the likes of you?"
"I can accept other pills as genuine so not entirely mpossible," Gelvin admitted, voice dripping with skepticism, "but it's still ridiculous. No single pill can rewrite flesh and gender like some cheap fairy tale."
"Fair enough. You're clinging to your stance, and I'm clinging to mine. Our beliefs are clashing, aren't they?"
Gelvin tittered, the sound sharp and unpleasant.
"Instead of showing us the demonstration your aunt entrusted to you, you're wasting everyone's time with that clever little tongue of yours. You're a garrulous, verbose brat—I'll give you that. Fine. Let's say our beliefs are clashing. What now? Are you going to run crying to your mother and hide behind her skirts?"
Jason remained perfectly calm.
"Nothing of the sort, Duke. Your imagination runs quite wild. Before we demonstrate anything, I want to ask you—especially you—do you dare to bet with me on the results?" He took two steps forward and spread both arms. "You win if the pills fail. I win if they succeed. Well, Duke? Do you have the spine for it?"
Gelvin stared at the boy in silence for a long moment. Then he glanced back at his wives. Seeing them nod, he sighed theatrically and answered with a predatory smile.
"Fine, kid. But what exactly is the wager?"
"Submission," Jason said without hesitation. "If you win, I submit myself to you for the rest of my life. If I win… your life will be in my hands....ofcourse your life and your duchy are two completely different identities"
Gelvin's smirk turned cruel.
"Quite gutsy for asking for a Duke's life. But what would I even do with a loudmouthed child's life? I'm not satisfied with that wager. If we're truly doing this, I want more."
"Then what do you want?"
Gelvin raised a finger and pointed.
"That girl and that boy. I want both of them as my slaves for life....along with you."
Jason followed the direction of the finger. A flicker of anger flashed across his face.
"You want my nephew and Fifi as your slaves… along with me?"
"Precisely."
"I can't decide for them. They're their own people."
Gelvin's laugh was soft and venomous.
"Little boy… are you chickening out after all that big talk?"
Fifi stepped forward before Jason could answer. She nodded once to him, then met Gelvin's gaze without flinching.
"I'm in. If you win this bet against Brother Jason, I'll be your slave for eternity."
Gelvin's eyes slid to Tristian.
"And the boy? Will he, or won't he?"
Tristian took a step forward, anger burning in his eyes.
"Fine. I'll take responsibility for my own actions." His voice dropped into a snarl. "But believe it or not… you are not going to win. Not under any circumstance."
"We'll see. No one can predict the future. I might win. I might lose. Who knows?"
Tristian sneered.
"Old fucker, you're going to lose. Definitely."
Gelvin's smile turned almost affectionate in its cruelty.
"Quite feisty, aren't you, brat? You'll make a fine slave someday."
He looked back at Jason.
"Shall we begin?"
Jason nodded. His gaze drifted toward the floor a short distance away, where Kinru was still crouched like a dog.
Jason walked over, pulling a single green pill from his pocket. When he stopped in front of the kneeling man, his voice turned soft and almost affectionate—like someone speaking to a particularly stupid pet.
"Mochi. Open your mouth. I brought you a treat. Eat it like a good hound."
Kinru glared up at the boy who was treating him like a roadside mutt.
He growled, "Motherfucker, I'm your aunt's slave and only for one day—I'm not yours."
"Aunt already handed your custody over to me. So does it really matter whose mutt you are right now?"
"That slut of an aunt of yours… how dare she treat me—young master of the great Livingstone Duchy—like some pet dog!"
Jason's smile didn't waver.
"You're lucky that you're still breathing....aren't you?. What you tried this morning was more than enough for your head to be rolling across the floor."
Kinru's voice cracked.
"What the fuck are you even talking about? What did I do that gives a little shit like you the right to treat me like this?"
"You think I don't know? You think Aunt didn't tell us?" Jason's tone stayed light, almost cheerful. "Bastard. You tried to impersonate Big Brother, shoved your cock into Aunt's ass, ejaculated and even tried to touch what doesn't belong to you."
Kinru's words stumbled.
"Th-that was just a little prank…"
Jason's smile widened.
"Oh? A prank?"
"Yes. A prank."
"Quite the prankster, aren't you?"
"Thank you for the kind praise."
"Does it look like I'm praising you?"
"Aren't you?"
Jason's hand blurred.
**SSSSLLLLLAAAAPPPPPHHH!**
The slap cracked across Kinru's face hard enough to snap his head sideways.
"Bitch. Do I still look like I'm praising you?"
Another slap.
**Sssllllaaappp!**
Then another.
**Slllaaappppp!**
And another.
**Sssslllaaappp!**
Jason tilted his head, still smiling.
"Does it still feel like praise, mutt?"
Kinru's face was already swelling. He managed a shaky, "N-No…"
Jason slapped him again.
**Shhllaappp!**
Then again.
**Shhhllappp!**
Till count reached twelve.
"Didn't Aunt already say you're a pet hound? Then why are you still speaking human language? Bark, bastard. Bark like a proper mutt."
Across the hall, Velora's expression twisted with agitation. She started to rise, but Nicole's hand clamped down on her wrist.
"Don't meddle, Velora. This is your brother's own fault. He's a slave—even if only for a day."
Jason delivered the thirteenth slap.....**Chaaattaaakkk**, still wearing that same gentle smile.
"Do you like my praise, Mochi?"
Lying on the floor, Kinru finally broke. He barked and whimpered, voice thick with humiliation.
"Woof… woof… whine… whine…"
Jason reached down and patted the man's head with mock affection, as if praising a particularly obedient dog.
"Aren't you a nice bitch, finally responding in a way that i desire?"
He placed the green pill on the floor in front of Kinru's face.
"Eat this, Mochi. And remember—if I hear you speak a single word of human language today, I'll 'praise' you again. So don't even try to moan like a person while you're getting fucked later."
Kinru shot one last desperate glance toward Velora. Then, with visible reluctance, he licked the pill off the floor and swallowed it.
Tristian turned toward Duke Gelvin, a bright smile on his lips and pure cruelty in his eyes.
"Just wait a quarter of a bell, Duke. Because believe me or not… you're about to become Uncle's new Mochi."