Chapter 56: The Unpredictable Wager

Ellis put her hands on her hips and asked, “Are you talking about getting carried away?”

Larry stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Ellis, watching the two women’s retreating figures. He chuckled, “Something like that. Their relationship is probably the most similar to ours, wouldn’t you say?”

Ellis offered no denial.

Irene and Julia’s acquaintance, and the bond they formed, likely stretched back to their childhoods.

While not entangled across two lifetimes like Ellis and Larry, they had been close friends since they were children.

They had grown up together, then ventured out into the world, eventually joining Ellis and Larry’s team.

The house with three bedrooms and two living rooms in the Spanlam Mountains had been painstakingly built by the two women, brick by brick, with their own hands.

This was no tourist development zone for leisure and fun. Instead, it was the Spanlam Mountains, fraught with peril, teeming with fierce beasts and venomous insects.

Though it was also rich in precious materials coveted by beast tamers and alchemists, those who actually settled here, like them, were exceedingly rare.

It was hard to imagine the sheer willpower and resourcefulness Julia and Irene had expended to collaboratively construct such a safe haven in the ever-changing Spanlam Mountains.

Their continued life together after that further demonstrated the rock-solid bond between Julia and Irene. After all, it was often easier to share hardships than to share prosperity.

However, precisely because of this, they seemed to show no mercy to each other when it came to snatching a man.

Within the team, they acted as if they were incompatible, like fire and water. Yet, the moment they separated from Ellis and Larry, they would reconcile at light speed and live together.

‘That’s a bit like me,’ Ellis mused. ‘After all, if I were to scheme against others, I might feel a sliver of guilt. But when it comes to messing with Larry, I’d go all out without feeling the slightest bit wrong.’

Larry walked beside Ellis, sighing with emotion. “If I were to break up this pair of partners because of me, I’d probably feel guilty for the rest of my life.”

“Indeed,” Ellis concurred. “It’s a good thing the man they’re fighting over, while a pervert, isn’t a scoundrel.”

Larry puffed out his chest. “I’m a model man in every way, even if I don’t have that or that.”

“Yes,” Ellis quipped. “Once you’ve been ‘traded,’ remember to thoughtfully help them maintain such a touching friendship.”

Ellis teased, “Oh, I have an idea for you. Look, there are two of them, and only one of you. So, when the time comes, I’ll analyze the value of your various body parts for them, and then, adhering to the principles of fairness and justice, I’ll divide you up. We’ll split you into two equally valuable portions and give them to each of them. That way, we can perfectly resolve their issue of unequal distribution of spoils. What do you think? Isn’t this method brilliant?”

“Brilliant, truly ineffably brilliant.”

Larry, with an expression of profound emotion, asked admiringly, “Dare I ask, Queen Ellis, how you, a mortal, managed to rival the intelligence of a Kira Monkey?”

Ellis feigned a slight surprise. “Is that so? Perhaps it’s a case of ‘he who lies with dogs rises with fleas,’ wouldn’t you agree, my fellow flea?”

The next second, both simultaneously deployed their ‘face-changing’ expertise, their expressions turning sullen and disgusted.

“It’s common knowledge that the Horned Toads have no eyes. I never expected you, Ellis, to be the same.”

“Don’t say that. Even if one had eyes, it wouldn’t change the fact that all Ink Crows in the world are black.”

The two resumed their habitual bickering. Ellis looked at Julia and Irene, who were excitedly discussing the gains from their current journey, and suddenly said, “Do you think there will ever be a day when we also fall out over a woman? Both of us vying for her affection, tripping each other up, hehe, that would be interesting, wouldn’t it?”

Larry suavely ran a hand through his hair. “Don’t worry, that won’t happen. I’m a perfectionist, completely different from your superficial criteria for choosing a partner.”

Ellis sneered, “Exactly. That’s why you’re still a virgin since coming to this world. I don’t see any possibility of you escaping singlehood in this lifetime. Just be a Grand Magus, obediently.”

“Absolutely not! What a malicious woman, to her friend of so many years…”

At this, a spark of inspiration flashed in Larry’s mind, and he suddenly sneered, “Heh heh, don’t worry. If I haven’t found a wife by the day I turn thirty…”

Larry leered, eyeing Ellis up and down. “…I’ll just make do with you.”

Goosebumps erupted all over Ellis’s body. What Larry had done to her last night once again flashed through her mind.

Ellis quickly put distance between herself and Larry, crossing her arms. She warned, “Don’t even think about it! I’m a man, and I’ll change back… Wait, you scoundrel, are you cursing me to still be unable to change back by thirty?”

“You see? Life is unpredictable, who knows?”

“Heh heh, I’m telling you, absolutely impossible.”

“What if that day really comes?”

“There is no ‘if’!”

“If that’s the case, what are you afraid of?”

Larry chuckled lewdly, his eyes fixed on Ellis’s long, fair legs. “Let’s bet on this!”

Ellis: “!!! You’re dreaming! Your wicked heart still hasn’t died!”

“If you’re so sure you can change back, why won’t you bet?”

Larry sneered, “You don’t even have confidence in yourself, do you?”

Ellis gritted her teeth, asking coldly, “Then what are you prepared to bet against me?”

Larry smiled shyly. “This… I was just testing your confidence. Of course, no stakes are needed.”

Upon hearing Larry’s sophistry, Ellis immediately bristled. “Get lost! This has nothing to do with confidence. I don’t accept bets without stakes!”

Then, Ellis strode forward, no longer giving Larry a chance to retort. In this kind of discussion, she was clearly at a disadvantage, and the thought of losing…

Of course, losing was impossible!

How could there be any possibility of losing?

No matter what, I won’t still be in this state when I turn thirty!

That is absolutely impossible!

But! As an excellent S-rank adventurer, even in circumstances where failure is impossible, one must rigorously consider the possibility of failure. Clearly, she was an excellent S-rank adventurer.

And then, if she failed…

Her thighs would be lost to Larry…

He could play with them as he pleased…

All sorts of erotic images involving legs from both her past and present lives swirled wildly in her mind. Ellis’s head began to rapidly fill with blood. She suddenly felt her thighs trembling uncontrollably, as if Larry’s tongue, hands, legs, and unspeakable things were touching her thighs.

Thinking this, Ellis suddenly felt the world spin, the sun and moon losing their light.

‘My head feels so dizzy. No, I’m going to faint.’

And then, Ellis stood rooted to the spot, fainting outright.

Larry, who was behind her, was quite puzzled when Ellis suddenly stopped. He, too, had been caught up in a strange excitement over his wager with Ellis, so his reaction was a bit slow. He asked in confusion, “What is it, Ellis?”

But how could the unconscious Ellis answer him? Larry, sensing something was amiss, walked forward. Just then, a bolt of lightning struck him.

Larry didn’t dodge or evade. After all, with Ellis’s barrier in place, moving even a step would be disrespectful to an S-rank. However, that bolt of lightning seemed to feel Larry was being disrespectful, so it struck him squarely, giving him a full-body lightning bath.

“Aaaah!”

Poor Larry, due to his trust in Ellis, was shocked to his core, his heart soaring.

Julia and Irene, hearing Larry’s scream, turned around and discovered his miserable state.

Larry’s carefully styled, flowing golden hair now stood stiffly on end, each strand erect—a hedgehog’s quills would be no match. Not only that, but Larry’s handsome face was completely covered in a thick layer of black soot, as if he had just crawled out of a coal pit.

“Pfft.”

Irene immediately let out an undignified laugh. Larry’s current appearance was simply too comical.

Julia, beside her, was also struggling to suppress her laughter, her twitching mouth making it seem as if she were suffering from some ailment.

“Cough, cough.”

Larry coughed violently, expelling plumes of black smoke.

“You!”

Both Larry and Julia and Irene assumed Ellis was playing a trick on Larry.

Larry gritted his teeth and strode purposefully to Ellis, slapping her shoulder hard. He yelled, “I’m telling you, don’t go too far! If you provoke me, I’ll execute you on the spot! Hey, are you even listening to me…?”

Larry believed his words were harsh enough, but Ellis remained completely unresponsive.

“Hey, Larry, Ellis seems a bit strange?”

Julia and Irene were facing Ellis directly, so they noticed something was wrong with her.

“Strange?”

Larry pulled at Ellis’s shoulder, trying to turn her around.

To his surprise, Ellis collapsed as easily as a hothouse flower, falling directly into his arms.

Larry looked closely and realized, ‘Good heavens, this woman actually fainted with her eyes open!’

And what was with the slowly fading blush on her face? Was she allergic to something? No wonder the lightning could strike him just now… Wait, if Ellis wasn’t playing a prank, it meant they had lost their 100% blocking lightning rod, which meant…

The three still-conscious individuals simultaneously realized the problem. After staring at each other with wide eyes for a moment, the sky directly above them suddenly boomed with thunder.

The group showed grim smiles and simultaneously shouted, “Run!”

While Larry and the others were scrambling to dodge the thunderstorm, high above the Spanlam Mountains, beyond layers of thunderclouds…

“Hey, you should have received the item by now. You still haven’t done what I asked. You’re not trying to get something for nothing, are you?”

“How could I be? I always treat people with integrity, with integrity! Don’t you beasts understand my reputation?”

“While we are indeed beasts, I feel like you’re insulting me. Do I need to pay you a personal visit to get your little brain working properly?”

“No, no, no, there’s no need. No need. It’s a small matter, no need to travel so far. The people are already with you. I’ll send you their soul imprints now, so you can communicate well.”

“Are they reliable?”

“Reliable, absolutely reliable! They are the brightest cubs under my command! If they don’t complete the task, they can just be guests in your belly!”

“You said that.”

“I did, I did.”

“Then I’ll be looking forward to it.”

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