For nearly a week after the unexpectedly eventful tea time with Whitney, Meredia had been on edge, filled with irritation and displeasure.
It wasn't just because of Whitney's ambiguous marriage proposal, but also due to another incident that got under her skin.
That's why, until just a few minutes ago, when she personally arrived at the Count's estate, Meredia exuded such an intense aura that the maids who welcomed her could barely pour tea properly.
"It's been a week since I last saw you in person, Lady Meredia."
Just as she was about to take a sip of the precariously poured tea, Whitney entered the garden with his usual unreadable smile and leisurely gait, sitting across from her.
"If you had informed me of your visit in advance, I would have given you a more proper welcome."
"Ha."
Right beside him, as if it were the most natural thing, stood a young girl, causing Meredia to let out a hollow laugh, momentarily forgetting her anger.
"You really have a talent for surprises."
Though she was dressed in a convincingly proper maid outfit, Meredia immediately recognized the girl standing close to Whitney.
Runiel Mistilane. The youngest Gold-ranked knight apprentice and the winner of the 83rd Imperial Youth Swordsmanship Tournament, a competition filled with formidable contenders, including the imperial prince and the eldest son of Duke Embergreen.
However, due to an unfortunate incident during the knighthood ceremony, she had fallen overnight from a rising star to the tragic subject of imperial gossip.
Yet, the girl standing next to Whitney now bore none of the despair captured in the newspapers.
"I thought you had some twisted hobby of buying fallen nobles to use as slaves, but this is even worse."
From afar, Meredia had her suspicions, but now that they were closer, she could clearly sense the resonance between their mana.
The intensity of the resonance suggested that Whitney had performed more than just one type of ritual, but the important part was that the once prodigious swordswoman Runiel had regained her mana.
And more significantly, she was sincerely loyal to Whitney.
A 'vow' could not be coerced or tricked, meaning it was undoubtedly Whitney himself who had restored her mana.
"I'll give you credit. Whitney Lingard, you truly are quite capable."
As that realization settled in, the irritation that had built up over the past week slowly gave way to curiosity.
Had he not crossed the line with that marriage proposal, she might have found his unpredictability more fascinating than infuriating from the start.
"As I said before, if we can find common ground, we could be excellent partners."
Moreover, if an unexpected turn of events could work in her favor, Meredia was inclined to be quite generous.
"However, I can't just let this situation slide."
"Huh?"
But Meredia's judgment on whether the man before her would be an asset had not yet concluded.
"I distinctly requested a private meeting with you."
"Ah, well…."
"And yet, you dare bring a bodyguard—no, a sworn knight, at that?"
The very reason she had arrived unannounced at the Count's estate was to determine this for herself.
"Not to mention, you proposed to me just a week ago?"
In an instant, a suffocating pressure descended upon Whitney and Runiel.
— Rumble…
Meredia had merely released a fraction of her suppressed mana, yet no one in the garden could remain standing properly.
"Hmm, this seems to be a misunderstanding…."
"No, that's not the point."
Whitney alone, sitting in front of her, maintained his balance, albeit with a troubled expression.
"The important thing is that I feel insulted."
"Ahaha…."
As Meredia narrowed her eyes and whispered coldly, even Whitney could only offer an awkward smile before falling silent.
"And so…."
Even as she subtly raised her assessment of Whitney for withstanding her pressure head-on, Meredia prepared to increase the intensity further to uncover his true intentions.
— Crack…
At that moment, Runiel, who had been wavering beside Whitney, suddenly clenched her teeth and fixed a fierce gaze upon Meredia.
"Withdraw your presence."
In the next instant, she grabbed a knife from the tea table and, in the blink of an eye, aimed it at Meredia's throat.
A deathly silence fell over the garden.
"Oh?"
The unfortunate maids, caught in the middle of this escalating disaster, paled and shut their eyes tightly.
However, Meredia herself simply curved her lips into a smile, gazing at the girl who had just pointed a weapon at her.
"You can still move under these conditions?"
"Kh…."
"Your body doesn't seem fully recovered, yet you're quite impressive."
As she tilted her head slightly and spoke in a low voice, cold sweat formed on Runiel's forehead, even as she kept her blade at Meredia's throat.
"I remember watching you utterly crush my brother's pride in that tournament. It was quite the spectacle."
Despite Runiel's refusal to lower her weapon, Meredia's smile deepened as she murmured in a gentle voice,
"Have you considered becoming one of my subordinates?"
"I refuse."
"Ha!"
The instant Runiel gave her immediate answer, Meredia's lips curled all the way up to her ears.
"You'll regret it."
"That's for me to decide."
At that moment, the atmosphere in the garden was hurtling toward an unpredictable climax.
"Miss Runiel, and Lady Meredia."
Just then, Whitney, who had been silently observing the situation, suddenly grabbed Runiel's arm and spoke.
"Let's stop here."
At his words, everyone's gaze, including Meredia's and Runiel's, focused on him, and an eerie silence filled the garden.
"If something were to happen, it would be a disaster, wouldn't it?"
Only Whitney, inappropriately cheerful for the situation, tried to soothe the two as if placating them.
***
'What the hell is this mess?'
Even though I had barely managed to speak up in the suffocating atmosphere, my hands were still trembling uncontrollably.
'To think things escalated this much while I was unconscious for a moment.'
The moment I opened my eyes after fainting from Meredia's murderous aura, I was greeted with a spine-chilling scene. It would be strange if my hands weren't shaking.
Even though I had internally chanted a white magic spell to amplify my mental strength, it had ultimately been insufficient to prevent me from passing out.
Had I been standing, I would likely be sprawled on the ground like the maids by now.
But no matter how tense the situation was, I had to prevent things from spiraling further out of control.
"Miss Runiel, please go inside the mansion and rest. I'll continue my conversation with Lady Meredia."
If a slaughter were to break out in the garden, the poor maids would just end up with more work.
"Understood."
Thankfully, despite the suffocating killing intent, Runiel, who had been holding a knife to Meredia's throat, obediently withdrew at my words.
She gave me a slight nod before walking quietly toward the mansion, her posture noticeably drooping.
She looked pitiful, like a hunting dog that had disappointed its master, but there was no way a dull tea knife to the throat could restrain Meredia.
Besides, my purpose for bringing Runiel here in the first place had already been achieved, so there was no need to further provoke Meredia.
"Lady Meredia, could you also withdraw your killing intent?"
"Is that an order?"
Alright, now it was time to talk my way out of this.
With nothing else at my disposal, my mouth was my most effective survival tool.
"How could I possibly order you? I only wish to clear up some unnecessary misunderstandings."
"Is that so?"
At those words, Meredia tilted her head slightly, and the overwhelming pressure in the garden eased just a little.
"Then explain yourself."
As I took a moment to wipe the cold sweat from my forehead with my sleeve, she fixed her gaze on me, her voice carrying an icy command.
Her expression remained as chilling as ever, but the faint gleam in her gemstone-like eyes was, at least, a hopeful sign.
According to the knowledge I had accumulated as a former gamer, that gleam indicated that Meredia was more intrigued than enraged.
And that was the only lifeline I had to escape this situation.
"First of all, I had no intention of threatening you, Lady Meredia. Even if every person in this mansion were to attack you at once, you might be in trouble, but I doubt they'd be a real threat to you."
"Hmm."
"And if Runiel's presence offended you, I apologize, but if I had any ulterior motives toward you, I wouldn't have brought her in front of you so openly."
Meredia's ruthless nature was well known, but few understood that she actually enjoyed unexpected situations and challenges.
Having grown up obtaining everything she desired, she found straightforward and easily readable people dull, and she despised those who feared her.
"I merely wanted to demonstrate how useful I could be to you, Lady Meredia."
"..."
"Runiel has already sworn loyalty to me, so she can never become your sword, but if we join forces, she can still be a valuable ally."
The very reason I had brought Runiel here was precisely for this.
Ideally, I would have preferred to keep her a secret, but if I was going to be in the same boat as Meredia, Runiel would eventually have to reveal herself to her.
And if that was inevitable, it was best to use her presence as a diversion to redirect Meredia's irritation.
Of course, that gamble had nearly resulted in the garden being drenched in blood, but risks were a part of any bet.
"You're conveniently leaving out the fact that you've accomplished something unprecedented—restoring a shattered mana circuit."
But it seemed Meredia was more focused on me rather than Runiel.
"Haha, well, that's something you could achieve with a bit of research yourself, Lady Meredia."
"Don't joke. If word of this got out, the entire magic academia would be in an uproar."
I had simply copied the Emperor's ritual from the game's lore.
If Meredia, who had studied mana theory since she was five, started questioning me about the ritual, it would only be a matter of time before she uncovered the truth.
"Alright, I'll speak plainly from now on. I want to join hands with you, and I'm willing to meet most of your demands."
"I'm glad we share the same thoughts."
To my immense relief, it was Meredia who shifted the conversation first.
"But tell me, what the hell is with that damn marriage proposal?"
She had been speaking in a much calmer tone than before, but the moment she asked the question, her expression turned genuinely curious.
That was when I finally realized it.
"Are you seriously considering marriage with me as your goal?"
The biggest reason she had come all the way here was to ask that question.
"Of course, I was so captivated by your beauty at first sight that I simply had to propose—"
—Hoooom…
"…Just kidding. I only did it because it was the easiest way to deceive others."
Sensing that we were finally getting to the heart of the matter, I had attempted to lighten the mood with flattery.
However, the instant Meredia's gaze turned icy, I swiftly changed course and launched into the explanation I had prepared in advance.
"I heard you've been under a lot of stress lately regarding marriage and proposals. Of course, no man would ever be worthy of someone like you, but…"
"Get to the point."
"…Your goal is to become the head of your house, correct?"
That was what I said, but in truth, even the game never fully revealed her true objective.
In most routes, stopping her from becoming the final boss was the primary focus of the story, and even in a game-over scenario, there was never a clear answer about what happened next.
"For now, let's say that's correct."
As expected, Meredia gave an ambiguous response.
That was somewhat disappointing, but I had never expected to uncover her true goal so easily anyway.
Besides, that wasn't what was important right now.
"In that case, I will serve as your shield."
"And what exactly do you mean by that?"
For the sake of my crumbling family, for my younger sibling's bright future, and above all, for my own survival—
I was about to propose something that no player had ever attempted before.
Or rather, something that no one had ever been able to attempt.
"Starting from this very moment, for as long as you wish."
And perhaps this proposal would shake not just Meredia's fate but the entire world's timeline.
"I will marry you and become the son-in-law of the duchy."
Of course, that was only if Meredia didn't kill me on the spot after hearing those words.