Chapter 27: A Duke’s Decree

A question lingered in Lilia’s heart. She parted her crimson lips, testing the waters.

“Little sister, could you tell me your real name?”

Gern furrowed her brow, pondering for a moment before deciding to reveal her pseudonym to Lilia.

“My name is Luoya, and yours?”

“Lilia Rheingart. It’s a pleasure to meet you, little Luoya.”

Lilia slowly extended her hand towards Gern, a gesture of friendship.

Gern gazed at the hand offered before her, uncertain whether she should take it.

She and Lilia were fundamentally from two different worlds. Lilia was of noble birth, while Gern was merely a commoner.

Under normal circumstances, as an ordinary commoner, she would never have crossed paths with Lilia.

In the Klett Kingdom, the chasm between commoners and nobility was distinct and unyielding, especially for a royal noble like Lilia.

Ordinary commoners were generally not permitted excessive contact with members of the royal family, let alone Lilia, the kingdom’s heir.

Severing ties with Lilia was for her own good, and Lilia’s as well.

Considering all this, Gern did not take Lilia’s hand. Instead, she slowly rose to her feet and took a few steps back.

“I’m sorry, Lilia, but I don’t think we can be friends.”

She paused, then removed the pendant from her neck.

“This is the pendant you gave me. Some of its contents have been used, but don’t worry, I’ll replenish them later.”

“Thank you for your help during those days. Luoya will engrave this kindness in her heart.”

Upon hearing her words, Lilia froze on the spot.

She stared at the pendant in the little girl’s hand, which glowed with a faint blue light, Gern’s words of refusal echoing persistently in her mind.

“Wh-why?”

Lilia’s expression was somewhat blank, the light in her aquamarine eyes flickering ominously, making her appear unsettlingly terrifying.

“Because…”

Gern’s words trailed off. She looked at Lilia’s beautiful face and sighed softly in her heart.

“Our statuses are as different as heaven and earth. We were never meant to exist in the same world.”

Lilia was not inherently bad; in fact, she was a very good girl. She possessed a strong sense of justice and harbored an intense hatred for the Heretic God Cult, yet she also had a significant flaw.

Having grown up in the royal family, her entire life had been steeped in the intricacies of human relationships, filled with schemes and deceptions.

In truth, Lilia’s inner world was profoundly hollow, and she desperately yearned for someone with whom she could be completely honest.

A safe harbor where she could finally let down her guard.

Had she not been burdened by the terrifying memories of her past life, she might have become very good friends with Lilia in this one.

Alas, there were no ‘ifs.’ Even if Lilia harbored no ill will towards her, Gern still wished to avoid any contact with this formidable woman.

No sooner had Gern’s words faded than Lilia’s eyes completely dulled. A chill shot up from Gern’s feet, straight to the crown of her head.

The expression on Lilia’s face before her eerily overlapped with the sickly, distorted countenance from her previous life.

Almost instinctively, Gern adopted a defensive posture, ready to flee at a moment’s notice should anything untoward occur.

However, Lilia did not descend into the madness Gern had anticipated this time.

Instead, she simply raised her gaze to stare at Gern, her eyes holding an ineffably complex expression.

“Luoya, are you truly unwilling to be my friend?”

The girl’s voice was low. Seeing no sign of aggression from Lilia, Gern forced herself to calm down.

“It’s not that, it’s just that the disparity in our statuses is too great, and it would inevitably cause unnecessary trouble.”

“Is that so…”

A glimmer of light returned to Lilia’s eyes. She took a step forward, inhaling Gern’s scent with a hint of intoxication.

“Luoya, from this day forward, you shall be a Duke of the Klett Kingdom. That way, the disparity in our statuses won’t be so vast, will it?”

“Eh?! Wait, you… you… you… that’s not right! How can one bestow nobility so casually?”

Overwhelmed by shock, Gern repeated “you” three times, her mind feeling lightheaded, as if she were dreaming.

Indeed, she had once harbored a dream of becoming a noble, but as time slowly passed, that dream had faded into mere fantasy.

Moreover, she held little interest in nobility itself. If Gern were to choose, she would much prefer a life spent alone in the tranquil countryside.

“I am the sole heir of the Klett Kingdom. Are you implying you wish to defy the command of the Klett Kingdom’s next ruler?”

“Th-th-this…”

Gern was utterly flustered, and not just her; even the onlookers who had caught wind of the commotion were thrown into disarray.

The nobles selected for Theoviga Academy, in particular, were so stunned they couldn’t close their mouths.

The Klett Kingdom had no such precedent. Lilia’s action was undoubtedly an offense to all its nobility.

Countless hostile gazes now converged upon them. Just as she had feared, her concerns had materialized.

Gern’s fears had indeed come to pass; she had still incurred the wrath of the Klett Kingdom’s noble circles.

However, contrary to Gern’s expectations, their animosity stemmed entirely from the terms Lilia had proposed.

Hostile gazes of every kind were cast their way, as people whispered amongst themselves.

“Who is that girl? Why is Her Royal Highness so invested?”

“Could it be a long-lost biological sister?”

“Don’t guess wildly. Lilia is the only royal descendant now; there’s no such thing as a lost sister.”

“Then how do you explain Lilia’s attitude towards that girl?”

“Hiss~ Could it be that Her Highness Lilia fancies that little girl?”

Up to this point, the murmurs had been relatively normal. But a moment later, several gorgeously attired nobles approached Lilia, performing a noble’s bow to both her and Gern.

Among them, one man’s eyes visibly flickered with surprise and avarice upon seeing Gern’s appearance.

Yet he concealed it well, revealing almost nothing, and spoke calmly.

“Your Royal Highness, I overheard you discussing a peerage with this young lady just now.”

“I believe this matter is inappropriate. This young lady before us has neither military merit nor noble blood.”

“Perhaps it would be better to arrange a marriage for this young lady with another noble…”

Before the man could finish speaking, Lilia’s entire demeanor shifted. The aura of a peak Second-rank Knight burst forth abruptly, accompanied by the presence of Third-rank magic.

Her jewel-like eyes fixated on the man, her crimson lips parting slightly to utter a single, chilling word.

“Get out!”

At this sharp rebuke, the noble was instantly enveloped by a potent aura and scurried away ignominiously.

Beside her, Gern was somewhat astonished. She hadn’t expected Lilia to cultivate to a Third-rank Mage in such a short time, all while ensuring her Knight cultivation didn’t fall too far behind. Such talent was truly terrifying.

Lilia was at most around sixteen years old. To achieve such feats at this age, Gern’s own death in her previous life hadn’t been in vain.

After the man was reprimanded, the surrounding chatter noticeably subsided, though many still conversed discreetly.

Gern listened to these voices for a short while before she could no longer bear it; the insults were truly too vile.

Lilia couldn’t hear them, but simply observing these hypocritical individuals made her feel physically ill; they were an absolute eyesore.

She would have to find an opportunity soon to take Gern away directly, thus ridding herself of these bothersome people.