At first, she didn't know what was going on.
Flora grabbed the soldier coming out of the office, and only after talking to him did she get to know what had happened in Lawrence.
'Oh my god.'
Blood Fang.
A faction called a heinous criminal group even in Lawrence.
At one time, the noble families made a move to wipe them out but eventually gave up because they were determined for revenge.
So, for Flora, Blood Fang remained a problem that couldn't be solved.
As long as you don't touch them, they won't cause you any problems, so I tried to stay away from them as much as possible.
Roman said he would deal with them the day I talked about breaking the engagement.
Because he took on the responsibility of breaking up by himself, Flora unwittingly tried to stop Roman.
However.
"We are strangers now. So, I will take care of my own business."
Roman drew a line.
Since the bond of arranged marriage has been broken, they have clearly stated that they should not get involved in each other's lives.
Flora was stunned.
I was angry, but my partner didn't understand.
Is this his last remaining pride?
Is he not being nice to me because I wanted to break off the engagement? Will he feel better after treating me this way?
I had a lot of thoughts.
Of course, I didn't think Roman would put what he had said into action.
However.
'You really took care of the Blood Fang.'
What I thought was absurd became a reality.
What others would not have dared to do, Roman had done in just a few days.
This didn't make any sense.
Dmitry's Fool?
That was a false rumor.
Even if Knights' Commander, Jonathan, had helped, the person she met and experienced wasn't a fool.
He knew how to take responsibility for his actions, and he also kept his word on what he said he would do.
And if he had personally killed Ben Miles, the leader of the Blood Fang, the rumor that he could not even wield a sword was also highly likely to be false.
Why?
Could Roman have kept his mouth shut to escape the world's evaluations?
If she truly knew what kind of man Roman was even a little earlier, Flora would have made an effort to get to know Roman better.
It was too late to regret.
The cup had already spilled, and now, Flora was called by her father.
Her father suddenly started praising Roman Dmitry.
I don't know what happened in his office, but her father's face clearly showed that he was in awe of what Roman did and had taken a liking to Roman.
"…We decided to break up the engagement."
Flora's words.
For Viscount Lawrence, it was out of the blue.
Flora.
She was Viscount Lawrence's princess.
He was extremely protective of her. She was the daughter he had raised all his life dearly, but he could not tolerate her this time.
"You already announced the breakup?!"
Viscount Lawrence got up from his seat.
Flora's heart raced at her father's anger, whom she had never seen before, and he struggled to express his thoughts with a calm face.
"Yes, father. The last time I visited Dmitry's estate, I expressed my intentions to Roman. I also wanted to do things for my family according to your will, but no matter how much I thought about it, marrying someone I can't respect—"
"Flora. I thought you were a smart kid. But… this is not it."
He interrupted her speech.
Unlike usual, he didn't want to listen to her daughter.
"I have already told you. How serious our land's situation right now is. Now, the Barco family has borrowed a large sum of money from the Golden Bank to prepare for war against us. Did you make that choice knowing what that meant? There is no longer any compromise with the Barco family. They will bring us to our knees for this matter and take everything in the name of a good cause. It's not just about gold and silver. Our land, our honor, and even you, Lawrence's flower. It means taking it all away."
"Lawrence is not weak. Even if it's Barco, isn't it impossible to win?"
"Right. If it was only the Barco family who had come forward, it would have been possible. The problem is that the "central government" approved the document, even if its authenticity was not confirmed, and the Golden Bank lent money to the Barco family without any special collateral. This is not just a battle between two families. The forces that lent power to the Barco family will create a battle in which we have no choice but to lose, even for their own benefit."
"…"
Flora's eyes shook.
She was smart.
She was called gifted from an early age and boasted of her brilliance enough to finish her academy course early.
However, that was only her academic knowledge.
Neither the academy nor the library showed her the cold reality as there was no way she could learn that from books.
She thought Lawrence had nothing to lose, but the reality she believed in was far from real.
Viscount Lawrence said, "An arranged marriage with the Dmitry family was an unavoidable choice. From the family located in the North-East, they were the only family who could add the power and forces to solve the Barco family's evil intentions, so your father asked for your permission. I asked if you could sacrifice yourself for the family crisis. Of course, it would've been difficult for you to refuse, but if you had still refused back then, I wouldn't have been as angry as I am now. It's a matter of choosing the marriage partner you like from among other prestigious families, so you must have taken a step back. However, this is different. Previously, you were the flower of Lawrence that everyone admired, but now you have left a scar with the choice of breaking a marriage. Other families will try to keep an eye on the situation as it would be very risky to marry you under the current circumstances."
The world of power.
In that world, choices often come at a great price.
Lawrence, who had gained the help of Dmitry through the arranged marriage, lost what they gained because of the breakup.
Just a while ago, Viscount Lawrence met Roman.
He was a good guy.
His eyes were sharp, and he was a man with an attitude that did not waver even in front of a Viscount.
And seeing how he handled Blood Fang for the citizens, his own people seemed to be particularly fond of him.
Due to all of this, he was in a good mood.
He was in a good mood, even if it was an arranged marriage.
The sole reason was that he discovered that Roman wasn't a fool like the rumors said.
Lawrence had no other option, so he felt that the arranged marriage was not bad.
However, the cup has already been spilled.
Due to that, everything they had prepared to face the Barco family became useless.
"In the past, the Barco family asked us to get in an arranged marriage. Perhaps they coveted our fertile land. Back then, I flatly refused. No matter what advantage they gave us, the eldest son of the Barco family had many women which made me refuse the proposal. And if we lose this war, you will not be a part of Dmitry, but a woman of the Barco family. That's the reality. At least before the war, you were in a position where you could choose your husband, but now, things are completely different."
Reasons for the arranged marriage.
The reason why I had no choice even though that decision broke my heart.
Because the opponent is Barco.
Knowing what it meant to be defeated by those who had been targeting Lawrence for a long time, Viscount Lawrence accepted the reality.
Flora's heart sank.
The way she sees it.
There were no such stories in that world.
What were Barco's intentions, and what would be gained by marrying into the Dmitry Family?
She was naïve.
Because she had a pure heart in a cruel world, she chose to break up, not knowing what the outcome would be.
But now, she faced the cold reality.
Viscount Lawrence took in his breath.
Of course, there was still time to pick up the spilled water.
"Take some time to think about what mistakes you have made. I will make an appointment with Dmitry again and I will try to undo the breakup. My daughter, we are aristocrats. We are not in a position to worry about our daily lives like common people. This is a position that has much more responsibilities than them. So, please pray that this problem will be resolved. If Dmitry rejects our offer this time, our chances of winning the war against the Barco family will be extremely slim."
Fortunately, the breakup was not yet known to the public.
The only way to avoid mistakes is to do something right away.
Viscount Lawrence left Flora in her shocked state and left her at the office.
There was a lot of work to be done from now on.
At the same time, Roman left Lawrence with the Dmitry Knights.
They were moving.
Knight Commander Jonathan looked at Roman's appearance.
'Is this really the Young Master Roman I know?'
Roman.
From what he knew, Roman wasn't born with enough confidence to look straight at Viscount Lawrence.
Along with that, all the things he did concerning the Blood Fang.
It was seriously questionable.
He hadn't really talked to Roman, but now he couldn't stand his itchy mouth.
"Young master, was it really necessary to provoke Viscount Lawrence like that? I'm glad he didn't take it seriously, but if Viscount Lawrence had been angry, even the young master wouldn't have been able to escape punishment."
At the place where he was being reprimanded, Roman rather criticized his opponents.
Jonathan was so startled back then that he almost tried to stop Roman.
"Was there a need to?"
Roman laughed.
A need?
There wasn't.
It was best to solve it on the spot, but he deliberately changed his attitude in the atmosphere of reprimanding himself.
"Lawrence is not free from responsibility in this case. Their negligence allowed the Blood Fang to exist, and as a result, the people of Dmitry's estate were harmed. So, I was just pointing out the facts. The fact that they have no right to reprimand me on the spot. Even if things weren't the same, Viscount Lawrence wouldn't have punished me. Judging by the atmosphere, it seemed that he did not know the fact of the breakup yet, and he would not make stupid judgments to punish his soon-to-be son-in-law."
"…!"
Roman behavior.
It wasn't a reckless act.
Roman was judging the situation, and he uttered enough remarks to handle.
"Our families don't even have proper communication between us to inform them of the breakup. Do you still think that I will need to ask for forgiveness from them? I took care of a problem that they couldn't, if I was going to get anything, it would be praise and not punishments."
A confident attitude and along with a confident voice.
At that moment, Jonathan became sure.
'The young master has changed.'
Roman Dmitry.
He wasn't the fool he used to be.
Roman arrived at his home.
He immediately immersed himself in the bathtub and flushed the blood from his body with warm water.
'Even in my new life, my fundamentals do not change.'
I killed a person.
Actually, he killed at least dozens.
Blood Fang was slaughtered like that, but he felt no guilt for them.
'It was necessary.'
Roman, no, Baek Joong-hyuk.
He lived in a world of survival of the fittest.
If he showed the weakness of hesitating when he had to kill someone, Baek Joong-hyuk's life would have ended when he was young.
So, if he makes a decision, he must act.
If anyone were blocking his road, he would cut them down without any hesitation and, if necessary, torture them in many cases.
That was Baek Joong-hyuk's life.
Nothing changed when he became Roman.
If there was someone that showed their murderous intent, eliminating them with whatever means necessary was the way of Baek Joong-hyuk's life.
If the same thing happens again in the future, Roman will make the same judgment.
Whether the opponent is the remnants of Blood Fang or someone stronger than them, Roman will always live a life as a predator by devouring those who oppose him.
"Young Master Dmitry, Lord Dmitry is calling you."
It was when he finished taking a shower.
At Hans' words, Roman changed into clean clothes and started walking.
Soon, he arrived at the office.
However, Baron Romero, who he thought would criticize his reckless move, looked at him with a dazzling gaze.
An expression that cannot hide his great anticipation.
Baron Romero asked, "So, you dealt with Blood Fang just by yourself?"
Jonathan was standing next to him.
Right, he must have told him the situation.
The meaning of the question was clear.
Romero Dmitry, as the father of his son, not the lord of Dmitry, couldn't hide his excitement after discovering that his son had finally changed for the better.