Chapter 141 | Holding A Grudge
That left Mira.
Lyra was handled. Selene had never truly been angry to begin with, just embarrassed about the midnight clinging incident. But Mira was a different creature entirely.
Dexter leaned against the kitchen counter, rubbing his jaw in thought. Mira was... complicated.
One moment she was laughing in the rain, the next she was glaring at him. He couldn’t tell when she was genuinely angry versus when she was simply maintaining her pride.
He knew one thing for certain: she liked rain.
He glanced out the kitchen window. The sky was clear. Pale blue, not a cloud in sight. No indication of rain anytime soon.
So that plan was out.
He needed another approach. But what?
He stood there for a long time, staring out the window, his mind turning over possibilities.
He thought about the wheelchair incident. He had bought her a $120,000 neural-linked wheelchair, and she had been furious. Not because the gift was unwelcome, but because she liked the routine. She liked ’him’ taking care of her and she had rejected it because the machine wasn’t him.
Dexter massaged his brows as a headache started to form.
The drying machine beeped, signaling the end of its cycle. Dexter pushed off the counter and began folding the warm laundry.
[Ding!]
[Investment Return Detected: Improved Lyra’s Emotional State & Reduced Shadow Corruption]
[Multiplier: 100x]
[Rewards Granted:]
1. Grade-3 Divine Peak Recovery Pill ×1
2. 10 kg Premium Diamond Spirit Rice
Dexter didn’t even check the rewards fully. His attention was caught by two words in the notification: Reduced Shadow Corruption.
He frowned, pulling up Lyra’s status panel. His eyes widened in shock.
Her shadow corruption, which he had diligently reduced to a mere 1% through weeks of spiritual meals, had somehow skyrocketed to 10%. According to the system, his recent actions had reduced it back down to 5%, but the damage had already been done.
’How did it increase so fast?’
Then, it hit him. She had been angry at him. She had spent almost twenty-four hours furious, radiating dark, gloomy, and resentful emotions.
Because Lyra was finally starting to experience genuine emotions again after years of numbness, her negative feelings directly fueled her Shadow Manipulation talent.
And when those negative emotions spiraled, the shadow mana turned inward, corrupting her physical cells.
Dexter broke into a cold sweat. If just one day of anger had increased the corruption by 10%, it would only take ten days of sustained misery for the corruption to reach 100%. At 100%, her body would collapse and become a permanent portal to the Shadow Realm, unleashing horrific monsters into the physical world and killing her instantly.
He had never considered that emotional distress could be so lethal to her. All this time, she had been living in a state of emotional numbness, which was why the corruption had remained stagnant. Now that she was healing and feeling again, her anger was a ticking time bomb.
Dexter rubbed his forehead, realizing he would have to check the girls’ status panels every single day to prevent any unexpected surprises. If he had missed this, Lyra could have died without him even realizing why.
He looked at the Grade-3 Divine Peak Recovery Pill. Just like the one he received for Selene, it could temporarily heal all injuries and return her to her peak Ultra Realm form for six hours, but at the cost of permanently worsening her injuries afterward.
He firmly decided not to give the girls these pills. It was better to take the long, slow road to recovery than to let them risk everything for six hours of fleeting normalcy. He secured the pill deep within his storage ring, making a mental note to never reveal their existence to the girls unless absolutely necessary.
’’’
Lunch was a quiet affair, though noticeably lighter than the morning. Lyra sat at the table, happily eating her meal with one hand while cradling the ancient beast egg in her other arm. She finished six massive portions in under ten minutes.
Dexter shook his head in amazement.
’Where does all that food go?’ he thought, baffled. ’Is she secretly feeding the entire Shadow Realm?’
As she stood up to leave, his eyes inadvertently dropped to her chest. He blinked. Her chest had grown even larger since she started eating his arcane meals.
He quickly averted his gaze before she could catch him staring.
’Thank you,’ Lyra’s sweet voice chimed in his mind, her mood completely restored. She skipped out of the kitchen, leaving Mira and Selene to eat in silence before they too returned to cultivating.
As for the Hero Association’s message, Dexter decided to delay his response until tomorrow. The girls were still highly sensitive about anything related to dungeon outbreaks, and he didn’t want to trigger their trauma by announcing he had to report to the Association today. He would handle it in the morning.
’’’
Evening came, and after dinner, Dexter suddenly grabbed Mira’s wheelchair and began wheeling her toward the bedroom.
Mira squinted her eyes. "What do you want?"
Dexter prepared the bed and pulled out the massage oil. "I’ve decided to increase the duration of your massage therapy to twice a day now. The results should accelerate with this routine."
Mira’s face remained indifferent, but her crimson eyes narrowed. "Are you just looking for an excuse to touch my body?"
Dexter rolled his eyes. "Yes, Mira. I desperately wish to touch your supple skin. Please, let me have my way with you."
Mira glanced at him from the corner of her eye. "Hmph!"
She harrumphed coldly and closed her eyes, submitting to the massage without further protest.
Dexter took her to the bed and began the 36-Style Massage Technique. Halfway through, as he worked on the muscles below her waist, he decided to test the waters.
"So, Lyra has forgiven me," he said casually.
Mira said nothing.
Dexter blinked, waiting for a sharp retort, but none came. "When are you going to let it go?"
Still nothing.
"If you don’t say anything, I will stop the massage," he threatened lightly.
Mira’s head shifted slightly. Despite her silence, he knew she loved the massage and the relief it brought her.
"Do what you want," Mira replied coldly.
Dexter sighed and resumed the massage. He couldn’t actually use her physical recovery as leverage to force her forgiveness. That would be cruel.
When he was done, he carried her to the bathroom, cleaned the oil off her body, and dressed her in her pajamas. Specifically, he dressed her in the flower-print pajamas he had bought for her—the ones she absolutely despised.
Instead of returning her to her wheelchair, however, he locked the wheels and crossed his arms in front of her.
Mira glanced at him suspiciously. "What do you want to do now?"
Dexter blinked innocently. "Why do you think I want to do anything?"
Mira sneered. "You are very devious. Of course you want to do something. What is it?"
Dexter smirked. "Alright, since you know I’m devious... you are not leaving this bathroom until you forgive me."
Mira frowned, her crimson eyes blazing. Then, without a word, she simply closed her eyes and started cultivating.
Dexter stood there, utterly stunned. She would rather cultivate in the bathroom than say the words ’I forgive you’. She truly held a grudge of iron.
He stood there patiently for almost fifteen minutes. Finally, Mira opened her eyes, her brows furrowed in irritation.
"This is bullying," she snapped. "If people find out you are bullying your crippled wife in the bathroom, do you know what they will say?"
Dexter grinned. "Luckily, there’s no one here to find out."
Mira’s lips curled into a dangerous smile. "I can simply scream ’pervert,’ and the whole neighborhood will come rushing in, right?"
Dexter blinked, momentarily stunned, before his grin widened. "I placed a Grade-6 formation matrix around the house. Unless I wish it, no one below the Transcendent Realm can come in."
Mira was startled. ’A formation?’ This guy actually possessed the connections to purchase a barrier formation capable of repelling Transcendent experts?
She smirked, refusing to be outplayed. "What about Selene and Lyra? They’re in the house. They’d think you’re doing something to me."
"Hm," Dexter hummed thoughtfully. "Let them think that. They’d probably just assume it’s a normal activity between husband and wife."
Mira glared at him, her face flushing slightly. "Pervert! Who is doing husband-and-wife activities with you!?"
She looked away, her jaw tight. Dexter laughed and waited.
He could see the battle happening behind her eyes—her stubborn pride fighting against the absurd, somewhat amusing reality of being held hostage in the bathroom over a grudge.
Finally, she let out a sharp exhale. "Fine! I’ve forgiven you. Happy?"
Dexter smiled brilliantly and clapped his hands together. "See? That was so simple!"
He laughed out loud as he unlocked her wheelchair, spinning her around and wheeling her out of the bathroom toward the bedroom.
Behind him, Mira muttered under her breath, "Devious bastard."