My wife is an immortal black snake.

Page 186

Faced with Miss Karina's invitation, Mr. Yang Hao chuckled a few times and then agreed—after all, Karina might not exist as Koschie's new body but as an independent Ascended One... So, to maintain a good relationship, it would be better to accept, right?

On another note, Miss Karina, your father is an archaeologist? Doesn't that mean he often digs up some very strange things?

Faced with Yang Hao's agreement and question, Miss Karina frowned, then pondered for a while before nodding:

"Hmm, you do often dig up strange things, don't you? Hmm... Let me look—ah, this is the notebook... Mr. Yang Hao, please take a look at this? It records the things my father dug up. If there are no accidents, those things should still be stored at my house and haven't been brought here yet."

"Oh?"

"Because there are too many, and they're too messy."

"Oh... let me see."

Yang Hao took the notebook from Karina. His hand inadvertently brushed against the cool back of Karina's hand. The skin on the back of her hand was very smooth and soft; it seemed she really took good care of her skin.

He subconsciously compared Karina's hand to Kosich's. He then mentally remarked on how evenly matched they were—before he looked at the notebook Karina had handed him. Upon opening the first page, he saw a hand-drawn purple... what looked like a key?

The key had a sharp arrowhead at one end, with a piercing hole carved into its center. Behind the arrowhead was a long, rectangular metal support, the latter half of which was connected to a key head via a narrower support.

Below this hand-drawn illustration is a strong, bold handwritten annotation:

"The Key to Shattering the Gate...?"

Yang Hao murmured the word in confusion, and then in the next instant, Miss Elegy brought him a new event.

Item: Key to Shattering the Door

Karina's father found the spoils from a spacetime distortion, which connects to Noon Harbor, a place teeming with immortals, fraught with danger yet brimming with treasure.

He used novel events and documents from another world to persuade an immortal who was hindering him to abandon his plans. After passing through locked doors and overcoming a bewitching curse with his research team, this was what he finally obtained—the Key to Shatter the Door.

This key, which can be used to open or destroy doors, is unique in the world. If Karina's path to ascension is smooth enough, perhaps she can use this treasure to freely enter and exit the Peacock Gate.

'...What are you talking about?'

"...This looks like something very precious." Yang Hao swallowed hard, wondering just how amazing Karina's father was.

Having the incredibly dangerous job of an archaeologist is one thing, but how did he manage to safely lead his team through something like a spacetime rift to another world? How did he overcome the obstacles posed by immortals? And finally, how did he even break through the curse and retrieve a powerful treasure from that other world?

You must be the world's most powerful archaeologist and folklorist, right? Did you ever share a drink with some immortal being? That's truly...

“Yes, my father said it was very valuable, and I did bring it with me.” Karina glanced at the illustration Yang Hao had been remarking on, then smiled and rummaged through her desk drawer, finally pulling out something identical to the illustration in the notebook, housed in a transparent box. “However, I don’t know what it can be used for… so I’ve been studying my father’s notes until Lord Koschche found me…”

"Well, and then he became her heir—even as the heir, did he still hope to find the secrets left by his father before being inherited?"

"...Um."

She nodded, but showed no dissatisfaction with becoming the successor of Koschei—if only she did, Yang Hao would know how to resolve Karina's obsession and guide her to become an Ascended One.

But if not, perhaps we need to find a way to make her feel dissatisfied or resistant to Koschche.

But what should we do?

Yang Hao handed the notebook back to Karina, then turned to look at Sonia's mother, who was inexplicably staring intently at him. Suddenly, an idea struck him—

Since the only point of conflict between Karina and Kosicheal right now is with me, then why don't I just create a point of conflict for them?!

Koschei won't blame me then, and neither will Karina. It might even improve their relationship, and I can continue to enjoy Koschei's tail. Wouldn't that be a win-win-win situation...?

I'm a fucking genius!

He immediately perked up and decided to start working hard tomorrow!

...... ......

At the same time, he was discussing state affairs with His Majesty the Emperor.

For some reason, Koschke felt that his eyes were becoming more and more sensitive to the presence of green.

"There might be something wrong with my body. I need to send the royal physician over." She sighed to His Majesty, "It would also be good to have the condition of the child in Your Majesty's womb checked—alas."

"What's wrong? Duke Koschche, haven't you and my Duke tried hard enough? But if you ask me, since you're planning to change bodies, then don't let this body get pregnant, okay?"

"First of all, that's not your dukedom, that's my husband!" Kosiché raised an eyebrow sharply; she would never back down on this point—

"Yes, yes, first your husband, then my king, the father of the child in my arms, the child's teacher, and also the prince and future founding father of the Ursus Empire—and then what?"

"......"

While it's true that Kosiché is very good at plotting things.

But the problem is, what can she do in the face of this unyielding reality?

Cleverness and intrigue have their limits! Koschei could make the Ursus people rebel against the emperor, but could she possibly make her own husband rebel against the emperor's unborn child? She simply couldn't do it...

So, faced with the bitter consequences of his past carelessness, Koschke could only manage a smile that looked more like a grimace, swallowing the bitter pill with a resentful expression.

She sighed and decided not to dwell on this upsetting topic any longer.

"As for the second question—I never said that I absolutely had to change bodies. What I emphasized repeatedly was that I only have Karina as a suitable heir right now. If my husband's plan requires my death to bring the greatest benefit, then of course I have to change bodies, don't you think?"

"So, you mean if Your Highness changes your plans, you don't actually need to rush into changing bodies?" Her Majesty Ekaterina blinked, then took a sip of warm milk. Under the watchful gaze of Head Maid Monica, who was holding Hela, she wiped her mouth with a handkerchief. "Hmm...you shouldn't have any illnesses in your body right now, right?"

"..." Duke Kosiché looked at His Majesty the Emperor with the same gaze one would give a dead man. After a moment, she sighed, "Yes."

"But I just heard you say you wanted to send the palace physician over?"

"Because I feel like my eyes have been having some problems lately due to overwork, but the main problem is still in your belly."

“Oh, you’re right—this child seems to have a lot of energy lately, I think it must be a girl.”

"Shouldn't you say it's a boy at a time like this?" Kosic's lips were twitching—this bastard is still showing off to me?!

“But my gut feeling tells me it should be a girl—and I like girls.”

“…”

Duke Koschke took several deep breaths, and finally, she slowly stretched out her trembling arms to her head maid, took the drowsy Hela from her arms, and placed her on her lap. After that, the old black snake, who had been furious with His Majesty the Emperor, finally felt a sense of calm from her beloved daughter.

Ah—having children is wonderful.

She rubbed Hela's cheeks, and finally, amidst Hela's confused and innocent cries, she felt much better, and her resolve to have a child with her husband strengthened—even if it wasn't his own, it didn't matter; if all else failed, that little bat wouldn't be out of the question...

And speaking of Little Bat, where is she now? Surely she's not going to meet up with her sweetheart anytime soon, is she?

She blinked, intending to shout "Impossible!" in her mind, but...

She looked at the Emperor's belly; she had already learned her lesson from carelessness. She couldn't let a seemingly harmless opponent really slip up and cause her trouble. She really couldn't afford to be careless again!

"The Duke of Kosiché?"

"It's nothing. I was just thinking about whether to take some time to have my snake scales investigate the recent activities of a little bat who was born in Colombia, went to Minos, and then disappeared somewhere."

"What are you talking about... Never mind. It's almost dinner time. Sigh, I'll be busy starting tomorrow."

"According to the plan, it won't be too busy—you just need to go on stage and say a few words."

“But my lord is quite busy.”

"...Let me reiterate—"

"...Lord Kosiché? Your Majesty? Shall we go to the dining room and prepare for dinner?"

Seeing that Lord Koschich seemed to be about to lose his temper again, Monica, the head maid who had been silent for a long time, sighed heavily and stepped in to stop the electric stares between them.

Chapter 41

9 month 25 day.

Three days have passed since the remnants of Kazimir's army made contact with Theresa.

Everyone was very busy during these three days. Apart from Sonia, who was taking care of the children, and Hela, the well-behaved baby, who was being looked after, everyone was very busy.

His Majesty the Emperor and Kosichä need to handle the political affairs of the Ursus people, implement the various plans previously devised by Yang Hao, and also select suitable candidates for the "Volunteer Army." Thanks to their efforts, while elite Wendigo soldiers like Bozokastie are clearly ineligible for the Volunteer Army, it doesn't say that ordinary Liberians, Ursus, or Felins cannot participate.

After much back-and-forth haggling and selection, His Majesty the Emperor successfully recruited a large number of men from various army groups. These men were...

"...Mr. Hrag? Is Mr. Hrag here?! Quickly get your troops here to collect the chemical defense equipment; the rest of the troops will be here soon!"

"—They're here!"

Inside the military camp on the outskirts of the Duke of Koschie, Monica, who was about to explain the list of officers to the various officials, fell silent. She noticed that neither Lord Koschie nor Lord Yang Hao, who was clearly exhausted, nor even Sonia and Hela following behind them, showed any interest. So she took the opportunity to keep quiet and observe the heroic figures of the "Volunteer Army" as they received their chemical protective equipment, preparing for the operation in Kazimierz.

Under their watchful eyes, a Liberian led his soldiers to the quartermaster. After confirming their numbers with the help of the quartermaster and his accompanying staff, they were led to the storage area for chemical protective equipment, where they unloaded crates of the equipment from the warehouse and carried them back to their camp.

“I’ve heard that this Hrag is a good officer,” Kosich said with interest. “He’s good at both offense and defense—I really didn’t expect His Majesty to let those army group generals and operatives release such a good talent.”

"No matter what, she was the emperor."

“If a mere identity could make those noble generals lower themselves to serve the country, she wouldn’t have needed to ask you for help before.”

"makes sense..."

Mr. Yang Hao, looking utterly exhausted, nodded hurriedly, praising his wife's words. Only he knew the hardships this poor man had recently endured!

The head maid, emboldened by her evidence of Yang Hao's affair with the Emperor, would demand that the poor man drink goat's milk every so often. She didn't care about the occasion; this maid, corrupted by her mistress, would even suddenly appear behind Yang Hao when he went to the toilet—what could Yang Hao do? He could only swallow his groans and painfully, yet also enjoy the head maid's greedy suckling.

On the other hand, he was also reflecting on whether he had gone too far—ever since that crazy first time, Teresa had been tempting him to do it once or twice in her office from time to time. Faced with Teresa's temptations, Yang Hao initially righteously refused: "Do you think you can bribe me with your horse's tail, ears, and rear end?!"

He had originally intended to refuse, but Theresa was offering just too much. This girl, who liked forceful methods and seemed to have a masochistic streak, always managed to pique his interest whenever she groveled and stuck out her buttocks in front of him—even when he had no more drops left.

Speaking of not a single drop... then we have to mention Sonia's mother, who is already living in the Duke's mansion.

This gentle and tactful matriarch was indeed trying her best to reform her bad child, though her methods were somewhat unconventional—not just in terms of education, but also in a way that she was demanding something from Yang Hao: a connection with family, a bond that transcended physical and emotional boundaries...

What? You're saying this doesn't seem like that kind of relationship at all? Actually, Sonia didn't care—she just thought her good boy Yang Hao really enjoyed sucking on her breasts while she squeezed him out. If that was all it took to turn him back into a good boy, then that would be perfect.

But is this feasible? Of course not—Yang Hao didn't even know why Sonia had been making increasingly frequent requests lately, nor did he know if he had done something wrong. So, confused, Sonia's mother could only...

It's gotten even worse.

...

And all this——

There are some things that our Duke Flincosie might know.

There are some things she may not even know.

With the vast majority of the Serpent Scales working on the outside and those inside also overworked, Duke Koschke's intelligence reserves are extremely limited. Plus, she's just too busy—

...

Even if she knew, so what?

They work all day, and only have time to rest during lunch and dinner. Because their schedules haven't been aligned lately, they don't even shower together...

Every night before bed, Duke Koschke would look at Hela, who refused to leave their room, with a pitiful expression. Lately, he hadn't even had a chance to be affectionate with his husband...

Ugh!

Kosichrie could only console herself that when she had more time, she could spend quality time with her husband!

"However, on another note... Lady Theresa told me yesterday that the equipment has been received and transported to its destination. If all goes well, the remnants and Sarkaz mercenaries will begin a massive resistance movement this afternoon in the name of the Theresa family... During this time, our influence as good people in Ursus, and Theresa's influence as a benevolent ruler of Qazimir, will grow daily... My dear, are you ready to purge the current Qazimir regime?"

“It’s ready a while ago. But we still have to wait a bit longer... Sigh, those stubborn knights are such a nuisance.”

"There's nothing we can do about it. By the way, how's things with Karina?" Kosiché smiled, then turned to Yang Hao and asked.

"Haha... I'm handling it, it's just..."

"I trust you, so just tell me the results when the time comes. I won't interfere with your process."

"...I understand."

Faced with his wife's trust, Yang Hao nodded, recalling his interactions with Karina over the past two days...

-------------Chapter Dividing Line---------------

From September 23rd to 24th, Yang Hao kept in contact with Miss Karina—sometimes with Sonia, sometimes with Theresa, and sometimes, to show his closeness and trust, he didn't even bring a single guard, but instead brought Hela, who had been dressed up more and more beautifully by Monica for some reason, and whose little scythe was even tied with a bow, to be with Karina.

Ah, he knew that in some ways Hela was even more terrifying than the most powerful Serpentscale and Templar Knights, but Hela was so obedient, and Yang Hao didn't intend for Hela to serve as a guard, so bringing Hela along was just to show his trust in Karina, nothing more.

Under his offensive of trust, although she was a well-read noblewoman, she was still a novice in social matters. How could Karina resist the advances of a mature man like Yang Hao—ah, her trust? Naturally...

Her trust in Yang Hao grew stronger and stronger.

To use an analogy, if at the beginning Karina trusted Mr. Yang Hao but still hesitated to do anything intimate, now the way Karina looks at Yang Hao terrifies him...

That was an even more blatant possessiveness than Kosiché's... Yang Hao even suspected that if he were ever alone with Miss Karina in a suitable place, this girl, who was still concerned about the difference in their social status, might actually...

"What's wrong, Mr. Yang Hao?"

"No, it's nothing. Let's continue."

The afternoon of July 25th.

After inspecting the site where the [Volunteer Army] extracted equipment with his wife, Yang Hao returned to the Duke's mansion alone, intending to take Miss Karina to the infected gathering area and introduce her to Lady Kal'tsit.