Chapter 693 Lancia Receives a Date Challenge

On a misty autumn morning, a mansion stood quietly amidst a maple forest in District 2 of the Parier South Bank.

This magnificent building, constructed of gray stone, had a black tiled roof and chimneys rising from either end, seemingly untouched by smoke for years.

Golden and reddish-brown maple leaves fell silently, blanketing the dry stone steps in a thick layer of foliage.

"Well, I'll report it like this then. Count Baptiste, please review the documents."

In the reception hall, a sergeant major of the Senate Executive Force in a black military uniform sat on the sofa beside an oak coffee table, handing Count Baptiste a rhombus-patterned leather document folder.

This was the old Baptiste family estate.

The two chatted.

Lancia was amused by it for a moment.

"I haven't been fired yet, have I…"

He felt as if Kyle had been looking for him because of his laziness, searching the entire mansion before finding him.

"I thought you would be tempting me to study like a salesman."

Lancia said to Cat Boss.

"Uh, I don't really like discussing philosophical problems, and I think my mentality is quite normal. Do you think I need to study?"

"Authenticity."

At that moment, she was gazing out the window, chin in hand, her eyes reflecting the colorful autumn scenery of the flower capital, Parier.

Cat Boss blinked, making a soft sound.

Christine could never understand Ivanos, and Ivanos's admiration for Christine would never be conveyed.

And Nigel the Executioner seemed to have a good relationship with their family's butler and Christine.

"..."

Talia had changed her clothes and pointed at him, as if she wanted to duel with him.

Her lips trembled slightly, trying to force a smile, but the tears flowed more and more uncontrollably.

Some people believe that lying is always immoral, regardless of the consequences.

He stopped as he reached the terrace on the other side of the third floor.

Those bright golden eyes fell on Lancia, who was standing not far away.

If she didn't know the truth, Christine was effectively living in her own "experience machine."

Christine pressed it close to her cheek, the smile in her tearful eyes a little bitter, yet filled with endless relief and gratitude.

So the investigation work was almost like comparing their statements.

Christine reached out and grabbed the corner of Lancia's butler uniform as he was about to leave.

Although it wouldn't cause harm, it wasn't real.

"Loki, thank you for your linden flower tea."

Now his understanding of this magic might be different; some things might not be describable in terms of right and wrong.

Lancia picked up the little black cat on his shoulder, said goodbye to Kyle, and headed towards the butler's lounge on the first floor.

He had gone to see his sister on the second floor earlier and had been worried about her depressed state these past two days. As expected, a chat with Loki was all it took.

Being fired for absenteeism was something he had never imagined since he first became a principal.

She added a sentence.

She didn't intentionally want to grill him; she just felt that he really hadn't noticed the problem. Actually, today was a day off.

Despite their familiarity, they simply greeted each other when they were working and focused on their respective duties.

"But, Loki, have you noticed something?"

The butler brought tea for the two of them, their eyes meeting the officer's inadvertently.

Her companionship alone might not be able to change Inoan.

"...Indeed, I have nothing to say. I'll just go out."

It felt the answer was in its heart, but it couldn't grasp it.

But what exactly is stopping you from choosing this endless joy?

"This is exactly what this question wants to prove and refute. We still have ample reason not to enter this machine."

He usually didn't want to communicate with Loki the butler, but for some reason, he felt that he could only confide some things to him.

Lancia asked with a hint of apology.

He murmured to himself, his voice low and weary.

Hearing this, a gentle smile appeared on Lancia's lips.

He cast his gaze again at the autumn scenery outside the railing.

There weren't many pedestrians yet; the streets were filled with the reviving tranquility and peaceful chatter.

Lancia lowered his eyelashes and replied with a faint smile.

"What's wrong, Miss? Do you want to listen too?"

According to hedonism, the most important thing in life is to maximize net happiness, because happiness is the most precious gift life gives us, and what we pursue must be what brings the maximum amount of happiness.

"..."

In this environment, the restlessness and fatigue in his heart gradually dissipated, replaced by a rare sense of peace and relaxation.

"I didn't expect it to be so quiet today."

"It's important to note that once you enter this experience machine, you will be forever separated from real life and unable to return. However, it will be difficult for you to discover this fact. You will not be able to distinguish whether you are in the real world or the virtual world. The ups and downs that your life should have will be replaced by smooth sailing."

Lancia reached out and stroked the little black cat's smooth fur.

"Loki, although our family may need your help these days, today is actually a statutory holiday. You don't have to come to work."

"Actually, I think not telling her the truth was a mistake."

Lancia pointed to himself and Talia with an uncertain look.

The brown-haired, green-eyed butler silently prepared tea and snacks beside a small table in the corner of the living room. He skillfully put the tea leaves into a silver teapot, poured in hot water, and then put on the lid, allowing the tea leaves to unfurl in the hot water, and a rich tea fragrance filled the air.

"Inoan… she…"

Christine glanced at him.

"It's best not to meet again."

The little black cat jumped onto Lancia's shoulder and looked at him, asking.

"Who could be looking for me at this time…"

He was still dressed as usual, in a black butler uniform with a dark green striped bow tie at the collar.

The north bank of the flower capital, Parier.

Kyle said to him.

"Then, I'll probably wait until my payment from the Saint Silver Vine Arena is credited, then I'll give it to you and sign the termination contract with you."

The wind blew, carrying falling leaves, ruffling Lancia's hair, but not changing the slightly surprised expression on his lips.

Compared to the Count's residence on the north bank, this old house was half the size, but the maids had organized it very well with their orderly work.

Cat Boss felt that Lancia had done nothing wrong, but it didn't know why it felt even more uncomfortable looking at Christine like this.

Just as Lancia was about to leave.

Kyle chuckled and patted Loki on the shoulder.

Although it was a statement, it carried a questioning tone.

Lancia nodded.

"Loki, thank you for your hard work, coming to our house today."

"What is it?"

The dazzling sunshine of the autumn morning at half past nine shone on him, bringing a hint of warmth.

When he arrived at the small drawing-room on the second floor, he saw Miss Christine sitting by the high French window.

Kyle nodded in understanding.

"Maybe this analogy is a rather special case, but for Christine, is protection more important, or is authenticity more important? Compared to the peace of mind of being deceived, is the pain of truth actually better for her?"

"It's hard to believe that Miss doesn't dislike me."

Lancia received a communication from Talia and came to meet her at the agreed location in District 1 of the North Bank.

Lancia looked at her with a helpless smile, feeling that this might be a blemish on his career that he could never erase.

It could use telekinetic magic, and even an ordinary cat wouldn't have much of a problem jumping from that height.

Correspondingly, because he had become the apparent hero of this battle, and was deeply trusted by the residents of the flower capital and the demons of the Poson Demon Realm, he was promoted from colonel to lieutenant general in the Parier Defense Force of the Poson Kingdom as expected.

Nigel shook his head.

They nodded slightly to each other.

"What, meow?"

He changed into casual clothes and left the old Baptiste family estate.

"It's nothing, it's my duty."

"That's great… that's great…"

She closed her eyes, her eyelashes still dotted with tears.

Lancia replied and took away the tray, no longer disturbing them.

Lancia watched her and answered.

He believed Christine also understood this principle.

In other words, it was the feeling brought by the fallen paradise.

"Thank you, Lieutenant General."

"Loki, I have to say, you're really amazing. You actually taught Inoan so much healthy and correct knowledge."

Cat Boss asked in its childish voice.

He strolled along the streets of Parier's South Bank, and soon left the maple forest, and the surrounding area became streets lined with sycamore trees again.

It was a hair ornament Inoan had given her, but it had been damaged in the battle. Lancia had repaired it.

This was one of Inoan's hair ornaments.

During this time, all of his magic cards, except for the epic ones that couldn't be unbound, had been changed to reduce mana consumption, increase spiritual attributes, and speed up mana recovery. These tool magic cards had always been kept with Cat Boss.

Christine stared at Lancia behind her.

He felt like going outside for some fresh air.

Inoan was someone he had rescued from the berserk demons in the Poson Demon Realm. Later, after that rainy night battle, he roughly knew the course and outcome of events.

It was clearly such a good thing, so why hesitate?

At least Christine would understand in her future life that her kindness and courage could infect others and even create miracles.

Whenever Christine thought of Inoan's true identity as the Destruction Bishop, she felt like she had been living in a dream for this period of time.

He remembered that whenever Christine brought Inoan for psychological counseling, Christine would fall asleep while listening.

Christine said softly, her voice as smooth as silk.

Christine closed her eyes, letting the tears flow freely. She tightly clenched the hair ornament, as if it were the last connection between her and Inoan.

Christine murmured to herself, a slight curve appearing on her lips.

"But it's also good. You're clearly an unqualified butler, so it's reasonable for me to fire you for this reason, right?"

Cat Boss was about to answer when Lancia continued:

Lancia stopped and went back behind her, slightly surprised, he opened his mouth.

It raised its head and looked at Loki with bright eyes, its tail gently wagging.

"Loki, stay with me for a while longer."

It felt like Cat Boss had turned into a feline telephone.

After thinking for a moment, Lancia walked forward along the corridor and went up the stairs leading to the second floor. The heavy carpet absorbed his footsteps.

But thinking carefully, wasn't this the fallen paradise?

"..."

Lancia took the communication magic card with confusion.

Lancia smiled helplessly and gently stroked the little black cat's back.

Kyle waved his hand, walked to Lancia's side, and leaned on the railing like him.

"Then I'll take my leave."

Lancia stared at it, his emerald eyes gleaming with thought.

Christine murmured, her tone full of comfort.

He also followed Christine's gaze and looked out at the autumn scenery.

"...Me, with you?"

An unreal dream.

Her hair was a little shorter, only reaching her shoulders. Some of it had been burned by the mysterious demons that attacked that day, so it became like this after trimming.

Lancia left the room, closed the door, and walked alone through the long corridor, his footsteps echoing in the empty space.

"You've worked hard during this time, rest for a few more days. This old house is easy to take care of."

The one person and one cat were loafing on the job in this rare moment.

She turned around and waved to Lancia, as if to see him off.

But this didn't mean that the brief intersection between their life trajectories wasn't beautiful.

Not to mention that he actually missed Tata, who would put a knife to his neck at the slightest disagreement. Now, seeing her only quietly cooking, Lancia actually felt that he couldn't experience that adrenaline rush anymore.

He handed the hairpin to Christine, his tone gentle and solemn.

"...Admiration is the emotion furthest from understanding, and love is the bridge between a paucity of knowledge and a wealth of knowledge."

At the time of parting, he took out a hair ornament from his pocket.

Several minutes later.

Moreover, Talia looked like she had re-dressed herself.

Lancia walked to Christine's side and gently placed the tea tray on the round table next to her.

"If you need anything, please let me know at any time."

"This is a field of study that won't cause any problems even if you don't learn it."

Lancia's eyes trembled slightly, and he pursed his lips and turned his gaze away.

So the whole family moved here.

"Have you forgotten that I'm a divine beast?"

Originally, Lancia could unhesitatingly use the [Fallen Paradise] magic on enemies, but he would never use it on his own people.

However, this machine didn't seem to have the negative effects of melting the soul like the Fallen Paradise did; it was a purely harmless experience.

The family head, Count Baptiste, directly thanked Lancia.

Lancia turned around and saw the young Count Kyle standing on the corridor outside the terrace, smiling at him.

The butler smiled and stood behind her to the right, asking.

Her fingertips gently caressed the rose, as if stroking a memory.

Lancia bent down slightly and asked, puzzled.

He looked at Talia with some confusion, as if he didn't understand why she had suddenly called him over.

Lancia understood with interest and asked her.

Among them, the Senate hoped that he would take over the 10th District of the Poson Demon Realm in place of his teacher, Perlman, and the Demon Realm side hoped that Nigel would take the lead in thoroughly investigating the historical legacy of the Great Wizard Palroni's Grudge Record. Nigel refused them all, choosing to continue staying by Tiffany's side.

"Thank you for your care. Christine has become much more energetic after crying once, and has returned to her usual carefree self."

"Young Master Kyle, do you have any instructions?"

If they wanted to make things difficult for the Baptiste family's investigators, they might investigate very harshly.

"Please enjoy your tea, you two."

Perhaps it was because Lancia had been sleeping for almost two days that he was a bit silly, and he hadn't even noticed that today was actually the Poson Kingdom's Fireworks Ascension Festival, and this festival was a holiday where you didn't have to work.

Lancia seemed to hesitate for a moment.

Christine asked him again.

Christine shook her head, but asked him.

"Today is Wednesday."

"She's alive, loneliness can't defeat me."

This butler just stood out as someone who knew the answer but asked anyway, giving off the feeling of an annoying old man.

…

For a young lady like her, who lived in the correct world, the best outcome was to never meet a Destruction Bishop in her life.

She felt that the things that Loki the butler usually said were neither as practical as magic, nor as easy to access in life as the humanities and social sciences, nor as generally applicable as mathematics and physics.

"Loki, thank you."

Lancia bowed very awkwardly.

"I'm very sorry, my absence from work on Monday was a major mistake. I won't quibble."

"Meow, are you feeling unwell?"

"Yes."

Christine nodded in satisfaction.

"Alright, go get busy, Butler Loki. But the Baptiste family will still welcome you in the future. You can come to our house to play at any time."

"..."

Lancia seemed to see Cat Boss's hesitation and understood what it was thinking about at the moment.

"Lancia, let's go on a date!"

The small hair ornament that Lancia took out from his pocket was a silver hairpin, engraved with a delicate and dripping rose, the edges of the petals inlaid with tiny rubies, sparkling in the natural light.

"I'm going to work."

Tears finally slipped from the corners of Christine's eyes, drawing a crystal clear trace along her cheeks.

"Hoo--"

Looking at Christine's expression of mixed joy and sorrow, his heart was filled with mixed feelings.

"I didn't expect that you would be absent from work, Loki."

Christine seemed to wake up from her contemplation and turned to look at Lancia.

"It's nothing, I just wanted to tell you to go and rest earlier."

The family head and the officer were talking at the long table, both of their expressions carrying a trace of solemnity, their brows slightly furrowed, exchanging opinions in low voices.

Then she stared for a long time at the maple forest outside the courtyard, the leaves falling silently.

Lancia took a deep breath, letting the fresh air fill his lungs, and murmured.

Christine and Ivanos were never people from the same world.

"I don't understand, meow. I'm just a little kitten."

If he were a teacher, he would actually be quite sad to have a student like this in his class.

Thinking carefully, Nigel had indeed told him at the Monday morning banquet that the Fireworks Ascension Festival was two days later.

"No need to thank me."

"Then I'll leave first."

He held onto the railing, looked out at the garden, and took a deep breath.

Count Baptiste took the document and thanked him.

He was good at completing a flawless report on the basis of complete truth, and he also didn't want some of the Baptiste family's opposing factions to take this opportunity to harm the Baptiste family.

Lancia was a little dazed and looked at Kyle in confusion.

He always felt that this butler had changed a bit, but observing his expression and tone, perhaps he had seen things clearly.

"Actually, I also found out that you're not a bad person. It was my mistake to prejudge you as someone strange. I should be thanking you for taking care of our family during this time."

Christine stared at him, feeling that he was really very remorseful.

Lancia retreated in a timely manner and said to her.

Christine choked, her eyes gradually filled with tears.

He felt as if he didn't have much work to do today.

Regarding the turmoil of the previous two days, their Baptiste family was involved in the investigation related to the spreaders of curses.

He emphasized it again and left quickly.

"Christine, this is what Inoan asked me to bring to you."

The gradually approaching footsteps disturbed the contemplating lady.

It was also thanks to having a good teacher like Loki that a completely new view of right and wrong had been shaped for Inoan, who was like a blank sheet of paper.

Lancia prepared to take his leave.

Tears streamed down Christine's fair cheeks, gathering into a crystal bead on her chin, and finally falling on her bluish-white skirt, spreading a dark stain.

"Will I have a chance to see her again?"

She picked up her teacup and sipped the hot tea, the warmth of the tea seemed to dispel some of the autumn coolness.

"Cat Boss, imagine if you connected your brain to a magical terminal machine, probably more advanced than an artificial shadow world starting terminal, that could bring you endless happiness for the rest of your life, only joy, no sadness. If you could choose, would you want this machine?"

"Meow."

Suddenly, Cat Boss jumped onto Lancia's head, and hanging upside down, handed him a purple magic card.

Christine also replied with confusion.

For example, the Baptiste family's investigation, he took it over on his own initiative.

When Cat Boss heard this, it felt very good.

"Hoo hoo…"

In the square under the iron tower, a lady dressed particularly elegantly stood quietly. Her soft, gray hair cascaded like a waterfall, and a white aristocratic dress wrapped around her noble and graceful figure, reflecting a warm and soft luster in the morning sun.

"..."

"If you don't want to enter, what's the reason?"

But sometimes, only considering the consequences would overlook the autonomy of the participants.

Christine said abruptly.

She turned around and looked to the side.

He had never slept for so long, and only remembered that today was Wednesday, and he had even overlooked this point.

Reddish-brown maple leaves danced in the breeze, and a few fallen leaves lightly stuck to the glass.

She said frankly.

Suddenly, he heard a familiar voice behind him.

Christine stared blankly at the familiar hairpin and reached out to take it.

"Meow…"

"Cat Boss, don't fall down."

A magnificent iron tower building stood tall on the banks of the Selena River at the end of the field of vision.

After the mansion in District 4 of the North Bank was mostly destroyed, it would take some time to repair it.

"Loki, you're here."

The Baptiste family's butler was in a corner of the living room.

Christine gradually relaxed, her gaze returning to the autumn scenery outside the window, her thoughts drifting away again.

"Lancia, meow, there's a communication, meow."

"Oh, it's Loki."

But seeing that this sophisticated butler would actually show such an appearance, she found it quite interesting.

It seemed to be more because of the content of Cat Boss's analogy.

Many things happened after that turmoil.

"Thinking carefully, you taught Inoan how to be a good person. I don't know anything. You, who know more, have more of a say."

The only work that Nigel took on was some of the aftermath.

"Miss, why do you look so listless?"

Lancia was immersed in his own thoughts, and the little black cat on his shoulder was also quietly curled up.

A little black cat silently jumped onto the railing and sat down next to Lancia's hand.

"It's definitely better not to tell Christine the truth, meow."

Christine glanced back at Lancia, wanting to say something, but after thinking about it, she decided against it.

Some people also believe that more attention should be paid to the consequences of actions. If an action brings more overall happiness than unhappiness, then the action is moral.

"Oh, oh…"

Cat Boss shook its head.

"I think lies are more like a tool? For example, Tata can use a knife to cut vegetables, or she can put a knife to your neck. You can only judge the right and wrong of the user, but you can't comment on the right and wrong of the knife itself, meow. I think there's no problem with you not telling Christine. She's still so young, you can't let her be depressed."

Talia nodded seriously.

Today, in order to get revenge on Lancia for being so annoying for the past month, she decided to pretend to be a perfect and gentle girl to disgust Lancia severely!