'If I die in the Gate Raid that'll decide the fate of this world, then you'll all die as well,' Cassius thought while awkwardly scratching his nose. 'But I understand where they're coming from. Although I may have become increasingly numb to the idea of me dying, the fear of death will never truly vanish. And for them—young women who've yet to experience death—I imagine the loss of a loved one to be a very scary thing to think about…'
The scene of those gravestones on that impossibly large mountain momentarily flashed through Cassius's mind. He had to shake his head to distract himself from that daunting scene.
Returning to the sensual sight of barely dressed women before him, his slight smile returned.
"I apologize for making that joke," he said, gesturing to the Mansion's interior. "Now, what say we head on inside and talk over a meal? I brought Italian food straight from Italy."
He raised his hand and shook the plastic bag holding several dishes. After opening the bag, a delicious aroma filled the air, leaving the conflicted girls salivating at the mouth.
"You're a stupid baka!" Aya said, folding her arms under her large breasts and snorting. "But I… I guess I'll do you the favor of accepting some food as an apology… But it better be delicious!"
"Could I have some as well…?" Stella asked, polite as always.
"I'll give you a special massage later in exchange…"
And also as subtly naughty as always…
"Forget these floozies, my Love!" Bella said while piously interlocking her fingers.
"Let's skip dinner and get straight to the love-making! And while we're at it, I'll give you some of these Rank 6 Blood droplets that I totally didn't steal from Daddy for you!"
Cassius glanced between the love-sick vamp chick and the handful of vials practically falling out of her bosom. He shook his head in exasperation, already imagining the trouble this would get him in.
The two Vampire Stalkers—Leon and Gina—staring daggers into his soul was already more than enough to let him know how f*cked he was.
However, did that mean he wouldn't accept the blood vials?
Of course f*cking not!
Cassius's middle name was motherf*cking Danger!
Who was he to shy away when top-tier loot that could upgrade his Bloodline was offering itself in between two milky white valleys!?
While entering his home with a train of beautiful girls behind him, he repeatedly slipped the blood vials out of Bella's bosom upon her request.
"Ahn~! Cassius, my Love~" she moaned, intentionally pissing off Yimin and the others. "Not there~! I'm ticklish~"
"I don't much young lady."
"Yimin will devour her whole! Stinky bloodsucker!"
"I also… don't like her…"
Even Hellion was quietly gnashing her teeth in the background.
The only reason she hadn't openly acted out yet was because she knew that, a few days from now, she and her Master would get some one-on-one time in HELL as Guider and Guided.
But regardless of the chaotic thoughts of the members of the Steele Family, they all went on to eat dinner before spending the next 24 or so hours going out and having fun.
They did everything they could to lessen the impact of Cassius ultimately entering the World's End Gate…
— Within the same 24-hour period, in the Realm of Pleasure, Aluria Succubus Family Palace —
"My Lady Amaris," said a voice from outside the Succubus Queen's Personal Chambers.
"Our forces have been put in place; they're now waiting for your next order. As soon as you give the word, they'll carry out the Karma Maximization Plan for Humanity's 0th Floor."
A woman of unbelievable beauty lay sprawled out on a heart-shaped bed, her creamy white skin peeking through the dividers of her dress. She briefly looked at the door where the voice came from, her slanted gaze as cold as the North Pole.
"Tell them to move as soon as the Nexus Event and release of the Prisoners causes a crack to form between the Dimensions," she ordered, her expression becoming ever so cruelly seductive.
"Show no mercy to the other Factions. We have to be the ones to come out of this event with the most amount of Karma. And it's this very willingness that'll give us the edge over the Factions with more powerful members, for they're unlikely to even take a Minor Nexus Event one seriously."
"A small pie evenly split 50 different ways isn't worth much," she finished on a high note, her murderous intent palpable. "But if one of those 50 slices were to be larger than the other 49 combined, then who's to say that our gains won't be any less than having a minor role in a Major Karma Event?"
The voice on the other end of the door went silent.
"…Does this mean…?" the voice finally said, drawing out the words dramatically slow. "Should I… Should I gather -every- single member of our Family…? Even…"
"Yes," Amaris replied nonchalantly.
"Call for Azara. Tell her that I'll reduce her sentence by a hundred years if she does well. Also, inform her of a side objective—to capture and extract a certain human male—Cassius Steele."
"For putting my daughter into such a downtrodden state, he needs to be properly punished. Furthermore, his last name sounds awfully familiar, and I wish to know if he's related to… Well, that's of no concern to you. Just do as I say."
"Yes, My Lady…" the voice quickly thinned out, the presence outside the door long gone.
"Cassius Steele," Amaris murmured to herself, listlessly staring at her elegantly decorated roof. "Could he be…? No, that doesn't make sense…"
"That 'man' should've been outlawed, with his offspring executed the day they were born. There's no possible way that this Cassius is related to that pervert. But… But if I turn out to be wrong and logic is flipped on its head, then the backlash that I'll incur if that man really does still live will be…"
Perhaps she shouldn't be hasty…
Letting that kid live for a while longer would be the wise choice.
That was assuming she still wanted her Palace to be standing intact.