I’m Really Not Trying to Be Chased by the Heroine as the Villainous Playboy! – Chapter 549

Chapter 96: Out of Control

Private tutoring.

A bunch of inland nobles stared blankly for a few seconds before finally reacting to what he just said.

Wenter’s gentleness until now showed signs of cracking.

Nobles seeking an education would go to the Mage Guild or hold positions at the Academy, sometimes even offering private tutoring to other nobles.

But let’s be real, studying was more about expanding networks and less about actual learning—more like a fancy sightseeing trip.

And what Roy just said was basically like announcing that Xue Nuo was going to join him on a leisurely trip, putting Wenter’s royal proposal on hold!

Talk about a blatant provocation and humiliation!

Count Laka stood up like an enraged hyena, roaring first: “Roy Ainbrad! We treat you as a guest, and you dare to cause such a ruckus?!”

“Exactly! Your personal matters are completely irrelevant to the stability of our empire’s borders!”

“His Highness’s sincere proposal deserves no such vile joke from you!”

Wenter snorted inwardly, barely able to hold in his laughter.

Ah well, he’s just a little brat after all.

Using such absurd reasons to stir trouble—that’s probably the best he could do.

“Mr. Roy, I understand your demands. How about I arrange for the best instructor for you? Please don’t disturb my proposal and show some respect to Miss Xue Nuo…”

“Prince Wenter, you seem to have some misunderstandings.” Roy stepped forward, staring at the silver-haired prince coolly, unwavering: “Xue Nuo Andavis is my personal tutor. She will neither agree to your proposal nor wish to, got it?”

Wenter’s eyebrow twitched.

The inland nobles fell silent, the atmosphere growing even heavier.

Barking was merely a warning; when the real hunt began, silence was the killer.

Oral debates were of no use. They fully intended to teach this clueless little brat a lesson.

But as Laka pointed again at the black-haired boy, a resonant voice broke through.

“Causing a ruckus? What, me politely informing you, the knights of the Lionheart Kingdom, makes it a ruckus?!”

The golden-haired countess’s question made Count Laka frown slightly.

The ambassador from the Lionheart Kingdom?

This indicated that Roy was serious about finding trouble.

But let’s not forget whose territory this is; this level of annoyance won’t be enough to overpower…

“Alas, to think the imperial royal family is so unreasonable, I’m truly gaining new insights today.”

The inland nobles led by Laka, even Wenter, all paused in shock.

They never expected that the gender-neutral-clad elven youth would start throwing shade too.

This person had a bigger background—an A-rank Adventurer known as “Kingfisher,” and also a member of the Emerald Council, able to act as a bridge for communication between the Council and the Empire, even representing their stance directly.

However, communication between the Emerald Council and the Empire was limited, and the elven descendants were infamous for their disinterest in power struggles. Why would they meddle in this?

But there was no time for Laka and the others to ponder more.

The chairpersons of the local Mage Guild, the ambassador from the Goldsand Kingdom, and the manager of the Blue Moon Commerce Empire branch—formerly quiet big shots—spoke up one after another to back Roy’s somewhat ridiculous and even comical remarks.

“Let me clarify, Mr. Roy is not intentionally offending anyone; it’s just that the private tutoring agreement has already been signed ahead of time.”

“I can verify this. Miss Xue Nuo and Mr. Roy previously conducted research on ruins at my Goldsand Kingdom’s border; we have the evidence.”

“Uh? By the way, Miss Xue Nuo wasn’t in a hurry to inherit her title or get married. Waiting a moment is no big deal, right?”

With a third-party force acting as a breakthrough, the long-silent border nobles finally found an opportunity to chime in.

Count Barry was the first to react, cheerfully agreeing: “Exactly!”

Wenter’s plan effectively ended here, and everything transitioned into the track of Roy’s scheme.

In the original story, facing the same choice, in the bad ending, Xue Nuo publicly rejected the proposal, enraging the prince, leading to internal war in the empire and the border forces’ defeat.

In the good ending, supported by the Holy Light Church, the prince whose engagement was interrupted could only swallow his anger and dare not use force, watching Xue Nuo smoothly take her position as Duchess and grow stronger.

At the time, Alice was the one acting as the private tutor—what seemed like a ridiculous excuse then.

But was it really absurd?

Whether it was a proposal or private tutoring, it was just a cover. Underneath, it was a power struggle. As long as you had enough leverage, you could threaten the other side into submission, or even force them to comply.

In the bad ending, Xue Nuo had to pay the price for rejecting the proposal. In the good ending, Wenter dared not take action against Xue Nuo after his engagement was rejected—it was essentially the same.

Whoever had more leverage held the advantage.

Though not as powerful as the Holy Light Church, Roy wasn’t alone anymore.

With just a few letters, his ladies would arrange all the necessary assistance for him.

The Lionheart Kingdom and the Emerald Council would throw everything they had behind him; these two had practically become family.

The Mage Guild could provide about fifty percent support while remaining neutral for the other fifty—at most, three percent of their influence would counter him. After all, the Empire’s relationship with the Guild had always been lukewarm, even if he set aside Leanna and the Sage’s influence; he was still a champion of the Azure Trial.

Connections with Goldsand Kingdom through Old Glauss would bring in a few favors, but as for the South Sea Kingdom…

It’s strange; Roy hadn’t even sought help from them, yet they insisted on showing up uninvited.

When did he end up with such a good relationship with the South Sea Kingdom?

But regardless, he had enough leverage to bury Wenter.

Roy feigned politeness towards the imperial prince, “Your Highness, you see, with so many friends validating me, I’m not joking around here.”

Looking at the diverse identities standing firmly behind the young man, representing almost the entire western continent, Wenter’s smile remained, but cold sweat began to trickle down his forehead.

The imperial power wouldn’t be unable to take down just one border territory.

But what if facing other forces?

To be sure, not all forces would come to arm assistance.

But just a single Lionheart Kingdom could put the Empire in a pinch, not to mention other forces ready to lend both money and muscle.

If conflict truly erupted, the imperial borders would become an unfathomable quagmire.

But why?

How could the son of a marquis reach such a level?

True, he had close ties with princesses and exceptional women like Nightingale, but that was just childish infatuation!

Could it be he saved their lives or something?!

Why would those girls, those forces, willingly put themselves at odds with the Empire for him, Roy Ainbrad?!

Wenter couldn’t make sense of it.

The only thing he could understand was that whether it was Xue Nuo or the borders, everything had slipped far out of his control.