‘So someone summoned at least 180 beginner monsters.’

However, aside from the monster Hejen summoned, I hadn’t heard of other monsters appearing in the capital. Moreover, hornpipes were not easy to come by in the city.

‘Could it be the same person who gave Hejen Aegir’s Hornpipe? But if that’s the case…’

That’s when I noticed a box filled with in the corner.

‘The purpose of this person seems more complex than just aiding the player’s awakening.’

It seemed there was more to these than met the eye.

Anselot was in a very good mood.

Last night, he had sneaked into Duke Hamilton’s bedroom while he was sleeping and poured on his face.

The potion’s effect was tremendous!

Duke Hamilton’s pride, his thick and healthy hair, had suddenly lost its vigor.

With that momentum, Anselot planned to make Prince Orent bald next.

He immediately felt better.

He wasn’t one to derive pleasure from tormenting others. He was just…

“I hope our princess finds this amusing.”

He wanted to see Luibelle’s smiling face.

Humming cheerfully, Anselot suddenly paused and frowned.

“I think I’ve been too good to our princess.”

He wouldn’t have bothered with such troublesome matters in his original self.

Why was he doing all this? Pondering this question made his mood dip, but then…

“Well, this is all a noble effort to persuade our princess to proceed with the scenario.”

Thinking this way, he felt justifiably proud again.

Of course, Luibelle might not change her mind despite his cute antics.

After all, she genuinely didn’t want to progress the scenario.
“I don’t want to! I just want to live my comfortable life in the palace!”

Recalling her strong resistance, Anselot felt a twinge of worry.

If she never changes her mind, and we fail to kill the dragon in this iteration…

“Was it a mistake to make her a player?”

Possibly because she wasn’t originally a player, she had a particularly strong aversion to the scenario.

However, Anselot had no regrets.

If he hadn’t intervened, she would have been sacrificed for that damned player’s awakening.

Luibelle Azester’s death.

“…….”

It was an outcome he found most displeasing, even in his imagination.

Anselot quickly shook off these unpleasant thoughts and went to find Luibelle.

“But where is our princess?”

She wasn’t in sight, possibly out on an excursion.

Then, at the main gate of the princess’s palace, he ran into Luibelle, just returning from her outing.

“Ah, Princess!”

He was about to approach her with a bright smile but froze for a moment.

She wasn’t alone.

A man in a neat uniform escorted her.

“…….”

Anselot scanned the man with a cold eye.

With platinum hair reaching his waist and a height similar to his own, the handsome man had a noble air about him.

‘Klaus Winter…’

Anselot glanced at the blue window above the man’s head.

Oddly, he felt a twist of irritation.

Quickly striding forward, Anselot blocked Luibelle and the man.

“Looks like you’re returning from somewhere, Princess.”

Then, with a twisted smile and a cold voice, he greeted them.

“Anselot?”

“But you’ve brought something strange with you.”

His displeased gaze turned to Klaus.

“Ah, this is…”

“Klaus Winter. I was asked to escort Princess Luibelle.”

Klaus responded crisply, to which Anselot’s eyes narrowed.

“Our princess personally asked you for an escort?”

“Yes.”

As Klaus nodded straightforwardly, Anselot turned to Luibelle, seeking confirmation.

“Uh, well, I did ask for an escort, but…”

“Then I’ll take over from here.”

Anselot extended his hand toward Luibelle.

Klaus, wary, stepped in front of the princess.

“Princess Azester cannot be entrusted to a stranger.”

“A stranger?”

Anselot sneered in response.

“I am Prince Anselot of Luenheart. Who else would be as clearly noble as I am?”

“Your very identity as Anselot Luenheart makes it more dangerous.”

Klaus spoke unflinchingly, his response clearly implying, ‘I cannot trust the princess to someone notorious like you.’

At that moment, the smirk in Anselot’s eyes deepened.

Luibelle instinctively sensed it.

The thick smile hid an even thicker murderous intent.

“It’s okay, Sir Klaus! Prince Anselot is trustworthy!”

Luibelle quickly took Anselot’s hand to prevent his mood from worsening.

“But Princess…”

“At the last ball, he escorted me. Don’t worry, and you may leave now.”

“…….”

Klaus’s expression hardened at Luibelle’s decision.

‘Wait, wasn’t there something similar earlier…?’

Luibelle recalled the moment when Klaus seemed displeased.

Even then, despite his discomfort, his affection had increased.

‘So this is a good sign!’

“Thank you for today, Sir Klaus.”

Luibelle waved gently at Klaus before turning to leave with Anselot.
Unaware that Klaus was still intently watching her and Anselot from behind.

The sudden standoff between Anselot and Klaus nearly became troublesome.

Thankfully, sending Klaus away resolved the situation well.

It was slightly uncomfortable to be escorted by a man who disliked her…

“You seem to have become close with that man.”

Anselot, who had been silent for a while, suddenly spoke in a gruff voice.

“Didn’t you see his affection level? It’s in the negatives.”

“And you didn’t see it?”

“See what?”

“Guess you didn’t.”

“What didn’t I see?”

“Never mind.”

Anselot replied curtly and shook his head.

“But now I’m someone you can trust?”

“Huh?”

“You said that before. How could you trust me?”

‘But the method you suggested isn’t certain, right? Besides, how can I trust you?’

“Oh, that’s…”

Feeling embarrassingly self-conscious, she coughed awkwardly.

“That’s a different matter.”

Somehow, she had come to believe that Anselot wouldn’t harm her.

Despite his nicknames like murderous lunatic, aside from their intense first meeting, he had always protected her…

‘Wait, when did I become so weak-hearted? It wasn’t long ago that I became a player because of him…!’

She suddenly remembered his misdeeds and vehemently shook her head.

“By the way, Anselot, what exactly did you do to Duke Hamilton?”

Changing the subject, Anselot lazily rolled his eyes.

“You already know.”

Anselot nonchalantly admitted to making Duke Hamilton bald and replied with a cheeky grin.

“But why would you do that? Even if Duke Hamilton spoke ill of me, making him completely bald is too cruel.”

“But you enjoyed it, didn’t you?”

“Well, that’s true…”

Even though she thought it was a cruel act, she couldn’t deny the satisfaction she felt upon hearing the news.

Anselot suddenly stopped walking. Puzzled by his intense gaze, he leaned towards her, wearing a slanted smile, and whispered into her ear as if sharing a secret.

“Bribe.”

His sultry whisper sent a shiver down her spine.

Blushing, she looked up to find him straightening up, now looking down at her with a smile.

Murderous lunatic, assassin. But now, the ‘handsome’ assassin was smiling beautifully at her.

“It’s a bribe, hoping that you would change your mind.”

Caught off guard by his radiant smile, she involuntarily swallowed her breath.