That guy at the end of ch 9, ya, the one with the earth skill. I ship him as ML. Don't car...

I ship him with Pryde, too! Val and Pryde get far too many hysterical shippy scenes in the novel for me to settle for Stayle or Arthur (or Stayle AND Arthur).

So yeah, he doesn't disappear from the story. He just makes himself scarce for a couple arcs, and then shows up again once Pryde turns 15, and stays as a main/recurring character.

Hehehe, he stands out too much to be a minor excuse for story progression and too much attention at that particular picture to be dismissed. And while others are drawn to be handsome, this one is smexy with vibes as Yugi from 'Contract Concubine' (confirmed ML according to spoilers).
And I seem to recognise your alias, went to look for spoilers efter posting the above. TY for your hard work!
2 things: 1) from what you have written elsewhere, I think you'll enjoy the character Yugi...
2) I never figured out if there was given some names for those fiance candidates and didn't figure which translation that would give it away... (sorry, I actually skipped most of the translated sections, 'cause... lazy <> lots to read)

Thank you for the compliment! Yes, I spent months working to share all those spoilers, so I'm always happy to have my work appreciated.

I haven't read Contract Concubine yet, but if you want to hear who else has Val vibes, Ren (the cousin) from Shadow Queen definitely fits. He's 2ML, though (if not 3ML)...

And about the fiancé candidates, do you mean Pryde and Tiara's? If it's Tiara's, you don't have to look past Cedric. Two of Pryde's fiancé candidates are VERY obvious, though, and the third is a knight named Colm. But Pryde is still not romantically involved with anyone as of the latest chapter in the novel, so. Don't get too excited about it. Two plan to decline the position, and the other just sees the position as a way to stay near Pryde (until she decides on somebody, not necessarily him), so it's more courtly love than actual romance at this point. Which is disappointing, but after 1060 chapters, and ongoing, I'm emotionally invested at this point.

Ren... oh that one! Hm.. I can see the resemblance!

I meant Pryde :) Since I felt two were somewhat obvious (I only have the manga and your generous spoilers to go by), but didn't notice any 'kyaaa's so assumed Val wasn't part of the list, and I was hoping the reveal was accompanied with Pryde's thoughts on it - genuine or a 'lets just entertain those adults for now' kinda thing. I don't think I'll be reading the novel anytime soon though, stuck in a 1800+ novel (why? Just why?)

If you go into CC take a shot first if you're diabetic. Hilarous, and a rare 'I almost want to be present and experience those embarassing moments firsthand myself'. Yugi absent most of the time ;_;

Can you give me a rough estimate of where Yugi first shows up? I'm reading it now (three chapters in), and I want to know when it gets good.

And it's obvious that Val wasn't an eligible candidate for the future Queen Consort; he's literally a convicted felon. He's contributed greatly to the country, but at his request, all of his contributions are kept off-record. Pryde's parents and uncle don't even know they're friends, much less anything else.

Yugi has screentime ch 11. Can't remember if he's briefly spotted earlier.
Sadly the series hasn't been updated in a while, but I have no doubt it'll be picked up again. I am especially looking forward to the coming 3-5 chapters (or so) as Yugi has slowly started to show his colors (he gets served ch 54).

Val is still my ship! :D

Okay, thank you.

Also, about the fiancé candidates thing. Pryde doesn't really monologue about it until after the brainwash arc, but she didn't really think too deeply beyond choosing who she wanted to spend her last days with (since she expected to die one year after they chose fiancé candidates, as per the game). So it wasn't romantic at all~and the guys all know it.

*snap* forgot about the life expectancy. Ty for reminding me and the clearification :)

Hm...40 chapters in, and I'd say that Yugi has more Gilbert vibes than Val vibes. Val isn't amiable or two-faced at all. (Val is too antisocial for this mess.) Only common ground I can see is the maniacal laughter?

Meanwhile, Yugi's almost point-for-point similar to Gilbert, only he's decided to pursue an assassin instead of a cinnamon roll.

Lol, I got the feeling you have way more chapters under your belt than me to make that judgement XD But he was the one I thought of - someone sus but very interesting (I think it's ok given I got the 9 ch manga so far;) and your comment somewhere in spoilers about interaction with MC. Btw I browsed through the story and realised yugi is way more present than I remembered - sorry about that!