Gathering Wives with a System

Chapter 705: Not An Ally, Meeting With An Unexpected Person

The Seventh Queen remained silent for several seconds, as if she were waiting for something to happen. Her eyes stayed on Alice, watching her carefully, but when nothing happened, a faint smile appeared on her face.

”This is surprising. I thought you would attack me for saying that your love for Isaac is not true and that it was influenced by something else. I expected you to be much more angry about it,” Jasmine said.

”I know that I love him genuinely. A useless provocation like that will not affect me,” Alice replied, though the coldness in her voice made it clear that she had not appreciated the words. She continued looking at Jasmine without showing any intention of backing down.

Jasmine smiled slightly. ”Is that so? Anyway, I apologize for how I phrased those words. I am not trying to say that your feelings are fake; I only meant that there is something else that increases your obsession with him.”

Alice did not answer, and her expression remained difficult to read. She simply waited for Jasmine to continue, as though she already knew there was more to what the Seventh Queen wanted to say.

”And it is related to the failed Conqueror Trial you went through,” Jasmine added.

Alice stiffened, and for a moment, the calm expression on her face disappeared. That small reaction was enough for the Seventh Queen.

”Do not worry. You do not have to agree to my demand right now. You can think about it, and you can give me your answer only after I show you what I want to show you. If that does not make you agree to my deal, then I will not approach you again,” Jasmine said.

Alice remained silent, but this time her silence was different. It no longer seemed to come from displeasure or anger, because she was clearly thinking about what Jasmine had said and what she might be hiding.

”...You think I will work for you after seeing whatever you want to show me?” Alice finally asked.

”Yes. After all, as I said, you are a Hero Unit. Unless we work together, let alone Isaac’s City, even Florathi might not survive what is coming,” the Seventh Queen answered.

She paused before continuing. ”Now you can leave. I would have preferred to deal with this immediately, but after seeing you, I can tell that you need time to think. Obviously, I hope you will not tell Isaac about our meeting.”

Alice remained silent, and Jasmine could already guess what she was thinking. Anyone who knew Alice well would probably expect her to tell Isaac about this meeting as soon as she had the opportunity.

Jasmine sighed and added, ”He has the blessing of the World Tree. Anything he hears or sees, it will hear and see too.”

Alice finally looked directly at her. ”What do you mean by that?”

This time, it was the Seventh Queen who became silent. She looked at Alice for several seconds before finally answering, her expression noticeably more serious than before.

”Be careful of the World Tree. It is not our ally,” Jasmine said.

...

Isaac POV

”Is everything okay?” Isaac asked Alice, who was quietly walking next to him while intertwining her fingers with his. The group was roaming through the market together with Emily and Celia, although Isaac found himself paying more attention to Alice than to the shops around them.

Honestly, he had expected Alice to stay with Emily because she preferred peaceful and quiet places, and quiet was practically impossible whenever Celia was around. Even now, Celia was holding Emily’s hand and dragging her from one shop to another with seemingly endless energy.

The four of them were using their original appearances instead of disguises, so they were attracting quite a bit of attention from the people around them. Alice and Celia received the most looks, one because she was a dragon and the other because she was a devil.

Celia had initially suggested that they use disguises, but Alice had refused. It was probably because dragons did not like hiding, especially Sun Dragons, who were proud of their lineage and appearance.

So, in the end, everyone was walking through the market as they truly were. Isaac did not really mind it, although it made moving through some of the more crowded areas slightly troublesome because of all the attention they received.

”Yes,” Alice answered absentmindedly.

”Are you sure everything is okay? You have been unusually quiet.” Isaac glanced at her and frowned slightly.

”Yes,” she answered again, still looking ahead.

”How are you feeling?” he asked, changing his words.

”Yes,” Alice replied absentmindedly.

”Can I kiss you?” he asked.

”Yes—wait, no, not here in the middle of the stre—”

Before she could finish, Isaac leaned over and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. Alice froze for a moment, and when he pulled away, she immediately turned her head toward him.

Her face was half angry and half embarrassed, which made Isaac smile. She clearly wanted to complain, but the kiss still seemed to have improved her mood.

”I have told you that I do not like doing these things in front of other people,” she said.

”But I asked for permission. You said yes,” Isaac replied with an innocent expression.

Alice stared at him for a few seconds before letting out a quiet huff. Despite being annoyed, she continued walking beside him while keeping her fingers intertwined with his, as if she had no intention of letting go.

A little later, they entered a pottery shop after Emily spotted several pieces displayed near the entrance. She said she wanted to bring some souvenirs for the dragon maids, and their own home. She immediately began looking through the cups, plates, bowls, and small decorative objects while Celia followed her around, occasionally picking something up and asking whether it looked good.

Alice seemed more interested in the practical items, so she moved toward a shelf filled with different cups and bowls. She examined several of them carefully, checking their shape and craftsmanship before putting them back and moving on to another one.

Isaac watched her for a moment before following the others. Celia eventually found a small set that she liked, while Emily several items, including a simple cup that had a small design painted around its edge.

After leaving the pottery shop, they continued through the market until they reached a shop selling different kinds of sweets. Emily’s eyes immediately lit up when she saw the large display.

”Can I try that one?” Emily asked, pointing toward one of the sweets.

”You can choose whatever you want,” Isaac told her. Emily happily picked one and took a bite, and her expression changed almost immediately, and a beautiful smile slowly appeared on her face.

”This is amazing. You should try it,” Emily said.

Celia smiled and grabbed one for herself, and soon the two of them were comparing the different sweets while discussing over which one tasted better. Isaac stayed nearby with Alice, watching them enjoy themselves while the shopkeeper explained the ingredients used in some of the sweets.

He was happy to see Emily could taste these sweets.

He eventually noticed that Alice was speaking with the shopkeeper. After listening for a little longer, however, he realized that she was actually asking for the recipe.

Isaac could not help smiling when he saw that. Alice was clearly asking it so that she could make it for Emily later, and the fact that she was already thinking about how to make the sweet herself told him that she seemed to have recovered from whatever had been troubling her earlier.

He did not ask her about it because he felt there was no need to ruin the moment. He could not see the details of the matter even on her status, since she was likely using parallel thoughts to hide them from him. Since she was going so far out of her way to hide it, he decided to give her some space and wait until she was ready to tell him herself.

For now, seeing Alice quietly discussing the recipe with the shopkeeper while Emily and Celia enjoyed themselves was enough for him. Whatever had happened before they came to the market, she seemed to be in a better mood now, and Isaac was glad that she had started enjoying the outing again.

Afterwards, the group headed to another part of the city, where Celia suddenly became excited after spotting a large building filled with water slides and pools. Isaac was surprised when he realized what it was because this was the one of the types of amusement facility he had introduced in his own city, and Althea had already reached an agreement with his administration to have similar buildings constructed throughout Floirathi.

He had simply not expected one to be completed so soon. Judging from the number of people entering and leaving the building, it seemed that the place had already become quite popular despite being relatively new.

”Can we go inside?” Celia asked, already looking toward the entrance with obvious interest. ”I want to try the water slides.”

Isaac looked at Emily, Alice, and Celia before shrugging. He did not really have a reason to refuse, especially since everyone seemed interested in spending some time there, so the group entered the amusement park together.

After changing into suitable clothes, Isaac separated from the others and entered the men’s locker room. The place was fairly busy outside, but strangely enough, there were only two people inside the locker room, including him.

Isaac paused as he looked around. It was not necessarily impossible for the room to be empty, but considering how many people had entered the facility, the lack of people here felt slightly strange. Still, he decided not to think too much about it and continued changing.

The only other person in the room was a young boy sitting on one of the benches. He had pointed ears and small stubs on his head that resembled deer antlers, though they were still far from fully developed.

Isaac glanced at him once before finishing up and preparing to leave. He had almost reached the door when the boy suddenly spoke.

”I guess you need a little more beating if you cannot recognize your senior, brat.”

Isaac froze.

Slowly, he turned around and looked at the boy again. The child was sitting casually on the bench, his feet dangling above the floor while a wide grin appeared on his face.

There was something strangely familiar about the way he had spoken. Isaac had heard that tone before, and the way the boy called him brat immediately reminded him of someone he had met during Selene’s Trial.

His expression changed slightly as the realization came to him.

No. That couldn’t be possible. How would that person be here?

The boy chuckled as if he could somehow see exactly what Isaac was thinking. He seemed far too amused by Isaac’s reaction, and that only made the strange situation even more suspicious.

”Yes, it’s me, you damned brat. I’m Gael, your senior. Now, come give me a hug,” the boy said, still grinning.