Mixed Blessing System

After some time, Annaliese and Lothur had already dined at a local restaurant and returned to the Frost family estate.

In such a place, they did not take long to meet Viktoria, who had already returned from the auction house alongside her mother.

Although conflicts after events like that were relatively common, nothing had happened to them even though they had bought an item that cost them 152 million bronze coins.

But this was not as surprising as one might think. After all, this was Peters City, a city under imperial rule and the home of House Frost, a family that, although decadent, still had enough power to wreak havoc on the other local forces.

On the other hand, Mabel was not weak at all!

Hell, she was one of the five strongest people in the entire Linn Province!

So, since she was a Soul Core Transcendent carrying that Silver-grade armor, no one had tried to act against her and Viktoria.

With that, soon Lothur and Annaliese were with Viktoria!

...

"What were you two doing at the auction? Anna, why didn't you tell me about this?" Lothur's wife looked curiously, with a bit of concern, at the two individuals sitting on the sofa in the living room of her residence.

Annaliese then pouted at her sister and said in a tone laden with injustice. "We went to have fun, of course... Only you can do that, sister?"

"Tsk!"

"Having fun? Do you think that's fun? Don't you understand how dangerous that place is?"

"Why would it be dangerous?" Lothur asked with his lack of common sense.

"Sigh!"

Viktoria then shook her head in disappointment at his ignorance and said. "If you had just watched the auction, the dangers of that place would not affect you. But you bought a Soul Bone!"

"It is fortunate that you were able to return here without being attacked by self-interested vermins."

"Sigh!"

"Maybe it was because that Soul Bone didn't attract the attention of the powerful people at the auction. But be more careful! There aren't just influential people after items like that!"

"If some local criminal had discovered such a thing in time, you probably would have been ambushed before you got here!"

"Oh? I guess the imperial rules are worthless then..." Lothur closed his eyes and smiled, saying this in a mocking tone. "That imperial family is not respected. It is more wea..."

Before he finished saying his words, one hand from Annaliese and another from Viktoria hit his face, causing him to shut up immediately.

"Idiot!"

"Don't you ever say something like that out loud again!" Viktoria said this, already red with anger at how careless Lothur was.

Annaliese then said in a sweeter tone than her sister, "Lothur, don't you know that speaking ill of the imperial family can earn you death punishment? If someone from that organization saw you saying things like that, that person would immediately consider you a traitor to the empire."

The Leopoldine family ruled their empire with iron fists and always watched over the honor of their name. Moreover, since treason was usually accompanied by disrespect, resentment, etc., speaking ill of this organization could easily be mistaken for signs of rebellion by the imperial sovereigns.

The imperial house was harsh, true, but it was also not unfair to most people and organizations in its empire. On the contrary, for ordinary people, the sovereign house of this state was responsible for local order and progress.

So, who would speak ill of such power? In the imperial family's view, only those with nefarious intentions towards their position of power!

On the other hand, between eliminating an innocent fool and setting a criminal free, most cultivators in this world would prefer the first option. In this case, eliminating such people was the simplest way to prevent rebellions!

Hence the problem with Lothur's comment.

"Tsk!"

"I didn't know that..." He said as he took their hands away from his mouth and regretted in his mind that he was in a state where he was not even free to speak his opinions.

"Humph!"

"When you don't know something, then keep quiet! Or you'll kill yourself and still harm those close to you!"

"Sigh... I almost lost my good humor from buying that Soul Bone." Annaliese complained in a low voice before finishing answering her sister. "Anyway, there was no reason for me to say anything to you, sister."

"What's wrong with Lothur and me going to the auction together? We are family!"

Upon hearing Annaliese's tone, Viktoria felt a little uncomfortable, but she did not truly understand why. She just sighed, thinking that her senses were probably affected by the fact that she had tried on the armor bought by her mother early.

"Well, and what do you want with me?"

"Sister, I want to start absorbing that Soul Bone."

"Hmm, but why am I needed for that? You can do it yourself, Anna."

"I know that!"

"I just want you to be present because Lothur is curious to see me absorb that Soul Bone. But you know that our mother will not be happy if he and I are left alone in my residence." Annaliese was sincere.

"Oh?" Viktoria looked at Lothur with a somewhat colder look. "Why do you want to do that? You're not trying to use any excuse to get closer to Annaliese, are you?"

Annaliese then turned slightly red, while Lothur's subconscious made him take a not-so-smart route. "You're right. I want to be closer to my sister-in-law..."

Gulp!

"Bastard! I will castrate you if you touch my sister!" Viktoria angrily stood up from where she was, while Annaliese did the same to stop her.

"Sister!"

"Can't you see that Lothur is just teasing you?" She said in a slightly altered tone, feeling an internal satisfaction mixed with shame.

Meanwhile, Lothur was cursing his predecessor, who now and then still managed to get him in trouble with the remnants of his personality.

'That bastard...'

'Lucky that every time my Will rises, I feel as if my control over my emotions and that guy's problematic personality improves.'

That was indeed happening. Lothur had been afflicted with the arrogant and problematic side of his predecessor. But as he grew stronger, the earthling realized that he was getting less and less out of control.

With that, he was hopeful about the future but also regretted that he would still have to deal with problems like that of today for a while longer.

"Honey, you are easier to tease than I had thought..." He said after much effort. "Come on, can't you handle a simple joke?"

"Tsk!"

'This creep is getting bolder and bolder!'

'Sigh!'

'Karen will also be going to the academy Monday, so I'll finally be able to ask her for some advice...' She thought about her best friend and the event that would take place in Sector-6 in three days.

Viktoria did not know how to deal with a man like Lothur, but she trusted that her good friend, who always talked about relationships with her, would know what to do.

With that in mind, she calmed down a bit, allowing Annaliese to sigh in relief but also guilt.

'Ah... And to think I'm the one betraying your trust, sister...' Annaliese closed her eyes in silence. 'Why am I doing this? That is so wrong on so many levels.'

'Maybe I should tell her everything?'

'No! She would blame Lothur, and only he would get hurt by it!'

'I can't let that happen!'

Viktoria then sat down in a seat in her living room and said to Annaliese, breaking this woman's train of thought. "If you are here to absorb this Soul Bone, let's get started immediately. I have other things to do later, so let's not delay that."

"Oh? Fine."

With that, Annaliese removed the metal box of that item from her spatial ring, placing it on the floor in the middle of that room. After that, she opened such a thing, revealing a 25-centimeter-long bone, a bit different from the femur of ordinary humans.

On this red and blue bone, one could see tattoo-like symbols all over its surface when observed more closely. But due to its size and irregular contours, one could not estimate what was represented there.

On the other hand, while its magnificence was enough to attract anyone's attention, a powerful aura surrounded it, which emitted pulses of energy like a beating heart.

With that, Lothur felt a slight shiver through his body, even if the pressure of that was not limiting him, as was happening with Annaliese and Viktoria.

"This..." Lothur slowly approached that.

Annaliese then looked at him and said. "Lothur, you want to see this up close, yes? Come, I'll help you."

She then spread some of her energy around his body, not knowing that the pressure of that Soul Bone was not affecting her brother-in-law.

Anyway, as he felt warm energy around his body, Lothur finally put his hands on that Soul Bone while being watched by Viktoria and Annaliese.

...