Looking at Cao Ye standing before her, Freya showed a satisfied smile.
She loved the radiance of souls.
The brighter and more dazzling a soul became, the more it captivated her.
Designing a "script" and watching her target slowly transform—
Watching their soul grow brighter—
Was one of her greatest amusements.
Although she couldn't see Cao Ye's soul directly, the current Cao Ye was already completely different from before.
Previously, Cao Ye had been like a lazy salted fish, his mind filled with thoughts like "just get by" and "take life easy."
But now—
Under her careful manipulation—
He had changed.
The impurities had been removed.
He was beginning to shine.
"I heard from Ottar that you returned today looking quite miserable," Freya said calmly.
"But judging from your appearance now, you've mostly recovered."
"Surviving a disaster brings future blessings," Cao Ye replied.
"I got lucky and made a little progress."
"So," Freya smiled faintly,
"what did you come here for?"
"I need money."
"How much?"
"Ten million valis."
"And even that might not be enough."
"Alright."
Freya agreed immediately.
For someone within her Familia, she had never been stingy.
And for her—
Ten million valis was just small change.
The earlier incident where she withheld one million was merely done for fun.
Cao Ye himself was surprised by how quickly she agreed.
"However," Freya added,
"This money will be a loan. You'll have to pay it back."
"No problem."
Cao Ye nodded.
Ten million valis was indeed a huge amount for him.
But he believed he could repay it someday.
Worst case scenario—
He could repay it with his body.
After all, he was already being "kept" by her anyway.
"Ottar."
Freya called softly.
The door opened and Ottar entered.
He carried a large bag.
Apparently filled with cash.
Cao Ye felt a little puzzled.
Earlier one million had been given as a card.
So why was ten million given as cash?
"There are twenty million valis inside," Freya said casually.
"If ten million might not be enough, we might as well do it properly."
Cao Ye opened his mouth, not knowing what to say.
He almost wanted to say:
"Rich lady, please feed me."
But technically he was already being supported by her.
Even his monthly allowance had already been spent.
"I'll repay this money as soon as possible."
"No rush."
Freya didn't care.
Compared to twenty million valis—
Cao Ye's transformation was far more interesting to her.
Since he was eager to start making Cursed Corpses, Cao Ye didn't stay long.
After getting the money, he quickly left.
After Cao Ye left, Freya smiled.
"Ottar. Did you notice it?"
"Yes."
"He has changed completely since returning."
"His desire for power has reached its peak."
"The ambition deep inside his heart has awakened."
Freya nodded slightly.
"To be honest, even I didn't expect the effect to be this good."
"If I had known, I would have done it earlier."
"Should we send someone to monitor him?" Ottar asked.
"No."
"I already said I won't interfere with his growth."
"I'll only give him a little stimulation when necessary."
"As you wish."
Ottar bowed.
As a perfect warrior, he executed Freya's orders without question.
Freya looked out over Orario through the window.
On her beautiful face appeared a captivating smile that could enchant gods themselves.
The feeling of anticipation—
She couldn't even remember the last time she had felt it.
It had been too long.
Meanwhile—
With twenty million valis in hand, Cao Ye rushed straight to the Babel Tower market.
With the dwarf blacksmith as his friend, acquiring materials was easy.
The old dwarf had lived for many years.
As a craftsman, his network was enormous.
By the time night fell—
Cao Ye had already spent eighteen million valis.
Since money wasn't a problem, he bought everything he might need.
Materials needed now.
Materials he might need later.
Everything.
The merchants of Babel Tower quickly realized—
A huge customer had appeared today.
Soon, Cao Ye returned to his room.
The so-called Cursed Corpse was essentially a puppet.
By injecting it with cursed energy and controlling it through a technique, it could move.
There were no strict material requirements.
In Jujutsu Kaisen, the cursed corpses made by Yaga Masamichi were simply dolls.
Their bodies were made from doll materials.
But this was the DanMachi world.
There were countless rare materials available.
Just the monster drops from the Dungeon alone offered many possibilities.
Since this was his first attempt, Cao Ye didn't plan anything too complicated.
He needed to test the waters first.
In his mind, he began designing the appearance and type of his first cursed corpse.
Soon, an idea appeared.
After thinking it through, he finalized it.
If it succeeded, great.
If it failed—
He'd treat it as experience.
He opened his Imaginary Space.
Materials fell out one after another.
First, refined metal was used to create the skeleton.
Then monster materials filled the body.
For the outer layer, he used the leather of a rare young dragon.
And for the core—
The equivalent of the cursed corpse's heart—
Cao Ye chose a Magic Jewel.
That single magic jewel alone cost him five million valis.
And it was only a high-grade one.
Top-tier magic jewels couldn't even be bought with money.
Cao Ye steadied his mind.
He began engraving his technique onto the magic jewel.
The process required total concentration.
Even the slightest mistake could cause the engraving to fail.
Or worse—
Destroy the magic jewel completely.
And that jewel alone cost five million valis.
He couldn't afford another.
Even asking Freya for twenty million already felt embarrassing.
Drip.
Sweat slid down his forehead.
He remained completely focused.
Afraid that even the smallest error would cause everything to collapse.
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