Building A Carnal Empire In The Fantasy World-Chapter 40: System Rewards

The distant sound of steel boots on stone echoed through the night air. Church Knights were spreading out from the main estate, their torches creating dancing shadows across the ruined gardens.

Kael wiped sweat from his brow, still feeling drained from his battle with Cole. The glass crater where the Sanguine Court member had been erased still glowed with residual heat.

"We need to move," he said, helping Madam Vex to her feet. "That light show will draw every knight within the estate."

Velara nodded, her face pale but determined. The healing pill had restored much of her strength, though gray streaks still marked her dark hair. "The forest. We can lose them in the Blackwood."

They moved quickly through the estate grounds, keeping to the shadows between buildings. Kael’s enhanced senses picked up the approaching sounds of armored men. At least a dozen, maybe more.

"This way," Madam Vex whispered, leading them toward the tree line.

Behind them, shouts rang out as the knights discovered the battle site. Kael heard one of them curse loudly at the sight of the melted ground.

"What in the nine hells happened here?"

"Commander Cole’s aura signature just... vanished."

"Search everything. Find the survivors."

The three fugitives slipped between the massive oak trees that marked the edge of Blackwood Forest. Ancient branches formed a canopy so thick that moonlight barely penetrated to the forest floor.

Kael pulled out a small crystal talisman from his robes. The beacon pulsed with soft blue light, pointing deeper into the woods.

"Lady Leya gave this to you?" Velara asked.

"Insurance," Kael replied. "She figured we might get separated."

They followed the beacon’s guidance, stepping carefully over fallen logs and around patches of thorny undergrowth. The forest was alive with small sounds—rustling leaves, distant owl calls, the scurrying of night creatures.

After twenty minutes of walking, the beacon’s pulse quickened. They were close.

"There," Madam Vex pointed ahead.

A rocky outcropping rose from the forest floor, its base hidden by thick ferns. As they approached, Kael spotted the narrow entrance to a cave, partially concealed by hanging moss.

"Kael?" Lady Leya’s voice called softly from within. "Is that you?"

"It’s me," he answered. "With Madam Vex and a friend."

Four figures emerged from the cave’s shadows. Lady Leya and Lady Morwen looked relieved but worried. Lila and Sara stayed close behind them, their clothes torn and dirty from their escape through the forest.

Lady Leya rushed to Kael’s side, her hands shaking as she touched his face. "We heard the explosion. Saw the light. We thought..." Her voice broke, and she bit her lip. She couldn’t finish the sentence.

"I’m fine," Kael said, covering her hands with his own. She’d gotten so attached after their intimate showdown, with a surprising 70% increase in her loyalty meter.

He had unlocked Loyalty Meter after upgrading the system to level 2. It showed the loyalty level of partners he’d gone atleast two rounds with. Lady Morwen’s was at 47%, Lila at 65%, and surprisingly, Sara with the highest at 80%.

’Sigh..., I’ve worked hard.’

Kael continued, "They were fighting a knight called Cole."

Lady Morwen’s face suddenly went white. "Cole? Commander Cole of the Church Knights?" Her voice cracked on the words.

Kael nodded. "He wasn’t who he seemed to be. He was a member of the Sanguine Court."

"No." Lady Morwen stepped backward, shaking her head. "That’s not possible. Cole is... he’s my husband’s brother. They served together for years."

"Your husband?" Velara asked sharply.

Lady Morwen’s composure cracked completely. Tears streamed down her cheeks. "Commander Marcus Thorne of the Church Knights. Cole served under him. They fought side by side during their youths."

The irony hit everyone at once. A Church commander’s wife had just learned that her husband’s trusted blood-brother was exactly the kind of monster they’d sworn to destroy.

Lady Leya wasn’t in much better shape. Her hands trembled as she processed what had happened. "My husband... Count Varnell was at the auction tonight. If the Church Knights are hunting survivors... Could he have been caught alive?"

"If that’s what happened, he’ll be questioned," Kael finished gently. "They’ll want to know if he partners with more high nobles of the kingdom. And if they had any connections with what happened."

The weight of their situation settled over the group like a heavy blanket. Two noble ladies, both married to men with direct ties to the very forces now hunting them. Two whorehouse performers who had witnessed things they were never meant to see. A brothel owner who had been harboring secrets. And Kael himself, whose true power would raise questions no one could safely answer.

"We can’t stay in the kingdom," Lady Leya whispered. "Can we?"

Madam Vex shook her head. "Not if you want to live. The Church will tear apart every connection to tonight’s events, and there’s nothing that the royal family can do about it. If he truly was alive and not in their custody, your husband might be able to protect you, but he can’t protect you from an Inquisition if he was captured, or maybe worse... Dead."

Lady Morwen sobbed quietly. The elegant, composed woman who had commanded respect at the auction was gone. In her place stood someone whose entire world had just collapsed.

"I trusted him," she said through her tears. "Cole visited our home regularly. He played with our children. How long has he been..."

"It doesn’t matter now," Velara said firmly but not unkindly. "What matters is staying alive long enough to figure out what comes next."

Sara, who had been silent since their reunion, finally spoke up. "The beacon worked perfectly, Master Kael. But I saw torches moving through the forest. They’re still searching."

Lila nodded agreement and added. "We should rest here tonight, but we need to leave at dawn. They’ll bring tracking dogs once the sun rises."

Kael looked around the small cave. It was barely large enough for six people, but the entrance was well-hidden and the stone walls would mask their body heat from any magical detection.

"We’ll take turns keeping watch," he decided. "Two hours each. I’ll take the first shift."

He settled near the cave entrance, his new sword across his knees. The weapon hummed softly with residual power from the battle. Outside, the sounds of searching knights grew more distant as they moved deeper into other parts of the forest.

Behind him, he could hear quiet conversations as the others tried to process what their lives had become in the span of a single night.

Lady Leya curled up on her cloak near the cave wall, but sleep didn’t come easily. Every few minutes, she would look toward the entrance where Kael sat silhouetted against the night, a warm expression on her face.

Lady Morwen had stopped crying, but she stared at nothing with hollow eyes. The revelation about Cole had shattered something fundamental in her understanding of the world.

Madam Vex and Velara whispered together about possible escape routes and safe houses in distant cities, or potentially leaving the kingdom of Eldoria to a neighboring kingdom. Their experience with dangerous situations was evident in their calm, practical planning.

Lila and Sara huddled together for warmth, exhausted from their mad dash through the forest but too keyed up to truly rest.

As the night wore on, the sounds of the search parties faded completely. Either the knights had given up for the evening, or they had moved their hunt to other areas.

Kael rotated his shoulders, working out the stiffness from sitting in one position. His cultivation base had stabilized at peak Level 9 Mortal Rank, but using the Divine Strike technique had left him feeling hollow inside.

The Porn Empire System had been unusually quiet since the battle. No notifications, no quest updates, no cheerful announcements about experience gained. It worried him more than he wanted to admit.

While he was feeling vexed, the system pinged suddenly, broke the tension.

---

[Ding!]

[Side Quest Complete: Eliminate the Traitor]

[Objective Achieved: Defeat Commander Cole (Sanguine Court Member)]

[Rewards: 500 EXP, 50 LP, Rare Skill Card: Stormwall]

[Current Stats: System Level 3, EXP: 150/800, LP: 64]

[Stormwall: Active Skill – Creates a wall of electrical energy extending from the shield’s edge. Stops projectiles and zaps anything that tries to pass, also reflects a percentage of magic damage back to the caster.]

---

Kael’s eyes widened, the glow of the system screen reflecting on his face. Killing Cole had gotten him a rare skill card and pushed him to System Level 3. Unlocking the Empire Management Interface was only a matter of time now.

When Lady Leya came to relieve him for the second watch, she settled beside him at the cave mouth.

"What happens now?" she asked quietly, leaning on his shoulder.

Kael was quiet for a long moment, staring out at the dark forest. "We survive the night," he said finally. "Whatever it takes, we survive."

"And after that?"

He turned to look at her. Even exhausted and dirty, she was beautiful. But more than that, she was mentally strong. She hadn’t let her husband’s situation hold her back or influence her negatively.

"After that," he said, "we figure out how to build something new..."

Lady Leya nodded slowly. She understood what he wasn’t saying. Their old lives were over. The safety of noble marriages and established positions had vanished in a single night of blood and revelation.

Whatever came next, they would face it together.