After choosing to leave, they regretted it.

"In short, I can't do it! So I'm very sorry, but Your Highness, please command this operation yourself! I... I am willing to serve as the vanguard and lead the first wave of commandos into the battlefield!"

It's not that I'm afraid of fighting, it's just that I don't believe in my own abilities and I'm afraid of the possible consequences.

Christina has been like this for more than two years.

Marquis Karside had an extremely complicated expression. He sighed and didn't know what to say.

Then, Adrian waved his hand expressionlessly.

"Marquis, could you please step aside first? And everyone else here, please leave first."

"Your Highness, what are you doing?"

"I just have some things to say to my old classmates. It's nothing serious. You guys can go out first."

Marquis Karside looked very worried.

If possible, I really want to stay and listen.

But after hesitating for a while, he decided to obey the order, nodded, and called the servants in the room to leave.

I was the last one to leave, closing the door behind me.

Adrian sighed softly, then struggled to turn over and get out of bed. Without paying any attention to Chris, he picked up the armor on the table beside him and began to put it on.

The dimly lit room was quite quiet at night, and the atmosphere was so heavy that one would mistakenly think that the air had turned solid.

The only sound was the friction between clothes and armor.

"Last night's situation was already a dead end. But the brave Aize's move to turn around and occupy Lilbas was a brilliant move that forcibly evened the situation. If it were me, I would only allow the Royal Guards to break through as many as possible, and the current situation would be even more passive."

Suddenly, Adrian started talking to himself.

The voice was calm and no emotion could be heard.

"But now, I feel very unhappy. Do you know why?"

Chris shook her head.

Adrian ignored her, and after a brief pause, he continued:

"We're marching deep into the enemy territory alone without any guarantees, resisting the main force of the demons that could arrive at any moment, with no idea when reinforcements will arrive—or even if they will arrive at all."

"In this life-or-death situation, Aize jumped in without hesitation. He single-handedly shouldered a pressure that would drive anyone crazy, trying to turn the situation around. And I, meanwhile, was lying in the safety of the quasi-rear to recuperate. Tell me, how could I feel good?"

After listening to Chris's story, Adrian's dissatisfaction at that time was not directed at Aize who was facing heavy pressure and fighting hard, but at himself.

"It was my own willful behavior, my misjudgment, and my flawed command that led to the current situation. And we're still facing the centuries-old enmity and curse between the Empire and the Saxon family. And what's the result? It's him, a person from another world, who has to bear the responsibility and risk... Tsk, this is unpleasant. The more I think about it, the more unhappy I am."

As he spoke, Adrien put on his cloak and tightened it as if he was strangling himself.

"However, I will soon go and personally resolve this situation, so I don't have to endure this unpleasantness for too long. The question is—what about you? Christina Karsade."

Suddenly the scene changed. Adrian stopped and turned around, his sharp eyes directed at Chris, making her dare not even look up.

He could only frown and shake his head:

"Me? What do you mean?"

"You, admire that guy, and like that guy, right?"

"……ha?"

Chris subconsciously raised her head, and as her emotions wavered, an expression other than dejection finally appeared on her face.

"You...how do you know..."

"How should I know? Haha, it's really embarrassing to be looked down upon like that. If the Saxon family can't find out Aize's intelligence network, can they also find out your personal relationship? And your reaction was written all over your face. Do you expect others not to notice it?"

Adrien said, giving a mocking smile.

"You keep calling me Master and pretending to be a couple. You guys can be quite entertaining sometimes. Thanks to you, I just laughed out loud when I saw this news. It was really enjoyable."

“No, this…”

"So, why? He's the person you love, your master, and your benefactor. You clearly have the ability to do it. Why would you rather leave it to me than go yourself?"

After a brief reprieve, Adrian's expression suddenly became serious again.

"because I……"

"Because you can't? Can't do it? Have you failed before? Haha, it seems that both the Hero Aize and Marquis Adrian have spoiled you too much, so there are some things I'm reluctant to say. But it doesn't matter, I don't care, so I'll say it."

Adrian took a step forward, raised his hand, and pointed it at the tip of Chris's nose.

His brows furrowed and his voice suddenly rose, as if he was angry:

"It's just a loss, you're so fucking mad at me! Who the hell do you think you are? There's a limit to how serious you can be. How long do you plan to continue this kind of boring self-admiration and self-torture?!"

Chapter 103 The Arrogance of Genius

Adrian Saxony was able to gain a firm foothold in the turbulent imperial political arena and suppress other forces to become the dominant force by relying on his clear-cut power and reformist stance at the age of just in his early twenties. Needless to say, his outstanding abilities, as well as his skill and appropriate violence were also indispensable.

In other words, he is definitely not a good-natured, gentleman type of character.

Such an Adrian, because of his experience of being completely defeated in all aspects during his college years, could never raise his head except in front of Chris.

But now, in an environment where no one else was around, Adrian completely disregarded royal etiquette and suddenly started cursing at himself.

This situation itself made Chris even more confused than the content of the scolding.

And this is just the beginning of His Royal Highness the Prince's rage.

"What happened in that battle two years ago? Three strategically important towns fell, and the demon army launched simultaneous attacks from both their homeland and the kingdom's occupied territories, assaulting Lilbas from three sides. In this situation, the Council of Nobles pushed you to the forefront, claiming they trusted your abilities, but in reality, they were just letting you take the blame and using the opportunity to suppress the Karseide family!"

"And then, just as they expected, just as anyone in your position would have been, you lost. What the hell is that even worth worrying about? Or is it that for Miss Christina, a genius from childhood, even a failure as inevitable as acting is unacceptable? Have you subconsciously become so arrogant!?"

Chris's shadow comes from his deep fear of failure.

The underlying logic of this fear is arrogance.

Even if they are at a huge disadvantage, they still think they can make a comeback through micro-manipulation, and they are overly confident due to their extreme arrogance and unrealistic expectations.

As a result, he was ruthlessly slapped in the face, and he fell from the highest point to the lowest point in an instant.

Even after two years, the arrogance in his bones has not changed at all, which is why he is still brooding over it and can't get over it.

As for worshipping Aize like a god, it is also a product of this distorted mentality.

After all, humans are weaker than gods, which is natural.

Therefore, Aize must be a god - or some other existence higher than humans, so that he can take into account both his own arrogance and the tragic fact of failure.

Once this cognition is shaken, Chris will become extremely panicked and even unable to act.

Adrian noticed this.

And Aize and Marquis Adrian, who spend more time together, know it very well.

In order to take Chris's emotions into consideration, the latter two never said it explicitly, but tried to use gentle and indirect means to help her get over it.

But the results were not good.

That's why Adrian said that Chris was spoiled by these two.

If it were him, he would just throw the most ruthless truth into Chris's face like a brick - just like now, and it should have happened a long time ago.

Chris's mind went blank at first when she was poked in the most painful spot.

Then came anger.

Anger so intense that it is difficult to control.

"No!!!"

Some kind of self-protection mechanism kicked in, and Chris subconsciously denied this extremely unpleasant statement without even thinking about it.

"What the hell are you talking about this time!? Arrogance? I'm already like this, and you actually call this arrogant? I—"

Adrian did not show any weakness and interrupted the conversation with a louder voice:

"Isn't it!? You've become so rotten now, but you still keep talking about second place. Why? On what basis? How is it different from the arrogant you in the academy who didn't treat anyone else as a human being?!"

"I--"

Chris was furious.

But as Adrian said, he looked like a complete loser now and couldn't offer any rebuttal.

I could only look away with gritted teeth, and then uttered the universal golden sentence:

"You're just talking nonsense here, what on earth do you know!?"

Unexpectedly, these words made Adrian laugh out loud.

"Huh? What do you know? Good question! I just don't understand what's wrong with you. Why would you waste your precious time standing here and telling you this?"

The prince crossed his arms and raised his head, which pulled the wound on his neck. A sharp pain made his expression twitch slightly.

But the speeches continued.

"I'm tired of hearing about your disgustingly perfect upbringing, Christina. Do you know what's going on here?"

"The empire has been established for five hundred years, and it's rotten from the very foundation. If it doesn't reform, it will soon follow in the footsteps of Augris! But how could this be so easy? Since my father, the Saxon family has been battling various forces. As a prince, every day is a battlefield!"

"On my fifth birthday, I experienced the first political assassination attempt I remember—actually, my first assassination attempt was said to have occurred on the third day after I was born, but that's beside the point. When I was five, my old butler, who had always taken care of me, was hit by a petrification spell when he tried to protect me from a fall. He turned to dust right before my eyes!"

"When I was eight, I participated in my first wargaming game. Over three days, I was defeated 8 times in a row by the elite generals of the Imperial Army assigned by my father. Only after gritting my teeth did I finally win a point, and that was the end."

"At the age of twelve, I first attempted to remove the title of a criminal imperial noble. However, due to my lack of preparation, the noble, along with a group of opponents, counterattacked and even forced the emperor to abdicate. In the end, my father had no choice but to use the flogging himself and imprison him for three months before the matter was finally brought to an end."

"Then it was academy... Haha, you don't need me to remind you, in all the tests, all the exams, all the mock battles, I've never beaten you. But so what? I've still made it this far! So you say I don't understand? Yeah, I don't understand! If I were as weak as you, I would have hanged myself a long time ago!"

Adrian's furious outburst left Chris speechless.

Then, he felt that it was not enough, so he tore off the gauze on his neck and slapped the wound that had just healed and was still emitting some black air.

"This, and this, another failure! Am I upset? Am I angry? Of course! Because of this error in judgment, the entire battle is in danger. Now I want to stab myself again! But is there any point!?"

"Even if I had to do it all over again, the expedition must be launched! Even if I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't have been able to discover the Undead's plan in advance! The situation won't change. And yet, at this very moment, the Empire's soldiers, civilians, and nobles are still fighting desperately, and the whole world is watching us!"

"And that bastard former hero who loved to show off, took on all the pressure on his own initiative when a disagreement arose, and then was trapped in a siege is also waiting for rescue! Instead of feeling sorry for myself, these are my responsibilities as a prince! I can't and won't allow myself to stop moving forward because of a trivial failure! What about you!?"

The topic suddenly changed direction. Chris, who had almost curled up in a ball under the storm, trembled violently and her heart ached.

"You call Aize Master, but deep down you worship him like a god. You're so obsessed with him that you subconsciously want to be married. And what's the result? You even ran away when I asked you to lead people to rescue him. Could it be that all your feelings for Aize combined are less important than your arrogance? Answer me! Christina Karsade!"

For Chris, this may be the most intense and fatal question she has ever faced since she was born.

The answer is obvious - absolutely not.

Although she still couldn't figure out what her complicated feelings for Aize were, she also didn't quite understand where her fear of failure came from.

Both sides are in the fog.

But if you put these two, who are both in a mess, on a scale and compare them, Aize will undoubtedly be the more important one, 1000%.

Yes.

Things have come to this point, and it's actually a choice between continuing to play badly or cheering up and saving people. There is no other way to go.

Chris only just realized such an obvious fact.

This is the extent of escapism.

The blue-haired girl collapsed to the ground, her expression dull, but her eyes were no longer as empty as at the beginning, but instead kept trembling.

"Tsk, what a waste of time."

His Royal Highness the Prince was tired of scolding, and time was very tight and he couldn't waste any more time here.

After leaving a look of disgust, he turned around and grabbed the door handle of the closed room.

"Now, I'm going to go get that infuriating guy out. This is an Imperial war, there's no point letting an outsider like him shoulder all the responsibility. As for you... humph, this matter has nothing to do with you anymore. I'll convince the Marquis to take back command. Just keep acting like a loser and wait for Aize to come back and take a good look!"

After saying that, he slammed the door and left.

Chris was left alone in the room, twisting and struggling, crawling to the corner of the wall and covering her face deeply.

That failure two years ago was inevitable and had nothing to do with Chris's ability.

Although Lanfa agreed with this fact, he never really accepted it in his heart.

After all, he is a genius, the rising star of the empire. How can his abilities be "irrelevant"?

That is, arrogance.