Now that both the Asura and Deva families had arrived, the eting could officially start.
The spokesn for the young royals of both families did the talking while everyone else listened.
In a way, it was more of a debate than a eting.
Both sides were trying to prove why they would be the best allies for the Fortress Nation of Duranzia.
For the most part, Lord Ymnes, the spokesman for Prince Lumis, was dominating the discussion by highlighting the virtues of the Heaven Continent in everything he said. He was winning over the crowd more and more, while the spokeswoman for Prince Vritra grew increasingly frustrated.
"Let's take a small break…" said King Felmus.
Lord Ymnes calmly nodded. "Excellent."
"Fine!" Prince Vritra's spokeswoman shouted and furiously marched back to her superior.
Prince Vritra sat in a comfortable chair on the grand platform in the throne room. His entourage was on the left side of the platform, while Prince Lumis and his people were on the right.
In the center sat the king and a few nobles from the Duranzia Royal Council behind a large, sturdy table.
Behind them all stood Princess Luciana, who quietly observed and occasionally exchanged very romantic glances with a smitten Prince Lumis.
『This is my first ti eting him, but I already feel a strong connection between us.』
Those were the princess's thoughts.
[Luciana looked at Lumis: -5 Affection Points!]
[Luciana got flustered by Lumis: -10 Affection Points!]
[Luciana smiled at Lumis: -10 Affection Points!]
[Luciana looked at Lumis: -5 Affection Points!]
( 10 More)
The constant notifications from the system interrupted Prince Vritra's enjoynt of his red tea. Every ti he tried to take a sip, a ding would sound in his mind, and a diaphanous blue screen would pop up in front of him.
No one else but him could see or even hear these notifications, and that alone was slowly driving him insane.
The two lovebirds kept exchanging soft, romantic glances and blushing every ti they looked at each other.
It made Vritra grit his teeth in frustration.
『Is this oppression of so sort?!』
Their presence made him want to burn down the entire Ard Palace, but he saw no point in doing so.
To him, these two were retarded.
『Almost five months ago, my soul was transported to a powerful noble house on the Hell Continent, where I was born as the only son of Lord Rohan, one of the Demon Kings.
『I used to be a happy salaryman, but now I'm stuck playing the role of a villain who's ant to be a stepping stone for the first hero, Prince Lumis. I have a system called the Heroine Stealing System, but I still don't know exactly what it does. It just beca active again after I t the first heroine, Princess Luciana Duranzia.
『I've learned three things about the Heroine Stealing System so far, and it's been pretty useful. The first thing is that it works based on sothing called Fate Value.
『This value represents a person's potential and destiny. A high fate value ans soone has a big role in shaping the world or great potential. My fate value is low, probably because I'm a transmigrator and my real destiny lies in my original world, not this one.
… Sigh~
『So, my Fate Value is… z-, zero. According to the system, if I don't increase it, I'm going to die in a sudden teor shower two months from now.
『The second, is about Heroines and Heroes. People with high Fate Values get tagged as Heroes or Heroines. They're central to major events, have exceptional potential, or deeply impact the world's fate.
『In simpler terms, they're the main characters of the story. So far, these two lovebirds are the first hero and heroine I've co across.
『The third and last thing is Affection Points. This asures how much a heroine is attracted to a character. By stealing a heroine's affection, I can earn affection points. Gaining these points boosts my fate value and lowers the fate value of her destined love interest.』
… Yawn~
Prince Vritra covered his mouth and let out a quiet yawn.
He was quite literally bored.
『I honestly don't give a shit what happens to the heroine's love interest; my only goal is to survive.』
The spokeswoman for Prince Vritra returned to her seat next to him and pouted.
Hmph… mmm…
Hnnn…
She made so sad grumbling noises, but Prince Vritra didn't respond. Instead, he just stared intently at the cup of tea in his hands and gently blew away the steam rising from it, almost as if she wasn't there.
Frustrated, the spokeswoman turned to him and leaned in close with big, desperate red eyes.
"Prince Vritra, aren't you going to say anything about what just happened?"
Her voice was sounded child-like.
Vritra closed his eyes and sipped his tea without showing a single shred of interest.
"You're my spokeswoman; do your job. Besides, it's not like you asked for my opinion when you went out there and got schooled by that old bag of bones."
He was referring to Lord Ymnes.
The old man looked quite wise, so he couldn't bla soone as dumb and inexperienced as his secretary for losing.
『The woman next to is Ghislaine Lumont. She isn't an Asura like , but the real Vritra, before my soul took over his body, found her abandoned at the border of the Central Continent and took her in.
『She was kicked out of the House of Lumont by her stepmother after it was discovered that she was the illegitimate child of Lord Lumont and so succubus chick or sothing. Sigh~ I don't really care.
『To sum it up, Ghislaine is dumb, ssy, and surprisingly good in bed. Her only redeeming qualities are her good looks and the fact that she can speak over twelve languages. Else, I swear I'd have co to Duranzia alone.』
Ghislaine was a beautiful young woman with peachy skin and a slightly petite fra. She had very long, wavy silver hair that flowed down to her small waist.
She wore armor in red, black, and gold that perfectly fit the white dress she had on underneath.
Her most noticeable feature was her right eye, which was covered by a black cloth wrapped around her face.
Ghislaine folded her arms and frowned, though she still looked quite cute.
"Hmph! I'm too tired to figure out how to win this king's favor."
Even as she said this, she glanced sideways at Vritra several tis, hoping he would respond. But the prince remained silent, more interested in his cup of tea than anything happening in the throne room.
Ghislaine cleared her throat loudly and crossed her arms again for effect.
"I'm too tired to think of a wa──"
Before she could finish her statent, Prince Vritra sighed impatiently.
"Shut up, or we're going to have a problem."
His tone was calm and smooth, but there was a firm edge to it.
Ghislaine grumbled, shut her eyes closed, and then turned her head away with an exaggerated motion.
"Hmph!"
She decided to be cold towards him.
Naturally, the prince was unbothered.
At the head table of the Duranzia Royal Council, a mber decided to speak.
It was the Master of the Armies, Marquis Cedric Bluesteel, who was in charge of the nation's military and a veteran general with extensive battlefield experience.
"I believe, as do the other nobles of the Royal Council."
He glared at Vritra with enough hatred that the young prince could feel it.
Prince Vritra paused his tea drinking and sighed.
Marquis Cedric kept talking with a tone full of contempt.
"The Asura Family has no place with a great nation like ours that stands for all things good. We are humans, after all. Wouldn't it make more sense for us to ally with peace seekers like the Deva Family? Frankly, it's insulting that we even considered allying with the Asura Family."
He rested his hands on the table and exhaled heavily, showing he had finished speaking.
Quite frankly, he looked very pleased with himself.
"This bastard…"
Ghislaine gritted her teeth at the man, wanting to crush him on the spot.
The only thing stopping her was the presence of her prince.
Prince Vritra glanced at her and saw that her left eye was already glowing a nacing red.
… Sigh~
He sighed wearily, though he looked quite unfazed by Marquis Cedric's provocative words.
King Felmus didn't need to hear any more from the other Council dignitaries; it was clear what they would say.
The Asura Family's visit now seed pointless because no one in their right minds would want to ally with the darker half of the world.
King Felmus' only worry was that Prince Vritra might get so angry by his final decision he'd set their kingdom on fire and send them all to their deaths.
However, he also knew that forming an alliance with the Deva Family could offer protection against Prince Vritra.
Clearing his throat, the king decided it was ti to speak.
"I believe the decision of our great nation is al──"
"One mont, Felmus…" Prince Vritra interrupted.
Everyone imdiately turned their attention to Prince Vritra, surprised that the Asura finally wanted to speak after being quiet for so many hours. Up until now, they had thought he was just a silent observer, viewing everyone in the Ard Palace as beneath him.
The young royal, with his elegant black horns, smiled as he blew on his hot cup of tea.
"What if I told you Prince Lumis is only interested in forming an alliance with your nation because he wants to fuck the brains out of your innocent daughter."
The onlookers erupted into screams of disbeliefs.
"WHAT──?!"
"This is outrageous! Does he actually think he can afford to disrespect our king like that?!"
"C-, Could he be telling the truth, though?"
"Of course not! The king is a good judge of character. Do you really think he would support the Deva Family just because one of its princes wanted to bed his daughter?!"
Different speculations were already spreading among the nobles in the Ard Palace.
All the mbers of the Duranzia Royal Council and the Deva Family glowered at Prince Vritra with open hostility.
[Luciana Duranzia is hurt by your words: -50 Affection Points!]
[Cedric Bluesteel's animosity towards you has increased. Current Hatred Level: 3 stars]
[Lumis Deva's animosity towards you has increased. Current Hatred Level: 3 stars]
[King Duranzia's animosity towards you has increased. Current Hatred Level: 2 stars]
( 70 More)
The young royal took a careful sip of his tea.
『Hrmm, so easy to provoke…』
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