"Uh..."
Even Cipher's little face couldn't help but blush slightly upon being praised so by Lumina.
Cipher wasn't fond of such praise normally, nor would she ever be affected by such words.
But... this had absolutely nothing to do with Lumina.
It had absolutely nothing to do with the praise Lumina spoke.
For some reason, maybe because this person named Lumina had cast some Magic Power and tampered with her subconscious, hearing this single praise from Lumina suddenly filled Cipher's heart with... an unbelievable sense of pride.
It was as if... as if being praised by her was some sort of incredibly amazing thing.
This emotion continuously spread in Cipher's heart, eventually resulting in her slightly shy expression.
"Hehe..." Seeing Cipher's expression, a triumphant look instantly appeared in Lumina's small eyes.
Although it had only just begun, Lumina had already started popping champagne in her heart.
It was as if victory was already completely secured.
"Congratulations, you've successfully won over another cute young lady." Just as Lumina was celebrating the "battle" victory in her heart, Herta leaned in close to her side, offering a congratulatory remark that seemed somewhat sarcastic.
Herta wasn't the type of person who enjoyed sarcasm, but ever since she met Lumina, some of her behaviors and personality traits had been silently and subconsciously undergoing a major change.
Herta was naturally aware of this change.
But she didn't mind it.
People always change, isn't that perfectly normal?
Although Herta was a genius, she was also a human being. So, when faced with this common human experience, what was there to change?
Of course, Herta had changed, but she also hadn't.
Only when interacting with Lumina could one truly feel the changes in Herta's personality and behavior.
But if you were to interact with other people, you would find that Herta hadn't changed at all, she was still exactly the same as before.
Her uniqueness, her changes, seemed to be directed only at Lumina alone...
This sarcastic remark was less a display of sarcasm and more a thick wave of jealousy...
Chatting and cuddling with a cute young lady here, chatting and cuddling with another cute young lady there... If Lumina didn't have her strength and status, she would have been imprisoned long ago...
"Ah, thank you~"
Faced with Herta's sarcastic words, Lumina seemed to only understand their surface meaning, completely missing the underlying intent, and offered a lighthearted and cheerful thanks.
Look at her. I "bless" her with a word, and she actually thanks me.
Hearing Lumina's "thank you," Herta's heart was instantly filled with speechlessness.
She truly didn't know what to say.
Herta felt a deep sense of helplessness toward Lumina.
If their identities and strengths were swapped, Lumina would be pregnant with her third child by tomorrow...
Um, okay, not that late.
If they swapped in the morning, she'd be pregnant with her third child by nightfall...
Then the next day, her tenth child... Herta wasn't sure how many children it would eventually stop at.
But Herta knew it definitely wouldn't be less than a month.
That little Lumina... She needs a harsh lesson, so she'll never dare cuddle with any beautiful girl other than me again, and never dare to go out and mess around...
But... how many "if onlys" are there in the Cosmos?
Whether in status or strength, she is just weaker than Lumina.
She is simply unable to do anything about Lumina...
"Sigh..."
Thinking of this, Herta let out another deep sigh in her heart.
She would just continue with her previous plan and take it one step at a time.
If this sentence were to spread, it would probably cause a huge stir in the Cosmos.
The dignified Madam Herta, a member of the Genius Society and an Emanator of Erudition, would actually say such a slightly defeatist phrase?
This... this is somewhat mind-boggling.
But on second thought, oh, so Madam Herta's opponent was Miss Lumina, then it's fine.
What is there to be surprised about when Madam Herta is outclassed by Miss Lumina?
Miss Lumina is the most awesome figure in the entire Cosmos!
Madam Herta has no need to blame herself for losing to Miss Lumina!
This will definitely be the reaction of the Cosmic Forum at the time...
Standing nearby, Lumina, who had seen every one of Herta's expressions, offered no words of comfort.
After chuckling inwardly a few times, she turned her attention back to Cipher.
She asked softly, "So, the beautiful, kind, and powerful Miss Cipher, would you be willing to take us to Styxia?"
Lumina's flattering words once again flowed from her lips, gliding into Cipher's ears and straight into her mind.
"Ugh..." Hearing this, Cipher's face flushed even redder.
After stammering for a long moment, she took a deep breath.
Then, she placed one hand on her hip and leaned forward, snapping her fingers at Lumina with the other.
She winked and smiled, "Of course I can, Sister Lumina."
"Phew..." Hearing Cipher agree, a smile also spread across Castorice's face behind Lumina.
"Huh? Wait, Princess Homebody, what are you smiling at?" Seeing the smile on Castorice's face, Cipher's expression was instantly covered in confusion.
"You couldn't possibly think... that just because I agreed to take Sister Lumina to Styxia, it means I've agreed to take you too, right?"
"Huh?" Cipher's words caused the smile on Castorice's face to vanish instantly.
In its place, she wore a stunned and cute expression.
Her small mouth hung slightly open as she stared blankly, unable to process Cipher's words for a moment.
"Hehe..." Cipher chuckled, then offered an explanation: "Sister Lumina's request is Sister Lumina's business."
"The Princess Homebody's request is the Princess Homebody's business."
"My agreeing to take Sister Lumina to Styxia does not mean I've agreed to take the Princess Homebody to Styxia."
"Does that make sense now?"
"The Princess Homebody?"
Cipher's face was full of smiles, seemingly delighting in playing with Castorice.
"Lady Cipher, this..." After Cipher's explanation, it would be a bit dishonest for Castorice to claim she still didn't understand.
She had already realized what Cipher was trying to imply and was momentarily at a loss for words.
To only take Sister Lumina to Styxia... She couldn't possibly let Sister Lumina handle her and Stelle's business as well, could she?
Sister Lumina had already done so much, and unless absolutely necessary, Castorice really didn't want to trouble her again.
"Hah..."
Castorice took a deep breath and thought it over.
Lady Aglaea must have already spoken to Lady Cipher about this matter, so she definitely understood how important it was.
Since she was willing to take Sister Lumina to Styxia, she must also be willing to take her to Styxia.
It was just... a matter of unlocking something.
What prerequisite was needed to unlock it?
What exactly was this prerequisite?
Castorice thought hard.
"So that's how it is..."
Soon, seeing the smile on Cipher's face as she quietly watched her think without saying a word, Castorice also understood what she wanted to do.
"Lady Cipher..." After realizing this, Castorice's consciousness returned to reality, and she looked at her with a serious expression, "I can pay more."
Taking Sister Lumina to Styxia was Sister Lumina's business.
Taking the Princess Homebody to Styxia was the Princess Homebody's business.
Lady Cipher's hint had already been very obvious.
That Lady Cipher would appear before her at this time was undoubtedly Lady Aglaea's doing.
She must have paid something for it.
And applying Lady Cipher's words from just now.
It was:
The "money" Aglaea gave was Aglaea's business.
The "money" the Princess Homebody gave was the Princess Homebody's business.
She was hinting that she should pay more...
As a Demigod of [Trickery], it was normal for her to think this way.
She just didn't know if her guess was correct...
Castorice looked at Cipher with a bit of nervousness at this moment, waiting for her to speak.
"..."
And Cipher, who seemed to have seen through Castorice's inner thoughts, did not show any change in expression on her face upon hearing her words.
At the same time, Cipher did not immediately respond after Castorice finished speaking.
Instead, she just kept smiling and quietly watched Castorice, letting the passing time exert endless pressure on her.
"What a wicked cat," Lumina sighed inwardly, observing the two of them and understanding Cipher's true intention.
Asking for money was one goal; the other was to see the "resolve" of this Princess Homebody.
From the looks of it, the Shut-in... oh, Castorice's actions seemed to satisfy Cipher completely.
Sure enough, Cipher's voice rang out the next second.
"How much?" The little tail behind Cipher wagged in the air, so much that Lumina's eyes could barely keep up with it.
It looked so fluffy. If she could just reach out and touch it...
Lumina's mind involuntarily wandered.
Hearing this, Castorice hesitated for a moment before saying uncertainly, "I have lived through a much longer time than most people. Even if I am not as good at making a living as Lady Aglaea, I have still managed to save up some over the years."
"I... I can give you all of it."
"Hmm?" Hearing this, Cipher was suddenly a bit surprised. She then put her hands on her hips and asked, "Then how are you going to get by?"
Although Cipher was interested in money, it was absolutely impossible for her to demand someone's entire fortune like this.
"Then..." Hearing this, Castorice also realized this point. "Then 90 percent... uh, no, 80 percent..."
Castorice wasn't sure what Cipher was like, so she decided to keep a little for herself.
10 percent or 20 percent would also be enough for Castorice.
Her expenses were not large to begin with.
Even if she only had a little left, she could still survive.
It's just...
Life might be a bit hard.
"My place is quite large. Little Sister Castorice can come over to my place when the time comes."
Seeing this scene, Lumina really wanted to say these words.
But when she thought about how Castorice was no ordinary beautiful girl, but a Chrysos Heir, she still didn't say it.
Castorice definitely had her own place in Okhema.
Even if she didn't, Aglaea would definitely take good care of her.
Even if she didn't have a single cent to her name, her life would still be much better than that of most ordinary people in Okhema.
Well... not from Castorice's own perspective, but from an outsider's point of view.
"Haha, alright then, I won't be polite." Cipher expressed her extreme satisfaction with Castorice's attitude.
Without any further nonsense or useless talk, she immediately agreed.
"80 percent of Castorice's savings will be exchanged for everyone except Sister Lumina to go to Styxia."
"This deal isn't a loss."
Although they hadn't seen exactly how rich Castorice was, given the time she had lived and her usual spending habits...
That was definitely a fortune that ordinary people could never even touch.
The others had no objections to Cipher's proposal.
Herta didn't either, she was simply too lazy to speak.
She could just go there herself when the time came, without needing Cipher, but she was too lazy to say it, too lazy to explain.
In any case, given this little guy's temperament, even if Stelle herself was missing, the final price wouldn't change much.
"Hmph, just wait until I'm fully recovered. I'll definitely teach you a lesson for this."
But one person among them was extremely dissatisfied with Cipher's act of shaking down Castorice.
She crossed her arms and snorted coldly.
"Wow~" Hearing this, Cipher immediately turned her gaze to Stelle.
"I'm so scared~"
She wrapped her arms around her own shoulders, acting out a shivering, terrified pose as if to say, "Oh, how scary, don't come near me."
But the next second, she returned to normal and flashed Stelle a mocking smile. "You probably can't even touch my tail, can you?"
"Hmph, how will I know if I don't try?" Stelle was someone who refused to accept defeat.
Hearing Cipher's words and feeling the mockery within them, she naturally felt extremely displeased.
"Then come on, come at me now." Cipher waved her hand at Stelle, beckoning her to come if she didn't accept it.
Don't act like a wimp and wuss out.
Anyone watching would think you're just running your mouth.
"I'll come just because you told me to?" Stelle snorted and said.
Given her current condition, even though it seemed there were no problems at all...
...it was still better to avoid some strenuous exercise.
Well... of course, this was also because Stelle really couldn't catch up with Cipher.
The fact that she could appear here silently without herself even noticing was also a verification of this point.
So Stelle was happy to trash talk, but if she really had to charge, she wouldn't go.
Sister Lumina was here, and Stelle didn't want to leave a bad impression in front of her.
Hmm... although it seemed as if there wasn't much of a lack of times to do so anyway.
"Alright, alright, when are we leaving?" Without letting them continue talking, Lumina asked Cipher.
"In a moment," Cipher snapped her fingers and said.
"Let's go to the Princess Homebody's place first, and let me take a good look at how much of her assets she has!"