The result of the broken engagement was both unexpected and, at the same time, perfectly reasonable.
The members of the Laval House quickly accepted this dramatic turn of events.
After all, they had long known about Livia’s identity as one of the Evil God’s Chosen—this engagement had never had a clear future.
The ones who were truly heartbroken, however, were the enthusiastic servants who didn’t know the truth.
“Boo hoo… Young Master missed his chance with such a beautiful and noble young lady…” A young maid, while polishing the gleaming silver cutlery, couldn’t help but quietly sob.
“It’s just too heartbreaking!” The kitchen assistant beside her pounded the dough with extra force, venting his displeasure, “To serve such a dazzling beauty, as radiant as the stars, would have been a blessing for us as well!”
“Exactly! Exactly!”
Since the Count of the Borderlands and his group had left on bad terms (mainly because the Count himself had been carried away after being physically subdued by his own daughter), the sumptuous luncheon that the Laval House had painstakingly prepared suddenly had extra seats available.
To console the emotionally downcast yet still dutiful servants, Bernard Viscount waved his hand generously and announced that today, everyone—including masters and servants—could enjoy the feast in the dining hall, a meal originally prepared for noble guests.
This act of kindness and equality moved the servants beyond words, and they quickly cast aside thoughts of the broken engagement, shifting their praise to their own Young Master and Lord.
“If you ask me! It’s the Count of the Borderlands who looks down on our house! We’re not even interested in them!”
“That’s right! Miss Stern is beautiful, but our Head Maid Marianne is super cute too, not a bit inferior!”
“It’s true! Lady Marianne is both pretty and capable!”
With the servants heaping on the flattery, a blush rose on Marianne’s fair cheeks, but she quickly realized they were teasing her, so she glared at them and pretended to scold them fiercely:
“Just eat your meal! Don’t try to curry favor for no reason! Do you think if you flatter me, I’ll go easy on the cleaning standards this month?”
“Hehehe, Head Maid, don’t say that.” One of the bolder maids grinned, “Look, now that Miss Stern made such a scene, you’ve lost a strong ‘rival in love’, haven’t you? Isn’t that good news?”
“Exactly, exactly!” Another maid winked, sneaking a glance at Allen, who was elegantly enjoying his lunch, “Miss Stern even challenged Young Master to a duel for you! Maybe… maybe that young lady actually prefers girls?”
A round of knowing, good-natured laughter rippled through the crowd.
Allen, hearing this, showed an expression of helpless amusement, and the look he gave Marianne carried a trace of playful mischief.
Of course, Marianne understood what he meant by that look— it clearly expressed his secret approval of the servants’ outrageous speculation!
Whenever he heard someone say “Livia actually prefers girls,” this hopeless yuri fanatic would instantly perk up.
Idiot!
Actually, even if Livia had really challenged Allen to a duel for Marianne’s sake, being made the “stake” in such a matter had genuinely broken Marianne’s heart.
More importantly, she was among the very few who knew the truth—this duel was no trivial game between nobles, but a cruel fight where both victory and life were on the line.
Someone was certain to be hurt, perhaps even killed. This was no joking matter.
So, with her mood suddenly turning sour, Marianne fell silent and simply stared at them with those crimson eyes.
The servants immediately felt an invisible pressure and fell quiet, not daring to joke with the Head Maid any further.
Overall, though, apart from the money spent on preparing the banquet, the Laval House hadn’t really suffered any tangible losses.
On the contrary, it was the Count of the Borderlands who had truly lost face.
In the noble circles of the royal capital, the public opinion would likely side with the Laval House and feel that the Stern family had acted out of line.
Allen peacefully enjoyed his lunch—the beef stew, cooked with wine, spices, and a mountain of onions, was tender and richly flavored.
He even found himself with enough leisure to consider Livia’s upcoming situation.
This Letter of Challenge had received approval from the King.
It was likely that, during her audience with the King, Livia had struck some kind of deal to obtain permission for this duel.
In the past, private duels had been rampant in Lorraine Kingdom—even citizens had to learn swordsmanship for self-defense.
Blood feuds and death duels between noble families had once been commonplace.
Later, in order to maintain social order, the royal family issued a decree strictly forbidding unauthorized duels; violators could even be stripped of their titles.
In other words, with her illustrious battle achievements, Livia could have exchanged them for a title or some other generous reward. Yet, she chose to trade them for this Formal Duel Permit.
“How deep is this girl’s obsession with me?” Allen couldn’t help muttering in his heart, “Does she really want to love me ‘to death’? Is this the innate power of a woman’s love?”
It had to be said, when Allen tore up Livia’s letter in front of everyone, boldly paying tribute to a classic anime scene, he couldn’t help but feel secretly delighted.
The royal notary had read out the Engagement Contract according to proper procedures, and the meeting had followed all the formalities of noble betrothals on the surface.
For Livia to present a Letter of Challenge rather than a marriage contract at such a gathering was a grave breach of etiquette.
Thus, when Allen saw through the truth and tore up the letter, it wasn’t an insult to the royal authority at all, but a reasonable expression of his anger and protest.
Because it was Livia who had taken the initiative to break off the engagement and propose a duel, her position was now extremely awkward.
Those noble youths who had once admired her for her looks and exploits would likely be put off upon hearing she challenged her fiancé to a death duel, thinking her a bit unhinged and best kept at a distance.
Worst of all, Livia’s family situation was already delicate. The Stern family must have gone to great lengths to raise that Ten Thousand Rivels dowry.
Her step-mother, said to be rather harsh and eager to marry her off, would likely despise her illegitimate daughter even more upon hearing of the broken engagement.
Even her loving father, the Count of the Borderlands, was sure to be furious upon returning home this time.
But Allen wasn’t really in the mood to pity Livia—he pitied himself more.
The reason he’d seen through Livia’s intention to challenge him was because he had glimpsed, deep in her eyes, a heavy weariness and self-destructive impulse.
Allen was already used to dying and returning, but even in this round, his state of mind nearly collapsed.
If Livia had suddenly inherited the memories of past cycles without any mental preparation, he could only imagine how broken she must be.
Marianne’s gentle comfort and encouragement had pulled Allen back from the edge and given him the will to go on.
But what about Livia? Who would comfort her? What motivation did she have left to keep living?
After failing to save humanity so many times, she likely couldn’t even hold on to her near-obsessive sense of justice.
The reason Livia fell under the Evil God’s sway was probably closely linked to her lonely, repressed upbringing and the pain no one understood.
And on top of that, the Star Listener must have tampered with her a great deal… With all this, no wonder this “Feng Aotian” was under immense pressure.
Just looking at the surface, you’d never see how bad her mental state truly was—in fact, this “Feng Aotian” was a hidden madwoman, simply good at hiding her troubles so no one else noticed how deeply afflicted she was.
Now, Livia was in her “complete” form, and, like Allen, she could probably defeat most enemies purely by combat instinct and experience, even without using her Engraved Mark.
If Allen faced her one-on-one, his odds were slim—he’d most likely be utterly defeated.
Embarrassing as it was, he could only hope that during the duel, the Star Listener would show up to save the day.
After all, the main reason he’d accepted Livia’s duel was to create an opportunity for that maniac to act!
If he could sever the Evil God’s direct influence over Livia, Allen was confident he could slowly “capture” her, let her find salvation, and finally pair her and Marianne as the universe’s greatest yuri couple!
As the man stuck between the yuri pair, if he didn’t have the resolve to sacrifice his own life to create a yuri opportunity, what right did he have to call himself a God’s Messenger?
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