After some time, they reached the fourth rock district.
"Wow, so many people going back and forth, all dressed properly for their work. Seeing them always makes me feel small," Mother Veny said with admiration. Hearing this, Grandpa was about to scold her, but she quickly added laughingly, "I know, I know, Grandpa. I am a proud housewife, and a beautiful one at that!" Both of them laughed, and then they went to the underground place for this rock.
When they went down, they saw similar-looking structures here—still clean and maintained properly. "Compared to the second rock, this feels lifeless," Mother Veny said while looking around intently.
Grandpa chuckled slightly and said, "Well, because this only serves basic use for working. Those at the second rock are attractive to sell. Here, the most important things happen inside. Let's go and see my meat."
They reached a shop where lots of meat were hanging. A machine was slowly sucking out Greynet energy from the meat and transferring it to a small, rectangular, capsule-like box, securing it. "Hmm, so this is the place from where every shop gets their meat," Mother Veny said, looking everywhere with the fascination of a kid seeing new toys.
"Hey, Meat Boy! Is some of my meat ready?" Grandpa shouted loudly, and a rusty, muscled man with the same height as Grandpa came over.
"Hey, Grandpa, I am not Meat Boy. I do have a name, you know?" Meat Boy said, shaking his head in annoyance.
"Hmm, do you?" Grandpa seemed genuinely confused. Suddenly, they heard another voice call out, "Hey, Meat Mister, can I get some meat for my shop?"
They both looked at each other, and the man sighed. "Fineeee, my name is Meat Boy. Happy?"
Mother Veny laughed hysterically as they received some of the meat that was already prepared.
"Let's go. We could roam more, then we will go home," Grandpa said while walking and allowing her to see different shops.
Suddenly, Grandpa saw a kid hiding and looking intensely at a shop. His slightly long white hair covered much of his forehead, and he had baggy eyes. He wore a cute, slightly girly outfit with a shoulder cutout, ultra-short pants sticking to his rear, and tights that rode up to his thighs. Hmm, is that little Gloomy, right? He's wearing different clothes than usual, so I didn't recognize him at first glance, Grandpa thought, ignoring the child's weird outfit choice, clearly used to seeing different kinds of people with peculiar tastes. He called out to Mother Veny, who was still looking around, and said, "Hey, isn't that little Gloomy over there?"
"Huh?" Mother Veny said, turning around and seeing what looked like a girl hiding. "Huh, that's not Gloomy, that's a gi—" As she was about to complete her sentence, Gloomy turned slightly, letting her see his face. Seeing this, "Kyyyaaa! My Gloomy, looking so cuuuteee!" She ran like a tornado toward him; he was oblivious to the coming disaster.
Gloomy had come here, where most of the clothes were made, and he was looking at people throwing some well-made clothes to the side, clearly because they were not up to market standard. If I could find something useful, then I could buy those for my mother, he smiled slightly to himself. But suddenly, he heard some loud noises and felt vibrations on his body. Hmm, what's with this vibration, and who is making such loud nois— "Aaahhhh!" Gloomy reacted abruptly. He got held from behind, was hugged tightly, and was circled three-hundred-and-sixty degrees as Mother Veny enthusiastically showed him the whole world.
"Kyyyaaa, Gloomy, what are you doing here in such a cute outfit?" She turned him and saw him upfront, her face filled with joy. "Kyyyaaa, sooo cuuutee, Gloomy!" She hugged him tighter as his feet dangled in struggle, trying to reach the floor, which was still a long way to go, only reaching till Mother Veny's leg shins.
"Aunty, please release me! I am dying of dizziness!" he pleaded in a strained voice.
"Noooo waaayyy! I couldn't hold you last time you came to our house because you guys were in a hurry. I am not going to leave you today!" She hugged him even tighter and continued, "Why are you wearing such a cute outfit, and why are you hiding here?" Mother Veny asked playfully.
"Sigh, don't throw your bags anywhere, little lass," Grandpa came over while picking up her bags with an air of resignation.
"Grandpa, save me!" Gloomy said while struggling desperately.
"Little Gloomy, sorry, this grandpa can't help you," Grandpa gave up, chuckling softly.
"Siiighh, this outfit Sio's mother gave me while I was in her house today, and I am here looking for some dress for my mom. I want to give her a gift," Gloomy explained tiredly.
Listening to this, Mother Veny thought, Tsk, that woman taking my Gloomy and playing dress-up. She said with warmth, "Wow, you are a good mommy's boy, aren't you, Gloomy?" She saw his hidden bruises and sighed in sympathy. "Fine, this lady will help you choose an outfit and give her some of my own, then you can make your mother happy!" Mother Veny smiled brightly, not giving him a chance to say no. And that's how the SHOPPIIINNG started.
Grandpa sighed and sat on a bench, relaxing, while both of them tried diligently to find the best outfit for Gloomy's mother.
A Few Eternities Later...
Gloomy, with a more exhausted face than before, came out with lots of clothes for his mom. Mother Veny herself bought some cheap clothes, clearly happy with her finds. She decided to come here every time if she wanted some regular clothes.
Grandpa smiled kindly. All three sat on the bench—Grandpa smiling in a relaxed manner, the tired Gloomy in the middle, and the sun-like-smiling Mother Veny on the side. After some time, they got up and started to go. When they reached outside, they heard a commotion—people were running here and there, going toward the fifth rock. Clearly, something big had happened.
Grandpa called a carriage and let it fly toward the fifth rock. As they got closer, his eyes squinted as he saw the Queen's guards holding a group of people at bay. He couldn't properly see due to the large distance, but he thought, Looks like the Princess or Queen is in trouble. Let's go fast. He looked at Gloomy and smiled evilly. Seeing this, Gloomy shuddered instinctively.
Grandpa said to the driver to go higher, clearing from the high wind area, and suddenly he kicked the carriage door with force. Winds came inside fiercely, fluttering his slightly baggy clothes heavily. He picked Gloomy up like a can, and WHOOOOSSSHHH! He threw Gloomy forcefully like a ball and sent him flying down with the wind. Like a meteorite, Gloomy was falling down toward the fifth rock, near the place where he could slightly see some red-clothed people making a scene.
"Aaaahhhh! Grandpa, why did you throw my kid like that? Go save him!" Mother Veny shouted worriedly and came to the edge, feeling the strong wind.
"Hey, hey, did you forget Gloomy has powers? He will not die with this. See, clearly he is enjoying this."
"Waaaahhhhhh!" Gloomy, with his dead eyes, thought desperately, Please, any god, save me from this torture. I want to sleep. He went like a falling rocket. As he came near some flying tools, he just—puff! puff!—changed into a smoke-like thing, then immediately changed back. Like this, he was reaching the fifth rock at tremendous speed.
A Few Minutes Earlier at 5th Rock
Knock, knock. "Young Master!"
"Young Master!"
"Hmmm..." Oliver opened his tired eyes and heard another call.
"Youuungg Maassterrr!"
"Siiighh." He pressed his head and rubbed his face, then walked up to the door and opened it, with the bright light coming from outside stinging his eyes a bit.
"What happened, Head Maid?" he asked with a hoarse voice.
"Sorry, young master, to wake you up from your rest, but Leader Grankell and some VIP came with him and are looking around the mansion, saying he will take this mansion. Also, other Crown people are following them. I don't know what to do!" an older maid said with a worried face.
"Siiighh! Can't they give us some time?" He held the trembling hand of the Head Maid and said firmly, "Don't worry. I will not let those bastards take this mansion from us."
He went in big strides as he slowly composed himself into his handsome form, fixing his dress and his hair and smiling brightly as he walked outside.
Outside in the Courtyard
"Mr. Kane, this place is suitable for you. With some touch-up, this place can be as good as new, and you can stay here for a long time. And I can see their maids are also quite beautiful," Grankell said, pointing toward some shivering maids in line while his huge body trembled in excitement.
"Oh, Leader, welcome to my humble house. I didn't expect you to come personally with Mr. Kane Cok here. I heard of some unpleasant things like taking my house and giving it to this gentleman," Oliver said calmly while indicating for the maids to go inside, who gratefully nodded and walked inside at speed.
"Mr. Oliver Coghian, it seems you were home. It's good, then we can talk face to face. Here, Mr. Kane Cox wants a place to stay. A person of his stature can't be living in small hotels, so I decided to give this place to him, since you will be losing it anyway. Your house can't really provide any taxes, also not really helping this rock to gain more money and resources." Grankell came forward aggressively, covering Oliver, making it dark in his surroundings like an eclipse.
Oliver smiled slightly as his eyes relaxed in the sudden darkness. "Leader, I am grateful that my place came to the liking of Mr. Kane Cok, but I can't really give it to him, you know, since there is still some time left for the deadline. And as a leader, you have to be righteous and follow the rules," Oliver said while confidently fixing his sleeves.
"Ahh, Oliver, we meet again." Kane Cox smiled craftily as he came beside Grankell and said, "Don't worry about the rules and regulations. I will be the new Crown for this place soon enough, so don't worry about the small details. You can make this place empty. I will take care of it, and all other Crown people are in my support of this, so why not just empty this place? It's not like you can earn so much to pay off your debt in such a small time."
"Yes, Oliver, leave this place. You are making us look bad!"
"Oliver, get out now. We Crowns don't need a poor house in this rock!"
"Get out, get out!"
The other nobles started yelling angrily, putting pressure on Oliver, who didn't flinch and said, "Mr. Kane Cok, we can't be too sure that you will surely become the new Crown. I do believe in Princess Natalia as she will overcome her lack of control and claim what is rightfully hers," Oliver said in a calm, unwavering voice.
"Oooohhh, then you really believe her? Hahahaha! Then why not write an agreement? You give me this house, and if she becomes the so-called rightful Crown, then I will give double the amount of money which this place will require to fix up with all taxes included that you can't pay. With the double of this, you can easily live here till your adulthood. And second option, you don't give me this house—if I become the new Crown, then... that very day I will come and seize this house while killing all those filthy remaining maids and butlers in cold blood and their families out of this city. Heheheheheh." He came close to Oliver's face and whispered this menacingly. "So, what is your decision, Mr. Oliver Cokkkkkhian?"
Hearing this, Oliver's face hardened with anger. This house was already at its last breath, and the people here who had served his family for many years were the only family he had left. He couldn't leave them like this. He said, with powerful conviction, "Mr. Kane Cok, I do believe in the Princess, but it is not right to bet on my people as chips. Why not I bet on myself?" With seriousness etched onto his face, he shouted, "I, OLIVER COGHIAN, YOUNG MASTER OF COGHIAN HOUSE, BET THAT IF PRINCESS NATALIA CAN'T BECOME THE NEW CROWN, THEN YOU CAN TAKE MY BLOOD AND MY SOUL AS THE PRICE OF MY DISOBEDIENCE, LEAVING MY PEOPLE ALONE!"
Oliver declared his bet in front of everyone, making the faces of Grankell, Kane, and the other Crowns behind them contort in anger. The maids and butlers hiding and listening started to cry softly. No, young master, we don't deserve such a sacrifice, they thought, clenching their hands in despair.
Oliver stood there, all alone, facing the strong wind, not moving a tiny bit against the giant and crafty fellow with a horde of greedy bastards.
END OF CHAPTER
The weight of responsibility can crush a young man, forcing him to draw a line in the sand with the highest possible stakes. Oliver's desperate act of defiance, trading his own life for the safety of his household, embodies the true cost of loyalty in a world governed by ruthlessness.
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It seems something went wrong with Webnovel's publishing system—or maybe it's just a time zone difference. My previous chapter is showing a release date of the 25th, even though I scheduled it for the 26th. On other platforms, it published correctly on the 26th, so the issue appears to be on Webnovel's side.
Sorry for the inconvenience! I'll look into it and figure out what went wrong.Thank you for reading!