Rejecting the Princess’s Invitation

Lugh suddenly felt a burning sensation in his body. This primitive impulse took him by surprise.

"Your Highness Vivian, this damn commoner blocked the carriage. He should be sentenced to death!" The coachman complained as he picked himself up from the ground.

If it were not for this man, the coachman would not have made a fool of himself. He would not be on the receiving end of punishment from the princess. But his anger was replaced with bewilderment when he turned to look at the wretched commoner. 

The sky was still spiraling with runic shadows emitting a holy radiance.

Lugh looked shabby, but under the holy light of the runes, he appeared exceptionally sublime. His incomparably strong body and divinely handsome facial features seemed to have been personally carved by a god.

"This..." the coachman's voice trembled. This lowly commoner was actually a rune-master!

He had actually desecrated a rune-master just now!

One had to know that the status of a rune-master was noble. Even a one-star rune-master possessed an extremely high social status. In this world, there was an unwritten rule: a rune-master had the right to personally execute whoever had offended him.

The coachman trembled as his eyes filled with fear. But Lugh did not even look at him. His eyes were like torches staring at the beautiful woman in the carriage.

"So you are a rune-master."

Vivian did not mind Lugh's unbridled gaze. On the contrary, it made her sapphire eyes light up. Her lips, which Lugh suddenly wanted to taste, opened slightly.

Although the man in front of her was dressed in shabby clothes, he was tall, burly, and extremely handsome. Bathed in the light of runes, he seemed like a god who had descended to the human world.

"Not bad."

Lugh's body might have grown stronger since he had discovered the system, but it was still that of a young man.

So when Vivian, princess of the empire, learned that this young man was a rune-master, she could not help but feel surprised. 

Becoming a rune-master required many years of hard meditation. Seeing a rune-master as young as this man was incredible.

Of course, Vivian had seen geniuses who became rune-masters at a young age, but those geniuses were either born in noble families or underwent training from famous masters. This man in front of her appeared to be nothing more than a commoner.

Vivian got out of the carriage, her thin waist accentuated by her hips. She walked like a willow branch swaying, her scent wafting in the air as she walked towards Lugh.

She extended her smooth and fair hand to Lugh. He took it, smiled, and kissed the back of Vivian's hand as a medieval knight might. 

"Would you be willing to come to the palace as my guest?"

Vivian immediately extended an olive branch to Lugh, curious about what he would do with it.

Vivian, Princess of the Simon Empire, was herself only a seven-star magic apprentice.

"Oh my God, the princess actually allowed him to kiss the back of her hand! She even invited him to the palace as a guest."

"Of course. He is a rune-master and his status is honorable."

"It is true that rune-masters are honorable, but only top-notch rune-masters receive any kind of courtesy from the royal family."

"I really envy him. I can only dream of going to the royal palace."

The civilians, surprised by the turn of events, discussed the matter among themselves.

"I'm sorry, I can't." Lugh refused, going against everyone's expectations. 

"What? Is he crazy? He actually dared to refuse the invitation of her highness, the Princess?"

"This is an opportunity that others could never even begin to dream of. How could he actually reject it?"

Vivian was confounded; there was a flash of dismay in her eyes.

Had this man really rejected her invitation?

Many noble sons would give the world for even the slightest chance of seeing her, but this man had rejected her!

Vivian wondered if she had heard wrong. "Are you refusing?"

"Yes," Lugh said as he met Vivian's gaze before looking down.

Vivian was tall, but Lugh was at least a head taller than her. Looking down, Lugh caught sight of Vivian's snow-white chest. It was really dazzling, but he could only feast his eyes.

Vivian was the Princess of the Simon Empire, which made her Berg's sister. If he went to the palace with Vivian and bumped into Berg, he would probably lose his life.

"Why?" Vivian asked, frowning.

"Forgive me your highness, but I have pressing matters to attend to," Lugh said, making up a reason to avoid the invitation. "But I'll visit you when I get the chance!"

Seeing the resolve in Lugh's eyes, Vivian thought better than making any more requests. "Here are some gifts. Take them," she said as she handed him a pouch filled with gold coins. "I'll wait for you to come."

A rune-master definitely did not deserve to live in bad conditions and dress in rags, so the princess gave Lugh her coins. 

"Thank you. I will definitely come for a visit."

Lugh was momentarily astounded, but he chose not to stand on ceremony. He secretly weighed the sachet, noting that there were at least dozens of gold coins in it.

"How generous! This will help a lot."

In this world, gold and silver coins were in circulation. A gold coin was equivalent to a hundred silver coins, and a silver coin was the daily wage of a commoner.

At first, Lugh was worried about money. He did not expect someone to just give it to him. With these gold coins, he did not have to worry about money in this world—at least while the gold coins lasted.

After giving Lugh the pouch, Vivian got back into the carriage and ordered the coachman to drive away.

Before the carriage started, Vivian looked back at Lugh. His strong body and handsome face had left a deep impression on her.