When Allen learned of the enemy’s conspiracy, he was standing in the shadow of a garden pillar, admiring the moving tableau of lilies before him.
The afternoon sun had managed to pierce through the lingering mist over Capital Lucien, casting a soft, warm glow across the lawn.
Livia and Marianne sat side by side on the lush green grass. Marianne was carefully placing a floral crown woven from white daisies and blue irises onto Livia’s brilliant platinum-blonde hair.
The girls’ laughter was crisp and melodious, like a breeze brushing through lily-of-the-valley.
The light and shadow softly traced their figures. In this moment, they were no longer tragic protagonists burdened by heavy fates; they were simply two ordinary girls enjoying each other’s company on a bright afternoon.
Allen watched silently, feeling like a farmer who had worked hard for many years and finally saw his garden in full bloom during its most magnificent season.
That pure beauty brought an indescribable sense of relief and happiness to his heart.
As a “common creature” intruding upon this sacred painting—the only “pest” in the lily garden—Allen felt that staying for even one more second would be a profanity.
He was about to quietly retreat to his study when the sharp-eyed Marianne spotted him.
“Young Master! Are you trying to sneak back to the study to mold again?” Marianne waved at him, then ran over without another word, grabbing his arm and dragging him toward the lawn.
“You’re cooped up in that room every day; your bones are going to rust! Come out and get some sun!”
“The air out here isn’t exactly fresh,” Allen countered helplessly, pointing toward the faint gray haze on the horizon.
Marianne ignored his protest entirely and pulled him onto the grass with all her might.
Though Livia remained silent, she looked up, her clear blue eyes filled with concern.
That look… it was almost like a virtuous wife worrying about a husband who didn’t take care of himself.
She simply watched him quietly, then silently pushed a plate of freshly baked, steaming pastries toward him.
Allen’s heart gave a sudden twitch.
‘No way, Livia? Don’t look at me with such a pitiful expression.’
She was truly a madwoman when she was crazy, but her tenderness was truly lethal.
Accustomed to her icy side, seeing her in such a girlish state made even Allen’s heart of stone waver slightly.
He really wanted to grab her by the shoulders and shake her: ‘How did your tempered steel turn into such soft silk?’
Unable to refuse the two girls, Allen had no choice but to sit beside them. He allowed the servants to bring red tea and desserts, accompanying them through this rare afternoon.
However, this joyful and beautiful time was destined to be eroded by cruel reality.
The news brought by Matthew had been brewing in his mind for some time.
The alliance between the Sword-Bearing Nobles and the Guilds—the black hand of this conspiracy had finally reached out toward the family he so carefully protected.
But Allen’s mood didn’t actually fluctuate much.
The weight of all the Sword-Bearing Nobles in the entire Capital combined was likely less than a single strand of Livia’s hair in his heart.
The problem was that even if he and Livia together could achieve total martial dominance, they couldn’t defeat the entire class of Sword-Bearing Nobles across the Kingdom.
The logic of human society had never been something that could be solved by force alone, unless that force was powerful enough to rival a god.
As a fake “God’s Messenger,” he had to rely on the torrent of the changing eras to complete this historic task.
Since the Sword-Bearing Nobles had reacted so quickly, Allen would naturally have to bring out epoch-making new inventions to defend his lily garden.
Everything was within his expectations.
The only thing he found strange was that since the Sword-Bearing Nobles wanted to openly oppose the King and act as rebels, why were they being so hesitant, only daring to engage in underhanded little schemes?
Military coups were nothing new. If they wanted to drop all pretenses and use force to interrupt the reforms, it wouldn’t be difficult.
They opposed the King but didn’t dare to go to war, only targeting the reforms themselves. This indicated that Louis XI held at least one card that made them incredibly wary.
Was it the Church? It didn’t look like it. Although Archbishop Luthien supported the reforms, the interior of the Church was not a monolith.
Then, it could only be the secret the Durand family had maintained for a thousand years.
For a family to rule for a millennium, there was likely something that only the Sword-Bearing Nobles knew of and feared.
Before the fire of reform truly burned away their hypocritical masks, they would most likely only strike at him, the “white glove” of his family.
Behind supreme power, there were always hidden arrows and open blades.
Since Allen had pushed his old man into the eye of the storm, he naturally had to block all the insidious attacks for him.
‘Hmph, bring it on.’
‘I’m not even afraid of an Evil God; why would I fear a bunch of Corruptors from the old era?’
Anyone who dared to harm his family or sabotage his mission to save Humanity was an enemy of the human race and would pay the most painful price.
Thinking of this, a cold smile appeared on Allen’s face.
Even the sunlight couldn’t seem to warm those golden eyes. At that moment, he truly looked like the terrifying villain he often claimed to be—the one who would overturn everything.
He rose slowly and said tenderly to the two girls, “There’s some urgent business at home I need to handle, so I have to go out for a while. Marianne, be good and take care of Livia. If you can, take her out on a date. Spend as much money as you want.”
Marianne caught his drift immediately, knowing this “urgent business” must be related to their enemies. Her current task was to keep Livia company.
After all, whether Livia had truly become pure and kind remained to be seen.
Who knew what landmines the Evil God had buried in her, waiting to be triggered?
Thinking of this, Allen glanced at Livia again, thinking this Feng Aotian… might actually be a “landmine girl”?
“Understood, stupid Master,” Marianne said, suddenly hooking her arm through Livia’s. She asked flirtatiously, “I want the stars in the sky. Can you buy them?”
“I can.” Allen gave a mysterious smile. “When I develop the aerospace industry in the future, never mind one star—I can buy the whole galaxy. When the time comes, I’ll buy the Gemini stars and name them after you two so they can be together forever. Wouldn’t that be beautiful?”
Livia seemed touched by the term “aerospace industry.” She suddenly asked, “Are there cases where three stars gather together?”
Allen paused, then joked, “That’s called a Three-Body System, and it’s quite unstable. If the people there were tortured every day by stars named after the three of us, they’d probably hate our guts.”
Then, he said seriously to Livia, “Livia, the Laval House is free. You can go wherever you want, as long as you remember to come home for dinner in the evening. We will all be with you from now on; you won’t be alone anymore.”
Allen’s intention was to remind her that by staying near him, the power of the Evil God wouldn’t erode her too deeply, so she shouldn’t wander too far.
But what Livia heard was something else entirely.
She nodded and said in a faint but concerned tone, “Good luck. I’ll wait for you to come back.”
‘Whoa! What’s with this feeling of a newlywed wife sending her husband off?’
‘Please, the fiancée thing is just a disguise! Don’t make me actually realize that relationship!’
Allen wailed internally.
When he first crossed over, he had looked forward to the day he would defeat Livia, the Feng Aotian, and see her icy facade shatter in humiliation.
Now that Livia had actually become like this, he felt awkward all over.
Still, it was a good thing she cared about him. Since they were going to live under the same roof for a long time, there was nothing wrong with building a good relationship.
“Yeah.” Allen originally wanted to say “see you tonight,” but thinking of tonight’s plan, he likely wouldn’t be back. He changed it to, “See you tomorrow.”
As soon as he spoke, Marianne suddenly struck, tightly pulling Livia into her arms and striking a pose as if defending her best friend.
“Eh! Master, your fiancée just woke up, and you’re already going out to fool around overnight?”
Livia cooperated perfectly, lowering her eyes as her long eyelashes trembled slightly. That hurt and aggrieved look was heart-wrenching.
She parted her lips slightly and whispered, “Is it because… I have no charm left?”
“You two!” Allen felt his temples throbbing. He held his forehead and sighed. “Don’t make me out to be a scumbag!”
“You have two boats to step on; aren’t you a scumbag?” Marianne asked, feigning shock.
“…I don’t want to get on either boat.” Allen’s mouth twitched, and then he smiled. “Fine, the only insect in this lily garden is leaving now.”
“Is it a caterpillar?” Livia suddenly looked up, saying naturally, “Allen will surely become a butterfly.”
“…”
Sorry, Allen had a dirty thought for a split second.
If the two beautiful girls were lilies, then as a butterfly collecting nectar…
That imagery sounded wrong no matter how he heard it. He felt like even more of a scumbag.
Fine, it seemed Livia wasn’t an airhead; she was a girl on a completely different wavelength, with a strange train of thought just like Marianne’s.
Before leaving, he turned around, gave a warm smile, and flashed them a thumbs-up. “You two better work hard! Become the best couple ever!”
Leaving behind a statement that made both girls feel a bit embarrassed, Allen turned and left without looking back.
Livia watched his back for a long time without looking away. In those blue eyes, her emotions were complex, and it was impossible to tell what she was thinking.
Marianne watched her best friend slowly falling, just as she had once done. A wicked smile identical to Allen’s appeared on her lips.
‘A boy’s troubles are as thick as wine, and a girl’s feelings are always like a poem.’
‘Livia, you must also feel the happiness brought by the Master, just like I do.’
—
Allen soon arrived at “Heaven’s Haven.”
Today, he had received two pieces of intelligence: first, the conspiracy of the Guilds and the Sword-Bearing Nobles; second, Gutenberg’s invitation to visit the workshop tomorrow.
Allen knew that his Wheellock Gun was finished.
Since the spear of the new era had been forged, the things that could maximize the power of that spear should also make their appearance.
Aside from the printing press, the other most important technology—gunpowder—would be personally developed by him today.
Something this important naturally had to be developed in his own lair.
As soon as he stepped into the underground space, a wave of heat hit him.
“Leader Allen!”
“The Leader is here!”
The members of the “Dawn’s Children,” who had been busy with their own tasks, were instantly ignited. They swarmed around him, curiosity and fanaticism written all over their faces.
There was no meeting scheduled for today, so why had the Leader visited so suddenly?
Luca squeezed through the crowd immediately, his usually steady face showing a rare hint of excitement.
Allen had already given him the first batch of saltpeter, sulfur, and charcoal to keep in secret storage, telling him that these powders would soon be used to create a weapon that would overturn the nature of warfare.
Finn also hurried over and asked eagerly, “Leader, are you here to arrange the countermeasures for the Guilds’ counterattack? We have already…”
Allen raised a hand to interrupt him, glanced at him, and laughed. “Haven’t you already laid out the assignments?”
“But your wisdom is as deep as the sea. We were worried… that the plan might still have omissions.” Finn’s tone was uneasy.
“Have faith in yourself.” Allen’s gaze swept over Finn and the energetic young faces behind him. “What would you do if one day I was gone?”
In an instant, the entire space fell silent.
Leader Allen… was leaving?
Finn’s heart skipped a beat.
A helmsman is needed to sail the sea, and the sun is needed for all things to grow.
He simply couldn’t imagine where this ship, “Dawn’s Children,” which carried the hopes of countless people, would sail without this leader.
Seeming to see Finn’s momentary confusion and panic, Allen shook his head, his voice becoming deep and distant.
“Finn, sunset is a law of nature; no one can change it. So, if the sun sets one day, you must become the next sun.”
“I understand.” Finn nodded heavily, carving these words deep into his heart.
Allen’s words always carried instruction and philosophy. While Finn worked hard to digest them, a thought suddenly occurred to him: ‘Wait, is he saying… I’m to be the successor?’
‘But isn’t the Torchbearer Comrade Marianne?’ Finn’s thoughts instantly became chaotic.
Allen had only spoken from the heart and hadn’t expected his momentary sentimental remark to send Finn into a spiral of wild speculation.
However, seeing everyone looking at him with such curiosity, Allen had a second thought. He might as well stop hiding things.
He clapped his hands, and the crisp sound drew everyone’s attention.
“Stop staring and follow me.”
Allen’s face lit up with a nearly fanatical glow, his voice full of charisma.
“Today, let’s do something world-shaking together!”
The crowd instantly erupted!
Everyone followed Allen excitedly, striding toward the workshop area of the base.
Even the girls who usually had no interest in blacksmithing and casting were infected by the fanatical atmosphere.
They followed closely at the back of the group, wanting to witness the “world-shaking” moment their leader spoke of.
A unique chemistry lesson had begun.