Tea Break

All this while, Eleanora had been busy accumulating strength. Whilst her true self stayed safely tucked away out of sight and harm, the various clones which she made use of practically terrorized her half of this Han Empire.

To some extent in an effort to make up for the world that had been lost, her actions became more unbridled and hurried, yet not rushed. For the most part, blood flowed like water and corpses were piled to the heavens, then incinerated. Even if it was just her clone who was taking care of the eliminations, she would still gain the same amount of benefits–therefore, there was simply no reason to hesitate.

Somewhat disappointingly, she did not run across any noteworthy Heaven's Chosen, or even a significant number of them. Sometimes, there actually were none of them in the states which got graced by her destructive presence! It was a real shame, but she could only reluctantly accept that–for now–she was unable to recruit any qualified Subordinates.

All things considered, that should have been the average status quo, yet having Theodore's two impressive sidekicks as a direct comparison still made her feel as if luck simply wasn't on her side. Rationally speaking, though, she knew that her peer had just been ridiculously fortunate.

Her cultivation, on the other hand, had progressed rather quickly. By now, she was in the Dedication Realm and merely a few months away from preparing to break through to the Deific Ordinance Realm. The resulting changes, however, paled in comparison to how much her rampant slaughter had increased her power. Purely Standard Attribute-wise, she could be considered 150 times stronger than before!

This was what gave her the confidence to face Theodore once more, despite the man indubitably having started his cultivation journey by now. With the many trump cards which she held–and the fact that her true self had been securely stashed away in a different world from where they would be meeting–she was confident in not being a pushover just yet.

There had been too many matters which she had been busy with other than taking care of the Hans' states, therefore only now did she attempt to make contact. Like anyone in her position, the meeting place had been rigged with world-spanning Arrays, to be utilized in case their encounter went awry.

After sending out her message, she patiently sat down at a beautifully set table, busying herself with brewing a rather exquisite tea that she had picked up from one of the Imperial Han Family's branches. Say what you will about those scourges, but when it came to luxuries like these, they often had remarkable taste.

Noticing a ripple of Energy in the Teleportation Array next to her, she rose to her feet and walked closer, a welcoming, amiable smile on her lips. As the host, it was only appropriate to take a slightly more submissive role this time, at least outwardly.

"It's an honour to have you join me today, Theodore. You certainly like to keep a lady waiting, don't you? Eventually, I had to reach out to you myself..."

After her guest had arrived, her expression soon turned into a mournful, accusatory one, yet with a clear air of playfulness. At the same time, she unabashedly utilized her perception to sense how far he had come, causing her eyes to widen momentarily.

'... it's no wonder that he's one of the people which the family's warned me about, and told me to not offend in any way if at all possible. What an absolute monster! Clearly, he's merely stepped into the Initial Ascension Realm, yet he's become dozens of times stronger than I am! I've got to work even harder from here on out.'

Despite the shock that this discovery brought her, she didn't become discouraged, only further fired up. This showed in the air that she gave off, which had become a hint more competitive.

"You're right, it's my mistake. I got so absorbed in cultivating that all this time slipped through my fingers before I realized it. But thanks to your invitation, I'm here now. How do you think we should make up for the lost time?"

A polite smile decorating his face, Theodore gave a slight bow of apology, adeptly playing along. At the same time as he had got scrutinized, he had also observed his peer himself, not too alarmed at her improvement. Due to the ridiculous nature of his Coattail Ascension Talent, every single one of his Subordinates now surpassed her Standard Attributes by a few times at the very least. That was exactly what made it so 'broken'.

Obviously, he wouldn't be foolish enough to look down upon her just because of that. The Talents which she held in reserve were likely extremely outstanding and could possibly still significantly threaten him even in his current state.

"It's good that you know... I told you that we should have tea together last time we met, so how about we enjoy a pleasant chat over it and some snacks? Come and take a seat~"

Jokingly pursing her lips at first, they soon blossomed into a dazzling smile, warmth shimmering in her eyes. It was impossible to tell whether her kindness was genuine or an act, even for Theodore, who had plenty of experience with detecting these things.

Following her to the table and two sofas nearby, he sat down on one of them. Eleanora gracefully poured him a cup, then she smirked in amusement and mock-hesitation.

"It completely slipped my mind to ask you this, but... Would you like me to sit next to you or across from you?"

Amidst lifting his cup to take a sip, Theodore froze, as if having been reminded of something vital. Then, his face turned serious, as if he was earnestly evaluating which answer to give. Eventually, he placed down his cup and looked at his hostess. His expression grave and his aura solemn, he uttered words that she definitely hadn't expected.

"Is sitting on my lap not an option?"

At first, she was stunned, then her smile widened as she apologetically patted his shoulder.

"As much as it pains me to say this, I'm afraid it's not available just yet."

Raising an eyebrow, he chose not to continue this particular act any further, because they would get derailed too far otherwise. As the two exchanged a glance, she immediately got the hint and took a seat on the other sofa.

"Come, take a bite of the delights which I've prepared for you! I made them all myself~"

Placing down various pastries and sweets taken straight out of a Storage Ring of hers, she beamed at him in anticipation. Certain that she couldn't possibly succeed in poisoning him, and therefore more than happy to partake in what she had offered him, he picked up one of them and chowed down. Almost immediately, he felt astonished, an unbelievably delicious flavour assaulting his taste buds.

"... I've got to admit, this is the most delectable food that I've eaten since coming here. And even before then, it could easily compete with some of the best chefs in my family's employ. Whoever marries you in the future is one lucky bastard."

Chuckling to herself, Eleanora happily relished in his joy, proud of her achievement in this field. Her mother was a firm believer in the saying that 'the best way to a person's heart is through their stomach', therefore all throughout her education and illusory lives, she had devoted a fair chunk of time to living up to her expectations. Thankfully, she was extremely talented in this regard as well.

"Oh, I know. But you can't become the Heavenly Emperor without extraordinary fortune."

Catching her drift, he rolled his eyes, glancing at her with a minute hint more genuine seriousness than before. To be able to make such a statement without hesitation, she was either convinced that she would place her bet on the right man and ascend alongside that person, or that she would await her destined partner at the ultimate pinnacle. In both cases, it would be an impressive feat.

"Interesting. It seems I was needlessly envious of myself earlier. Alas, I guess that is what it means to be suffering from success."

Not too surprised by his firm belief in himself, she locked eyes with him for a few seconds, before eventually shrugging. If last time, she could have still possibly denied that he was a prime candidate for the throne, she couldn't do so anymore today.

"Well then, potential husband-to-be. You better work hard to qualify to earn these treats in the future."

Letting the ambiguous air between the two linger for a little longer, he eventually dispelled it with a relaxed nod.

"We'll see. But let's put that matter aside for now. How have you been? Did everything go smoothly on your end?"

Seamlessly transitioning to the same casual small talk, she leaned back and heaved an exhausted sigh, popping a candy into her mouth right afterwards.

"Hmm... it's been alright. No luck when it comes to prospective Subordinates, but everything else went well enough. It's been draining to run to and fro to every little corner of those worlds, but the pay-off was worth it. I got my Energy Vein Incorporation out of the way as well, but it pales in comparison to yours. And you? How have you been?"

Shamelessly ignoring the disgruntled stare which she shot him towards the end, he took another bite and washed it down with a sip of tea, relishing in the mouth-watering taste. Only afterwards did he finally respond.

"I can't complain either. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to go through my half of the Han states yet, but all my investments are finally beginning to show their results. And I can't lie, I like what I'm seeing."

Nodding along, she disregarded his bragging. Internally, she was complaining about him already being this ridiculous without even having exhausted most of his available resources, but she didn't let it show.

Perhaps for the first time ever, she began to honestly consider his qualifications to be with her, before shrugging this matter off almost immediately. It was far too early to tell, and they barely knew each other. Despite her upbringing, she was rather emotion-driven when it came to matters of the heart, therefore the fact that he easily ticked all of the boxes on paper wasn't as impactful as it should have been.

'Also, my gut is telling me that if I ever choose to be with him, I'll have to bid the Heavenly Empress position adieu.'

While something like that wasn't necessarily a dealbreaker, she had no intention of dropping out of the competition until there was no other option left, even less so for someone who barely qualified to be counted as a casual acquaintance. A charming one, yes, but still a mere associate at best.

Brushing aside these thoughts, the two of them continued munching and chattering away, nothing of particular substance which the other couldn't have figured out on their own being said. At the very least, they grew a minuscule bit more familiar with the other, yet with both of them having their guards up at all times, this was scarcely worth mentioning.

As the meal and beverages were eventually all ingested, it came time to discuss more serious matters. They hadn't simply met up for fun and games, but rather because they needed to clarify how or if their partnership would carry on from here on out.

"So, what do you say? Should we continue to benefit from each other? Or would you like to go your separate way now? I'll leave the choice up to you."

Patiently staring directly into Theodore's eyes, Eleanora awaited his response. They both didn't truly need each other, and had merely happened to start off close enough together to consider teaming up. Especially now that his wings had begun to properly grow, it was impossible for her to confidently predict what he might want to do.

"Naturally, we'll maintain our cooperation. Now tell me: What are the next steps which you'd like us to take? And how far have you already gone ahead on your own?"

Aware that there was no way at all that she would wait for his approval on important matters, he shot her a knowing smile.