Feeling Rhein's resentful gaze, Lynn smiled at him.
Seeing that everyone treated the incident as a minor squabble, he bowed his head and continued his battle with the roasted sausages on his plate.
A moment later, someone started discussing official matters with Ivyst.
"Your Highness, Duke Tierus has once again refused your invitation. What do you think..."
Lynn felt that this name seemed somewhat familiar.
After reflecting for a while, he remembered that this person seemed to be a Duke in the Saint Laurent Empire from the original story, also serving as the Governor of the Southern Province.
Besides this, he was also a venerable elector.
Although the elector system gradually weakened in the recent times of strong imperial power,
the influence over the King's election ceremony was still not to be underestimated.
All in all, there were a total of seven electors.
Apart from the four secular electors, there were also three ecclesiastical electors, each served by an Archbishop from one of the three major churches of the Saint Laurent Empire.
Therefore, before the start of each King's election, princes aspiring to ascend the throne would try to get on good terms with these old fellows.
Once a Prince garnered the support of more than four electors, it was almost equivalent to securing the throne.
It seemed that Ivyst, who was currently weak and alone, was a bit anxious, not willing to fall too far behind others.
Reflecting on the original story's plot about the King's election, Lynn shook his head.
Saint Laurent VI had a total of nine children, most of whom were not benevolent.
To win the King's election, they calculated against each other from start to finish until, in the end, it was the Great Imperial Princess Hillena who, with the help of the male lead, had the last laugh.
Generally speaking, after winning the King's election, the victor would temporarily serve as the Regent King, managing the Empire's affairs, waiting for the formal coronation.
As for Ivyst... Lynn could only wish her good luck.
She had neither Hillena's protagonist's halo nor the support of a powerful family.
Not only was she seen by others as an evil force, she couldn't even obtain the favor of others.
That was akin to being handed a death sentence.
After all, public opinion is a very important loop in becoming an Emperor.
Of course, this public opinion refers not to the commoners, but to the nobles like worms clinging to the roots of the Empire, sucking its lifeblood.
Since he wasn't interested in politics and such, he refocused his attention back on his plate.
The sausage was delicious.
The starving Lynn ate ravenously, with grease smearing all over his mouth.
Just then, a voice filled with admiration and curiosity suddenly came from beside him, "I can't believe you managed to humble that arrogant guy like that, it's really impressive."
Upon hearing this, Lynn looked up and saw a blond young man sitting beside him.
The young man looked a lot like Rhein, but he didn't have Rhein's arrogance; instead, he seemed somewhat dazed.
Lynn wiped the oil from his mouth.
"My name is Glaya Augusta; I'm sorry my brother has troubled you."
The young man named Glaya scratched his head.
Lynn nodded, then pointed to the food on his plate and said, "Do you eat sausage?"
"I don't eat, thank..."
Glaya felt a warmth in his heart, just about to refuse his kindness.
But before he could finish speaking, he watched, wide-eyed, as the guy gleefully stabbed the untouched roasted sausage from his plate.
Glaya finally felt what his brother had felt just a moment ago.
What a cheeky person!
He felt somewhat aggrieved in his heart.
He himself was quite fond of sausages, too.
So Glaya thought for a second and decided to repay Lynn in his own coin.
He pointed to his plate and said, "Then do you eat lamb chops?"
Glaya had planned to mimic Lynn's earlier action when he refused, thinking it would even things out.
Unexpectedly, Lynn again gleefully stabbed the remaining lamb chop from his plate.
"Eat!" he mumbled indistinctly, "You're such a nice person."
Glaya's eyes widened, seemingly not expecting this kind of maneuver.
Staring at his empty plate, he felt an urge to slam the table in frustration.
But before Glaya could act, he suddenly noticed that the surroundings had become quiet.
He instinctively raised his head and discovered that the esteemed Highness sitting in the main seat had, at some point, looked over with a calm and indifferent gaze.
Glaya nearly wet himself with fright at that moment.
He drooped like a frightened quail and spoke with a wilting tone, "Y-Your Highness?"
"You seem to have something to say,"
Ivyst said indifferently.
"No, nothing, Your Highness."
Glaya was close to crying.
"No, you do." Ivyst's domineering presence resurfaced, "Since you have something to say, that means you have your unique perspective on how to handle these three hundred plus civilians."
"In that case, I'll leave this task to you. Within three days, I want to see the results."
Ivyst's words drifted lightly down.
But they landed heavily on Glaya's heart, as if they weighed a thousand pounds!
He was completely dumbfounded.
Though he was the second son of Baron Augusta and a semi-master in the manor, with Rhein firmly above him in both strength and aura, Glaya never had a chance to inherit the baronetcy in his lifetime.
His greatest hope in life was to build a plantation in the South and then marry a noble lady as his wife, to live a stable life.
Although his father and elder brother had sworn allegiance to that Highness, it didn't really have much to do with Glaya.
He just hung around the manor and Orn City every day, idling away his time.
After all, no one really expected anything from him.
But at this very moment, that Highness had suddenly tossed such a heavy responsibility onto his head.
Just as he was feeling lost and helpless, he suddenly heard some noise beside him.
Glaya glanced sideways from the corner of his eye.
Sure enough, there was Lynn, head lowered, his whole body trembling as he tried to hold back laughter.
"Right, you can bring Lynn with you as your assistant. If you mess this up, you should both be aware of the consequences."
Ivyst's voice came again.
Upon hearing this, the smile on Lynn's face instantly froze.
He lifted his head with a grim expression.
Now it was Glaya's turn to stifle a laugh.
It seemed that a smile doesn't vanish, it just transfers from one person's face to another's.
After breakfast, Rhein came straight to Lynn.
He pointed at the door with a cold expression, signaling Lynn to follow him.
In fact, he was already imagining in his heart just how he was going to thoroughly discipline this infuriating person.
The "cellar" was not simply a storage place for odds and ends as it was suggested on the surface; it was situated even deeper than the Underground Prison.
Rhein had been there a few times and was deeply shocked by it.
Simply put, it was a storage room used by Ivyst to collect various Extraordinary Items and Ancient Curses, filled with all sorts of rare and strange objects.
There were even many highly ranked dangerous items.
It was said that if they were released, they could easily become a natural disaster sweeping through the city.
Fortunately, most things there were perfectly contained, thanks to the efforts of that Highness.
Her power was terrifying, and she was capable of suppressing even the most fearsome Ancient Curses.
Upon entering the cellar shortly, Rhein planned to use the characteristics of a certain Ancient Curse to teach the lad a lesson, letting him know who was the real boss of the manor.
With this thought, Rhein revealed a cold sneer.
Seeing this, Glaya looked at Lynn with some sympathy: "Let's talk about the task assigned by His Highness after you get out, and also... good luck."
There weren't many of his peers in the manor, and even fewer he could actually talk to.
He still hoped Lynn could stay on here without harm.
After all, he seemed like an interesting fellow.
Watching the two figures depart, Glaya thought silently.