Chapter 116: Fairy's Treasure (D~EX)
This was Vivian's final struggle.
After all, packaging herself up and delivering herself to someone was different from being properly married away from the Lady of the Lake's sanctuary by another.
Since she had already completely lost herself to Noah anyway, if she could manage to secure some sort of status, Vivian felt this was the only acceptable possibility among all the completely unacceptable outcomes.
This way, she might still be able to negotiate some terms.
Of course.
Having already lost even herself to Noah, she certainly couldn't afford to be stingy about treasures.
It was just that not all treasures in the Lady of the Lake's magical realm could be taken; some were not meant to be removed. She wanted Noah to leave those behind—that was all.
That's why Vivian said what she did.
However, there was a problem with this.
Namely, this whole plan was predicated on Noah being an honest man.
The kind who, upon hearing this beautiful Lady of the Lake speak so forcefully before him, would blush, become flustered, and lose his composure.
But Noah...
"Sorry, although I didn't expect any of this either, according to the Soul Contract, even if I didn't use such methods, your ownership already belongs to me now. Moreover, all seventy-two agreements you established are included within the contents of the Soul Contract. Under these circumstances, those things rightfully belong to me as well."
"This is a perfectly fair contractual agreement. I have absolutely no need to go through unnecessary extra steps."
Noah was not that kind of honest man.
So, while Vivian was somewhat stunned, he continued directly.
"Furthermore, I have my own ideas about who I will establish as queen. This matter does not require your concern."
Ah, this...
Hearing Noah say this, Vivian gave up her last illusions. She felt utterly defeated today.
First, she couldn't win the argument against Merlin; now, her attempt to secure some status was rejected by Noah.
How infuriating!
Right now, Vivian wanted to travel back to yesterday and strangle the version of herself who, despite Noah's repeated dissuasions, insisted on drafting those seventy-two agreements!
But reality offers no medicine for regret.
"Alright, since that's the case, then according to the Soul Contract, you must proceed with the penalty clauses. So, you should now take me to see the treasures of the Lady of the Lake—
"The treaty you proposed yourself yesterday states that even if you are unable to repay the debt, all treasures currently within the Lady of the Lake's sanctuary still belong to me."
Noah was very interested in the Lady of the Lake's treasures.
After all, in those legends, when heroes departed from the Lady of the Lake, they always carried away one or two powerful weapons, suits of armor, or other such items.
Noah's Enforcement Knights were nearly fully organized, but next he would begin recruiting Knights of the Round Table and establishing the Fairy Knights.
The Knights of the Round Table were actually fine.
But the Fairy Knights were all newly born Fairies, so they would definitely need all sorts of miscellaneous weapons and equipment.
By clearing out the Lady of the Lake's sanctuary in one go, the future armaments for the Fairy Knights would be secured!
As for Vivian herself...
To be honest, Noah had to admit that Vivian was quite good.
Beautiful, a Prophet, and the sole Prophet of this generation of the Lady of the Lake.
Obtaining her was equivalent to gaining a beautiful maid, a Prophet, and the assistance of all the Ladies of the Lake.
But that was all.
As for the kind of person who, after gaining ownership of someone, insists on showing respect, being gentle, and acting all kind... Noah was not that sort of person.
His moral boundaries were highly flexible.
This meant he wouldn't trouble himself over such matters.
Merlin and White, who had long known Noah was this kind of person, said nothing. Even Mary had already anticipated Noah's choice. Only Vivian, who felt she had lost everything, let out a soft sigh. Yet, unable to refuse Noah's command, she could only lead him to the treasure vault of the Lady of the Lake.
It must be said, the Lady of the Lake truly possessed many fine treasures.
A sword that could fire beams of light, a shield capable of blocking meteors, armor that prevented its wearer from stumbling, a spear that could penetrate defenses, a dagger that prevented wounds from healing and did not reflect light, boots that allowed one to move through air as if swimming, a cloak that granted invisibility, a helmet that enabled underwater breathing...
In short, there were all sorts of diverse and varied items.
A significant portion were mentioned in the legends of bards, while another considerable part had never even appeared in the stories told by those bards!
Moreover, the wealth amassed here was astonishing.
In comparison, even the treasures Noah had seized from the nobles in Britain paled in quantity next to the hoard of the Ladies of the Lake!
Upon reflection, this seemed unsurprising...
The Ladies of the Lake were not Fairies who valued only life force.
These treasures had been accumulated by the Lady of the Lake since the establishment of her magical realm.
Many of these treasures even dated back to the dawn of the Age of Gods!
There were even artifacts from the Stone Age, predating the dawn of the Age of Gods. And if Noah recalled correctly, the Holy Sword—not forged by any later-born species but cast from a star—was also in the possession of the Lady of the Lake.
Among the treasures, about sixty items could even qualify as Noble Phantasms in Noah's understanding, with countless other valuables beyond that.
Watching Noah browse through the vault, Vivian wanted to speak up several times—to say, "I only lost those specific treasures to you; this entire hoard is not yours"—but ultimately gave up.
If Noah wanted to take them, let him.
Even if he emptied the entire vault, it wouldn't matter.
But the main concern was those few items beyond the vault's general treasures; those could not be allowed to leave... So long as Noah was willing to leave those particular artifacts within the Lady of the Lake's magical realm, he could take whatever else he desired.
Vivian had prepared herself for this, yet Noah did not touch anything that wasn't rightfully his.
He only collected the sixty or so treasures Vivian had lost to him and took a portion of the wealth specified in the contract. As for the rest, he didn't lay a finger on them; he merely glanced at them and that was it.
Although Noah's moral boundaries were flexible, he still had boundaries.
The Lady of the Lake had merely lost to herself, not fallen into his hands, and he had no intention of forcibly seizing her treasures.
Moreover, the most valuable things were already in his possession—money, gems, and the like... He hadn't even used up all he had plundered from the nobles, so there was no need to rob the Lady of the Lake.
If he truly needed anything, now that he knew how wealthy the Lady of the Lake was, he could simply use Vivian as a bridge to establish trade with her when necessary.
There was absolutely no need to rob her!
Absolutely no need!
Vivian hadn't considered trade, nor had she expected Noah to take nothing beyond what was written in the contract.
But seeing Noah act this way only made her feel worse.
After all, the more strictly Noah adhered to the contract, the more it seemed that the remaining special treasures might be slipping away!