Lucian didn't want to fall behind and started thinking about his future steps as well, closing his eyes.

The steps went too far and he ended up falling asleep, dreaming about their future.

There he was the ruler of the world. He had a throne made of gold, and an army bowing to him. He was strong, feared, and respected. Not a single hair would fall from Celine's head because of him.

She could be herself and he could shower her in all the affection he desired, not having to hold back on his own feelings.

All the steps he had laid out so far were bearing their fruit. Anything seemed possible with Celine as his partner in life.

Then he woke up to his body feeling hot. There was a thick pile of blankets on top of him. Celine was no longer in the room, but her presence lingered.

The rest of the three beds had their blankets stripped. They were all on his bed, burying him under their weight.

"Haah..." Lucian sighed, melting into his warm cocoon, 'Why can't I just become her pet? I don't need a throne or power. I would be happy to sit on a cushion by her legs and do nothing.'

He recollected Mathieu's servant from earlier, the one Celine had picked on, the dead look in his eyes, the humiliation…

'Where does all this pride come from, hm?'

Lucian bet he could have made a fortune by being a male courtesan to pay for his medicine in the past, all the hay heads could. But one could search the whole kingdom and wouldn't be able to find a single female or male who would enter this line of work.

They would rather suffer through the mines, or kill themselves before they ever reached that point. Not in public anyway. Behind closed doors, Lucian was certain it happened.

'Why do we care so much? About what others say and think, and how much our lives are worth in their eyes?'

'My little wife has it all figured out, doesn't she? I bet she does. I will have to ask her when we meet again, I can't wait to hear her answer.'

He got off the bed and walked over to the window. The lanterns shone brightly in the dark, illuminating the gardens.

'Let's see...'

While he was here, Lucian wanted to at least help Celine with catching some hidden spies or anything spicy in the school's territory.

Voice was weak for a god like being but too strong for a mortal. Apparently, it was being limited by Lucian's capacity to withstand its full power and thus, looked weaker than it was.

'So, can you bless me or not?'

'You can ask your subordinates to bless you.'

'Hm? What do you mean?'

'The more people worship you, the greater the effect of their prayers will be. It doesn't have to come from the priests, but from the people.'

A blessing could fasten and enhance the body's growth. It was a process that allowed the receiver's body to adapt and tolerate higher amounts of energy that would otherwise not be possible to achieve with a mortal's physique.

'Wouldn't war erupt if this information gets leaked? How many oppressors would try to force people to worship them?' Lucian thought.

'How do you think the Duremonts rose to power so fast? It's already happening in the background. People play heroes in the name of justice and honor, but it's the same old song every time. War will always find a way. It's just a matter of time.'

Lucian overheard the Dean speaking to Young Master Duremont, discussing Lucian like a piece of cattle.

They talked about how Lucian was the new rising star in the business, but his lack of political experience would make him easy prey for those seeking to manipulate him. He was too useful to be left alone and too weak to stand up for himself.

The Dean suddenly frowned and looked around as if sensing someone was listening to them.

Lucian quickly withdrew his presence and strolled through the corridors as if nothing had happened.

He passed by the dormitories of the male students, the garden and the lecture halls, where he stumbled on more and more people, who could sense that someone was watching them as well.

'...' Lucian sighed inwardly. Too many rivals, too many people to compete with, and too many enemies to keep an eye on.

'You should fall out of love with her. There's too much baggage she brings with herself,' Voice offered a quick fix like it would be that easy.

'You talk like I didn't try.'

'Try again,' Voice said after they saw a few hard working knights in the training field, bench-pressing logs like they were toothpicks.

The world behind the walls of the Royal Academy was a different one compared to the one outside. The disparity was too big.

There were a few servants that badmouthed Celine behind her back, but not as many as Lucian expected there would be.

'That's strange isn't it?' Lucian continued to listen on. Mistreatment of servants must have been viewed as something normal for them to take it so lightly. 'The streets don't talk about her much either. At most they would say that she is arrogant and spoiled, but never with ill-intent in their words...'

Celine wasteful spendings were a good thing for the economy, so the merchants had no reason to complain. In the face of money, even the poor would choose to close their eyes to injustice.

'So it's only the people in power that despise her,' Lucian concluded.

The common people were more interested in what she was wearing than in what she had said. And she used that to her advantage as the duke's most doted upon child. Everyone knew her father had a soft spot for her. She made sure to show it off whenever she could.

With that in mind, Lucian left the Academy's territory, calling sick for the last day and not coming in.

He was not interested in being called a plaything, and made it quite obvious that he disliked the rumors (there were barely any).

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Lucian didn't know how much Celine meant by her words until one day, when Jax came to him with the juiciest gossip.

"Young master Mathieu had gone blind in both eyes!" Jax exclaimed as he climbed up the ship's ramp and onto the deck.

"..." Lucian almost dropped the cannonball, his hand stopping mid-air.

He was about to load the cannon and test fire it into the ocean. It was a sunny day, and the weather was perfect to go out on a trial voyage after finishing with the maintenance of the ship.

"What did you say?" Goblin called out to him from the other side of the ship, where he was helping two men with the sails, "Mathieu? Who is that guy?"

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╔═══ Author's note ════╗

What do you think of MCs that are not a magnet for trouble? Lucian is the one who has to pick up fights for his goals (as a loan shark, etc), and get into trouble consciously. 🤣

He is good at avoiding confrontations, so there isn't much action going on right now.

I don't want to force it either.

Making others pick up fights with him for the sake of fighting is not my style. Lucian wants to keep his number of enemies to a minimum, and he works hard for it.

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