Chapter 67: Type Preference

Before he could touch even a hem of Nian Tu's garment, a loud, resounding crash echoed through the air! Valen was pinned by the neck, his arm twisted behind his back, slammed face-first into the ground. As his mouth gaped open, he swallowed a mouthful of dirt and dust, letting out a terrified, miserable scream.

"Aaaargh—!!!"

"!" Nian Tu was startled, stepping back half a step.

In the fleeting instant before she could react, Feli and Sion had already exchanged a glance. Sion took direct action, cleanly and decisively subduing this suspicious and ill-intentioned intruder.

Valen's meticulously styled hair and outfit were thrown into complete chaos. He felt waves of intense pain radiating from his proud face, and every single joint in his body ached. Uncaring of the fact that Nian Tu was still present, he wailed unceasingly with zero dignity left.

Feli wore a cold, stern expression, looking down at him from above.

Few dared to be this audacious, actually plotting against him right on his own territory.

"Where is your accomplice? Call him out as well."

Valen trembled. "W-What accomplice?"

He wasn't a bad person!

He only wanted to see Nian Tu!

Feli frowned and glanced at Sion.

Sion understood implicitly, applying a bit more pressure to the hand holding down the back of Valen's neck, prompting the captive to let out another ear-splitting plea for mercy.

Feli remained unmoved, offering a cold assessment: "The one hiding behind the tree just now was your accomplice, wasn't he? He is clearly much stronger than you, both in keenness and vigilance. You two are not in the same league at all."

The one who had hidden possessed at least top-tier S-class strength, whereas the one before him seemed like nothing more than a weak and incompetent good-for-nothing.

Judging by his attire, he appeared to be an aristocrat.

An aristocrat should not have the guts to provoke him, so... was he here for Nian Tu?

Feli lowered his gaze, searching through his memories, and quickly recognized this as the guardian who had originally been system-matched with Nian Tu.

Thinking of how his status had once been threatened, a sudden surge of crisis spiked within him, making his hostility toward the male before him even more intense.

Provoked by Feli's few brief remarks, Valen's face flushed crimson as he panted heavily.

He was an aristocrat! How could he possibly be compared to that shady character who only worked for money and lurked in the shadows?!

The Marshal must be jealous that he could win Nian Tu's affection! That was why he was hurling such vicious insults at him!

Nian Tu's hemline hung right within Valen's line of sight. Feeling as though he had grabbed onto a life-saving straw, he cried out, "Save me! Nian Tu, Nian Tu! Quickly tell this rude brute to let go..."

The act of calling out Nian Tu's name further infuriated Sion, who raised his hand and delivered a punch to Valen.

"Sion!" Nian Tu spoke up to stop him.

Because of her intervention, most of the force behind the blow was withheld, but it still landed squarely on Valen's face.

A dull thud echoed. Valen shrieked, feeling as though several of his teeth had loosened, yet his eyes suddenly lit up.

He just knew it! Nian Tu would definitely save him!

Next, she would surely stand up for him and settle accounts with this rude brute who resorted to violence at the drop of a hat...

Amidst Valen's expectant gaze, Nian Tu extended both hands toward his direction—

Her slender fingers gently rested upon Sion's arm.

Valen froze.

He watched with his own eyes as Nian Tu grabbed that muscular arm, even shaking it slightly as she spoke with a worried tone, "Don't be so impulsive next time. Just hand bad guys directly over to the Security Bureau."

Living on Earth for twenty years had made Nian Tu subconsciously reject all forms of violence, and she deeply worried that such private brawling might land Sion in legal trouble.

In reality, however, friction of this degree among males did not fall under the jurisdiction of Imperial law.

Moreover, the fact that the man had been skulking around the perimeter of Feli's private estate made his malicious intentions obvious at a glance; he richly deserved to be dealt with.

Even so, Sion did not argue with Nian Tu. The blonde young male looked like an obedient little puppy before his beloved female, nodding submissively, "Alright, I'll take him to the Security Bureau right now."

Once at the Security Bureau, this fellow who dared harbor illicit intentions toward an SSS-class female would undoubtedly undergo the most rigorous interrogation!

Valen stared blankly as all of this transpired, his brain failing to process the situation for a long time. Seeing that Nian Tu seemed about to turn and leave, he hurriedly screamed, "No!! Nian Tu!! I came here to find you!"

"I came here to propose to you!!"

"Father agreed to let us be together!"

"Don't send me to the Security Bureau!! I'm not a bad person!"

In just a short span of sentences, every single word stepped heavily upon the guardian's greatest landmines.

Sion clenched his fists, desperately wanting to give him a couple more punches, but having just promised Nian Tu that he wouldn't be impulsive, he had to forcibly suppress his burning anger.

Lu Zhan's gaze was as cold as frost.

The oppressive aura surrounding Feli grew increasingly heavy, thick with the precursor of a brewing storm.

Nian Tu: "..."

She remained speechless for a long time, sinking into a prolonged silence.

She could understand every single word uttered by the aristocratic male, but put together, the meaning was so abstract it left her struggling to comprehend.

Were they... close?

Counting it all up, this was at most their third meeting, so why was this person blurting out a marriage proposal right off the bat?

Although they had once been matched by the guardian system, that matching had been dissolved long ago, and they hadn't even exchanged many words back then.

She couldn't even remember his name...

Pondering for a long time, Nian Tu managed to squeeze out a sentence: "I don't like you, don't overthink things..."

Before her voice trailed off, Valen loudly interrupted, "I don't believe it!"

"Are you angry with me? Because I refused to be your guardian that day?"

He regretted it! He truly regretted it!

Had he known Nian Tu would awaken SSS-class spiritual power, he definitely wouldn't have rejected her back then...

"My guardian is Uncle Feli!"

Nian Tu finally lost her last shred of patience.

"Even if you hadn't proposed dissolving the match that day, I would have rejected you! You are not my type at all!"

As her words fell, absolute silence descended.

The three guardians underwent several swift emotional shifts, each revealing a subtle sense of pleasure.

Prior to today, Nian Tu had never once said "I like" to them.

Yet now, she had uttered those words...

Did that mean they actually matched the type of male Nian Tu liked? Otherwise, they wouldn't have had the opportunity to become her guardians and stay by her side.

Feli's previously suppressed emotions were intensely stirred, a profound sense of satisfaction rushing into his heart as his innate hostility slowly dissipated.

Meanwhile, Valen felt as though he had been struck by lightning.

His self-confidence finally cracked, gradually collapsing and disintegrating. Stunned for a full two minutes, he was unable to utter a single syllable.

How could this be...

How could Nian Tu possibly not like him?!

Back at the estate, Valen's father was sitting on pins and needles, waiting for good news as he paced back and forth with his hands clasped behind his back.

A long time had already passed; why was there still no news from Valen?

Could he still be chatting with the little female? Sweet-talking her?

How far had their conversation progressed? Had they agreed upon a date to register their marriage?

Even if they were having too much fun chatting, he should at least send a message to report the victory!

Waiting and waiting, Valen's father felt restless, yet his heart brimmed with anticipation.

To his surprise, the housekeeper suddenly rushed in anxiously, shouting, "Sir! It's terrible!"