Yes, Director!

"A dragon?" Karen's breath hitched. Practical constraints aside, who could refuse the chance to raise a dragon? Besides, Karen had actually stood atop a dragon's body before. He had witnessed the Whip-Wielder soaring through the sky on the back of the Frost Dragon, striking terror into the pirates below. One had to understand: Lady Augie in human form and the Frost Dragon were two entirely different concepts. Once that colossal body appeared, the terrifying sense of oppression crashed down like an earthquake and a tsunami combined, plunging anyone into despair. Most importantly, in Maklai linguistic culture—no, in virtually every cultural sphere across this world—dragons, beyond their sheer power, carried a far greater spiritual and symbolic weight. To possess one, to stand atop its back, granted a sense of dominion that transcended mere power—a sensation more intoxicating than anything else. Though the Whip-Wielder had casually used the Frost Dragon's breath just to catch ants, if Karen had an adult dragon of his own, he could manage an even more extraordinary, refined performance. "Yes, my lord, a dragon." Gus did not beat around the bush and quickly continued, "A dragon about to be born!" Karen's eyes narrowed slightly, his composure instantly returning. "You don't mean yourself, do you?" "Of course not, my lord, though it has something to do with me." "Mm?" "As you likely know, my lord, the core legacies of our Church of the Crypt originate from the seven founding deities of the previous era who revered the Crypt. My lineage inherits from the God of Bone Spirits. "The legacy of the God of Bone Spirits is not limited to skeletal beings like myself. In modern terms, it leans toward the undead domain. The vast majority of undead believers within the Church of the Crypt consider themselves part of the God of Bone Spirits' lineage. "Additionally, the Church of the Crypt has a draconic lineage tracing back to the rebellious dragon god among the seven founding deities. Currently, all true dragons, sub-dragons, and half-dragons within our church consider themselves its inheritors. "A senior of mine—my guide, the one who guided me from a mindless undead creature into a follower of the God of Bone Spirits—was a legend of our branch, holding high status. But ten years ago, he died. "In reality, though, he didn't die. Because he was my guide and left his imprint upon me, I can sense that he still exists. "The reason he faked his death to the outside world is that he has been conducting a blasphemous experiment. He found a very suitable dragon corpse in our church's dragon cemetery, and from that carcass, he intends to awaken a follower of the God of Bone Spirits!" Karen had been listening attentively and understood Gus's account. The Church of the Crypt possessed seven primary lineages corresponding to its seven founding deities. While they and their successors belonged to the same church, they were relatively independent of one another, akin to seven faction leaders in a syndicate. To put it tactfully: in order to strengthen internal communication and integration within the Church of the Crypt, a follower of the God of Bone Spirits had taken the initiative to conduct a friendly, in-depth collaboration with a deceased follower of the dragon god, seeking an innovative model of development suited to the new era. To put it crudely: a madman from one faction within the same church had secretly desecrated the ancestral graves of another faction to perform draconic experiments. "Awakening a follower of the God of Bone Spirits from the corpse of a dragon?" "Yes, my lord. A... bone dragon about to be born!" A bone dragon? Dragons came with many elemental affinities and traits, but a bone dragon was undoubtedly among the rarest. Karen could not help recalling the dead awakened in Samsara Valley when it came under Rielsa's attack; among them, there seemed to have been skeletal creatures shaped like dragons. If it was that sort of thing, however, it differed considerably from the dragon of his imagination. It felt... somewhat low-grade. By contrast, Lady Augie's colossal Frost Dragon form was far more in line with his aesthetic. Furthermore, unlike undead creatures devoid of self-awareness, Lady Augie—despite her boisterous personality—was actually quite observant and shrewd. "So how did you find out about this?" "Through my own investigation. That was also why I came out to seek a partner within the Whip of Order. It wasn't just to obtain the resources bestowed by the Church of Order, but also to seek protection. "What he is doing is blasphemy, and he is on the verge of success. Once he succeeds and awakens a bone dragon, it will be impossible to conceal. It will provoke collective outrage among the high brass of the Church of the Crypt. "Not only will he meet a gruesome end, but anyone connected to him will inevitably be implicated—and I won't be able to escape either." "Then what good is telling me all this? I don't have the power to interfere in the affairs of the Church of the Crypt." "No, you do." "I do?" "Yes, you do! Even if you look down on me... cough, apologies, I am too lowly to catch your eye, and I harbor no resentment whatsoever over that." "Stick to the point." "Yes, my lord. What I mean is, once the bone dragon is actually born, if you submit a request through the Church of Order to establish a partnership with it, then both the bone dragon and my guide can receive asylum—and naturally, so can I." Karen's brow knitted slightly. Gus quickly explained, "Perhaps because you are an Order priest, my lord, you do not realize how immense the Church of Order's influence is over affiliated churches like ours." "Oh?" "Whatever the Church of Order wants, an affiliated church must surrender unconditionally. Even if it is a product of blasphemy, the Church of Order does not care, because in their eyes, the only rules that matter are the rules of Order." "So once the bone dragon is born over there, your Church of the Crypt will immediately move to destroy it. Which means I would need to file an application just before or right after its birth, and the Church of Order would then send an official dispatch asking if they agree to form a partnership with me?" "Yes. Neither my guide nor the newborn bone dragon would refuse, because refusal means being obliterated by our church." "Knowing that success means death, why would he still do it?" "Because he is a madman. As long as he proves his hypothesis works, he will be satisfied, even if destruction awaits him." Karen nodded to show he understood. A mad scientist from the God of Bone Spirits lineage within the Church of the Crypt—and a skeletal scientist at that. Karen declined tactfully, "Unfortunately, I doubt I have that much pull." "I believe you do. I could sense the attitude of the two bishops toward you today; even the Head Bishop said he would submit the application on your behalf." Suddenly, Karen grasped Gus's intention completely. This skeleton was far cleverer than he had given him credit for. His return was not out of regard for Karen's standing, but for the Head Bishop's. In Gus's eyes, Karen would have no problem requesting Gus himself, but requesting a bone dragon was another matter. While the Church of Order didn't care about the traditions or blasphemies of the Church of the Crypt, they might not issue such an official dispatch on Karen's behalf. However, if Wolflen submitted the request for him, the chance of success would skyrocket—especially since Wolflen was a dying man! Gus certainly knew about the assassination attempt, and as an undead creature, at such close quarters today, he must have sensed the aura of death clinging to Wolflen. An application submitted by a dying Head Bishop? The Church of Order's higher-ups would definitely grant that courtesy! Karen felt that if he truly went to ask Wolflen for this favor, Wolflen would likely agree. Yet Karen was reluctant to do so. First, squeezing the last bit of value from an elderly man on his deathbed was rather distasteful. Second, a bone dragon... wasn't the kind of dragon Karen wanted. The latter was the bigger factor. If it were another living dragon like Lady Augie—a Frost Dragon or one of another standard elemental affinity—with resources subsidized by the church anyway, Karen might genuinely have brought a basket of fruit to visit the elderly Wolflen. "I'm sorry, but I can't do that." Hearing this answer, Gus froze, looking thoroughly dejected. Failing to "sell" himself, and now failing to "sell" the bone dragon—these successive blows were simply too demoralizing. "Then I truly apologize for disturbing you once more, my lord." Karen did not ask him to stay. Gus turned and left the study yet again. A moment later, Karen pressed the desk bell, and Alfred stepped inside. "Investigate him," Karen added. "Use the department's resources." "Yes, Young Master. So, do you believe he wasn't telling the truth?" "What he said is likely true, but it's truth with reservations. "Contact Xinyali and have her assist you. I want to know the real situation regarding that bone dragon about to be born." "I thought you weren't interested in it, Young Master." "I'm just afraid I might have misjudged and would end up regretting it." "Understood, Young Master." "If you uncover anything significant, you can make your own call—you can even detain him for interrogation." "Would that affect relations between our two churches, though?" "Didn't you hear him? An affiliated church has no right to voice objections." Karen walked into the bedroom and habitually headed over to the dog bed. Kevin was fiddling with the damaged scroll, a pair of gold-rimmed glasses perched on his snout, giving him quite the scholarly air. Purr was still sleeping soundly; Kevin evidently had no intention of waking her up for night shift overtime. Karen reached out and gently stroked Purr's head. Long accustomed to his scent and touch, she didn't wake at all, instead nuzzling her face against the back of his hand out of habit. A young lady was always a young lady: her way of showing favor was gracing you with the honor of letting her sleep in your bed while you slept on the floor—and you were still expected to be grateful for her benevolence. Yet while such behavior would seem terribly rude from anyone else, coming from her, it felt entirely natural. Even an evil god took it as normal. Indeed, sometimes being a "genius" wasn't limited to aptitude in cultivation. In "Karen's" body, he himself had treaded on eggshells before Diss in the beginning, and even now, he hadn't let down his guard or wariness around this golden retriever. Purr, on the other hand, had received Diss's personal protection and retribution on her behalf, and Kevin genuinely doted on her. A faint smile curled Karen's lips. She had previously teased him for relying on his good looks to win favor, perks, and gifts from women, yet she failed to see that wearing a cat's face hadn't stopped her from freeloading off connections either. Karen stroked Kevin's bald head again. The texture was rapidly approaching the smooth polish of a stair banister's finial. "Good night." "Woof~" ... Neo had probably spent the night poring over the "whistleblower reports"; Karen had no idea if he'd gotten any rest, but he himself certainly had. After getting up, Karen unhurriedly washed up, changed into clean clerical robes, and first stepped into the study. Inside, Kevin had his paws resting on the edge of the desk, while Purr lay sprawled on the tabletop, her front paws tucked beneath her chest like someone tucking their hands into their sleeves in winter. Before Karen entered, the conversation in the study had been quite heated: "Woof!" "Meow!" "Woof!" "Meow!" Perhaps for them, this was a simpler and more efficient mode of communication, since past experience suggested a single "woof" or "meow" could convey an entire sentence. "Oh, my dear little Karen, you're up." "Mm. How did the examination go?" "It's good stuff, but also completely useless." "Useless?" "Yes. There should be twelve sets in total, but your Lord Director Neo... oh wait, no, your colleague Neo; "Mmh... anyway, the damaged scroll he brought over is only one set. He probably didn't recognize its value, meow." "Is it worth collecting?" "Of course it's worth collecting. It's a summoning spell capable of summoning thirty-six entities in total. But these thirty-six entities aren't ordinary summoned creatures. While they can be used as summoned creatures, they actually serve as the foundation from which the true summoning unfolds. "However, gathering all twelve sets is too difficult. If we had six sets on hand right now, we could try collecting the rest by purchasing them—posting bounties on the black market or keeping an eye on the point coupon store inventories of other churches." "Then let's collect them. I'm sure Neo has at least five sets, if not more." "Meow?" "Because he isn't someone who fails to recognize value." "Oh right, good point. He inherited Philias's knowledge, after all. But why would he only give you one set?" "He didn't give it to me; he asked you two to take a look at it." "Is this some kind of playful flirting between you two?" "All right, I have to head to work. It's going to be very busy for the foreseeable future." "Oh, little Karen, toiling out in the world for the sake of the family—you bear far too much for this household. I've decided that starting today, I'm having an extra cup of coffee." "Hm?" "That way, I'll have more energy to pray for your blessings." "Heh. Remember to pack up your things; we should be moving in the next few days." "Okay, meow." Karen walked out of the study. Alfred came over and whispered, "Everyone is waiting for you in the front hall, Young Master." "Waiting for me for what?" "Today marks your promotion. Furthermore, I have briefed them on what lies ahead, so everyone wishes to report for duty in a formal, solemn manner." "Mere formalism." "You are quite right to rebuke me, Young Master." "Don't let it happen again." "Understood, Young Master." "I'll have breakfast first. Let them wait a moment." "Young Master, there is one more thing." Alfred glanced toward the kitchen. "Madame Tangli is here. She is in the kitchen." "All right, I understand." Karen entered the kitchen and saw Madame Tangli wearing an apron, wrapping wontons. As he entered, he sensed that an extra layer had been added over the barrier already in the kitchen. "Xili should be doing this, Grandma." Madame Tangli set down the wonton, picked up the rolling pin she had used for the wrappers, turned around, and looked at Karen. Karen said, "Grandma, did Xili tell you that the broth for small wontons needs lard?" Madame Tangli swung the rolling pin directly toward Karen's face. Karen didn't dodge; he stood motionless. He had originally considered keeping his eyes open, but realizing that such calm might come across as provocative, he closed them to play along with the mood. Sure enough, the rolling pin stopped steadily an instant before smashing Karen's head. "How many will you eat?" Madame Tangli asked. "One bowl." "Hm?" "Two bowls." "Still too few. I made a lot." "Grandma, I have things to do today. If I'm stuffed and sporting a round belly, I won't look good in the photographs." "Fine." Karen took a seat. Before long, a bowl of wontons was served. The preparation was identical to Xili's, perhaps even more refined. Karen picked up his spoon and began to eat. "That girl from the Felscher family ate twelve bowls this morning, and it barely seemed to curb her appetite. With an appetite like that, she'll eat her husband's family into ruin once she marries." "It's normal for her to eat so much. Her body burns an immense amount of energy." "She's still growing," Madame Tangli corrected. "She's in the process of building up her physique." "Oh, so that's why." The moment Karen finished the first bowl, Madame Tangli brought out a second without missing a beat. Finishing the second bowl and drinking every drop of soup, Karen felt pleasantly full. "Grandma, I'm heading to work. Once we move into the headquarters dormitory in a while, you can drop by often to cook for Richard and me." Karen stood up and turned to leave when Madame Tangli's voice sounded from behind: "Work is work. Any danger you face on a mission is yours to bear. Private matters are private matters. The risk you took helping that Felscher girl bring down her grandmother is yours to bear as well. "But when something happens at home... you should tell your elders first!" Karen turned back around and bowed to Madame Tangli. "Yes, Grandma, you're right. It was my oversight." "I may be old, and I gave my cleaver away, but I'm not dead yet." "I know my mistake. Next time, I will ask you for help—with family matters, that is." "Remember it." "Yes, Grandma." Exiting the kitchen, Karen took a deep breath. Madame Tangli hadn't come this morning to cook breakfast for Richard's teammates... she had come specifically to reprimand him. Still, being protected by an elder was genuinely a good feeling. Karen entered the front hall. All the members of his squad—who had previously been sitting or leaning about—were now assembled in neat formation. Even Philomena stood among them, blending in seamlessly. At a moment like this, it seemed improper not to say something. Karen smiled faintly. "We will be working very hard in the period ahead, but every bit of hardship will be worth it, because the rewards we reap will be tangible and immense." Karen raised his hands and raised his voice slightly: "Everyone, let us seize an era that belongs to us!" Everyone shouted in unison: "Yes, Director!"