Chapter 10

Commemorating my smartphone debut.

I’m still writing this using my email drafts as usual, but on a smartphone, I can't keep track of the character count. So, consider this a trial post.

As the sun dipped toward the horizon, I was skimming through the report Jake had finished when a summons arrived from Hayden, who had just returned to the mansion.

With a sinking feeling, I followed the servant to Hayden’s study. The moment I saw his face, my bad premonition hardened into a certainty. Hayden, who usually wore a mask of stern severity, was in an exceptionally good mood.

As soon as I stepped into the room, he got straight to the point.

"Rejoice, Harold. I have good news."

"Good news?"

I knew exactly what he was going to say, but I played along, acting as if it were the first I’d heard of it. It felt hollow, but I had a role to play.

"A message arrived from Lord Tasuku today. For the time being, Lady Erika will be staying here at the Stokes mansion."

I knew it, I thought as the realization settled in.

It seemed Erika’s stay was already a done deal in Hayden’s mind. For the Sumeragi family, this had likely been their primary objective from the start. Even so, I attempted to resist.

"I’m not exactly thrilled about the prospect of living with that girl."

"There is no need for modesty. Your relationship with Lady Erika is officially recognized by both our houses."

Naturally, Hayden misinterpreted my protest as mere bashfulness. Perhaps he was too swept up in his own high spirits, but he showed no intention of taking my words seriously. Despite my continued attempts to push back, I couldn't overturn the decision. In the end, I was forced to begrudgingly agree to welcome Erika.

The following day, I headed toward the East Gate, which connected the Stokes Territory to the main highway, to receive her. According to the schedule, she was supposed to arrive in the morning, but since she’d been spotted in the area yesterday, she had likely stayed at a nearby inn.

I sat in the welcoming carriage, swaying with the movement as a sense of gloom washed over me.

(I mean, isn't the schedule a bit too tight?)

Even if they hurried, the journey should have taken six or seven days one way. For her to arrive the very day after the letter reached us meant they either didn't care about our reply or were certain Hayden would give his consent. It was almost certainly the latter.

Regardless, this was a development that likely hadn't existed in the Original Story. The catalyst was undoubtedly the letter I had written.

While I was busy sulking over the fact that I’d brought this on myself, we arrived at the East Gate.

I stepped off the carriage with a gait so heavy I felt as if I were wearing leaden shackles. There stood Erika, and just behind her to the right stood a woman I didn't recognize.

"I am honored that Lord Harold would come to greet me in person."

"Hmph. You say things you don't even mean."

Today, as always, the Harold Mouth was hard at work destroying my interpersonal relationships. After dealing with this mouth for about three months now, I had reached a state where I could almost admire the sheer variety of its sneers.

Ignoring my own useless personal growth, I turned my gaze toward the woman attending Erika. She looked to be in her late teens or early twenties. Her most striking feature was her chestnut hair, which flowed down to her waist and was tied near the ends with a large white ribbon, making it look like a thick tassel.

"Who is that?" I barked.

"This is my attendant, Yuno. She will be seeing to my needs during my stay."

"My name is Yuno~"

Yuno bowed with a sluggish, drawn-out movement. Combined with her soft, easygoing smile, she radiated a relaxed atmosphere.

And I didn't know her. She was a character who had never appeared in the Original Story.

"I’ll warn you now: I don't have time to coddle you. Stay if you like, but do not get in my way."

Since I didn't know their objective or Yuno’s true identity, I decided to lay down the law. With the trial run of the LP Farming Method about to begin, I wanted to eliminate as many uncertain variables as possible.

The two of them accepted my sharp words without flinching.

"I understand."

"Understood~"

(If you really understood, you’d just go home...)

Even as I grumbled internally, I knew Erika was only here because she couldn't defy her family’s wishes. There was no way to send her back. If that was the case, the smartest move was to maintain a policy of absolute non-contact.

However, things were not destined to go that smoothly.

After we returned to the mansion in total silence, a set of merciless words struck me down.

"As a gesture of thanks for the other day, you will take Lady Erika and show her around the town tomorrow. Escorting a lady is a skill required of any nobleman. You might as well start practicing now."

Needless to say, the suggestion came from Hayden.

That was troublesome enough, but Erika actually responded positively, saying, "I appreciate your kindness." I was left utterly speechless.

By the time the day was over, I was exhausted from the constant string of Erika-related incidents. However, when my exhaustion passed through the "Harold" filter, it was apparently converted into pure irritation.

"You’ve got a scarier face than usual today. You’re going to terrify your fiancée looking like that," Zen remarked the moment he entered my room.

I was constantly impressed by how he could talk to a nobleman wearing such a terrifying expression without a hint of fear.

"That fiancée is the entire problem. It’s utterly vexing..."

"What are you so unhappy about? She seemed like a really cute girl."

"I see. I’ve discovered your tastes, then."

"You haven't discovered anything! That's a huge misunderstanding! Personally, I prefer Yuno-san!"

Zen desperately tried to deny the false accusation. To me, as long as he wasn't a lolicon, I couldn't care less about his sexual preferences.

The reason Zen even knew about this was because Hayden had gathered everyone in the mansion the moment Erika arrived to grandly introduce her as my fiancée. He probably wanted to establish a fait accompli, but to me, it was nothing more than a public execution.

Incidentally, ninety percent of the gazes directed at Erika during that introduction were tinged with pity. It was a stark reflection of how the rest of the world viewed House Stokes—and Harold himself.

"Stop howling and go find Norman and Jake. We need to adjust the schedule for tomorrow onwards."

"I’m telling you, I’m strictly into older women!"

While Zen left my room to search the mansion, still protesting to the end, Erika and Yuno were also deep in thought. The cause of their headache was, of course, Harold.

"I’d heard the rumors, but he certainly is a rambunctious boy, isn't he~?"

From Yuno’s perspective, "impertinent" or "cheeky" might have been more accurate, but she had the temperament to settle on "rambunctious."

However, the real issue wasn't Harold’s hateful behavior.

"Father suggested that Lord Harold might be connected to an informant or is being used by one, but..."

"Given that personality of his, I can't imagine him listening to anyone else~" Yuno added.

If that were the case, the possibility that Harold was being used as a puppet without his knowledge was much higher. Subjugating someone like him would be an incredibly difficult task.

Conversely, Tasuku had suspected that if Harold’s behavior was an act and he was actually siding with an informant, he would have made contact yesterday. Tasuku had purposely contacted Harold when the head of the house was absent to make such contact easier, even going so far as to provocatively stimulate him.

But it had been a swing and a miss. This only served to make the situation more complex.

Tasuku believed that whether Harold was a puppet or acting on his own, his goal was either to harm the Stokes or help the Sumeragi. Therefore, he wanted some kind of move from the other side—a proposal for an alliance, or even a warning to stay out of it.

Yet, the other party remained silent.

As long as the opponent's objective was unclear, the Sumeragi family couldn't afford to just watch. Mistakenly assuming someone was an ally could lead to disaster. That was exactly why Tasuku had sent Yuno to investigate.

Erika’s stay was merely a cover—a decoy to allow Yuno to infiltrate the mansion naturally. Erika understood this role perfectly.

However, there was one possibility that might have been kept from her: the loathsome chance that Harold was being brainwashed, completely independent of his own will.

If that turned out to be the truth—

"This might turn out to be quite a bit of work~"

Yuno let out a soft sigh, and inside her sleeve, a hidden weapon gave a faint, metallic clink.