Strongest Necromancer System Chapter 811: A Family Business

'Humans achieve growth only when entering the Gates. Without a Gate, their development is halted. Very well, the five rulers shall be my first focus. I will arrange for Katarina and the others to face more formidable opponents. Within a month, I anticipate all the Rulers will have leveled up, and I should at least possess three TITANs. We can then work on acquiring other Ranks from the mages within my guild.'

With his plan formulated, Jason nodded to himself. He then turned to C'thlyanu, conveying his understanding of the tasks ahead. C'thlyanu, relieved that the matters were finally settled, brought the council meeting to a close, allowing everyone to return to their respective worlds.

....

Outside the council chamber, Riyala stood with a respectful posture, her hands clasped before her as Jason approached. The meeting had concluded moments earlier, but Jason had been detained by numerous council members and fellow candidates vying for the Overlord position. They sought to discuss the Aqualith stone and its distribution. Jason had pledged to notify them when Earth was prepared for trade, and in turn, they had provided him with magical communication runes for future contact. A weary expression marked Jason's face as he emerged from the hall, flanked by Gina and Hesabeth. He was mid-laugh at something Gina had said when his gaze fell upon Riyala; his face instantly lit up even more, and he opened his arms to her with a broad smile!

Riyala had been making a valiant effort to restrain herself, desiring to greet Jason with the deference befitting the new Overlord of their Domain. However, upon witnessing that smile, she found it impossible to maintain her composure! Casting all self-control aside, Riyala rushed into Jason's embrace, her own wide smile mirroring his.

'Jason!'

Jason chuckled, twirling Riyala playfully. He allowed her to cup his face, showering his cheeks and forehead with kisses before sealing their reunion with a deep kiss on his lips. Pulling back moments later, Riyala beamed at Jason, her eyes filled with immense pride.

'I heard the wonderful news. Congratulations, Jason.'

Jason's smile broadened further. He bestowed another brief kiss upon Riyala before thanking her and gently setting her down. As she landed, Riyala caught Hesabeth's pointed glance from the side. Swiftly regaining her composure, Riyala offered Hesabeth a respectful bow. Hesabeth, however, simply sighed and reminded Riyala of their earlier conversation.

'There's no need for such formality with me. We are family now, remember?'

Riyala still felt a degree of unease due to Hesabeth's unusual friendliness, yet she strived to maintain her poise and nodded in agreement. It would be a challenge for Riyala to disregard the numerous tales she had heard about Hesabeth from various worlds! Hesabeth was known as one of the most notorious figures on the council, a person Riyala had been repeatedly warned against offending! To Riyala, Hesabeth's current demeanor felt akin to someone from Earth encountering a notorious terrorist engaging in friendly banter.

Yet, Riyala understood she had to adapt! Hesabeth was now integral to Jason's family, consequently making her part of Riyala's family as well. Given their impending frequent interactions, Riyala recognized she couldn't persist in her state of apprehension around Hesabeth.

Hesabeth observed the palpable tension radiating from Riyala and a smile touched her lips. Honestly, she wasn't surprised, fully aware of her reputation throughout the Primordial Expanse. While Hesabeth typically disregarded the opinions of common folk, Riyala was different. As a member of her new family, Hesabeth recognized Jason's desire for all of them to coexist harmoniously. Hesabeth closed her fan, offered Riyala a warm smile, and inquired:

'I received word from some acquaintances that the world of Radagan is presently seeking new trade routes for substantial Dragonstone exports. Is this accurate?'

Riyala was momentarily taken aback by the abrupt question, but she managed to remain composed and affirmed Hesabeth's query with a nod. Hesabeth hummed thoughtfully and stated:

"It is beneath me to involve myself in such dealings since I would normally leave them to my lessers, but I suppose I must make an exception since you are family. You see, a few of my refining factories have been going through a shortage of fire-based magic stones recently. We’ve been utilizing activated Flaming Salamander cores, but the cores lack efficiency and burn out too quickly. I think your dragonstones might be a better substitute than the salamander cores. I shall grant you the honor of supplying me with these minerals. Do you accept?"

"Y-Yes. Of course!"

Riyala felt a sudden rush of excitement pouring out from her heart once she heard Hesabeth say this! It was true that Riyala had been trying to secure more trade routes with worlds around their domain for a long time now because the Dragonborn of Radagan needed to make more money to rebuild the infrastructure that had been destroyed by the tyrant Sovereign! Radagan had already been selling as much Dragonstone as they could, but they couldn’t force the worlds around them to buy more Dragonstone than what they needed, so they needed to find more buyers! But Riyala never thought that she would manage to get one of the council members to offer her a business deal! If Riyala managed to complete this deal, then her people wouldn’t have to worry about money for a long time! Hesabeth smiled when she saw the tension on Riyala’s face changing into an eager expression, and Hesabeth turned to Jason and spoke to him in a kind voice.

"I’ll be stealing dear Riyala here for a while, darling. This will take some time, so you may go ahead of us. We will join you later on Earth. I hope you don’t mind."

Jason scoffed in amusement, and Jason couldn’t help but wonder what Hesabeth was really playing at here! Hesabeth was a very cunning woman, so Jason was sure that Hesabeth had some sort of ulterior motive. But Jason knew Hesabeth wouldn’t hurt Riyala, so he leaned forward and gave Hesabeth a soft kiss before he narrowed his eyes playfully.

"Be nice to her."

Jason said this in a hard voice, but the playful look in his eyes made Hesabeth laugh softly! Hesabeth flicked her fan open to cover the slight blush that was already spreading on her cheek, and she gave Jason a loving smile before she turned to Gina and gave her a hug.

"Keep an eye on him for us."

Hesabeth whispered this to Gina, and Gina smiled and said that they would be fine. Jason was a trouble magnet, but they were just going home, so there was no way they would run into any trouble. Hesbeth nodded as she finally turned to Riyala and told her to come along!

"Let us find a more conducive setting to discuss the finer details. We have quite a lot to cover."