Villainess Level 99: I May Be the Hidden Boss but I’m Not the Demon Lord - Volume 2 - Chapter 4

Chapter 4: The Hidden Boss Reforms Her County

Now that I’d returned to Dolkness from the Mark of Ashbatten, I’d returned to handling my county owner’s work as usual. My relationship with Patrick hadn’t changed—after a year of stagnancy, it was a bit much to expect things to change over a few days. Although...if I swapped the word “stagnant” with the words “stable and constant,” things sounded like they were going pretty darn well.

At the moment, I was riding in a carriage that was to bring me from the center of Dolkness County to the border, and back. The main purpose of the trip was to inspect the county’s roads and confirm that they were actually being maintained, as they had been in a terrible state when I first arrived.

Soon, the first leg of our journey came to an end, and Patrick and I decided to step out of the carriage briefly for a breath of fresh air.

“It wasn’t as bumpy as last time,” I commented.

Patrick nodded. “Yeah, it’s impressive how much the roads have improved in just a few months.”

“Apparently the people responsible for the maintenance hired some workers who could use earth magic,” I explained.

Of the various roadways in the county, Daemon, Patrick, and I had decided to focus on the ones which needed maintenance most urgently first. As it turned out, the roads that led to the Royal Capital got the most traffic, and so we’d centered our attention on them. Feeling the night and day change in the smoothness of our carriage ride made all the money we’d spent feel truly worth it.

We still haven’t gotten around to arranging maintenance for the other roads, though, I thought worriedly. We need to take care of them as quickly as possible. But without additional magic users, our progress will likely plateau...

“If only we had more people on staff that could use earth magic...” I mumbled.

“Was that comment directed at me?” Patrick asked, smiling slightly.

I felt like smacking myself on the forehead. Patrick was right; there was a candidate standing right in front of me. And, now that he was at level 80, he should be able to use large-scale spells in both his elements—wind and earth.

“Would you be able to maintain all the roads in the county at once?” I asked.

Patrick scoffed. “Don’t be ridiculous. Unlike you, my magic is a normal level of potency.”

“I’m careful to try and keep the potency of my magic regulated too,” I pointed out. “You’ve probably just gotten too used to using magic in a way that conserves mana—I’m sure you could do something big if you gave it your all.”

“That’s true...” Patrick said, abruptly thoughtful. “I don’t think I’ve used my magic at full force in a while.”

“Let’s try it together sometime!” I said cheerfully. “We can both use our full strength!”

“Nope, never happening.”

I pouted internally at the immediate rejection. But my idea would have been totally fun! Shooting it down so fast isn’t fair at all...

Feeling thoroughly dejected, I glanced back at our carriage. As I observed it, pondering over whether I could in some way improve it with my modern-day knowledge, I couldn’t help but take notice of the horses. There were two of them drawing our carriage, both chestnut-colored and adorable. They’d been left some water to drink during their break, and both were happily gulping it down.

Aw, how cute!

The cool thing about horses was that they weren’t just adorable—they were intelligent too. That meant that, unlike the dogs and cats who growled at me on sight and eventually ran away, they’d probably treat me like a totally normal person!

The era of common pets hath come to an end! Behold, the age of horses!

I wandered over to stand beside the horses, then chose a particular one to lavish my affection onto. “Thanks for pulling the carriage,” I told it, mesmerized by its kind face and big, round black eyes. “Can I pet you?”

I of course didn’t receive a reply.

I wonder if it’s a girl, I thought, reaching my arm out to caress the horse’s neck. But, just before my fingers grazed its skin, the horse suddenly began to thrash, letting out distress neighs.

Oh no, I tried to touch a no-pet zone! I thought in horror. I should’ve known better—of course horses have spots they don’t like to be touched, just like dogs don’t like their tails being pet. 

Meanwhile, the carriage driver had run over in a panic. “Excuse me, but would you please step back? You’re frightening the horse, my lady.”

I took a few steps back, watching as he ran his hand over the horse’s neck in an attempt to calm it down.

Wait, that’s the same area I tried to pet it! Which means... I let my shoulders sag. It seems I am fated to be feared by dogs, cats, and horses. The effect may even apply to all other animals as well. Wait, it applies to most humans too, doesn’t it? I sighed. Whatever, I at least have Ryuu.

◆◆◆

After that, we began our journey home. There was only one problem—I was going stir-crazy, and there was absolutely nothing to do inside the carriage.

“Is there any point to going back on the carriage?” I whined. “We already checked the roads.”

Patrick gave me a look. “Come on, it’s not that often that we do this. Besides, things might look different on the way back.”

You sure about that, Patrick? I thought sarcastically. Ugh, I should’ve run home, it would’ve been so much faster. 

“Patrick, I’m so boooored!” I moaned. “Can’t some thieves show up or something?”

“Hey, don’t jinx us,” Patrick shot back. “I haven’t heard anything about thieves these days, but that doesn’t mean they don’t still appear in some places.”

I rolled my eyes internally, turning to stare blankly out the carriage window. Oh, come on. I just said that out of boredom—no way thieves are actually going to show up. I mean, imagine how incompetent the owner of a territory would have to be to let stuff like that go on in their domain...

All of a sudden, the carriage screeched to a stop.

“Thieves! We’re surrounded by thieves!” the carriage driver yelled in a panic from outside.

I blinked. It appears I’ve learned a lot today, I thought absently. First, thieves do exist. Second, that Dolkness woman is a completely incompetent countess. Guess it’s time for her to take a break from running her county into the ground to fight as a guard. 

Patrick jumped out of the carriage first, while I took the time to lean out and observe our surroundings. Our carriage had been completely encircled by thieves. At a glance, there were around thirty of them; they ranged in age from young to old, and each one of them appeared to be male. Only a few of them were wielding actual weapons—the rest were armed with farming tools.

“Yumiella, hurry up and get out of the carriage,” Patrick ordered, leading our frightened coachman to the door. “I want to hide him inside.”

“All right,” I agreed, jumping down to the ground and then assisting the driver into the carriage. “Stay hidden, okay?”

He nodded. “I wish you two the best of luck!”

Do we really need luck? I wondered. I mean, it’s a nice sentiment, but it feels a bit like overkill. Defeating thirty men is nothing, especially if they’re inexperienced fighters like these guys. 

Patrick drew the sword on his waist. I followed suit...or at least tried to, before realizing that I had left my sword at home. Bereft of a weapon, I just stood next to Patrick as I was.

“You protect the carriage, I’ll capture the thieves,” Patrick said, his gaze fixed on the men in front of him.

I nodded. “Got it.”

Honestly, it probably would have made more sense if our roles were swapped, but if Patrick wanted to snatch up the thieves himself, who was I to stop him? I took a spot in front of the carriage, then settled in to watch the show.

Just as I had expected, the thieves were no competition for Patrick. He casually tore through the battlefield, smacking men with the flat of his sword, tripping them with his feet, and occasionally using wind magic to blow them backwards and send them tumbling to the ground.

It seemed Patrick wasn’t the only one who was going to get the chance to fight, though—I could feel a presence creeping up on me from behind as I watched the one-sided battle unfold in front of me. Unlike the bevy of thieves surrounding Patrick, this particular soul seemed to have set his sights on taking me down.

How foolish. 

I pretended not to notice him at first, mostly because I wanted to try dodging an attack from behind with the least amount of movement possible. I thought it’d be pretty cool; it felt like something a longtime warrior would do with ease.

I’m gonna pull off this move so well he’ll wonder if I have eyes in the back of my head!

At last, the man drew up behind me. He moved silently over the ground, not making a single sound. I braced myself for him to swing his sword down upon me from above, but...the blow never came. For some reason, he wrapped his arm around me instead, bringing his blade up in front of my eyes.

“Don’t move!” the man yelled. “Drop that sword, or the lady gets hurt!”

What’s going on? I wondered, flabbergasted.

I exchanged glances with Patrick, but he seemed similarly at a loss. We both just stood there, frozen, looking at each other in confusion.

“Get a move on, lad!” yelled the man who was showing me his sword. “If you care about this little lady, you better hurry up and get rid of that weapon! I’ll be kind enough to spare your lives if you give up your valuables.”

I still don’t get what’s happening here, I thought.

Patrick, however, seemed to have caught on. “Just to be clear...you’re taking her hostage?” he asked, doubt in his voice.

“Of course!” the man exclaimed, bringing his dull-looking blade up to my cheek. “Looky here, I’m gonna put a scratch on your girlfriend’s pretty face!”

Ah, I see, I thought, nodding internally. So I’m a hostage. I’ve gotten mixed up in all kinds of violent shenanigans until now, but it’s my first time being in a situation like this. I’ve gotta take advantage of this opportunity and do all the hostage-like things! This is a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence! 

“H-Help me!” I cried out, mustering up all the acting skills I had. Unfortunately, I was rather lacking in the theatrical department, and the words came out flat and monotone.

Patrick seemed to shrivel before my eyes, the vigor draining out of him and leaving him looking exhausted.

Hey, your fiancée is in danger, Patrick! You should be taking this more seriously!

Leaning into my captive-lady act, I called to Patrick, “Don’t worry about me! Drive your blade home, even if you have to go through me to do it! I’ll drag him right down to hell!”

“Yikes!” the thief yelped, seemingly horrified at my resolve.

Patrick, on the other hand, looked as if he truly couldn’t care less about the whole situation. He didn’t even attempt to move forward to save me.

I guess that’s what I get for flubbing my lines, I thought. I ended up sounding like the protagonist’s rival in some action comic, instead of a beautiful girl calling out for her star-crossed lover. Still...his reaction feels a bit heartless.

It seemed the thieves were in agreement with me, as all of a sudden the men surrounding Patrick stepped forward and tried to persuade him to drop his sword.

“Come on, man!” one of them pleaded. “We promise we won’t kill you, so just drop the sword already.”

“Have a heart!” one of the other thieves exclaimed. “How can you still not care even after your girlfriend made such an intense speech?!”

“Don’t listen to them, Patrick!” I cried, deciding to join in on the fun. “I’ll be just fine!”

Patrick let out a long, deep sigh, then appeared to finally make up his mind. He threw the sword in his hand to the ground, then raised his arms above his head.

“How dare you take my fiancée hostage!” he yelled, giving all the thieves a piercing glare. “Hurry up and release her!”

The thieves stepped back, a bit unnerved by his intensity. I, meanwhile, was filled with glee.

Patrick’s playing along! 

His performance was so unbelievably realistic that I couldn’t help but start giggling. “Heh heh, you’re so cool, Patrick! How come you’re so good at acting?”

Patrick immediately flushed, dropping character. “You’re the one who started it,” he muttered, averting his gaze in embarrassment. “Anyway, playtime’s over. Let’s finish this.”

As Patrick picked up the sword he’d dropped, I let out a sigh. You know, being a hostage isn’t that much fun. Patrick’s right, it’s time to get this over with. 

I casually reached out, grabbing the sword that the man who was holding me captive was holding in front of my face. The weapon had no chance of withstanding the strength of my grip, and within seconds shattered in my hands. Behind me, my “captor” froze.

“You know, I didn’t think I’d ever get the chance to be a hostage,” I said lightly, still looking ahead. “I have to thank you for that.”

“What...? Wait, how are you so strong?!”

“All you thieves! Gather together into one spot, please!”

I reached out and grabbed the arm of the thief behind me, then catapulted him over my shoulder and toward Patrick and the other thieves. He soared through the air for a short moment before crashing straight into another thief. They both fell flat to the ground.

In the brief few seconds my would-be captor had been airborne, Patrick had finished taking care of the rest of the thieves. All thirty were now either collapsed on the ground or had lost their will to fight.

“Good work,” I commented, walking up to Patrick’s side. “They weren’t that strong...right?”

“No, they weren’t,” Patrick agreed. “It seemed like they were all pretty green, and their armor looked shabby. They’re probably just farmers from somewhere.”

Wait, what if they’re citizens of Dolkness County? I suddenly thought. I’m sure they have a reason for stooping all the way down to becoming thieves. What if...it’s all my fault...?

Trying not to appear too frightening, I proclaimed, “I am Countess Yumiella Dolkness, the lord of this area. Where did you all come from?”

“Wait, the countess of Dolkness County,” one of the thieves whispered. “Isn’t that the girl who took down the Demon Lord?!”

“I heard she feeds the subordinates she doesn’t like to her dragon,” another whispered back.

“This is bad!” another wailed. “We attacked the carriage of the most dangerous person in the kingdom!”

“Hey, you better keep your mouth shut, even if you’re tortured. Remember your family!”

As I watched them go from calm to quivering with fear, a wave of depression went through me. Seems like things are going to turn out like they always do, with everyone afraid of me.

Patrick must have come to the same conclusion, because he stepped forward and signaled that I should move back with his hand. “Before we listen to what you guys have to say, I’d like you to tell us where you came from. Did you travel here to make money? Why did you target this location?”

The thieves maintained their silence despite Patrick’s questioning.

Ugh, Patrick, you’re being too overbearing. You’ve gotta use both a carrot and a stick to be a good interrogator. You need to appear at least a little more kind.

I tried to switch places with him so I could take back over, but Patrick held me back. It seemed he’d come to a similar conclusion. Except, his idea of kindness... Well...

“If you stay quiet, I’m switching places with the girl behind me.”

“We’ll tell you everything!”

Can you not use me as the stick? 

After that, Patrick’s interrogation truly began. He asked all the thieves where they’d come from, and they told him that they were villagers who’d traveled to Dolkness from one of our neighboring territories. Apparently, their village had grown poor due to a large mountain that loomed over the southern side of their settlement, which blocked the sun for a period of time every day. As a result, their crop yields were chronically low, leaving them bereft of a product to sell as well as of food. As they drew close to the verge of starving to death, the men had planned to attack a carriage that looked like it would be full of valuables so they could steal them, which had led to our current situation.

Listening to this story from a distance, a certain question popped into my mind. “Wait, did you only start thieving recently, then? You were all right before now?”

“Eek!” one man shrieked.

“I won’t do anything to you...” I said with a sigh.

I get it, world, they’re scared of me like usual! Jeez...

Patrick gestured for me to step even further back, and I did so before asking my question again. “Did something happen to your village recently?”

“We’ve got a monster problem now. Up until recently, none ever appeared around the village, but now they’re destroying our fields.”

Hmm... I thought. It’s rare for monsters to appear near human settlements. Typically, they make their homes in areas that don’t have any people around. The fact that that’s no longer the case for these guys is worrying. 

“Have you guys been safe?” I asked, the words slipping out without me thinking.

“Eek!”

“Patrick, can you...?”

You know, it’d be nice if they could just get used to me already, I whined internally. Seriously, what kind of information is floating around about me in these rural villages? Even the people of my own county weren’t this scared of me when we first met. In fact, they prayed to me. Not that I want them to do that... I massaged my forehead. Is there a single normal group of people around here?

Giving a resigned sigh, Patrick asked, “Did the monsters injure anyone?”

The thieves shook their heads.

“None of us were harmed,” one of the men explained, “but the destruction of our fields is its own death sentence. Our viscount won’t help us either.”

So their already poor village was devastated by monsters, and they don’t even have a lord they can count on to assist them, I thought with a frown.

Hearing their situation, an idea popped into my head. The idea I’d had for reforming Dolkness County with my own strength, which had been turned down due to a lack of villagers.

“Hey,” I called out.

“Eek!”

“Am I that scary...? Whatever, that’s not important. If you hate living next door so much, why don’t you come live with us?”

◆◆◆

And so, despite being attacked by thieves, Patrick and I were able to finish inspecting the country roads with no real problems. I immediately wanted to start working on providing aid to the village the thieves had come from, but it took time to build an entirely new settlement, so Patrick and I settled on sending them enough food to keep them from starving.

To tell the truth, we were breaking the landowner code doing something like that for a village in another territory, but as I was planning to take them all in anyway... Long story short, I’d decided to err toward the aggressive.

The villagers had even agreed to relocate to Dolkness land after I’d had a calm, peaceful discussion with them, though they still seemed frightened that something else was going on behind the scenes. Patrick had told me I’d essentially threatened them into the whole thing, but I couldn’t see how—I’d spoken in an entirely normal fashion! If they’d taken my words some other way...well, that was outside of my control.

It had been a week since our thief encounter now, and Patrick and I had taken a short ride on Ryuu to the land where we intended to build the new village. The plan for today was for me to go ahead and prepare the land for construction. There was only one problem—I wasn’t quite sure we’d come to the right location.

I ran my eyes again over the grassy field where we stood, which was speckled with trees but lacking any discernible landmarks. “Are you sure this is the right place?” I asked Patrick, who was standing right next to me. “Like, really sure?”

“We already confirmed this was it several times from the air, remember? Judging from the position of the mountains and rivers around us, this is definitely the place we were looking for.”

Feeling relieved, I ran my eyes over our surroundings once more. Upon closer inspection, flaws began to make themselves known. I could see several places where the ground raised slightly into hills, and a scattering of large boulders that looked like they’d get in the way of farmers or construction workers.

This is the right place! Without my magic, getting everything cleaned up looks like it would be a real pain.

“Okay then,” I said, raising up my secret weapon—a wand. “Let’s get started.”

Patrick’s eyes narrowed on the wand, puzzlement flickering over his face. “Why do you have a wand?” he demanded.

The question was valid—typically I had no use for magical items like wands, which increased the potency of one’s spells. I had more than enough firepower just on my own. The same went for Patrick, who only carried a sword with him. That knowledge made the elaborate wand I now held, which was topped with a massive, glistening magic stone and had intricate designs carved into the handle, stand out considerably.

“I just thought it might be nice to use in order to conserve my mana,” I explained. “Also, this wand is incredible! It works for all elements!”

Wands normally only worked with one element, although sometimes you could find one that worked with two. When it came to wands that worked with all the elements though? I’d never even heard of one dropping in-game. That just went to show how incredibly precious they were.

Patrick’s expression only grew more confused. “Isn’t using a wand like that a waste when you can only use dark magic?”

“Oh, I must’ve forgotten to tell you! I can actually use any type of magic, aside from light.”

Sure, my level of skill with the four main elements was weak compared to how well I could wield dark magic, but I was still able to use them.

Honestly, it kinda seems like it should be against the rules to be as OP as I am. Ah well, it can’t be helped—I’m a genius, after all.

Riding the high of my own talent, I considered the area before me, trying to figure out where to begin. Eventually, I settled on using earth magic in order to flatten the ground. I imagined a towering wall of dirt, then swung my wand forward.

Let’s make this thing taller than the Royal Capital’s castle walls!!!

Alarm burst across Patrick’s features—he’d realized I was about to exert the full breadth of my strength. He lurched forward to stop me, but it was already too late.

“O’ great earth, rise and pierce the threshold of heaven!”

“H-Hey, stop! If you use your full strength to cast a spell, then... Huh?”

I stared proudly down at the successful result of my earth magic spell—a round bump that rose from the ground in front of us. As for its height...well, it was perhaps tall enough to trip someone who wasn’t paying attention to where they were going.

A queer look on his face, Patrick poked at the small mound of earth with his foot. The little knoll crumbled with no effort at all.

“This is all you’ve got?” Patrick asked, raising a brow at me.

“What?!” I exclaimed.

Shock rang through me like a bell. He just did it. He just said the phrase I ranked third on my “Things Patrick Will Never Say to Me” list! 

(As a side note, Yumiella’s number one phrase was “I’m going to stop liking you if you don’t cut it out!”)

Unable to stand Patrick thinking of me as someone with weak magic, I mustered up every inkling of power within me. Filled with determination, I cast a fire spell, sending out a plume of blazing flame pulled straight from the depths of hell. The plume being...well, the approximate size of a lighter flame.

There was a moment of ringing silence, and then Patrick said mildly, “At least we won’t have any trouble starting a fire.”

Ugh, don’t look at me so kindly! Your gaze, it burns!

I couldn’t let things end here—not like this.

I’ll just have to finish things off with a dark magic spell at full power!!!

“Dar—”

“Nope, that’s not happening.”

I glared at Patrick in pure affront, unable to believe he’d snatched my wand away from me.

You were preparing for that this whole time, weren’t you? I thought, irritation bubbling away inside me.

“Yumiella,” Patrick said firmly. “I’m well aware of your strength. After all this time, I really don’t need another demonstration.”

“What about your full strength?” I asked moodily. “You should go ahead and try using it now that your level is higher.”

As it was, I still didn’t have a solid grasp on Patrick’s magical aptitude. He definitely didn’t specialize in magic—I was sure of that. He wasn’t someone whose fighting style encompassed a combination of magical and melee attacks either. In fact, he rarely used attack spells at all. And since analyzing that kind of magic was the easiest way to gauge a person’s aptitude, I’d been left thoroughly in the dark.

There was a moment of silence as Patrick contemplated my idea. Then, he shrugged. “I guess you’re right,” he admitted. “There aren’t many opportunities to fully let loose like this. I suppose I can go ahead and give it a shot.”

Holding out my wand with both hands, Patrick closed his eyes. I could feel the magical energy gathering inside of him even from my position at his side. There was something soft to the feeling, unlike the sharp prickling that came with my dark magic. I’d just started to grow used to it when Patrick opened his eyes.

“Earth,” he whispered.

A deep roar resonated through the air as the ground ahead of us began to rise higher and higher. When the sound finally receded a few seconds later, a massive wall of dirt was left behind, so tall it hurt my neck to look up at it. To tell the truth, the wall was quite wide as well—when I looked to my left and right, it continued on as far as my eyes could see.

Patrick gaped at his own creation, as if at a loss for words.

I guess I can’t blame him. I mean, he did summon a wall that seems to divide the entire world in two...

“Well, look who’s strong now,” I drawled. “I think it’s time you quit telling me my magic is ‘too much’ from now on.”

Silence was my only reply. Feeling a bit odd, I kept waiting for Patrick to jab back at me like he normally would. Still, he said nothing.

What’s going on...?

I’d just leaned forward, trying to get a better look at his face, when Patrick looked up at the wall of dirt and summarily collapsed to his knees.

“I’m sorry,” I grumbled. “I took things too far. Are you all right?”

Patrick nodded, though he seemed genuinely upset. “Yeah... I just—I knew I’d be able to exert more force after leveling up, but I didn’t realize it would be to this extent.”

Why does he look so distressed over this? I wondered. Isn’t being this strong something to be happy about...?

◆◆◆

It took some time for Patrick to recover. When he finally stood up, he handed me the wand. “This thing is incredible,” he said. “My magical energy feels like it meshes well with it.”

“Right?” I replied excitedly. “And since it works well with all elements, it can strengthen both your wind magic and my dark magic! Isn’t that incredible?”

“Yeah. But since when do you own something like this?”

I paused for a moment before responding. “So, around a month ago, this merchant came by the mansion...”

Yes, it was true! I’d bought my wand, which was now destined to be a precious Dolkness family heirloom, from a door-to-door salesman. I didn’t think I’d done anything wrong in that—it was normal for merchants to stop by the homes of aristocrats, and I’d thought the wand was fairly priced considering its quality. That fair price, though...let’s just say it was a tad high.

To be fair, once the merchant had told me that the wand originated from a dungeon, I’d briefly considered going dungeon diving for something similar myself. But even though I’d been going on frequent excursions these days, I hadn’t so much as glimpsed a wand that worked with three elements, let alone six. On top of that, I’d always had terrible luck with the gacha RNG that was dungeon drops in the past—it was never smart to roll a gacha when there was only one item you truly wanted.

“You sure you even need that?” Patrick asked with a sigh, pointing at my treasure. “I’m getting the feeling you were just sweet-talked into buying it.”

“No way!” I snapped in reply. “I’d have bought this even if I saw it in a store.”

“How much was it?”

“Probably somewhere around...fifty times the cost of a regular wand?”

To be clear, by “regular wand,” I was referring to a wand that was of the highest quality, but only worked with one element.

Patrick’s face had shriveled in horror at my words. “Yumiella, you should keep in my mind all the things we’re going to need now that we’re developing a village,” he said bitterly. “Not that we didn’t need things before. It’s just... I’m not telling you not to buy things for yourself, but it wouldn’t hurt for you to be a bit more frugal.”

“This really isn’t that big a deal,” I insisted. “I don’t buy things like dresses and gemstones, so in the end, I’m not spending that much.”

“And how many dresses do you think could be made using funding from that wand?” Patrick asked dryly.

I’m only guessing... I thought hesitantly, but probably around a hundred? Hold on—am I a spendthrift or something?

It was important to remember that, in LMH, an aristocrat’s money wasn’t split between personal and business use. Part of the budget for county operations came from my pocket money, and if I decided to live it up, there was every possibility that I could do so using another character’s tax money.

I need to keep that in mind when I spend money on unnecessary expenses, I reminded myself. I’ve gotta keep things to a minimum from now on. But the wand...I had to get it. 

“You’re right that it’s wrong to spend money on unnecessary things,” I admitted to Patrick. “But some things are necessary purchases, right?”

“Yes,” he agreed. “The whole reason I brought this up is because that wand wasn’t necessary.”

I pouted internally. Patrick, how could you say something so horrible? Don’t you feel sorry, even a little, for this poor wand? Just picture it, gathering dust in the corner of my room alongside my wooden sword! Sure, I couldn’t think of a single use for it before today, but I totally, definitely needed to have it!

Anyway, Patrick and I had done enough chatting—it was time to get to work. First, we needed to clean up the wall that somebody had put up.

Heh heh, so today the tables turn, I thought, grinning internally. Here I am, having to put in sooo much work to clean up someone else’s mess. 

Just as I was debating on whether to use my physical or magical strength to destroy the earthen wall my fiancé had summoned from the ground, Patrick placed his hand against it.

“Return,” he called out.

All of a sudden, the massive dirt wall sunk back into the earth. It was like I was watching the moment of its creation play out in reverse.

That’s...more impressive than making that wall in the first place, isn’t it? I mused. I mean, how does that even follow the laws of physics...?

I decided not to bring it up. After all, the way my dark magic worked was plenty questionable as well.

“All right, then,” I told Patrick, “let’s begin. I’m going to roughly flatten things out, so I’ll leave the fine-tuning to you.”

“Got it.”

The way I saw it, it would be a waste of time for us to remove the boulders one by one or haul away dirt. Instead, we could just get rid of all the things we needed to all at once.

It’s been a while since I used a strong dark magic spell like this, but now’s the perfect time!

“Black Hole,” I pronounced.

Darkness swelled from all around, swallowing trees, boulders, and hills alike. I’d cast the spell with the ground at its center, so although it appeared to curve over the earth like a miniature hemisphere from where we stood, I knew in actuality it was a full sphere. Which meant that the part that wasn’t visible was swallowing up all the earth below...

Oops. 

Patrick, meanwhile, was looking pretty impressed with my dome of darkness. “I didn’t know you could do other shapes besides spheres,” he commented. “Looks like the ground’s going to be nicely flattened once you’re done. There might not even be anything for me to do.”

“So, here’s the thing...” I said slowly. “That dome is, uh...actually a sphere. I’m sorry.”

“Wait, you didn’t...?!”

I gave Patrick a miserable look. Once a spell was cast, there was no going back. In a few moments, the black orb I’d summoned would disappear, taking all the ground it had swallowed with it.

Wind whooshed forward from behind us, drawn forth by the air consumed by my black hole. At last, it vanished, leaving the view before us starkly changed. A gaping hole had been cleanly carved out of the ground. The bottom was dark, as if even sunlight was unable to reach it.

You know, I’ve altered plenty of terrain in my time, but this is pretty exceptional, I thought, a tad hysterically.

“Maybe we could use this area as a reservoir for farming?” I asked Patrick after a short pause.

Despite having been the one to suggest it, it felt like a stretch. If a hole that big were filled with water, it would become a pond or a lake—to be honest, I didn’t know the difference between the two.

What should I do...? I thought miserably. At this rate, I’m going to sink this village before it even gets to swim! I mean, what even is this? A dam?

I couldn’t even use my magic to fill the hole—I specialized in destruction, not fixing things. The only reason I’d thought I could even out terrain in the first place was because I was good at breaking things and making them vanish.

After staring at the hole with dead eyes, Patrick stuck out a hand in my direction. “Give me the wand,” he said. His voice was so monotone I couldn’t gauge how he was feeling. “I’ll fix it.”

“Sorry...” I muttered, handing it over.

I should’ve thought more about what I was doing before I acted... I feel so bad.

Within a few hours, Patrick had managed to clean up the mess I made. He’d used earth magic strengthened by my wand to slowly fill up the hole.

So my decision to buy that wand wasn’t a mistake after all! I cheered internally. Not when it was that big a help. Still...I better not say that aloud. 

Feeling down, I let my shoulders droop. Now that Patrick had finished working, my presence was no longer needed at the build site.

“Yumiella,” Patrick said, his voice exhausted. “I’d just like to remind you that I like all of you, even the side that does things like this. Don’t worry yourself over it too much.”

“Patrick...” I murmured, touched.

I’m so lucky to have such a kind fiancé! I get it now—he likes when I make a mess out of things!

“I’ll do my best to make more messes from now on!” I swore to him.

Patrick pressed a hand to his forehead, hard. “I’m going to stop liking you if you don’t cut it out.”

◆◆◆

The day after we worked on preparing land for the village we were developing, Patrick and I visited a certain village. It was the same one I’d removed the boulder from only a few months before, leaving a crater in one of the fields.

Admittedly, we were a bit late, but we’d come to clean up my mess now that we knew Patrick could use his magic to fill in holes.

“Huh? Was this place always so lively?” I wondered aloud.

From what I remembered, this village was just a generic farming village, and wasn’t very large at all. There were more people around than I’d expected, though—and they were dressed nicely at that.

Are they visiting from somewhere...? I thought, completely baffled.

The row of homes we were currently standing in front of had signs advertising room and board, so it seemed likely. But how had the area become a popular tourist destination in such a short time?

“God! A-Ahem, Lady Countess!” A villager called to me as we roamed the village. “I must offer you my thanks. It’s all because of you that our village has become this bustling.”

“But I didn’t do anything...”

“Oh, really? We thought for sure that you expected this to happen, and that’s exactly why you made that for us.”

“Where is...‘that’?” I asked.

The villager then pointed to a road that led outside of the village, and Patrick and I headed straight there. As we walked, we passed an endless stream of people, some of whom were leaving the village and some of whom were making their way back. It made me curious.

What on earth could be at the end of this road...?

As I pondered the answer to this question, Patrick gasped, as if he’d realized something.

“Yumiella, isn’t this the direction that you threw the boulder in?”

“I mean, yeah,” I admitted. “I don’t think that has anything to do with this, though.”

Come on, why would all these people gather up at some massive crater? There’s no way that’s what’s going on.

And so we continued on, until we reached the new “tourist attraction.”

“Wh-What is this?”

“It’s a...lake?”

Patrick and I both stared blankly at the body of water in front of us, which was shaped in a perfect circle. It appeared to be less than fifty meters in diameter, and there were several boats in the water, carrying groups of two who were likely couples.

“This is the big hole that I accidentally made, right?” I asked Patrick hoarsely.

Patrick nodded. “Yeah. I guess it collected water and this happened.”

Even faced with that explanation, though, I had a hard time understanding why this particular place had become a popular tourist attraction.

Perhaps it’s because the lake is in a perfect circle? I guess that is a bit irregular...

I was still staring at the lake, wondering what to do now, when the voice of a barker from a rental boat shop rang out, trickling into my ears.

“Come rent a boat!” he cried. “If you can manage to ride across this lake together, you and your partner are destined to not part ways for the rest of your lives!”

Well, that certainly sounds fishy, I thought skeptically. Where would they even get the basis for those claims? Ah, well, I guess if it brings people to Dolkness County, all’s well that ends well. 

I continued to examine the area, and soon noticed that there was even a gift shop along the shore of the lake. Business appeared to be booming, so I walked over and peeked inside out of curiosity.

They probably sell weird things like a charm that assists in helping your love work out, I mused.

So, imagine my surprise when I saw, placed in the most eye-catching spot in the store, a wooden sword.

Wait, but isn’t that spot usually reserved for things that are selling well? I thought excitedly.

“I can’t believe there’s wooden swords!” I cried out, running over and picking one up. I was intimately familiar with the design—this lame sword with “Dolkness” written on the handle was one that had been made under my supervision.

“Those wooden swords have gotten really popular with young boys,” a worker at the shop chimed in, clearly trying to pitch it to me. “Apparently if you buy one, it’s said you can become strong like the count...ess... Hold on.”

The shop worker froze, her eyes intently locked on my black hair.

I see, so they’re selling well, and to young boys, at that. Wait, does that mean I have the taste of a grade school boy...?

“I’d like to buy one of these,” I decided.

“S-Sure...” the shop worker stuttered. “Um, you’re the countess, right?”

I waved a dismissive hand. “I’m only a noblewoman passing through the area. Feel free to use my example to begin advertising this product as being popular with young women.”

I mean, look—I didn’t want to change my taste in things, but comparing my likes and dislikes to those of a boy in grade school was a bit much. Therefore, it was best that the swords were treated as an item geared toward aristocratic young ladies. In theory, that would make me the perfect lady, and indicate I had the correct sensibilities for an aristocrat as well!

Patrick, who’d arrived at the scene late, let out a sigh. “Yumiella, don’t be ridiculous. You’re only causing her trouble.”

After that, we walked around the entire lake area, then decided to cap off our visit by riding across the lake in one of the boats. As I stared at the surface of the water, which was currently gleaming with the light of the sunset, I could see Patrick rowing the boat from the corner of my eye. Gentle waves lapped at our boat’s hull, stirred to life by the rowing of the other boats around us. The surface of the water rippled.

I wish I was the one who got to row the boat, I thought wistfully.

“You know,” I suddenly told Patrick in a quiet voice, eyes still on the swaying water. “I don’t really like activities like this, that draw people in using romance. It’s almost like...people are being tricked.”

“Everyone knows the romantic effects aren’t real, though,” Patrick pointed out. “People are choosing to be tricked.”

“Are they really?” I asked, having a hard time comprehending this.

“Yeah,” Patrick said softly. “So, Yumiella...what do you think about getting tricked ourselves?”

Wait, does he mean...that he wants us to pray for our love to work out? 

This was terrible—I’d totally hopped aboard the wrong ship. I’d been fooled by its relative normalcy, but it seemed if I let things unfold much further I might be catapulted through romantic space-time and straight into a shojo manga.

Maybe that’s okay, though... Maybe I can say some of the things I normally can’t, now that we’re in a different environment. I’ve never properly put my feelings about Patrick to words, or shared them with him, but now, just possibly...

“Um, Patrick?”

Now that it was just the two of us in this boat, floating atop a lake that reflected the sun’s light like an orange mirror, I felt like I could finally tell Patrick that I liked him.

Bracing myself, I began, “I lik— Bleeergh!”

Gagging loudly, I stuck my head over the side of the boat. Something acidic almost flooded my mouth, but no liquid came shooting out from between my lips.

I...feel sick.

“Whoa, are you all right?” Patrick gasped.

“I...I think I’m...seasick, Patrick,” I moaned.

So this is the cursed disease of the sea. Would I stop feeling like this if I just let go, and let it all out?

Patrick leaned closer to me, trying to rub my back, but his movement jolted the ship, making it sway from side to side.

“Nope, uh-uh. I’m gonna hurl.”

Despite my intense seasickness, Patrick and I somehow managed to get me off the boat without me throwing up. The man working at the rental shop was visibly impressed—it seemed he’d never witnessed someone get as seasick as me on a lake that had barely any waves.

“I’m not riding in boats anymore,” I muttered to Patrick.

“Okay,” he said, a slight smile quirking his lips. “Anyway, what was it you were trying to say earlier?”

“It’s nothing.”

And so, while Dolkness County made magnificent strides forward, adding a new tourist destination to its accomplishments as well as a popular souvenir, the relationship between Patrick and me stayed as stagnant as ever.

◆◆◆

Ever since I’d started living in Dolkness County, an endless stream of guests had begun visiting the mansion. Many of them were landowners or big shots from neighboring territories, though even shady merchants came by wanting to meet with me.

I did my best to meet everyone, but it often ended up being a waste of my time, especially when it came to the merchants. The ones who tried to sell me expensive furniture or paintings weren’t so bad to deal with, but I despised the ones who came to tout around their fishy schemes, trying to convince me they were guaranteed to succeed. As a result, I would sometimes come up with one reason or another to shoo them away.

“Do shady people like that always visit the lords of a territory?” I asked Patrick.

He shrugged. “Usually those kinds of people come by more when the new generation takes over. They’re looking for aristocrats they can easily trick.”

I would hate for people to think that I’m the type of person who can be easily fooled, I thought. Anyway, I’m probably the worst kind of customer for those guys, since I don’t have an interest in buying expensive things.

“Hey, Patrick,” I said suddenly. “Do I seem like someone who could be easily tricked? I feel like I’m pretty levelheaded...”

There was a short pause. “You think so?” Patrick finally asked.

“Well, I’m not the kind of person who they could persuade to buy expensive things or something of that sort, at least.”

“Uh, you forgetting about the wand?”

I fell silent, unable to contradict him on that one. It might have been useful in filling up that large hole, but I was the one who’d caused the hole in the first place.

At that moment, I was informed that one of the merchants I’d heard was visiting that day had arrived. He’d sent word that he’d brought something that I’d definitely be interested in, but that was what they all said. In the past, another merchant had proclaimed that only to present me with a perfume.

I mean, come on, who would pay for scented water? I just don’t get the logic. 

“Should I just send the merchant away?” Patrick asked. “There’s no need for you to go out of your way to meet with him.”

“It’s all right... Oh! But you should stay here and watch; I’ll give him a stern no.”

He’s probably just going to try and sell me something I don’t need, anyway. All I have to do is hear him out a bit and then staunchly refuse!

Our group composition decided, we entered the room where the merchant was waiting. He was a suspicious-looking man with a distinctive beard. As we eyed him, he stood up and grinned at us, then bowed his head.

“Thank you for your continued support,” he said, staring directly at Patrick. “I’m from the Arrei Trading Company.”

It didn’t surprise me to be overlooked—honestly, it happened pretty often. It was rare to find a female aristocrat who serves as head of her family in Valschein, let alone a countess like me. As a result, merchants often addressed men over women, and would focus their attention on Patrick when it came to initial greetings or topics of political nature. Some would refuse to speak to me at all at first, only changing their tune when it came to the topic of selling clothes and accessories.

Still, shouldn’t these people know that I’m the one in charge here...?

“I, Yumiella Dolkness, countess of this land, welcome you,” I said grandly, trying to drive through the fact that I was the one in charge here. “But, I must ask, isn’t it a bit strange to mention continued support when this is our first time meeting?”

“To be honest, Lady Countess,” he responded without flinching, “I said that because I have come to deliver something to Sir Patrick.” He then turned to my fiancé and bowed his head. “I apologize for the finishing touches taking some time.”

O-Oh, I thought, thoroughly embarrassed. So this guy actually came here to talk to Patrick. I can’t believe I just jumped all over him when he was only trying to introduce himself. I’m so paranoid...

“I’m sorry,” I said, wincing at the memory of my aggressive tone. “I didn’t realize you were here to see Patrick.”

“It is no problem; I actually think you both will be interested in what I brought with me today. Our company specializes in rare items taken from dungeons.”

I felt my heartstrings being tugged—I had never been so charmed by any of the other merchants that had stopped by. It made me a bit sad that I’d just declared that I wouldn’t be buying anything. Truly, that had been terrible timing.

I cast those feelings aside, though, and turned to Patrick. I couldn’t help but be curious over what he’d purchased when he’d done so from a shop that seemed practically made for me.

“Hey, Patrick,” I said, calling his attention to me. “What did you buy?”

There was a short pause. “You know, I don’t know,” he finally said.

Yeah, that’s a lie if I’ve ever heard one, I thought. He probably secretly bought some dungeon-made magical instrument or something. That merchant’s grin is proof... No, wait. He’s been smiling like that from the beginning...

“Shall I bring out the item later on then?” the man asked, his grin widening.

“Yes, thank you.”

And so that portion of the conversation ended, with no input from me.

I wonder what Patrick bought, I mused. It’s clear he’s trying to hide it from me. Could he have meant to surprise me with it? If that’s true, I hope it’s a set of brass knuckles. Feeling myself getting excited, I did the best to rein my emotions in. No, no, I can’t let myself get too worked up. My assumptions are usually way off. Plus, nothing has happened recently that’s worth celebrating, and we don’t have anything coming up either. Maybe I shouldn’t ask too many questions...it’s not like Patrick would buy anything dangerous. Heh heh, look at me, being a great girlfriend who understands her man’s hobbies.

Before my thoughts could derail any further, the merchant began to speak once more.

“I have to say, I’m surprised to see that Dolkness County has grown so incredibly that it’s become unrecognizable in such a short period. Especially when the Royal Capital has been slightly wild these days, and with all the areas nearby in a recession. All that to say, if I could get your permission to conduct business here for a bit, I would be extremely grateful.”

I took a moment to take all this information in. The merchant had spoken in such a rapid-fire pace that it felt like he’d hardly paused to breathe. Finally, I replied, “If you’d like to do business here, you’ll need to follow the official procedures like everyone else.”

“That is fine, of course,” the merchant said obediently. “I wouldn’t do anything to trouble you, Lady Countess.”

His hands had been moving as he spoke, lining up his wares on the table in front of him. Once they were all in place, he began explaining what they were, starting with the first item, which was a jar filled with white powder.

Oooh, this is getting fun! I thought. That’s gotta be something crazy!

“This is a sugar that won’t be absorbed by the body.”

I sighed, disappointed. “Oh, so it’s just sugar.”

“Not quite,” the merchant said brightly. “It’s just as sweet as regular sugar, but it has no nutritional value.”

“So...what’s the point of it?”

Glucose’s greatest value is that it allows the person who eats it to get energy quickly, I thought. If it can’t be absorbed by the body and has no calories, isn’t it just worthless?

It sounded like a rare item that no one would want, including me. For some reason, though, Patrick seemed to be interested.

“Wow, that must sell pretty well,” he commented.

“Indeed it does! It’s most often used by the daughters or wives of aristocrats. Of course, this purchase is kept confidential.”

I frowned. I don’t get it. Why is zero-calorie sugar selling well? Is it trendy to die from starvation while eating sweets? Yeah, you can count me out of a twisted trend like that. 

“I’m not interested,” I said.

“You wouldn’t need it,” Patrick said lightly.

That’s when it hit me. Oh, I see! It’s diet sugar! No wonder Patrick was looking at my body like that—my hitbox is pretty tiny. Wasn’t diet sugar a thing in my past life? I feel like there were products that were made of amino acids and stuff that were supposed to sweeten things...and didn’t they have zero calories too?

This sugar was growing less appealing to me by the minute. I didn’t want to lose weight—if anything, I wanted to gain it. If I could retain my current body shape but adjust my weight to about a ton, that would mean I could put more power behind my physical attacks and I wouldn’t be able to be thrown backwards—it would be nothing but positives.

Sensing he wasn’t going to make a sale here, the merchant quickly gave up on the sugar and moved on to introducing his next product.

“This is an age-reversing potion,” he said, showing us a jar filled with a green liquid.

Now that’s gotta be something wild! Let the fun times begin!

Eternal youth and eternal life were both things that people in power had time and time again sought after. It wouldn’t be surprising if people around the world went to war to possess an item like the one before us.

I leaned forward to look at the jar, and the merchant began to explain its contents in the same rapid-fire speech as he had the first.

“This potion is actually an antidote for poison, but if you apply it onto your skin, your skin will reverse in age. Any wrinkles or sagging will completely disappear. Oh, but the efficacy differs between those who use it, so please keep that in mind.”

My excitement immediately plummeted. It’s just some shady-sounding cosmetic item! 

My expectations, which had risen upon hearing this guy carried rare items from dungeons, evaporated. From what I could tell, they all seemed to be duds. I mean, sugar wasn’t even something you could get from a dungeon, and antidote potions weren’t rare at all!

“I’ll pass,” I said flatly. “I’m not really interested in these sorts of items. I think I’ve seen enou—”

“Wait! I have some weapons with me as well...”

This briefly recaught my attention. “If you have something like a dark-type sword or a wand that works with all elements, I’ll buy that.”

The merchant, who had been pulling out a dagger as I spoke, returned it to his luggage after hearing my words.

Unfortunately for him, I don’t really need a dagger for protection. I mean, it’s more effective for me to just punch people with my bare fists. 

“This isn’t really what I was expecting,” I admitted. “I thought you would carry things like accessories with effects that were good for battle.”

“Oh, well, there’s certain circumstances we’re dealing with regarding accessories,” the merchant said, looking over at Patrick.

Well, I don’t know why your accessories aren’t selling, mister merchant, I thought, but it’s time for you to go. 

I opened my mouth to ask him to leave, but then froze when one of his items caught my eye. It looked like a triton shell, and was sticking out of a case full of wares.

“What’s that?”

The merchant inclined his head. “Apologies, I brought this with me as a mistake. It is an item called a monster-summoning flute. Have you heard of them before?”

“Yes, I’ve had tons of help from one in the past,” I told him.

Just as the name suggested, a monster-summoning flute was a magical instrument that called all the monsters in the surrounding area to a single location. I’d often used one when I went out to grind experience.

But, could that item truly be—?!

“A monster-summoning flute...helped you...? Never mind. Anyway, this item here is a large monster-summoning flute. I purchased it because it was rare, but it turns out that there’s no use for it. It requires a large magic stone to work, so it can’t even be tested.”

“I’ll buy it at asking price!”

I have to have it, even if it costs me my life savings! I cannot let this moment go, brought to me as it was by the whims of fate!

Alas, my unwavering resolve was interrupted by my fiancé’s voice.

“Yumiella,” Patrick said firmly. “No.”

“But, Patrick! It’s so big!!! It must be really loud too!”

“And? You don’t need that thing—I can say that with full confidence.”

Ugh, why did I have to say I wouldn’t be buying anything today?! I don’t want to break my promise... Wait. I only promised not to for today, right? So wouldn’t I be able to get it tomorrow?

I calmed down, comforted by my perfect plan. All I had to do was continue to maintain my stance of not purchasing anything today, and then tomorrow I would just visit the merchant’s trading company to scoop up the flute I so desperately wanted.

“Fine...” I said with a mock sigh. “You’re right—I don’t need that flute. I think we’re done here for today.”

The merchant bowed respectfully. “If we ever come across good weapons or anything, I’ll come to you first. I hope for your support in the future as well.”

After that, the merchant promised to visit us again, then left with a slightly disappointed look on his face.

The moment the door closed, Patrick turned to me. “You can’t go buy it later either,” he shot out.

H-How in the world?! He saw right through my perfect plan! Shaken, I stared at him. I’m not going to get anywhere by just trying to sneak around him. I’ve got to keep my head high and fight him head-on if I want to convince him!

That still left one major question: how was I going to get Patrick to allow me to buy the large monster-summoning flute?

It’s probably best if I start off by thinking about things from his perspective, I decided. For example, what would I do if Ryuu was staring intently at a shiny gemstone and was refusing to move? And even when I told him he didn’t need it, he looked at me with watery, pleading eyes... How could I possibly deny him?! I’d have to buy the gemstone for him after that!

Newly resolved, I nodded to myself. My path to victory was clear—it was time to break out my pleading eyes! I screwed up my resolve and refused to let myself blink until my eyes grew teary, then gave Patrick my best puppy-dog look.

“I really can’t have it?” I whined.

“You can’t, even if you do glare at me.”

Patrick, I wasn’t glaring at all! I was giving you a cute, pleading look!!!

I let out a depressed sigh. My plan had utterly failed.

I suppose Ryuu is a pretty reasonable child, so he’s not a very good reference, I mused.

Still, using his example had made my current situation a bit more clear—I was a child begging for treats, and Patrick was my stern parent. All I had to do to succeed in my goal was act like a spoiled child.

I stood up and moved the sofa across from us to the corner of the room, then came back and retrieved the table as well.

“Hey, what are you trying to do now?” Patrick asked, still sitting.

Yes, just stay right there, Patrick. Stay in your VIP seat and fall right into my trap!

Now that the center of the room was clear of furniture, I walked into the empty space and lay on the ground. Facing upward, I began to thrash my arms and legs around.

“No, no, no!” I shrieked. “I want it, I want it, I want it!”

I looked over to Patrick, continuing to flap my limbs around, and found his face completely frozen. All signs of life had left his eyes, and he’d cringed deeply into his seat.

“Y-Yumiella...”

“No, no, no!” I screamed again.

My behavior may be shameful, but I’m making progress! Surely he will allow me to buy the flute in order to get me to stop behaving in such a disgraceful manner! I grinned internally. As long as I continue to destroy my own dignity, I’ll achieve my goal!

Thus, I continued my attack upon Patrick’s resolve for several minutes at extreme intensity. Patrick had maintained his silence the entire time, but now he leaned forward and began to speak.

“Yumiella...”

Has the moment finally arrived?! Is he giving in at last?!

“They’re watching, you know. Are you okay with that?”

“I want it, I want it, I want it!”

“And when I say they, I mean everyone.” Wearily, Patrick pointed to somewhere beyond my current ability to see.

Who cares about being watched! But, um...who’s “they”? And what does Patrick mean by “everyone”?

I rolled to the side, glancing where Patrick was pointing at. It ended up being the door to the room we were in, which had been opened without me realizing. The servants of the mansion were all crowded around the threshold, peering in from the hallway. Rita and Sara were there, as were Daemon and his fleet of clerks. I even saw the chef!

They probably heard me making a fuss and came to see what was going on, I thought, taking in their expressions. I couldn’t even come up with an adjective to describe the looks on all the servants’ faces.

Faced with such a large crowd, I stopped swinging my arms and legs around and stood right up as if nothing had happened. “Thank you for your hard work,” I said respectfully. “Please leave this to me and return to your stations.”

As they all gaped at me, frozen, I shut the door to the room in their faces. I left them not a moment to respond.

Turning back to Patrick, I moaned, “I wanna die...”

“You know, you could just go ahead and buy something just this once? You’d be using your own money, anyway...”

“I don’t want the flute anymore,” I said, pouting.

Humoring me, Patrick placed his hand on my shoulder and did his best to comfort away my shame.

Who needs an extra large monster-summoning flute! Instead, I need a time machine! If need be, I shall fight to return to the past! Although, I guess I’d accept a device that erases people’s memories as well...

◆◆◆

Following my tantrum incident, the slightly reserved attitude the servants had toward me changed. Their new level of kindness was pleasant, but I did wish they wouldn’t look at me like I was some pitiful, unfortunate child. It had gotten to the point that they were watching me play with Ryuu as if it was a heartwarming scene, and even sneaking me candy and telling me to keep it a secret from Patrick.

I’m a bit old for handouts like this, aren’t I? I thought to myself, popping yet another piece of candy into my mouth.

Honestly, I didn’t really get why the servants were acting the way they were. I decided to go ask Rita about it, since she’d stayed exactly the same after the incident, for better or worse. I’d actually hoped her intense loyalty to me would have dissipated a little after seeing me act so shamefully, but it didn’t seem to have affected her at all.

“What’s going on with the servants?” I asked her, taking a big bite out of bread filled with sweet cream as I spoke. “Giving me treats isn’t actually very helpful, to be honest.”

“Please swallow before you speak.”

“Hold on, I have five more to get throug— Oh, do you want one?”

Rita sighed. “No, thank you. I shall wait as long as you wish, however.”

Taking her at her word, I returned to my food. I scarfed it all down within a minute of her declaration that she was willing to wait, then came back at her with the same question I’d started off with.

“So, why is everyone being so kind to me?”

“It started after that thing that happened the other day. It seems watching you thrash around while lying on the floor was the final push they needed.”

“So that isn’t the only reason their attitudes changed?”

Rita shook her head. “It’s Sir Patrick’s doing. Whenever he has some time, he tells everyone stories about you. He’s been doing it ever since the two of you arrived here.”

I’d known Patrick had been having friendly chats with the servants, but I’d had no idea that they’d been talking about me. Patrick had done something similar before, back when we were still in school and others had suspected me of being the Demon Lord. He’d told Prince Edwin stories about me to try and change his mind.

I could understand Patrick’s intentions—he’d been going around and trying to clear up the various misunderstandings people had about me. I was truly grateful to him, but at the same time I felt pathetic being unable to communicate what kind of person I was to those around me on my own.

Still...if this current situation is Patrick’s doing, I guess I’m okay with it. 

Just as I came to that conclusion, two maids passed through the hallway in front of the room Rita and I were in. I couldn’t stop their conversation from reaching my ears.

“What?” one of them said, clearly aghast. “She broke a window and jumped out of it because she was embarrassed?”

“Apparently,” confirmed the second maid. “Things must be tough for Sir Patrick.”

“But, I don’t get it—is there even something more embarrassing than what she did the other day? I feel like she could do anything if she could do that.”

The second maid chuckled. “Well, I guess that’s just how Lady Yumiella is.”

All my shameful memories flashed by—the times I’d gone crashing through the window, the time I’d thrown a tantrum on the floor...

I’m not okay with this at all!!!

Subsumed in my despair, my mind searched for anything that could help me continue on.

Come to think of it, I haven’t ever had alcohol before, I thought. Perhaps it’s time to try something new. 

Suddenly desperate to try this mysterious liquid, I went off searching for Patrick.

Once I found him, I asked, “Have you ever had alcohol before?”

“Yeah, I hav—” His eyes narrowed. “Why are you asking me that all of a sudden?”

“I wanted to try some.”

A sharpness came over Patrick’s expression. “Okay, I’ll make preparations. We’ll have it tonight.”

And with that, he bustled away.

What does he need to prepare? All he has to do is buy the alcohol, right...?

◆◆◆

That night, Patrick led me out of the Dolkness mansion and into the streets of Dolkness Village. At first, I’d thought we were strolling around town since Patrick had made a reservation for us somewhere, but now it seemed we were headed to another location entirely.

“Hey, where are we headed?” I asked.

“Don’t worry about it,” Patrick replied, his tone more stern than usual. “Just follow me.”

Glancing over at me, Patrick held out his hand. I stared at it in confusion.

“I don’t have anything dangerous on me to give you,” I finally said.

I didn’t hear the entirety of Patrick’s response, as it was mumbled, but I did hear: “She would think...”

Despite our rather cryptic conversation, I gave in to Patrick’s lead. And so, we continued to walk under the night sky until we left Dolkness Village behind. Eventually, we ended up in a field lush with verdure; leagues of grassy blades grew from the earth, swaying in the wind. And there, in the midst of that field, was where Patrick was taking me.

“It’s so beautiful...” I murmured.

A round table and two chairs had been set up in the otherwise empty field. Atop the table sat a bottle being chilled with ice and some glasses, as well as several plates of hors d’oeuvres. Everything was shrouded in the light of the perfectly round moon and the multitude of stars which filled the sky around it. Everything looked dreamy, as if the rest of the world had been tucked behind a veil.

“It’s your first time drinking, so you must let me do at least this much for you,” Patrick told me.

It seemed my fiancé was a romantic through and through. I didn’t have a single romantic bone in my body, but I couldn’t help but feel...

My gaze, which had been fixed on the dreamy, ethereal table, shifted to Patrick.

He smiled at me—the kind smile that I loved—and said, “This way you don’t have to worry about breaking things even if you get drunk and go crazy.”

I’m sorry, what did you say...?

It took me a moment, but I pushed my slight feeling of affront aside in favor of continuing to enjoy the party Patrick had so lovingly prepared for us. He seemed a bit worried that I would be a bad drunk, but I didn’t think he needed to worry. Alcohol might be a drug, but I was someone who had a high resistance to such things. Honestly, I probably wouldn’t even be able to get drunk.

I sat down in one of the chairs at the table, then shrank back when Patrick handed me the thinnest of the various glassware on the table.

But I wanted to pretend I was an adventurer and use a pint glass that looks like a tiny wood barrel... I complained internally. Although, this is probably for the best. I heard beers and ales are bitter. 

Pulling the chilled bottle from the ice it was sitting in, Patrick held it in one hand while he began uncorking it with the other.

“What kind of alcohol is that?” I asked curiously.

“This is champagne,” he replied. “I thought we should go with it, since it’s easy to drink and it’s your first tim—”

Patrick’s voice cut off as I dived under the table. That was a close one! You should’ve warned me we were drinking champagne—I heard that when you uncork it, the cork flies out like a bullet and the contents burst out like a fountain! 

“What are you doing now, Yumiella?” Patrick asked in a long-suffering voice.

“Well, champagne is the one that explodes, right? Didn’t you learn in school to hide under your desk during earthquakes and when opening champagne?”

“I have to admit I did not,” he replied.

I heard a small pop go off above my head, and, feeling more sure of my safety, I cautiously crawled out from under the table. Patrick was just finishing pouring a liquid I assumed to be champagne into our glasses.

“I got too freaked out, didn’t I?”

“Yeah,” Patrick agreed. “I’m used to it by now, though.”

Oh, so there are other people who are scared of champagne too? The knowledge made me feel relieved—I’d had a relatively normal reaction after all.

I climbed back into my chair and observed the contents of the glass in front of me. The liquid inside was golden and glittered in the moonlight.

What a refined experience this is, I thought. Here I am, in this lovely, elegant spot, drinking a fancy drink with the man I like... Is this level of happiness allowed?

“All right then,” Patrick said, reaching out and grabbing his own glass. “Cheers, Yumiella.”

“Cheers,” I replied.

We brought our glasses together softly, as if for a gentle kiss, and their collision created a satisfying clinking sound.

Now, all that’s left to do is lift my glass to my lips, and pour the sweet liquid into my mout—

“O-Ough! Ough, eugh...”

I curled into myself, choking, trying to hold back the heaving coughs that left me gasping for air.

Patrick got up in a hurry and rushed to my side, rubbing my back to comfort me. When I’d gotten my breath back, he handed me his handkerchief.

Right, I can’t drink carbonated things, I thought, wiping my mouth. I forgot. 

“Are you all right?” Patrick asked worriedly. “If the alcohol is making you feel bad—”

“It’s not that,” I explained. “I just can’t drink bubbly things.”

Alas, my first memory of alcohol has been ruined by carbon dioxide. So...maybe I should get rid of it. 

Putting the coughing fit past me, I told Patrick I wanted to try a different kind of alcohol. He didn’t seem entirely sold on the idea.

“It’ll be all right!” I assured him. “Why don’t we do wine? It doesn’t have carbonation, right?!”

“Did you want to drink white wine, then?”

I shook my head. “I’d prefer red, please.”

I mean, how could I possibly go for a white wine for my first taste? It has to be red.

Patrick poured red wine into my glass, and the beautiful crimson liquid swished, sending a decadent floral scent wafting out.

All right, time to tip my glass and gulp down the enticing blood of the gods! It shall fill my body, and...

“Eugh.” My face completely scrunched up.

What even is this stuff?! It’s gotta have gone bad, right? There’s no way it’s supposed to taste so bitter and sour... I gazed at my glass, disappointed. Unfortunately, I am not rotten, nor do I have a taste for rotten things. 

“Are you sure this hasn’t gone bad?” I asked Patrick.

He gave me a slight smile. “Yeah, that’s just how it tastes. You should try drinking it while picking at some of the food.”

Patrick himself seemed to be leading me by example—he ate a bite of cheese as he finished off the wine in his glass. Obediently, I followed suit, but the taste didn’t change. Cheese and grape juice would have definitely tasted better.

Wine tastes better than potions, at least, I thought. Too bad it doesn’t refill your stamina or mana. 

I sighed. “Well, I guess I’ll go ahead and drink it if you want me to...”

Patrick’s brows scrunched together in disquiet. “I tried to pick brands that were easy to drink, but I guess they aren’t to your taste, huh? You should try the white wine—it’s smoother.”

I guess I should’ve chosen white after all, I lamented. I should’ve known not to trust the red when I realized it was room temperature...

Observing the white wine, I saw that it had a golden hue that was more muted than the champagne and smelled of fresh fruit.

I probably shouldn’t... I’m probably just not going to like it. But...I might as well give it a try! White wine is all about how it feels going down!

I grabbed my glass, then took a big gulp of the white wine. “Huh...?” I said, shocked. “I can actually drink this one.”

On top of that, it even tasted...good? Just to make sure, I slowly sipped on the remaining half of the pour. When I didn’t find that flavor objectionable, I threw a cracker with ham on it into my mouth, then took another sip.

“This might actually be good.”

Patrick grinned at me. “I’m glad to hear that.”

We said cheers once more, then settled into a comfortable silence as we emptied our glasses and nibbled on some more food.

I still wasn’t sure about what it felt like to be drunk—as best as I could tell, it seemed like my poison resistance was winning against the alcohol.

So much for my goal to get rid of some memories, I thought with a sigh. I guess I’ll just have to be satisfied with having an amazing time. 

Time passed pleasantly after that. I was soon asking Patrick for a third glass of wine, a proposition that seemed to give him some discomfort.

“It’s your first time, so why don’t we stop here?” he cajoled. “I brought some juice along as well.”

I shook my head. “It’s fine, I’m not drunk,” I insisted.

Patrick gave in and poured me another glass, though he seemed concerned. I couldn’t help but smile, watching him.

He’s such a worrywart, but I like that part of him too, I thought fondly. You know...this is kinda really fun. I’m getting excited!

“Heh heh heh...” I giggled. “Heyyy, Patrick.”

“What’s up?”

“Nothing. I just wanted to say your name.”

Maaan, I can’t believe I’m having such a good time! I feel all floaty, and uplifted...

I could feel the corners of my mouth turning up on their own. It appeared that my facial muscles had come back to life. I stared intently at Patrick, my lips curving into a full-on grin. His green eyes, when they met mine, seemed to ever so slightly reflect the light of the moon.

“It’s been...some time, since we’ve met,” Patrick said halting, averting his gaze from mine as if he was growing embarrassed.

“Yeah,” I agreed. “You know, I’m really happy I met you, Patrick.”

“I see... So, um, well.”

Patrick took out a small black box from his pocket. I stared fixedly at the palm-sized container, completely at a loss as to what could be inside. Patrick himself seemed unusually flustered—his gaze was shifting all over the place. Then, all of a sudden, he looked directly into my eyes, as if he’d resolved himself to do something.

He’s so cute when he’s nervous, I thought, little butterflies lighting in my stomach. Just looking into each other’s eyes like this is enough to make me happy. 

Something came over me then, and I blurted out the feelings I was normally too embarrassed to voice.

“Patrick, I love you.”

“Wha...” Clearly flustered, Patrick averted his eyes again.

Meanwhile, I was feeling euphoric. All I’d done was put my feelings into words, but it felt incredible. I started giggling madly, unable to hold my laughter back anymore. I even suggested Patrick join in.

Why not?! It’s fun!

“Are you drunk?” Patrick asked me, his face going serious.

“Not at all! I’m not drunk in the slightest! I’m just having some fun.”

“That’s what every drunk person says...”

“I know, right?” I giggled again. “It’s sooo disgraceful when people do that.”

I’d had plenty of experiences with drunks who couldn’t admit they were drunk.

Like, why can’t they look at themselves objectively? If their decision-making skills aren’t as good because of the alcohol, why can’t they just stop themselves before they get that trashed? They should at least know how much they’ve had to drink. I leaned forward, pouring myself another glass of wine. Huh, I wonder what number I’m on...

“So, what’s in that box?” I asked Patrick. “Is it snacks? A box of treats?”

“This is...”

“That’s so unfair! You were going to eat it by yourself, weren’t you?”

“Ugh, I’m just going to give up on this for today...”

Patrick pulled his arm back, as if to put the box away.

It only makes me more curious when you try and hide it like that! I reached out, trying to snatch the box out of Patrick’s hand, but found that my arm had gone in a different direction that I’d originally anticipated. Since when can Patrick create an afterimage of himself...? I wondered.

“Hey, where did—?”

“That’s enough alcohol, I think. Do you need water?”

My whole face scrunched up in resentment. “How dare you! You’re even going to take alcohol away from me?! Do you really hate me that much?!”

“Of course I don’t hate you,” Patrick said with a sigh, seeming deeply weary. “In fact, I like you.”

Heh heh heh, he said he likes me. I like you too, Patrick.

“How much do you like me then?” I demanded. “How big is your love?”

Patrick scrubbed his hand over his face. “You’ve gone past being cute and are just annoying now.”

H-He thinks I’m annoying? My eyes went watery out of nowhere, tear droplets spilling down into my wine glass.

“Do you...hate me?”

“I like you, Yumiella,” Patrick said, sighing again. “I like you, so please stop crying.”

“I-I’m such a troublesome woman, though... And the ones who say that are the worst of all, aren’t they?”

“I think your questions are more troublesome than you,” Patrick said softly, reaching out to caress my hand with his.

I turned my hand over and held his back, wanting to feel more of his warmth.

“You know,” Patrick continued, “it doesn’t need to be at this level of intensity, but it would be nice if you were more honest with your feelings on a regular basis.”

“But I’m acting the same as usual, though,” I said, confused. “Is something off?”

There was a short pause. Instead of answering my question, Patrick asked, “How do you feel about me?”

“I love you,” I said plainly.

Why would he ask me something so obvious? It’s not like I feel any different about him tonight than I normally do. 

Patrick raised his empty hand to his face, shielding it from me. “I’d like it if you could tell me that when you’re sober.”

“Sure...” I said with a shrug. “Anyway, isn’t it kind of painfully self-conscious of you to ask how I feel about you? How embarrassing... I like you, though, so it’s fine.”

“You sure did a one-eighty there...”

I went to pour myself another glass of wine, but Patrick had already caught the one hand I’d had free in his. I briefly considered insisting on drinking more, but quickly decided against it—holding hands with Patrick was much better. There was no doubt in my mind that it wasn’t the alcohol making me have an unbelievably fun time—it was the fact that I was with Patrick.

And so, we gazed at each other as time passed us by. Although neither of us spoke, the silence felt comfortable. The full moon continued to rise in the night sky, and when it finally reached its peak Patrick stood up.

“We should get going.”

I got up from my chair as well, and...

Huh? Why’s the ground shaking...?

I stumbled forward, almost falling, but Patrick caught me before I could hit the ground. It appeared that walking was going to be a problem.

“Carry me,” I demanded.

Seemingly unfazed, Patrick silently scooped me into his arms. I held on to him, my arms tight around his neck. Our faces were the closest they had been the entire night—there was only one thing left to do.

“Hey,” I said softly, bringing Patrick’s attention to me.

“What is it?” he asked. He shifted, bringing his face close to mine.

I tilted my head up, my eyes meeting Patrick. I leaned toward him, and...you know.

I couldn’t tell you how Patrick reacted after that—the second it was over, I fell asleep in his arms.

◆◆◆

My eyes flew open, revealing a familiar ceiling. I sat up, cradling my pounding head, and quickly realized I was in my bedroom.

“So, was all that a dream...?” I muttered to myself.

If it had been, it’d been quite an intense one. I’d shared my feelings about Patrick directly to his face, and then in the end I’d even gone in for a—

Something so unrealistic would never have happened. 

Even so, I thought my dream self was incredible. I knew that, no matter how intensely I thought something and directed it at someone else, it wouldn’t get through to them if I didn’t actually say it out loud.

I hope I can tell Patrick directly that I like him, just like I said I would in my dream. 

Just then, a knock came on my door.

“Are you awake, Yumiella?” asked the man I’d just been thinking of. “Can I come in?”

“Yeah! Come in.”

Having received my permission, Patrick went ahead and entered my bedroom, carrying a tray with a pitcher of water and a cup. Just the sight of him made me remember what had happened in my dream, which brought a flush to my cheeks.

“Do you remember what happened yesterday?” Patrick asked as he poured me some water.

“‘What happened yesterday’?” I asked, confused. “What are you talking about?”

Patrick waved a hand. “Never mind, it’s fine if you don’t remember.”

Huh...? So does that mean that my dream...wasn’t a dream? 

If my dream had been real, then I’d already made the mistake of saying I didn’t remember. Unwilling to contradict myself right away, I casually began trying to get some more details out of Patrick.

“Could you remind me of what we did yesterday?”

“We had some drinks together, then...” Patrick trailed off. “You really don’t remember?”

You’ve got to be kidding me! Everything that happened in my dream is totally real! Unconsciously, I glanced down at the clothes I was wearing, which turned out to be the same as the ones I’d worn the day before. Patrick, you didn’t even take the opportunity to get me undressed!

But now wasn’t the time to think of such things—I had to get everything else under control.

Without thinking, I started to lie and act like I didn’t remember. “Hmm... You know, I do feel like I’ve got a vague memory of that happening, but that’s all. Did I end up getting drunk and going crazy or anything?”

Patrick shook his head. “You just had one sip and fell asleep like you were passing out. You should probably avoid drinking from now on.”

It was everything I could do not to narrow my eyes at him. Patrick, you liar! Although, he’s lying out of kindness, isn’t he? So...why am I lying? Am I trying to run away and avoid telling him how I feel again? I just decided I wasn’t going to do that anymore!

Still, I wasn’t strong enough to tell him the truth. I just said, “All right, then. I won’t drink alcohol anymore.”

“Sounds good to me,” Patrick replied. I couldn’t quite tell if he’d actually believed my lies, or just chosen to take what I said at face value. “Anyway, you should get some more rest; you might not be fully recovered yet.”

After that, Patrick turned and headed for my bedroom door, evidently trying to leave. I got out of bed and followed him, which he only noticed once he was already halfway through the doorway. Turning fully back around, he tried to push the almost-shut door all the way open again, but I shoved it closed.

“Don’t go yet!” I yelled.

“You say that, but you certainly aren’t acting like you want me to stay!”

Now that we were talking through the closed door, I relaxed a little. Even if I couldn’t directly tell him how I felt while looking at him, having this one slab of wood between us made me feel like I could.

“Um... I...” My hand clenched tightly on the doorknob, ensuring the door wouldn’t open.

All I have to do now is say I like him. Looking back on it now, it feels like it took me an age to get here. But it’s time! Time to break through the door to my heart!

Just then, there was a loud snap.

“What was that...?” Patrick asked, confused.

“Oh, the doorknob just came off,” I said with forced casualness.

I looked down at my hands, staring at the broken doorknob still tucked in my grip, as the door slowly inched open.

You know, this isn’t what I meant when I said I was going to break through a door...

I wilted in despair. Now that I’d destroyed yet another part of the mansion, I was sure to be scolded by Patrick again. The atmosphere for telling him my feelings had been completely destroyed.

Patrick, who could now see the damage I’d done to the door, let out a long sigh. “How hard did you twist the doorknob to make it turn out like this? This is the kind of stuff that piles up and leads to all the people around you being afraid of—”

“I know, I’m sorry,” I said, staring penitently down at the floor.

Out of the corner of my eyes, I could see some servants staring at us as they passed by in the hall. I could practically hear them thinking, Looks like she’s gone and done it again... In the past, that would have hurt me, but by this point I’d grown used to it.

I let my gaze wander, as silence spooled out between us, and my eyes eventually fell on Patrick’s shirt pocket. There was a square lump in it.

Is that...the small box he took out and immediately put away yesterday? I wondered. Well, now I’m curious. And that means no holding back!

“That,” I said abruptly, pointing at Patrick’s chest.

“What? I’m not done talkin—”

“That’s the box from yesterday, right?”

“W-Well...”

Whoa, I thought, staring at Patrick’s visibly flustered face. I’m not sure what triggered that reaction, but I bet if I keep pushing, I’ll be able to figure out what’s in the box and he’ll forget to finish lecturing me!

It was an excellent chance for me to kill two birds with one stone, and there was no way I was going to let it pass me by. I decided to just go for it.

“I might be dense, Patrick,” I said in my version of a condescending tone, “but did you really think I wouldn’t figure out what’s in there?” I jabbed a finger in his direction, indicating his shirt pocket. “Enough already—take out the box.”

“So you already knew, huh?” Patrick said, letting out a weary laugh. “I guess you’re right; there’s no point in trying to prolong things.”

With a long, crestfallen sigh, he began pulling the small black box out of his pocket. Even down to the last second, I was wondering what was in it. My last guess was brass knuckles, because of its size. But then, Patrick at last revealed the box’s contents—a ring. It was silver, with a clear gemstone set in the top.

Why a ring? I thought to myself, confused.

As I stared at Patrick in bafflement, he pulled it out of the box and slid it on one of my fingers.

Wow, it’s so pretty, I thought. The gemstone on the ring was even clearer than a glass bead—if I didn’t look closely, it almost blended into the background. Oh, I know what this is! It’s a diamond!

Just to make sure, I turned to Patrick and asked, “This is a diamond...right?”

But he shook his head. “Nope. You said you didn’t need a gemstone, so I immediately had something else prepared.”

“Did I really say that?” I asked after thinking for a moment.

“Yumiella...” Patrick groaned. “You really are something...” Chuckling, he brushed my reaction off with an, “Oh, well,” and moved on to explaining what his gift was. “This is a specialized ring that can store magical energy. Remember that shady merchant? The one who tried to sell you the monster-summoning flute? I bought it from him.”

So he bought it from that merchant, I thought. I see. If it can store magical energy, I could use it in an emergency and cast spells. That’s very—

“I can’t imagine a situation where you’d run out of mana,” Patrick said, cutting into my thoughts, “but it’s not like it’s totally useless. So, um...I hope you like it.”

“Thank you, Patrick!”

Elated at the best present ever, I leapt forward, hugging him without thinking. As I latched on to his side, he turned his face away in embarrassment. It seemed at the end of the day, Patrick was a bit shy as well.

A few moments later, I put some distance between us and declared, “I’ll try putting some magical energy into it.”

Once I got started, I went slowly and only put in a little at a time, being careful not to break the ring. After I’d filtered a good deal of my dark magical energy into it, the clear gem began to shine in an ominous black hue. It looked like a cursed item that would destroy the world.

Patrick and I stared in shock at the shining stone, which had taken on the appearance of an agent of chaos that would awaken a person to their deep, dark desires. Both of us had been left completely speechless.

If this is what my magical energy is like, what sort of monster am I?!

“Maybe it would be better to put your magical energy in this, Patrick,” I suggested after a pause. “You know, since it’s a gift from you.”

“Yeah...” he agreed.

He went ahead and filled the ring with his wind magical energy, which made the gemstone shine green like an emerald. It was reminiscent of his eyes and absolutely lovely.

I let out a sigh of relief. It had ended up looking pretty, thankfully. All’s well that ends well, I guess!

“Thank you, Patrick! It’s so nice to get a gift for no reason at all. I’ll eventually surprise you with something too!”

Although, I guess it won’t be a surprise if I’m telling him I’m doing it...

“For...no reason?” Patrick mumbled.

“Huh? Well, it’s not my birthday, and it’s not an anniversary or anything, right?”

“Ah, shoot! Yumiella, will you marry— Actually, saying it now is probably...”

“Mar” I wondered. “Mar” what?

The answer didn’t seem like it would be coming to me anytime soon, so I happily then turned my attention to the stone on my left ring finger instead. Patrick, meanwhile, was groaning and shaking, almost as if he were in pain.

You good, Patrick...?

◆◆◆

The rest of the day, I was buoyed up by the happiness of receiving Patrick’s surprise gift. The fact that he’d given me something was nice on its own, but he’d given me something useful on top of that! The fact that it was ring-shaped was yet another boon, as I could carry my new magical instrument around easily in case I needed to use it as a source of magical energy in an emergency.

Happily ensconced in my office, I stared at the ring where it glistened on my left ring finger.

Hmm...I feel like there’s a meaning behind wearing a ring on that finger... I thought, but I didn’t dwell on it for too long. I doubt Patrick thought that deeply over which finger he put the ring on, anyway. Men don’t seem like they really get interested in that sort of stuff.

Focusing back on the paperwork in front of me, I let my mind wander over what I should do to thank Patrick for his thoughtfulness. Since his gift was a surprise, I wanted to surprise him as well.

What would he want...? I wondered. Maybe it would be better to throw him an event instead of getting him something. Like...a surprise party? Is there even something for us to celebrate? Wait, there totally is! All right, it’s decided then!

After that, I turned my attention fully to my work, and completed all my tasks for the day within a few hours. Daemon was still in the office with me, so I decided to go ahead and get his advice on the event I’d decided to throw for Patrick.

“Um, Daemon? I have something important I wanted to ask you about...”

My deputy turned to look more closely at me. “Should I call Sir Patrick over as well?”

I shook my head violently. That was the opposite of what I wanted, since I was trying to keep this whole thing a secret.

Basically, I wanted to use this party as a venue to congratulate Patrick on reaching level 99. I wasn’t sure of his exact level since we hadn’t done an assessment in a while, but I was pretty sure he’d get there in the next few months. I figured a surprise party would be a pretty good way to thank him for my ring, and since I wanted him to be as shocked as I’d been, I really wanted it to be kept secret until the very last moment.

“Patrick can’t know,” I stressed. “I’ll tell him myself.”

“Okay...” Daemon said slowly, sighing in confusion. “So, what is it you wanted to ask me about?”

“Um, it’s about a party, or like, an event to celebrate something...” I said in a quiet voice. I had to be careful—I didn’t know where Patrick would possibly be listening in from.

Daemon still seemed baffled by what I was saying, at least until he saw my left hand. “Oh! I see,” he said, eyes brightening with understanding and his tone taking on a tinge of excitement. “Celebrations are in order, indeed! Please tell Sir Patrick yourself, Lady Yumiella.”

“Right?” I said, leaning forward in my chair. “Don’t you think it’ll be happening soon?”

“I was on the edge of my seat wondering when it would happen!”

Internally, I was beaming. Daemon was a skilled worker, so he’d understood what I was going for without me hardly saying a thing. It was absolutely incredible how he could figure out that I was throwing a surprise party just by looking at the ring Patrick had given me! And for him to be so excited over Patrick reaching level 99 as well... It was clear I’d been right in thinking that reaching the maximum level was something that should be celebrated.

In order to both organize my thoughts and confirm what we needed, I decided to bounce my thoughts off of Daemon. “First, we’ll need to prepare a venue, right?”

My deputy nodded. “Would you like to do it in the county, or in the Royal Capital?”

“Here is fine.”

“Understood. I’m sure the people of the county will be happy as well.”

Would they? I wondered. I found the sentiment a bit strange, but decided to just continue on with my questions.

“Is there anything else that needs to be prepared?”

“If it’s something that you might be particular about...” Daemon said thoughtfully. “Perhaps the cake?”

“Yeah, we’ll definitely need a cake,” I agreed.

Daemon nodded. “Then I shall prepare one as large and extravagant as possible.”

Excellent! I thought. After all, no celebration would be complete without cake! Oh, I never should have doubted Daemon—it’s obvious we’re on totally the same page.

Now all that was left to decide was who to invite. The people working at the Dolkness mansion were definitely invited, so all I had to do was figure out who else should come.

“Who do you think we should invite?” I asked Daemon.

“Well, Sir Patrick’s parents of course, as well as His and Her Majesty.”

“What?! Even the king?”

Daemon nodded with the utmost seriousness. “Of course, this is a ceremony that has to do with the future of the kingdom.”

Calling it a ceremony makes it sound like a big deal, but I guess it’s true that there isn’t really anyone else around that’s reached level 99 other than me. The king can’t exactly disregard Patrick once he’s as strong as I am... It appears this event is going to become quite the production.

To tell the truth, things didn’t sound like they were going to turn out exactly like I’d had in mind, but I wasn’t too bothered by that.

“We’ll need outfits as well,” Daemon suddenly said. “We’ll have a wonderful dress prepared for you, Lady Yumiella. I’m sure you’ll look lovely.”

“You want me to wear a dress?”

Daemon nodded. “You’re the star of the event, so it’s only natural.”

“But...isn’t Patrick the star here?”

“You are too, Lady Yumiella,” Daemon explained. “This will be an event for the both of you.”

Right, I guess I am level 99 as well... Daemon must be thinking of celebrating with Patrick. That must have been where that strange feeling I got came from earlier. Do I really have to wear a dress, though? I don’t wanna...

“Is the dress necessary?” I asked Daemon, giving him my best pleading look.

“Of course it is!” he chided me, dashing my hopes. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime event! You don’t want to think back in the future and have any regrets.”

I mean, reaching level 99 is a once-in-a-lifetime event, I thought, but I got there ages ago! Why do I have to wear a dress now...?

After mopping internally, I finally said, “I don’t want anything too flashy.”

“I think we should go with a pure white dress that uses an abundance of lace,” Daemon said, an odd level of intensity on his face. “It might be a bit flashy, but I believe its angelic purity will outweigh that.”

White?! Did Daemon just say a white dress?! If I wear white, then...I’m going to have to be super careful not to spill any food! I won’t even be able to properly eat because I’ll be too worried about staining the dress. Well, maybe the cake will be the same white as the dress. I could probably spill some crumbs then and still be fine. I’ll just have to be careful of stain-inducing foods like spaghetti or curry udon. Oh, and wait—I wonder if we’ll need sashes that say we’re the stars of the event! Patrick might not like that, though, so maybe we should hold off...

As my thoughts continued to wander, Daemon began to tear up. “I was worried about when it would happen,” he said, voice choking up. “But now I’m truly overjoyed.”

I gave him a sideways look. “Is it really something to be that happy about?”

“Yes!” he insisted. “Now the Dolkness family will become more stable, and continue to prosper. That ring also looks very good on you.”

It made sense that things would become more stable with two people who were level 99, but two was too little. It would be great if more people would awaken to the wonders of level grinding. Since he was here in front of me, I might as well start with Daemon. He was a bit older, but age didn’t matter when it came to leveling.

“Maybe you’ll be next after Patrick and I,” I said thoughtfully.

Daemon reared back. “What? Mine was not so grand, but it happened long ago...”

Wait, Daemon is level 99?!

“What?! Really?!” I shouted back, shocked.

“Yes,” he said, nodding. “I have a wife who supports me from behind the scenes, so I am quite happy with what I’ve already got.”

Ah, I see, I thought. He just meant that he was happy at his current level. I guess if you consider his work, he doesn’t really need to level up that high. On a separate note, though, why is he suddenly boasting about his wife...?

I wanted to get back to filling out the details of the plan, but Daemon refused to let me help any further. He told me quite firmly to leave the rest to him.

“I’ll let all the servants know right away and we’ll start preparations,” he finished.

“Thank you. I’d like to let Patrick know myself, so—”

“We’ll impose a gag order. I’m sure if we explain the situation everyone will cooperate.”

I nodded in appreciation. “For the timing then...I think in about six months would be good?”

“That would be around winter then,” Daemon said thoughtfully. “I think the period after the Foundation Festival would be perfect.”

I bowed my head one more time to thank him, and our discussion of the party to celebrate Patrick reaching level 99 was over. That day, Daemon and I had both thought we were on the same page, discussing the same event—there could be no doubt about that, at the very least.