Knowing there was a trap, the profits were simply too massive to refuse.
After a long silence, Fulong let out a long sigh, though it was unclear if he was lamenting his own greed or the young girl's profound schemes.
"Since Your Highness trusts this old man so much, then... I shall accept this troublesome task to lighten your burden."
"In that case, I will leave it in your capable hands. I imagine that with the influence of the Cavendish family, delivering the official registration of Brilliant City's slaves within three days should not be a problem?"
Fulong lowered his eyes in thought for a moment before nodding slightly.
"It can be done."
"Since that is settled, then... Lola."
Luo Li turned to look at Lola, who had returned at some unknown point.
"From this day forward, Lord Cavendish is promoted to Executive Officer of the Slave Market Management Office. Lola, what was his original rank? Is there room for promotion?"
"Your Highness, he is a first-class Marquess. He can still be promoted to the rank of third-class Duke."
"Very well. As of today, he is promoted to Third-class Duke."
"Thank you, Your Highness!"
After being a marquess for his entire life, to suddenly be promoted like this brought a look of joy even to the old fox's face.
"Lord Cavendish—no, from today on, I should address you as Duke Fulong."
A smile played on Luo Li's lips.
"However, I am not granting you this title for nothing."
"Whatever Your Highness commands, please speak freely. This old man will do his utmost!"
A title meant status and position!
Stepping into the rank of a duke meant becoming one of the most powerful people in the Kingdom of the Moon!
With this, Fulong was officially one of the top nobles in the country!
"This slave exchange cannot be run for free. You must manage this business well for me. A five percent commission on all slave trades is not too much, is it?"
The smile on Fulong's face froze instantly, and he hesitated for a moment.
"It is... not too much."
"Good. Then Lola, once the slave registry is in your hands, you must keep a close watch on it. That is cold, hard cash after all."
"Please rest assured, Your Highness," Lola responded calmly.
"In that case, I will not keep Duke Fulong any longer. Lola, you will handle all future contact with Duke Fulong. Unless it is a major issue, you do not need to consult me."
"Yes, Your Highness."
"Since that is the case... this old man will take his leave to begin preparations."
Fulong looked up at the Saintess. Seeing her nodding with a bright smile, he turned and left the Temple.
As he stepped out of the Temple, a cold wind blew past, and he realized his back was completely soaked with sweat!
"The Saintess... to think Her Highness the Saintess also loves money? Heh!"
With those words, Fulong walked away. He still had to take over the slave trade of the entire Kingdom of the Moon!
That was a mountain of wealth!
Watching the retreating figure walking with a light step, the corners of Luo Li's mouth curled into a smile.
The heavy doors of the Temple slowly closed, and the departing Fulong failed to notice the eerie smile on the face of the 'Greedy Saintess.'
"Your Highness, are you... just letting the Cavendish family off like that?"
Inside the Temple, Hilda watched the disappearing Fulong and then turned to look at her Saintess.
She did not understand why her mistress had said so much and clearly placed such importance on the matter, only to end it so lightly.
Luo Li looked at her loyal knight and smiled, then glanced at Lola beside her.
"Have the mages and the dwarven craftsmen arrived?"
"Yes, they are all waiting outside the hall."
"Good. Call them in. Oh, and that little nun at the door—go investigate her. I will not allow anyone with connections to the Cavendish family to remain by my side."
That old fellow Fulong was able to know the details of her discussions in the Temple so quickly because he clearly had an informant inside.
From start to finish, the only people inside the Temple besides herself, the Three-La trio, and the knight were the young nun.
Furthermore, when she had asked the young nun what kind of person Lord Fulong was, she had seen a flash of fear in the girl's eyes.
At first, she thought it was just because of Fulong's notorious reputation.
But thinking back on it now, she realized the young nun had no reason to fear Lord Fulong.
No matter how much influence Fulong had, he could not affect the inner workings of the Temple.
Unless... the fear the young nun felt wasn't caused by the question about Lord Fulong.
She was afraid of Luo Li herself!
She was afraid of her own Saintess!
Why would mentioning Lord Fulong trigger such fear?
There was clearly only one reason.
There was a ninety percent chance that this young nun was an informant planted in the Temple by the Cavendish family.
This... served as a heavy warning!
In the Temple, every nun associated with the nobility, except for those related to Martha, had to be removed!
Even if they couldn't be killed, they had to be kept far away from the Temple and away from her.
Luo Li didn't want to one day 'accidentally' fall into a river and 'drown.'
'As expected... the era has limited his perspective. He has no idea what I'm really trying to do.'
Luo Li smiled and looked at Hilda.
"You will understand in a moment."
After a while, a group of people entered the Temple.
The dwarves among them walked in with expressions of excitement.
The mages, however, wore expressions of confusion mixed with a hint of fear.
Clearly, the dwarves did not fear the Temple. Generally speaking, the angels of the Kingdom of the Moon were neutral toward humans and other races.
However, mages ultimately held different beliefs than the Holy Church, so they were naturally somewhat apprehensive.
"Greetings, Your Highness Saintess!"
After entering, the group knelt on one knee in greeting.
Even if the mages did not believe in gods, they still knelt respectfully before the leader of a nation.
"I have asked you all here today for something simple. I want to discuss a business arrangement with you."
"Business?"
The dwarves and mages all looked confused.
Was there any business that a grand Saintess, the ruler of the Kingdom of the Moon, needed to discuss with them?
"Yes, business. From this day forward, manufacturing slave collars privately will be considered a crime. I imagine you all usually make a little money on the side doing this. What is the production cost?"
A dwarf with a thick beard, standing less than a meter tall with sturdy limbs, stepped forward and looked at Luo Li.
"Your Highness Saintess, do you mean we are no longer allowed to make slave collars?"
"No, I am allowing you to make them, but you are only allowed to make them for me."
"???"
"Ahem!"
Hilda, standing to the side, cleared her throat lightly, signaling that the Saintess's words were a bit misleading.
Luo Li blinked, not reacting for a moment, but when she realized the implication, her face turned bright red.
"That... I mean, you can only make them for me."
Rate on N.U.
