I Maxed Out My Luck Stat-Chapter 7: Behind The Scenes

"Sigh..."

The Head of the Blanc Household and his wife sat next to each other on the vast bed. They were locked in an intimate embrace, worry knitted on their brows, and hints of sadness on their extremely beautiful faces.

What could be the source of this distress?

"This arranged marriage we have with the Noir Family is dangerous. If we are not careful, they will swallow us whole..." The woman, Melissa, whispered into the ears of her husband.

He nodded, his expression grim.

"But we had no choice. That girl, their young lady, is very exceptional. She’ll be able to mask our child’s inadequacies for some time—especially in the Academy. We can only hope to have another child before the actual marriage and unification of the Houses." Karl mumbled, his gruff tone filled with all kinds of emotions.

"Yes. If we can have another child before then, we will win this gamble and the Noir House gets nothing." His wife smiled at him with encouragement.

This was true.

The political situation of the Vampire State was rather interesting, but not very complex.

It was all about strength and influence.

The six Noble Households ruled the Vampire State because they were strong.

But there weren’t always six.

In fact, it started as just one family, and then two, and eventually—after thousands of years—it became all six of them.

Thus, just as the number could increase at any given moment, it could also decrease.

However, this was not very likely.

For one, the six houses collaborated to ensure no other great power could emerge that would challenge them. This was one of the rare occasions in which they actually worked together.

If a separate Noble Household arose, they would be on equal standing with the six. That meant they would be in charge of a city, and a good chunk of benefits would have to be diverted to them. This was an unfavorable outcome for the six families who didn’t want to share any more of their wealth.

Thus, the possibility of a new Household emerging was low.

But what about the destruction or fusion of Households? Well, that was more possible, but also very unlikely.

Noble Households had their territories, which made invasion unwise.

While the strength of each family also differed, taking down one Household would come at a cost that no family would want to bear alone. Thus, an alliance would be the best way to go about it. However, who would want to enter an alliance to destroy a Household?

The risk was too great!

Even if it were easier to crush the enemy, it would create a certain ’trend’ that would encourage the destruction of Noble Houses. The power vacuum alone would be disastrous.

If the allied forces took over the Noble territory, they would grow stronger as a result, but this would certainly threaten the other Noble Houses, who would likely also team up to crush the culprits. In fact, what was likely to happen was that they would impede the plan of the allied Noble Houses before it could come to fruition.

That way, such a future would never come to pass, to begin with.

This was why no Noble House had fallen or been created for centuries now, despite the clear gap in power among some of them.

"The Noir Family and our Blanc Household have always had very similar levels of strength. In the last generation, we had the upper hand due to my Special Rank Principal Disposition, but the younger generation seems to be setting a new trend..." Karl said in a worried tone. "Their youngest child also has a Principal Disposition of the Special Rank, which means we will be at a major disadvantage if we don’t do something."

"But this arranged marriage... Is it truly the only way?"

Karl nodded as he stared at his wife.

"There’s a good chance they’re scheming to swallow up our House using the arranged marriage as a formal excuse to camouflage their intentions, but we can’t really refuse, given the current situation. If we didn’t agree to this, that child of ours would be too vulnerable in the Academy."

"B-but, dear..."

Don’t worry. We’ll have another child before then... I promise."

"Okay, I trust you..." The couple kissed and held each other passionately.

They decided to try again.

Too bad...

It was such a shame, especially since they were trying so hard.

But the outcome would always be the same.

The truth is that they would never have a child as long as such a thing would be the end of Richard’s life and claim to the throne.

His luck was their misfortune.

Whether they liked it or not, he was their only hope, which meant that—regardless of his talent, charms, and intelligence—they had to invest in him.

"I’m surprised they allowed the engagement so easily. Even if it’s part of their scheme, I still expected a bit of a fuss..." Melissa whispered as she was climbing atop her husband.

Karm simply smiled bitterly.

"That girl, Selica... I heard she has a rather troublesome personality. She’s extremely aggressive and does not get along well with others. I think the Noir Family was also wondering what they could do with her, so they decided her most optimal political use would be an arranged marriage with us."

"I see. So other than her talent, she is more like a liability than an asset."

"Exactly. And now that she is tied to our child, we also have to look out for her—particularly her reputation. They’re going to use us to help their daughter too, but we can do nothing about it..."

"I see..."

Sad looks appeared on their faces.

This was too much.

"This is why I told the child to simply do whatever she wants. As long as he is an obedient little boy, nothing noteworthy should occur. Even if she gets violent, she knows better than to kill him, since the Noir Family would be held responsible and would get into major trouble."

Melissa nodded, moaning slightly once she put it in.

"I suppose... he’d be even more useful to us in death. We can use that to fish for more benefits due to the reparations that the Noir Family makes. It would be best, however, if we had another before we lose our only child, though..."

"Precisely." Karl held her by the waist and also began to breathe roughly. "Enough talk about that boy. Let’s focus on this. The priest blessed your womb with extreme divine blessings, and you are in your peak fertility window. This time for sure! "

"Yes, dear."

The couple continued their sexual activity, persevering in the act of service for the family.

Pleasure was only secondary, although it was present.

Regarding the well-being of their son, Richard, they could hardly be bothered. In their eyes, it was his duty to suffer for the family, even if that meant taking some hits from the troubled young lady of the Noir Household.

Since he was useless in many other ways, he could at least serve as a punching bag.

Unfortunately for them, they underestimated the Young Lady Selica.

They didn’t take into account just how ’violent’ her tendencies were, and the kind of damage their only child would have to endure in her hands.