Chapter 156 : Generous Rewards
Chapter 156: Generous Rewards
Lilia felt extremely uneasy inside, but her expression grew increasingly calm, even pushing her luck further.
“The most crucial part is the lighting.”
She pointed at the sky above, shrouded in dense dark clouds.
“It’s too dark—it feels oppressive. I want to erect several hundred light pillars around the arena. At night, it should be as bright as daytime. When the match begins, all the lights should ‘whoosh’ and focus on the center at once. That kind of being the center of attention for everyone—do you get it?”
Lilia’s mouth moved at lightning speed, pouring out every term she could think of. Things like “immersive experience,” “multi-functional zoning,” “post-match interview channel”...
Some of the terms she herself didn’t even know how to translate into the Demon Realm’s context, but that didn’t stop her from gesturing wildly.
Natasha was like an emotionless recording machine, her pen practically sparking from how fast it moved.
Camilla stood to the side, completely stunned.
Even though she didn’t understand most of the terms, it didn’t stop her from feeling a painful sense that could only be described as “funds burning away.”
Was this building an arena? This was just burning money for fun, wasn’t it?
That so-called “one-way perspective crystal”—a single piece cost thousands of gold coins, and this prodigal actually wanted to install one in every private room?
And that light crystal array—was she planning to drain all the magic reserves of Eternal Night City?
Half an hour later.
Lilia finally talked herself dry and stopped to catch her breath.
Looking at the parchment filled with incomprehensible scribbles, she felt a bit uncertain. Had she exaggerated too much just now? Many of the things she mentioned couldn’t even be perfectly achieved with modern technology, let alone by this group of demons who still smashed things with rocks.
“Um…” Lilia licked her slightly cracked lips and asked tentatively, “Was I being a bit messy? How much of it did you understand?”
Natasha suddenly raised her head.
Her dead-fish eyes, previously hidden behind thick lenses, were now bloodshot—but frighteningly bright.
“Understand?”
She shook the parchment in her hand, her tone as fanatical as a lunatic high on stimulants.
Natasha grabbed Lilia’s hand with such force it almost crushed her fingers.
“Don’t worry! I remembered everything! Not a single word missed! Just give me enough materials and manpower—give me a month… no, twenty days! I will definitely create this miracle!”
Lilia pulled her hand back and shook it, feeling like her worldview was crumbling.
Were all demons in the Demon Realm wired this strangely?
She looked at Camilla, trying to find a trace of rationality—something like “this is impossible”—in the financier’s eyes.
But Camilla was currently dark-faced, glaring at the materials list on the paper as if trying to kill it with her gaze.
“You’re sure?” Lilia asked again, a bit uneasy. “This is a project for Her Majesty. If it gets messed up…”
“If it gets messed up, I won’t even wait for Her Majesty to act—I’ll jump in and fill the pit myself!” Natasha thumped her chest, her paint-stained work pants trembling.
Alright then.
With things said to this extent, Lilia felt that saying anything more would be disrespecting a professional.
More importantly, she had already run out of things to make up.
“Fine.” Lilia clapped her hands as if dusting off nonexistent dirt, putting on an air of everything being settled. “Since Master Natasha is so confident, I’ll wait for the good news.”
She turned to Camilla, revealing a rather punchable smile.
“Grand Duke, this is a great opportunity for you to leave your name in history. As for materials… you wouldn’t be stingy, right?”
Camilla clenched her teeth so hard they almost cracked, her peach blossom eyes practically spitting fire.
“Get lost.”
She squeezed the word out through her teeth.
“If you don’t get lost now, I’ll bury you in the foundation and use you as a pillar.”
Lilia shrugged. Her goal achieved, she knew when to stop.
“Then I’ll leave it to you. I need to go report back to Her Majesty. After all, Her Majesty is still waiting for me to go back… and massage her shoulders.”
She deliberately emphasized the words “massage shoulders,” and as expected, Camilla’s face turned even greener.
Watching someone want to kill her but being unable to, and still having to obediently work for her… that feeling was indeed… satisfying!
Humming an unknown tune, Lilia turned and left.
Having successfully dumped a mess onto Camilla, her mood improved considerably.
The stone monument standing in the distance looked much more pleasing now. That was, as long as she didn’t think about what it was originally meant for.
Hera appeared on a high ground not far away.
Lilia’s heart skipped a beat.
Although she had been smooth-talking Camilla just now, when facing this true “sugar daddy,” her newly built arrogance instantly shrank into a tiny flame.
“Master!”
The sweetness in her voice increased by at least thirty percent.
“Done?”
Hera didn’t turn around, nor did she change her posture. Her voice was lazy, as if she were speaking to the air.
“Mission accomplished!” Lilia straightened her nonexistent chest, her tone carrying a hint of smugness as she sought credit. “Grand Duke Camilla has deeply realized her own aesthetic limitations and is very willing to provide funding… ahem, to contribute to Your Majesty’s grand eternal enterprise. That Natasha might seem a bit abnormal, but she’s very talented when it comes to burning money. I think it’ll work.”
Hera softly responded with an “Mm.”
That was it?
Lilia blinked twice.
According to the script, shouldn’t there be something like “Well done” or “You’ll be heavily rewarded,” followed by tossing her a couple of rare pieces of equipment?
The silence in the air felt strangely eerie.
She secretly glanced at Hera’s profile.
Stunningly beautiful.
Cold and elegant.
And a little… bored?
Just as Lilia was wondering whether she should proactively find a topic—something constructive like “what to eat tonight”—Hera suddenly moved.
Before Lilia could react, her waist suddenly tightened.
“Damn—”
The curse had barely left her lips before the rest of it was swallowed back in shock.
The damned 【Conjoined Heart Lock】 ring on her left ring finger suddenly grew hot, a tingling current shooting from her fingertips straight to the top of her head.
“M-Master?”
Lilia shrank her neck, her entire body stiff as a wooden board. She felt Hera’s arm wrapped around her waist, even tightening further, squeezing her already snug maid outfit until it let out a faint, strained creak.
What was this woman trying to do?
That look just now… could it be that she found Lilia too irritating for tricking Camilla and was planning to deal with her right here?
“What are you afraid of?”
Hera’s voice drifted down from above, carrying a faint hint of amusement. Her warm breath brushed against Lilia’s ear, sending a layer of fine goosebumps across her skin.
Lilia felt like crying but had no tears.