"What are we going to do?"
"It has been almost two hours since they are inside."
"Did our lord get threatened by her?"
The people of the Ardagan Family couldn't help but look at Dimitri, who had been accompanying Noel this whole time.
At first, they were doing their jobs, but after an hour, they became curious about the discussion Noel and Anna had. There must be an extremely important discussion since it took so long.
At the same time, Dimitri was confused about the length of this discussion as well. Considering their current standing, it was unlikely for Noel to waste this much time.
So, there was a chance that something must have happened. Still, the entire house was blocked by Noel's ice, so it was impossible to find anything.
Dimitri could only shake his head helplessly, saying, "I'm not sure either. Master hasn't told me anything."
"Seriously? Not even you? But they are enemies, right? She was the cause of the execution of the former lords. We couldn't let this go."
"That's right. We should forcefully enter and make this woman pay for her crime."
The other pillars nodded in agreement. Dimitri didn't receive any orders to disclose Anna and Noel's true relationship, so he could only shake his head as though he was rejecting the idea.
"Dimitri!" They were glaring at Dimitri's passive action. Dimitri was the strongest among them, so he should be the one to break the ice that protected the house.
"If you don't want to do it, then I will." Howard stepped forth while cracking his fingers.
"Oh, Howard!" Their expression brightened, knowing that Howard should have the strength to do it as well.
But right when Howard wanted to gather his energy, the ice surrounding the house began to vanish.
"Hmm?" Howard paused his action and observed the fluctuation of the spiritual energy. "It seems that… it's really gone. The ice is gone."
"What?" Their gazes turned to the house, specifically the door's handle. They could see the handle gradually rotated, making them anxious. They wished their lord would come out of the house unharmed.
Fortunately, their wish was granted as Noel was the one opening the door, followed by Anna.
"My lord…" Howard squinted his eyes to check his condition.
"Don't worry. I'm alright." Noel waved his hand while Anna stood next to him, her face slightly red.
"Hmm?" Dimitri couldn't help but furrow his eyebrows as though noticing the unusual behaviors of these two.
"Actually, I have a big announcement to make." Noel noticed that most of the pillars were actually waiting for him. So, it would be the best time to announce this matter.
With him raising his left hand, Dimitri instantly understood what was going on. However, he wasn't spared by the shock as he was the first to drop his jaw. There was actually a ring on Noel's finger.
Then, Noel actually confirmed it by grabbing Anna's left hand to show the same thing.
Due to her high perception, Rose couldn't help but notice the rings and ask out loud, "The ring… Don't tell me…"
With a big smile on his face, Noel announced, "I and Anna Stargaze are officially engaged."
It was a simple statement. Everyone could hear it loud and clear. But that was probably the exact reason why they couldn't help but drop their jaws to the ground.
"EEEEEEEHHHHHHHHHH?!"
Jasmine and the others couldn't comprehend this matter. They only knew that Anna was their enemy. Yet, after a long discussion with their lord, Anna actually became his fiancee.
It was impossible to connect the dots.
Harley, one of the people who knew the secret, couldn't help but laugh. "Hahahahaha. This is surprising and hilarious! My lord… and my lady, congratulations to you both."
"Harley? Why are you congratulating her?" Charlotte asked, concerned about their current status.
Surprisingly, the one to answer that question was actually Rose. She said, "That's actually what happened… Congratulations to both of you."
"Dimitri, say something to him! He must be bewitched!" Howard grabbed Dimitri's shoulder while pointing at Noel. He acknowledged that Anna was beautiful, and her reputation had stated that she was one of the most beautiful people in the country. That was the reason why he thought Noel had been seduced by Anna.
Contrary to his expectation, Dimitri actually rubbed his eyes as though he was shedding some tears because of how proud he was. "Master… you've finally… you've finally…"
Howard's face darkened, looking at Dimitri's reaction in horror as if Dimitri had just gone insane.
"There must be something wrong with this. Is it because the Ardagan Family lacks the necessary funding? If that's the case, my lord, you shouldn't have sacrificed yourself. Let this Balott take care of the family's funds." Balott raised his hand, trying to prevent such a situation.
However, Livia, who was next to him, gave a contradictory reaction. "I see. It's no wonder that my father has told me that the chance is close to impossible." She politely bowed her head while lifting her skirt. "The Greenwood Kingdom congratulates Earl Noel for his engagement. And I also want to congratulate you as a student."
"Thank you, Livia." Noel chuckled.
"You… you…" Balott wanted to say something, but he didn't know what to say at this point. The fact that Anna and Noel got engaged alone was enough to shake the entire kingdom, let alone the acknowledgment from the Greenwood Kingdom. He knew that this matter would definitely shake the whole world.
"By the way, Charlotte. I'm going to spend the rest of the day looking around the village. So, I want all the pillars to gather tomorrow morning since I have a lot of decisions to make. This will shape the entire territory." Noel explained.
"That's not important right now, my lord." Charlotte panicked, thinking she had made a huge mistake by letting the son of the former lord fall in Anna's hand. Anna just looked like a witch who could bend anyone to her will.
"You guys are exaggerating." Noel chuckled. "She didn't bewitch me or anything. This is my decision."
"Still, it's quite surprising for you to suddenly announce this matter, Master." Dimitri walked closer and asked, "When I was with you, I didn't see any sign of this. When did you decide to do this?"
"Just now. But well, I should thank my grandfather for this." Noel made a wry smile.
In fact, both his grandfather and her father were the actual cause. If his grandfather didn't give him this important advice or if her father didn't incite her jealousy, both of them wouldn't be together.
That was right. Noel wouldn't lower his pride and express his feelings and Anna would think that Noel was still hers without the sense of urgency.
Without those two, Noel and Anna might not be together for another few years.
Anna couldn't help but lower her head, blushing. She could understand their reactions, but she planned to confront that problem. On the other hand, the acknowledgement from Dimitri, Harley, Rose, and Livia made her embarrassed.
"What's wrong with you guys? It's nothing big really." Noel waved his hand while asking Charlotte. "Aren't you supposed to be happy since you know that the Ardagan Family won't lack a successor? Well, we're only engaged right now. So, it will be a bit later in the future."
"No, that's not the point!" Charlotte shook her head, having trouble correcting Noel.
"You too, Balott. Since the territory is still unstable, I'm not planning to use the funds for the marriage right now. So, we'll stabilize the territory in one year and hold the wedding at that time. Shouldn't you be happy that we won't run out of funds for the time being?"
"Charlotte said what I wanted to say. That's not the point, my lord." Balott wanted to say that if it was any other woman, he would be happy. At the same time, he couldn't say that his lord had made a bad decision.
Noel scratched the back of his head, not knowing what to do with these guys. In the end, he could only look at Dimitri and say, "You should handle the rest of the problems."
"The rest of the problems…" Dimitri noticed what he truly intended to do. "I understand. Leave it to me."
Noel turned to Harley. "Spread the words about my engagement."
"Consider it done, my lord." Harley bowed with a smile. He was certainly excited to spread these words through the brothels. And before long, the engagement would reach everyone's ears.
"Livia. You don't have to worry about runes for three days. Just help me with the territory a little bit, will you?"
"Yes, Teacher. I'll help everyone here with my experience and knowledge."
Finally, Noel turned to Rose and said, "I'll be touring around the village to learn more about this place. So, calm these people down for me. We're going to have a meeting tomorrow morning after all."
"Understood."
After giving his orders to the four people who knew about his relationship with Anna, Noel held Anna's hand while pointing forward. "Let's go, shall we?"
"Um…" Anna was still embarrassed by everyone's reaction, so she only nodded timidly as they ran away from these people.
