How the Villain Invests in the Female Lead

Chapter 9: The Calamity Knights – the Knight of Death

"Greetings, Sir James of the Round Table. I’m here on behalf of the Dragon race to celebrate your birth. I hope you like our gifts."

Then the young man ordered the others behind him to bring the gifts forward and place them on the ground.

"I’m grateful for your kindness, Elder Dragon George." James nodded politely.

Even though they were speaking politely to each other, there was sarcasm hidden beneath their words. James was no longer a Knight of the Round Table anymore. Calling him by that title was nothing but mocking his failure in the Holy War.

Meanwhile, calling George an Elder Dragon was also a way of mocking his age. Anyway, he was one of the oldest dragons in his own race.

George shrugged.

"It’s good for me to have a chance to join your banquet. But unfortunately, today it seems to be facing some trouble. If you want, I can send some of my underlings to find the culprit, who hung the corpse at your gate today."

James sighed.

"Uhm... thank you for your good intentions, but I think you should resolve your trouble in your land first. I heard that one of your black dragons, who slaughtered half of your kind, turns out to be one of the Calamity Knights – the Knight of Death. I feel bad for him as he was discriminated against by his own race just because of his skin color, and then it turns out the gods granted him a power that every one of you wants but can never obtain."

George’s eyes turned bloodshot as he glared at James. His jaw clenched in anger. Now, he could barely control his power anymore.

He wanted to kill this bastard.

"Your tongue has gotten sharper... and more poisonous, kid."

But now, with countless cameras broadcasting the event, he couldn’t afford to lose his image as a dragon in front of the entire world. He just spat and walked away.

James smirked before giving an order to Polly.

"Let’s begin the banquet."

Polly nodded before replying in an even tone.

"Sir, King Uther didn’t come. He only sent the captain of the Royal Knights and some of their children in his place."

James couldn’t help but click his tongue.

"Not a problem."

***

[POV]: Henry

I stayed by my wife’s side throughout the banquet, keeping the seat next to her the entire time. Through our conversations, I learned some information about the ancient races. Old Henry had always lived secluded in his bedroom, so his knowledge of the world was far from enough for me.

Still, it was a good thing. I thought my wife and I understood each other a little better than before.

"Why don’t you accept any of the dance invitations?" My wife asked after seeing me refusing some girl nobles.

I replied calmly.

"A strange question... I don’t see any benefit in doing that. Besides, why should I accept them when I already have a wife? That’s disrespectful to you."

My wife fell silent, having nothing to say. It seemed she hadn’t expected me to say that.

In order to earn missions from the system, I had to stay by her side at all times. If I left on purpose and she ended up in some troublesome situation, it would only cause me extra trouble to deal with without giving me anything in return. Anyway, I could no longer use that trick.

Moreover, even if I saw some benefit in doing that, I still wouldn’t accept a dance invitation. I wasn’t the kind of man who would do everything for the sake of profit.

On top of that, accepting those invitations would be disrespectful to my wife.

I would treat her as my actual wife.

But I wasn’t worried, because my wife herself was a magnet for trouble. From a genius who once stood at the peak of her generation to someone who had fallen to the bottom, she was a tempting target for those who had once stood beneath her.

Soon, just as I expected, one of the noble groups headed toward us.

A blonde girl whose features resembled my wife’s approached. However, she was slightly shorter than my wife. Beside her stood a burly man nearly two meters tall.

My wife said,

"She is my younger sister, Maggott. And the man beside her is the second son of the captain of the Royal Knights, Leon."

I saw them. They looked quite young and were only [F] - Rank. Perhaps they had just awakened recently.

Maggott smirked.

"Hello, sister. It’s been a while."

Then she turned to me, a hint of curiosity in her eyes. Leon blinked several times before saying in a neutral tone,

"He’s the third young master of the Albert family."

Maggott nodded with a grin. Her voice grew louder as she spoke, trying to draw everyone’s attention.

"So, you must be my brother-in-law."

...

"The third young master of the Albert family is the brother-in-law of the Third Princess?" a noble asked curiously.

"But who? Maybe it’s that girl in the wheelchair. I can see the resemblance between her and Princess Maggott."

...

"Wait... Is she the strongest child ever born into the Pendragon family, Arthea? Although she changed her hairstyle, I can still recognize her."

Some nobles nodded regretfully, though there was a hint of satisfaction hidden behind their expressions.

"Yeah, but she’s crippled. I heard that a group of demons ambushed her during a mission on the continent of Noctis."

"I didn’t expect her to marry the third young master of the Albert family, someone with a ruined reputation. It seems the royal Pendragon family made good use of her."

Another female noble clicked her tongue.

"I guess she must feel lucky now. Anyway, her husband’s not the useless trash everyone thought. He’s a handsome and talented noble. If only he would throw her away and marry me instead."

"No problem. You can be his second wife."

Countless whispers spread among the nobles. No one seemed to notice that their sharp words were piercing my wife’s heart.

I saw her trembling slightly as she lowered her gaze, avoiding everyone’s eyes.

Maggott smirked as she glanced around. She seemed very satisfied with what was happening. Then she stepped closer to my wife and said,

"I have some bad news for you, sister. Our father has decided to leave you with the Albert family forever. You’re no longer a Pendragon. So, you’d better satisfy my brother-in-law, because he’s your only support now."

"We won’t take any responsibility for you, even if he decides to throw you away like trash.’’

’’Remember that. We’ve abandoned you."