ARPTCF 07

Chapter 7

When she was left alone, she used to be overwhelmed by a suffocating sense of helplessness. The shock of realizing she had only ever been a hollow shell dressed up as something valuable.

What she had believed to be hers turned out to be nothing but sand-like illusions. No matter how desperately she tried to change her situation, the power she possessed alone only kept her stuck in place.

Well, it’s not like I’m going to drown in self-pity!

The past was the past, failure was failure. Nothing more, nothing less.

There was too much to lose now to waste time wallowing in regret.

Via’s light green eyes briefly rested on the man sitting across from her—more precisely, on the complex emotions quietly rippling within his blue gaze.

Clicking her tongue lightly, she tapped his forehead with the back of her hand.

“Hey. My mom used to say the most thrilling thing in the world is a comeback victory. We just start from here. What’s the big deal? It’s not like we died and came back to life or something.”

“…Well, technically, it’s not that far off?”

“Anyway, the key is how to gain power. Actually, I already have an idea.”

“You too?”

Ignoring Clyde’s words as usual, Via rolled her eyes and met his gaze.

The two of them exchanged identical smiles at the same time, as if they had never argued at all—like when they were children plotting something behind their parents’ backs.

Convinced they were thinking the same thing, they spoke simultaneously.

“Securing merit quickly and earning a noble title, right?”

“So we build powerful allies, right?”

“…Huh?”

Two completely different answers.

Silence briefly filled the carriage.

They blinked at each other in confusion—then, as if flipping a switch, began mocking each other at the same time.

“What? Earning merit and getting a title? You? A knight? The kind of achievements you could pull off would be something like winning a war or reclaiming a territory in crisis—and you whine when you get a scratch during training!”

“That’s my line, Via. Building allies? You don’t even know when social season is, and you don’t care about anyone’s gaze!”

“Oh? So you do know? Wow, impressive. Even Kailen oppa is so focused on training he forgets social season sometimes. You must have so much free time after training, huh?”

“Wow, dragging family into it? Then should I bring up your father? How amazing he is?”

Their childish argument—worse than five-year-olds—reached its peak.

“Honestly, what’s the point of a title anyway? It’s not like our families are ruined for lacking one.”

“If you just gather people without a center, that’s just a mob.”

In truth, both of them knew it was the classic chicken-and-egg problem. In the end, they needed both. It was just… how to put it—

We mocked each other too much and ended up going too far.

And admitting that now felt a little too humiliating.

Still, they couldn’t stay like this forever.

Via cleared her throat and offered a compromise.

“Fine! Then let’s test which idea actually works better. But if we just do it normally, you’ll stubbornly stick to yours—so let’s do it in reverse.”

“Reverse?”

“Yeah. I’ll earn merit and get a title. You go gather allies.”

“…How did it suddenly turn into that?”

“What, scared you’ll lose?”

“Me?”

Clyde looked at her as if she had just said the most ridiculous thing in the world. He brushed his bangs back and smiled casually.

“Fine. Try it. The loser becomes the winner’s servant for a week.”

“Deal.”

Via nodded immediately, snorting as she turned toward the window.

She was absolutely confident she wouldn’t lose.

There were roughly three ways to earn a noble title in the Empire.

First, performing acts beneficial enough to be universally recognized—such as saving lives or reforming institutions.

Second, achieving military merit in war, or protecting regions during disasters, conflicts, or raids.

And third, creating groundbreaking inventions or theories previously unheard of.

Via knew a way to achieve two of these at once.

If I can help Her Majesty the Empress officially integrate magic into the system, then my past inventions alone should be enough to earn a title.

If anyone called it cheating by using her past life knowledge, she didn’t care. This didn’t feel dishonest.

Alchemy—what I learned from my father—is something I built with my own hands. It’s one of the few things I can proudly call mine.

What she didn’t know was that Clyde was thinking exactly the same thing.

If I can rescue the isolated Marquis Downer estate from its past crisis, that alone would solve a lot. Honestly, beating Via would just be a bonus.

Both of them, already imagining total victory, smiled with relaxed expressions.

The idea of using the other as a convenient tool for trivial tasks oddly improved their mood.

As Via hummed lightly while drafting plans, she suddenly let out a small exclamation.

“Ah, right. But before that, there’s something we need to handle to make everything go smoothly.”

“…Ah. That.”

Clyde nodded as if he fully understood, and they spoke at the same time again.

“Valoa Edvain Crawford.”

“We need to get rid of Valoa! If it’s too hard, just tie her down or something.”

Finally—now they were on the same page.

Via nodded in satisfaction.

“Valoa is… how should I put it… a wildcard. She acts purely on emotion, so you never know where she’ll jump.”

“And today’s wedding probably made her even more dangerous.”

As long as she existed unpredictably, interfering at any time, removing her from the equation was the safest option.

“Is there any good way to deal with her? Should we think back to past incidents she was involved in?”

“No need.”

“Hmm?”

“Valoa Edvain Crawford is violent and reckless, yes—but that also makes her predictable.”

If she acted based on emotion, then the key was simply to provoke that emotion.

That was likely how Princess Elodie had used her, too.

“So you’re saying we lay a trap and provoke her into doing something reckless?”

“Something like that, but we don’t need to go that far. We just act like a couple who got married and are ridiculously happy. I trust Valoa.”

“…Trust?”

“Trust in her cruel nature. If we just show how happy we are, she’ll destroy herself on her own. Sooner rather than later.”

Clyde’s cold tone made Via glance at him.

Come to think of it, he had looked at Valoa with intense hostility during the wedding.

Had something happened in the past?

No matter how she thought about it, she couldn’t recall anything she had done to her. Unlike the present, where their sudden marriage announcement made her a target, the past Via had not been important enough to attract Valoa’s attention.

Giving up quickly, she asked directly.

“Clyde, what did Valoa do to you?”

“Why the sudden question?”

“It’s not sudden. You react like you want to kill her every time you see her. Like she’s some disgusting insect.”

She watched his blue eyes widen slightly before settling again.

“See? That reaction. Something definitely happened. What was it? Did she tell you to become her husband to save your life? Or treat you like a pet because your house was ruined?”

“…”

“Hey, tell me!”

Instead of answering, Clyde suddenly pressed both of her cheeks with one hand.

Then he smiled lazily, as usual.

“You don’t need to know about that, kid.”

“…Kid… what?”

“If you have time to worry about useless things, focus on training, my honey. Or should we practice kissing instead?”

“…Ah.”

The familiar sense of déjà vu from the wedding returned.

For now, Valoa could wait.

First—she had a war to win against this man.