Once everyone was settled, Scarlet made a grand announcement. "I've decided. I'll be entering this year's resource competition."
The moment the words left her mouth, someone burst out laughing. A sudden mocking scoff rang out, sounding especially sharp in the quiet dining room.
Scarlet raised an eyebrow and shot a sidelong glance in that direction, a faint smile playing in her pale golden eyes. "What, are you so thrilled about me joining the competition that you just couldn't hold it in?" Scarlet asked Kai with a smile, her tone totally nonchalant.
Kai raised an eyebrow, his handsome face suddenly taking on a rebellious edge. "Oh yeah. Thrilled." He stared intently at Scarlet for a few seconds. "And now, is this the part where Your Highness tells us what we need to do for you? Like serving in your bed tonight to boost your spiritual power?"
The moment he said that, the already tense and quiet atmosphere instantly froze into a dead silence.
None of them believed that Scarlet would actually make peace with them, let alone get a divorce. They kept their guards up.
The level restrictions for the resource scramble were no secret. Scarlet was an F-rank. If she wanted to participate, she had to boost her spiritual power. A spoiled, delicate princess of the Empire would never go rough it out with them on the Lost Continent. So her only option was to drain her husbands' spiritual power. It wasn't like she hadn't done it before anyway. Just look at Holst. Scarlet had completely wrecked him. It took him half a year to recover.
Scarlet listened patiently to Kai's little speech, then burst out laughing. She laughed even louder than him, her mocking tone cutting like a knife.
"Relax. I have absolutely no interest in any of you. We're getting a divorce anyway, so you'd better hold on to your precious chastity. I don't care about any part of you. After all, chastity is a man's best dowry. When you eventually remarry some other female, even if you can't be the main husband, being a side piece wouldn't be too bad for you."
"Scarlet."
Kai slammed his hand on the table and shot up. He glared at her furiously, pure murder flashing in his eyes.
His stare made Scarlet break out in a cold sweat. Inside, she was scared to death, but she kept up a tough front. "What? Want to kill me? Don't you forget, you're still my beast husband right now. If I die, you go down with me."
The very next second, she shot a ruthless glare at the rest of them. "And them, too. We all die together."
Those words served as a harsh wake-up call to the group. They hated Scarlet, sure, but not enough to go down to the grave with her. Besides, they had other ways to get rid of her. There was no need to rush.
Riley clamped a hand over Kai's vein-bulging fist. "Kai. Show some respect to Her Highness."
Ziko didn't say a word, but his eyes also fixed on Kai. The message was clear. Don't do anything stupid. It would ruin their plans.
Seeing that everyone was backing down, Scarlet let out a sigh of relief, her tone softening a bit. "As a princess of the Empire, my word is my bond. I said we're getting a divorce, and I meant it. I won't force any of you to do anything you don't want to do. I plan to go to the Lost Continent to level up, so relax. I don't need you guys to come with me. I'll just pay to hire other males to lead the team. I also hope you guys do plenty of leveling up in the meantime. Don't drag me down when the time comes."
With that said, Scarlet didn't ask anything else of them. She lifted the silver food cover and started eating. She completely ignored them.
Riley, Kai and Ziko — the three of them secretly exchanged glances.
They all wanted to participate in the resource competition. This wasn't just about themselves. It was also about the families backing them. Every year, the families that make the top five in the resource competition receive the ruler's favor. Commoners can cross class boundaries and enter the royal city. Nobles can be granted titles, leaving a legacy for their descendants. They didn't participate last year and were harshly scolded by their family elders. Now the opportunity was right in front of them. There was no reason to refuse.
But Riley and the others were thinking a bit deeper. They were more concerned about whether Scarlet would get herself killed if she went to the Lost Continent. Scarlet's level was ridiculously low. She didn't even have the ability to protect herself. The Lost Continent was full of unknown dangers. To this day it's never been fully explored, and some people ended up buried there forever. Males can easily lose themselves inside and suffer mental breakdowns. If things went south, no one would even know how Scarlet got killed.
And it all came down to this: they didn't want to be buried alongside Scarlet.
After confirming they were all on the same page, Riley looked at Scarlet. "Your Highness, we are your beast husbands. We have an obligation to protect your safety."
"Are you saying you guys want to come with me? What about them?" Scarlet flipped the script and looked at the other three.
Kai just sneered. Ziko scoffed, and the two of them turned their heads away. Even taking one more look at Scarlet annoyed them.
Only Xavier smiled cheerfully and said, "I'm in."
Her scheme had worked. Scarlet secretly raised an eyebrow and said magnanimously, "Fine, then. Since you guys insist on tagging along, I have no reason to say no. After all, we've been married for a year now. We know each other inside and out."
Riley picked up his chopsticks. While picking up some food, he asked, trying to sound casual, "Why did Your Highness suddenly decide to join the resource competition?"
Scarlet picked up a piece of beef, popped it into her mouth, and chewed it vigorously. Lying came as easy as breathing. "Last year Sophia took first place and got the Empress's praise, and totally showed me up. This year I'm going to take number one too, and show her up."
Kai twisted the knife, adding, "Whether Princess Sophia takes first place or not, her status is still higher than yours. You're way too full of yourself. The resource competition is ultimately decided by the females. The mental soothing that follows is absolutely essential."
Scarlet glared at him, replying coldly, "Talking back to your female lord. Your allowance for this month is cut in half."
Kai just gave an indifferent scoff, shooting back, "When are we getting our allowance?"
Scarlet opened her optical terminal to check. She really hadn't given them a dime. How on earth did they survive this past year?
Not one to be stingy, Scarlet set down her chopsticks. Right in front of everyone, she started transferring funds to them one by one.
"There you go," she said as she sent the money. "Happy now? Fifty thousand for Riley, fifty thousand for Xavier, twenty-five thousand for Ziko, and twenty thousand for Kai."
One by one, their wristbands chimed with transfer notifications.
Hearing the amount, Kai let out a dark, mocking laugh. "Oh, I'm thrilled. Absolutely thrilled."
Scarlet looked up at him. A smile bloomed on her petal-soft lips, making her lovely face suddenly radiant as a midsummer rose. So stunning and vibrant it was almost blinding.
"As long as you're happy," she said softly.
Kai froze. His brows snapped together, his handsome face twisting into a fierce scowl. He shot Scarlet a vicious glare without a word, shoved his chair back, and abandoning his meal, stormed straight back to his room.
Scarlet found his reaction completely baffling, but she couldn't be bothered to deal with him.