Herald of Steel

Mikaya's rude remark had not generated the scowl one typically would expect from the Queen mother, as she had witnessed such similar situations a few times already and because Alexander had not flared up during any of those, she finally accepted this matter.

'This girl is such a rogue,' The Queen mother had given up on trying to stop Mikaya from picking a fight with Alexander and could only silently thank Alexander for being the better man and not stooping to Mikaya's level.

Seelima was not the only one that was somewhat irked Mikaya's antics.

Even her nieces scowled at their aunt's unprovoked taunt, saying to themselves, 'This villain might be thick-skinned, but why does aunt always go poking him? He isn't easy to deal with,' thus simultaneously praising and demeaning Alexander.

But little did these ladies know the real reason for Alexander's lukewarm retaliation, for it was far more insidious than they could ever imagine.

"Haha, I'm afraid My lady is praising the incorrect person here," Alexander answered Mikaya's taunt with a chuckle and then pointing to Mean said, "It was Mean who was responsible for preparing both this and the next dish."

Then turning his head towards the petite, simply dressed girl, Alexander praised, "And I must say, she cooked this ravioli to perfection. This dish might look very simple to prepare, but in fact, it takes quite a bit of skill to properly cook the pasta while keeping the egg yolk creamy and runny."

But contrary to his beaming exterior, Alexander thought darkly in his heart, 'Oh, I can't wait for Ophenia to start the brothel.' as his heart yearned with trepid anticipation at seeing how he would degrade this princess into public property.

This was why he had let multiple of such jibs slide, his body being energized with excitement every time he thought of the imminent humiliation of the Matrak princess and the thrill of how he would be there to witness everything.

'Ahhh, I can't wait,' Alexander repeated his desires to himself, the electrifying sensation fully manifested itself in how quickly he cut into his egg yolk and roughly jammed the pasta into his mouth after Mikaya's remark, a subtle action that did not escape the silver-haired beauty.

'*Smirk*, he can't wait,' Mikaya was of course aware of Alexander's dark desires, which was also why Mikaya said such things, to poke the proud man, or in her eyes boy, to even more anger.

For the things Alexander would consider degrading, Mikaya relished in them.

And she could only hope that Alexander did not disappoint in his promise.

"Master, I have finished properly decorating the establishment and hiring the appropriate staff. We can start any day at your command, " Ophenia, who was able to sense this slight, invincible tension between the duo quickly chirped up, intent on delivering the good news.

"Haha, good, good. When can I meet the trainee priestesses?" Alexander chuckled and asked about the newly hired prostitutes in coded terms.

The term acolyte priestesses were designated to be used for real priestesses, while trainee priestesses were used to refer to his social workers.

The reason for doing this was obvious, as Alexander did not want anyone remotely close to him or Mikaya to know that he ran such a low establishment.

Such knowledge would not debase his status in the nobility circle, but also, if by some chance Mikaya got caught, he would have a very hard time escaping the loose around his neck.

"Master can visit the future priestesses of Zanzan anytime." Ophenia let out a charming smile, very excited to show her master the toys she had chosen for him.

And they were his toys no doubt about it, as Alexander could taste the ten new girls in any and every way possible anytime and anywhere he wanted, and even discard them to his heart's content.

"Good, then I come to test their faith tomorrow afternoon," Alexander grinned the reply, his euphemism actually meaning checking the young women out.

'Finally! Took them long enough,' Mikaya was one of the few ones who could keep up with the actual meaning of the conversation between the two, and her heart beat frantically at the imminence of the promised novel play, which Tajia shared with her mistress, while her sister's stomach squirmed at the thought, feeling torn between the imminent pleasure and shame that she would be made to experience.

'Well at least they won't see our faces,' Nafia consoled herself with such words, as she finished her portion of the meal.

With the ravioli dish done, the next portion of the meal, and in some eyes, the main dish was served- a thick slice of lasagna.

Made from fresh pasta with cheese, beef, pork, and because Alexander could not find tomato, diced spinach, the heavy pasta dish was capable of bringing water to anyone's mouth.

"This is a very warm and hearty food," Hellma finally decided to join the conversation as she eagerly dug into her slice, finding the different combination of meat with cheese and pasta a very novel taste.

Hellma's comment produced a second round of nods and hums of approval, with everyone really enjoying such warm food in the biting, freezing winter.

"Hmmmp, you villain can cook really good food. We princesses are impressed," Azira, happy and content at the delicious meal, gave this tsundere complement in a haughty tone as she leisurely, and in a languid manner wiped her thick red lips with a napkin, a gesture that Alexander found very endearing.

With supper's conclusion, and the participant's plates eaten clean, and belly full of sweet wine drunk, the girls then moved on to the next itinerary on their list- their games night.

This had become a regular occurrence for the ladies, and today, Alexander too found himself to be in the mood for some poker.

"Lord Alexander, for helping us women find such a clever way of spending our time, let me thank you on behalf of all womenfolk," The Queen lightly bowed as she so, remaking to herself that even if she had come to Zanzan just to learn these very fun card games, it would have been worth it.

Alexander had not only taught them the moderately difficult poker, but also the relatively easy blackjack and rummy, while also showing them the pretty skilled intensive 4-player game of bridge.

"Is this the new papyrus that Your Grace has made? It's so smooth!" Mikaya let out a very rare genuine cry of exclamation as she carefully caressed the freshly minted cards between her fingers, finding the thick, cardboard-like paper very slick and sturdy, much different from the coarse papyrus product.

"It's called paper my lady.' Alexander introduced as he glanced down at his hands to inspect the craftsmanship of these new cards.

Painted bright red with blue stars on the back, the paper for these cards was custom ordered by Alexander which required them to be made extra thick.

And then he asked Takfiz to find some women to draw and color the 52 unique beautiful patterns in each deck, which took them a fortnite to finish.

And the reason why he had sought Mikaya's assistance on these was because Alexander planned to sell these cards commercially and wanted his to be employees to familiarize themselves with the innovative designs.

'*Sigh*, I really should get around to making that printing press,' Alexander tiredly reminded himself, while absentmindedly brushing his thumb against the smooth surface of a 9 of hearts.

Alexander aftward graciously offered Mikaya, "I can give you some larger, thinner sheets to paint on if you would like. They should be easier to paint on than papyrus or parchment."

Alexander knew that Mikaya's only real interest except for sex was in painting and hence he made the offer.

"Haha, Your Grace, if you can regularly provide me with this new papyr...ummm paper, I will not ask for any dowry," Mikaya sent a coy look as she beamed a large grin at Alexander's offer, her eyes narrowing into crescents at genuine glee.

Papyrus and parchment were not mediums conducive to painting as the oil tended to slide and not stick properly to the surface, a problem that the experienced painter was confident this new material called paper would not suffer from.

'It's a girl who pays the dowry,' Alexander remarked on Mikaya's haughtiness, while his heart did a complete summersault at the genuine, candid smile shot at him.

'If only she was not so promiscuous.' Alexander lampooned for the umpteenth time at the beautiful smile as he produced the same thought, and then answered, "Haha, if Your Grace wants, I will deliver a fresh stack every day."

"I wonder if Your Grace is willing to sell how to make them?" Seelima had decided to insert herself into the conversion with a sweet but sharp inquiry, sending a curious but pointed look at Alexander.

'*Sigh*, it has not been even two months and greed is already starting to bubble up,' Alexander knew that this was not the Queen mother just asking about the paper-making method, but in actuality all his other inventions too.

The majestic changes happening around Zanzan had not escaped the hawkish eyes of these noble dignitaries, no matter how sheltered lives these ladies lived and this was Seelima poking Alexander to see his attitude towards some of the technology transfers.

'Hmmm, how should I respond?' Alexander remunerated as he sent Seelima a placid stare.

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