Extraordinary Rise: Starting Contract with the Silver Dragon Countess

Chapter 314 Grace's "Punishment"!
Grace's eyes widened; Windsordler's unabashed behavior greatly shocked her.

She was so angry that her chest heaved; this act of blatantly cheating on her was simply unbearable.

What's even more despicable is that the bastard man had one hand tightly clasped with hers, while the other hand was actually reaching towards Windsordler's soft areas, clearly indicating that he was already aroused.

Grace, the eldest princess of the Eastern Empire, had been pampered and spoiled since childhood. How could she tolerate such humiliation? She shook off Cohen's hand, stomped on his foot hard, and stormed back to her room.

Windsordler released her lips, and the glossy sheen of her red lips ignited a fire within Cohen.

Seeing that Grace had left in anger, Windsordler pressed her advantage:

"Why did you step on my man? If it happens again, I'll... mmm..."

To prevent her from escalating the conflict further, Cohen quickly silenced Windsordler's red lips with his own, while simultaneously applying pressure with his hands, finally making Windsordler's body and voice soften.

He lifted Windsordler's delicate buttocks with one hand, casually kicked open a room, and used his body to soothe one first.

After the friendly exercise, Cohen breathed a sigh of relief as he looked at the sleeping elf lady. He carefully withdrew from Windsordler's body, quietly put on his clothes, and cleaned up the traces.

After closing his eyes and sensing for a while, he slowly opened them, a hint of surprise in his eyes, and looked towards the rooftop.

Grace seems to be on the rooftop. Could she be so upset by Windsor that she might jump off?

Cohen shuddered and quickly followed the scent towards the rooftop.

As night deepened, Cohen, who had climbed to the rooftop, spotted a slender figure reclining in a large wicker chaise lounge, seemingly admiring the night view of Quesaon from above.

He noticed the movement behind him, but didn't react at all, as if the person behind him didn't exist.

Cohen slowly walked up to Grace, a hint of amazement flashing in his eyes.

The princess was slumped in the large recliner, the silk camisole she wore was lifted by the night wind, revealing her dazzlingly white thighs.

She held a glass of red wine in her delicate hand, gently swirling the crimson liquid inside, seemingly unconcerned by the burning gaze directed at her.

A cool, clear voice interrupted Cohen's gaze:
"Have you coaxed her yet?"

Cohen withdrew his gaze and said sincerely:
"Although Windsor has lived a long time, according to the Elven way of counting, she is only a young girl in her early twenties now."

She was a beloved princess among the elves, and after coming to human society, thanks to His Majesty Klein, everyone around her flattered and fawned over her.

So sometimes she likes to be a little temperamental and says things without thinking. Your Highness, please don't take it to heart..."

Grace's waving hand stopped abruptly. She stood up, staring at Cohen, and asked indifferently:

"You mean I'm not young anymore, is that right?"

Cohen was mortified, thinking to himself, "You really know how to spot the important points." He quickly explained:

“Your Highness, you know that’s not what I meant. In my eyes, Your Highness will always be young and beautiful, and your charm is unmatched.”

Grace bit her red lips, a strange emotion rising in her eyes:

"Yes, she received a lot of care and love from a young age, and she was able to find a man she could rely on when she grew up. I am just a mixed-race old woman who is secretly called a devil. I can't compare to her at all."

Cohen was slightly shaken. This was the first time the usually domineering and alluring princess had shown such a vulnerable side. He bent down, gently took Grace's hand, his gaze firm, and his voice resounding:
"There is no need to pay attention to the attacks and slanders of the weak. When Your Highness ascends the throne, these people will naturally kneel before Your Highness, weeping and begging for forgiveness."

"Your Highness and I are one in life and death. I will use all my life and strength to help Your Highness fulfill your heart's desire. Even if Your Highness wants to become a god, I will push you onto the ladder of godhood!"

Grace stared at Cohen for a moment, then looked away, her voice changing slightly:
"Your skills at charming women are getting better and better!"

"Your princess humiliated me so much, and you think you can get away with just a few nice words?"

Cohen felt much more at ease; Grace's attitude had clearly softened considerably. He asked:
"Whatever Your Highness requires of me, I will do my utmost!"

Grace picked up her glass of red wine and handed it to Cohen:

"You'll have to drink a penalty shot."

Cohen stared at the wet lip print on the rim of his glass, wondering if this was a punishment or a reward.

Just as he was about to reach out to take it, he saw Grace suddenly tilt the glass, and the scarlet liquid instantly spilled onto her plump, fair thighs.

The red wine, like a winding stream, flowed slowly down her alluring curves and onto her long, slender legs.

The wine spread across her delicate skin, leaving alluring trails until it slid down to her exquisite toes. Grace's feet curled slightly, and as her arches straightened, the wine pooled into a small, crimson puddle at her toes, like a bewitching rose blooming in the dark night.

Gazing at the breathtakingly alluring scene before him, Cohen felt something seize his heart, a shiver ran through his chest, and his throat became unusually dry.

Grace's eyes welled up with tears as she hooked her delicate foot towards Cohen, her voice carrying an irresistible allure:
"If this one glass of wine evaporates in a moment, you won't have a chance to apologize!"

Cohen's gaze deepened and became enigmatic, and his hoarse voice rang out:

"Woman, you are playing with fire!"

Grace's lips curled into a dangerous smile:

"Because I also want her to experience what it's like to be cuckolded!"

……

Lying in the room was an Alaskan Malamute, half the height of a person, that looked like an elf who had walked out of the snowy landscape.

Its fur was as white as snow, with a soft, milky yellow sheen, as if it were wearing a cloak woven from moonlight.

Kos rested quietly in Freya's arms, only the sharp glint in her eyes occasionally revealing her intelligence.

Freya gently stroked Koss's thick fur, turning the bracelet on her wrist with one hand, and whispered something through the relatively large gemstone.

"Koss is very obedient, thank you sir, I really, really like her."

Cohen's voice came from the other side:

"If you like it, that's good. If anyone asks, just say it was a gift from the Witch."

"Okay, by the way, sir, the man that young master Ifilo sent to pick me up is on his way. We went through danger together before, will he recognize me?"

Cohen smiled faintly:
"You don't need to worry about that. Even if Iphiel recognizes you, he won't make a sound."

Continuing the conversation, Cohen told Freya about the collaboration with Iphiero.

"...If he does well, he can be given the position of prime minister in the future, which would also help to appease the noble forces in Ceylon."

Freya smiled sweetly:
"I listen to you sir."

Cohen felt inexplicably pleased. Children are so obedient; it's wonderful.

After chatting for a while, Freya suddenly asked:

Is Sister Grace here too?

Cohen glanced at Grace, who was fast asleep on the bed not far away.

Princess was just joking after all. After "drinking" the penalty wine, Cohen, whose lust was aroused, was about to take advantage of the atmosphere to have sex with her.

Grace backed down at the last minute, making it clear that she only wanted to get a little revenge on Windsordler and didn't really intend to have anything happen between her and Cohen.

He also said he was just his fiancé, not his husband; in short, the two hadn't reached the point of having an intimate relationship.

Cohen had no choice but to suppress his desire and send Grace back to her room. After coaxing her to sleep, he received a call from Freya.

Cohen suppressed his thoughts, coughed lightly, and asked:

"how do you know?"

Freya's voice didn't reveal any particular emotion:

"Sir, you've forgotten, Sister Nephthys gave me a copy of the intelligence department's access rights. I can now access the daily reports from the various levels of the Military Intelligence Bureau's intelligence stations."

"That Yann Hughes, the descendant of the ancient Pirate King and captain of the Crimson Raiders, was he you in disguise, sir?"

Cohen replied in surprise:

"Did Nephthys tell you that?"

Freya said with a smile:

"It's easy to guess. Grace had feelings for you back in the 'Lost Land.' The only person she would choose as her fiancé is you, Mr. [Name]."

Moreover, Hughes is the surname of the gentleman's mother, and Ya'en is a combination of the gentleman's name and the name of his sister, Ya'er. Considering all this, the successor to the Pirate King must be the gentleman.

Cohen was genuinely surprised this time and didn't hold back his praise:

“My Freya has really grown up. I have full confidence in you now. You will definitely be an excellent queen in the future.”

A blush rose on Freya's beautiful cheeks, her heart filled with sweetness and happiness from Cohen's praise and affirmation.

After a brief pause, Freya continued to ask:

"Sir, are you going to marry Sister Grace?"

Cohen scratched his head, feeling that he shouldn't be discussing such a question with Freya. Just as he was about to give a casual answer, he noticed that Grace had woken up at some point and was waiting for Cohen's reply with great interest.

Cohen had no choice but to honestly reply:
"Of course, Her Highness the Princess is so beautiful, kind, rich, and of such noble status. Moreover, she is now my fiancée, so of course I must fulfill my vow."

Grace's face immediately lit up with an alluring smile, clearly satisfied with Cohen's answer. However, Freya's expression wasn't so pleasant. She silently counted on her fingers for a moment, then suddenly asked a question that Cohen couldn't answer at all:
"Has Sister Adele imposed any restrictions on the Master? What is the maximum number of princesses he can marry?"

Grace, standing nearby, looked stunned. She never expected that the little girl who would blush when she teased her casually in the "Lost Land" would ask such a question so bluntly.

Cohen hesitated for a long time before giving a deliberately stern answer:
"Children shouldn't meddle in adult matters!"

Freya was clearly dissatisfied with the answer and wanted to ask more questions, but Cohen forcefully changed the subject:
"Let's get down to business. I'll go over the next steps of the plan with you again. See if there's anything that's not perfect, and we can discuss it further."

Freya stroked Koss's fur a little harder, and the Alaskan Malamute's eyes revealed a very human-like dissatisfaction.

Unable to force Cohen to answer, she could only go along with him and reply:

"Alright, sir, please speak."

After Cohen finished explaining his plan, worried that Freya would continue to press him on the previous topic, he said directly:

"Freya, I have some things to take care of, so I'll chat with you another time when I have time."

What can you possibly be busy with in the middle of the night?
A sharp glint flashed in Freya's eyes, but she still smiled sweetly and replied:

"Okay, sir, you're busy."

Finally ending the call with Freya, Cohen felt like he had fought a battle. He had never been so nervous before. He couldn't believe that a fourteen or fifteen-year-old girl would push him to this point.

Grace lifted the thin blanket draped over her, walked gracefully to Cohen, and said softly with a smile:
"I feel like you're more like a succubus than I am. It's quite something that such a young girl is so deeply in love with you."

Cohen's face turned extremely awkward, and he said:
"Your Highness, please don't talk nonsense. Freya is just a child. She probably thinks of me as her older brother or family."

Grace let out a laugh that made Cohen uncomfortable. She was about to continue teasing him when she noticed Cohen's expression change slightly, and his gaze involuntarily turned towards the door.

Grace's eyes flickered slightly, and she chuckled softly:
"Has Her Highness the Princess woken up?"

Cohen chuckled awkwardly:

"If Your Highness has nothing else to do here, I'll head back first?"

Grace reached out and grabbed Cohen's bow tie, pulling him close to her. Staring into his eyes, the fragrant scent emanating from her nostrils intoxicated Cohen.

Cohen gave a dry laugh:
"Your Highness is unwilling, but I can wait..."

Grace, with her bare feet, stepped on Cohen's feet, tiptoed, and kissed him directly.

The warm, moist mouth instantly captivated Cohen, and the flexible snake tip gave him a shivering sensation as if his soul were being sucked out.

After a long while, Grace released her lips, her eyes glistening with alluring moisture. She pulled open Cohen's collar and left a deep kiss on his neck. Her cool voice calmed Cohen's desire considerably.

"Go to see her like this, don't wipe it, I'll check tomorrow!"

To put it bluntly, it's to prevent Cohen from going back to be intimate with Windsordler, otherwise Windsordler will discover the lip print on his neck as soon as he takes off his clothes.

Cohen rubbed his slightly throbbing forehead and softly agreed:
"Your Highness, please rest well. We have a lot to do tomorrow."

Grace's expression softened considerably. She gently straightened Cohen's tie, smoothed out the wrinkles, and said softly:

"It's not that I'm restricting your desires, but you're my fiancé now, so you have to restrain yourself. Be good, go ahead."

Cohen left Grace's room and quickly cleaned up the marks on his body, especially the scent of Grace on his clothes. After making sure he wouldn't give anything away, he took out a pastry that had been prepared beforehand from the Heart of Eternity, heated it with magic, and then carried the pastry into Windsordler's room.

Miss Elf had indeed been awake for a while, but she still looked a little dazed. To prevent Windsordler from waking up too early, Cohen deliberately increased the intensity of his exercise.

Smelling the enticing aroma, Windsordler's pupils gradually cleared, and when she saw Cohen walk in carrying steaming pastries, the corners of her lips unconsciously curved into a smile.

Cohen said with a smile:

“You didn’t eat much tonight, and you just used up a lot of energy. Here’s some nutrition to replenish your energy. I just made this.”

Windsordler stood up and hugged Cohen, burying her head in his chest to express her love.

Cohen took a deep breath, shifted his gaze, and tried his best not to look at Windsordale's naked, fair body.

Windsor held her for a while, her delicate hands instinctively slipping into Cohen's clothes.

Cohen quickly reached out and grabbed it, whispering:

"Take a rest, I'm afraid you'll ruin your health."

Windsordler raised an eyebrow, then, as if suddenly remembering something, covered her mouth and chuckled:

"Could it be that it's not working?"

Cohen's face darkened. He thought to himself that if it weren't for the mark Grace had left on his neck, he would have made sure Cohen couldn't get out of bed by tomorrow morning just because of what he said.

He slapped the elf's delicate bottom hard and said with a stern face:
"How dare you question your husband's abilities? Eat up!"

Windsordler stuck out her tongue, quickly finished the pastries, and pulled Cohen to bed.

Cohen carried Windsordler to the bed, covered her with a blanket, and whispered:

"You go to sleep first. I'm afraid I won't be able to resist. I'll go to sleep after you fall asleep."

Windsordale proudly puffed out her ample bosom, dazzling Cohen, who gently patted it:
"Behave yourself and go to sleep!"

……

King Gaius has been in a very good mood lately. Three days ago, the Scarlet Raiders' negotiating delegation arrived in Ceylon, and they have been engaged in intensive negotiations ever since.

According to feedback from Ceylon's negotiating representative, Vice Admiral Gaston, the outlook is very optimistic. Although the shipbuilding cost has not yet been settled, the profit-sharing ratio between the two sides has been reduced from the initial 30/70 split to the current 50/50 split.

This good news greatly dispelled the gloom that King Gaius had felt due to the Duke of Gavin's rebellion.

At the imperial council meeting, Gaius's attitude was clear: no matter how high the cost, even if it meant selling everything he owned, he had to build one hundred ghost ships to form a ghost ship fleet with the capability to conduct long-range operations.

The ministers argued sharply over Gaius’s proposal. According to Cohen, one hundred ghost ships would require the resources to build five hundred ordinary warships.

If you add in half of what the Crimson Raiders get, it's equivalent to spending the resources of a thousand ordinary warships.

This terrifying and astonishing number made everyone present look extremely grim.

Even with the current strength of the Kingdom of Ceylon, it would be difficult to bear such a large amount of resources at once. More importantly, the cost of these ghost ships cannot be recovered immediately.

Without significant changes in the situation on the mainland, they cannot rashly organize ocean-going warships to explore the endless seas.

This issue sparked a heated debate.

To put it bluntly, it all comes down to money. Such an astonishing military expenditure, requiring the coordination of various resources, is certainly impossible for the navy alone to handle. Gaius convened this imperial conference to find ways to raise military funds, simply put, to raise funds from various departments and systems within the Kingdom of Ceylon.

Seeing that each department was only complaining about being poor and had not offered any feasible or useful suggestions, Gaius's face turned gloomy.

The attitude of various departments in Ceylon is easy to explain. The construction of the ghost ship fleet has indeed greatly enhanced Ceylon's national strength, but these ghost ships ultimately belong to the Navy. In the future, the expansion of territory and the display of national power by the ghost ship fleet will be the credit of the Ceylon Navy, and have nothing to do with them.

These departments and systems, which are completely unrelated to the matter, spent money but received no real return, so of course they were unwilling to get involved.

Gaius tapped the table lightly and gave a wink to the negotiator, Vice Admiral Gaston, who was not far away.

Gaston stood up and addressed the crowd:

"Gentlemen, the actual cost is much lower than we estimated."

First, we don't need to allocate so many resources to build it all at once. We only need to allocate one-third initially, and then start the second phase of investment once the first batch of ghost ships is operational and generating economic benefits.

Secondly, based on my negotiations with the Crimson Raiders, their demand for ghost ships isn't that great. Once their ghost ships are built, we can lease them and use them in advance, which will further reduce our costs.

Finally, I want to say that although these ghost ships will all belong to our naval headquarters, the benefits generated by them will ultimately be distributed fairly according to the proportion of investment made by each system department. Don't worry that our headquarters will monopolize these benefits.

After Gaston finished speaking, the room erupted into heated discussion again. Soon, a middle-aged official stood up and asked:
"General Gaston, the biggest problem now is how can these ghost ships be of any use?"

The speaker was Orphene Barrett, Chief of the Army Staff of Ceylon.

The question Orpheum asked was also the one that everyone was most concerned about.

Gaston, clearly having received instructions from King Gaius beforehand, said in a deep voice:
"Within three to five years, there will be a tremendous upheaval on the mainland. The reason we are building the ghost ship now is to prepare for this upheaval that will sweep across the entire mainland!"

"At that time... the Kingdom of Windbreak, Effie, and all those countries and forces that have offended us will become ghosts beneath the ghost ship!"

Orpheus's expression hardened as he looked at Gaius on the throne:

"Your Majesty, is it certain now?"

Gaius nodded slowly:
"Yesterday I communicated with Emperor Eberon of the Eastern Empire, and this news can be basically confirmed."

However, there is currently no clear information regarding the specific cause of the unrest, when it began, or which country it originated in.

Upon hearing King Gaius's confirmation, the crowd's spirits immediately soared.

After so many years of development, Ceylon's national strength has reached a bottleneck. Without major changes, Ceylon can only be a kingdom, even if it is the leader of all kingdoms.

To achieve further breakthroughs, we must expand outwards, like big fish eating small fish, swallowing up surrounding countries, and thus achieving a qualitative change.

Given the current international situation and the strict control of the five great empires, the Kingdom of Ceylon will certainly not be given this opportunity. However, if there is a turmoil that sweeps across the entire continent, order and rules will be destroyed, and that will be Ceylon's chance!

(End of this chapter)