Lord Summoner's Freedom Philosophy: Grimoire of Love

"Now... What am I doing here?" Lyan asked himself as he stared at the inside of the room where he was currently in. There is a bed, a dim light from candles, a sofa, some chairs, a bookshelf, a harp, and a flute.

The room is without a doubt a top-class room, but the way the room is designed and the items put on top of the bedside cabinet indicates that the room is made for a special use.

"This is without a doubt a love hotel's room..." (Lyan)

After the girls invited him to have dinner at the house, they enjoy dinner made by Ravia and Raine. The both of them were surprisingly very good at cooking, making Lyan ask for a second serving. They told him that Abraham taught them lots of things varying from house chores to fighting.

Afterward, Xena told him to take a rest in one of the rooms on the upper floor, but he got led to a high-class VIP room of the house where high nobles and big merchants usually are led to instead.

Because of the high-quality wine Ravia served him, Lyan's mind got absorbed in his own world, and he didn't take too much attention to Xena's invitation for him to rest since he didn't sense any malicious intent from her.

And now that his mind has sobered, he realized that this might be a troublesome thing for him.

(What should I do... I'm aware of her feelings, but I don't really have any intention of getting bound to one person... Not to mention that the grimoire of summoning could only get the summonable monsters from me sleeping with women. Well, I don't know whether I could get the monsters from doing it with just one girl though) (Lyan)

After knowing that he could get a summonable monster by sending the enslaved shadow hobgoblin into his grimoire's space, Lyan experimented and enslave a slime that he found in the forest after getting kicked out of the courtesans' house. But after he sent it to the grimoire's space, there is no additional paper that appeared on the grimoire like what happened when he sent the shadow hobgoblin.

After the experiment, he concluded that a monster couldn't get enlisted in the summoning grimoire with the same method of capturing, so the shadow enslavement no longer worked.

(Well, if she's not bothered with my rule, it'll be fine though. I don't want to break her heart as well since she is a good person. I guess if things turn sour, I'll just use my mind magic to make her forget about me) (Lyan)

After noticing that his mana, especially the mana he got from the spirits that didn't recover as quickly as he expected, Lyan realized that his class is really a summoner. Since a summoner didn't fight himself, but rather use their summoned creatures to fight for them, there is a limit to their own body's capabilities. That's what pushed him to get as many as summonable creatures he could get from the summoning grimoire as soon as possible.

(Just a small amount of mana from Arturia, I could defeat the goblin champion. It indicates how strong Arturia's mana is. And if she got killed by someone, it means that someone actually stronger than her exists. With my current level, I wouldn't stand even for a-) (Lyan)

*Click!*

The door of the room suddenly opened, but the one entering the room isn't the one he expected. Her white dress compliments her pink hair, and the way the dress she uses displays her curves magnificently made her look more alluring to Lyan. He got captivated by the scene for a while, but soon realize that the development is not the one he expected.

"Belle?" (Lyan)

(Belle? Not Xena?) (Lyan)

Facing Lyan, Belle holds the tip of her dress and gives an elegant bow.

"Nice to meet you, Sir Lyan. I'm the house's Venenatum Rose. It's a pleasure and honor for me to entertain you tonight," (Belle)

Belle took a certain book from the bookshelf, and sits on one of the chairs.

"Please enjoy it from your seat, Sir Lyan," (Belle)

Following Belle's words, Lyan sits on the sofa in front of where Belle is sitting.

(A rehearsal?) (Lyan)

"Once upon a time, in the northern country, lives three princesses that are oblivious to the world," (Belle)

As Belle started to tell a story, a small live illusion appeared in front of her, as if it's showing the image of the story she was telling. Wearing a dress befitting a princess, three girls appeared playing in the garden of a palace.

"Oblivious to the world because of the pampering of their father, the three princesses hold an innocent image of how the world works. Kind and gentle people, a country filled with smiles, beautiful flowers even more beautiful than the ones in the palace's garden, and rightful knights," (Belle)

Her melodious voice that enchants the heart, and the perfect tone she uses in each moment makes the storytelling quality top-notch.

"Unknowing about the cruelty of the world, the mischievous princesses went outside the world, hoping to see more of the world's beauty. Afraid that his daughters got corrupted by the cruel world, the father always obstruct them from knowing about the world," (Belle)

It's just a common tale of the people. The beginning revolves around the daily lives of the princesses in the palace, their wishes of going outside, and their image of the outside world filled with flowers and brightness.

"With the help of a young knight that they befriended in the past, the princesses left the castle, hoping to see the world in incognito behind their father. But their plan is not the same as the young knight's plan. They got ambushed at the route given by the young knight, and they got caught by bandits, abducting them and confining them," (Belle)

The illusion image she creates with illusion magic followed the story she tells perfectly. With the illusion, Lyan could feel the sense of danger and the panic the princesses felt. As if getting absorbed in the story, Lyan watched the storytelling with full focus.

****************************************

Their life in the bandits' custody is filled with fear and despair. The flowers, kindness, and beauty they hope to find outside the palace didn't exist. What lies outside their palace is only the bandits that are ready to capture them.

The bandits knew how much of value the daughters are to the king. So they decided to negotiate with the king, asking for a huge ransom for the princesses' lives. The king is ready to give all of his treasures in exchange for his daughters' lives, but a certain knight objected to his decision when he voices his decision toward his royal knights.

In a rage, the king roared at the knight, asking him what does he mean by his objection.

'Do you mean that I should let my daughters in their vile hands!?'

Then the knight answered, 'Of course not, my king. Give me one day, stall the time of the negotiation, and I promise you that I will bring the princesses back to the palace. If you bow your head to those lowly bandits, it will bring harm to the kingdom, and the princesses will be stared at with scorn by the nobles and the people, my king,'

Staring at the knight with doubt, the king asked the captain of the royal knights, 'Who is this man?'.

'He's the strongest royal knight of our generation, my king. He's not a person who talks much and not a person with big ambition. Please give him a chance to save the princesses, if he fails, you can take my head and his,' replied the captain of the royal knights.

'I see. Then dear knight. My powerful knight. Please save my daughters' Plead the king as he held the knight's hand.

'Your words are my command, my king. Your order to the knights had once saved my village from the savagery of the bandits, it is my pleasure to be your sword and serve you to slay your enemies.'

With resolute eyes that seem like they couldn't see any failure, the knight swore.

'As the sun set today, I will slay your enemies in darkness and make sure that they wouldn't be able to see another sunrise. I swear upon my sword, that I will bring back the princesses to you,'

And just like the knight's words. He saved the princesses with his intelligent plan and powerful swordsmanship. He went alone, not because he's too confident with his strength, but because his only ally is the captain of the royal knight. The other knights are affiliated with other noble families, the scheme of capturing the princesses originates from the plans of the noble families opposing the king, so he must do his job perfectly.

'You did a great job saving them. I know you refuse to be rewarded, but my daughters plead with me to give you one. It's their own request, will you please at least hear it?'

******************************************

"The three princesses entered the room. If he's going to be rewarded with money or title, the knight decided to refuse all of them and had prepared the appropriate words to politely decline the offer. But the reward he got is different than what he expected," (Belle)

"'We owe you our lives, and by this life will we repay you. For a princess like us to give you our lives, we could only serve you if we become your wives' said the princess, shocking the knight," (Belle)

"'I know. We're stupid, and we didn't know anything about the world outside the palace. But I wonder, could you accept us? Dear knight, will you accept your reward from us?' Asked the eldest princess with trembled hands," (Belle)

"Suddenly a faint smile appeared on the knight's face. 'Princess, my village was saved because you princesses are about to travel from the southern region to the capital. And because of your curiosity, you princesses want to know how we villager lives, and the king sent his knights to escort you. That curiosity of yours saved my village, my family, my treasures'," (Belle)

"Kneeling in front of the princesses, the knight continues his words. 'The reason why I saved all of you is because I want to give you my thanks. I always admire the innocence of your eyes, and the curiosity you possess for those below you. I know I'm not worthy, but it will be a great honor for me to have all of you stands beside me'," (Belle)

"The princesses jumped and cried in joy because of the knight's acceptance, and they married and live happily ever after," Belle gracefully closed the book in her hands.

But despite her movement, Lyan noticed the sweat on her neck.

Suddenly Belle lowered her head, preventing Lyan from seeing her face.

"T-The three of us might not be princesses. We don't have a king that could reward you a lot, and we're not as pure and innocent as the princesses either. But even so, if we offer you ourselves... W-will you accept us?" (Belle)

____________________________________________________________________________

Name: Lyan

Occupation: Mercenary

Money: 49,722,600 Elnes

Weapon: None

Equipment: Black leather cloak

Grimoire's Companions: 8 High Spirits, Shadow Hobgoblin