Chapter 767: Surname And Immunity?

Chapter 767: Surname And Immunity?

Louis brought out a small container.

Leo recognized it as a Beast Incubator, designed to store eggs or newborn beasts and provide them with a proper environment to stay safe.

The spider was placed inside, and Louis handed the container to Leo.

"Tame it when you can. The beast’s growth rate is highly suppressed inside that incubator, so you have plenty of time."

Then Louis pointed at the necklace.

"Once the beast is tamed, you can have it bond with that necklace, since you don’t trust me enough."

Leo flinched internally but didn’t react outwardly.

"This concludes your rewards."

At that moment, Leo frowned.

Shouldn’t winning this competition be a notable enough deed to earn him an official family name, or surname?

When Louis told them they could ask for one thing, which would be granted if possible given their contributions, Lily was the first to request it.

"Your Majesty, please forgive me, but I am very confident that Leo and I are qualified to receive a surname and establish a proper noble family." For Lily, this was extremely important, as it was one of her goals.

Louis looked at Lily.

"Indeed, you are. But..."

"It’s not possible due to certain circumstances."

"Yes, Lily, you will learn the reason sooner or later, and I’m pretty sure this will be resolved soon," Cyrandel added, supporting Louis.

Both Leo and Lily frowned. Why was a simple surname so complicated that it had become such a mystery?

At that moment, Louis spoke once again.

"Since I cannot provide you with that, you can ask for something else."

Lily immediately knew what to ask for. Or rather, she’d had it in mind even during her meeting with Cassian Aurelius, but she had refrained from asking because it wouldn’t have been a good idea on a larger scale.

"Your Majesty, I would like to petition for Sovereign Immunity for Leo and me!"

Louis blinked in surprise. Even Leo was astonished by how she had come up with such an idea.

Meanwhile, Cyrandel wondered how much their relationship would improve if she could grant them this privilege on behalf of her own Empire.

Sovereign Immunity...

It was a supreme privilege an Emperor granted to extremely important individuals, placing them beyond the jurisdiction of ordinary laws and authorities. No noble, official, army, or court within the Empire could arrest, judge, or punish the recipients without the Emperor’s approval.

Even if the recipients slaughtered every noble in a city of 10 million people, destroyed the local royal palace, and openly declared war against the Imperial Army, the local authorities would still be powerless to prosecute them. Even the regional governors would have to stand aside unless the Emperor personally revoked their Sovereign Immunity.

And most importantly, having this immunity meant having the Emperor’s backing at all times.

Only a handful of mysterious existences in the Empire had received this privilege. Even then, it was said that the Emperor had personally examined and understood their characters to ensure the privilege didn’t fall into the wrong hands.

After all, it would be disastrous if they went on a rampage without anyone having the political power to stop them—that is, the authority to use the Empire’s forces against them.

And once granted, it was extremely difficult to revoke. In an Empire spanning more than 5 million kilometres, their crimes could go unnoticed unless they became major news. Without major news, the information might never reach the Emperor’s ears, leaving him unable to intervene personally.

And unfortunately, the massacre of 10 million people was still far from qualifying as ’major news’.

What the hell will she even do with such a privilege?! Leo jokingly thought.

But for Lily, this was an extremely serious matter.

Her parents had died while trying to secure that political backing from Miltis, hoping it would allow her father to resist the pressure from his paternal family.

Now that she had stepped onto the grand stage shared by 3 major Empires, Aurelius Beast Academy’s backing alone wasn’t enough.

Not when the main player of that backing was lying crippled on the verge of death!

She and Leo needed something far more substantial to ensure they wouldn’t be cornered or pressured in any way. And nothing could be more powerful than having the Emperor’s personal backing.

Lily was already realising the insurmountable amount of time and energy they would need just to reach the peak of the 5-star realm. Meanwhile, major powerhouses within the Empire could already use their influence to try to take control of them.

That was absolutely unacceptable to Lily.

What Lily didn’t know was that Louis had already begun reading her mind to understand why she needed this privilege.

Needless to say, her reasoning wasn’t flawed in any sense. It would have been an absolute no-go if Lily had wanted to cause havoc and escape all punishment. However, after seeing what was going through her mind, Louis nodded.

Commoner background, no one to rely on, and recent backing from Aurelius Beast Academy... Louis thought.

But he also knew Cassian’s situation—the Barrier King. During the angel summoning, almost every major powerhouse had witnessed his condition.

Cassian can’t be healed unless he harnesses his own divine essence or Siegfried gathers enough energy to cast [World Lifedrop], which might take decades...

That meant Lily’s reasoning was entirely sound.

And naturally, considering their main goal was to make Leo a representative, it was a good idea.

But...

"No. Winning a freshman academy competition, even one held between 3 Empires, doesn’t qualify you two for Sovereign Immunity," Louis replied coldly.

Ultimately, the couple’s bad luck was being admitted to an academy with hollow backing. And Louis was at the end, the ruthless Emperor. He couldn’t let anyone have that without properly studying them.

Not to mention, if Leo doubted him, it would undermine his authority to not do the same. What if Leo was the prospective representative? It would hold no value if his character was loose.

Lily clenched her fist, her muscles tightening. She absolutely had to do something!

Although Leo hadn’t really thought about this before, as his main goal had always been to become that backing himself. However, after hearing Lily’s request and sensing the turmoil in her feelings, Leo understood that during the transitional phase of his rise to power, he really needed this kind of protection.

Until now, he had been lucky enough—or rather, extremely lucky—to remain under the professors’ protection, and even Vice Principal Tarun’s. But if some powerful figure, essentially any existence above the 6-star realm, targeted them, things would get tricky.

At that moment, Louis spoke again, the corners of his lips curving almost imperceptibly.

"But that doesn’t mean there’s no way."