Chapter 279 – Thirteen Husbands and even more!
Cassius didn’t even know what to say. Anyone looking at him would think he’d just received news of his family’s death, seeing how crestfallen his face was.
He sat on the bed, still holding his phone against his ear, his master’s words ringing through his mind over and over.
The Woman With a Thousand Harem.
Of course he knew that novel. It was a bestseller, among the top of the top. In fact, it was among the few harem novels to stay in the top 5 for all these years.
Cassius hadn’t read it himself. He’d neither had the time nor much interest in reverse harem as a genre.
But Isolde had.
And she’d told him it was a fantastic novel with a good plot and intense sexual scenes. She always blushed whenever she brought it up, reassuring him she skipped those parts.
Cassius knew she must be lying. His Isolde had been tainted by the world. He grieved just thinking about it.
"This is ridiculous." He said finally, "Copycat is Rose Bishop’s son? How many children does she have? No, before that..."
He swallowed nervously.
"...how many husbands?"
If the Vice Dean of Elysia Academy himself was only the fourth, then what about the rest?
"I can’t tell you that." Mallory said, amused.
"Because you don’t know?" Cassius tried to guess.
"Because I stopped keeping count after a while. I stopped at 13." Mallory said, "It’s probably risen since then."
"13 husbands?" He blurted out, "Queen’s breath, and she needs to satisfy...ahem!" He managed to stop himself from saying anything inappropriate.
He was a polite, demure man after all.
"Well, hm, how many children does she have with...hm...all these husbands?"
It was getting awkward.
"Oh, you’ll be surprised, Cassius." His master said, not paying attention to his slip of the tongue, "Rose only has three children. Alexander, Ophelia, and Blossom."
"Only three?"
"Aye. And all three are from the same man, her first husband." Mallory replied, "Alexander Bishop is the youngest. Ophelia is the oldest, already out of the Academy. She was very close to your sister, Morgan. Blossom is still at the Academy. She’s a fifth-year, and the second ranker."
Cassius absorbed all of this, suddenly interested in this strange family.
"The fact all her children are from the same man means something, I’d guess? And I noticed her children take her name?"
"Yes, her children bear her name, not her husband’s." Mallory said, "As for why all her children share the same father, well, I don’t know. She never told me that part."
"Oh?" Cassius tilted his head, "You talk like you know her, master."
"Rose is..." Mallory hesitated a moment before finishing, her tone tight, "a friend...maybe."
"Maybe?"
"I’ve never called her that before. But considering what we’ve been through together, it’s the only word that fits."
"Could you ask her to rein in her husband, then?" Cassius smiled mockingly, "Or maybe she has too many to keep track of. Heheh."
"Funny." Mallory said dryly, clearly not amused. "But Rose doesn’t really concern herself with her husbands’ personal matters. And I don’t need help."
"Yes, of course you don’t." Cassius rolled his eyes, standing up again, pacing around the room, "You need help, master. You need more people in our faction, and support from the Paragons."
Mallory said nothing, only listening.
"I’d planned to bring Copycat into our fold after a good beating. I owe him one. But if the Dean is his stepfather...this might be harder than I first thought."
"You’re confident you can beat him?" Mallory sounded amused.
"Eventually."
"Well, if you say so. Just be careful andcdon’t underestimate him." She warned, "Don’t make me lose face, will you? But do what you want. The relationship between Copycat and White isn’t as pleasant as you might think."
"So there’s a chance?"
"There is."
"Good, then. I’ll do my best." He nodded, then smiled sheepishly, "And master, I have one more question."
"Out with it."
"As my master, you’re more than able to give your lovely disciple some EP, right?"
Mallory paused, and Cassius could practically hear her grin widening.
"Oh, of course I can. Though I’m limited on how much I can give per month, I definitely can."
"How lovely." His eyes curved into crescents, "Send me all you can, master. I’m going to need it in the ing days."
"For challenges?"
Cassius laughed.
"And for setting conditions on anyone who wants to challenge me. You said it yourself."
He paused in front of his mirror, studying his reflection.
"We can do anything we want with EP. Anything."
"You’re not stupid." Mallory said, chuckling, "That’s the only part of you I like."
"Hey! What about my beautiful face?"
"I’ve seen better." She said dismissively, "If you’ve got nothing else to say, I’m hanging up. I’ll send the EP right after."
"You’re the best, master."
Mallory found herself chuckling, "As any dragon of my bloodline should be."
She hung up immediately after, without waiting for a response. As always.
Cassius chuckled and tucked his phone back into his pocket. He opened his mouth and breathed deeply, still thinking about Rose Bishop.
"..adow could learn a thing or two from her." He thought unexpectedly, before shaking his head abruptly, "No. Better not. I don’t want my writer turning into a smut writer. We already have enough of those."
He chuckled to himself again and walked toward his personal training room.
Training had to continue. Especially now, with battles and missions looming over him.
"Time to beat some sense into these bastards."
But then a thought sprang into his mind, stopping him mid-step. An idea concerning Anesthesia herself.
Cassius immediately pulled out his phone and searched for Anesthesia’s number — one he had, thanks to Raven, who’d gently handed it over when she’d refused to.
He pressed the call button eagerly, hoping she’d answer.
She didn’t.
"Queen’s skirt, answer, damn it, Anesthesia!"
He called again. Then a third time. Then a fourth. And finally...
"Who the fuck is calling me?!" Anesthesia screamed in annoyance.
Cassius almost said ’your daddy!’ but stopped himself, out of respect for his wife.
"Cassius." He said, lips twitching, "I called—!"
"Who gave you my number? Why am I even asking. It was certainly that damn prince."
"Sister-in-law, please, let’s not waste time. I have something important to tell you."
Anesthesia paused, then, still irritated but willing to listen now, "What do you want?"
Cassius smiled, resuming his walk toward the training ground, "I know you’ll do anything to hold onto second ranker. You, more than anyone, know the benefits of maintaining that rank for a full year."
Anesthesia said nothing, but Cassius knew he had her attention now.
"However, that’s going to be difficult with Emrys around. He’ll e for either you or me. Either way, you lose your second rank."
"So you’re not so confident in beating him, huh?" She scoffed.
"Not yet. I need something first." Cassius said, thinking of his Second Blessing, "and I’d be a fool to let myself be challenged before I’m ready. I’m not stupidly arrogant."
"That’s the only thing about you I don’t find revolting." Anesthesia said sharply, "Now get to the point, bastard."
"How rude." He said, then, "We need to distract Emrys from issuing challenges. At least against either of us."
"How?"
"That’s what I’m supposed to ask you, Anesthesia." Cassius smiled, "You know him better than I do. What could shake Emrys to his core? Something that would strip away his posure and strength. A weakness. Tell me, Anesthesia. Do you know one?"
Anesthesia smiled through the phone, "Oh, why, of course I fucking do." She said, thinking directly of Emrys’s mother, "Say one thing about Emrys, say he’s like a man who never learned to walk on his own in front of his own mother."
"His mother?" Cassius played dumb.
"Long story."
"Fine, but how do we use that?"
"We?"
"Yes, we." He shrugged, now fully inside his training ground, "We’re in this together, sister-in-law. Together."
Anesthesia didn’t like the sound of that. But being teamed up with Cassius had its advantages, and surprisingly...it was fun. Not that she’d ever admit that aloud.
"He’d never be able to bear having his mother’s true condition made known across the entire Kingdom. Especially not the fact that he’s the very reason she’s in that state." Anesthesia said, "People would no longer see him as just a talented prodigy. They’d see him as a monster who stole everything from his own mother and still dares to act high and mighty."
"Oh my." Cassius whispered, "so, blackmail using a frail, crippled, dying mother?"
"Yes."
"That’s so low, sister-in-law."
"And yet you like it."
Cassius’s smile deepened.
"You bet I fucking do."
—End of Chapter 279—
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