The mornings at the Laval Mansion always possessed a tranquility that felt somewhat out of place in this turbulent era.
When Livia finished changing and walked down the stairs, Allen was sitting on the sofa in the main hall.
He held a steaming cup of black tea, enjoying a rare moment of leisure.
Hearing her footsteps, he instinctively looked up, and then he froze.
The morning sun filtered through the carved glass windows, turning into soft pillars of light. A single beam happened to fall right on Livia.
She wore the white-themed long dress Allen had sewn with his own hands.
The iris embroidery adorning the fabric shimmered with a faint blue light, looking like butterflies perched upon the snow.
The sharp tailoring discarded all the redundant and complex decorations of traditional noble attire.
Instead, it used the simplest lines to perfectly outline the young girl’s tall and supple figure.
It was no longer the sternness of a Knight Princess wrapped in cold armor, nor the heavy luxury of a noble lady restricted by layers of petticoats.
At this moment, she was elegant and light, possessing a pure beauty that had washed away all vanity.
She was like a lily blooming quietly in the early morning after a rain, holy and untainted by a single speck of dust.
Images of Livia from countless cycles flashed through Allen’s mind—school uniforms, knight gear, court dresses, and several sets of plain civilian clothes that were almost indistinguishable from one another.
‘I’ve always wanted to complain about whether this female lead only has identical clothes in her wardrobe,’ he thought.
The original work was a game, after all. To save on the artist’s workload, it was natural that they wouldn’t design too many outfits for her character art.
But now, a living Livia with infinite possibilities stood before him.
A bold idea suddenly took root in Allen’s heart.
The “Hermès” clothing brand he had founded was currently lacking a top-tier model who could represent the label.
‘If I let Livia be the spokesperson… forget leading the trends of the Capital, it would be more than enough to ignite an aesthetic revolution for the entire world.’
Allen almost burst out laughing.
‘Heh heh heh… Next time, should I have her try a qipao? Or maybe a hanfu? The cold and ethereal immortal, Livia… Just thinking about it is incredibly exciting.’
Allen’s gaze was too focused, carrying the pure appreciation of an artist examining a perfect masterpiece.
Livia noticed his stare, but she did not shy away. Instead, she naturally lifted her skirt slightly and performed a standard, elegant curtsy. A trace of a smile appeared on her usually frosty, cold face.
“How is it?”
“It suits you perfectly.” Allen snapped back to his senses. Moving like a drama king, he pretended to wipe a non-existent tear from the corner of his eye and sighed with the tone of an old father. “My daughter is finally all grown up.”
“…When did I become your daughter?” Livia felt a bit helpless against his strange train of thought.
“The amount of worrying you make me do makes it hard to imagine we are the same age,” Allen replied solemnly.
Just then, a petite figure in a maid’s uniform popped out from the side.
Anna, who had been wiping the furniture, was like a kitten discovering something new.
She curiously approached Livia and sniffed her with her small nose. Her eyes lit up instantly, and she happily lunged forward, giving her a firm hug.
“Wow, you smell so good!”
Anna’s eyes were sparkling. Her expression looked exactly like a Golden Retriever that was both cautious and excited upon discovering its master had brought a new friend home.
Anna’s enthusiasm caught Livia off guard. Her body stiffened instinctively, but the warmth and kindness radiating from the girl in her arms made her slowly relax.
She raised her hand somewhat awkwardly and gently rubbed Anna’s fiery red hair. Her gaze was softer than ever before.
“Who is this?”
Anna was a new character unlocked only in this cycle, so Livia naturally did not recognize her.
“She is Sister Anna of the Inquisition, the trump card of the Combat Nuns,” Allen introduced with a smile.
“She has monstrous strength and is very powerful. Plus, she is my top disciple in Military Boxing. Even you might have a hard time getting the better of her.”
Watching the two stunningly beautiful girls hugging, the smile on Allen’s face grew even more pleasant.
“She has a hound’s nose for the scent of evil. It’s because she’s here guarding the house that the Laval House isn’t easily targeted by cultists. She is also my family, so try to get along. This child is a bit of a space cadet. In a way… she’s a bit like you.”
“Is that so…” Livia did not refute the claim that she was a space cadet.
She understood the subtext in Allen’s words: ‘The scent of evil is gone from you, which is why this child is close to you. So just be good and become part of my family.’
‘Truly… I owe him far too many favors.’
Livia looked at Anna, who was nuzzling her like a kitten, with a soft expression. She asked gently, “Anna, is there anything you like?”
“Eating!” Anna’s answer was crisp and direct.
“I see. Then how about I make you something delicious later?”
“Mm-hmm!” Anna nodded vigorously, her eyes crinkling into crescents.
Allen couldn’t help but want to interject from the side. “Livia, if I remember correctly, isn’t your cooking notoriously terrible?”
“Yes.” Livia nodded frankly and said calmly, “Because eating… isn’t a very good memory for me. So… I can’t really taste anything.”
She paused, looking up at Allen with a flat but serious tone.
“However, since I am your fiancée, I should learn how to cook for my husband.”
“…Is this fiancée joke never going to end?” Allen massaged his temples, feeling them throb.
‘To say such a sad thing with such a plain expression… Is this woman doing it on purpose or is she just that natural?’
He sighed softly in his heart.
“Try the food at my house for lunch.” Allen changed the subject, not wanting to delve deeper into her dark past. “I’ll make you something you’ve definitely never had before. I guarantee you’ll find it delicious.”
“Thank you.” A glimmer of light flashed in Livia’s eyes. “I’m looking forward to it.”
When Anna heard the word “fiancée,” her ears perked up immediately. She looked at Allen, then at Livia, her small head seemingly processing some major piece of information.
When she finally understood that Livia was about to become a member of the family—and a powerful Crestbearer at that—her Combat Nun instincts were triggered.
Her eyes sparkled, and she eagerly tried to drag Livia to the courtyard for a sparring match.
Livia was very patient with this overly enthusiastic “family member.” Not only did she agree to the match, but she also reiterated her promise to make something delicious.
Finally, Anna accepted this new member with full satisfaction.
Having gained approval, even the cold aura surrounding Livia seemed to melt away slightly, making her appear much brighter. She led Anna and followed Allen toward the dining room.
Along the way, Allen introduced her to every servant in the Laval House. Livia didn’t put on any airs of a noble lady; she seriously memorized everyone’s name.
Finally, she solemnly bowed to the old butler, Jean Leclerc, apologizing for her previous rudeness in tearing up the marriage contract.
The old butler simply waved his hand cheerfully, saying that as long as the young master and the ladies were happy, it was all that mattered. He hoped Miss Livia would find her stay comfortable.
At the breakfast table, Allen did what he always did—he picked up today’s fresh edition of the Lucerne Daily and started reading.
“July 13. Nothing happened in the Capital.”
He scanned the front page, his eyes moving quickly across the layout.
The Lucerne Daily was becoming more colorful and diverse by the day. Every social class in the Kingdom—commoners, nobles, and clergy alike—was eagerly submitting articles.
More and more people realized that this newspaper was rapidly changing the way people accessed information and exchanged ideas.
The generous manuscript fees attracted some, while the opportunity to display their views before tens of thousands of readers made even more people flock to it.
The Lucerne Daily promoted freedom of speech and allowed various viewpoints to clash. This made it take a completely different path from the official, stiff Lorraine Gazette.
The Lorraine Gazette leaned toward serious political discourse, with a readership mostly consisting of bureaucrats and high-ranking nobles.
In contrast, the Lucerne Daily was more grounded and beloved by ordinary citizens.
In particular, the articles that explained reform policies in simple terms allowed everyone to understand what was happening to the nation.
Ever since Allen published that editorial under a pen name in the Lorraine Gazette titled Breaking Old Habits, Seeking Truth from Facts, and Working Together to Create the Future, a massive discussion about reform had swept through the entire Kingdom.
Now, the current events section of the Lucerne Daily had become a battlefield for public debate between the “Conservative Faction” and the “Reformist Faction.”
Both sides cited classics, listed data, and engaged in heated verbal battles that readers found incredibly entertaining.
These national affairs, which had once been locked away in noble salons, were now the talk of the town among citizens during their tea breaks.
Even the people at the very bottom were starting to worry about the state of the Kingdom.
The political wind of the Kingdom was quietly shifting from the opposition between “Hardliners” and “Moderates” toward a struggle of paths between the “Conservatives” and the “Reformists.”
This was exactly what Allen wanted to see.
Of course, aside from the serious political sections, the other pages were equally exciting.
Influenced by the works Allen had “transported” over, such as Don Quixote, The Count of Monte Cristo, and Andersen’s Fairy Tales, the traditional knight novels in the fiction section were being pushed out by stories that were closer to city life and reflected secular emotions.
The editorial department had even come up with a reader voting mechanism to decide the fate of serialized works.
If the approval rating rose continuously over the first five chapters, the work could continue. If the response was low, it might be “axed” around chapter ten.
The butler mentioned that many Robe Nobility in the Capital, who held idle positions, had started writing novels to earn money and fame.
To increase the popularity of their stories, they racked their brains to make their writing more accessible and eye-catching.
Some even lowered their status and went to the Lower City to gather materials, actively reaching out to the common people to draw inspiration.
After all, the common folk never lacked stories of joy, sorrow, love, or hate.
In this process, the stances of many noble authors unconsciously leaned toward the Reformists. Some even began creating stories with characters from the Bottom World as protagonists.
Their leads were no longer high-and-mighty knights but commoners struggling to survive. These grounded characters were naturally welcomed by the citizens.
Allen even saw some “webnovel” tropes in the paper, such as ‘My fate is mine to command, not the heavens’ and ‘Poor boy counters noble lady.’ It seemed the revenge model of The Count of Monte Cristo had given them a lot of inspiration.
The literary works of Earth truly possessed vibrant vitality in any world.
Even the servants of the Laval House often pestered the literate butler to read the newspaper to them.
Later, in order to understand the stories for themselves, many began learning to read on their own.
A true wave of Enlightenment was quietly rising in the Capital.
Even Allen hadn’t expected that a move he made on a whim would trigger such a profound butterfly effect.
At that moment, he saw a report with a familiar style in the corner of the paper—Showdown!! The Fog City Killer.
Allen initially wanted to joke about Hugo’s chuunibyou behavior like usual, but after reading the content carefully, the smile on his face faded.
The report detailed the killer’s many crimes and how the “Kamen Rider” had risked his life to subdue him.
This time, Hugo had actually taken down a cultist who had committed many evils.
Allen set aside his joking attitude, his expression turning respectful.
‘As expected of a Kamen Rider.’
When he had designed that suit for Hugo, he had specifically taken the meaning of the original Kamen Rider—a lonely hero modified by evil powers who chose to fight to protect humanity.
The situation of a Crestbearer was so similar.
The Bloodline originated from an Evil God. Some used it for evil, while others used it for good.
What Allen wanted to eliminate was never the people who possessed the Sigil Bloodline, but the privileged class of the “Crested Nobles” and the evils it bred.
The path Hugo chose was one filled with light—the path of a protector.
Thinking of this, a rare, gratified smile appeared on Allen’s face.
Livia had been quietly observing him from the side. She watched his focused profile as he read and saw his genuine smile.
Unable to suppress her curiosity, she asked softly, “What is this?”
“A newspaper. A small invention of mine,” Allen answered casually.
“Eh?”
Livia was clearly encountering this concept for the first time.
She had been busy purging cultists underground for the past few days and knew nothing about the changes in the outside world.
Allen had no choice but to briefly explain the origin and purpose of the newspaper to her.
After hearing about this revolutionary invention that was enough to change the global landscape, the way Livia looked at him changed once more.
‘Just how many secrets is this man hiding?’
“Can I… read it with you?” she asked.
“Butler, are there any extra copies?” Allen turned his head.
Before the butler could answer, Livia proactively moved her chair closer to Allen, almost touching his shoulder, looking ready to share the single copy.
Allen looked at her in confusion.
Livia looked back at him as if it were the most natural thing in the world, her tone calm and steady.
“I am your fiancée, am I not? Am I not allowed to read it with you?”
‘This trick again!’
She was sitting so close that Allen could even smell the faint fragrance coming from the ends of her hair, like green grass after a rain. It made his heart skip a beat.
He shifted uncomfortably and turned his gaze back to the paper, trying to use reading as a way to hide his slightly flustered state of mind.
“…Fine, whatever you want.”
Allen sighed helplessly and moved the newspaper into the space between them.
The old butler watched this scene, smiling as he shook his head. He quietly retreated, leaving space for the two of them to be alone.
Miss Livia was well-versed in noble etiquette. There was no way she didn’t know the subtle signal being sent by sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with Allen in the master’s seat to read together as his fiancée.
‘Master… It seems this fiancée of yours is no pushover either,’ the butler thought to himself.
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