Magic Academy Bans Harem

Chapter 417 The Engagement That Fizzled Out

It was a road filled with light. Like a river, it stretched across the ground, endlessly leading to who-knows-where.

When he came to his senses, Roland Elson realized that he was constantly moving forward on this path.

Looking into the distance, Roland saw many familiar figures ahead of him. Some were intimate, some were hateful, and some were difficult to define. All the figures seemed to have something in common, but Roland couldn't recall them.

He was just blindly moving forward.

Suddenly, he saw a very familiar figure ahead of him. This figure, which had never faded or become blurred in his heart, was walking very slowly.

Roland felt his steps become much lighter and quickened his pace to catch up.

Just as Roland was about to catch up, the figure stopped on his own, and with a smile full of nostalgia, pointed behind Roland.

Then he realized that he hadn't noticed Roland standing behind him and turned around to look.

What he saw was a few figures that would forever remain young in his eyes and in his heart.

They don't need me anymore, do they?

Before Roland could finish speaking, he felt a forceful push from behind.

As Roland staggered, the white light that filled his vision began to gradually dissipate.
"Well"

With a painful groan, Roland slowly opened his eyes on the hospital bed.

Having forgotten what happened before his memory was cut off, he simply adjusted to the constantly rotating field of vision until he met a pair of eyes.

"Xia Luoluo?"

"Ah! Old man, you're awake!"

Charlotte's startled voice nearly made Roland vomit blood.

Why has his status in Xia Luoluo's heart declined so much after not seeing him for a while?
"How long have I slept?"

With his mind a complete mess and all the information failing him, Roland asked weakly.

Similarly, Xia Luoluo, whose mind went blank due to surprise or delight, subconsciously answered,
"It's been three years!"

"What!?"

Roland reflexively tried to straighten up, only to feel as if his whole body was about to fall apart.

"Ah, don't get excited, you've only been lying there for about ten days. Just kidding, just kidding. No, it's not really a joke. It should be considered a spell? Hmm! This is a spell that the goddess taught me, specifically for use after waking up from a coma!"

"Goddess? Damn it, I should have known you'd join that dubious church."

What do you mean?!

"I'm so annoyed," Xia Luoluo said, finally managing to get her head moving again. She stood up, ran out of the room, and yelled loudly.

"Ritas—! Aunt Mint—! The old man is awake—!"

"."

In the ward, Roland, whose head was throbbing from Charlotte's roar, could only sigh.

Dreams are the best.
"Tsk, that's unbelievable. Someone else would have died more than three times from the injury, but he's already out of danger in just over ten days. Anyway, as long as he rests well, he should be back to his old self soon."

Snapped!
In Roland's hospital room, Mint Elson, who had conducted a thorough examination on Roland, said this, patted Roland hard on the back of the shoulder, and turned to leave.

"Do you really have to take this picture?"

Roland, annoyed, felt a sweet taste in his throat.

But his sister, who hadn't changed her bad habits in decades, just muttered chilling things like, "When will this body finally die so I can cut it open and study it?" and left the ward cursing.

With a helpless sigh, Roland reminisced about the goodness of his dream. This time, he finally welcomed back normal people who had been taking turns entering the ward with Mint.

Ritas.
Looking into his adopted son's round eyes, which rarely blinked, Roland couldn't help but sigh. In this Western Region, Tas could actually be considered a "normal person".

A short while later, Roland lay back down on the hospital bed, while Ritas moved a chair over and sat down beside the bed.

For a moment, the atmosphere in the ward became somewhat awkward.

This isn't because the father-son relationship between Roland and Ritas is special, but rather because of the awkwardness that often occurs when adult fathers and sons are alone together.

As if searching for a starting point for a conversation, Ritas looked around the ward and noticed the art supplies and easels piled up in the corner.

"Are those art supplies Xia Luoluo's? Was she painting you while you were unconscious?"

Does anyone know if there are any parts that have already been drawn?

At Roland's suggestion, Ritas went to find several sketches drawn by Charlotte's skillful hand.

The two of them studied it closely for a while, but still couldn't figure out what Xia Luoluo had drawn.

"Tsk, it seems that Xia Luoluo doesn't have much talent for painting."

Roland remarked, feeling as if he had seen similar graffiti twenty years ago.

How about we tell you something we don't know?

Ritas, who didn't respond, just muttered to himself.

"Um, how's the family doing these days?"

Although the approach was somewhat subtle, Roland, sensing that the atmosphere was no longer so stiff, started a conversation.

"Within the Western Territory, direct warfare has ceased entirely. However, overall, the Elson family has split into approximately ten factions."

"???"

Amid Roland's utter astonishment, Ritas began to recount the events of that time in a calm tone.

From their being trapped in the fairy tale world, to their intrusion into the public duel, to Ritas's declaration, and the ensuing two weeks of chaos.

"Generally speaking, if we don't count the escort team, the research institute, and other forces, the 'Elson' forces currently gathered under our banner consist of only three groups: Remer, Zori, and Alec."

"Well, although we don't have many people right now, apart from the rebels and those fools who are trying to gather rebels and unite with external forces, there aren't many who are clearly hostile to us. Compared to them, the 'White Wing Gospel Society' that you released is the real problem."

"Roland sighed," Roland said. Ritas could understand Roland's feelings.

After all, the influence of the White Wing Evangelical Church is incomparable to that of the cheap churches that are everywhere in the Holy Kingdom of Libera.

Even during the final chaotic battle in Horo, when "Saint Casket" Perf and the pilgrims raised the banner of the Evangelical Church, many soldiers in the city defected to Ritas's side.

Moreover, this influence does not discriminate between friend and foe.

"The Elson family has worked very hard to reduce the Evangelical Church to its current size."

Although Roland said this, there was no blame in his tone. He also knew that Ritas wanted to break into Horo City in a short time to rescue him and escape unscathed. The options available to him were very limited.

"Is your family targeting the Gospel Church?"

"Of course there is. After all, it's an organization that may have been established on this land even earlier than our family, always claiming to be orthodox, and trying to ride roughshod over our family. In our family's history, there have been several attempts to eradicate that church. In the end, not only did they fail, but they also suffered a strong backlash. However, I haven't done anything outrageous to them. I should say that since they moved to the desert on their own initiative for the saint's relics, they have become much less of a worry."

Only after saying this did Roland belatedly look at Ritas.

"No, you can't be blind to the threat that church poses, especially to our Elson family, and you can also imagine that we won't let them grow stronger. So, you're asking this on purpose to test whether I'm perceptive enough in this regard?"

Roland looked at Ritas with a subtle expression.

His son was actually testing his father, who had been the head of the family for decades, to see if he was brainless.
"In short, since there is a powerful force right in front of us, and it is constantly accumulating energy in its own way, ready to erupt at any moment, we cannot turn a blind eye to it."

"."

From Ritas's abrupt change of topic, Roland was certain that the kid in front of him had indeed been questioning him earlier.

"Since the Western Territory is too small to accommodate both the Elson family and the White Wing Gospel Church, let's broaden our horizons and stop confining ourselves to this actually very small land."

"To broaden one's horizons?"

Roland was silent for a moment.

Although he knew that Ritas's ideas must differ from Freud's, he couldn't help but think of Freud's plan to relocate the Elson family out of the West.

“Your idea is actually quite good. Opening up several trade routes can indeed connect the Western Region with countries such as Holy Libera, Holy Bransolos, and Koscat, allowing the people of the Western Region to independently leave this increasingly distorted region.”

While Roland was lost in thought, Ritas continued.

"You actually know my plans? These are just ideas, not even prototypes, and I don't think I've mentioned them to many people."

Roland said, somewhat puzzled.

"You arranged for me and Cortrinet to meet the Gabrielle family, wasn't it because you were interested in their merchant guild and caravans?"

"Uh, I admit I'm indeed very interested in their family's ability to expand their business. However, that interest is really only about 10%. More than anything, I think their eldest daughter is a perfect match for you, and Cortine probably thought that if it were just you, you probably wouldn't have gone to this blind date. I just never imagined that their family could grow so large in such a short time, actually because of…"

Roland couldn't help but sigh.

He had met Rita Gabrielle a few times. And those few encounters alone made him feel that Rita and Ritas were simply a match made in heaven.

It just so happens that Ritas is the type of person who might never marry someone unless his family arranges a marriage.

So, Roland, who also harbored the common old man's desire to have a grandson, organized that blind date. As for the Gabrielle family's influence, it perfectly suited his nascent plan, merely icing on the cake.

"Unfortunately, that's no longer possible. No matter what, the heir of the Elson family cannot enter into a marriage contract with a criminal."

Ritas shook his head and said.

"Yes. No matter what... Hmm? Wait a minute. If it weren't for this upheaval in the Western Regions, would you really have planned to marry her?"

Roland looked at Ritas in disbelief.

Was he really so badly beaten that he misremembered?

Wasn't Rita Gabrielewitt sent to prison by Ritas himself?
“Even without a key figure, the Gabrielle Vettel family won’t be completely wiped out anytime soon. In fact, it’s precisely because Rita Gabrielle Vettel is in prison that I have more control over the things that their family possesses. Besides, there are no other options besides Rita Gabrielle Vettel. I believe that within the Elson family’s social circle, there are no women of equal status who would be willing to go on a blind date with someone who once sent their arranged date to prison.”

Ritas said calmly, as he had originally planned to consult with Rita after returning to Spring City.

"But she's in jail. If I remember correctly, isn't she sentenced to life imprisonment?"

"It is three life sentences, with no possibility of commutation or pardon."

"?"

“As long as I’m married, I can avoid a lot of trouble. And to avoid these troubles, I would have to shoulder the even more troublesome responsibility of being a ‘wife.’ But if my wife stays in jail, those problems are no longer problems.”

Ritas seemed genuinely disappointed as he let out a soft sigh.

"."

What exactly is this child saying?
After a moment of stunned silence, Roland realized how much trouble he had almost caused because of his "good intentions".

In order to see his grandson before he dies, he decided that he would never again get involved in Ritas's marriage. Although, even if he didn't interfere, the chances of him seeing him were not very high.

"It's still worthwhile to reach out to the Gabriellevitt family. However, we'll need to change our stance and identity. Besides the Gabriellevitt family, Elson could also consider other chambers of commerce and cooperate with them, such as the Latras Chamber of Commerce."

"The Latras Merchant Guild? Would they be interested in a place like the Western Regions?"

Roland frowned slightly.

In fact, traces of the Latras Merchant Guild's activities and shops do exist in the Western Territory. However, they are very small in scale.

However, the cooperation that Ritas was talking about was clearly not on the scale it is today.

“I can try to communicate with them. However, even if they are willing to cooperate with us, they probably won’t open up trade routes in the western region under the name of the Latras Merchant Guild.”

The situation in the Western Territory is quite complex, while the Latras Merchant Guild is a smooth organization that is spread across the continent and does not intend to offend any country.

"Therefore, the Elson family, the White Wing Gospel Church, and the Latras Chamber of Commerce can then jointly form a new chamber of commerce."

"As for the name, let's call it 'Goddess Merchant Guild'."

Although the internal strife within the Elson family in the West has not yet subsided.

However, the next head of the Elson family has already set his sights on the future.

(End of this chapter)