I had barely walked out of the hall when the system appeared and began speaking.
[Young Hero, what you are doing is wrong.]
[I’ll repeat the mission. Save Master Canaan from marrying Ella, and you will receive rewards.]
[You do not have to act like a bad hero. Please be kind and do not deceive these people into marrying a boy instead of a woman.]
"Ah, system..."
I rolled my eyes.
"Keep blabbing."
[Young Hero, if you refuse to listen to me, I will deduct your points.]
I frowned.
"System, deduct my points if you want."
"Can your points be converted into money?"
"Can I use them to purchase the silver and coins needed in this world?"
[No. System points cannot be exchanged for earthly currency. They can only be used for items provided by the system.]
I sneered.
"Exactly."
"You see what this king is trying to say?"
"This king needs to survive."
"Your so-called Young Hero also needs money to survive."
"I have become an ordinary mortal... an ordinary cultivator. Without money, how exactly do you expect me to live in this world?"
After saying that, I ignored the system and continued walking.
Soon, I arrived at the hall where Canaan was waiting.
Outside the bridal room, several servants were blocking Canaan from entering.
"Young Master, please be patient," one of the servants said. "The bride is still getting dressed. You will meet her soon."
"After that, you can spend time with her. There is no need to rush."
Canaan looked anxious.
"I don’t know why..."
"I feel like I am going to lose my bride."
"I want to see her before the wedding begins."
"Let me be the first person to admire her beautiful face before anyone else."
The servants exchanged helpless looks.
"No, Young Master. That would go against tradition."
Canaan sighed.
"...Fine."
Reluctantly, he turned around and walked away.
As for me, I was the bride’s father.
Of course, nobody dared stop me from entering.
I walked into the room and saw Ella sitting before the mirror.
His face was covered with light makeup, making his already delicate features appear even more feminine.
The red wedding dress suited him perfectly, making him look exactly like the beautiful bride everyone believed him to be.
One of the maids looked at Ella and sighed.
"Sadly... the young miss’s figure is a little too flat."
Another maid quickly smiled.
"But at least she has an incredibly beautiful face."
Ella immediately glared at me the moment I entered.
He clearly wanted to say something.
Before he could open his mouth, I calmly used my spiritual energy to seal his lips.
"Mmph! Mmph!"
No matter how much he struggled, he could only make muffled sounds.
I folded my arms.
"Good girl."
"You have behaved very well."
"I will reward you."
"Don’t worry. From the money I received, I will give you 200 gold coins."
"You can use them to eat, drink, and enjoy yourself."
"Treat this like a business transaction."
"You are not losing anything."
After the servants left the room, I removed the seal from Ella’s mouth.
The moment he could speak again, he immediately exploded.
"Hey!"
"I am a man!"
"I’m not getting married to anyone!"
"I believe in marriage. I am a traditional man."
"If I ever marry someone, it will only be the person I truly love!"
I looked at him calmly.
"Who is going to marry you when you keep dressing like a woman?"
Ella raised his chin proudly.
"Girls who like feminine men will marry me."
I shook my head, looking at him like he was a hopeless fool.
I looked at him like he was some pathetic idiot.
"I don’t want to marry a man!" Ella shouted.
"Please... I’m begging you."
For the first time, the arrogant man standing before me was actually pleading.
He truly did not want to get married.
I folded my arms and looked at him.
"To think this king misunderstood you."
"I thought you were courageous."
"I thought marrying this man would not be a problem for you."
"This king does not want to owe anyone a debt or feel like a thief."
"So, I think you should just marry Canaan."
"He truly loves you."
"Spare me that bullshit!"
Ella’s face turned red with anger.
"Spare me that bullshit!"
"I am going to kill you!"
The moment he finished speaking, Ella lunged toward me, trying to grab my neck.
I allowed him to do so.
If it were anyone else, I would have already burned their clothes, roasted their entire body with hellfire, and turned them into nothing but ashes.
But this was different.
I had to endure this for the sake of those golden coins.
For the sake of the silver this king needed to survive.
"If you are finished choking this king, you can let go now," I said calmly.
Ella continued squeezing my neck with all his strength.
However, my body was as tough as metal.
No matter how hard he tried, he could not hurt me.
Realizing his efforts were useless, Ella finally released me.
He stepped back, breathing heavily while glaring at me with pure anger.
Then he sat down, still looking frustrated.
After a while, while Ella and I were still in the room, another person arrived.
It was Canaan’s father.
The old man was already dressed in his luxurious wedding attire.
A piece of jade hung from his waist, and his long white hair had been carefully combed and styled for the occasion.
Behind him, servants carried boxes containing the bride price.
"My future daughter-in-law," the man said happily, "everything has been prepared."
"The 120,000 gold coins are here."
"And the horses are already waiting outside."
"What?"
Ella’s eyes widened as he looked at me.
Canaan’s father noticed his expression and gave an awkward smile, as if he understood what Ella was thinking.
"Daughter-in-law, don’t worry."
"Anything is worth it as long as you give me grandchildren."
"The amount of the bride price does not matter."
"You are worth it."
"Please accept it."
Ella turned his head slowly toward me.
His expression clearly said one thing.
I was the one who ate the bride price, but he was the one suffering because of it.
After the old man finally left, I grabbed Ella’s hand.
"Come."
"Let’s go."
Ella looked at me in confusion.
"What do you mean?"
His eyes widened as he stared at me, completely unaware of my plan.
Of course, this king was not going to tell anyone.
Not even him.
After making my decision, I used my power and vanished from the room with Ella.
In the next moment, we appeared beside the horses.
I grabbed the horses as well before leaving the area.
The bride, the groom, and the so-called bride’s father had disappeared from the mansion.
We appeared behind a fence, at least far away from the Hang mansion
I looked around.
I had no idea where exactly we were.
I was unfamiliar with Crayon City, so escaping here was only temporary.
While adjusting my clothes and checking whether the money was truly in my possession, the system suddenly spoke.
[Congratulations, Young Hero.]
[Mission fulfilled.]
[Once again, you have acted like a hero and saved Ella from marrying Canaan.]
[You have prevented the deception of a man marrying another man.]
[Reward: 1,000 Good Deed Points.]
[Reward: 1,500 Hero Points.]
I frowned.
"What do you mean, mission fulfilled, system?"
"I took Ella away because there was a chance another foolish human noble might fall in love with him."
"And then this king could scam them again."
"Stupid system."
"You truly cannot understand this king’s thoughts."
[Young Hero, the system’s calculations are not wrong.]
[You saved Ella because you cared about someone who had traveled beside you for a long time.]
[Your actions were influenced by concern for your companion.]
I rolled my eyes.
How ridiculous.
I noticed Ella looking at me strangely.
It seemed like he actually believed the nonsense the system was saying.
"Both of you are useless."
"This king needs to leave this place before anyone discovers what happened."
"Now that I have secured a large amount of money, I can finally survive."
"Since Casper is dead, there is no one left to lend this king money."
"Unlike some useless people who finally become helpful once and then keep reminding everyone about it."
"Who is forcing you to do anything?" Ella shouted.
"I was the one sitting there wearing all that makeup and a wedding dress!"
"You are going to give me a share of that money."
"No matter what you say, I must receive my portion."
Ella pointed at me.
I grabbed his hand immediately.
"Do not point at this king."
I bent his finger slightly until he felt the pain.
Ella quickly pulled his hand away, shaking it.
"You..."
"You are supposed to be a righteous hero."
"That money is dirty."
"You should not be interested in dirty money."
"I will be interested in dirty money."
"That money belongs to this king as well."
"I must have my share."
[Young Hero, you should share the money with Ella.]
[Otherwise, I will deduct your points.]
"Damn you, system."