Inside the cell, Kaian de Lunare was chained and invaded by a figure wearing a dark cloth that covered him from head to toe.

"Who-" Before Kaian could completely finish his sentence and make a ruckus, the figure shut its mouth using its hand.

"Silent! If you don't want death, then gladly accept my offer. Do you hear me?"

Kaian nodded in response, not because he was afraid but because he needed to come back to his land.

The figure soon removed its hand and demanded, "Now drink this thing in a gulp."

Kaian remains silent, staring at the ominous container in front of him.

"Should I force you to drink just so you could understand the words I spoke?"

"No need to," Kaian replied, taking the bottle with its mouth and gulping it in a go, like the figure asked, then spitting the container on the floor.

"Good, a dog should be a dog if they wanted to live." Just after saying that, the figure disappeared, leaving a bloody butterfly that flutters in the tip of the nose before it flutters away.

'Just what happened? ' Kaian asks himself, as he is still quite drowsy from everything.

'...that butterfly clearly symbolises the...' and he soon dropped dead asleep.

Another day has rayed its light on the house of Riche, where all three wives and five children, with the head of the house in the centre, are presented in a dining room.

"I heard you brought a new slave to the house, my lord."

"Hmm,"

"If I may ask, would I be given the liability to take that plaything as my daughter's toy?"

Audrey Portfabor Riche, born in wealth on the day she was born, has seen any kind of jewellery around the empire.

She takes keen measures to identify each item going in and out of the house to make sure fakes can't pass through.

As the first wife of the house, she was already one of the most respected women before the queen or princess, and she was obligated to do her part.

She has enough power to demand anything for her husband.

She must have been on the stairs yesterday when the Duke came back.

Looking at the face she wore as she spoke of the toy the duke had brought, the alrady odour of the play she wanted to begin.

This house retained such a disgusting scent that even I wasn't exempt from wearing it off.

"Mother, you know Lyana loves those kinds of toys, so I will gladly accept it if Father grants its permission."

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"Lyana Riche, if you wanted a trap, how about I make you one, hah? You know, don't use those kinds of words just because you have given Father a present this morning. That slave has been given to my brother Penny to take care. So don't bitch my brother just for your own pleasure."

Agerson Riche, as the fourth son of the house, acts unruly sometimes.

Its mouth has the power to say everything you hide at the bottom of your body.

He was raised as someone who killed in the dark, and with those keen eyes, he could point out what hurts a person more than what they know.

Having been with me since he was young, he has grown up and will always use his abilities if it means trampleing those who trample his beloved brother.

Such loyalty towards me doesn't have any repayment I couldn't give.

Every now and then, when the sky turned dark, he would crawl on my bed and ask for a night.

He wanted that, so I gave it to him, and the loyalty he showed was the result of everything.

"You-"

"What about me, hah?"

"You shit-"

"Lyana, don't burst into anger. You know Angerson is, of course, he is just joking. Right, Angerson," said Audrey.

"Of course it was; if that is what you want, hmp!"

"How disrespectful does your mouth say every time it opens, Angerson?"

Matilda Poorche Riche is a not-so-calculative woman.

Having given birth to the first son and fifth daughter, she is known to be a strong contender beside the duke.

Though she is the second wife of the house, she has long given up the position she should have and let the first wife take the lead.

As crazy as this house may be, Matilda wasn't getting any longer from its brutality.

She would dispose of any treats just to solidify her position, like a snake with two heads and one body.

She may act docile, but she is just like anyone who awaits the downfall of their loved one.

"And what about it? Are you going to throw a tantrum, or do you also want to possess the slave my brother has?"

"Don't be cheeky. Who wants to possess a dirty slave with an unknown identity?"

"Better not, miss Matilda. Because even if you want, it doesn't suit you to have someone like him."

"You-"

"Mom, we are currently eating. Behave!"

Alier Xin Riche is the first child who takes on the same appearance as the duke with hallowed eyes.

With a handsome, stiff face, he was regarded as as cold as the abyss.

Like a father, like a son, he was raised to be a great ruler who is expected to sit in the position of head.

He grows without the love of both parents, as the sole purpose of his life has been set to lead Riche to its glory.

'He would probably be sent away soon, so I should prepare a good present as his younger brother, right?'

The duke commanded, "If you have quarrelled enough, then silence was the only thing I asked. The food has chilled; do you think that is right?"

The atmosphere suddenly rises in tension. No one wants to speak, but no one seems to be too affected.

After all, the Riche Dukedom has a tradition of moulding one's body into one's vessel as a means to save oneself.

"As Angerson pointed out, the slave has been given to Penny to be raised. That should end the tension in this place. Remember, there is rule in every corner of this land."

For Riche, the rule is simple. Once in the possession of others, they remain theirs.

Whether they break to a pulp, use a poison tester, or die from being useless, it's theirs to take care of.

If someone breaks this rule, they will be punished for drinking a deadly poison that causes the intestine to melt.

Whipped by spiky whip with spicy juice applied on each corner of the spike, resulting in pain that increases tenfold.

To be thrown and live in the deepest part of the underground dungeon for a month without a speck of light

A force of hunger was also applied, which anyone doesn't want.

"Food is the source of living, so as long as we live, we should eat," is the motto of the penny.

That is why no one dares take each other's belongings, because the aftermath is too much to bear just with that.

Still, there is always an exemption...

"Penny, look for me after this meal," said the duke.

"Yes."

While the wife and daughter look jealous of their gritting teeth, Angerson and Alier stare at their brother Penny.