Reincarnated as a failed hero?! Watch me Defy Fate!-Chapter 233: What Kind of Engagement is this?

The Alliance Council meeting had finally come to an end—and thankfully, it ended well. I was genuinely relieved that all the parties present were able to reach mutual understanding and respect, despite the tensions that surfaced earlier.

Well... there was a bit of friction here and there, but in the end, cooler heads prevailed and it was resolved without further issue.

As the room began to empty, I turned my attention to the quest screen floating in front of me.

"Hmm... this part looks easy enough," I muttered to myself. "Training the kingdom’s heroes shouldn’t be too hard, especially with Runa and King Aslan helping me out."

But then my gaze fell on the second task.

"...This one, though... is seriously a problem." My eyes narrowed as I read the words again.

Assist the magical research team in analyzing Lilith’s magic formula and constructing a new barrier spell. frёeωebɳovel.com

"What the hell? That’s insane!" I groaned in my mind. "Even Salvador-sama, the Magic King himself, is on that team—and if he hasn’t cracked it yet, how am I supposed to help?!"

Just as I began to spiral into panic, an all-too-familiar voice rang out in my mind.

"Oi, you idiot! Don’t you dare forget that you have me on your side!" Envi’s voice thundered with confidence. "With the help of the great Envi-sama, breaking some ancient demon spell is a piece of cake!"

I couldn’t help but chuckle softly. "Pfft... Alright, alright. I’m counting on you, Envi."

"Hmph. You better be!" he huffed, clearly proud of himself.

I let out a long breath, mentally preparing myself for the tasks ahead. But even as I settled into that mindset... I felt a strange sensation.

Like I was forgetting something important.

"...Wait. Did I miss something?"

Before I could process the thought further, Envi yelled again.

"You absolute moron! Don’t tell me you forgot you’re supposed to meet King Aslan and Princess Amelia to talk about your engagement!?"

I froze.

"Oh no..."

He was right.

In the chaos of the meeting, I had completely forgotten the fact that I was scheduled to speak with the king and Amelia about our engagement.

At that moment, the rest of the Alliance representatives began leaving the chamber one by one.

The Mercenary King and Queen, along with their retinue, would be staying in Braveheart Castle for a while. They were set to tour the kingdom tomorrow to strengthen diplomatic relations between our two kingdoms.

Meanwhile, Magic King Salvador, Xerion, and the other Magi from Solara politely declined the invitation to stay the night. Instead, they said they would return to Solara to collect additional magical equipment and reagents, then return by morning. They looked incredibly excited—especially Salvador-sama and Xerion, who practically radiated passion whenever they spoke about magic.

Arsene and the Saintess also took their leave. Arsene said they would begin preliminary discussions and prep their research lab tonight. I noticed a faint chuckle from him—he was beginning to remind me of Xerion in how deeply obsessed he was with magic.

The heroes of House Stormheim, Flamemore, and Starlight soon followed.

Before leaving, Theresia bounced over to me with her usual high energy. "Hey! Let’s have a chat later, okay? I wanna talk to you, Serena, and Lyra for a bit!"

I nodded, and she added, "I’m totally gonna master my familiar this time! I mean—how cool would that be? A badass warrior with a beast companion? I want that aesthetic!"

I, Serena, and Lyra shared an awkward laugh at her... unique reasoning.

Afterward, Leopold and Freya also said their goodbyes. Cain and his father were already waiting for them outside. Cain avoided my gaze—maybe he was still upset. I wasn’t sure.

Freya, on the other hand, was all smiles. "I’ll be joining the hero training too! That means we’ll get to see each other a lot more—exciting, right?"

"Yeah," I replied with a smile. "I’m looking forward to training with you again."

She gave a cheerful wave before disappearing down the corridor.

Next came Julius, accompanied by Luna and their father, Raius-sama.

Luna, with her usual emotionless expression, said quietly, "It’s... nice to see you again. You, Serena, Lyra... and Amelia."

Though her tone was flat, I could tell she meant it.

Then Julius stepped forward. "I’ll be training hard, Naoki," he said firmly. "I intend to become the next Hero of the Starlight family—to atone for what my brother has done."

He looked determined.

"If I ever need guidance for the Hero’s Trial... I hope it’s alright if I come to you?"

"Of course," I nodded. "Come find me anytime. I’ll share everything I know."

His eyes lit up at that.

Raius-sama approached next. He looked hesitant.

"Naoki... forgive me. My sons—both Julius and Lucius—must have caused you a great deal of trouble."

He hesitated, then added with a bowed head, "Especially Lucius... for putting your father in a coma. I owe you a debt I may never be able to repay."

He began to lower himself further in a formal bow, but I quickly reached out and stopped him.

"Please, Raius-sama... there’s no need for that," I said firmly. "Julius and Lucius are my comrades. I’ll do everything I can to help both of them."

I looked him in the eye. "As for Lucius—I’ll save him. Julius and I will bring him back."

Raius’s expression softened, and for the first time, a faint smile crossed his face. "Thank you," he said simply, before turning to leave.

Now, only a handful of us remained in the chamber.

Runa, and my personal guards, Vivin and Mia, stood quietly by my side. The Winterfell family—Serena, Lyra, and their father, Sieg-sama—still lingered as well.

And finally, at the far end of the room, sat King Aslan and Princess Amelia.

Suddenly, the air grew heavier.

The left side of the room felt ice-cold, while the right felt blazing hot.

I swallowed hard.

Here it is... the moment of truth.

I turned to face King Aslan, my heart pounding in my chest. My throat tightened. Words caught on my tongue.

Amelia tilted her head slightly, watching me with curiosity.

Say it, Naoki, I urged myself.

In my head, Envi was already shouting.

"Oh my god, just SAY IT, you idiot! If you don’t, I swear I’ll hijack your body and say it for you!!"

The very idea of that gave me chills.

Last time Envi "spoke on my behalf," I nearly died of embarrassment.

I clenched my fists, took a deep breath, and finally—finally—I stepped forward and spoke.

"Your Majesty... Princess Amelia..."

Everyone turned their attention to me.

"I would like to speak to you regarding... my engagement to your daughter."

The room fell silent.

The tension spiked..

As soon as I finished speaking, Amelia’s eyes lit up with joy. She must’ve thought I was going to announce a wedding date, or maybe deliver some exciting news that would bring us closer together.

...But that wasn’t it.

In fact, I felt awful. Because what I actually needed to say was something far less joyful.

I wanted to break off the engagement.

King Aslan nodded with a pleased smile. "Very well. Amelia and I are ready. Let’s speak now."

But before we could proceed further, Sieg-sama stepped forward.

"Your Majesty King Aslan," he said coldly, his arms crossed. "I request to join this discussion. Along with both of my daughters."

King Aslan looked confused. "What are you talking about, Sieg? This matter concerns the engagement between Naoki and my daughter Amelia."

Sieg-sama’s eyes narrowed slightly. "I believe Naoki has something to say that will explain everything."

I flinched as everyone’s gaze fell on me.

King Aslan’s brows furrowed. Amelia tilted her head, still smiling—oblivious to the storm I was about to unleash.

I clenched my fists.

Enough stalling. I had to say it.

With a deep breath, I stepped forward. "Your Majesty... Amelia... I came here to tell you that..."

I paused.

Amelia leaned forward, clearly curious.

"I am now officially in a relationship with Serena. And because of that, I feel we need to talk seriously about the status of my engagement with Amelia."

Silence.

A tense, suffocating silence fell over the room for a second.

And then...

BOOM!

A wave of explosive Forced Aura burst from King Aslan. The ground beneath us trembled slightly from its sheer intensity. His presence became overwhelming—as if a mountain had just risen in the middle of the room.

Amelia stood frozen, her expression unreadable.

"You... BASTARD!!" King Aslan roared, drawing his sword in a flash. "I thought you came to propose a wedding date! But you’re cheating on my daughter?! This is an insult—no, an outright mockery of the royal family!"

Sieg-sama, Serena, and Lyra immediately shifted into defensive stances, their muscles tensed.

Vivin, Mia, and even Runa moved instinctively to shield me, but I raised my hand to stop them.

"No... Don’t," I said firmly. "Let me face this."

I stepped forward, standing directly in front of King Aslan.

"I’ll take full responsibility. This is my decision, and I won’t run from it."

Everyone in the room stared at me, stunned.

Even King Aslan paused for a moment, his aura flickering as if confused by my lack of fear. He let out a dark laugh.

"At least you’ve got the guts to stand your ground," he said. But then, without warning, he raised his sword again. "Still, that doesn’t mean you’re getting away with this—!"

"STOP, FATHER!"

Amelia’s voice rang out loud and clear.

Everyone turned to her.

She stood tall, calm—no tears, no anger. But her eyes... they were full of something else. Something far deeper.

Pain.

She looked at me and spoke softly, "I still love you, Naoki. I always have. And I always will."

The entire room fell silent again.

No one had expected that.

Not even me.

"Amelia... I..." I struggled to find the words.

"Naoki..actually i know that you loved Serena.." Her voice remained steady. "When we were suddenly engaged, you never had the chance to say no. You just accepted it out of duty."

She smiled gently.

"And I always knew, deep down, this day would come. Because truthfully... you’re someone who cares too much about others, even at the cost of your own happiness."

Serena stepped forward, her lips trembling. "Amelia..."

Amelia turned to her and shook her head. "It’s okay, Serena. I don’t blame you. In fact... I’m happy for you both."

Then she glanced back at me with a teasing smirk.

"Besides, Naoki has always been a bit of a flirt, hasn’t he? Deep down, he loves women."

Her words hit me like a lightning bolt.

"Wha—?! That’s not true!!" I wanted to shout it out loud. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t tell her the truth—that this wasn’t even my original body. That the original Naoki was... a hopeless playboy.

I clenched my jaw.

"...I’m sorry, Amelia," I said, barely above a whisper. "I didn’t mean to hurt you."

She just smiled again. A soft, beautiful smile that made my heart ache.

"It’s okay, Naoki."

Then King Aslan spoke again, his voice still heavy with authority.

"You’re lucky, Naoki. Lucky that Amelia understands you. But tell me now—do you truly want to cancel this engagement? Do you not love Amelia at all?"

His question hit me hard.

I froze.

I didn’t know how to respond.

Suddenly, Serena reached for my hand.

Her touch was warm. Comforting.

When I turned to look at her, she smiled. Just one small, brave smile.

And in that moment, I found my courage.

I looked back at the king and said, "I love Serena. And I choose to cancel the engagement with Amelia."

Gasps echoed around the room.

Even Lyra looked shocked.

"I see," King Aslan muttered. "Well, if that’s your decision, then—"

But before he could finish...

My vision went black.

Suddenly, I was yanked from my own body—dragged into the System Realm.

"EEEEHHHH?! WHAT THE HELL?! ENVI! YOU SON OF—WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

Inside the void, I realized with horror:

Envi had taken control of my body.

And worse...

Suddenly, he grabbed Amelia’s hand.

Amelia and Serena were surprised by this. Envi just smiled broadly.

In my voice—but definitely not my words—then he looked the king dead in the eyes and declared:

"Your Majesty, I haven’t finished speaking. I love Serena, yes... but I ALSO LOVE AMELIA!!!"

...

I swear my soul almost exploded out of embarrassment.

This was going to turn into a disaster.

And I had no idea how to stop it.

...

..

.

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