Chapter 464: The Shifting Tides

“Earl Buztout!”

As Shien descended from the sky on Yulin’s back, landing in the riding grounds specifically designated for those with mounts, the surrounding knights, officials, servants, and even nobles bowed to him.

Shien jumped off Yulin, patted her head, channeling magic power into her body with the [Taming] skill, making Yulin let out a comfortable sound. He then looked around at the people bowing respectfully to him, a hint of emotion in his heart.

His treatment had truly changed.

After revealing part of his strength and the existence of Airi and Lilith, his status in the eyes of others was completely different from before.

At least, Shien didn’t believe that these people were bowing so respectfully to him just because he was an Earl.

Although an Earl was a high-ranking noble, he was still at the bottom of the upper echelon. It wasn’t to the point where he would receive such attention and respect from everyone upon arriving at the palace.

Although it was partly because he had become the Kingdom’s future prince consort, Lucy’s fiancé, even so, it wasn’t that easy to receive such treatment.

Edel, for example, was also a princess’s fiancé before.

Did he receive this kind of treatment?

Not only did he not, but he was even ignored by many.

Perhaps it was partly because Lia’s influence wasn’t as great as Lucy’s, but the main reason was that Edel himself had no status or ability and was even notorious, which was why people looked down on him.

What? You say he was a Duke’s son?

He was just a Duke’s son.

Frankly speaking, the reason those so-called noble sons could act so arrogantly and smugly was simply because they had the backing of a powerful family. It didn’t mean that they themselves had high status.

Because their fathers hadn’t retired yet, and they hadn’t inherited their titles. Except for those predetermined heirs, most noble sons, after losing in the competition for inheritance, would either be sent to the frontier or given a minor official position. They might seem impressive now, but their futures were uncertain.

Edel was still considered fortunate. As the only heir of the Lucica family, he was destined to inherit the title of Duke. Although many people didn’t think highly of him, they wouldn’t openly offend him.

But expecting others to bow respectfully to him like this was impossible.

In the royal palace, probably only ordinary knights, servants, and low-ranking nobles would bow respectfully to someone like Edel.

As for the Royal Knights and high-ranking nobles above the rank of Earl, they might exchange a few polite words with this young master who hadn’t inherited his title yet, but expecting them to flatter him was impossible.

Shien, on the other hand, was now receiving far better treatment than Edel, even surpassing most Dukes and Marquises.

This wasn’t only because Shien was Lucy’s fiancé, but also because of his backing and because Shien wasn’t just a noble son, but a legitimate Earl with a title.

It could be said that in the Kingdom, Shien’s status had already completely surpassed those noble sons of the same age, even surpassing most nobles, reaching a level comparable to Lucy.

Now, even Ancil wouldn’t speak to Shien casually, showing his special status.

Of course…

“These envious and jealous gazes are far more numerous than those of respect and awe…”

Feeling the gazes from all directions, seeing the envy and jealousy in the eyes of some people in the crowd, Shien smiled inwardly.

It seemed that he, the Earl who had won the Kingdom’s treasure, was still a public enemy in the eyes of many.

Shien didn’t put on airs, but he didn’t act too friendly either. He nodded to those who bowed to him, then whispered a few instructions to Yulin, telling her to stay here, before heading towards Lucy’s bedroom under everyone’s gaze.

Along the way, everyone bowed respectfully to Shien, and many faces were filled with envy and jealousy.

Shien ignored them and went straight to Lucy’s bedroom.

It was worth mentioning that in Lucy’s bedroom, there were no longer those simps who waited there every day.

They seemed to have all disappeared, making the hall outside the bedroom seem empty, which Shien found a bit unusual.

But it couldn’t be helped. Lucy was already taken. If those noble sons continued to act like simps, it would be openly offending Shien, and their families definitely wouldn’t allow it.

In other words…

“I don’t have to be bothered by those guys anymore!”

As soon as Shien entered Lucy’s room, she rushed over happily, her good mood evident.

Shien was startled by this excited girl.

“Was it really that bad?” Shien said with amusement. “They’re noble sons who have been simping for you for years. Wouldn’t it be nice to keep them as backups?”

“What do you mean backups? I don’t need them!” Lucy wrinkled her nose and snorted. “I wish they would all disappear. They guard my room every day, making me surrounded every time I go out, and those who come to see me always try to find connections and squeeze in. If it weren’t for them, I would have found many opportunities to sneak out and play.”

“Behave yourself.” Shien was speechless. “Sneak out and play? First of all, not to mention what would happen to the palace if you suddenly disappeared, with your eye-catching appearance and aura, if you really went out, do you think no one would recognize you?”

Lucy was speechless.

This indeed wasn’t an easy task.

Don’t think that it was as easy as those princesses in novels sneaking out of the palace, disguising themselves slightly, pretending to be ordinary people, and then playing the ‘wolf in sheep’s clothing’ game.

He couldn’t say for sure about others, but with Lucy’s conditions, no matter how she disguised herself, she would eventually be exposed.

After all, who didn’t know the Kingdom’s treasure?

Even those who hadn’t seen Lucy’s face would be stunned by her breathtaking beauty, right?

Disguise?

Would that work?

Perhaps her appearance could be disguised, but Lucy’s aura, figure, and even her melodious voice, once any of these were revealed, they would attract attention.

In the end, the probability of her being exposed was almost ninety-five percent or higher.

This was the disadvantage of being too famous.

“Unless you go to another country, there’s a slight chance you won’t be exposed.” Shien reminded her kindly, “However, even then, some cliché things might happen.”

For example, a noble son from another country might happen to see Lucy, be stunned by her beauty, lose his mind, and try to abduct her.

Even if Lucy could handle it, what would follow would be a series of standard plot developments.

Like, after beating up the younger one, the older one would come, and after beating up the older one, an even older one would come. In the end, when Lucy finally pushed through, the royal family of that country would probably be alerted.

Then, they would immediately recognize Lucy’s identity, be shocked and awed, then try to flatter and appease her, making Lucy’s identity known to everyone, letting the name of the Kingdom’s treasure shine brightly in a foreign land, attracting countless admirers and followers.

𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

A typical protagonist treatment, right?

It was just too cliché.

“So, give up on this idea.”

Shien ruthlessly crushed Lucy’s fantasies.

“Can’t you at least let me have some hope?”

Lucy was annoyed.

She understood these principles.

But once she understood, she had to admit one thing.

That was, she, Roselucia Mitra, would probably never be able to go out and have fun like an ordinary person.

How cruel!

“You’re not really thinking of sneaking out to play, are you?” Shien said in surprise. “Please, make things easier for me, okay?”

Although a princess disguising herself and going to the commoner’s world to have fun and seek excitement was a common plot, such plots were usually used to serve the protagonist, allowing him to have a fateful encounter, flirt with the princess, marry the beauty, and reach the pinnacle of life.

Lucy still wanted to play like this?

Where did that put him?

Lucy didn’t know that Shien’s imagination had already run wild.

“I was just thinking about it.” Lucy said with a wronged expression. “I never had the chance to do it.”

“Really?” Shien suddenly smiled brightly at Lucy. “Then please remember, my Princess, you won’t have this chance anymore. I advise you to give up on this idea.”

“Hey!” Lucy yelled at Shien, “Are you even my fiancé?”

“That’s precisely why I’m saying this. If I weren’t, why would I care?” Shien replied, narrowing his eyes and smiling brightly. “Of course, if you don’t want to be my fiancée, that’s fine too. Since the dignitaries from various countries haven’t left yet, I’ll make an announcement that I’ve dumped you, and the engagement is off.”

Saying so, Shien even pretended to be about to walk out.

Lucy panicked.

“You dare!”

Lucy pounced on Shien’s back and wrapped her arms around his neck.

“Do you want to abandon me after taking advantage of me? I’ll bite you to death, you scumbag!”

Lucy bared her teeth and, like a little white cat, bit Shien’s shoulder.

“Ouch, ouch, ouch…! Let go!”

Shien’s face was contorted in pain.

The two started wrestling in the room.

“Let go of me!”

“Not letting go!”

“I’m bleeding! I’m bleeding!”

“I’ll bite you to death, you heartless bastard!” (Her pronunciation is slightly off due to being in pain.)

“Ouch! It really hurts! Why don’t my resistance skills work on you!?”

“What do you think?”

“Ouch! I’m fighting back!”

“Hmph!”

The room was filled with the sounds of their playful fight.

Outside, the female knights of the Holy Sword Knights exchanged glances, then quickly focused on their own tasks, pretending they hadn’t heard anything.

“Yes, Viscount Buztout and the princess are still so loving.”

The female knights nodded seriously.

Clearly, these female knights were used to this.

However, at some point, the sounds coming from the room changed.

Specifically, the sounds of fighting disappeared, replaced by an unnatural silence.

Then, these sounds could be faintly heard.

“Do you really think you can defeat me…?”

“Don’t… don’t touch there…”

“Where? Here? Or here?”

“Mmm…”

These were sounds that made one blush.

The female knights’ faces started to redden, and their hearts began to race.

They were all handpicked guards of Lucy, not only talented, with the lowest level being fifty, but also all beautiful unmarried girls. They usually didn’t even have the chance to talk to men, let alone experience such heart-fluttering things.

But on the other hand, listening to the sounds coming from the room, the female knights couldn’t help but feel incredulous.

The person inside wasn’t just anyone, but the Kingdom’s treasure, the most beautiful woman in the human world.

Their admired, adored, and worshipped princess, that high and mighty, goddess-like princess, was now in her room, being… bullied by a man?

Just thinking about it made the female knights feel unbelievable.

But it couldn’t be helped. These were facts.

They had to admit that their great princess was no longer single, but had a fiancé.

And the two were in love, definitely not together because of some revelation about a disaster.

Others might not be certain, but the Holy Sword Knights were.

Because they were always by Lucy’s side, the closest to her, and had personally witnessed the development of her relationship with Shien, seeing how many times they had interacted in private.

And since then, they had been thinking that being able to get so close to Lucy, Shien might really be able to win the princess’s heart.

Even though Lucy was so outstanding and perfect, seemingly impossible to fall for a man of adventurer origin, in the end, this seemingly absurd guess had come true.

That adventurer who had once followed behind Vivian, seemingly only able to meet the princess because of their connection, had, in just a few months, become a noble who defeated countless heroes, successfully won the prize, ascended to the top, and became engaged to the Kingdom’s treasure.

And no one dared to openly object.

The female knights thought this, lost in thought.

And the sounds coming from the room became increasingly seductive, the air sweetening.