The Royal Palace meeting room was thick with the silent tension of shattered ambition.
Arthur's ultimatum—cooperate or face absolute ruin—hung in the air.
Crusch, the noble strategist, was the first to break the silence, a profound shift occurring in her calculating emerald eyes.
She had seen this coming, having observed Arthur's focus on Emilia and Rem.
She had tried to get to know Arthur better, but he only ever showed interest toward his existing partners.
"I don't care about White Whales anymore,"
Crusch stated, her voice losing its edge of military command.
"Many Dungeon Climbers have been dealing with them. They are easily dealt with."
She had let go of such a dream. To be honest, she was utterly confused right now.
She didn't know what she truly wanted when the world had changed so drastically.
Her world, she realized, was just a single floor of the immense Tower Dungeon.
She felt so little. So small.
"Humm, so what do you want?"
Arthur asked, genuinely curious. His previous offers were just political tools; he wanted to know the truth of her heart.
"Tell me, and if it is something I can do for you, I'll see it done."
Crusch looked at him, and an entirely new, audacious idea ignited within her mind.
Her gaze was intense, analytical, and utterly serious.
"Make me one of your concubines! Bring me to your world like you do for Emilia and Rem!"
The silence in the room became absolute.
The sheer audacity of the demand stunned the other candidates.
Crusch, known for her devotion to honor and duty, was seeking an intimate alliance born of pragmatic power.
Only a man of his caliber, a True Dragon who controlled dimensions, was worthy enough to have her.
Arthur was surprised, but deep down, it wasn't unexpected.
Crusch had tried to seduce him whenever she had a chance.
He was a Dragon God, and he would be a hypocrite to refuse based on morality.
His nature, his true Authority of Greed, and his physical existence as a Dragon Gods' Partner meant his desires and his connections would always expand.
"That's not a problem at all,"
Arthur replied, leaning back slightly,
"But are you really alright with it? This isn't just about a title."
"Why am I not?"
She countered, her straight-forwardness shattering the palace decorum.
"You are a Dragon God who is alive, present, and can be touched. Not like the deity people blindly worship. I prefer you, Arthur, more than that lofty, untouchable stature. My loyalty goes to the power that grants me true security."
The other candidates were gobsmacked, but the seed of pragmatism was instantly sown.
Crusch's maneuver transformed the political deadlock into a marital audition.
If joining Arthur's family guaranteed security, power, and escape from the limitations of their world, then suddenly, the Royal Selection meant nothing.
Felt jumped up, her energy bursting through the shock.
"Then I want to join his harem as well!"
She said with fierce certainty.
"If it means I can get strong and protect the people I care about without dealing with all this noble crap, I'm in!"
"No, you will not. You are too young,"
Reinhard van Astrea interfered immediately, his hand reaching out to restrain the diminutive candidate.
While he recognized Arthur's power, Felt's youth was an absolute boundary.
Felt pouted, but her conviction remained.
She pointed a defiant finger at Arthur.
"When I am old enough, I will become one of his brides! You mark my words, Arthur!"
Arthur felt a significant wave of awkwardness wash over him.
His political negotiation had devolved into a mass romantic overture.
He was now the target of every candidate's highest ambition.
Anastasia Hoshin recovered, a shrewd smile stretching across her face.
"Well, if marriage is the trade negotiation, then I see immense opportunity here! My company has a lot to offer an expanding interdimensional enterprise. Consider me highly interested in becoming a partner, Arthur."
Even Priscilla Barielle, sensing the direction of ultimate power, offered a slow, arrogant smirk.
"Fine. If the world is to be ruled by a childish Dragon, I shall ensure my place is next to him. After all, the sun is always accompanied by the moon."
The ultimate consensus was clear, and it was political blackmail layered with genuine affection and ambition:
"Don't worry, Arthur,"
Anastasia said, speaking for the group.
"We will let Emilia be the first wife. We all agree she earned that spot. Just secure our future."
The Second Royal Selection had officially ended, dissolving not into chaos, but into the formation of a politically advantageous, multi-dimensional harem centered on him.
'Emilia will be shocked to hear about this…'
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