Painita arrived at the scene, followed by several royal family soldiers and her two great-granddaughters at her side.

When Tetoya and Zelkov saw the Matriarch's dark expression, they both dropped to their knees in a hurry.

"Greetings, Matriarch!"

The soldiers Tetoya had brought also knelt and bowed deeply, not daring to make a sound.

But Painita didn't even glance at the two of them. She threw a sharp look at Darian and said coldly, "Brat, you've got some insane guts."

"Thanks for the compliment. I'm usually reserved, but since I'm at my mother-in-law's house, I feel a bit more relaxed." He replied indifferently, making everyone's eyes narrow.

"Do you even know what kind of spiritual fish you just ate?" Painita asked, her tone freezing.

"I didn't know before, but I found out afterward. Unfortunately, it was already too late. Once a tree becomes a boat, it can't turn back into a tree. Why don't you calm down and have a few bites? I didn't eat it all."

He said, pointing at the remaining fish without an ounce of shame. Tetoya and Zelkov were drenched in cold sweat, tears in their eyes. Darian was completely ruining everything—for all of them.

"Would you believe me if I said I could kill you with one slap?" Painita spat out, trembling with rage.

"I don't believe you. My crime was eating a single fish? I'm your future son-in-law. My life's worth a lot more than a fish. You're not gonna kill me over a fish." He said confidently.

"What nonsense are you spouting?! Nothing's been decided yet, and you dare call yourself my son-in-law?! You're just a common—"

Darian cut her off. "No, I'm an Instructor now, thank you very much!" He proudly showed his status plate—and then flipped it around to show the name of Princess Tetoya… who almost fainted on the spot.

He was clearly trying to get her killed. If the Matriarch wasn't there, Tetoya would've beaten him to death without hesitation. Even if he wanted revenge, he didn't need to go that far!

Painita roared, "Screw you, brat! Even if you were my son-in-law, after committing this crime, I'd still have the right to execute you!"

"Oh? And what crime did I commit?" Darian replied, pretending to be innocent.

"You killed the fish I raised for centuries! The pill I've longed for was thrown away! Isn't that a crime?!" she shouted.

"Meh, so what? How are you gonna punish me? Kill me to avenge your fish? That'd be ridiculous, don't you think?" He shrugged, totally unfazed.

"You…!"

Painita trembled in fury. Darian definitely had a natural talent for pissing off arrogant women.

Besides, he wasn't a prince nor part of the royal family. The Matriarch couldn't treat him like family—by law, the most she could do was demand compensation for the fish.

But… her gaze shifted toward Tetoya and Zelkov. The two were clearly guilty as well, and with them, she could be as harsh as she wanted.

Then she looked back at Darian, a different light flashing in her eyes.

"I won't kill you, but I can banish you from my territory. You'll never set foot on this planet again."

"No, you won't do that either." He said calmly, with a faint smile.

"And why not?!" she snapped coldly.

"I ate your fish, so I won't argue about that. But using that as an excuse to banish me? You can't do it." He replied, meeting her gaze—and then glancing meaningfully at her two great-granddaughters beside her.

"After all, I ate your fish, but you also drank something precious of mine, didn't you? So we're even. I don't think you'll banish me—your reputation would go straight to hell. You might wanna think about that, MA-TRI-ARCH." He finished, his tone dripping with subtle mockery.

"Nonsense! When did I ever… You... you…" She suddenly thought of something—and froze.

"That's right, that Yin potion was my gift to your great-granddaughters. You drank both bottles yourself. It tasted good, didn't it?" Darian chuckled.

"You…!"

Painita took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. They weren't inside the royal hall, and if she lost control there, the entire city would hear—she'd lose face completely.

She glared at him and snorted, "Fine, brat, consider yourself ruthless! But while the banishment can be avoided, the punishment can't. Out of the three of you, one failed to control her subordinate, one made reckless friends, and one ate my treasure!"

Tetoya and Zelkov trembled head to toe in despair.

"Darian, your Instructor's salary will be revoked for ten years! As for you two... five days of solitary confinement each!"

Hearing that, their expressions darkened. They knew three days was the safe limit inside that place for royal family members—that's why it was the standard punishment. Five days? That was basically playing with death.

Tetoya might have a 50% chance of surviving, but… Zelkov? That was nearly impossible.

Zelkov went pale. His willpower, mind, and soul were far too weak. Those five days were, for him, a death sentence.

Yet neither dared to argue. With the Matriarch furious right now, any attempt to speak up would only make their punishment worse.

Painita's gaze stayed locked on Darian. She knew he was absurdly rich, having sold incredible items on the planet's market. So this financial punishment wouldn't affect him in the slightest.

Darian let out a light sigh. "This matter has nothing to do with them, so I'll take full responsibility. You can add their days together and give them all to me. I'll stay in that place for ten days, how about that? Since you hate me and can't punish me, now you're not losing, right?"

"You're insane! No one has survived more than seven days!" Tetoya shouted quickly, shocked, forgetting even the Matriarch's presence.

"You think you're in a position to bargain with me?! What right do you have to negotiate?!" Painita retorted, her voice still icy.

"You think I'm an idiot? You're not punishing them because they did something wrong—you're doing it to vent your anger. If you were simply educating your children, using your own methods to make them grow, I wouldn't interfere. But you're clearly using them as an outlet. Don't you think that stains your image as Matriarch? If you're really determined to punish them, maybe I should go to the appeals court and report this case. I'll say you abused your position to punish them without respect for laws, fairness, or justice—just because of your prejudice against me. The Elders will judge this matter."

Darian's voice was firm, serious.

"Or… you could simply use your strength to enforce what you want. That's also possible, given your power. But if you do…"

He stopped mid-sentence and locked eyes with her. A cold light, full of murderous intent, shone in his gaze.

"It will mean that you and this place do not deserve Niara's regard. And then, I swear—you and your entire planet will regret it deeply."

Everyone turned to Darian in shock. He had just threatened the Matriarch… and the whole planet? Had they heard correctly?

In all of history, no one had ever dared speak to Painita like that.

"Good, good! Brat, you've got guts!" She laughed angrily. "Then we'll do exactly what you said! And don't blame me for not warning you! The record for staying in there is seven days! I don't even know how many people died inside! Do you really want to take their punishment and be trapped for ten days?"

"As long as they aren't punished, I won't take back what I said." He replied indifferently.

"Good! Let's see if your mouth is stronger than your will!"

Painita shouted, releasing an aura filled with malice. But deep inside, she could barely hide her satisfaction.

That boy… was truly remarkable. Without hesitation, he chose something that would probably kill him just to protect Zelkov—someone he barely knew.

If there was any doubt left about his intentions, it had vanished completely. But… he would really have to survive those ten days—and even she couldn't change that now.

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