1000x Random Returns: Investing in My Crippled Demon Wives!

Chapter 41: Chapter 41: ”Whatever She Is” Wants Blood!?

The carriage sat gleaming outside the gate, black polished wood, silver-gold trim, small magical formations embedded into the wheel spokes.

And the Aethernis crest, unmistakable, emblazoned across the door.

Lucien’s relaxed expression drained away entirely.

’You have got to be fucking kidding me. What do they want now?’

He stepped down, and a guard in House Aethernis armour approached immediately.

”Young Master Lucien.” He greeted.

”Don’t call me that.” Lucien said, unused to be called that.

The guard paused, unbothered. ”Apologies but Lady Cassandra Dracul Aethernis requests an audience.”

’Of course she does.’

He glanced toward the carriage where two more guards flanked it, both radiating A-Rank presence even just standing there doing nothing.

’Can’t exactly turn away an S-Rank noblewoman with an armed escort definitely not without starting a war I have zero chance of winning.’

”Fine,” Lucien said. ”But tell her she can wait at the entrance, first let me inform my wives then she can come inside.”

The guard blinked, clearly unused to anyone dictating terms to his mistress, but relayed the message regardless.

---

Lucien headed in first, and Evelisse practically materialized in the front hall.

”You’re back!” she said, already reaching for whatever bags he might be carrying.

”What’d you—”

She caught his expression and stopped short.

”...What’s wrong?”

”We have a guest,” Lucien said.

”Who?”

He paused. ”My second mother or stepmother, or whatever she is.”

The temperature in the room seemed to drop several degrees, Aurelia set down the sword she’d been cleaning without a sound, Seraphina’s expression sharpened into something wary.

”...That stuckup woman from the Aethernis House?” Evelisse asked.

Lucien nodded.

”Oh,” Evelisse said, and that single syllable carried an impressive amount of venom.

Three knocks sounded at the door.

---

Cassandra Aethernis stood on the other side, flanked by her guards, and didn’t wait for an invitation to start looking.

Midnight-black hair fell in a perfect sheet past her shoulders while ruby red eyes swept the estate with a judging look. Pale, flawless skin, an elegant black dress, posture so perfect it looked structural. Two small balck horns tipped in red peaking out from her forehead beneath her balck bangs.

”So this is where you ended up, huh” she said, gaze drifting past him toward the repaired walls. ”Honestly, I expected worse.”

”You haven’t even come in yet,” Lucien said.

She ignored that entirely, eyes catching on the faint shimmer of the defensive array along the perimeter.

”A defensive formation.” Her eyebrow arched. ”Interesting.” A thin smile followed.

”Did you finally manage to sell something?” She asked smirking while looking at his behind.

”Or maybe find someone willing to fund you for certain reasons?” She said looking at the girls.

Evelisse took a step forward, jaw tight.

Aurelia’s arm shot out, blocking her without a word.

’Phew, thanks Aurelia, definitely don’t want to give her reasons to wipe us out.’ Lucien thought.

’Seems like Aurelia knows exactly what rank we’re dealing with.’

’And this woman is taunting us into attacking her, so she can get an excuse to complete what she couldn’t before.’ He thought warily looking at her.

---

Cassandra’s eyes moved past him toward the three women, lingering on the marriage tattoos visible at his collar.

”Three wives, looks like you scored.” she said. ”But even now, you’ve managed to make questionable decisions.”

”Choose your next words carefully,” Lucien said, voice flat.

”You found your courage, what happened to that scared little boy?” she observed, almost curious.

”Did getting married give you balls, or maybe not?” She asked almost innocently yet with venom hidden behind every word.

Her gaze settled on Aurelia next, recognition flickering and asked. ”Oh, isn’t this the crippled Astrax heir?”

Then Seraphina. ”And this one, isn’t she that useless and rejected succubus?” She asked smirking.

Then, finally moving to Evelisse, she paused, deliberate and cutting. ”And... whatever she is.”

Something hot flared behind Lucien’s ribs.

Deep in his blood, his bloodline stirred being looked down upon or maybe by his emotions, an instinctive pull toward Bloodline Suppressor, some primal part of him wanting to crush the smugness out of her voice entirely.

He clamped down on it immediately while showing no outward emotions.

’I can’t, she’s S Rank, while only D Rank. And attacking her makes me an enemy of House Aethernis, that’s not a fight we survive right now, no matter how satisfying it’d feel.’

He stepped slightly in front of Evelisse instead, jaw tight.

”Have you only come to my home to insult my wives and me?”

”No,” Cassandra said. ”I came because House Aethernis has unfinished business with you.”

Saying so, she produced a folded set of documents from within her sleeve.

”Your expulsion has been finalized,” she said. ”You are no longer permitted to use the Aethernis name.”

Lucien looked at the papers.

’Somehow this feels different from the wedding, that was public humiliation. This is paperwork to erase my name from their family records, maybe even my mother’s if it hasn’t been yet, seems that’s why she’s so excited, coming her herself.’

”Your existence has no further connection to our family,” Cassandra continued, entirely without malice, which somehow made it worse. ”So choose a family name for your little family.”

She held out a pen.

Lucien stared at the blank line beneath his old name.

For a moment, memories surfaced unbidden, his father’s indifference, the estate halls he’d grown up wandering alone, years of being called the family’s greatest disappointment.

Then he glanced behind him.

Aurelia, steady and fierce.

Seraphina, gentle and quietly strong.

Evelisse, fire barely contained.

’I don’t actually want their name,’ he realized looking at his wives. ’Haven’t wanted it in a long time, if I’m honest.’

”Do I get to choose anything I want?” he asked.

”Within the law,” Cassandra said, faintly irritated by the question and him wasting her time.

Lucien smiled slightly. ”Then I’ll think about it.”

Her expression flickered to irritation. ”You need to sign it now.”

”I’ll sign the expulsion,” he said, taking the pen. ”The name, I’ll decide on my own time.”

He signed the first line without hesitation, severing the Aethernis connection cleanly, and left the surname field blank, handing the documents back before she could argue further.

---

As she turned to leave, one of her guards leaned in and murmured something.

”His cultivation rank, my Lady.”

”What is it,” she asked, disinterested.

”Peak D-Rank.”

She paused. ”So?”

”He was E-Rank barely weeks ago before the marriage.”

Cassandra glanced at Lucien with something almost like genuine assessment for half a second, then dismissed it entirely.

”A Peak D-Rank at his age is unremarkable,” she said. ”My own sons are A-Rank at similar ages.”

’She has no idea,’ Lucien thought, watching her write him off completely.

’No idea about the dungeon, the wolves, the talent, the bloodline, none of it. Seems her excitement is clouding her mind or something, well maybe.’

’Good, keep underestimating me it works out better for everyone I actually care about. And by the time she is beneath my feet, they won’t understand how.’

---

Before entering her carriage, Cassandra turned back one final time.

”Oh by the way, you and your wives should be careful not to step out of this beautiful estate.” She said contemptuously.

”Who knows, one night you may suddenly disappear, just like your beloved whore of a mother.” She said smiling innocently like she didn’t threaten them before carrying on.

Rage burned in Lucien, but he held it in knowing what would happen if he lashed out at her.

”One more piece of advice,” she said smirking.

”Whatever name you choose, don’t embarrass yourself with it. Make it fit your lowly status and talent.”

Then she climbed into the carriage without waiting for a response, and it rolled away down the road.

Silence settled over the estate.

Then Evelisse exploded.

”WHO DOES THAT BITCH THINK SHE IS?!”

Lucien nearly jumped.

”She comes to our house,” Evelisse continued, pacing furiously, ”insults you, insults Aurelia, calls Seraphina rejected, and then looks at me like I’m furniture!”

”Evelisse,” Seraphina tried.

”NO!”

Aurelia, surprisingly, smiled. ”Let her finish.”

”Thank you!” Evelisse resumed pacing. ”And did you see how she looked at the estate?”

”Unfortunately,” Lucien said.

”Like she smelled something rotten!”

”Well technically, the old estate did smell rotten.”

Evelisse paused mid-rant. ”...You’re ruining my outrage.”

”Sorry.”

”You’re not forgiven.”

---

Once the anger settled into something calmer, Seraphina spoke up quietly.

”Lucien, what family name are you going to choose?”

He looked down at the folded documents in his hand, then up at the house, then at his three wives.

”I don’t know yet, maybe you guys can help me.”

”Definitely.” Evelisse replied.

”Then don’t hurriedly choose one tonight,” Aurelia said.

”Take your time.”

Seraphina smiled. Evelisse crossed her arms, still faintly huffing.

”Yeah,” she said. ”Pick something worthy to crush that bitch.”

Lucien looked down at the blank line one more time, something settling quietly in his chest.

’For eighteen years, someone else’s name defined who I was supposed to be.’

’Maybe it’s time I picked my own and carve my own legend on their ashes.’

***************

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