#ch 359

Never. Never.

He didn't want it. Getting closer to the queen was the same as becoming a neighbor with a boss at work.

stares at these paragraphs knowing damn well how this novel ends in..... -checks notes- .... less than 50 chapters

not really? lloyd is very clear about not wanting to marry someone of high status, not particularly because he's afraid they'll put him to work altho that certainly is also a factor, but more that he just simply doesn't care for the pressure.

marrying into a royal family, no matter how 'nice' they might be, will always carry a level of effort and social expectation that marrying a commoner or low noble will not. even if the royal promised (and actually kept their word) to never make lloyd work in his life, he'd still be expected to carry himself with a certain decorum and act in a way proper of the royal family. he'd always be under the public eye, both of the court and the general people.

and that's just if the royal actually keeps their word and doesn't try to get lloyd to work for them anyway after he marries. there will always be a level of power imbalance in that relationship, because no matter how much lloyd may dislike something he can't actually say no without risking the possibility of being accused of treason. especially someone like him, that realistically possess the power and means to overthrow any royal family in the continent without too much difficulty. they'd always have to walk a fine line of how much they can ask of lloyd without him getting upset and starting a rebellion and how much lloyd can say not to before the royal family gets upset and accuses him of disrespect or treason.

heck, just having the kind of power lloyd does is enough to make him a risk to any royal family. if alicia weren't under the influence of the system, keeping her suspicions at bay, she would've absolutely done something to keep him even more in check

Lloyd exhaled a sigh of relief, knowing that he could have been charged with treason if he had not had the title. She would not have left him alone since, despite her compassion, she was at the pinnacle of her power and did not want any subject to threaten that, which was why Lloyd exhaled a sigh of relief.

this is just about lloyd having the ability to stop time. this is not him trying to say no to her or to go against her will, this is just him having a very powerful skill that is potentially threatening to her and the royal family. and he still admits that without the title and effect he would've been charged with treason or at the very least under suspicions for it. alicia herself tells him that if anyone were to try to get between her and him and his time controlling powers she would execute them, because she simply cannot afford to let such an useful skill be on the hands of anyone she cannot control in some way.

being married to someone of higher status means that lloyd will always be near someone who can exert their authority over him and he really hates that idea

Lloyd didn't want to get too close to the queen. Sure, she was being generous with her assistance and making things convenient for Lloyd. But he didn't want to grow too close to her. Never. Ever. He didn't want it. Getting closer to the queen was the same as becoming a neighbor with a boss at work. Sure, a huge wage is nice but if it means giving up boundaries, that is uncomfortable. Why would I do that? My honeypot is full and I have got a strategy to keep it that way. I only need to stop destiny.

not to mention how inherently dangerous the life of a royal is! that's precisely why lloyd was so happy he was isekai'd into the son of a baron and not a count or a duke. because the closer one is to the royal family the more likely they are to get involved in stupidly dangerous stuff like rebellions and conspiracies and courtly schemes. it's just... something to be expected of being near the most powerful people in the kingdom. and he doesn't want to risk it, he just wants a quiet life with his family where nothing bad ever happens and they can all relax together

and to finish things off, lloyd is kind of a romantic. he doesn't want to marry for business or the benefits or to gain anything for himself. he just wants to meet someone nice, fall in love with them and live together a quiet life in his estate

No matter what, he wanted to have a love marriage and lead a cozy life with someone who was not exceedingly high in status. He would be shackling him if he married a princess of a royal family.

so no, i don't think lloyd would not accept marrying into a royal family, no matter what kind of promises they make to him. it's simply not worth the risks nor is it compatible with the kind of life he really wanted. leaving shipping aside, marrying lloyd to a royal just,,, was not the ending he either wished for or that the narrative built up for him and i don't really buy that he would be happy or even satisfied with it tbh (￣～￣；)