Chapter 231
Chapter 231
Chapter 231
Short Vacation (3)
"What do you mean by that?"
Rebecca smiled brightly as she made eye contact with Maria.
However, everyone present could sense the cold chill emanating from Rebecca's narrowed eyes.
"I mean exactly what I said."
Maria calmly continued while lightly brushing back her hair.
"Rudian is a Count. He achieved the rank of Count in a single generation, and not only that, he's an influential figure who could be promoted to Duke at any time."
"......"
At Maria's words, Luciella looked at her with a peculiar expression.
However, she didn't voice her thoughts and quietly listened.
"Moreover, he's unmarried and young. He doesn't show himself in noble social circles, but there are quite a few nobles who are paying attention to Rudian."
"S-So what?"
Rebecca's momentum died down immediately.
"Rudian is still unmarried. I don't know who he'll end up marrying later, but if he shows such behavior when he's not officially registered yet, unfavorable rumors about Rudian will spread."
"......"
If they had said that people around them might misunderstand... she would have rather puffed out her chest and said, 'Let them misunderstand if they want to!'
But when the target was cleverly directed toward Rudian, Rebecca flinched and turned her head away.
"That's certainly true."
Then Luciella, who had been quietly listening, fired a supporting shot toward Maria.
"Rudian is currently at an age where it wouldn't be strange for him to start a family. No matter how much Rudian doesn't care about his reputation, if his reputation actually becomes bad, the people around him and his subordinates will be most greatly affected."
"U-Ugh!"
"Don't you think... there's a need to be a little more careful with your conduct?"
"Uuuugh!"
In fact, there were two reasons why this hadn't been a big problem until now.
One was that since Rudian was born a commoner and had been wandering around outside so much, the atmosphere of the Belstad mansion was far removed from that of a typical noble house.
On top of that, the succubi who comprised half of the employees had sworn loyalty to Rebecca, and the other half just went along with it, so naturally Rebecca ended up in the position of mistress of the house.
Rudian held his breath and remained silent.
He felt that the moment he interjected something here, the atmosphere would head in an irreversible direction.
"S-Still... I think someone is needed to hold the center of the mansion."
"Yes, that's right."
"But if Rudian participates in social circles... Rebecca, would you be able to escort Rudian?"
"...!"
"Of course, it's a problem that can be solved by learning... but court etiquette is quite difficult. It would take quite a while."
Rebecca's expression grew darker and darker.
"O-Of course, since I'm not a noble... I know I don't match Rudian who has become a noble now..."
"That's not the problem."
"That wouldn't be a problem."
When Rebecca was about to dig into the ground with self-loathing, the two people cut off Rebecca's words like a blade.
"What would be difficult about you getting a noble title at this point?"
"If there are bastards who mock you for not being a noble, I'll personally ensure they're demoted to commoners."
"...!"
Rebecca's expression immediately brightened.
Is this giving medicine after giving poison? Is that what this is?
"T-Then..."
"The problem is that now 'we' need to be mindful of the external gazes directed at Rudian."
"I don't particularly care..."
FLASH!
Rudian tried to voice his opinion to the two people who were about to reach a conclusion, but...
Under the ghostly glare from eyes that had widened while staring at him, he quietly tucked his tail between his legs.
When Rudian fell silent, Maria turned her head again and smiled brightly.
"That doesn't mean we're going to take Rebecca's position away from her."
"T-Then what?"
"The important thing is for Rebecca to become a 'Princess' who can help Rudian."
"P-Princess...!"
Rebecca's pupils dilated greatly.
"......"
Those things seem to be seriously drugging her right now...
While suppressing Rebecca's anxiety, they're still hiding what their true purpose is.
Following Maria, Luciella continued.
"You don't believe Rudian's title will end at Count, do you? To stay by Rudian's side, it's essential to have the appropriate 'status,' whatever that may be."
Honestly, talk about titles and such was too difficult for Rebecca.
"That status you're talking about..."
"Practice. And study."
Luciella smiled broadly as she said this.
"The Delphione Ducal House has excellent personnel who can transform even a country girl into a splendid lady. With them, you could become the flower of social circles."
"R-Really?"
"Yes, though it would take some time, right? Your effort would be needed too. But the Delphione family is ready to accept you anytime."
Only then did Rebecca, sensing something strange, take a step back.
"I-I don't want to be separated..."
"Don't you want to become a lady? If you receive a noble title too, Rebecca, you'll debut in social circles, right? There's a need to prepare for that time."
Maria and Luciella gently grabbed both arms of Rebecca, who was waving her arms saying she didn't want to be separated from Rudian.
'Could it be... these two were planning to separate Rebecca from the mansion from the beginning!'
Did they go around in circles like this to get to this point for that purpose!
"T-That's..."
Rebecca tried desperately to refuse, but having already been caught up in the atmosphere once, she continued to get entangled in Maria and Luciella's eloquence.
Maria, who in the original work was not only powerful in force but also a strategist who brought down the Morian Empire by drawing in different races.
And Luciella, an unprecedented strategist who managed to achieve a comeback victory against that very Maria.
There was no way Rebecca, who was just a simple country girl, could withstand the combined attack of those two.
"Hiing..."
And so, in the end... Rebecca succumbed to the two's persuasion and ended up having to commute to the Delphione mansion starting tomorrow.
"You made a good choice, Rebecca. When you acquire the dignity of a noble house lady, Rudian will look at you with even more appreciative eyes."
"D-Do you think so?"
Rebecca looked at Rudian while fidgeting with her fingers.
"......"
Rudian found himself unconsciously nodding under the enormous pressure he felt from both sides of Rebecca.
'It would be... appreciative, I suppose. Rebecca acting like noble ladies...'
It was something he had never even imagined once.
"T-Then! I'll work hard! If that's what Rudian wants."
'A-Actually... I don't particularly want it.'
But Rudian couldn't voice those words.
It would be awkward to dampen Rebecca's spirits when she was making such a resolution... and more than anything, he was terrified of the aftermath that would come if he said those words.
And so, after one great commotion passed...
"Come to think of it..."
CLACK!
With an ominous atmosphere, Luciella set down her teacup with a sound.
Having achieved her purpose, she had been satisfyingly quenching her thirst for a while... but in fact, she had another reason for visiting this place.
"Rebecca, those succubi... where are they now?"
"Huh? Why do you ask about them?"
"I have something to repay them for."
With a chilling smile, Luciella slowly rose from her seat.
"Heh, hehehe... How dare they try to check me like that?"
Sensing an ominous foreboding from such a Luciella, Rebecca frantically waved her hands to protect the succubi.
"T-Those girls are still unconscious and fainted..."
"Is that so?"
That was true.
Having fainted at Ktuna's hands, they were still in a deep sleep along with the other employees.
They said they'd probably wake up around tomorrow, which was why Rebecca had been entertaining the visiting guests by herself until now.
Luciella clicked her tongue as if disappointed.
"It can't be helped. There's plenty of time. Today isn't the only day."
"S-Sister?"
There was a reason why Luciella was emanating an aura ready to bring frost in May.
"A book that received harsh criticism as being close to delusional fantasy and became a worst-seller... They recommended such a book to me? Hehehe... Those bitches are dead if they catch my eye."
Luciella had previously received recommendations for several books about romance from the succubi, and among them was an enormous landmine.
The content itself wasn't bad, but the problem was that it was only not bad when viewed as a 'novel.'
And the point was that the book was published under the title of a romance 'guidebook.'
Most importantly, the biggest reason was that she had tried to actually use its contents on Rudian and failed miserably.
"Ah, I'm getting more angry thinking about it. Rebecca, where are those bitches? I need to go wake them up immediately and then make them faint again."
"C-Calm down, Luciella!"
"Calm down, Sister Lucy!"
Rudian and Rebecca had to exhaust themselves for a while trying to calm down the rampaging Luciella.
***
Late at night, after such a noisy day had passed.
"So... while I was recovering the bodies and cleaning up the aftermath, Master was having a rollicking time with three girls."
"...Even if you say it, how can you say it like that?"
"I was merely stating the facts."
Elli, who had returned after completing her external mission, looked at Rudian steadily with her characteristic expressionless face.
The fact that he felt a mixture of contempt and reproach in that expression was surely just Rudian's imagination.
"So, did you find traces of those bastards?"
"Yes, I found them."
Search-type artificial intelligence Elysion.
Literally, when it came to searching, there was no one who could match Elli.
"As Master suspected... their number is four in total. In addition to the two who resemble Gray and Rebecca, I found traces of a total of four people gathering in the northern part of the continent, including the two who resemble Crux van Richthofen and Evangeline."
"...As expected."
"However, unlike Master's expectation, Evangeline did not engage in battle. This seems to be true based on cross-verification with testimony from Rowen, who was beside her."
"Hmm... Did she not dare to attack because Rowen was by her side? Still, that's fortunate. We avoided unnecessary combat..."
Currently, Evangeline was in the Spirit Realm with Rowen.
The Lightning Spirit King had been defeated by Abel, and the Spirit Realm had also become a wasteland, so she had temporarily gone to the Spirit Realm at the invitation of other Spirit Kings.
With her transcendent elemental resonance ability combined with the power of the Black World, she now possessed the authority to control life and death even more than Rudian.
"If she revives the Lightning Spirit King, the Spirit Realm will have no choice but to help us too."
Since the Lightning Spirit King had been annihilated, the balance of the Spirit Realm would inevitably be severely shaken until a new Spirit King was born.
Normally, according to the setting, it takes at least a thousand years for a Spirit King who has been annihilated in this way to be reborn.
"But if it's Evangeline... half a year would be enough."
Since creation is dozens of times more difficult than destruction, accomplishing the revival of a Spirit King, who is no different from a divine being, in just half a year was proof that Evangeline's power was absurdly strong.
'Really... we've overcome a major crisis.'
Chapter 3, we somehow got through the Space War. And there are still decades left until Chapter 4, the Day of Great Liberation. Of course, the new variable of Abel's group from the future, plus the rapidly progressing Heaven's Fall plan recently, are the only variables. 'I need to change the stage. I need to devise new plans. And countermeasures for them...' Abel is waiting at the Temple of the Creation God. A message that future Gray left for Rudian. I don't know how long he'll wait, but I must go after completing maximum preparations. As he was pondering future events.
"Master, you have a visitor."
"Huh? A visitor?"
At Elli's words, Rudian tilted his head. It was already past midnight. If someone was coming to visit, it would more likely be a night visitor rather than a guest. Yet the fact that Elli used the expression 'visitor' rather than 'intruder' meant the other party was truly a guest.
"Oh? Maria?"
The one who appeared by cutting through space was none other than Maria, who had returned during the day.
"Hehehe, I'm back."
"Why?"
"I wanted to... spend the night together for a bit. Just the two of us. I have something I want to talk about."
SWOOSH! Maria's coat flowed down very naturally. Maria, who had taken off her coat under the moonlight, gave Rudian a seductive smile.
"...Would that be alright?"