When I heard his voice, I couldn't help trembling.
This was the voice that I had heard before in the game, a voice that had almost become a trauma for me with how many times I had fallen for his plots.
This was a voice that I never wanted to hear again after I had perfect cleared the game…
But now, here was this person sitting in front of me, speaking with this voice.
I really wanted to reveal a bitter smile, but I forced myself to have a neutral expression on my face.
I calmly said, "Viscount Stark, I've long heard of your name as well. It's an honour to meet you."
Viscount Stark raised a brow when he heard this, but then looking at Scar and Shaka sitting beside me, he revealed a faint smile.
That's right, he was thinking that I had heard about him from the Shadow Garden operatives beside me. But what he didn't know was that I knew much more about him than most people did…
Still, I had no reason to expose myself since it would only end poorly for me if I did.
So I just calmly waited to see what he was planning on doing.
Viscount Stark's expression quickly returned to normal, he even revealed an amused look as he said, "I never thought that someone as unforgettable as me would be able to attract the attention of the most popular person in the capital right now. It really is my honour."
I really wanted to laugh in his face when he said this.
Unforgettable?
I was sure that I would be having nightmares about all the times that I had suffered at your hands tonight…
I wouldn't say that you were unforgettable.
But of course, that only applied to me.
For other people, they wouldn't know about all the things that he would do in the future.
I just gave a polite laugh as if I was playing along with his joke before saying, "I wonder, does Lord Stark have something you need from me? Or is this just simply a courtesy call?"
Viscount Stark wasn't bothered by this direct question at all as he kept the same smile on his face.
He just calmly said, "I would like to say that this is a courtesy call, but it would be a lie to say that this wasn't related to work at all."
I just raised a brow and waited for him to explain.
Viscount Stark cleared his throat and said, "You should know that at our agriculture department, we have to think of ways to promote plant growth just in case disease or famine strikes. I've heard that the elves have all kinds of nature magic that they can use that will help plants grow. So I was wondering if Lord Zwein could…"
He left his sentence hanging, but it was very clear what he was implying.
When I heard this, I narrowed my eyes to look at him as if trying to figure out something. But then I gave a nod and said, "Alright, since this is for the good of the people, I will help you ask about this."
Viscount Stark couldn't help revealing a surprised look when he heard this, but then he said with a smile, "I'm glad that Lord Zwein is as friendly as I've heard. I was worried about what your response might be, but it seemed that worry was all for nothing."
I just said with a smile, "Well, I can't call myself friendly, but if it's for the good of the people, I have to do my part. Don't you guys think so as well?"
This time, I was speaking to Shaka and Scar who had already started eating.
They had wanted to hide themselves while eating, but I wouldn't allow that to happen.
If I had to deal with him, then I wouldn't spare them.
Both of them were surprised by me suddenly pulling them in, but then they just simply gave a nod before turning back to their food.
I couldn't help being surprised by just how thick their faces were.
If they were any thicker, they could be used as part of the city walls!
But before I could say anything else, Viscount Stark said, "Then I have to thank you on behalf of both our agricultural department and on behalf of the people."
I just gave a simple nod in response to this.
After all, I didn't want to continue this conversation and I wanted to use the most simple method to end it. Some might find this kind of arrogant, but I didn't care at all since I didn't want this person to like me in the first place.
I wanted as little to do with this Viscount Stark as possible.
But to my surprise…he didn't care about it either.
Instead of acting offended like one might expect, he just calmly said, "You're quite the impressive person, aren't you?"
"Eh?" That was all I could react with, but I kept a calm look on my face as I waited for him to say just what he wanted.
Viscount Stark didn't mind that I was silent the whole time and just said, "How about we become friends? I'm sure that you'll need help in the future and I'm confident that I'll be able to provide that help."
I couldn't help shivering when I heard this.
I knew that he wasn't saying this just because he wanted to seem confident, I knew that he was saying this because he really meant it.
Of course, there weren't many people that knew just how much power he had in the first place.
Seeing that I was hesitating, Viscount Stark added, "I would very much like to have you as a friend."
The hidden implication there was the same as the fourth prince…
I would rather have you as a friend than as an enemy…
So with this, I had no choice but to make my second 'friend'.