Pvarti's mouth hung open as he was too dumbstruck by what was happening! This woman had overturned his entire life just as a 'test'? It was not easy for him to do the honorable thing, though lowkey he was not so interested in getting married anyway. His lack of interest in marriage was not the important thing here.
Although he acted carefree, he had undertaken a lot of stress during this entire time. There was honestly a short time where he thought his father might actually end up killing him just to appease Jasmine's family. But during all this, he felt a certain self satisfaction knowing that although his life was thoroughly messed up, he had done something admirable. Now though, he was being informed that the admirable thing he had done was nothing more than the whim of a spoiled girl.
Well, he had already lost everything he had to lose. He absolutely could not get married to her.
Pvarti opened his mouth to speak, but a sudden loud clap in the room attracted everyone's attention.
"What lovely news," Lex exclaimed with a broad smile. "The next round is on the house. Such happy news deserves celebration."
The crowd in the room cheered and the triplets immediately began to serve everyone drinks. In the momentary distraction all the activity caused, Lex used his spirit sense to communicate with Pvarti.
"The young lady you are about to reject, for the second time, has brought 11 earth immortal body guards. Although the tavern can protect you, unless you want to spend the rest of your life inside the tavern, you need to play it smart."
Pvarti paused, and immediately recalled that Lex had warned him that he was about to encounter some trouble that the tavern could not help him avoid. Indeed this was a dilemma. If Jasmine or her family reacted poorly, then he would be stuck living here until he ran out of money.
He flashed Lex a grateful look before turning to look at Jasmine. Although he could not understand what was going through her head pulling a stunt like this, he was clear on the fact that her family still did not think positively of him. He could use that to his advantage.
"Miss Jasmine," he began politely, but the jubilant girl immediately interrupted him.
"Call me Jasmine, or Jassie. Prefixes are too formal for the kind of relationship we have."
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Pvarti smiled awkwardly and began again.
"Jasmine, the situation before and now are different. Back when we first met, our families had aligned interests. Now, I do not even have a family to speak of. I don't think someone like me is appropriate for someone with a background as prestigious as yours."
"Oh don't be silly. The moment the Noel family hears the news, they'll come hoping to take you back. Even if they don't, you can just become a member of my family. It's not an issue."
"No dear, he's right," replied the lady beside Jasmine. "We should not rush into things, and it would not be appropriate if a man with no name to speak of marries you. Think of how it will reflect on your father. At least, before we do anything we should have a meeting with the Noel family. Just because there was a business deal before does not mean that the same deal will be relevant. We will need compensation for the humiliation we have faced."
"Compensation?" Pvarti repeated, a sudden frown appearing on his face. "You want compensation? I broke off the wedding because your daughter told me she was being forced to marry, and that she did not want to. I shouldered the entire blame to protect her, only to find out that this is nothing more than a game orchestrated at your daughter's whim."
Although Pvarti was not displaying his aura the way Jasmine's brothers were, an aggressive aura was being formed around him. No matter how he behaved, his noble upbringing and training could not be denied.
"Let alone I have no interest in this matter, what does the Noel family have to do with me? I don't know if you've heard, but we have parted ways. So if you want to use-"
Jasmine was only getting more and more excited as Pvarti spoke, but her brothers were not the same. His tone was too impolite when addressing their mother, so one of the many brothers made a move.
Unfortunately for him, Lex was also not one to tolerate impropriety. With sufficient warning from his intuition, he activated the formation long before the brother attacked, and at the first indication that he was making a move, Lex froze him by trapping in a 'room' that was exactly his shape.
The sudden dangerous fluctuation, as well as its equally quick disappearance startled Pvarti and stopped him from speaking, but before he could make much sense of what happened, Lex loudly cleared his throat.
"On this occasion of reunion, why don't we all calm down a little, and talk with cool heads."
He took a few slow steps before arriving at the frozen brother and patted him a few times. Considering the fact that he was an immortal, Lex did not hold back his strength. He was not intending to hurt him anyway, more like he was attracting attention to the fact that he was frozen.
"To be honest, I don't even care if you don't talk with cool heads," Lex continued, this time his smile disappearing. He wore a stern look and stared at the mother, as well as all the brothers in the eyes. "But the Midnight tavern is not a place where you can throw your weight around."
Among the many formations that had been established at the tavern, one was called Dragons wake. It emulated the suppressive aura of a dragon, though extremely magnified. The formation served only as a deterrent, as it could do nothing other than display that aura, and that too for a brief period of time.
Lex had used it back then to scare Zagan away, which spoke of how effective it really was. Now, for a brief moment, he used it again and focused it only on Pvarti and the people confronting him.
Poor Pvarti, who had been a victim in this entire situation, was suddenly frozen stiff and his mind went blank. Lex had not weakened the formation since he was targeting an entire group of immortals, but those with a weaker cultivation were unable to handle it.
Pvarti totally blanked out, his mind shutting down completely. Jasmine, who was right next to Pvarti, fell over on to him, tripping the two. The mother had somehow managed to keep her mind from shutting down, but she was clearly affected by it as she suddenly went pale and began sweating.
The brothers handled it the best, and admirably all took up defensive poses, showing no sign of running away. But it was clear that they harbored no hope of contending against the aura, as the look in their eyes was panicked and fearful.
Lex did not speak, and allowed them all to recover naturally. After a few seconds went by, the brothers realized that they weren't actually being attacked, and had only been warned. They looked at Lex with reverence and fear in their eyes, not daring to move closer to him.
The next to recover was the mother, who swept her eyes on Lex again, and began reassessing him. Strangely, there was no fear in her eyes, but a strange sparkle. Finally, the sound of a groan awakened everyone from their stupors, and attracted their attention to the ground.
Pvarti was lying on his back, and right on top of him was Jasmine. Despite the awkward situation, they had managed to avoid anything inappropriate happening. But Pvarti and Jasmine had once again locked eye contact, this time from much closer.
Having not completely recovered, Pvarti could not control himself and mumbled, "you smell nice."
Jasmine blushed and did not respond. Even though she had decided to marry Pvarti, things were moving a bit too fast, right?
Before her thoughts were allowed to wander, her mother grabbed her hand and yanked her up, as Lex reached down to help Pvarti up as well.
This was all excellent. So long as all the parties stayed at odds with one another, it would be extremely easy for Lex to get what he wanted. Since his intuition had clearly told him that there was a great opportunity waiting for him with Jasmine and her family, he had done his best to manipulate events, allowing him a chance to build a strong reputation.
"How about we retreat to a private room and have a civilized meeting?" Lex suggested. "All guests are welcome at the tavern as long as they don't try to kill one another - at least inside the tavern."
"Yes, yes, let's go," the mother said with a hint of eagerness. "By the way, child, are you married yourself? Important things like this shouldn't be delayed."
Without the Host Attire to help him control himself, it took his entire being to stop himself from tumbling when he heard the lady's question. Was he married? He just used dragon aura to intimidate the hell out of them all, but instead of getting scared, the woman started head hunting a husband for her daughter? Hopefully her daughter.
Regardless of her intentions, Lex only replied with a smile and said nothing. He was not about to fall into this trap. If he engaged in this conversation, he was done for. Whether he accepted or denied it, he would have entered her web. The only way to avoid the whole situation was to just ignore the question, as many times as it came up. For if it had been mentioned once, he had a feeling it would be brought up again.
He led them into the private room and asked the triplets to bring them some food as they all sat down. Lex looked over the various brothers and admired the fact that all of them were earth immortals. Either whatever family they were from were incredibly talented, or had immense discipline and knowledge on cultivation. Regardless of whatever arrogance, or strange marital practices they may have, they deserved respect.
Moreover, coming from a family with such an impressive resume, Jasmine's potential was also probably incredible. Of course, Lex did not really care much for her or anyone else's potential right now. Instead, what he wanted was information on the Kraven.
Everyone took a seat, but said nothing as the triplets set down some snacks as well as several drinks. Although Lex did not hope to be able to intoxicate immortals, he had them bring out some of the better selection they had.
Once they were done and left the room, Lex finally sat down. Pvarti and Jasmine sat next to one another, with Jasmine's focus fixed solely on him. Whether Pvarti was uncomfortable with the situation or not, he did not let it show. Instead, he eagerly began sipping his drink. Regardless of the situation, his love for the Midnight tavern's drinks could not be affected.
Opposite to Lex sat Jasmine's mother, and her gaze was locked onto Lex. Though she was not alone in that regard, as all the brothers were focused on him as well.
"Now," Lex finally began, flashing his most courteous smile. "I believe everyone got off on the wrong foot. Unless remedied, such circumstances can lead to completely deteriorating the situation for everyone involved. I believe it is in everyone's best interests if they get along. If my presence is serving as a barricade, I can leave you all to have your discussion, but I must strongly urge you all to remain civil. My tavern is not like others, which tolerate bar fights and needless scuffles."
"No no, how can your illustrious presence be anything but a blessing? Please stay, I believe your presence willā¦ yes, will help keep everyone calm so that we don't end up falling into further misunderstandings."
The mother was quite insistent that Lex stay, and oddly, the brothers all seemed to nod along. Despite his sixth sense, he was not sure if they were just going along with their mother, or they genuinely believed that.
Pvarti, who was more familiar with the tavern and Lex, did not feel the need to fawn over him. Instead, he had to do his best to fight his own instincts and stop himself from something inappropriate. His thoughts wereā¦ unusual at the moment, to say the least. Even he himself could not predict what he might end up doing if he stopped restraining himself.
"What's there to talk about anyway?" He asked, the foam of his drink still bubbling on his upper lip. "I, the magnanimous Pvarti, will gift you this necklace. Consider it your 'compensation'. After that, you can be on your merry way, and we need not ever cross paths again."
He was clear that Jasmine's family still held a grudge against him, so playing on that was his best bet to get out of this situation. Unfortunately, he was the only person in the room without a hidden agenda, so his suggestion, as ridiculous as it was, was never bound to be accepted. Furthermoreā¦ it was at that moment everyone realized that the small pup wearing the necklace had disappeared!
When everyone was under the pressure of the dragon's aura, Fenrir ran off to play. He had not been targeted by the aura to begin with, so he had no problem taking advantage of the distraction it presented. Moreover, his stealth capabilities were top notch.
Before an awkward silence could develop, Jasmine spoke up.
"Oh darling, don't be so mean. Although our time apart may have been unpleasant for you, there was no real harm suffered. Besides, you've proved yourself to be a real man. Daddy will surely appreciate you for that. There's no need to sully our relationship with dirty things like business deals."
Lex looked at Jasmine oddly, as did Pvarti. It appeared as thoughā¦ the young woman was completely oblivious to the actual situation. In her mind, the only reason Pvarti was upset was not because of the tiny little prank she played, but because he was so deeply in love with her that their separation had left him resentful.
"I think that's a wonderful idea," Jasmine's mother said. "In fact, such happy occasions should not be delayed. I have already sent news to your father, and he will hurry here with the rest of your 37 brothers, and 14 sisters. I think this tavern is a wonderful venue, why don't we have the wedding here?"
Before Pvarti could object, Jasmine shrieked in excitement, and leaped at him, knocking the both of them over again. Lex was too stunned at the size of Jasmine's family to object. He noticed that the motherā¦ failed to mention her husband having other wives. Did that mean she gave birth to all those children!?!
Before he could decide on whether he was impressed or horrified, the 'opportunity' that his intuition had hinted at finally arrived, with the pleasant ting of a system notification. Lex froze. At the moment, he had a particular interest in completing system quests, so the moment he heard the familiar notification sound, he began checking his system.
New Quest: A distinguished family has decided to use a subsidiary establishment of the Inn, the Midnight tavern, as the venue for a family wedding. Host a wedding worthy of the special union about to take place.
Quest Reward: Subject to performance
Remarks: Since the chances of getting married yourself are slim, live vicariously and experience your fantasies
For a brief moment, Lex struggled about which objective to prioritize. Should he try to get the SSS+ quest rating, or should he focus on getting information on the Kraven. The struggle lasted only a second, though. The Kraven were going nowhere, but achieving such a high rating on a quest on purpose would be incredibly difficult. He could not let a single opportunity pass him by.
"Marry, we have an emergency situation! Get everyone who is not doing anything important, and start watching Indian wedding movies! Get me a list of the most extravagant requirements for weddings that exist! Get Velma involved, tell her there's a love story on the line. Get Z to start watching wedding anime if they exist! I want all resources focused on this! This is the Inn's top priority! In fact, start scanning all the guests for potential wedding planners! I can't let a single opportunity pass me by!"
With the order passed, Lex looked at Pvarti sympathetically. Lex hated using him like this butā¦ it was probably for his own good right? With such powerful in-laws, he would probably live a good life. Hopefully. Maybe.
Then he recalled the fact that Jasmine had 62 siblings. Well, if the family had any strange traditions about the number of kids, he might have to suffer a little. But such was life.
"It seems the bride and groom can't even keep their hands off of each other," Lex said with a gracious smile, as one of Jasmine's brothers pulled her off Pvarti again.
"Yes. No, I mean no, I'm not like that," stuttered the bewildered Pvarti. "No wait, I mean, I didn't agree to this."
"Yes, yes, honey-booboo is right. He probably wants to invite his family as well. Surely he's a little bitter about how they treated him before, but blood is thicker than water afterall," said Jasmine, her eyes practically turning into hearts as she looked at Pvarti.
"Yes, yes, a lot of planning is needed," the mother said. "Not to mention, your other sisters are getting along in age as well. We might as well use this opportunity to look for suitable husbands for them too. What do you think, Mrā¦ oh look at that, we were so caught up in all the excitement that I completely forgot to catch your name."
Lex suddenly felt goosebumps all over his body. This questā¦ would be more dangerous than he anticipated.
Lex smiled politely at the mother, while doing his best to resist cursing her. It was extremely important to get along with her because her family was the main target for the existing quest. He also had to keep in mind that while he had to make this wedding as exquisite as possible, he had to cater to the family's wishes and requirements as well. To do all that, he had to maintain a cordial relationship with them, so he had to put up with the unnecessarily eager motherā¦
"My name is Lex. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"No, no, the pleasure is all mine. My name is Jolene, but everyone just calls me mom."
Before the conversation progressed any further, Pvarti had finally recovered from theā¦ from the tackle he received from Jasmine and spoke up.
"Hey, hey, hey, hey, this is moving way too fast. I didn't agree to any of this. Don't think I'm a man who can be forced into things!"
Although Pvarti usually played a very casual and carefree character, Lex had to admit that it took a certain level of conviction and determination to reject such a marriage, even at the risk of personal consequences. If his personality was really of the lovable town idiot, he would not have been able to bear such a burden. Lex had genuine respect for that aspect of him.
Unfortunately, Lex was invested in this wedding now, soā¦
"Allow me to have a word with him," Lex said with a smile before anyone else could speak up.
Using the spatial manipulation formation, he formed a separate room, containing only Pvarti and him. This way no one would be able to hear them speak. Lex also surrounded themselves with dark Imperial Shields, blocking their sight to prevent lip reading.
"The situation does not seem to be in your favor," Lex said, a trace of sympathy in his voice. "Tell me what you want, I'll try to help you get it."
"I want to be free from that girl," Pvarti said, his voice extremely forceful yet somehow lacking conviction. "I mean, didn't you hear her? She played with my entire life on a whim, when I was being kind to her! If I stay with her, she'll play with my entire life as if it were a game!"
Lex nodded, as he could clearly understand what Pvarti was saying, but didn't immediately respond. Instead, after a short pause, he asked, "tell me Pvarti, what do you envision your future as?"
The young noble was taken aback by the sudden question, but did not hesitate to answer.
"I may not have the financial support of my family anymore, but they can't take my knowledge away from me. I have the understanding and the techniques required to raise my cultivation further. I'll grow strong, and eventually start my own family. Maybe I'll even take control of a small region somewhere."
"An admirable goal," Lex commented, genuine praise in his voice. "But now, I want you to imagine the scenario for a moment. Let's imagine that you've managed to dissuade Jasmine's family, and have once again rejected the wedding. You did this so that they don't interfere with your life, or in your own words, play with your life anymore. Do you really think they will just let you be after that? Or let you grow strong? Or establish your own power?"
Pvarti frowned. This was not the first time he had thought of this concern. Truth be told, he had only formed a tentative plan of relying on the Midnight Inn for refuge if things got too troublesome. But the fact that the Inn was too expensive to rely on indefinitely without any real income was a major issue.
"I don't want to force you into something you don't want," Lex continued upon seeing that Pvarti was not replying. "However, I will give you a suggestion. Just think about it and consider for yourself what is best. Regardless of whether you get married or not, the interference of Jasmine and her family in your life will not be over. If you do get married to her, and you happen to reenter your Noel family, then she will be forced to join your family, instead of you hers. Then you will have a lot more control over the situation. Moreover, with the power and resources of both families available to you, you will be able to go much farther than you can go by yourself."
Lex paused for a moment to let Pvarti absorb all this information, and contemplate for himself what was the right course of action. Just because Lex had presented the information did not mean he believed that Pvarti would follow it blindly. He had to let him reach the conclusion on his own.
In fact, Lex planned to divert Pvarti's attention by adding another layer of complexity to the situation. It burdened Lex's innocent heart with immense guilt to do this, but it was for Pvarti's own good, and was not at all hitting two birds with one stone.
"If I'm being perfectly honest, although I genuinely think this is the best course of action for you, I also have a bit of an agenda in persuading you towards this marriage."
Pvarti narrowed his eyes and looked at Lex. Although he had not mentioned it, he of course noticed that Lex had taken a side for the marriage instead of helping him.
"The reason I'm telling you this," Lex lied in a very modest tone of voice, "is because without your help, even if I push this wedding forward I won't really gain anything. That's why I'm being up front with you as well. If we can come to an understanding, we can move forward with the situation, making sure to benefit the both of us. If not, then I can help you avoid the family's pressure, and you can figure out a way you think is more suitable to handle this situation."
"What exactly do you need?" Pvarti asked suspiciously.
"I need information. Extremely sensitive information. I want to know why the human royal family, as well as the other races, aren't fully resisting the Kraven invasions. There are secrets related to the Kraven that only a very few know, and I want to find out what it is. Even Aegis, the crown prince of Hum, did not have this information - though that was mostly a result of his own lazy attitude.
"I believe that Jasmine's family will have some records or details about the truth. If you can join their family, and become an important member, then you can help me get that information. In exchange, I can use some resources from the tavern and the Inn to help you increase your importance to the families. That way, you solidify your position, and gain the support you need, and I get the information that I want."
While Lex was not lying about wanting information about the Kraven, that was not his priority at the moment. He was just using one truth to hide another - that he really wanted Pvarti to agree to the wedding!
"Jasmine's family is a vassal force of the Cornelius family, so they definitely have an important position in the empire," Pvarti confirmed. After spending a few moments to consider, he decided that what Lex said was the truth. If that was the case, then he could rely on Lex to help him. After all, nothing was more reliable than a relationship of mutual benefits.
"Fine, what you say makes sense. But you have to help me negotiate with them and make sure they agree to my conditions before the wedding takes place. Jasmine HAS to join my family instead of me joining hers. Otherwise, I'll never be anything more than a puppet, and I cannot accept such a thing."
"It's only fair," Lex agreed with him shamelessly, and shook his hands. Once they had reached a resolution, Lex dismissed his shields and dispersed the separate room.
"I have excellent news," Lex announced with a massive smile "After a brief conversation, Pvarti has realized that he indeed desires this union."
Lex looked towards Jasmine, and continued.
"Naturally, as a prime dominant alpha male specimen, he has to ensure that Jasmine can match his caliber."
Ensuring that Pvarti's demands would be met would require Jasmine's support, and since Jasmine was such a fan of how 'manly' Pvarti was, that was the only card he had to play to convince her.
He was cringing internally as he spoke, yet his words seemed to resonate with Jasmine. No one had dared make demands of her family in such an up front manner before, and it excited her even more. Pvarti truly was the man of her dreams.
Suddenly the look in her eyes became feral, and she once again pounced on Pvarti, but this time her brothers responded in time and caught her beforehand.
"Lex, why don't you and I speak privately for a moment as well?" Jolene asked, winking at him.
The situation on earth had taken a turn for the worst. The casualties were catastrophic during the first few weeks of fighting, but had recently started to decrease. The prime cause of the decrease was not that the fighting had diminished. No, far from it in fact. The level of fighting had increased drastically.
The real reason for the drop in casualties was that of the remaining population, over 90% over the ages of 15 had become cultivators in some capacity. Most had become followers of Amana and Adamas, with men usually leaning towards Amana and women leaning towards Adamas.
Although that alone did not raise their cultivation levels through the roof, it raised their survivability.
The second thing that raised the survivability of the humansā¦ was the appearance of a few devils, and a whole lot of demons. No one knew how they arrived on earth, probably in a similar fashion to the deities, but they strongly supported the factions led by the old powers of earth, namely Richard, Sam and Fateh the Fatty! Brandon and Elizabeth were the only ones who had not participated in this coalition.
Due to their long history and sudden increase in power, a large chunk of the surviving humans flocked to them as well. The deities also did not object to the devils, so that made it extremely convenient, although when news spread, the Jotun empire strongly condemned this action!
A strange power shift was occurring on earth these days, with the battle being slowly limited to a few regions on earth, and sometimes in space. The greatest change was the fact that the new powers, the deities and the devils, both restricted the use of golden keys to escape earth. The act of running away not only weakened earth, it reduced morale - at least according to them. As such, fewer and fewer people were running away from earth these days, instead choosing to stand and fight.
The situation seemed to have reached an equilibrium of sorts, despite the fact that the fighting never stopped.
Amidst all of this, there was one tiny power that had somehow survived, untouched both by devils and deities. The Kingdom of New York, under the rule and protection of King Marlo, its armies led by genius general Rafael, heir to the Kingdom, managed to protect its sovereignty using only its own forces.
There were also rumors of a special elite unit consisting of a samurai, a man of metal impervious to all damage, and the final, mysterious member known only as the Dark Invader, who seemed to have control over the darkness. This elite unit had no name, since officially their existence had not been announced, but those who whispered of their strength had started calling themā¦ the Powered Rangers!
On a battlefield near Niagara falls, Larry was moving from one robot corpse to another. Although most of the initial invading force of these robot aliens had bodies made of organic matter and were varied, the ones who had been coming most recently had started to show signs of mass production and had more of a uniform structure. That also meant more common materials were used in their manufacturing - though common here was only a relative term.
Only an approximate 15% of their bodies were made up of metals, but that was more than enough for Larry. He would not let a single scrap of this metal pass him by, as these metals could not be found on earth. Moreover, they were excellent conductors for spiritual energy, and were thus excellent fuel for him to raise his cultivation realm.
His eyes were completely focused as he performed his tasks, but hidden deep behind them was an unwavering conviction. Jeffery had thought he was condemning Larry by having the planet invaded by aliens. Instead, he had provided him with excellent resources to power up, and once Larry was strong, he would get his revenge!
*****
"Lex, why don't you and I speak privately for a moment as well?" Jolene asked, winking at him.
Lex had already steeled himself by now, so he did not have a strong reaction to her antics. He was, however, somewhat surprised at her relentless pursuit, even though she was supposedly facing someone so dangerous. Even her sons, who were much stronger than her, acted with an air of caution while she completely maintained her role as a mama, looking for a husband for her daughter.
"Why not?" Lex said, as he erected Imperial shields around them and locked them in a separate space, much in the way he had done with Pvarti. Though he had no intentions of falling for her antics, he had to admire her commitment to the cause.
"I love my children, but sometimes it's good to just talk between adults, don't you think?" she asked with a warm smile, as if she were addressing an old friend.
"It is easier to talk to someone with a level head," Lex answered, completely ignoring the fact that despite being called an 'adult' among children, he was actually the youngest in the room.
"Before we get into the thick of things, shall we properly introduce ourselves? Everything has happened a little abruptly. I was not prepared to run into such a distinguished establishment out here."
"Of course, it is naturally for the best. After all, if you intend to hold your daughter's wedding in my humble establishment, then you must understand the place well. My name is Lex, as you already know, and this is the Midnight tavern. There's not much to tell, really. I enjoy the company of people, and bringing happiness and joy to all, so I opened up this little place where guests can come and unwind.
"Drinks flow freely, and though my selection is a little more limited for more distinguished guests, I do have something in the cellar that can be brought out for such a wonderful occasion. Although the Noel family has been very gracious to me, and even the crown prince of Hum nation is a good friend of mine, I prefer the simple life and tend to stay away fromā¦ unnecessary politics and strife. So long as no one comes and bothers me, or my guests, I will not bother anyone in return."