Chapter 81

The sound of a glass shattering echoed as the servant’s face turned pale with shock.

—

Indeed, he was surprised that I had hit him first after saying such a thing about where he was looking. But, I found him properly.

—

[ Kian ]

[ Affinity: -35% ]

Below his name, the gray affinity box appeared.

Seeing the -35% value, it was clear that he harbored hostility towards Carsein.

But, this character named Kian doesn’t just show hostility towards Carsein.

—

▶Found a servant hiding inside the party hall!◀

[ Be careful! Something might happen in the party hall soon! ]

Judging from this description, it feels like someone came to ruin the party hall.

And indeed, it was so.

Kian, this character, was caught committing terrorism in the party hall and ended up committing suicide, revealing his anger towards the nobles without restraint.

In other words, this isn’t just hostility towards Carsein.

It’s hostility towards the nobles.

Anger born from past events.

This terrorism could be seen as a flag that gives players the beginning part of an episode.

And, I’m planning to solve this now.

—

“You three, follow me.”

When I ordered the three servants, they followed me warily.

—

▶This area is a warning zone!◀

[ Be cautious as unexpected choices may appear depending on the situation.]

‘A warning zone, huh? This should be enough.’

Entering a warning zone for Carsein wouldn’t be a good choice for a player.

However, if you consider the current situation, what would happen?

Though it’s a place used by nobles, Carsein of the Bargrand house uses it. It’s unlikely for servants to visit.

The nobles are the same. Given my tone, they don’t seem likely to rush over right away unless some trigger occurs.

Therefore, this place becomes ironically suitable for delivering a few messages to these three.

I came here to scold these three servants.

Taking a deep breath,

Seeing the three gray boxes marked at -35%, I spoke directly:

“Why did you intrude here? It’d be best to stop.”

“Sir Young Master, we really don’t know─”

—

“Hey, you. The ones who blocked the path were your doing, weren’t they? You probably planned to break the wheel or make the coachman fall off, right? Isn’t that right?”

“…”

“And not only that, I know you’ve messed with the party hall too. There’s nothing more noticeable than a party hall being ruined by a horse running wild and a carriage crashing.”

The servants’ atmosphere changed dramatically compared to before.

With their intentions quickly spotted and their escape route cut off, their eyes clearly showed a sharp division.

—

-Beep!

—

▶Warning! An individual showing hostility is nearby!◀

I know.

Stimulating them like this isn’t good.

But there’s still a way.

—

“Count Modrich, right?”

“…Excuse me?”

“The one who boldly tried to punish you despite attacking your village.”

“How did you…?”

“Among the nobles who could use the roads around Rusmaier, there’s hardly anyone else but Count Modrich’s House. And the foolish person who would openly do such a thing can only be him.”

Even though the game didn’t explain their background in detail, knowing that the Eastern Nobles’ Meeting will occur, I had done some studying.

These are residents of Rusmaier.

People from a small, isolated region considered as abandoned land due to its geographical characteristics.

Rusmaier, once a frequent battleground in the past, is now used as a border area and does not belong to any family’s territory.

While self-sufficiency might be possible, apart from the paths leading to the party hall, there’s no use for this small land, and it lacks buried resources, making it extremely poor.

Despite giving up the only path, Count Modrich has been causing trouble, naturally leading to resentment.

Even when asking for help from families connected to Rusmaier, the nobles all turned their backs.

They likely thought it was better to leave it alone and avoid paying taxes or losing money on an unprofitable territory.

In short, they were isolated.

—

“So, what? You’re saying you’ll stop us?”

“Yes.”

“Don’t underestimate me. Even if you’re the young master of the Bargrand Duke’s House, three of us can subdue you!”

“It’s already too late to turn back since we’re already inside this party hall. We came here with the sole intention of taking revenge on the nobles here. We’re not afraid even if our lives are at stake now!”

—

▶Three men have shown hostility. You can now attack and knock them down!◀

Considering I’ve faced Bruce and Theo Lamstair before, dealing with these three shouldn’t be too difficult.

They could escape and call for security, but that wouldn’t be the correct way to clear this sub-episode.

—

“Take this.”

“Huh…?”

—

*Swoosh!*

A bag flying through the air landed squarely in the chest of the man in the center.

Seeing this, they looked at me suspiciously and opened the bag.

“This is…!”

“Gold coins?! So many?!”

“…What does this mean?”

“To save those hit by carriages is the priority. If you cause this kind of terror, Rusmaier will become even harder.”

“So, this is just to shut us up?”

“No, it’s not about shutting you up. It means we won’t leave Rusmaier isolated anymore.”

“What do you mean…?”

The three men gulped nervously.

“Rusmaier will soon become part of the Bargrand Duke’s Territory.”

—

This is the correct way to clear the sub-episode.

Simultaneously, it prevents problems in the main episode.

That is, buying the land of Rusmaier in advance.

—

■Reward

[Ivory-colored rope]

—

‘Looks like this is settled.’

This item, made from tough, stiff straw unique to Rusmaier, is known to be given only to those trusted by the residents of Rusmaier.

If I say I’ll visit again, they won’t doubt me much.

A good harvest.

Also, I gained other information.

Unlike Chapter 1, Chapter 2 focuses on outdoor activities rather than the duke’s mansion, requiring episodes to be solved in advance.

However, the question of whether episodes can be advanced remained, which was just answered.

—

▶Discovered a main episode derived from the sub-episode!◀

▶Rusmaier’s residents return from the party hall without causing a disturbance!◀

▶Successfully triggered results beyond simple choices!◀

▶Episode I: Designate ‘Isolation of Rusmaier’ as the main episode!◀

—

‘This confirms it. For the main episode, I don’t need to follow the system’s order; I can choose the sequence myself.’

I repeated the game hundreds of times, focusing solely on threats and choices and affinity.

Now, looking back, I wonder why I never thought of this before. It’s like I saw the trees but missed the forest.

—

‘Well, it’s fine. Now’s not the time to think about this.’

There’s still something left to deal with in the party hall.

When I brought drinks.

Harnei was holding her head without noticing my arrival.

—

“Harnei?”

“EEK!”

She jumped in surprise even though I didn’t raise my voice…

Why does her reaction make me feel something?

Putting aside this unease, I asked cautiously:

“…What happened?”

“That’s… I’m sorry, Carsein.”

My ominous prediction wasn’t wrong.

Harnei apologized repeatedly, looking nervous.

No matter how she tried to fix things on the terrace, there seemed to be no solution.

—

‘Guess I have to be the male protagonist in a medieval morning drama.’

…Damn it.

Nothing I can do.

Using the power of a morning drama, I have to somehow force them to vomit and escape.

Going outside, the party officially began.

Harnei and I became the hot topics of this party, attracting the most attention.

This time, they won’t let go easily.

First, the women started holding fans to cover their mouths and began asking questions.

—

“We also know how much Prince Carsein likes Lady Harnei. That’s why we’re even more curious.”

“Harnei seems to be avoiding answering. We wish Prince Carsein would answer for her. Was it on your first date?”

“The place of your first date. They said they didn’t know the place, but could you tell us how romantic it was?”

“Of course, it must be a typical place for noble dates. It wouldn’t be the same as commoners walking the same streets.”

“We heard the date courses were surprisingly well-planned. They said it was one of the happiest days of their lives.”

—

At first glance, these questions seem sharp.

But, you can sense the dark malice behind those seemingly innocent eyes.

—

“Please, tell us. As heirs of large influential houses like Bargrand and Tereisia, shouldn’t you follow proper cultural norms?”

They cornered us completely, mentioning the names of their houses, referring to our meeting as ‘proper cultural norms,’ putting us to the test.

—

“Oh, I thought I could get away with a morning drama line, but looks like I don’t need to.”

—

No, strictly speaking, it shouldn’t be that easy.

There must be actual date spots and courses considered standard among nobles, unofficial rules.

Seeing Harnei’s lack of knowledge about noble dating, they revealed their fangs, intending to attack me as well.

—

But, ironically, this can be easily countered by rejecting their rules.

—

“It was at the Snow Festival street.”

“Excuse me?”

“You’re joking, right? Snow Festival street?”

“Was your first date on a street frequented by commoners?”

—

The noble ladies began to sneer.

The men will surely start attacking now. How could a gentleman take his fiancée to such a shabby place?

—

“Going on a date at such a dirty street… Hehe.”

“My fiancée boasted about it, and I wondered where it was. Just such a place?”

“From a lowborn perspective, it’s just a common street, right?”

They started laughing at me.

—

“How funny. Does that mean we have to walk the same boring routes every time just because you want us to?”

“Excuse me? No, that’s…”

“Nobles should act like nobles, right?”

—

Yes, that’s exactly what I wanted.

Because you see me as a commoner.

Because you see me as different from you, as an outsider.

Because you’re trying to frame me with false accusations.

—

So, I can exploit this flaw to escalate the situation.

—

*Bam!

—

“Word has it you’ve crossed the line. Is this a declaration of war against the Bargrand Duke’s House?”

—

I slammed the table and shouted.

—

“Suddenly… What do you mean?”

“You’ve been deceiving me and my fiancée. It’s no wonder your family’s name comes up now.”

“That’s absurd! All we care about is your meeting…!”

“Then tell me, when did you start treating me and my fiancée like puppets following a set schedule?”