3 Growing Pains

Someone pinched my thigh, then gave it a vicious twist, and I woke up amid a miserable shriek.

It was Lamia.

I said, "What are you doing? I almost lost my lineage!"

Lamia wore a smile on her face and said, "I didn't touch your precious thing. Get up, it's already midday. Have you forgotten what day today is?"

I tried to recall my dream, but in vain. I only felt that the dream had been so long, and that important and urgent events had taken place, but what on earth were they?

I asked, "What day is it?"

Lamia said, "Little Aru's birthday celebration!"

Little Aru was the first child born since I became the mayor of this place. Lamia had suggested hosting a banquet for her, allowing all the villagers of Wailing Village to celebrate properly. This was some sort of beautiful symbol, a symbol of our new beginning.

I hurried, "Quick, call my makeup artist and fashion designer!"

Lamia was amused by me and said, "That's all me. I'm right here. Come over here, I'll fix you up."

I said, "I... wanted a professional."

Lamia put on a straight face and said, "No money, can't afford one!"

Her words really pierced my heart.

I earned some money by selling ember ore to Typhon; her prices were fairly reasonable. In addition, converting Charon Heavy Industries into a firearm factory could also earn some, and besides that, we could sell some water to the Black Coffin. But we had to purchase a large amount of supplies from the Black Coffin—steel, wood, decorations, medicine, food, gold coins, and even the technical experts and skilled workers they dispatched were ridiculously expensive.

For a few months, I felt we were on the verge of bankruptcy, but the loan Typhon gave me bought me some breathing room. Lamia suggested that I slow down urban construction, be content with the status quo, and plan for the long term. Typhon, on the other hand, sent a financial management team to clean up my mess, and additionally dispatched a security team to contract the city's security defense work at a low price. These measures brought us back from the dead.

Yet now, I felt once again that I was bound hand and foot by these various teams. I couldn't understand any of the technical terms they used, so I simply let them handle everything entirely.

They had originally worried that I would use military force to threaten the Black Coffin's ruling position, but now I had been completely conquered by them through peaceful means.

I was like some kind of religious figure; the villagers worshipped me, but if I lacked the help of the Black Coffin, I felt I would be helpless and accomplish nothing.

It was truly annoying.

However, there were also good aspects, such as being able to hold Lamia and sleep all the way until noon, and after six o'clock in the evening, when we had digested our dinner, we could practice swords to our heart's content... practicing the Mind-Blade swordsmanship.

Never mind, haste makes waste; Rome wasn't built in a day. Wailing Village would eventually become a miracle comparable to the Black Coffin. For now, we could take it slow.

Lamia shaved my beard, combed my hair, and changed me into a robe with a strong clerical aesthetic, which made me feel like a swindling charlatan... Although in a sense I truly was, I just felt unhappy about it.

Dinner-time robots had built an indoor garden using ember crystals, about one thousand square meters in size. The types of flowers inside were few, but they could survive through some chemical reaction of the embers—Vaga's principle was something I couldn't understand. The banquet would be held here. And the sunlight filtered through the ember crystals illuminated the garden, making the environment look fairly elegant.

Town hall employees moved in high-end tables and chairs purchased from the Black Coffin, arranging them neatly. But in truth, they weren't high-end at all; they were things used around the thirtieth tier. Yet in Wailing Village, they became luxury goods, sold at exorbitant prices by exploiting information asymmetry. I heard this was an old trick from the previous century and nothing new, but I never imagined the vampires of the Black Coffin would use this tactic to suck my blood, and I was completely powerless against it.

The time had almost come, and the entire village eagerly swarmed in. The cooks hurriedly brought some cold dishes and drinks to the tables. People went wild, rushing toward the tables like Thanksgiving shoppers, like zombies catching the scent of blood.

I shouted, "This is a joyous moment, please maintain order!"

They immediately became well-behaved. Weilin led the security team to begin maintaining order, and the people orderly took their plates and ate.

A religious figure had its advantages, at least capable of making people obey.

I stood on the podium and began telling jokes, making people laugh heartily. I must admit, I was the type of person who excelled at dealing with people; I had that talent naturally, and now my public speaking level was no less than that of those demagogic vampires.

Weilin accompanied Little Aru's parents, who were holding Little Aru herself, as they also walked onto the podium. I picked up Little Aru and shouted, "What a cute little darling! Isn't she? Today you are the luckiest child in the entire village—no, the entire city. You have brought hope to our city. I announce that from now on, every year on this day shall be Aru Day!"

Weilin and my supporters were the first to cheer loudly. Hot dishes were brought out one after another, and the people immediately began to revel.

Lamia took the child and held her intimately for quite a while—long enough to make me feel a trace of awkwardness. Finally, she returned the child to her parents, and we walked down the podium hand in hand.

Lamia whispered, "Use your mind-blade to light the candles on the cake."

Right, I had to do that. Just like Jesus demonstrating his miracles back then, I also needed to make them firmly believe in my divine power. Using the mind-blade to do some effortless little things could achieve unexpected results.

I stretched my finger toward the candles, exerting a small amount of extermination mind-blade. The candles were struck by the current, and flames surged upward. The people applauded me like madmen. I gave them a slight acknowledgment and left the garden with Lamia.

Lamia linked her arm in mine, pressing very close. I felt her trembling and asked, "What's wrong?"

Lamia said, "Nothing, I... just... just saw Little Aru, and it stirred some feelings in my heart."

I said, "I actually don't feel much about babies. They're noisy and annoying."

Lamia and I sat down on a bench by the street and whispered, "Are you saying that just to make me feel better?"

I asked, "What is this! I speak my mind, saying whatever I think. Speaking my mind is my ninja way—cough, cough... no, wait."

Lamia said firmly, "I want a child."

Her words made me feel like I was sitting on pins and needles. We had tried, tried for a long time, and kept trying, but there was no progress. I heard that people with strange bloodlines like ours naturally found it difficult to have children, and Lamia's body... was artificial. Given the current medical level of the world, I truly didn't hold out much hope.

Lamia said, "I want to hold that little life, pinch his soft body and cheeks, and listen to him call me mommy and you daddy. We can play with him together, watch him grow, and celebrate his birthday. Just like Little Aru... Oh, Cain, how I wish she were ours..."

Seeing that there was no one around, I whispered, "I can make that child ours."

Lamia glared at me and said, "What kind of crazy idea is that?"

I said, "As long as you nod, I will buy that child immediately. Or even, I just need to say one word, and they will obey obediently. Don't forget, in this city, I am the incarnation of a god."

Lamia smiled bitterly and said, "No, stop coming up with these crooked schemes all the time. You don't understand what I mean; I just feel I'm letting you down by not being able to raise a child for you."

I said, "I understand. This is all because you love me. I heard Michael founded an orphanage in the Black Coffin. If you don't mind, in a few days, I can accompany you to adopt one."

Lamia thought for a moment, nodded, and a comforting smile appeared on her face as she said, "That's fine too. Sometimes, we just have to accept our fate, don't we?"

I kissed her, and she leaned against my shoulder. I let out a long sigh of relief, secretly congratulating myself on my cleverness.

If you want to open a window and the people in the room disagree, just say you want to smash a hole in the wall, and the opponents will mostly agree to opening the window instead.

I was bathed languidly by the mutation-inducing sunlight, and just as I was preparing to idle away my time, a squad of rangers on patrol walked toward me.

These walking lightbulbs.

The captain was a second lieutenant named Cai Wenruisi. He led his soldiers to stand at attention before me and said, "Mr. Fishbone! We have a situation! We'd like to seek your help."

This group of rangers worshipped me, which indeed made me feel a bit flattered, but it also brought trouble. They would ask me for help at the drop of a hat, though it was never really any serious trouble—just an excuse to witness me wield my martial prowess with their own eyes.

Fortunately, I practiced the mind-blade more diligently than ever before, always managing to satisfy them. Even when the effects weren't all that astonishing, they simply assumed I was intentionally keeping a low profile.

I asked, "Help? What is it?"

Cai Wenruisi said, "Reporting, sir, it's the pier. Down at the pier, two ember boats went out to sea and haven't returned."

Although Wailing Village was close to a lake, the villagers had never thought of going out to sea to fish, surviving instead on the fruits growing inside the Charon factory. Dangerous creatures lurked in the sea, whether fish or demons, causing everyone who ventured out to end up in the bellies of fish.

Later, Vaga programmed the dinner-time robots so that they could use ember crystals to build fishing boats. These boats were extremely sturdy and could keep the dangers of the deep sea away. Thus, some villagers volunteered to go out fishing. Those fish were strange-looking, but tasted okay, and people didn't die from eating them.

The Black Coffin's caravan sometimes purchased these fish at high prices, and the fishing industry developed rapidly in Wailing Village. Perhaps in the future, it could change the trade situation with the Black Coffin; after all, living near the mountains you live off the mountains, living near the sea you live off the sea.

I lowered my head slightly, and when I raised it, I was already the Frost Remnant Sword.

My face was cold.

My heart was cold.

My hand was col—

Cai Wenruisi asked, "Officer?"

I didn't answer, because I was the void. I only needed to radiate an imposing aura to express a thousand words...

Lamia twisted my thigh, and I wailed like a dying fish.

I angrily asked, "What... what are you doing?"

Lamia said, "How rude, this officer is talking to you."

I looked at them, and their expressions didn't look like they were gazing at the Frost Remnant Sword, but rather a Frost Remnant Brain.

I asked with displeasure, "How can that be? Nothing has ever gone wrong for so long."

Cai Wenruisi said, "But they really didn't come back. Once word spread, we banned fishing boats from going out to prevent anyone else from going missing."

Indeed, in the apocalyptic era, human lives weren't important, but the lives of the fishermen in my territory were extremely important. Besides, ember boats were shockingly expensive, costing at least fifty million credits each.

This matter naturally fell upon the omnipotent and invincible Frost Remnant Sword.