Their romance storyline only begins on the second playthrough

“Miss Ivina.” Juno was still as timid as ever. When she saw Rhodes and his group arrive in the hall, she hurriedly bowed and did not dare to raise her head.

“We are here to see His Excellency the Duke,” Rhodes said, his tone gentle.

"Ah... I'll take you there. The master is currently in his study dealing with some matters. He'll be very happy to hear that Miss Ivina is back."

Juno didn't even mention asking her husband, Horenard, if he was busy.

After all, there's no need to even think about it, right?

During the few days that Ivina was away, Horenaard felt a mixture of joy and sorrow.

He was worried about whether Ivina was alright, why she hadn't replied to his letter, and why she hadn't returned to the Duke's mansion.

So, being quite clever, she immediately led Rod and Ivina to where Horenaard was.

A few minutes later.

"Enjoy your tea." Juno placed the brewed tea in front of each person, bowed, and then turned to close the door behind her.

Horrenard's voice remained calm: "It's been a few days, Rhodes."

Even after several days apart, his imposing presence remained undiminished, and a solemn expression lingered between his brows.

“Your Grace.” Rhodes nodded politely.

“Vina, after we go out…” Horenad began hesitantly.

Rhodes glanced at Ivina, then maintained his typical polite smile:

"Everything is fine. She is eating normally and living her life normally. This morning she even went out with us to buy a cake and go shopping."

It's like a newlywed couple reporting their relationship to their elders...

This was Rhodes' first time doing something like this, but he was quite good at putting on a show, so there wasn't any problem.

On the contrary, Ivina blushed slightly upon hearing this. She coughed twice, her tone still unfriendly:

"Hmph, they're doing great, nothing's happened."

"..."

Horena opened his mouth to speak, but after hearing Ivina's still-same tone, he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Really? That's good."

"Although... I'm not really qualified to preach, I still have something to say."

“Vina, you must remember that Lord Rhodes has helped you a lot, so you must also grow up well to help him. Strive to learn writing, etiquette, and social norms so as to avoid making mistakes.”

"Huh? I already know that without you saying it." Ivina crossed her arms, a little annoyed.

“Your current behavior is very inconsistent with noble etiquette, and it will cause trouble for Lord Rhodes.”

“I wouldn’t act like this with Rhodes.”

"Not necessarily." The Duke took another sip of tea.

"Certainly not!"

Eh?

Rhodes felt something was off.

It was a perfectly normal conversation...

Perhaps it was because the Duke seemed to be lecturing Ivina on how to be a good noblewoman, and this strange sense of identity disconnect made him feel odd.

After all, for most ordinary noblewomen, unless they possessed exceptional potential in divine offspring, serving and pleasing their husbands was ultimately their primary concern.

But clearly, when this lesson was given to Ivina, he felt...so embarrassed he could dig his toes out of a three-bedroom apartment.

After all, there's no way Ivina could learn from a woman who's like a puppet.

Isn't that all there is to it? Like a cherry bomb, it will explode with fire if you touch it.

Even if it's a little more obedient at night, it will quickly run over and bite him viciously, then suck his blood.

“Ivina’s easygoing nature is her strength, so Your Grace need not say more about this,” Rhodes shook his head.

"Yes, that's true. It's your own business, you can work things out yourselves."

"So, Lord Rhodes, you've come to the Duke's mansion not just to report to me that Ivina is doing well outside, have you?"

Horenaard wasn't stupid; he knew perfectly well that every action of the young man sitting across from him was meaningful.

Simply reassuring him would obviously not align with the principle of symmetrical interests.

"We came for the Star Orbit." This was exactly what Rhodes had been waiting for Horenas to mention himself. "We're preparing to head to the capital to improve on a higher stage."

Upon hearing this, Horenaard's fingers tightened, and his eyes narrowed instantly.

He naturally had tickets for the Star Trail, and quite a few at that.

but……

“With the start of the divine sacrifice, the capital will be a melting pot of all sorts of people.” Horenad frowned. “People from all over the world may take this opportunity to go to the capital to witness this event.”

"Does Your Excellency have a thorough understanding of the sacred rituals?"

“Of course,” Horenad admitted knowingly. “The divine sacrifice is held once every three years, but this time it was opened a year early, which actually disrupted many people’s preparations.”

"Your Excellency Rhodes, it's not that you haven't participated in the divine sacrifice before, but in the past, you were a minor, so you didn't understand the meaning of the divine sacrifice."

“The divine sacrifice, as its name suggests, is an opportunity to summon the favor of the gods and grant the favored one great power.”

"At the same time, the divine sacrifice is indeed the opportunity for the most second-time benefactors to appear."

"But here's the problem... Who can stand at the center of the sacrificial ceremony? And who will be marginalized? This has been a huge problem from the very beginning."

"When power struggles occur, all sorts of troubles will inevitably follow."

“People from other empires are watching the power struggles that are taking place within their own borders.”

"For those at the bottom, it's just a grand fireworks celebration, but for those who are truly qualified, it's actually a fierce competition."

"Not to mention..."

The Duke spoke in a serious tone:

"If, and I mean if, it is truly proven that something has happened to our great god, then the capital will be the most chaotic center of turmoil."

Listening to the Duke's long, rambling speech, Rhodes probably understood his attitude.

To put it bluntly, they were worried that the people in the capital would be eaten as food.

But he didn't seem to have considered that... Rhodes and the others originally came from the capital.

Rhodes spoke up, directly and bluntly asking:

"So, what does Your Excellency mean?"

"What I mean is, I don't want you guys to go to this craziest place."

"Your Grace, even you believe that something has really happened to the Star God?"

"I don't understand. Nobody dares to say. Everything is in a state of 50/50, 50/50... Nobody can be sure which side of the coin will be revealed."

“But we have to go.” Rhodes shook his head.

"The reason why you can't say?"

"Ah."

"Is that so..."

The Duke rested his hands on his thighs, hesitated, then stood up and walked to the window.

Horenaard was overwhelmed with mixed feelings.

His words of persuasion were already very clear, but he didn't expect Rod to still insist on going.

He certainly didn't want Rhodes and the others to inexplicably venture into the most dangerous places.

For him, the best thing was for Rhodes to live a good life with his daughter, not to pursue anything inexplicable, and then return to his country to inherit the throne.

Why bother doing all this troublesome stuff...?

He had some bold speculations about what Rod meant by "must be done," and could think of some possibilities.

But... the more he thought about it and tried to organize his thoughts, the more agitated he became.

Why was the person who saved his daughter a figure caught in a power struggle, instead of an ordinary country knight?

If he were just an ordinary knight, he could simply protect Ivina without putting her in any danger...

A sharp glint flashed in Horenard's eyes as he turned to stare at Rhodes:

“Rhodes, I don’t want my daughter to go into danger with you, unless…”

“Unless?” Rhodes asked.

The Duke extended his hand and pointed at Rhodes:

"You can prove that you are capable enough."

"The last witch siege was essentially carried out by the power of others, not by your own abilities."

The test, or rather... Horenaard's challenge, has finally arrived.

Rhodes was not surprised.

After all, Horena had treated Ivina very badly in her early years, so he did a lot more to make up for it in his later years.

The same goes for this ring; he went to great lengths to obtain it from the capital, a place he despised.

Therefore, it was expected that he would argue for Ivina's sake.

But of course, Rhodes would never actually lay a hand on his father-in-law.

"Lord Horenaard, how do you want me to prove my strength?"

"Ok?"

Horenaard froze.

His words were essentially just a way to pressure Rhodes into backing down.

Rhodes knew his strength very well; it hadn't even been two days since the banquet where they last besieged the witch.