The Gamer Chapter 1603 – Quackery, Property, Succession (Patreon)

“Quack!”

John looked at the duck.

The duck looked at John.

It was a prime specimen. Pure white plumage, orange beak, beady black eyes, enthusiastically wagging tail feathers, the whole ‘this is a duck’ package. It sat among other ducks, many of them unusually red-feathered, near the pond at the centre of the stylistic garden. The trees around were, like bonsais, carefully trimmed and raised to resemble tall, ancient trees, no matter how large they actually were. The grass was of a strong green colour, and little artificial clouds hung just a few metres above, their size carefully weighed against the proximity to maintain the sensation of distance.

“You should be honoured, no one has stayed here since the NTC had a brief stay in Taiwan some three hundred years ago,” Lu Zhi told him.

“Well, am I just staying or do I own this now?” John asked. “Because one is going to make the trip back a lot easier than the other.”

“Of course, of course,” the imperial tomboy waved and recited, in an almost bored tone: “In my position as Heavenly Jade Empress, sovereign of all people of the Middle Empire, the steppes, and of Asia, I hereby grant to you, John Newman, President of Fusion, ownership of the eastern wing of the Triple Palace of West, East, and Centre, for the coming 100 years or until the friendship of our nations breaks. Let my will be done and this contract echo through the ages, to be silenced at the stated time.”

John felt the little switch of being in Owned Territory flip. “Nothing written?” he asked.

“You westerners and your necessity to write everything down.” Lu Zhi chuckled. “Is my word not good enough for you?”

The Gamer was quick to declare the contrary. “Do the ducks come with the territory?” he asked. Nia had already walked over and was now giving the white one at the centre all kinds of scratches. The blonde had just picked up the water fowl, when it suddenly spotted something. Its orange legs tread the air with the urgent need to waddle towards… Scarlett, it seemed. “What’s up with it?”

“He really likes the colour red,” Lu Zhi answered.

“Quack!” the excited duck declared.

Then it exploded.

It happened at a respectable speed. One moment the duck was sitting on Nia’s hand, the next feathers were scattered through the air. Between the suddenness and the lack of gore in the display, John made the easy guess that he was looking at something magical.

“His name is Docald Duck, I call him Doc.” Lu Zhi looked around and then headed for a nearby flower patch, where a tiny yellow hatching was napping with a flower on its hat. “He’s a Phoenix Duck. Don’t worry about it when he explodes, he respawns under a nearby flower. And no, he’s mine – the central palace just doesn’t have a pond this nice.”

Several of the red-feathered ducks waddled over and formed a protective circle around the napping Doc. John just accepted all of this as it was. Why wouldn’t Lu Zhi have pet ducks?

The teleporter was quickly installed in a room adjacent to the garden. John wanted a minimum of secrecy when he teleported over – or when Lu Zhi came over to him. Once that was done, the harem dispersed a bit. With John and Lu Zhi stayed Scarlett, Momo, Nia, and Nightingale – basically those that had an interest in politics. John had expected Eliana to stay too, because of the specific subject matter, but the pretty little psycho had said: “Whoever comes out on top is still a literal fucking Nazi, so I’ll bend their spine until they form a perpetual piss drinking cycle anyway.”

That was a fair enough stance to have on this.

The entirety of their little group sat down by the pond. Green grass made for pleasant sitting, and even if the topic discussed was ugly, the world didn’t have to be.

“So, what do you know?” John asked. “I’ll have to rely on your wisdom when it comes to the internal affairs of the Purest Front.”

“What else is new,” Lu Zhi joked, then tapped her chin with her index finger a couple of times. Thoughtfully, she continued, “The Purest Front does still present an enigma. They were ever capable when it came to intelligence gathering and preventing their own intel leaking out.”

“So it’s unlikely we can influence the outcome anyway?” John asked.

“Internal strife has a habit of creating a search for outside sponsors,” Lu Zhi stated.

John hummed and rubbed his chin. “Do you have an in already or are you searching for one?”

“We would be required to locate an opportunity.”

John breathed in slowly, then exhaled just as slowly. It was enough of a pause for Nia to weigh in, “The Azure Tribe?”

“I’d rather not put them in charge. Even if they have reasonable members, I believe Arkan might begin arming to hunt you specifically,” John stated.

“Personally, I believe waiting and seeing would be the best option,” Nightingale stated her opinion. “Weighing in on internal matters often has knock-on effects that are undesired.”

“It’s also an expenditure of resources we do not really have,” Momo stated. “Nightfall is at barely enough capacity to operate as a counterintelligence agency and just enough to also gather intel from select areas, and we’re honestly mediocre in both fields. We don’t have the agents or contacts to try and sway a great power one way or another.”

“Human or material resources,” Scarlett backed up and gestured in the general direction of the airport. “Especially with these expenses.”

John let out a low groan. It went against his nature to just do nothing, but as a Control player in card games, he was also well acquainted with passing his turn to save resources for a later turn. “I suppose all we’re doing here is providing you counsel on what you can do,” he said, turning to the Heavenly Jade Empress.

Who was now tapping her chin with her folded fan. “The Mandate of Heaven has no greater interest in the Purest Front. We are historically unaligned. Their alliance with Japan during the World War has long since passed…” She shook her head. “A lot of drama around nothing, then, for we cannot see why we would send our own assets to such distant and unimportant a land.”

“So, I guess we’re just letting that one play out…” John mumbled. Really not a satisfying answer, but the one he got regardless. “Well, since we’re already on the matter of politics, you really think it was fine to call out your prime minister on the corruption the way you did?”

“I have to remind him that I know every now and again. Keeps him from being too blatant with it.” Lu Zhi rolled her eyes. “He said to me that we would symbolically channel the tribute through the palace from the east wing, through the southern bridge to the west wing, and then have it presented to me at the central plaza. Said it would show how these American goods would be put under the great scrutiny of our skilled officials, before being deemed worthy for my sacred eyes.”

“That’s a way to say, ‘Don’t worry, the stuff that went missing just wasn’t up to your standards,’” Momo stated drily. Her index finger took a stab at John’s cheek. “If you channel this guy through there, would he come out at the end?”

“He better, he is most pleasing to my eyes.” Lu Zhi got on all fours and crawled towards him, stopping when she was in nose-booping range. “It is most unkind to introduce a girl to the pleasantries of kissing and then making off without a goodbye.”

“I am quite sorry for that,” John hummed. “I had prior arrangements, you see?”

“So I’ve heard.” She bridged the remaining distance, pressed her pink lips on his, and moaned softly in the little distance between their opening mouths. The artificial flavour of her lipstick was a little bother, but one John could tolerate. The kiss ended abruptly when she tugged him on the ear. “Now, how come you strut in here with another Metracana as your maid?” the imperial tomboy asked. “It’s not even been 10 days since you gave me a temporary clearance!”

“I know, right?!” Momo cried out in support.

The mischievous smile on Lulu’s lips told John that she wasn’t actually mad – unlike Momo who was genuinely getting fed up with his lustful shenanigans. Reason enough to take his foot off the pedal – except his foot was nowhere near the pedal. “In my defence, you threw yourself in my lap and she happened to be there,” John stated, “but she’s also not one of mine.”

“Yet,” Scarlett added with sarcastic certainty.

“The short story is that he has her under contract to kill Tiamat. Her wearing a maid uniform and being with us is because she decided to wear it and to tag along,” Momo stated.

“She is a fascinating person,” Nightingale said.

“U-hu, U-hu,” Lulu nodded twice, kissed John again, then backed off. Tried to, anyway, but the Gamer refused to let her go. He took the empress by the waist, spun her around, and had her round butt settle on his crossed legs. “I still have to get back to my spymaster about this… I’ll have to instruct them all on what kind of nothing I want done regarding this.”

John let out a little laugh. He knew all about how that felt like. Simultaneously, he put his arms around her more intensely. “I guess I reap what I sow… think you could free one or two days for me?”

“When?”

“Preferably soon. Best tomorrow, but I’ll take anytime next week. I want to go on a grinding session. Lee will use time dilation to stretch it as much as she can. About 1 to 5 per day, if I had to take a guess.”

Lulu put the back of her head on his sternum and looked up at him. “Isn’t she the most powerful Fateweaver on the planet right now?”

“Well, in raw power, yes, but she’s still learning,” John told her. “I used to have her father help me with this, but… well, for one I had him do one big final ask before the meeting with the Divided Gates.”

“For two, it was getting fucking awkward to have him and his wife around when we wanted to have outdoor sex,” Scarlett added, to general amusement.

“It wasn’t as bad when there were less of us, but nowadays we need a whole porn mansion,” Momo grumbled.

“I caaahn seeee thaaaaaat,” Lulu answered in a drawn out tone, her vocal cords as relaxed as her shoulders were under John’s careful kneading. Having a gorgeous woman in his lap and not making her feel some kind of relief was just against his better instincts.

“So, where are we on those days?” John asked.

Lulu let out a deep and pleased hum. She smiled to herself, eyes closed, wiggled a little bit in his lap, sighed, rolled her neck, and just did a myriad of adorable little things that made John wish to abduct her and never give her back. How dare they keep such a national treasure from him.

“I suppose I can cut myself loose for two days using some excuse or another… we’ll have to be very hush-hush about it though.”

John nodded. “Give me an exact date and time when you can. Nightingale will wait for you at this teleporter.”

“With pleasure, for my patriarch,” the harpy promised.

Lulu wiggled her way out of his embrace and stretched. “Too bad we have to keep the screwing until then, since you made me all busy and stuff,” the imperial tomboy stated, hiding her smile behind her unfolded fan. Two seductive blinks was all she offered him, before heading towards one of the many paths that connected her segment of the palace to John’s. “We will await your tribute, then begin our threefold preparations. The drafting of the path to transferral of the territories, the non-response of our operatives, and the excuse we present to the officials to let us be unobserved for two days. Until then, I bid you adieu, my suitor.” She stopped, blew him a kiss over her shoulder, and laughed when he caught and pocketed it for later.

He already missed her when she turned the corner.

“And now?” Momo asked.

“Now… we fly back home,” John stated.

“We aren’t using the teleporter?” Scarlett asked.

“You can, but Aclysia will have to fly the plane back either way and I won’t leave her alone.”

Scarlett weighed her options for a second, then marched towards the room with the teleporter. “I have too much work to do to be boxed in a plane for another 14 hours.”

“You don’t need to justify yourself to me,” John assured her and watched Momo follow swiftly after the redhead. Once he gave the rest of the harem the update, they separated into three camps. Those that would take the plane back, those that went with the teleporter now, and those that stayed in the city for a little longer. The last group consisted only of Metra and Ehtra, the two of them aiming to try to find Absalm and have an actual talk with the man.

They both had an adversarial relationship with this brother of theirs. As the eternal adage went: ‘You can choose your friends but you can’t choose family.’ They wanted to try and reconnect at least a little bit.

And so this long journey across to China ended in less than an hour.