Monster Girl Development Master

Page 58

Zhuang Sen released Nia's hand and loosened his taut pants, complaining, "Nia, what's going on over there? Why did it take so long? I was about to be completely drained."

"Liar~ I'm full of energy right now~" Nia licked the delicious big stick and described her experience indistinctly, including how she successfully completed three difficult trials and obtained the secret method for breast enhancement.

Before Zhuang Sen could say anything after hearing this, Mira and Hannah's eyes were practically glowing with divine light.

"Sister Nia~"

"Nia~"

"Mmm~" Nia swallowed Zhuang Sen's pre-emptive fluid and generously shared the secret technique, "Just use Zhuang Sen's essence with the massage, so... ahh~"

Hamster eating a banana.JPG

Seeing Mira and Hana's eyes light up, Zhuang Sen helplessly spread his hands: "At least complete the inheritance first, maybe you can get some secret techniques too?"

That makes sense, but the posture doesn't affect the transmission of knowledge.

The screen went black, and a mysterious vampire castle appeared. Zhuang Sen lay in the arms of the Night Queen, watching Mira tear apart various test questions and easily overcome several difficulties. Unfortunately, she was still one step behind and fell in the third area, failing to touch the invisible wall.

In the boundless sea of ​​flowers, Zhuang Sen was swallowed into a flower bud by the pink Queen Anawan. She fiercely attacked his literal honey pot and flower chamber in the viscous liquid, and then, suddenly, the inheritance ended.

This made Zhuang Sen a little worried: "Hana, are you alright?"

Thankfully, Hana smiled broadly, even a little smugly: "It's alright! I walked right up to the invisible wall in one go! And I even got the knowledge about cultivating body odor, darling, what's your favorite scent? I can make it happen!"

Overjoyed, Nia thrust out her rather large breasts and pressed them against Zhuang Sen's face. Zhuang Sen licked those delicious breasts and replied, "As for the taste, it really is that complex floral scent that Hana exudes when she was smugly provoking me, only to be easily defeated and then dejected, only to be reawakened by my sweet words~"

The Hannah was sunk.

"So, Mira, what did you gain?"

"Some knowledge is too complicated to explain, let's get down to business first."

Mira, who failed to pass the level again, bared her sharp teeth and bit Zhuang Sen's neck. The ecstatic pleasure attacked both of them at the same time, extinguishing Zhuang Sen's unspoken words of comfort and turning the room into a nest of desire once more.

Then we had a great time.

Chapter 135: Greetings from the Grand Duke

Two more days passed in the blink of an eye, and Zhuang Sen was still happily slacking off. Since the monster girls were handling all the work, he didn't have to worry about being betrayed by them, so he could slack off without any guilt and with a clear conscience.

But Celine Anser was not happy.

Although the negotiations with Zhuang Sen had not gone smoothly, Her Highness the Princess believed that this was just an inevitable twist in the negotiation process. No negotiation is ever completed in one fell swoop, especially one involving the struggle for power. She was confident that she could satisfy Zhuang Sen's appetite. After all, there was at least a Marquis between the Earl and the Princess. Moreover, Zhuang Sen had just ascended the throne. Even if he had control over his territory, he would still need allies in the court and among the other nobles.

Then the confident princess was left hanging for a week.

Zhuang Sen did not invite her to a private meeting, nor did he make a secret visit, nor did he even bring a message. He only provided her with proper accommodations and hospitality, which gradually made the princess, who was originally confident of victory, anxious. In the end, Celine was not a standard, qualified, or excellent diplomat. Beneath her excellent etiquette was a proud young girl's heart, so she was naturally unable to keep her composure.

……

"Judy, do you think he's already sided with Grian?"

Sitting upright in the comfortable chair, Celine couldn't help but ask her personal guard a question. The fully armed Zhanxing Guard shrugged slightly: "Your Highness, your mind is in turmoil. The First Prince is going to strip that man of his title."

Celine picked up her teacup with annoyance and took an elegant sip: "Then why has he remained silent? It's not like the conditions are unnecessarily unnecessarily negotiable! Doesn't he know that remaining neutral means offending two people at the same time?"

Judy poured Celine some black tea: "Perhaps that person feels it's too early. After all, His Majesty hasn't announced the selection of the crown prince, let alone the actual enthronement. Besides, that person also has his own problems to deal with."

Her "good sister's" methodical analysis calmed Celine down as well. Her fingers traced the smooth surface of the porcelain teacup; the heat of the hot tea stung her anxiety. Indeed, while Zhuang Sen had successfully subdued the nobles within the territory, it didn't mean he was without trouble. Leaving aside whether the stripped nobles would accept it, and whether their relatives and friends would seize the opportunity to cause trouble, the internal affairs of the Leon territory alone presented several intractable problems.

Food, economy, law, religion, public security...

These factors won't disappear just because Zhuang Sen subdues his vassals and lower-ranking nobles; on the contrary, they will likely increase, a consequence of the terrain and geography of Leon. Overall, while Leon has ports near major rivers, it's essentially a hilly region with a large population concentrated around cities. Agriculture isn't self-sufficient, and they heavily rely on external food purchases. The largest supplier is the Falau family—which sounds like good news for Zhuang Sen, given his mother's lineage. However, the current ruling faction within the Falau family doesn't support Lia Falau.

Similarly, Leon Territory's agriculture is underdeveloped, but it has a port, so it naturally needs to do trade. His current reputation will inevitably make merchants worry, not to mention that his "victims" will definitely fan the flames and boycott him together. Leon Territory itself does not have many "indispensable" special products, which will greatly affect Leon Territory's economic income.

Needless to say, Zhuang Sen seized power by murdering his father, so his legal sense is naturally low. He strongly promoted the Church of Revenge, which inevitably led to conflicts with other churches. The mountainous terrain is too suitable for hiding filth. Who knows, one day a group of well-equipped and well-managed "bandits" might grow on some mountain. Even if Zhuang Sen has many bloodline members, can he really put one on every mountain just to guard against possible bandits?

Who among them could endure such suffering?

These were all bargaining chips that Celine could use to negotiate. She could provide food, open up trade, and even borrow troops. She had even thought about how to bring it up with Count Zhuang Sen: "Count Zhuang Sen, you don't want the territory of Leon to suffer from famine, do you?"

The beautiful princess, whose thoughts were even more beautiful than her own, picked up her teacup and took a sip with relish. At that moment, a lucky raven flew in.

Without being told, Judy stepped forward, took out the secret letter, unfolded it, glanced at it, and read it aloud with a strange expression: "Duke Starr has announced that he is sending an envoy to visit the territory of Leon. They have now arrived in the territory of High Castle and are expected to arrive within three days at the latest. The delegation includes three Level 3 bloodline users and two Golden Maidens. Moreover, the accompanying entourage is large and includes several noble ladies with a reputation for beauty. It is predicted that they will mainly be carrying gifts."

puff--

As soon as Judy uttered the first sentence, Celine spat out the entire cup of tea she was drinking. When Judy finished, she slammed the teacup on the table in a fit of rage: "What the hell is Uncle Borodi doing here at a time like this?!"

On the surface, the Grand Duke and His Majesty the King maintained a very good relationship. Few people noticed the rift that had grown between these former ace partners and brothers-in-arms. Therefore, Celine still held her uncle in high esteem. However, their good relationship did not prevent her from worrying that the Duke would try to steal her away. After all, this was a normal political maneuver, and even if Baro himself came, he would have no grounds for objection and would have to compete with him.

The only consolation for Celine was that she had already preemptively bestowed a title upon Zhuangsen, making it unlikely that Zhuangsen would directly switch allegiance to the Duke of Bologna—but that didn't prevent Zhuangsen from receiving another title!

There is no conflict between the King's title of Earl and the Grand Duke's title of Earl!

Her Highness's mood worsened.

Zhuang Sen's mood was also not very good.

At the same time Celine received the intelligence, he also received a letter, a letter from the Duchy of Starr delegation, which used warm and courteous language to explain the established fact of their impending visit, and casually mentioned two personal friends of the writer, named Lizard and Wall, at the end.

"The Bloodline Order is actually connected to the Grand Duke. It seems the original plan needs to be significantly revised." Zhuang Sen was quite disappointed. He had originally planned to capture and torture the Bloodline Order members if they weren't strong enough, but now it seemed that wouldn't be possible. Otherwise, if the Grand Duke sent a large army to punish the offenders, it would indeed be a major problem.

Of course, it's not that you can't take action at all, but you have to find an excuse that can't be criticized, which is much more troublesome than taking action directly.

On the other hand, the Bloodline Order probably didn't do anything too extraordinary to be able to climb up to a Grand Duke with a good reputation, right?

Zhuang Sen pondered for a moment, then handed the letter to Dantalian: "Have someone go and ask those two priests again about the banquet arrangements."

Dantalian put away the letter and ruffled the hair of Johnson, who was lying on her chest: "Should we invite Princess Celine to the banquet?"

"of course yes!"

Chapter 136: An Encounter with the Princess

The following day, Celine, who had received an invitation to the reception hosted by the Duke's delegation, finally couldn't sit still any longer. She angrily went to her dressing table to start getting ready, while instructing her servants to prepare a carriage.

Since Zhuang Sen won't come to see her, she'll go see him herself!

She wanted to see what conditions Uncle Borodi had offered Zhuang Sen that made him so eager.

Driven by anger, Princess Celine quickly completed her preparations, and Judy, who was driving, also sped off at top speed, arriving at Glorious Manor. There they saw a carriage bearing the black raven emblem approaching from the opposite direction, with a female knight in full plate armor, her helmet seemingly empty beneath her—Viscount Lydia Leon of the Three Mountains.

Celine immediately recognized the loyal Count Johnson who had left a deep impression on her, and quickly leaned out of the small window of the carriage, calling out, "Excuse me, is this Earl Johnson in person?"

Lydia naturally recognized the princess, and since she was calling out Zhuang Sen's name, she slowed her horse and asked Zhuang Sen's opinion: "My dear, the princess is on the other side, do you want to see her?"

“Let her come over; it’ll save me the trouble of going to find her again.” Zhuang Sen leaned against Dantalian, his eyes slightly narrowed. “But she really cares about her sister’s affairs. Isn’t an ordinary person afraid of being shot eight times in the back and committing suicide?”

The title of Earl has already caused Leon's sons to fight amongst themselves, leaving only a dozen or so. The struggle for the throne is something even Zhuang Sen couldn't have imagined how many people would die. While ordinary people who can't awaken their bloodlines are indeed less likely to be targeted, the prerequisite is not to be too arrogant; otherwise, some people won't mind casually swatting away annoying flies.

Unless there's some other hidden reason... Hmm, it's definitely time to take over the intelligence system left by Old Deng as soon as possible, otherwise there's too little intelligence about areas outside of Leon territory, and we also need to create our own intelligence organization, but who should do that...?

While Zhuang Sen was pondering, Lydia had already invited the princess into the carriage. As for Celine and the others' own carriage, they naturally chose one of the other Zhanxing Guards to drive and follow Zhuang Sen and the others.

Seeing Johnson being held like a child in Dantalian's arms inside the carriage, Celine felt a complex mix of emotions. Was this guy a cunning politician or a lecherous pervert?

It can't be both, right?

However, her complicated feelings did not affect the princess's elegant manners. The specially made carriage that could accommodate Dantalian allowed her to complete the dress-lifting ceremony with ease, and she greeted him, "Earl Zhuangsen, may I ask where you are going?"

Zhuang Sen smiled, deliberately bringing up the very thing he didn't want to hear: "I'm on my way to Leon Manor to prepare for the banquet to host His Excellency the Grand Duke's delegation. You should have received the invitation, right?"

Celine's smile stiffened slightly. Just as she was about to reply, she heard Zhuang Sen's voice again: "I also had some other things I wanted to discuss with you, but I didn't expect to run into Your Highness. So let's deal with your matter first. I wonder if you remember what I mentioned before, about the return gift for your and the First Princess's good words in front of His Majesty the King?"

A flicker of anticipation rose in Celine's heart, and she looked at Zhuang Sen with bright, beautiful eyes: "What do you mean?"

Zhuang Sen smiled slightly, not answering directly, but instead patting the carriage: "Ledya, let's go to Nia's first!"

"Yes, my lord."

"Call me 'darling'."

"yes dear……"

The female knight, still somewhat reserved, trembled slightly, but the smugness in her tone made Judy, the Star Guardian sitting in the "passenger seat," feel a pang of jealousy. As Princess Celine's guardian knight, she was destined to follow Celine forever, even after Celine married. She probably wouldn't have the chance to find a man in this lifetime, let alone a good man of her own liking.

They're both guardian knights, so why is there such a big difference?

This interruption caused Princess Celine, who wanted to ask if Zhuang Sen agreed to support the eldest princess, to miss her chance. She could only start the topic again: "Earl Zhuang Sen, why do you think Duke Starr would suddenly visit? As far as I know, you don't seem to have any dealings with His Excellency the Duke?"

“You’re right, so I don’t know why either. I probably didn’t even know much about the visit before you did, otherwise I wouldn’t be preparing the banquet now.” Zhuang Sen still had some sense of shame, and finally pulled his head out of Dantalian’s chest in front of outsiders.

The sight of her surging breasts left Princess Celine speechless, almost forgetting what she was saying. Fortunately, her inner anxiety worked: "My dear... oh, Earl Johnsen, I think you know that the Grand Duke's sister is the mother of my brother Grean..."

Zhuang Sen's lips curled into a smirk as he looked at Celine, who had made a slip of the tongue. This child really didn't seem very bright. Although her words were quite skillful, clearly implying that Grand Duke Starr was on the eldest prince's side and that her visit was to win him over on behalf of the eldest prince.

Zhuang Sen nuzzled Dantalian as usual and said bluntly, "Don't worry, Your Highness, I really have no interest in participating in the struggle for the throne. Besides, as I said, I am loyal to the King. Furthermore, if one day I have to participate, I think I will choose the First Princess, although I don't think that day will come."

After hearing Zhuang Sen's words, Celine felt conflicted, unsure whether to be disappointed or pleased. The somewhat arrogant princess was even a little indignant. How dare a mere earl be so confident? With the tide turning, do you really think you can just stand by and do nothing?

At this time, the carriage stopped.

Lydia knocked on the carriage: "Darling, we've arrived at the workshop."

Zhuang Sen reluctantly stood up, as he couldn't linger in his wives' arms outside: "Your Highness, come and see the return gifts I've prepared for you and the First Princess, as well as the source of my confidence."

Celine pursed her lips, her eyes instantly sharpening. She wanted to see what gave Zhuang Sen such confidence!

……

After getting off the carriage, the first thing that caught my eye was the billowing black smoke, followed by a burst of noise, and finally the sign in front of me—Nia's Rune Workshop.

What are runes?

Celine pondered, but she couldn't connect the runes and the workshop in her mind. Besides, this looked exactly like a blacksmith's workshop. She had seen people carrying ore in and weapons and armor out!

“These are just ordinary military weapons outside, nothing special. Let’s go inside.” Zhuang Sen floated in mid-air, holding Dantalian’s hand. “I guarantee you will be satisfied with this return gift.”

Since Zhuang Sen had said so, regardless of what Celine thought in her heart, she could only smile and nod: "Then I will look forward to it, Your Excellency."

The author says:

Author's Note: I didn't expect the reward to come so quickly! Thank you all for your support. I've added four extra chapters today, for a total of 12800 words. I hope you enjoy it. Also, here's an update on the reward progress for your convenience: Monthly Tickets 21/50; Requests for Updates 0/50; Rewards 500/5000. Finally, please remember to select 2500 words for your request for updates. It's not possible to update that many words every day, and without extra chapters, you might not get the 2500-word request, which won't count towards the reward. ( ???)ノ(._.`)

Chapter 137: Nia's Rune Workshop (4373 words)

Molten iron flowed from the furnace, rushing through channels like a small river, into different molds, solidifying into rough blanks. Blacksmiths, already prepared and wearing heavy gloves, took out the blanks and skillfully hammered them, shaping and quenching them in one go. Afterwards, they were placed into large prepared baskets. Whenever a basket was full, someone would push a cart to load it and send it to the other side for inspection. After passing the inspection, the sword hilt, guard, arm guard plates, leather straps, and other accessories would be assembled. There would even be further polishing, carving, painting, engraving, and other special services, which were not part of the usual process.

Princess Celine walked along the road and could only sense four words: orderly and well-organized.

This kind of work method, which already has the rudiments of an assembly line, is a game-changer in a world where handicrafts are still mainly family workshops. Even Princess Serene, who is a noblewoman who cares about the common people, had never seen it before and was deeply shocked. Or rather, it was precisely because she understood how a normal blacksmith workshop operated that she was even more deeply shocked.

“This… Earl Zhuangsen, how did you do this? Those blacksmiths don’t look like apprentices.”

Indeed, what shocked Princess Celine the most wasn't the division of labor, but rather that Johnson could get a group of clearly skilled blacksmiths to set aside their pride and pride in their craft, and work together like apprentices. Keep in mind that in those days, even cooperating, mending pots, and sharpening knives were considered important skills that could support a family; craftsmen would never willingly pass on their skills, let alone engage in such undisguised collaboration.

“Because they are indeed all apprentices, although they are paid double the wages of ordinary blacksmiths.” Zhuang Sen revealed a smug smile, very satisfied with Princess Celine’s performance. “As for the reason, Your Highness, you will know when you go in.”

They had reached the depths of the workshop when a tall wall and a thick iron gate blocked their way. Several wary female warriors stood guard in front of the gate—with Johnson's rise to power, the Church of Vengeance had begun to expand—but naturally they wouldn't stop Johnson and Dantalian.

Princess Serene took a deep breath, suppressing the inexplicable tension in her heart, and took two quick steps to walk side by side with Zhuang Sen through the spacious door, truly entering Nia's Rune Workshop.

At first glance, Princess Celine felt a sense of familiarity. It was very similar to the layout of the blacksmith workshops she knew, the kind of family-run workshops with one or two blacksmiths and one or two assistants or apprentices.

Upon closer inspection, Princess Celine thought she might be dreaming. Otherwise, how could she have a ring that could launch fireballs and a necklace that could create wind shields? This must be a dream, right?

The bewildered princess looked at her loyal guards, but in Judy's eyes, she saw only the same bewilderment.

"Nia, it seems you're making good progress. Is there anything you can show us?"

Zhuang Sen's voice came from afar, as if through a thick wall. Celine watched as Zhuang Sen took two rings, a necklace, and a short sword from Nia, who was running over excitedly. Each item was covered with intricate patterns that looked like some kind of writing, but the specific meaning was completely unclear.

Yes, it really was a dream...

"Your Highness, what's wrong? Would you like to try out this runic weapon yourself?"

Zhuang Sen's clearly audible voice jolted Princess Celine awake. A wave of reality washed over her, shattering her worldview, but her gaze was also irresistibly drawn to the short sword Zhuang Sen had offered her.

It was a finely crafted short sword, with a blade about 30cm long, forged from fine steel, and a 15cm long wooden hilt. It had a cross-shaped guard and iron counterweights, making it a high-end short sword. But if that were all, it would just be an ordinary short sword, not enough to attract the attention of a princess. However, the intricate patterns on the blade changed everything. Celine sensed mystery, power, and passion emanating from these patterns—qualities clearly unrelated to an ordinary short sword.

Celine tried hard to suppress her excitement and curiosity, but her tone was still somewhat out of control: "Runic weapon?"

Zhuang Sen smiled and said, "Let me introduce you, Your Highness. This is my wife, Nia Leon. She is of rune dwarf blood and has the ability to create rune items. As for the specific effects... please swing your short sword in a deserted place and shout the word 'fire'."

Celine raised her short sword with a hint of disbelief, aimed it at the empty, deserted area, and swung it down forcefully: "Fire!"

The blade sliced ​​through the air, its silvery surface suddenly gleaming red before shooting forward, transforming into a fiery curved blade that disappeared only after flying ten meters. The scorching heat left Celine no room to drift into a dreamlike state; she could only stare blankly at the red sliver of the short sword still lingering in her hand, her small mouth slowly opening into an "O" shape.

The result was better than Zhuang Sen had expected, and his polite smile became more sincere: "Well, Your Highness, do you like this gift?"