Reincarnated in the Astral World
Chapter 78: Cunning Madam Drummond

"Guests?" Dmitri glances at Arthur with hostile eyes before shifting his focus back to Josephine. "Nonsense! Witnesses saw them entering here as customers!"

"What people think is none of my concern," she responds in a calm tone. "They are old friends of my family, and I invited them to spend a while at my home. They arrived this morning and came straight here to meet me."

Dmitri and Anastasia look towards the store's receptionist, and the girl quickly nods, making Josephine smile.

"Be that as it may, this only makes what you've done worse!" Dmitri exclaims rudely. "This is a personal affront to my family, and you must answer for it!"

Josephine picks up the glass recording device and shows the image to Dmitri. "Look, it was your daughter who started the offense."

"This…" Dmitri sees the image of Anastasia trying to hit Margaret but ending up on the ground herself. The girl looks concerned, but he doesn't even glance at her. "This proves nothing, Josephine; for all I know, my daughter came here to buy a dress, and you mistreated her until things reached this point."

"Come on, Dmitri…" Josephine feigns disappointment. "Do you really want to make this a big deal?"

His eyes gleam maliciously. "You made it this way; now I have every right to demand a public retraction!"

She pretends to be concerned. "Alright, alright... how about I give another dress of similar quality for free to your daughter?"

This suggestion displeases Anastasia and especially Dmitri, who glances at Arthur again. "This is not enough. They attacked my daughter and her bodyguard, so I demand a formal duel."

"A duel?" Josephine shakes her head. "Who's going to fight? I bet it's not your daughter against Margaret, right? Don't tell me you're going to duel a fifteen-year-old boy?"

"Fifteen years old?!" Dmitri looks at Arthur in shock, especially because of his aura of Astral Energy. "No way..."

Oliver steps forward. "Yeah, he's such a young genius, isn't he? I'll use an age stone in front of everyone, letting the whole town know that the great Lord Isambard likes to bully a fifteen-year-old kid..."

Josephine winks at her son; her lips curved in a provoking smile. "Imagine how that's going to boost your reputation..."

'DAMN!!' As Dmitri feels his blood boils inside his veins, one of the young men behind him steps up to Oliver with an aggressive expression. "Why don't we settle this between us?"

"Aren't you tired tired of losing to me, Elias?" Oliver taunts, making Elias clench his teeth just like his father

But the young man tries to look cool. "Are you scared to face me because you know you got lucky last time?"

Oliver maintains a confident expression. "We can replace out right now."

"Let's-" Elias tries to move closer to Oliver, but Dmitri pulls him back by the shoulders. "Your rivalry isn't at stake here, but a serious offense against our whole family."

While Anastasia keeps sneaking peeks at Arthur and Margaret, Dmitri stays focused on Josephine. Arthur can see he's trying to use this opportunity for some personal gain, making him want to draw his sword and kill the trash on the spot.

Nyx understands his deepest desires through their connection and incites them. 'Why don't you just kill them? They don't expect it, you could split several of them in half with a good swing of your sword.'

He agress, yet, he stays calm and silent, merely observing the nobles. 'I can't act recklessly just because my mother is so powerful... also, I agreed to play Josephine's game, so I'm curious to see where this goes.'

Dmitri continues trying to make Josephine admit some form of guilt, but she makes him look like a fool with her calm and disingenuous manner. "Dmitri, I know what you want, but I won't give it over to you so easily..."

"You have to compensate me!" He insists.

A subtle glimmer appears in Josephine's eyes. "This problem was started by the young ones, so why don't we let them resolve it?"

"A duel between our sons is not enough!"

"Look, I'm hosting a banquet at my home tonight for my family and friends; why don't you bring yours, too? We can make it the grand event you like, and the young ones can settle it how we used to... last one standing style."

"Oh?" Dmitri's posture changes, clearly interested. "I suppose the boy will participate? But he's not of your family, so it would be a bit unfair..."

"Just say what you want,"

"Since it's to be a grand event, let's open it to the whole family and close friends, just the young generation, anyone under fifty years, of course."

"What's the prize?" Josephine asks, and Dmitri smirks. "Your shop, all suppliers, and clients."

"WHAT?!" Oliver exclaims, but Josephine gestures for him to stay calm as she nods to Dmitri. "Alright, but if we win, you and all your supporters will have to publicly apologize to me and my guests."

"I can agree to that, but what are the fight rules?" He asks, and she quickly responds. "No weapons, no artifacts, no magic, no tricks, just clean duels until the last challenger of each side can no longer stand."

"Sounds good," Dmitri swiftly pulls a rolled-up sheet of paper from his pocket and unfolds it in front of Josephine. "Let's make this official," he remarks and uses a quill to write down the conditions of the challenge on the sheet before biting his own finger and using his blood to sign it.

Oliver looks a bit pessimistic, but Josephine, remembering how Arthur easily kicked that Elite Warrior out of the store, does not hesitate to bleed her own finger and use her blood to sign the sheet, which magically glows.

"Great!" Dmitri laughs excitedly. 'I didn't think it would be this easy...' He can't help but glance at Arthur again before heading towards the door. "See you tonight, Josephine..." He shows the sheet with her signature over his shoulder. "And you can't back out now... this shop will be mine by tomorrow morning."

Leaving those words, Dmitri exits the shop, followed by Anastasia and her brothers, who cast hostile glances at Arthur, Margaret, and Oliver.

As the last one to leave closes the door, Oliver gazes at his mother with an anxious face. "Wasn't that a bit rash, Mother? I can think of about thirty Elite Warriors under fifty in their allied families, and of course, Dmitri is going to bring all the viscount's sons... Meanwhile, we only have five, six if we count Arthur, but he is..."

"A genius," Josephine winks at Arthur. "Don't worry, Oliver, we are indeed outnumbered, but as all fights will be duels, you only need to endure until the end, and I know that you and Arthur can do it."

"I hope so…" Oliver doesn't seem as confident, but his eyes sparkle with excitement.

Josephine approaches Arthur, who remains seated on the sofa with Eve and Margaret. "Thank you for trusting me,"

"I have nothing to lose," he says in a casual tone. "But you, on the other hand... are you really wagering your legacy on this? What happens if I walk out that door and never come back?"

"Then Oliver would be in trouble," she laughs. "I don't know how much longer I'll live, and honestly, I want to make sure my son can handle this kind of situation when I'm no longer here. Also... Dmitri has been trying to steal my shop for decades. I saw an opportunity to ensure he never gets that chance again, and I took it."

"Oh..." Arthur begins to understand Josephine better. "So, you're using me? Perhaps you foresaw such an outcome from the start?"

"Hehehe..." She giggles. "How could I do that? I didn't force you to come to my shop, nor did I push Margaret to like that dress, or even Anastasia to attack her... things simply happened, and even though I benefit from it, I'm genuinely trying to help you here."

"It's a peculiar kind of help..." He comments, but his expression is amused and curious.

"Isn't it?" She also smiles, seeing his interest. "I know it seems bad to have you face a dozen Elite Warriors, but they won't be able to use any advantage against you. You can beat up on spoiled Young Masters as much as you like with my son's help.

And in the end, Dmitri won't be able to cause you any more trouble without completely losing what's left of his family's reputation… You're welcome, dear."

Arthur still knows much of nothing about the nobles of Lakeview, but he can see that Josephine is extremely cunning and manipulative. He saw malice in her eyes the whole time she interacted with Dmitri, but none of that sentiment remains when she interacts with him.

"You've convinced me, I'll keep playing your game,"

Josephine claps her hands, but Oliver shakes his head. "You two are alike, crazy! But I'll have to deal with the consequences... We only have until tonight to prepare, so how about we get to know each other better, Arthur? I need to understand your skills to plan our strategy."

"Sounds right," He stands up. "But first, I need to talk to my mother. Can we meet here in two hours?"

"Yeah, sure," Oliver nods. "I'll look for my useless cousins; we'll need them tonight so we can at least breathe between the duels."

Arthur nods as well and then approaches Josephine while reaching for the coin bag on his belt, but she shakes her head. "No need to pay for the clothes and materials, after all, you are now my guests of honor."

Margaret smiles, and Arthur also replaces making new friends not a bad thing. "Considering the situation you've put me in, that seems fair..." He picks up the bags full of clothes and materials and leaves the shop. "I'll be back in two hours."

"I'll be waiting for you," Josephine waves, and as the trio leaves through the door, she turns to Oliver. "I think I've found you a good friend; why aren't you happier?"

"He seems like a cool guy indeed..." Oliver stares at the door. "But who dives headfirst into one of your crazy plans like that? He's probably as insane as you are, or he has someone even more insane behind him..."

"Maybe both?"