My interracial harem of beautiful queens

166  Bloodsucker

"What's happened, Sir Avalon? Why aren't you responding?" Kenis asked with reproach, furrowing his brows. He displayed an expression of disbelief and disappointment on his face. "Could it be that my words turned out to be true?! Please don't get me wrong; I don't suspect you at all. I'm just curious."

Avalon frowned as he realized that the longer he remained silent, the greater the pressure would become. Fleeting glances at Adam indicated that his boss wouldn't intervene in this matter. Realizing this, Avalon sighed.

"Of course, he won't intervene. Why not use this opportunity to strip me of some of my power?" he thought, trying to anticipate Adam's logic. "He's always been so cryptic. You never really know what he truly wants."

Time was running out. Usually, only five minutes were given for one question, but Avalon had taken three minutes. There was too little time for a well-thought-out response, so he had to improvise.

"Kenis, if I'm not mistaken. Thank you for the intriguing question," Avalon began, causing the entire hall to fall silent. He scanned the audience and, taking a deep breath, continued, "In my life, I've conducted many businesses and, of course, sometimes made deals with other races. It's perfectly normal for a merchant. However, it seems that even a person with such a sterling reputation as mine will face troubles."

"An interesting line of reasoning, Sir Avalon. But allow me to clarify one detail," Kenis said, nodding with a venomous smile. His tone was filled with poison, "It seems you misunderstood me. I understand that supplying provisions to other races is entirely normal. After all, we're not racists, right?"

"Yes, then..."

"Allow me to interrupt you," Kenis interrupted Avalon again, furrowing his brows, "I meant that you supplied provisions at a time when Avalonia had already declared war. This is direct betrayal and aiding the enemy. Do you have any justification for that?"

Avalon frowned deeper, feeling a cold sweat trickle down his spine. He looked in Adam's direction and saw the man looking straight at him. They made eye contact.

Suddenly, the merchant noticed that Adam had started moving his lips, trying to convey something to him. Avalon understood.

"You'll... owe... me," Avalon read from Adam's lips and breathed a sigh of relief.

Kenis furrowed his brows even deeper when he didn't hear a response from Avalon and was about to press further, but he was interrupted by a sudden noise from the microphone. And then...

"Perhaps, as the future CEO of Veridia Corporation, I should take responsibility for answering the key questions," Adam said, laughing.

"Sir Adam, with all due respect, I was asking Avalon..." Kenis began to complain, gritting his teeth, but...

"What?!" Adam mumbled, grinning.

Surrounding people didn't understand anything, but suddenly, Kenis fell to the floor and started breathing heavily. No one understood what had happened as it all occurred too suddenly.

"Oh, Goddess of Light, what just happened? Help our guest," Adam said with concern in his voice.

Several doctors rushed to Kenis and helped him to his feet, but he quickly recovered. His eyes were clouded, and his hands trembled. His lips quivered, and he smiled, bowing his head.

"Indeed... I'm sorry for being rude to you, Mr. Adam. Please, I would be happy to hear your explanation."

"What a relief that you're all right. Then, with your permission, I will proceed with the question," Adam said. He cracked his neck and smiled, surveying the audience. He noticed anticipation and cynicism on many faces. Most seemed to expect his failure. However, he locked eyes with Amarantha, who smiled at him.

Nodding, Adam straightened his posture and began his speech.

"The journalist Kenis's question was very interesting. I, too, was once puzzled by this question and had started to think that my colleague, Avalon, was collaborating with our enemies. It was horrifying," he murmured, and his voice was audible. "However, I conducted a thorough investigation, and my suspicions proved to be unfounded. The date of the trade and the date of war preparations differed by a whole six months, indicating Avalon's pure trade intentions."

"So that's it... but my informant..." Kenis began to say, but Adam interrupted him.

"Your informant is probably a person named Ananar?" Adam asked, propping up his chin with his hand. Seeing Kenis nod, he snapped his fingers, and an image appeared on the hologram behind them. "Then please, watch this video."

Question marks appeared on many people's faces. However, they decided to first look at the video provided by Adam. In it, an old man with silver hair and a bony figure handed a case to creatures that strongly resembled demons.

There was a gasp. Most of them murmured, "It's Ananar."

Dealing with demons. It was a much bigger issue than dealing with elves, and thus, the attention of the guests was diverted. Even Kenis himself was shocked by this revelation.

"Sir Kenis, as you can see, this individual was involved in dealings with demons, and I conducted a personal investigation with the royal knight squad," Adam said, crossing his arms on his chest. "In case you've forgotten, I am Her Majesty's advisor. Using my authority, I conducted the investigation, and we discovered that this man conducted secret information-selling deals. He was a double agent."

"Then, the information about Mr. Avalon..."

"Fake. Most likely, this person decided to manipulate you and us, including, to make as much money as possible," Adam said with a soft voice that put the audience in a strange state. "So, Avalon is innocent. His honor as a merchant still shines, and I hope that there won't be any suspicions towards my colleagues. After all, could the advisor to the Queen herself be covering up fraudsters?"

Yes, he could, but no one dared to say that aloud. In the audience, many supported Elizabeth, and potentially, it would be dangerous for them to voice doubts about the Queen's advisor.

"If you have any suspicions, you can always turn to the Investigation Department," Adam added.

So even though everyone knew the truth, no one else dared to doubt their identities. Spies sent to ask uncomfortable questions frowned when their plan was disrupted by Adam's sudden resistance.

It was a common but still good move. In a world ruled by kings, there was no place for something like "freedom of speech."

The rest of the conference proceeded relatively peacefully. Adam presented a lineup of products such as furniture, cosmetics, clothing, and services, and he gave the audience a 15% discount coupon for their first purchase.

All items were sold, and the total earnings, not counting ticket sales, amounted to 780 Platinum Dragon Stones. One hundred more people made pre-orders for various products.

Veridia's debut was good, even excellent, one might say. Adam managed to take control of the situation, although it didn't go perfectly.

"At first, I wanted to pressure Avalon, but he couldn't even hold on for a few minutes. It seems his confidence has been severely shaken," Adam thought as he left the theater building. It was already evening.

A cold gust of wind struck his back, and the hem of his suit fluttered in the wind. Every time Adam sighed, his breath formed visible puffs.

"It seems that snow will fall soon. It's annoying that there's no stable weather in this world," Adam thought, turning around.

"Congratulations on your debut," a beautiful female voice responded.

It was Amarantha, standing behind him, wrapped in a fur coat made from the fur of a demonic beast, somewhat resembling a bear. Although Amarantha didn't feel the cold, she enjoyed wearing various ***

types of clothing.

"Thank you, though it didn't go as I wanted," Adam said, approaching her. He took Amarantha's hand and kissed the back of it. "I hope you didn't get bored."

"Hehehe. It's okay, don't worry. Juliet was with me," Amarantha said with a chuckle. Her eyes became teary, and she embraced Adam, wrapping her arms around his back. In a subdued voice, she said, "She complained about how venomous you are. She detected your silent attack."

"And that girl doesn't hold back on her words..." Adam said, sighing.

The bright city lights didn't quite reach them. They disappeared into the darkness and stood, embracing each other. There was a romantic atmosphere between them.

Adam's thoughts were occupied by considerations of their future actions, which brought him discomfort and irritation. Too much work had piled up on him, but he was trying to resolve it to achieve everything he wanted in the future.

Adam couldn't see Amarantha's facial expression, just as she couldn't see his. However, there was a silent understanding between them.

After a few minutes, Adam was the first to speak.

"Amarantha... are you really pregnant?"

***

The capital of Avalonia, Fortungard.

Just like in any major city, there was a division into districts in the capital. In the southern part, there was the business district, where the headquarters of the most famous companies were located.

Currently, construction is underway there. Perhaps, right in the center of this district, more than ten buildings were demolished to make way for a high-rise building owned by the newly established Veridia company.

There was a lot of discontent, irritation, and envy towards this project. The construction project blocked the light for many other buildings, but their complaints led to nothing. There was no law prohibiting the construction of tall buildings.

According to the blueprints, the building was supposed to be 154 meters in height and 64 meters in width. It was designed to have 39 floors. There was also an underground structure – a storage facility that only the CEO and four executives were allowed to enter.

The noise from the construction was simply unbearable, which only added to people's irritation. However, no one could stop it.

At the same time, many companies held emergency meetings to discuss how they could hinder Veridia's business. This scenario repeated itself in almost all places.

***

Avalon, with a heavy heart, flopped onto his couch at his home. He realized with horror that he was just a step away from losing his career and reputation. It had cost him a lot of nerves, and he even noticed a few gray hairs appearing.

"I'm so tired," he thought, and when he realized that he owed something to Adam, a headache exploded in his head. "Darn, this bloodsucker will surely torment me just to achieve his goals."

To be continued...