Chapter 136: It wasn’t me forcing him—he did it willingly! Now, can the auction continue?

One Magic Crystal Coin.

Buy an Imperial Viscount as a slave.

When Lilia said this in her childish, milky voice,

the Eternal Feast Hall immediately burst into an uproar.

“Crazy!”

“She’s crazy! How dare she!”

After a dead silence, a boiling clamor erupted.

“This absolutely cannot be allowed! You are trampling on the Imperial Code!”

A completely white-bearded old duke was so angry his face flushed red.

He slammed the table and stood up, pointing at Lilia on the stage.

“Article 7, Volume 3 of the Imperial Code clearly states:”

“No titled noble may be deprived of their status and freedom without trial by the Imperial Court!”

“You are showing contempt for His Majesty’s authority!”

His roar lit the powder keg.

All the nobles present lost their relaxed, watchful expressions, replaced by shock and anger.

Today it could be Draku.

Tomorrow, it could be any one of them!

“That’s right! We absolutely disagree!”

“This farcical nonsense must be stopped immediately!”

“We will impeach you before His Majesty! Impeach you for abuse of power!”

The crowd was in a frenzy; all the nobles stood up.

A wave of pressure surged toward the small figure on the auction stage.

Just then, Duke Varian stepped forward.

He raised his hand and pressed down steadily.

“Everyone, please be quiet.”

As soon as he spoke, the noise in the great hall subsided considerably.

All the nobles found their pillar of support and turned their gazes to him.

Varian first nodded to the crowd,

then turned to face Lilia, his expression heavy and pained.

“Lady Lilia, we understand your determination to purge the Empire of its rotten elements.”

He first affirmed her ‘achievements,’ taking a low posture.

“But!”

His tone shifted sharply, his voice rising.

“Everything must be done within the bounds of His Majesty’s Code!”

“The Imperial Code was established by His Majesty the Demon King himself. It is the cornerstone of three hundred years of peace and stability for our Demon Empire!”

“No one can, and no one is allowed to, place themselves above it!”

These words carried weight, drawing nods of agreement from the nobles behind him.

“His Grace the Duke is right!”

“Uphold the Code! Support His Grace!”

Listening to the chorus of approval behind him,

Varian knew he had successfully rallied all the nobles to his side.

Now, he was the representative of the Empire’s order and the dignity of the aristocracy!

And that little thing on the stage was nothing but a madwoman relying on favoritism to recklessly break the rules!

He adjusted his collar,

bowed deeply to Lilia, his posture humble but his words sharp.

“Lady Lilia, we do not mean to make things difficult for you.”

“But this matter concerns the dignity of the Empire and the face of all of us nobles.”

“Please, rescind your order and immediately release Viscount Draku.”

“And furthermore, apologize to all of us for today’s recklessness.”

Apologize?

When Lilia heard that word, her small cat ears twitched.

She looked at that old fox putting on a show on stage,

then swept her gaze over the indignant nobles behind him, finding it all amusing.

She didn’t say a word.

Instead, she slowly climbed down from the velvet chair.

Step by step, she walked to the huge iron cage holding Draku.

Under everyone’s watchful eyes,

she reached out her small hand and click, unlocked the cage door.

Varian’s expression softened; he thought she was intimidated.

“Come out, meow.”

Lilia gently called to the lump of mud inside the cage.

Draku curled up in the corner, not moving.

Lilia pouted impatiently, reached directly inside,

grabbed his tattered collar, and dragged him out of the cage by force.

Then, raising her little leather boot,

she kicked him squarely in the back of his knee.

Thump!

A muffled sound, and Draku let out a scream.

His legs gave way uncontrollably, and he fell heavily on his knees before Lilia.

“You!”

Varian’s composure vanished.

“Lilia! Don’t go too far!”

The old duke was shaking with rage.

How dare she still commit violence in public?!

Lilia completely ignored the outcry from below.

She looked down at Draku, trembling at her feet.

She extended her small hand, clad in a white glove, and gently patted his swollen face.

“Viscount Draku, tell them.”

Her voice was soft and light, yet it clearly echoed through the dead-silent hall.

“Are you willing to be a slave? Meow?”

Draku’s body stiffened sharply.

He trembled as he raised his head to look at the audience.

He saw Varian, saw those ‘friends’ he had once shared drinks with.

Their faces held no sympathy, only anger, contempt, and indifference.

He understood.

He was finished.

Title, property, dignity… everything was gone.

Now, the only thing left was this wretched life.

And that life was pinched in the hand of this little girl before him.

He opened his bloodstained mouth.

A rasping sound came from his throat.

The next second, using all his remaining strength,

he slammed his forehead heavily against the cold floor before Lilia!

Bang!

“I… I am willing…”

A hoarse, broken voice came from the floor.

“I am willing… to be a slave… Please… please spare my life, my lady…”

The entire hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

The anger on all the nobles’ faces

turned into disbelief.

Draku… he… he actually agreed?!

He would abandon even the last shred of aristocratic pride just to survive?!

Varian’s face instantly turned pale.

All the ‘righteousness’ he had stirred up

collapsed into a huge joke in the face of Draku’s kowtow.

He had calculated everything, except one thing—

how cowardly a person driven to the edge could be.

Lilia looked at him with satisfaction.

She reached out and patted Draku on the top of his head.

“Good boy, meow.”

Having said that, she straightened up and turned around,

looking again at the petrified nobles below.

A naive yet cruel smile bloomed on her small face.

“Everyone, you all saw that, right?”

“It wasn’t me who forced him. He volunteered, willingly.”

Lilia tilted her head.

Her heterochromatic eyes—one gold, one blue—passed over everyone and landed on Duke Varian.

“Since the person in question has agreed, can our auction continue now?”