Ultimate Tycoon: Building the Richest Empire with System and Heroines
Chapter 73: A little punishment

Chapter 73: A little punishment

Master Yun rolled across the marble floor, clutching his lower body like a defeated crab on its back.

"OHH MY BALLS! MY PRECIOUS BALLS!" he cried, his voice echoing dramatically through the vault like a dying opera singer.

Ethan leaned on Luke’s shoulder, barely able to stand from laughing. "D-Did... did he just moan? What the hell was that? I’m scarred for life!"

Luke wiped away tears of laughter. "My day has been ruined and made all at once."

Even Gregory, who was still stunned by Seraphina’s unexpected kick, found his lips twitching. His expression struggled between pure shock and suppressed laughter. Eventually, a loud snort escaped him.

"He sounds like a deflating balloon," Gregory mumbled under his breath. But the moment he realized this might be the last laugh of his life... his smile vanished, lips tightly sealed. Fear took over again.

A few more minutes passed. The dramatic cries finally faded.

Master Yun, red-faced and panting, slowly came back to his senses. "You... you monsters..." he wheezed.

Now, Master Yun and Gregory were tied together in one chair like a pair of cheap cartoon villains caught by the Scooby-Doo gang. Their hands bound, their pride shattered, and their futures erased.

All the guards who had helped Master Yun? Also tied up like potatoes in a sack, left in a corner with duct tape over their mouths.

Ethan casually walked over, hands in his pockets. "Look at you both. Master and student... more like moron and mini-moron. Damn, it’s poetic. Tied together, humiliated together. Kinda touching actually."

"F*ck you, Ethan," Gregory spat.

"Language," Ethan said, wagging his finger. "You should be thanking me. Really. I showed you the truth. The master you worshipped like some kind of bald Buddha just saw you as a disposable chess piece. Say ’thank you, Ethan’."

"Go to hell—"

"I said say it."

Gregory gritted his teeth. "Thank you, Ethan."

"There we go. That’s the spirit."

Just then, Luke walked up to Seraphina and bowed slightly. "Princess, I’ve contacted everyone. Royal investigators, intelligence agents... and the press. They’re all on their way."

Master Yun’s head shot up. "P-Princess Seraphina,please, I beg you! Forgive me! I’ve grown old. My mind has... become corrupted! It’s not me! It’s my MIND that betrayed me!"

Ethan raised a brow. "Damn, this old man really out here blaming his brain like it’s a separate person. What’s next? ’My hand committed the crime, not me’?"

Seraphina stepped forward slowly, arms crossed. She gave Master Yun a cold smile.

"Yeah, yeah, I’m sure it’s not your fault. You were just an innocent soul possessed by your own mind. Don’t worry... My father will decide what to do with you."

Master Yun whimpered. "I swear—"

"But before that," Seraphina interrupted, "I’ve got a little punishment of my own."

She pointed to the boxes, crates, and shelves that lined the vault. "All the families you blackmailed. All the noble secrets you sold. All the drugs, the smuggled gold, the dirty ledgers. And worst of all..." Her voice hardened, "You planned the assassination of my sister. My sister, the eldest Princess."

Master Yun’s face went pale. His lips trembled, but no words came out.

"I’ve got proof," Seraphina said firmly. "Every. Last. Piece."

Ethan chimed in, smirking. "Yeah, and thanks again, by the way, Master Yun. If you hadn’t both so dumb, I wouldn’t have had a way into this vault. And if Gregory hadn’t taken us here like a loyal mutt, we wouldn’t have all this evidence gift-wrapped in one place."

Gregory tried to look away.

"Honestly," Ethan said, "you two deserve each other. In fact, that’s why we tied you in one chair. For emotional support."

Gregory groaned. "I hate you so much."

"That makes me happy."

Just then, a sharp knock echoed through the vault’s metal doors.

"Open up! Royal Enforcement!"

Ethan stretched his arms. "Well, boys, it looks like the circus is here."

The door opened with a dramatic creak, revealing armored royal agents, some nobles, and several reporters already holding cameras. Luke stepped forward and gave them the nod.

Flash. Flash. Flash. Cameras lit up the vault like a paparazzi ambush at a royal scandal.

"Get their faces," Ethan called out. "This is history in the making. Master student romance in one chair."

Master Yun and Gregory were both now the face of national disgrace.

"Smile for the people," Ethan said.

Seraphina stood confidently before the swarm of cameras. Her long silver hair fluttered slightly in the breeze, but her eyes remained fixed, sharp and unwavering.

"I, Seraphina Vale, second princess of the Nightveil Empire," she announced, her voice firm and clear, "hereby declare that this man, Master Yun of the mount gai, has committed treason against the throne."

Gasps echoed from the gathered crowd. Reporters pushed forward, lenses snapping. Even the cameramen gulped.

"He manipulated innocent families," she continued, her tone never wavering, "stole national wealth, planned to harm royal bloodline, and plotted the murder of the eldest Princess."

She stepped aside, gesturing dramatically to the chair tied up with rope , where Master Yun and Gregory now sat, back-to-back, both gagged, flailing like fish out of water.

"All of them will be investigated and punished accordingly," she said, lifting her chin. "Let this be a lesson ,loyalty cannot be faked forever."

The reporters exploded.

"Princess, are the charges verified?"

"Is this the end of Master Yun?"

"Was assassination really planned?!"

Seraphina walked over to one of the microphones casually handed to her.

"They all will get the punishment they deserve," she said smoothly. "But before that—"

She turned, smirking slightly.

"I’ll be giving them a little punishment myself."

The crowd roared louder. Reporters blinked in confusion. Some gasped. Some snorted.

Even Luke looked over. "Princess... what punishment will you give them?"

Seraphina blinked.

"I don’t know. I just said it."

Ethan, standing nearby, sighed deeply. "Princess, forgive me for being rude... are you dumb?"

There was a sharp silence. Cameras froze. Reporters stopped typing. Luke inhaled through his nose.

But Seraphina just laughed, genuinely.

"I just got with the flow," she admitted. "But why would I use my mind... when you’re here?"

Ethan paused. "Huh?"

She winked.

Ethan looked at her, at the tied-up Master Yun and Gregory, and then back at the media swarm. "You... really don’t have a plan?"

"Nope."

"You said something on national broadcast without a plan?"

"Yes."

He sighed, rubbing his temples. "These royals..."

A flash of inspiration lit his eyes.

"Alright," he grinned. "I just got a nice idea."

He stepped forward, waved at the crowd, and picked up the mic.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he said like a TV host, "I know the princess promised a punishment, and don’t worry , it’s going to be fun, public, and very educational."

Master Yun let out a muffled groan from the chair.

Gregory flailed harder, trying to chew through the rope with his teeth.

"Please understand," Ethan continued, "this punishment has been carefully designed by our Royal Department of Public Embarrassment and Awkwardness."

Seraphina stifled a giggle.

Ethan stepped behind the chair. "First," he said, "we begin with the Truth Ball Tap."

Before anyone could react , SMACK!

Ethan tapped Master Yun gently between the legs.

Yun’s eyes rolled back, mouth gagged and wide as he let out a noise that sounded like a mix of a dying duck and a confused goat.

The entire crowd froze for a second , and then burst out laughing.

"OOOOHHHH my baalllllsss!" Yun moaned through the gag.

"Damn," someone in the crowd whispered, "why does he sound like that?"

"Are his balls made of crystal?"

Even Gregory accidentally snorted, then stopped himself.

Ethan leaned into the mic. "You see folks, these are the same people who planed to kill royalty. But now they sound like they’re auditioning for a soap opera."

Seraphina was wheezing from laughter.

Ethan turned to Gregory.

"You too, G-Man," Ethan said. "Let’s not leave you out."

He reached behind, flicked him on the back of the head, and whispered, "For stealing paintings, and also being a professional dumbass."

SMACK! A playful slap to the back of Gregory’s head.

"AAAGHH—" Gregory’s voice echoed out, almost in harmony with Yun’s moaning groans.

A reporter raised his hand like a student. "Um... is this legal?"

Luke stepped forward.

"Totally. Royal orders."

Another reporter whispered, "I’m so confused but I can’t stop watching."

Ethan turned around, took a bow, and smiled at Seraphina.

"Anything else, Your Highness?"

Seraphina took the mic again, still laughing slightly.

"Now that the crowd is entertained, it’s time to get serious."

She pointed to several knights entering the vault.

"Please take these criminals away. Their official trial will begin at the Imperial Hall within two weeks. All evidence has been collected , and will be made public."

The crowd clapped. Some still couldn’t believe it.

"A royal assassination plot exposed just like that?"

"Wasn’t Master Yun a hero?"

"Wait... that guy, who did the punishment , is he single?"

As the two traitors were dragged away, moaning and limp, Seraphina glanced at Ethan and whispered, "Thanks."

Ethan then turned to reporters, ladies and gentleman the punishment just started, the main thing I will show you all in front of the public