I Became a Level -99 Vicious Lord - Chapter 196:

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“Dance with me….”

“I don’t like it”

Elise turned down the Argonne again.

“Hahaha.”

The Great Argonne was taken aback by her firm rejection.

How could she reject him so cut and dry….

‘You rejected me?’

Argonne’s pride was wounded.

He also felt a sense of humiliation.

But instead of showing his anger, Argonne the Great gave a gentle smile and asked Elise.

“Why do you refuse to dance with me? Is it because you are concerned about your fiancé? If that’s the case…”

“That’s not it.”

“Then can you tell me what the reason is, Lady Elise?”

“I just don’t like it.”

“…..”

“Do I need a reason to say I don’t like it?”

At that moment.

“…..!”

Argonne almost stopped breathing at the way Elise looked at him.

He felt that if he made any more of a scene, he might lose his head right then and there.

‘Thi… This bitch dares to pressure me?’

Being an incredibly powerful individual, the Emperor Argonne was able to read Elise’s intentions.

The look in her eyes now was a warning.

A warning not to cross the line.

Since a while ago.

Elise said in a low voice.

“You’ve been hovering around me.”

“…..”

“I could feel your gaze.”

*Flinch*

Argonne’s expression stiffened slightly.

“I don’t know why you’ve been looking for an opportunity to approach me.”

“……”

“Whatever you’re thinking, that’s your freedom, so I won’t mind. But don’t put those thoughts into action. I find it unpleasant.”

“I don’t know what misunderstanding you have.”

Argonne clenched his teeth and ground out.

“I merely wished to make the acquaintance of His Highness Otto de Scuderia, and to make the acquaintance of the Lady, his fiancée.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes, that’s all.”

“I see.”

“…..”

“Anyway, now that we’ve met face to face, there’s no reason to dance together. Well then, it was nice meeting you.”

After saying that, Elise walked past Argonne and headed towards her family.

*Tremble*

Left alone, Argonne trembled with humiliation.

‘This damn woman! How dare she refuse me? This bitch!’

Argonne the Great had rarely been rejected in his entire life, past or present.

Especially when it came to a member of the opposite sex.

Money and Power.

Good looks.

And a voice like liquid gold.

Argonne had always been the object of desire, and Elise’s adamant rejection was a blow to his pride.

‘All right, You’ll see.’

Argonne the Great gnashed his teeth.

‘After I get my hands on that fiancé of yours, I’ll make sure to rough him up and then destroy that pride of yours.’

Argonne watched Elise’s retreating figure and vowed revenge.

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Over the course of the banquet, Otto garnered quite a bit of attention.

Otto was a young monarch of an emerging power that had risen from the fringes to take over the kingdoms of Baltin and Slaine in short order.

It was no wonder that Otto was in the center of attention.

Furthermore, Otto is not only from the noble Kuntachi Family Lineage, but also engaged to Elise of the Salzburg family.

Add to that his good looks.

To the people attending the banquet today, Otto appeared like a new star, shining brightly.

As a result, Otto had gotten to interact with and become acquainted with a great many people.

It was a natural progression to make those all-important connections.

And then.

“Did you say your name was Otto de Scuderia?”

Princess Rowena approached Otto.

“Oh, yes. I’m Otto de Scuderia.”

“My name is Rowena Van Aradun. I am the younger sister of His Majesty the Emperor.”

“Yes, Your Highness Rowena.”

Since Rowena was also one of the 100 Lords, it was natural for Otto to know her well.

‘A person of tremendous ambition. She holds the largest power and has exceptional abilities. If it were not Kilian II but Rowena who became the Emperor, the world would have been different.’

Thinking so, Otto exchanged greetings with Rowena and engaged in some conversation.

“A young lord of a rising power who has appeared like a comet. And to top it off, you’re the grandson-in-law of the Grand Duke of Salzburg. You’re an asset to the Empire of Arad, indeed.”

“You flatter me.”

“Would you be willing to visit me privately sometime?”

“Huh?”

“I suppose since your new country is still in its infancy, the foundation might not be fully established yet. You may need support, right?”

That moment.

‘She’s already recruiting?’

Otto realized that Rowena was blatantly trying to draw him in.

At present, Rowena was in the process of building up her strength to mount a rebellion, and Otto was an attractive prospect.

‘I am the monarch of a rising power. Fiancé of the Granddaughter of Grand Duke of the North. Moreover, I am the heir to the bloodline of House Kuntachi. It’s only natural for others to want to make me their vassal.’

Even Otto himself, upon reflection, found it perfectly natural for Rowena to approach him in this manner.

“Yes, I’d be happy to meet with you in private sometime.”

“Good.”

Rowena looked pleased.

“Oh, and.”

“Yes?”

“You’d better stay away from my siblings; nothing good will come of your association with them.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

A few minutes later.

“I am Tertemian von Aradun. Third brother of His Majesty the Emperor.”

“My name is Otto de Scuderia.”

“May I speak with you in private?”

Following Rowena, Tertemian approached Otto.

“Paragon von Aradun. The youngest brother of the Emperor. May I speak with you for a moment?”

“Ah, my name is Otto de Scuderia, feel free to speak with me.”

With Paragon also approaching, Otto found himself enjoying attention from all the nobles, receiving ‘love calls’ from them.

Before the revolt, he was juggled between trusted subjects and members of the imperial family who sought greater power.

It was only after being tortured by Rowena, Tertemian, and Paragon in turn that Otto was freed and was able to return to Elise’s side.

“You look tired, fiancé.”

“Yeah, well.”

Otto replied, scratching the back of his head.

“I’m tired in all sorts of ways.”

“Be careful.”

Elise cautioned Otto.

“It’s dangerous to mingle with royalty.”

“Why?”

“They are… no.”

“Elise started to say something, but couldn’t continue and closed her mouth.”

“Just leave it at that.”

“Yeah sure.”

Otto smiled.

‘The House of Salzburg senses the imperial family is about to start a rebellion. That is probably why Elise wanted to tell me.’

Otto understood all too well why Elise had shared such information.

‘The Salzburg House has to maintain strict neutrality. Or rather, they have no choice but to remain neutral since they are responsible for the situation on the Wall. They have no intention of getting involved in a civil war.’

The House of Salzburg was the most appealing power to the imperial family.

If they could gain the power and influence of the Salzburg family, becoming emperor would be only a matter of time.

Of course, this would weaken the defense of the northern wall, but the royal members aiming for the throne couldn’t care less about that.

The arrival of Otto, who would be related to the House of Salzburg, was enough to make the imperial family’s mouths water.

“Oh, my God. These are all variables.’

Otto’s expression stiffened, realizing that this situation was far from what he had expected.

When he’d played Otto de Scuderia in the game, he’d deliberately left Elise out of the equation.

As such, he hadn’t been invited to any of these events, nor had he had the opportunity to rub elbows with the royalty.

‘I only met them as enemies in the future.’

However, those future enemies were now approaching him with a gesture of goodwill.

Maybe…….

‘I might need to completely revise my plan. But if I succeed…’

Otto realized that he might have to abandon his optimized build and take a completely different course of action.

The civil war in the Arad Empire, the single most decisive factor in sparking the Great War.

If he could control that civil war the way he wants to…….

‘I might be able to skip the intermediate course and be the last victor of the era.’

Otto had a significant strategic realization and fell into deep thought.

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Meanwhile, Argonne the Great continued to be humiliated after being rejected by Elise.

“Would you like to dance with me, my lady?”

“I’m terribly sorry, sir, but no.”

Argonne the Great asked the daughters of other powerful families to dance, but was repeatedly turned down.

The reason was simple.

Rumors had already spread that the Oberhauser House was on the verge of collapse, and thus the nobility of the Empire did not readily grant him an audience.

One had to be of a certain class to be taken seriously, and there was no point in associating with a Trading Company who was on the verge of collapse.

That was the cruel rule of high society.

It was a cold world where if one did not have enough money, power, or prestige, they were completely ignored and ostracized.

‘These filthy bastards… dare to… ignore me… to brush me off… How dare they…? Me, Argonne, who built the empire?’

After several rejections, Argonne’s anger reached its boiling point, on the verge of exploding.

*Crack!*

The glass goblet he was holding shattered in his hand.

“What the fuck.”

“Why is he like that?”

“He must be feeling bitter after the failure of their Merchant Group.”

“Tsk tsk. They can go throw their debt party elsewhere. Do they even know where they are?”

The nobles frowned and jeered at Argonne, who was bleeding profusely after shattering the goblet in his hand.

And Otto, along with the goblin merchant Ego, secretly enjoyed the spectacle.

Ego, a colossus who traded across the continent, had also been invited to the banquet.

“He must have been real pissed off?”

“Kyokyokyo, yes, he must have lost his composure, Kyokyokyo!”

“Thank you for your work.”

“No need, Kyokyokyokyo!”

In fact, the reason the Argonne was so shunned was because Otto had enlisted Ego to manipulate the nobility.

By subtly leaking information about the financial crisis the Oberhauser House was facing, Otto had managed to get the nobles to shun Argonne the Great.

The nobles were no fools, and they quickly realized what Argonne was attempting to do.

‘What can you do now? Hehe’

Otto looked at the trembling Argon Emperor and silently cursed under his breath

‘There are a truckload of people wanting to catch and kill you?’

Ariel, seated at a distant table, clenched her fork, glaring at the far-off Argonne.

From Otto and Kairos to Ariel and even the Soul Knights.

Just the thought of how much of a chill it would send down Argonne’s spine if he knew this fact was exhilarating.

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After making various gains at the banquet, Otto and his group headed to the Salzburg family’s villa to rest.

Instead of staying in a hotel, they would be hosted by the Salzburgs for the duration of their stay in the Capital of the Arad Empire.

It was already a given that the Kuntachi and Salzburg families were tied to each other through the veil of marriage, so there was nothing strange about it.

The next day… no.

Early dawn.

“Your Highness, wake up.”

Camille shook Otto awake.

“…Huh?”

Otto shook his head, staring out the window.

“It’s still dark…? Haaaam.”

Otto’s eyelids were heavy, and he struggled to open them.

“Your brothers-in-law wishes to see you, Your Highness.”

“…At this time of day?”

Otto frowned.

“Why???”

“Well….”

And right then.

*Rattle*

The door opened, and Elise’s brothers barged in, addressing Otto.

“Goodness! It’s still the middle of the night!”

“You should be practicing!”

“Are you still sleeping?”

Otto realized that Elise’s habit of starting the day with training from dawn, stemmed from the customs of the Salzburg family, and he covered his face.