I received a proposal from Miss Meido titled "Relaxing and Pleasant Subordinate Expansion Proposal."
It looked like a very frivolous name, but the top two names on the producer list were actually 'D' and Rimuru.
Suddenly, the overall evaluation of it skyrocketed.
Looking at the details, it was based on the Evil Piece system, mixed with many similar systems, and ultimately centered on a 'King' who formed a link called 'Hyper-Bond' with other 'Ministers'.
At the same time, the benefits that the 'King' and 'Ministers' could gain through this link were maximized to increase the value of the system.
The biggest selling point of this system was that, aside from the 'Ministers' maintaining absolute loyalty to the 'King', there were no other restrictions or side effects.
"Are there any risks? And will it change one's race?" Jean asked.
"There are certainly risks, but with the protection of Lord 'D' and Rimuru, the outcome won't be worse than if nothing happened. As for racial reconstruction, it's optional. If the final product turns out as expected, one can choose to remain their original race, become a Devil, or take on the race of the 'King'."
Safety was guaranteed, and the racial issue was optional. As for absolute loyalty, since the object of that loyalty was Jean herself, she naturally had no objections.
"I have no objections, but let's leave the final decision to her."
Miss Meido nodded; she had already anticipated Jean's decision. She took out a pre-prepared talisman for communicating with souls and handed it to Jean.
"Inject your mental energy into it, and you will be able to communicate with the soul before you."
Following Miss Meido's instructions, Jean infused her mental energy. The patterns on the talisman began to glow, and soon a familiar sensation returned as Jean entered the mental space once again.
---
It was an incredibly vibrant space. In the very center was a patch of pure white open ground, while the surroundings were filled with various distant vistas.
There were snow-capped mountains piercing the clouds, an imperial capital split in two, a blazing Lungmen, a dilapidated Chernobog, and a Fuyuki crawling with tentacles.
There were other inconspicuous places as well, all seemingly locations she had experienced before.
Right in front of Jean, Talulah was floating in mid-air. Unlike previous times, she looked as if she had just been born, her eyes closed as if she were asleep.
Looking at her directly, Talulah's figure was much better than FrostNova's initial state, but it couldn't compare to the current FrostNova, or even her younger sister, Old Chen. It seemed she had suffered quite a bit during her growth and lacked nutrition.
Jean walked forward to get a closer look, and as she approached, Talulah slowly opened her eyes.
"Who are you?" Talulah asked, the girl before her looking somewhat familiar.
"I am Jean. I heard you and FrostNova are like sisters, and I..." Just as Jean was about to mention her relationship with FrostNova to build rapport, Talulah interrupted her.
"No, we aren't. FrostNova and I aren't sisters... I... I don't deserve it."
"..." This is probably the king of awkwardness, killing the conversation in an instant.
Knowing the underlying reasons, Jean couldn't believe those events were Talulah's fault. She even felt a significant degree of respect and sympathy for this Draconic woman who had dedicated her youth to the cause of liberating the Infected.
As for FrostNova, after clearing the Radiant Roar, she had been muttering 'Little Tal' for a long time.
However, saying she and FrostNova were sisters was not wrong at all; that stubborn streak was exactly the same. Even if she were told that FrostNova knew the reasons and wouldn't blame her, she likely still wouldn't forgive herself.
More likely, she currently feels that her present situation is...
"Talulah, are you in pain right now?"
"Pain? This is merely the punishment heaven has given me."
"..."
...It was her punishment.
So, Jean simply gave up on the idea of a friendly exchange; in this situation, the more she tried to persuade, the worse it would get.
She walked straight up, lifted Talulah's chin with her hand, and said to her:
"Talulah, look at my face. Since you have memories of when you were controlled by the Black Snake, you must remember who I am. Now listen up..."
She then brushed her hand over Talulah's cheek, gripped her head, and pulled her close to her face.
"According to the contract, I was the one who dealt with you. From that moment on, your soul and your body all belong to me. Understand? No one is going to punish you, because no one benefits from your pain. Stop being so hard on yourself, because you are mine. Being hard on yourself is being hard on me. And as my property, daring to be hard on your master is just too lawless."
"...?"
"The current pain is for your treatment; it will gradually weaken and disappear within a few days. After that, we can arrange for your resurrection. If you still have the spirit then, go and do something for the Infected once more."
"...Thank you." Along with Jean's unreasonable words, the originally hollow look in Talulah's eyes changed slightly.
"I already said you're mine, so what is there to thank me for?"
At that moment, the entire mental space began to destabilize. It seemed the input mental energy had been exhausted.
She casually pinched Talulah's cheek and left a smile: "See you next time, Talulah. Let me see the living you then."
Then, with a blur, Jean was back where she started.
"I've made the call. Let's go with this plan."
Miss Meido glanced at Jean with some surprise, then nodded, indicating she understood.
"There is nothing else. If you need to commission custom equipment or research projects, just discuss them with Humphrey. Please do not forget today's work."
Miss Meido then used spatial teleportation to leave, while Jean headed back the way she came to find Humphrey.
---
"Oh my, oh my, Lord Jean, welcome, welcome."
"Help me customize some equipment, and I have a few research projects to commission." Since she had money now, Jean planned to deal with the items on hand and take some time to complete the upgrade for White Wind.
However, Jean was still a bit curious; after all, she hadn't expected this Great Serpent to be worth so much money.
"Are you asking about the value of this Great Serpent, meow?"
Jean asked her question while Humphrey was leading her to the reception room.
"To be honest, meow, this Great Serpent isn't worth that much. However, meow, when Lady Meido was making the quote, she priced the consumed meat as a 'demand item,' and demand items can go up to a 200% markup, meow. Then, because of the necessary integrity, the Great Serpent was viewed as a whole, and its total value was calculated at double the price too."
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