Every single step I took away from the disintegrated remains of the Guardian felt as though thousands of microscopic glass shards were violently piercing my internal organs. My heavily depleted 2nd-Circle mana was practically screaming within my veins, desperately begging for immediate recalibration.
I ignored it. I maintained an artificially flawless, rigid posture, keeping my trembling right hand buried deep within the pocket of my trench coat. I subconsciously dug my nails into my own palm, using the sharp, localized pain as an anchor to prevent my highly taxed consciousness from completely flatlining.
"Extract the crystals... rapidly," I commanded. My tone was entirely dry and clipped, meticulously designed to camouflage my slightly erratic breathing.
The five draftees snapped out of their paralyzing awe and rushed toward the heart of the glowing chasm. Luna, utilizing her delicate, precise touch, was the very first to pry loose a 'Soul Crystal'. It was utterly breathtaking—a flawless geometric structure boasting a staggering 98% purity rate. Its brilliant violet luminescence was radiant enough to entirely banish the cavern's gloom, and more than enough to permanently incinerate the Valentine family's pathetic delusions of economic monopoly.
"My Lord... this sheer volume of wealth..." Rain whispered reverently, hoisting a heavy leather satchel brimming with raw crystals. "It's enough to literally purchase half the kingdom!"
"Wealth is merely 'stored kinetic energy', Rain," I stated, turning my back to the abyss with freezing apathy. "Its true value is strictly determined by how efficiently we inject it into the failing operational system of the Faulkner estate. Mobilize. Dawn is approaching, and time is a highly volatile variable."
[Back to the main palace]
We arrived at the Main Estate just as the first pale rays of dawn breached the horizon. I didn't head to my quarters to rest. I marched directly toward the Duke's primary administrative office.
I pushed open the heavy double doors without bothering to knock. Inside, my father sat behind his colossal mahogany desk, his features heavy with exhaustion and dread. Beside him, Silas was nervously reviewing a stack of parchments that looked suspiciously like potential bankruptcy declarations.
"Adrian?" The Duke shot to his feet in profound shock, his eyes frantically scanning my immaculate, dust-free trench coat, entirely failing to perceive the broken vessel hidden beneath it. "You returned alive? Where is your squad?"
I didn't utter a single syllable. I merely offered a minute, calculated gesture toward the hallway.
Rain and Luna stepped inside. They heavily dropped the leather satchels directly onto the luxurious wooden desk. The impact rattled the inkwells. Rain unbuckled the straps, and the brilliant, blinding violet light of absolute purity instantly flooded the room, accompanied by the intoxicating scent of raw, unrefined mana.
"Here is the 'empirical data' you demanded, Father," I stated. My voice was smooth, rhythmic, and terrifyingly stable, completely ignoring the thick, metallic taste of blood pooling at the back of my throat. "The market value of these crystals exponentially eclipses the Valentine family's entire decade-long supply contract. The mine is now officially a Faulkner asset... operating strictly beneath my personal administration."
Silas's face violently drained of all color. His expensive quill slipped from his trembling fingers, clattering onto the floor.
The Duke slowly reached out with a shaking hand, hovering his fingers over the humming crystals. He slowly raised his head, staring at me as if he were looking at an entirely alien, terrifying entity wearing his son's skin.
"How... how could you possibly achieve this with a squad of five rejects?" the Duke whispered, his voice stripped of all authority.
"With flawless calculations, Father, the concept of 'impossible' is merely a mathematical error," I replied with a chilling, infinitely arrogant smile. I subtly leaned my left hand against the edge of the heavy desk to forcefully prevent my legs from buckling. "Now then. Let us discuss the new 'commercial algorithm' for this House."
The Duke's eyes narrowed with sudden, wary suspicion. "What do you mean?"
"I calculated the mine's coordinates. I engineered the infiltration matrix. And I personally dismantled the Tier-4 Guardian," I stated with absolute, freezing finality. "Therefore, my terms are mathematically simple: Fifty percent of the absolute net profits from this mine belong strictly to me, transferred directly to my personal accounts, entirely bypassing the main family treasury. Furthermore, I demand total, unquestioned autonomy over my quarters and the procurement of my equipment."
"Fifty percent?!" Silas roared, his face flushing with furious indignation. "This is absolute madness! You are a son of the Duke! Every single asset you acquire belongs to the House!"
I slowly turned my head, pinning Silas with a glare so suffocatingly heavy he instantly choked on his next word and stumbled a step backward.
"This House was teetering on the absolute brink of the abyss barely hours ago. I didn't just bring you gold, Silas. I brought the 'system' that will permanently prevent your pathetic free-fall." I shifted my gaze back to the Duke. "Father... do you prefer fifty percent of absolute, unprecedented wealth? Or one hundred percent of abyssal poverty once the Valentine family officially crushes us?"
A profound, suffocating silence anchored the room. The Duke looked at the blinding crystals, then up at my dead, unwavering purple eyes. In that exact microsecond, he fully realized the absolute shift in power.
"Agreed," the Duke finally rasped, his voice heavy with defeat. "Fifty percent is yours... provided you guarantee the absolute stability of the supply lines."
"Consider it a calculated constant," I murmured coldly, slowly turning on my heel. "Now... my current research requires absolute, uninterrupted silence. I highly recommend that I am not disturbed."
I strode out of the office, my oppressive aura dominating the room until the very last second.
I navigated the corridors, and the exact microsecond the heavy oak door of my private Annex Manor clicked shut behind me, the artificial structural integrity of my posture completely collapsed.
My knees hit the floorboards. I violently coughed, the blood I had been ruthlessly suppressing finally splattering across my gloved hands. The edges of my vision rapidly dissolved into dark, buzzing static.
"I severely... exceeded... the vessel's thermal limits," I rasped, a faint, genuinely satisfied smile touching my pale, bloodstained lips just before the darkness entirely consumed me. "But... the transaction... was successfully executed."