Are You a Genius?
Was it because of Chloe, who had tirelessly worked over the past three years to improve Marian's standing? Now Marian could roam freely within the Grand Duke's Castle. Of course, only inside the castle. Due to assassination threats, she still couldn't step outside without Chloe's accompaniment...
"Good day, Lady Marian!"
"Good morning, Lady Marian!"
"Yeah, hi."
The maids had started greeting the illegitimate daughter Marian with utmost respect, leading by example—and that was entirely thanks to Chloe. It began when Chloe refused to dismiss the Arona and Perona sisters outright, and the pair, reformed through her efforts, started treating Marian with deference. From there, the overall perception of Marian within the castle shifted.
Haksen and Rosetta, the Grand Duke and Duchess, hadn't changed their views much, but that hardly mattered. To the castle servants, Arona and Perona were far more approachable than the ducal couple. There had certainly been those who subtly looked down on Marian, following the sisters' lead in scorning her without restraint.
But three years ago, Chloe had appeared like a comet, and the sisters' attitudes flipped overnight. Influenced by them once more, those who had quietly dismissed Marian began treating her with respect. A true force for good. Chloe's foresight in reforming rather than punishing the sisters had shone through.
"Viola's quarters are over there, right?"
"Yes, if it's the deputy head maid's room, that's the one. There should be a nameplate—go check it out."
"Thanks."
Finally receiving treatment befitting her station, Marian followed the maids' advice and arrived at Viola's quarters.
"Viola!"
Unfortunately, Viola wasn't there.
"Not in?"
Of course, her absence wasn't a big deal. Viola's routine was simple: help Chloe with her morning change of clothes, then return to prepare for the next tasks.
"She'll show up if I wait."
Marian shrugged it off and sat on Viola's bed to wait.
"Hm. Hmm."
Viola's bed was far harder than Marian's or Chloe's. Even as a deputy head maid, she was still just a servant—her accommodations had their limits.
"No artifact to make the bed softer?"
Viola wasn't as constantly entangled with Marian as Chloe was, but she often got involved nonetheless. Looking back, when Marian's first Shrimp-Catching Seaweed artifact had caused a disaster, Viola had rushed in like it was her own crisis to help clean up. She was always eager to assist with little things, so Marian figured she owed her—maybe look into a plush-bed artifact as thanks.
That's what Marian was thinking when...
"A sketchbook?"
Suddenly, a sketchbook caught her eye. Come to think of it, Viola's room had no books to read, nothing to kill time with. Rumors swirled about her skill in portraiture—enough to paint Rosetta's likeness—so Marian flipped it open to check her talent.
"Oh."
The first page was a standard still life: apples on a table, the classic sort. But even that showed Viola's skill was no joke.
The second page featured a cat—vibrantly lifelike, as if a real one had been stuffed into the paper. Marian almost wanted to pet it.
"Chloe...?"
The third was Chloe, in her usual Evergreen Guard uniform. It matched the Chloe Marian knew perfectly, a triumph of hyper-realism.
"Chloe...? Again...?"
The fourth page was Chloe too, this time sitting on a bed. Had Chloe commissioned a portrait? It made sense; Viola was her personal maid.
Marian didn't think much of it at first.
"Lady Marian!"
"Oh, you're back?"
"Th-the sketchbook, please."
"This? You draw really well. That cat was adorable."
"R-really? Thank you. Ha, haha."
Viola's reaction seemed off—way too flustered.
I'll check the later pages later.
Marian, age fifteen and brimming with curiosity, was hooked.
"So, what brings you here? Don't you have class soon?"
"Got an hour free before heading to the study. Come with me."
"Uh... what about Arona and Perona?"
"They wouldn't know anything useful."
"Ah... Understood. Let's go right away."
Viola snatched the sketchbook, tossed it haphazardly on the bed, and hurried out, subtly urging Marian along. It was just like Chloe sneaking cookies from dessert into her room—classic guilty behavior.
What's she hiding? Why so desperate?
Marian eyed the sketchbook on the bed for a moment.
"Lady Marian?"
"Yeah, coming. Let's go."
Pretending to relent under Viola's prodding, she turned away and left the room.
I'll definitely look later.
But the curiosity of a fifteen-year-old girl—especially Marian's obsession with anything Chloe-related—wasn't so easily quelled. It was only a matter of time before she peeked inside that sketchbook.
#
"You're looking for a healing artifact, right?"
"Yeah, something to fix Chloe up with. I want to make one with solid effects."
"One moment. Artifact books should be grouped over there..."
Dr-r-r-rrk.
Viola pushed the ladder connected to the library shelves aside, locked it in place, and began climbing slowly.
"Artifact, healing, artifact, healing..."
Was she muttering the titles to herself? Viola busily climbed up and down, and after a while, descended with a book in hand.
"Found it. All About Healing Artifacts. I glimpsed it while helping organize the library—it's here after all."
"Thanks, Viola. With this, even if Chloe gets badly hurt, she'll be fine. You saw how she slept longer than usual today—she was wiped out."
"True. She looked sleepy."
"It's all because my artifacts are too effective. Chloe keeps pushing herself to test them, saying 'try trapping me with it.' She's overdoing it... I guess she's teaching me self-defense, but why does she have to be the target? It's great that she's so dedicated, but..."
Was it bragging? Scolding Chloe for overexerting? Or gratitude? Viola, dragged into this out of nowhere, felt awkward—but having observed the pair's odd dynamic up close for three years, she was certain on this point.
"If you just make the healing artifact, Lady Marian, won't that solve it?"
"You think?"
"Absolutely. Teacher seems to want you to become an alchemist skilled enough to protect yourself—and a great alchemist can heal people too."
Overwhelm Chloe so thoroughly she can't escape, give her a proper scolding, then personally heal the exhausted wreck she'd become. Wouldn't Chloe be doubly thrilled at Marian's growth? That was Viola's take.
"For real...?"
"Definitely. Remember that day with the tentacle artifact? When I brought salt to help?"
"How could I forget? That day."
"Then you remember what Teacher said afterward too?"
"Ah...!"
After that incident, Chloe had coaxed and soothed Marian—not just that, but openly wished for even more powerful artifacts from her. She'd kept it up until Marian regained her spirits; even Viola remembered every word.
So...
"Blast Teacher with a powerful attack artifact to really zap her, then heal the utterly drained Teacher with..."
"The healing artifact! Perfectly!"
"Exactly. Do that, and Teacher will be so moved she'll hug you tight."
"Viola...!"
"Yes, Lady Marian. Your command?"
"Are you a genius?"
"Not at all. Just command me anytime you need help ahead. Arona and Perona could never say something like this."
"Obviously. You're the only one I trust!"
And so, the two girls' "Half-Kill Chloe and Revive Her" project kicked off.