Chapter 952: Alternate Timeline: Engagement with benefits

Kiara continued after a brief pause, speaking slowly and clearly so that every word would settle in Arceus Silver’s heart like rain sinking into parched earth, unaware of the storm in his head.

"Arceus," she clarified, "Marriage is like engraving words into stone. Once the chisel strikes, the mark remains unless the stone itself is broken. But an engagement is only ink on paper. If both sides decide the writing no longer serves them, the paper can be torn, and the world will move on."

The moonlight rested upon her face, turning her expression calm and earnest.

"So what I am proposing is an engagement with benefits."

Arceus blinked, the unusual phrase momentarily cutting through his grief.

Kiara continued before he could interrupt.

"In public, we will act as an engaged couple. People will see us together and assume that we are lovers. Their gossip will become a shield instead of a spear. But inside the house, nothing changes. You will stay in your room, I will stay in mine, and neither of us will use this arrangement to take advantage of the other."

She gave a small shrug.

"You will be like a tenant living in my home, except you do not have to pay rent."

Her tone grew more practical.

"And I do not want you to think that I am sheltering you out of pity, as though I am feeding a bird with a broken wing and expecting gratitude in return. If two people are to share a roof, it is better that both contribute. A house stands firmly when each pillar carries weight."

She looked him straight in the eyes.

"That is why I want you to work with me as the manager of Nexus Store. Consider house accommodation is a part of your employment benefits."

Arceus’s lips parted in surprise.

Kiara pressed on.

"Alucard, who is only an employee, currently receives a salary of 120 gold coins each month."

She folded her arms.

"The manager holds the highest position in the store. Naturally, that position deserves more."

Her eyes softened slightly.

"But you are also the heir of House Silver. If I offer you a fixed salary like I am tossing coins to a servant, it may seem insulting. So I believe profit-sharing is the better path."

Arceus listened in stunned silence. He couldn’t speak a word now, focusing on completely digesting her proposal.

Kiara continued, now explaining the numbers as if laying out pieces on a chessboard.

"I give you two choices: Pick either a flat 500 gold coins a month of salary or 2% partnership, where for every weapon sold, you will receive two percent of the revenue."

The night wind stirred their clothes.

Kiara’s voice remained calm.

"You should understand that this is not a small amount. My store has already handled transactions worth thousands of gold coins, and if things continue as I expect, the numbers will only grow larger."

She spread her hands.

"This arrangement protects your dignity, gives you independence, and ensures you are not living under my roof as someone who owes me an endless debt."

Then she looked at him steadily.

"This is the best solution I can think of for all the concerns troubling you. But if you have a better idea, speak freely. Tonight is long, and the moon is in no hurry to leave the sky."

Only after the words left her mouth did Kiara replay them in her mind.

Two percent.

If the store generated one hundred thousand gold coins in sales, she would owe Arceus two thousand gold coins.

A flicker of doubt crossed her thoughts.

Should she have offered one percent instead?

Perhaps.

But an arrow, once released, does not return to the bow.

And strangely enough, she did not regret it. After all, her share of the sales has already increased to 60% as she reached Rank-5. She no longer needed to worry too much.

Meanwhile, Arceus stood frozen, as though his soul had stepped outside his body to stare at her from a distance.

He couldn’t understand Kiara at all.

They weren’t even acquaintances. And yet, she was doing so much for him. The only thing that could be plausible is having some sort of romantic feelings for him. Yet, she first rejected his marriage proposal during the trial publicly. And now, even when he was the most vulnerable, she still told him straight in the face that she didn’t want to marry him.

It’s not like he has something that he can give to her... unless she truly meant what she said.

In this case, he will do everything in his power to clear this debt.

He bowed deeply, putting away his pride.

"Thank you."

The words were simple, yet they carried all the gratitude in his heart.

Soon afterward, the attack helicopter rose into the night once more, its blades chopping through the air with a thunderous rhythm that echoed across the sleeping land.

This time, Kiara made no effort to hide Arceus’s presence.

Previously, she had concealed him as one might shield a candle from the wind. Now she carried him openly, like a banner unfurled before the world.

Before returning to the store, she instructed Zion to make one final stop.

The helicopter descended into the courtyard of Wester Silver’s guest residence.

Because it was well past midnight, the roaring sound of the machine shattered the quiet of the district like a war drum struck in a temple.

Lights flickered on in neighboring mansions.

Servants peered through windows.

Guards rushed into formation.

Wester Silver emerged from the residence, his face hard and dark when he saw this helicopter.

The memory of his defeat from this very flying vehicle and Kiara’s previous destruction of his property still lingered like a scar across his pride, and for a brief moment, the guards also wondered whether another catastrophe was about to unfold.

But Kiara had come tonight not to destroy. She had come to deliver a message.

While Arceus remained seated inside the helicopter, Zion stepped down first and stood by the door, silent as a stone guardian.

Then Kiara descended. Her boots struck the ground with deliberate weight. She scanned the courtyard, found Wester Silver, and without a word opened the pet inventory.

From it emerged Baltrow, the growling beast king of the eighth star rank.

*Grrrr*

The air itself seemed to grow heavier.

The guards’ legs trembled.

Cold sweat formed on their foreheads watching the beast king.

Wester Silver did not step back, but the tightness in his jaw betrayed the storm inside him.

Kiara then walked forward until only a few meters separated them.

Then she opened her inventory this time and threw three corpses onto the stone courtyard. The bodies landed with dull, final thuds.

Moonlight illuminated their lifeless faces.

Wester Silver recognized them instantly. His expression darkened, but he remained silent.

Kiara spoke. "Wester Silver, tonight, you attempted to commit a sin that stains the name of every parent."

Her voice was calm, but beneath it lay a current of restrained fury.

"A father is meant to be the roof that shelters his child from rain. But you chose instead to become the thunderstorm."

She took another step.

"I wanted to erase House Silver from root to leaf."

Her eyes sharpened.

"But your son is kinder than either of us. He forgave you and nearly begged me not to punish you."

Wester Silver’s hands clenched at his sides.

Kiara continued. "I am here to inform you that I’m taking Arceus as a part of my household, with Arceus becoming a matrilocal of mine. Both of us have agreed to become engaged under our mutual decision."

The words hung in the night like a bell tolling through a valley.

Her tone left no room for argument as she further announced. "He will live with me from now on as a part of my household, and he will remain under my protection. In a few days, I will send a formal invitation to the ceremony."

For the first time, a faint smile touched her lips.

"If you wish to attend, come as Arceus’s father, not as the head of House Silver."

Her gaze hardened again.

"And bring your wife. She is his mother, after all."

Then her smile vanished, and she folded her arms behind her back.

"As for the members of House Silver, they are not welcome. For Arceus’s sake, I was prepared to let our enmity end tonight. But if you choose to continue this feud, I will accept that as well."

She tilted her head slightly.

"Only remember this. A man who sets fire to another’s home should first make certain his own house is not built of wood. The choice is yours."

Having said everything she came to say, Kiara turned and walked back toward the helicopter.

Wester Silver’s face twisted with suppressed rage. Every instinct screamed for him to attack. Yet Baltrow’s presence loomed like a silent reminder that some mountains could not be moved by pride alone.

So he stood there, breathing hard, forced to swallow his fury like bitter medicine.

Inside his heart, resentment churned like poison.

Every plan he had crafted had collapsed.

His lies to Emperor Alexander had already humiliated him.

His grandfather, Vann Silver, had suspended Arceus’s marriage indefinitely.

His attempt to use his son’s death to frame Kiara had failed.

Now, the very son he had tried to silence was returning to the world under Kiara’s protection and as her future fiancé?

The board had been overturned.

The pieces no longer obeyed his hand.

For the first time in many years, Wester Silver realized that compromise was not a choice but the only remaining road.