"The pretty boy wears the jewelry. But the terms are absolute. You break your promise to my people, he dies. Horribly."
"I have no intention of breaking it," I said smoothly.
"Now, let's finalize the details."
I spent the next ten minutes in a grueling, back-and-forth negotiation, hammering out the exact wording of the pledge.
I questioned every comma, every clause, ensuring there were no loopholes, no hidden traps.
Finally, the collar was placed around Kevin's neck.
He looked like he had just won the lottery.
"Before we finalize this," I said, holding up a hand.
"There is one last thing."
I looked at Akira, a slow, predatory smile on my face.
"You have a significant amount of Creation Points remaining, do you not?" I purred.
"It would be a shame for them to go to waste when your domain is absorbed."
Her eyes widened as she realized what I was about to do.
"Use them," I commanded.
"Perform one last Subordinate Creation. A Dwarf Lord. The best you can make."
