System vs Rebirth

Duke Raymond's expression turned grim. He had never thought that Noel was planning to expand his influence by using the royal family's money.

The moment it happened, the Ardagan family would become much stronger than before. The royal family had no choice but to be inferior to the Ardagan family after that.

And with the plan for expansion, the Ardagan family might become the center of the kingdom.

That was why they couldn't allow this to happen.

Duke Raymond said, "It is such a big project, there's no way the kingdom can do it right away. We have to think about the resources and other things first."

Noel had expected this answer. Even if they just told them they would bring it up during the royal hearing and create the plan, they could simply not make any plans or just make some bad plans, which couldn't pass the inspection.

"I understand. The road itself is the one connecting the whole kingdom, so I hope that the royal family can consider this matter positively." Noel nodded calmly.

Duke Raymond didn't expect that Noel would back down so quickly.

However, he soon heard whispers from all parties.

"A road, huh?"

"Bringing materials requires a lot of money and time. If they can actually do much better by using the road and the new invention, won't it make the logistics of the whole country much faster?"

"Indeed. Unlike the battleship and the airship, this invention seemed to be much better."

"That's true. Those two inventions can only show their might on the battlefield. Meanwhile, if that trailer thing increased the logistics of the entire kingdom, the effect would be much better."

"But that would make the Ardagan family become the most powerful family in the kingdom since they are the only ones who can produce it."

"But if we don't help him this time, what if he brings the technology to another kingdom?"

"At the end of the day, we still don't know why the Ardagan family remains in the kingdom. If he wants it, the Greenwood Kingdom and the Zaecuria Kingdom will welcome him with an open arm."

"That's true. Is it because he wants to take revenge for his parents' execution, considering they were executed because they were simply on the opposite side?"

"I heard they did it to seize the Ardagan family's wealth. It could be said that even if the royal family gave him the funds to build a road, they were just handing over the previous wealth that was seized from his late father."

"This…"

The people of the royal faction couldn't help but doubt their current decision. If they didn't take Noel's suggestion, there would be plenty of nobles who would welcome him with open arms.

And it became apparent to the neutral faction. The nobles in that faction began to consider this invention positively.

"I have heard that the invention can actually bring more than thirty times more than a single carriage is capable of. And if we think that the expedition doesn't cost a lot since they don't need horses to take care and that they don't need a lot of escort groups."

"Yeah. If we can bring that amount of luggage…"

"But what about the material itself? They come from a different territory…"

"If they manage to expand it to a lot of territories, the materials in those territories will become much cheaper. And the development in those areas can easily be done."

"Does that mean we have to side with them? But if we miss this, we might need to pay a high price if we want to join later…"

The nobles couldn't help but look at Noel. They knew that if they sided with him after this ceremony, they would definitely get a lot of benefits.

There were three people who could take advantage of the current situation. Because the noble south of Noel's territory was in the royal faction, it would be impossible to expand the road in that direction.

Hence, Noel would definitely go to the west of Lounstein. And from that noble, there were two more nobles that were in Noel's faction. That was why if the neutral faction joined Noel's side, they would be able to extend it much farther.

And without them knowing, Noel had instructed Anna to work on it. After all, Duke Lorelei would definitely get it.

That was why a lot of nobles in the neutral faction were considering coming to Noel's side after this.

This was what Noel wanted when he mentioned the road. He never intended to use the royal family's money.

Everything could be seen clearly from the throne. And it seemed that the situation had caused the king to make his decision.

The king suddenly stood up and said out loud, "I have made my decision. Earl Noel Ardagan. Prepare to receive your reward."

Noel fell on one knee while lowering his head. "Your Majesty."

"I have nothing but praise for your achievement in repelling those demons and the Supreme Devil Organization. You shall be rewarded with the 50,000 gold coins, 10,000 demon crystals, and 5 treasures."

Duke Raymond raised his head. While they had decided this was the original reward, after the arguments exchanged previously, it felt like they had to raise the reward a bit to make it fair or a lot of nobles would judge them.

However, the king added, "I can see that your eyes are set on the development of the kingdom. As a king, I am blessed to have such a loyal subject."

"I am very grateful for your words." Noel didn't expect the king to praise him like this. It seemed that he was planning something and he could see what he wanted.

The king said, "That's why on top of the reward, the kingdom will seriously consider expanding the roads so that every corner of this kingdom can be reached. To thank you for all your efforts, I bestow on you the hand of the third princess in marriage."

"!!!" All of them couldn't help but widen their eyes.

The people in Noel's faction obviously realized the hidden intention.

The royal family knew that they couldn't stop Noel's marriage to Anna. In that case, the least they could do was push Anna away from the wife position. This way, the first wife would be their princess, considering the status of the royal family. As a concubine, Anna would have no real power.

In addition, the third princess could also monitor Noel for the royal family. Obviously, it included the fact that Noel had no choice but to bring her to his main city.

More importantly, if Noel agreed to this, it would be a slap to the Stargaze family. There would be a high chance that a rift between Noel and Kevin would form.

This was actually a good move from the king.

Because of Noel's silence, the king asked, "What's wrong? Do you think the third princess is not worthy of you?"

"I feel like I am the one who is unworthy of her," Noel hurriedly replied.

Whether it was a coincidence or not, the king was offering the third princess instead of the second princess. Noel had heard that the second princess hadn't gotten engaged yet.

That was why if they were using seniority, the second princess would be the first one they offered.

However, the fact that he used the third princess meant the king might want to show something else.

The only possible reason he could think of was the Third Prince. The royal family probably wanted to ruin his relationship with the Third Prince. Then again, it had become nonexistent already.

So, it didn't really matter.

Meanwhile, the royal faction saw this as a surprise attack. Even Duke Raymond didn't expect the king to marry the third princess to Noel. He knew his intention and thought this was a good opportunity to control the Ardagan family.

The moment the Ardagan family made a single mistake, they could use it to get their technology.

And there was no way he could reject this marriage…or so they thought.

What they didn't know was that Kevin was staring at Noel with a stunned face, not because he had a problem with the marriage, but because Noel had actually seen through the plot from a mile away.

He couldn't help but recall what Noel said before their departure.

"Uncle. When the situation reaches a certain point, I need you to do something for me."

"A certain point?"

"Yes. To get the most benefit, I might end up poking the royal family a little bit. If the king is as wise as rumored, he will definitely try to marry me to a princess to get control over the Ardagan family."

"A princess?" Kevin frowned.

"Don't worry. I told Anna that rather than instead of using my brain to consider my decision is good or bad. It's time to make a decision first and use my brain to turn it into a good decision. And I told you that the marriage would be held in three months, right? I mean, two months from now. It was only the ceremony, we have married in paper. I had also prepared this…" Noel whispered the plan to him.

When Kevin recalled those words, he couldn't help but smile.

"Emergency!"

Suddenly, the door was burst open as a soldier rushed inside.

"Do you know we're in the middle of a ceremony?" The king raised his voice.

"Your Majesty… We have just received the news that the Sword Arbiter is angered by the action of the Crown Prince. The Moon Temple was also questioning the Muivell Kingdom's decision by ruining the marriage between two people who were blessed by the Moon Goddess."

Both Noel and Kevin couldn't help but smile evilly.