The two armored guards led Haruto deep into the administrative wing of the academy, stopping before a massive, polished oak door. One of the guards knocked firmly.
"Come in," a deep, resonant voice echoed from inside.
The guard opened the door, and Haruto stepped over the threshold into Commander Fredrick's private office. The heavy wooden door clicked shut behind him, cutting off all outside noise.
The room was vast, lined with shelves of ancient military strategy books and maps of the continent. Sitting behind a grand mahogany desk was Fredrick himself, his posture commanding and his sharp eyes instantly locking onto Haruto.
Haruto stood entirely still, his face an unmoving, icy mask as he evaluated the man before him. Deprived of his usual empathy and unable to speak, his mind instantly began running a cold, survival-driven calculation.
Alright, here we go, Haruto thought, his single crimson eye staring back at the Commander without a hint of fear. This is the most powerful man on the continent, and he knows exactly what happened on the track yesterday. He saw the transformation.
He bypassed the memory wipe. Now, I'm standing in his office completely mute, magically drained, and completely unable to defend myself if things go sideways.
He watched Fredrick's hands, looking for any sign of hostility or reaching for a weapon. What is his play? Is he going to interrogate me about the entity? Is he going to treat me as a threat to the kingdom, or is he looking to use me as a political weapon now that I'm officially engaged to the princess? I need to figure out his true angle before I make a single move.
Haruto kept his gaze fixed on the Commander, his mind tightly focusing on the high-stakes atmosphere of the room. Just as he was calculating his next move, a soft knock echoed from the heavy wooden door behind him.
The door slid open, and Seraphine quietly stepped inside. She walked in with her head slightly lowered, completely devoid of her usual presence.
The moment her eyes met Haruto's, she instantly shifted her gaze to the side, deliberately avoiding any direct eye contact with him. She looked unusually tense, fidgeting slightly as she stood a few paces away.
"You called for me, Sir?" Seraphine asked, her voice quiet as she addressed her father, still trying to maintain a formal tone in front of Haruto. "Is there something you needed me to report?"
Fredrick leaned back in his grand chair, his sharp eyes moving between his daughter and Haruto. A low, powerful chuckle rumbled in his chest before his voice cut through the silence of the office.
"There is absolutely no need for you to be so formal right now, Seraphine," Fredrick said calmly, his tone completely dropping the strict military edge. "Drop the act. I am completely certain that Haruto already knows about our true relationship. He knows that we are father and daughter."
Fredrick shifted his gaze back to Haruto, a knowing, calculated smile playing on his lips. "After all, he is the future king of this land. A man with his level of observation doesn't miss details like that. Am I right, Haruto?"
Haruto didn't offer a single movement, but his mind instantly locked onto Fredrick's words. How does he know so much about my observation skills? he thought, his strategic processing working behind his blank expression.
Then, a wave of cold logic hit him. Of course he knows. Why wouldn't he? This man is recognized as the most powerful human in the entire world.
Haruto quickly calculated the sheer gap between them. Fredrick possessed far more experience in every single field imaginable—whether it was direct hand-to-hand combat, raw level progression, or mastery over magic. And when it came to the World Layers, the distance between them was astronomical. This world was structured around 100 deep Layers that stretched all the way up to heaven itself. A legendary figure like Fredrick had easily explored and conquered at least 72 of those perilous Layers. Haruto, on the other hand, hadn't successfully explored a single one yet.
But as his hyper-focused mind mapped out the power dynamics, two burning questions remained.
Why did he call Seraphine into the office right now? What is her role in this meeting? Haruto wondered, his gaze shifting slightly toward the girl who was still actively avoiding his eyes. And more importantly, Lilith passed the memory wipe just like Fredrick , she knows exactly what kind of terrifying, divine power is resting inside my body.
What is a man of his stature planning to do with me?
"Dad, why did you actually call me here?" Seraphine asked, finally breaking her silence, her voice tight with confusion.
Fredrick's expression turned incredibly grave. "Because of an absolutely vital matter."
With those words, the Commander slowly stood up from his grand mahogany desk. His massive, imposing frame cast a long shadow across the room as he stepped out from behind it. Haruto stood his ground, his face a perfect mask of stone, but internally, his mind was racing to calculate every possible threat.
Fredrick started walking straight toward him.
Should I prepare to defend myself? Haruto thought, his single crimson eye tracking the Commander's heavy, deliberate steps. Damn it, my magic power is completely drained and my skills are locked. If he attacks right now, I have zero defensive options.
Fredrick closed the distance, stopping right in front of Haruto. He looked down at him for a single, breathless second. Then, without warning, the most powerful human on the continent dropped to his knees, bent entirely forward, and pressed his forehead flat against the floor in a full, desperate bow.
At that exact microsecond, a massive rush of pure, unadulterated adrenaline exploded through Haruto's veins.
His heart hammered violently against his ribs, sending a wild shockwave of energy straight to his brain. It was a feeling so intense, so electric, that it completely bypassed the cold lock on his senses. Every single nerve ending in his body lit up on fire.
Look at this, a roaring voice inside his mind screamed, his thoughts spinning at a million miles an hour. Look who is at my feet!
The logical processing in his brain completely disconnected for a split second, replaced by the raw, intoxicating thrill of absolute dominance. This wasn't just a political move; this was the ultimate validation of his power. The strongest warrior on the face of the earth, a man who could level entire cities with a wave of his hand, was currently trembling on the floor.
"Haruto... I beg of you. Please marry my daughter!" Fredrick pleaded, his booming voice echoing off the walls.
Time completely stopped.
Seraphine's face went completely pale, her jaw dropping in absolute horror. "Dad?! What in the world are you saying?!" she screamed, her usual composure shattering into a million pieces.
Haruto just stood there, his mind completely locking up. Is this a joke? he thought, staring down at the back of the continent's legendary warrior. The strongest man alive is begging a mute, powerless student to marry his daughter?
With his voice entirely locked away, Haruto couldn't even demand an explanation. He could only stand frozen in the center of the office, caught entirely off guard by the sheer absurdity of the situation.
Seraphine's face flushed completely red, a mix of sheer embarrassment and shock taking over her features. "Dad! Are you out of your mind?!" she yelled, stamping her foot as she stared down at her father's bowing form. "What are you even saying right now? Why are you doing this?!"
Commander Fredrick didn't lift his forehead from the floor. His voice came out deep and completely serious. "Seraphine, you saw his power during the Wizard Quest, didn't you? I sensed that energy from the VIP box. It was vastly superior to my own. If he is already this incredibly powerful at such a young age, his absolute potential is a thousand times greater than mine. And on top of that, he is about to become the king. Marrying him means you will become the queen!"
Seraphine bit her lip, her eyes shifting toward Haruto before she quickly looked away again, her face still burning. "I... I know everything you're saying makes logical sense, Dad," she mumbled, her voice dropping significantly. "But... but you can't just force him into this! It isn't right to pressure him like this..."
Haruto stood completely frozen, his single crimson eye narrowing as his tactical brain analyzed her reaction. Wait a minute... he thought, his logical processing tracking her body language. Her reaction is completely wrong. If she didn't care, she should be absolutely rejecting this crazy proposal alongside me. Why is she acting so flustered? Don't tell me she actually harbors romantic feelings for me too? No way. That makes zero sense.
A heavy wave of sheer annoyance hit him. First Lilith aggressively trying to kiss me in the back row, and now Fredrick trying to force a second marriage proposal onto my plate? I absolutely despise this romance stuff. It completely ruins the stakes, completely destroys the pacing, and turns a perfectly good high-stakes political situation into a mess. I need to get back to the action and figure out a way to shut this down without a voice.
Fredrick slowly lifted his head from the floor, his expression dead serious as he looked up at Haruto. "And there is something even more terrifying, Haruto. Nobody else remembers what happened. I secretly asked a few of my closest comrades in the high command if they remembered that mind-blowing divine power, and they looked at me like I was insane. To them, it was just a sudden flash of light, and then you won. The entire event was completely scrubbed from their minds."
Seraphine nodded quickly, her embarrassment momentarily fading into genuine worry. "He's right. Today at the academy, I didn't hear a single classmate mention that cosmic energy. No one was questioning it, no one was talking about it... it's like the entire world completely forgot what you actually did."
Hearing his daughter confirm the anomaly, Fredrick immediately slammed his forehead back onto the floor, his voice echoing with absolute desperation. "Haruto! A man who can command that kind of reality-bending power a... you are a god among men. Please, I beg of you, take my daughter as your wife!"
Haruto stood completely still, his mind running a rapid tactical simulation of the two paths ahead.
Shit, this is getting way too complicated, he calculated silently. I'm looking at two distinct scenarios here.
Case one: I reject them. But since I can't speak, I can't even offer a logical explanation to soften the blow. If I just shake my head 'no', a man as powerful and stubborn as Fredrick will only chase after me even harder, viewing me as an unconquered peak or a threat he needs to secure. It'll waste an unbelievable amount of my energy.
Case two: I give them a silent nod of agreement for now. Fredrick will instantly be satisfied, his massive ego will be placated, and he will form a powerful, friendly alliance with me. With the most powerful human on the continent backing me up, my path to the throne becomes incredibly smooth, and he might even provide the exact political support I need while my powers are completely locked.
He stared down at the bowing Commander, weighing the sheer tactical advantage of a temporary alliance against his utter hatred for forced romance games.
Commander Fredrick remained with his forehead pressed against the floor, completely tense as he waited for an answer. Because his head was completely down, he couldn't see that Haruto had already given a slow, silent nod of agreement. Standing a few paces away, Seraphine's entire face flushed an intense, burning red. Her mind was in absolute chaos, completely unsure of how to react now that the situation had gone this far.
Lifting his head slightly but remaining on his knees, Fredrick looked up with desperate eyes. "Haruto... what is your answer?"
Haruto stepped forward, reached out, and firmly gripped the Commander's shoulders, pulling the most powerful man on the continent back up to his feet. Once Fredrick was standing, Haruto looked him dead in the eye and gave a clear, deliberate nod of his head.
"Please, say something, Haruto!" Fredrick urged, still tense. "I need to hear your terms."
Instead of trying to force a sound from his locked throat, Haruto spotted a blank sheet of paper and a fountain pen resting on the edge of the mahogany desk. He stepped over, picked up the pen, and began writing with fluid, precise strokes.
He slid the paper across the desk to Fredrick. The note read:
"I have made a strict promise to myself that until I accomplish a specific, ultimate goal in my life, I will not utter a single word. Therefore, I must remain silent for now. But my answer to your proposal is yes. I accept your daughter, Seraphine, as my second wife, so you can rest completely assured. However, you must absolutely promise me one thing: do not discuss my true power or yesterday's transformation with anyone else. Keep this completely between us."
Fredrick picked up the paper, his sharp eyes scanning the handwritten lines. As the reality of Haruto's acceptance sank in, a massive wave of relief washed over the Commander's face, while Seraphine stood frozen in the background, her heart hammering against her ribs as she stared at the official confirmation of her new future.
Seraphine's entire face was practically glowing crimson, and she finally snapped out of her frozen shock. "Wait! Dad, I never actually agreed to any of this!" she protested, her voice cracking as she gestured wildly between herself and the note.
Commander Fredrick looked at his daughter's completely flushed face, his expression turning into a stern, no-nonsense smirk. "I don't care if you agreed or not. From this very moment, wherever Haruto goes, you go. My house is no longer your home. Your luggage is already being packed, and it will be delivered straight to Haruto's house by tonight. Whether you two want to get married right this second or figure it out later is up to you—but you are officially evicted from my place."
Haruto stared at Fredrick, a massive wave of silent exhaustion hitting his internal processor. I thought accepting the deal would get this guy off my back and make my life easier, he thought, his single crimson eye twitching slightly. But this is ridiculous. Lilith moving in tonight was already going to turn the house into an absolute chaotic circus. Now I have Seraphine dropped right onto my head too? How am I supposed to handle two high-profile targets under one roof while I'm completely mute?!
"But Dad, you can't just—" Seraphine tried to argue, her voice desperate.
Instantly, Fredrick's tone flipped into a sharp, commanding military bark, completely cutting her off. "That is an absolute order, Seraphine! Move it! Go to the mansion, grab your remaining personal belongings, and get ready. Haruto is heading home now, and I will personally have you dropped off at his doorstep in exactly one hour."
Haruto stood there, his mind screaming in frustration. Hold on a minute, I wrote that I accept her as a second wife, but I never said anything about a forced cohabitation starting tonight! But with the cold lock tightly sealing his throat, he couldn't utter a single syllable to correct the massive misunderstanding.
Before he could even pick up the pen to write a protest, Fredrick practically ushered them both out of the high-security office. Walking down the dimly lit academy corridor with a completely silent, bright-red Seraphine shuffling beside him, Haruto could only stare blankly ahead.
Yep, he thought, his logical mind officially declaring a total tactical failure. I am completely dead.