CEO In A Fantasy World Chapter 177: Chapter 177: Corruption

Caesar nuzzled her forehead for a few seconds before letting her down and patting her on the head, "who is this fine lady?" has asked curiously while gesturing towards Ginger, a calm smile plastered on his face.

"She always came to the palace to eat, so we soon became friends!" Elizabeth replied energetically and grabbed Ginger by the hand, "Ginger, this is my dad" she paused for a second whilst tapping her chin, "his name is daddy!" she continued.

Ginger's eyes dilated as she observed Caesar in a new light, as if he was some kind of pervert, however, Caesar quickly shut down her thoughts with a chuckle. "Pardon my foolish daughter, my name is Mephisto Pheles, but please refer to me as Caesar," he said eloquently and put his hand forward.

Ginger stared incredulously at Caesar's outstretched hand before reluctantly shaking it. She had never met someone who was unaffected by her ident.i.ty, she was always feared by others, or they would treat her as pa.s.sing wind. As she was thinking this, she couldn't help but scrutinize Caesar once more.

She couldn't feel any extraordinary power emanating from him, but his eyes appeared as though they could see through her soul. Shocked, she retreated back a few steps and nearly tripped on her feet, barging into the table. A deep blush appeared on her face as she glanced at Caesar's and Elizabeth's wry smile.

Caesar chuckled dryly and walked pa.s.sed Ginger, toward his father Crowley, who was still in shock. He approached the middle-aged man and hugged him tightly, "I'm home, father" he commented after a few moments of awkward silence.

Crowley's eyes closed as he too tightened his arms around Caesar, "welcome home my son" he replied with a wide smile. As a father, the amount of worry that Caesar provided him with was insurmountable. However, the happiness that he supplied him with, made everything worth it.

After exchanging a few more formalities, Caesar sat at one side of the table, next to the two ladies. He expertly used his knife and fork to bite into a delicious piece of chicken, topped with a marsala sauce.

"So, father, why is the church here?" he asked after chewing a piece of meat. His manners were impeccable and Crowley responded after glancing at Ginger strangely, "well, they were here to investigate the death of one of their heroes, however, for some reason, this girl has stayed here for much longer than what was promised" he replied with an exasperated sigh, causing Ginger to snort and look the other way.

"And this young la.s.s here is the leader of those powerful women outside?" Caesar asked strangely. He was bewildered at the young age of Ginger, not only was she a paladin at the same age as Elizabeth, she was absurdly powerful as well.

"That's right, I am the youngest paladin in the history of the grand church… I have been awarded this feat due to my contributions and unique talent!" Ginger cut in the conversation proudly. Her chin was raised high as if she was fishing for compliments, however, they never came.

Her childish actions were, of course, noticed by Caesar, however, he simply returned them with a smile and finished his meal in relative silence. "Where is Sebastian?" he asked after finishing his meal and pushing the plate toward the middle of the table.

"Ah, he went to go negotiate deals with nearby kingdoms, he should be back soon," Crowley replied after some thought. Sebastian had gone from a mere butler to the trusted aide of the king, as such, his responsibilities became much broader as well.

Caesar nodded his head and stood up from his chair, "father, explain to the n.o.bles that I have acquired a few thousand peoples to help farm, craft, and fight for our kingdom… any opposition on this matter will not be tolerated" Caesar said solemnly and Crowley could only nod his head in confusion.

Most of the residents in the kingdom and even Crowley himself regarded Caesar as the most important figure. Not only did he implement the military school, he thought of using the insurance tactic, and fought off the enemy coalition forces. The entire military was under his control and the citizens adored him.

As such, even though Crowley was the king, he was mostly just viewed as a figurehead until Caesar had returned. He was old and not very well-versed in politics, thus, many n.o.bles had taken advantage of his carelessness and rash personality.

Seeing that his father readily agreed, Caesar straightened his collars and headed for the door, of course, Elizabeth followed in tow. She hadn't yet seen Ahri, who she considered to her mother, thus, she would be following Caesar around until she found her.

Ginger naturally followed Elizabeth, so two small girls trailed behind Caesar as he walked, drastically ruining his image. However, Caesar didn't pay Ginger much heed as he swooped down and placed Elizabeth on his shoulders.

"Weee!" she said excitedly as she spread her arms wide, not afraid if Caesar dropped her at all. She had long formed a strong bond with him, not to mention the fact that she trusted him deeply.

"Elizabeth," Caesar suddenly called out, garnering her attention… "do you remember anything before I found you in that goblin encampment?" he asked after a moment of hesitation. He closely remembered Musashi's words, so he figured that Elizabeth was either a nymph or Valkyrie. The former being much more likely.

Elizabeth shook her head, "my memory is very blurred before then… The last thing I remember is seeing your face…" Elizabeth responded with a troubled expression. She seemed to have either experienced memory loss or had her memory wiped for some odd reason.

Caesar nodded his head at her reaction and continued walking, he didn't expect much from his question anyway. Furthermore, he had already decided long ago that no matter what she was, he would still treat her as his step-daughter.

Thinking to here, he figured that he could introduce her to both Symphony and Seraph. Although he didn't consider them to be his children, he was still responsible for their safety. As per request of their mother.

The trio soon reached the ends of the halls and Caesar pa.s.sed by the kneeling guards, exiting the palace. He peered down at the busy kingdom for a few moments before his eyes rested on a particularly tall and luxurious building.

It was made of stone and was quite conspicuous compared to the others, a large sign that read, "Merchants guild" was nailed to the front of the construction and Caesar couldn't help but smile wryly. He had left Veronica in charge of 'Evernight' for the last few months and was quite curious as to how much money his "business" made.

"Sigh, I need to prepare a residential area for Ahri and the rest first" Caesar whispered with a sigh and trod down the steep steps. He didn't really mind the fact that Elizabeth and Ginger followed behind him, but if the church la.s.s were to threaten his family in any way…

As his thoughts trailed off to here, a particularly sharp glint appeared in his eyes, It wouldn't be the first time he took out an influential figure within the church. Alas, since she seemed to be a relatively normal girl, Caesar would, by no means, attack her for no reason, just simply because she was apart of the church faction. That would make him no better than the church, instead, he would slowly corrupt her thought process.