Strangely, when the task in the Nether Fire Land ended, the gods didn't announce the results or the
progress for the pillars of divine power. The leaders of the nine fiefs were pacing anxiously, but they
didn't make any moves.
A few days passed peacefully, but behind the calm, another storm was brewing that was powerful
enough to shake the nine fiefs.
"Leader, the leader and Godly Genius from the Genie Fief are here and they want to see you." Gilbert
paused from discussing business with the elders and some senior family officials and looked up when
an unexpected report entered the conference hall.
"What? Why are they here?" A bad feeling was rising in his chest like bile after too many drinks.
The elders and officials exchanged hesitant looks. They assumed that the leader of the Genie Fief had
come to apologize for the chaos his daughter had caused during the engagement ceremony, but they
weren't positive about that.
Gilbert couldn't avoid it now that they were here. He stood up and headed to the gate with the elders
and officials to welcome them.
When they saw the party approaching, Adrian and Gloria got down from their mount.
They had no guards with them, which made Gilbert even more concerned. After all, Adrian was the
leader of the Genie Fief. The only reason he wouldn't have guards with him would be to avoid drawing
attention to himself.
"Welcome, Adrian! It's been a long time!" Gilbert said, holding his arms out. In the past, he and Adrian
had been good friends and they had risked their lives together. But after they became leaders of
different fiefs, they lost contact with each other.
"Hi, Gilbert. It's been ten years, I think." Adrian was laughing loudly.
"Yeah, time sure does fly. Ten years have passed. We are getting old," Gilbert replied, sighing as he
reflected on his past.
"I don't know about that! You still look domineering, Gilbert!"
"And you are as eloquent as always, Adrian!"
"Nice to see you again, Leader Gilbert," Gloria chimed in, bowing like an obedient girl. She looked
nothing like the arrogant person who had caused a scene in Gilbert's mansion.
"Why don't we go and talk in the hall?" After looking at Gloria, Gilbert gestured behind him and led
them into the conference hall.
When they were inside, everyone grabbed a chair and sat down. Then, Adrian got straight to the point,
saying, "Today, I brought my daughter here so we could discuss two things. First, I want to apologize to
you on behalf of my daughter. It was unkind of her to try and ruin the engagement ceremony. I am
really sorry for that. When she got home, I punished her, but I still thought it was necessary to
apologize to you in person."
"Oh, you don't have to be so formal with me. We are old friends, almost like brothers, and Gloria is like
my niece in that case. It wasn't that bad," Gilbert said generously.
"I must apologize. Otherwise, people will think that I'm not a good father," Adrian insisted.
"Uncle Gilbert, I am really sorry for what I did. Please forgive me," Gloria pleaded, standing and bowing
low.
"Dearest niece, please stand up. Let bygones be bygones. Let's not discuss it further," Gilbert
responded. Now that Adrian had brought his daughter here to apologize, he wanted to avoid acting
high and mighty. Besides, there was another matter that had to be dealt with. So he added, "But the
engagement covenant..."
"I will return it, but you need to promise me one thing before I do that," Gloria replied immediately.
"What? Are you trying to negotiate with me?" Gilbert asked, frowning slightly. He was already being
generous by not faulting her for her rude behavior. Logically speaking, she should be returning the
engagement covenant without requesting anything.
"Oh, Gilbert, please don't take this the wrong way. This is the other topic I wanted to talk to you about. I
promise that it's good news!" Adrian added at once.
"Good news?" Gilbert got the feeling that something bad was about to happen.
"In fact, it's a reasonable request. I hope you can agree to it," Adrian continued.
"What kind of request is it?" Gilbert asked, even though he was pretty sure he knew what the answer
would be.
"I was hoping my daughter could marry Odin," Adrian finally said.
All the nearby elders and officials gasped. They didn't know what Adrian would request, but they didn't
expect that to be it. After all, Rocky was engaged to Valeria and they would get married very soon. But
now Adrian wanted his daughter to get married to Rocky. Obviously, his intention was to ruin the
marriage between Rocky and Valeria.
If the Flower Fief heard about that, they would turn against the Genie Fief and their alliance with the
Ghost Fief would be terminated.
Knowing the seriousness of the matter, Gilbert couldn't agree, but he couldn't refuse Adrian in public.
So, he just smiled awkwardly and said, "I'm really shocked to hear that. I didn't think Odin was this
popular. You want him to be your son-in-law?"
"Actually, I want the two of them to marry because Gloria likes him."
"Is that true? Gloria, do you really like him?" Gilbert shot Gloria a look filled with confusion and doubt.
He certainly didn't think she was the type of girl who would fall for Rocky.
"Of course. I like him a hundred times more than Valeria does," Gloria declared with certainty.
"But he and Valeria are engaged, and they will get married as soon as possible. I can't let him have two
wives. Adrian, don't you see my problem?" Gilbert asked, turning to his old friend.
"I don't mind. Isn't it normal for a man to have more than one wife? Besides, it's first come, first served.
Because Valeria was engaged to Odin before Gloria, she will be his first wife. My daughter can be his
second wife. It doesn't matter to me..." Adrian agreeing to the plan was the most shocking thing that
had happened all day.
The elders and officials couldn't believe what they were hearing. They assumed that the leader of the
Genie Fief was up to something and that was why he was willing to let his daughter be Rocky's second
wife. But if the news spread, it would bring disgrace to him. Didn't he even care?
Of course, their worries were not as accurate as Gilbert's. He knew that Adrian wanted to destroy the
alliance between the Ghost Fief and the Flower Fief, and then ally with the Ghost Fief. And the reason
why Adrian wanted to do that was because he had seen Rocky's potential and wanted to take
advantage of the young man's talent.
If Gilbert were to agree, it would offend the Flower Fief. But if he didn't agree, he was afraid that the
Genie Fief would turn against him.
The battle among the Godly Geniuses had just begun, and he didn't want to start conflicts with the
other fiefs. Gilbert had gotten himself cornered. He had no idea what he should choose.
"Go and fetch Odin." After thinking for a while, Gilbert chose to let Rocky decide.
An official immediately went to the Ghost Palace to look for Rocky.
Rocky was on his way back to the Ghost Palace from the lake when the official caught up with him.
"Godly Genius, please go to the conference hall immediately. Something is wrong," he said with an
anxious look on his face.
"What happened?" Rocky asked with a frown. So, the official summed it all up in a few sentences and
Rocky frowned even more.
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