The Greed Witch’s Demands

At the tavern’s entrance, Reyn quietly watched Arthur depart before boarding the carriage.

“It seems everything is resolved,” Victoria remarked.

Victoria, having followed him, positioned herself to block the entrance. Her sapphire eyes, gleaming with an almost predatory intensity, fixed on Reyn.

“Now, the Young Master should have a long time to relax, shouldn’t he?” she pressed.

“Victoria, the matter isn’t resolved yet,” Reyn stated, his voice low, seemingly oblivious to her undisguised gaze. “As long as that casino exists for even one more day, this territory will never truly find peace.”

Victoria pouted, a hint of displeasure on her face. “Since the Young Master is so worried, why won’t you let me handle it?”

Reyn sighed softly. “Even if Wayne Michelle were dealt with directly, the hearts of those who have been deceived or are wavering cannot be reclaimed. Victoria, this battle has nothing to do with heretics; it’s a struggle between human natures.”

“Then, what will the Young Master do?”

“I need more money.”

“More money, huh…” Victoria murmured quietly. Her sapphire eyes suddenly regarded Reyn with a playful glint. “I have plenty of money. But I’ve already funded the Young Master with four hundred million, haven’t I? Investing such a large sum without any returns doesn’t seem quite fair, does it?”

Reyn’s expression faltered, then turned into one of sudden difficulty. “But I don’t have anything to give you right now.”

Victoria abruptly leaned closer, her sapphire eyes greedily devouring Reyn’s face. “From the very beginning, all I’ve ever wanted was you, Young Master.”

Reyn frowned, his voice firm. “Victoria, your feelings for me are misguided. I don’t possess the immense power you imagine.”

“But I didn’t fall for the Young Master because of such things,” she countered, the brilliance of humanity reflected in her sapphire eyes. “You are the only ray of light that has pierced my otherwise pitch-black life.”

“Victoria, this feeling isn’t love. How about we discuss this again once you’ve truly recognized your own heart?”

“And then what? Am I supposed to foolishly wait for the Young Master to be snatched away by other women? Right now, I am the one in the lead.”

Suddenly, she seized Reyn’s wrist, pinning him firmly beneath her. Feeling the negligible resistance from him, Victoria’s lips curled into an irrepressible smile. “Even if I were to do something to you here, Young Master, you’d be utterly powerless to resist, wouldn’t you?”

She released Reyn just as suddenly, a relaxed ease on her face. “But I won’t do that. The Young Master’s body alone cannot satisfy me, the Greed Witch. Since the Young Master is unwilling to give, I’ll simply take it myself.”

She slowly raised a single finger, a light laugh escaping her lips. “The Rose Merchant Guild alone is worth tens of billions. And the wealth I, as the Greed Witch, have plundered over the years cannot even be calculated by numbers. No matter how much money the Young Master needs, I can provide it. However, the Young Master wouldn’t be so unreasonable as to expect me to contribute unilaterally, would he?”

As she spoke, the gaze within her sapphire eyes burned more intensely than ever, as if Reyn’s answer, if not to her liking, would compel her to act on her own accord, consequences be damned.

Reyn, however, merely sighed. “Even if you say that… I cannot accept your confession. Victoria, I have always regarded all of you as my family.”

Victoria wrinkled her nose in clear dissatisfaction. “In that case, why won’t you let me become the Young Master’s true family?”

Reyn shook his head. “Victoria, that feeling isn’t love.”

This is sophistry! Victoria thought, knitting her brows in extreme annoyance. Suddenly, a glint flashed in her eyes, as if an idea had struck her, and her lips curved upward. “But Young Master, you’ve never actually been in a relationship, have you? You keep saying it’s not love, but you don’t even know yourself, do you?”

Reyn fell silent. Just as Victoria was reveling in her own cleverness, she noticed Reyn avert his gaze. Her expression froze, then her eyes narrowed slightly. “Young Master, you haven’t… have you?”

Reyn suddenly offered a gentle smile. “I’m feeling a bit hungry. Shall we go eat first?”

All expression vanished from Victoria’s face, her eyes fixed on Reyn with an indifferent stare. “Alright. The Young Master can also use this time to think carefully about how to explain things to me after dinner, can’t he?”

Reyn, forced to dodge Victoria’s overly sharp gaze, sighed helplessly as he massaged his forehead. “Renata… she and I once had an engagement, but that was before she left the family. Before that, we formally dated for a while due to our families’ arrangements, but in the end, I was dumped.”

It was that woman! Victoria’s face instantly darkened. Not long ago, she had mocked Renata for being merely a maid, yet she had once shared such a relationship with the Young Master.

But why would she dump the Young Master? Victoria vaguely felt she had noticed a crucial detail, and she scrutinized Reyn’s expression. “Young Master, how did she dump you?”

Reyn gave a wry smile. “She was the one who voluntarily said she wanted to break off the engagement. You know what happened after that. I’ve been supporting her ever since she left her family.”

As Reyn spoke, he noticed Victoria looking at him with a peculiar expression, and he couldn’t help but ask, “Is something wrong?”

Victoria nodded, sighing. “Although the Young Master’s account is brief, I can generally imagine the situation at the time.”

She did not elaborate. Men always held their first relationships in high regard, and the Young Master now considering it a failed romance was quite advantageous for her. The Young Master… he’s truly incurable in this regard.

She suddenly met Reyn’s eyes. “Young Master, what did you do during your time with Renata?”

Reyn shook his head. “Those are all things of the past.”

Victoria abruptly leaned close to Reyn, enunciating each word. “Today, I want the same treatment!”

Reyn froze, then his expression turned exceedingly troubled. “That seems… too late to prepare.”

“Prepare?”

“After all, she was my nominal fiancée at the time, and you know her personality. From the family’s perspective, I spent a lot of effort to please her.”

“Spent effort? To please?” Victoria’s voice suddenly rose, her eyes cold as she stared at Reyn, a fake smile plastered on her face. “It’s fine, I can wait.”

“But… the family doesn’t have much capital internally right now.”

“I have money.”

“But using your money for this kind of thing…”

“I don’t care.”

“But—”

Victoria’s hands suddenly rested on Reyn’s shoulders, her smile exceptionally artificial. “It’s alright, as long as the Young Master’s intentions are there. It will also be a good opportunity for me to see just how much effort the Young Master was willing to spend on Renata!”