Lord: Starting with Biological Modification

Caroline stood before her desk, her cheeks flushing as she watched the eye-catching figure on the balcony.

’This jerk... Can’t he use the door like a normal person?’

She took a deep breath, suppressing the fluttering in her heart. She schooled her beautiful features back into a stern mask, resuming the posture befitting the queen of the Golden Sail Commerce Association.

She instructed her female assistant, "Go, open the balcony door and let him in."

The moment Velin stepped inside, he felt the icy atmosphere in the room.

Caroline was seated primly in her large chair, her long, fair legs crossed, and she sized him up with a scrutinizing gaze.

"Baron Velin, you’ve caused quite a stir," she began, her tone devoid of emotion. "The entire port district now knows you landed a giant beast on my office balcony."

"I ran into some trouble on the way and went off course, so I just dropped by since I was in the area." Velin, seemingly oblivious to the displeasure in her voice, sat down in the chair opposite Caroline. He then pulled an envelope from his coat and placed it on the desk.

"What is this?" Caroline asked.

"Your share of the profits," Velin replied. "Two thousand, eight hundred and seventy-five Golden Sun. It’s a draft from the Mithril Treasury, cashable in any major city on the continent."

At the mention of that number, Caroline’s expression softened considerably.

She picked up the draft, confirmed the magic seal on it, and then put it away safely.

"So you do have a conscience," she huffed, but the corners of her mouth had already begun to curve upward.

Right now, this money was a godsend. It would immediately solve her most pressing financial problems.

A dozen plans immediately formed in her mind, each one designed to make those hyenas from the Sea Serpent Commerce Association cry as they coughed up double what they had taken.

She picked up her cup of black tea and took a slow, deliberate sip to mask her emotions.

"You said you ran into trouble earlier?"

"Yes. I ran into a flock of large, white sea birds in the airspace over Gray Bay. There were more than fifty of them, and they were extremely aggressive," Velin explained briefly.

Caroline’s expression changed slightly upon hearing this.

She immediately summoned Sea Wolf, who happened to be in port.

After listening to Velin’s description, Sea Wolf’s weather-beaten face immediately grew solemn.

"Lord Baron, I’m afraid what you encountered were the most troublesome sky pirates of the inner sea: the Big Thief Gulls."

"Big Thief Gulls?"

"Yes, a Level 4 Magical Beast," Sea Wolf explained. "They’re cunning, greedy, and they attack in flocks. They’re enormous, with claws and beaks that can tear through the oak decks of merchant ships. They’re the nightmare of every shipping route in the inner sea. Every year, ships are destroyed by them, their crew and cargo becoming part of the menu. And because they build their nests on towering coastal cliffs, even the Royal Navy is powerless against them."

Caroline added, "More than one noble has tried to capture and tame them to form an aerial cavalry unit, but all have failed. These Magical Beasts are incredibly feral. They would rather die than submit, and they cannot be domesticated."

Velin listened to their description, a thoughtful look on his face.

However, his mind couldn’t help but conjure up an image of a creature from Blue Star—the seagull.

And a famous meme.

"Go to the pier and get some fries."

An absurd idea began to sprout in his mind.

’Fries... I’ve got plenty of those.’

Seeing the pensive look on Velin’s face, Caroline felt her heart clench for some reason.

"What crazy idea are you cooking up now?" she asked warily.

"Nothing," Velin said, snapping out of his thoughts and shaking his head. "I just think they’re worth studying."

He stood up. "I have to go. I have urgent business to attend to back in my territory."

"In such a hurry?" Caroline was surprised. She had thought Velin would at least stay for lunch.

"Mhm." Velin was already at the door when he suddenly stopped, as if remembering something.

He took out a wooden box from his coat and tossed it to Caroline.

She caught it instinctively.

"Oh, right. This is a gift for you."

’A gift?’

Caroline was stunned.

Sea Wolf and the female assistant both turned to look, their eyes filled with curiosity.

Sea Wolf even wriggled his eyebrows, cheering inwardly: ’He finally gets it! The blockhead finally gets it!’

Caroline opened the box.

On a black velvet lining lay a silver necklace. Its pendant, an exquisitely cut blue gemstone, shimmered with a captivating light.

It was beautiful.

Incredibly beautiful.

A lovely blush crept onto her fair cheeks, and her eyes, usually sharp and piercing, now grew soft and misty.

’This blockhead... He finally...’

She had almost expected it to be something completely tone-deaf, or perhaps even a bill.

She never thought he would actually give her jewelry, something a girl would like.

Sea Wolf and the female assistant exchanged a look of both shock and relief, as if they were witnessing an iceberg melt.

Seeing her silence, Velin seemed quite satisfied with the effect and continued, "It’s a Magic necklace. I’ve noticed that your emotions tend to be extreme, which isn’t beneficial for the Golden Sail Commerce Association’s development, or for our partnership."

He pointed to the blue gemstone. "This necklace is enchanted with a ’Tranquility’ Magic. It can effectively suppress sudden bursts of anger and anxiety in the wearer, helping your brain remain rational at all times."

After he finished, he nodded in satisfaction. It felt good to help a friend solve her problem.

"Well, I really have to go. No need to thank me."

He waved. "Goodbye."

Before the words had even faded, he turned and left.

A moment later, Nefarian’s clear, resounding cry echoed from the balcony. A gray-black shadow shot into the air and quickly vanished over the horizon.

The office fell so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Sea Wolf and the female assistant watched as their boss’s expression shifted from surprise to joy, and then from joy to a deathly pallor. Their eyes were filled with the utmost sympathy, as well as a... heartfelt admiration for the Baron.

’Only he could pull something like this.’

Caroline stared down at the necklace in her hand, which pulsed with a faint magical glow. Her body began to tremble.

She felt as if she hadn’t received a gift, but an admonishment.

’That man... he was clearly "counseling" her!’

’He actually sees me as a woman so ruled by her emotions that she needs a magical item to "correct" her?!’

She clenched the cold necklace in her fist, the silver chain digging painfully into her palm.

All her touched feelings, her anticipation, and her surprise had curdled into a white-hot rage that shot straight to her head.

She slowly raised her head to look at the two, who stood frozen in terrified silence.

"Am I someone who gets angry a lot?"

Her gaze was blazing, but her voice was so cold it could have turned the air to frost.

The pair frantically shook their heads, terrified that their boss would vent her fury on them.

"Velin Klein..."

She ground the name out, word by word, from between her teeth.

"You just wait!"