Lukas closed the door behind him with a soft click, shutting out the distant echo of Butler James's footsteps.
His room, lined with velvet drapes and stacked with scrolls and half-finished trinkets, welcomed him like an old friend.
He sighed and loosened his collar, making his way to the window.
Earlier that day, he had overheard a conversation, his parents and younger sister were preparing to visit Count Mon Rupee.
A bitter thought slipped out before he could stop it. "Am I really going to be married to that disabled girl…?"
As if responding to his voice, the air shimmered faintly. Ding.
A translucent blue screen flickered to life before him, the familiar voiceless tone ringing in his ears.
[Quest: Secure the Future of House Ainsworth]
Objective: Marry the Daughter of Count Mon Rupee
Reward: System Reactivation (?)
Failure: ???
Note: Quest interpretation may vary based on Host alignment.
Lukas's eye twitched. "Tch… figures."
It all started with one very unfortunate incident. A tragic, undignified end, killed by a bombing in the middle of, well… pleasuring himself.
The next moment, he had opened his eyes in a new world. Magic, nobility, swords, kingdoms, it was a damned paradise.
And the maids… oh, the maids. Always smiling, always bowing. Lined up every morning like a dream made flesh.
But dreams, as he had come to learn, don't last forever.
At first, he was content just admiring them. Then came the 'accidents', the misplaced undergarments, the occasional "wrong turn" into the bathhouse.
He was barely five at the time. What could they do? He'd grown up mischievous.
Pranks, schemes, staged hauntings… until one day, he took things too far.
He had nearly drowned the only daughter of Count Mon Rupee at the time in a misguided attempt to summon a water spirit during a prank.
That was the last straw. The system, his golden cheat, his divine blessing, had locked itself down in protest.
Since then, life had dulled. No more stats. No more quests. No more divine "plot armor."
Just Lukas, wandering through a world he once controlled like a player, and now had to endure like an NPC.
He stared out the window, eyes tracking a small bird chirping happily on the sill.
"Humans don't really change overnight," he muttered.
Then added with a smirk, "But I'm not human, am I, System?"
The screen didn't respond. It never did when he asked that..
Then, instinctively, he raised his hand, fireball. At the same time, another hand moved, waterball.
Both spells clashed in the air, canceling each other out.
"Phew," he exhaled. "I nearly roasted another bird again."
He waved the system back to life.
"System, display profile."
[Host: Lukas von Ainsworth]
Talent: Being Annoying [VII]
Sub-Talent: Cursed Charisma [I] (Suppressed)
Class: Former Hero Candidate (Disqualified)
Status: Rancher [II] (Inactive)
Shops Unlocked:
Weaponry
Alchemy
Herb Garden
Bank [All Inactive]
Inventory: [Frozen]
Lukas groaned and collapsed onto his bed, one arm flung over his face. "I had ten million gold ingots saved… all for that stupid Dragon Heart."
Another ding appeared with cold clarity.
[Item: Dragon Heart – Price: 100 Trillion Gold]
He turned the screen off and stared at the ceiling.
"Well… if I'm ever going to get married, I might as well settle for the blind girl," he muttered.
Because really, who in their right mind would let someone like him marry their genius younger sister?
And if someone did… maybe they were even crazier than he was. The truth was painfully obvious.
Both House Ainsworth and House Rupee had something in common: their eldest heirs were… flawed.
One was blind and the other insane. And as if to compensate for that, their second-borns were both geniuses..
"System, claim daily rewards."
[Ding! +500 Gold Coins]
[New Balance: 0]
"Tch… always mocking me, huh?" Lukas muttered under his breath, eyes twitching at the pitiful display.
"Just wait. Once the system reactivates, I'll rebuild this entire damn town from the ground up."
The system, for once, didn't respond. Silent.
Was that... agreement? Or indifference? Either way, Lukas smirked.
Suddenly, the sharp neigh of horses pierced the air outside.
His head snapped up.
They're here.
Without a second thought, Lukas darted out of his room, coat flaring behind him. He reached the courtyard just in time to see two grand carriages rolling in.
The first bore the unmistakable dragon insignia of House Ainsworth, his own family.
The second, just behind it, was etched with a majestic lion wrapped around a gleaming gold coin: the crest of Count Mon Rupee.
From the second carriage, a loud, booming voice erupted.
"Oh! Look who came to greet us!"
It was rich with warmth and mischief.
Lukas's eyes narrowed slightly, Greed Mon Rupee. The infamous merchant-lord himself.
The Count stepped out with a jovial grin, his presence commanding.
A tall, wide-shouldered man, wrapped in layers of embroidered silk, his girth matched only by his booming laughter.
Even Lukas, despite himself, had once admired the man's sheer stature.
If I had a build like that, he thought, I could terrify half the merchant guilds with just a glare.
Behind the Ainsworth family carriage, his parents descended gracefully—Seven von Ainsworth in his polished military coat, and Lily von Ainsworth with her ever-calm, calculating expression.
Following them was Clara, the prodigy daughter. Cold, brilliant, and elegant.
Her golden eyes barely flicked toward Lukas as she stepped onto the stone path.
Then, from Count Mon Rupee's carriage, emerged his wife—tall, refined, and clad in dark green velvet, Alphonsa Mon Rupee.
And beside her, walking slowly, her hand resting gently on her mother's arm, was the daughter of the Count.
The blind girl. Veronica Mon Rupee.
Her steps were careful, measured. A white silk blindfold was tied around her eyes, her hair braided neatly with gold thread.
She wore a calm smile, serene and detached, as if already at peace with the world she couldn't see.
Lukas stared for a beat longer than he expected.
So… this is the girl I'm supposed to marry. She's pretty.