Erselica came out into the hallway with Diana. They were both breathing heavily.

Diana seemed to be losing her composure from the shock that Sara really hated her.

She pressed her chest and groaned at what had just happened.

"What is it with that woman? Even though she's the villainess... even though she's the one to blame for tormenting us until now, she dared to act like the victim."

Erselica asked Diana.

"Let's leave her with my older brother. More importantly, about Jude. He seems to be very dangerous, have you checked Lucy properly?"

Diana replied in agitation.

"I-I did! I also met with my sister directly! My sister herself said she was fine, and Jude said the collar is for her safety!"

Erselica looked at Diana's behavior and judged it to be useless.

(This girl, she was completely fobbed off with those words.)

Diana could not see through Jude's true nature.

Jude was also acting as someone harmless in front of Diana.

(So Jude can easily fool Diana when he gets serious. Hm? Wait, necklace? I think there was an event when someone brought a necklace--- ah!!!!)

Erselica told Diana that the situation right now was really bad.

"Necklace. That's right, it's the bad end necklace! It's dangerous if Jude pulled out the necklace. You know that too don't you? We can't leave things like this, so work with us."

Diana looked at Erselica when she said that.

"Even Jude wouldn't have put a collar on my sister if you guys hadn't done anything unnecessary. I had no choice but to put the collar on my sister to protect her from you guys."

"Haaa!!!? The collar was already on her when my brother went to save her. ──Wait. you played the game route correctly right? You've seen Jude's bad ending, right!!!?"

Erselica has a bad premonition.

(Maybe Diana's knowledge about the bad ending of the routes in the game? What if it was actually half-baked or she forgot about certain events?) She had this feeling.

And that feeling hit right on target.

Diana averted her eyes from Erselica as she muttered.

"I've never seen one! The guide on the forums said that flirting with two people at once is dangerous, so I avoided doing it in the game."

During the development of that otome game, the programmers thought of a way to punish players who want to go overboard and date two guys or more.

They used testers and found it distasteful not to be able to do that. It was already programmed, they couldn't abandon several days of work just like that, so they chose to insert it in the possible sequel they introduced in that RPG game.

In the end it was a success too, nobody expected that, in the internet forums there were several hypotheses that none of them was correct, the bad ending would be waiting if the player would flirt with two people at the same time.

Originally the one who wears the necklace was Randolf, who stole it from the Banfield Household after almost murdering Cliff to enslave Lucy and thus, be able to destroy Aster, but... in Jude's route, he would take out the necklace if he saw a dangerous sign in his relationship with Lucy.

Jude would never allow Lucy to be stolen by another. Even in the happy ending the other targets with the exception of Liam, never came back out.

There was one user who theorized that Jude eliminated them, but there was no evidence to support that. Still, Jude was the most popular character, for women clearly.

"I-Idiot! If the necklace Jude took out is a special item, that'll be a straight line to the bad end!"

"... Huh?"

Diana looked like she really didn't know anything.

"You said you saw the real ending, right?"

The true ending that could be said to be the true ending. Diana said she had seen it. But she averted her gaze from Erselica.

"I-I progressed through the game by following the in-game guide, there were a lot of things that bored me through Lugh's route so I didn't really care much about the story, I used a guide from a friend, so I didn't see the bad endings."

Erselica held her head in frustration.

"Stupiiiiiiiid!!! At this rate, things will go straight to the bad ending!"

"W-Why, I don't want to see something like that as a bad ending! Besides, it seemed like things were going well!"

"Forget it, you'll work together with us. Shit. Shit, shit, shit, I need to tell my brother! At this rate, Lucy will be──"

Diana felt uncomfortable seeing how terrified Erselica was.

"I-is it really that bad?"

"At this rate, Jude is going to lock Lucy up! If things go the way they did in the game, there'll be no love between the two of them. That's why the guardian won't be born, Lucy will be eaten by the tree to protect her, and Aster will be destroyed. The end of everyone's death is almost here!"

"That's not good at all!"

Erselica was irritated by Diana's reaction.

(This girl, she doesn't care about Lucy! No, did she ever really care about her? It's unbelievable that we're back to the same situation as last year.)

Erselica trembled as the situation was almost identical when she pretended to be the saint. If the Kingdom was heading to its bad end, Aster was already in check, only two pieces left to move for the real bad end.

"Anyway!"

"Work together with us. Jude right now is dangerous."

Diana looked down.

◇◇◇

As Erselica led Diana back the way they came, they were watched by someone.

"What could be going on?"

That figure watched them walk away. But it returned its gaze to Jude who was hugging Lucy affectionately.

"Just as it should be in the game."

◇

I was inside the room with Sara. I was hugging her because of how upset she was.

She was struggling and crying at the moment. But now she had calmed down.

But now she had calmed down.

I asked her. "Was what Vermillion Household did to you so painful that you can't help but hate them, including the last survivors?"

She hugged me too to release her pain.

Sara talked about the past little by little.

"... You see, there was an engagement conversation between my younger brother Romeo and Lucy. Besides, it was the Vermillion Household who suggested it."

"So there was something like that."

"It was a stupid story. Originally, my father should have been the one chosen as the guardian. And yet, they acted as if they had done nothing wrong and said they needed the Rosenberg Household's strength."

It seemed that something happened in the past. Ixion summarized the story to make it easier for me to understand.

The priestess, who broke off her engagement with Randolf in the past, blatantly mentioned an engagement conversation between her daughter and Randolf's son. Well, it could be the result of an effort on each side to let bygones be bygones in the next generation.

If Romeo of Rosenberg Household were to marry Lucy and become the guardian, then it would also be beneficial to Rosenberg Household.

But Sara couldn't seem to accept that.

"The day Romeo went to his territory for a playdate, he became mysteriously ill on his return. It was nothing serious, but he was screaming at night for several days. After that, the previous priestess and the previous guardian canceled the engagement for no reason. They sent a representative to tell us and that was it."

That was certainly a rude attitude.

Maybe there was a circumstance in Aster at that time?

"I understand, but that's all you hate them so much for? I'm a person who should hate certain people deeply, but I forgot what they did to me already."

"I wish it was just a temper tantrum. This happened a little later. Vermillion Household then asked us to go get the sapling, not just us, all the houses sent knights. Back then Jaegerjack was around, do you remember him?"

"Yes. How can we forget such a hideous monster. It almost killed us."

"Well, we were understaffed that day because of the Republic invasion. Baltort was sent and we had almost no knights to play leader, so, that idiot raised his hand."

"By that idiot, you mean Aster's Rudel don't you?"

"Yes."

"Is it normal to send a representative for that sort of thing?"

"Sometimes it happened if there was a reason, but that idiot was neither a good knight nor much less one with combat experience, he was just a fool who was lucky to never wield the sword. But you know what he told me that day?"

Sara looked at me sadly.

She said. "The sapling is important to this country, as a legal immigrant, I don't understand why they want a plant so badly, but, my little Sara-chan is a noble who needs that plant, I will bring it to her as a gift for her birthday."

Her eyes began to cry loudly.

"... That day, they were attacked by that monster, but... but... the only one to die was him! It ignored the other knights and only focused on Rudel!"

"...!"

It ignored everyone, but only focused on him?

Come to think of it, when we fought that thing, it only focused on attacking me and ignoring the others. Am I so ugly that I was the perfect target or what?

"A messenger came to tell us, they brought his body and my father asked me not to look at it, but I didn't listen him. He was broken in half with several bruises on his body... that idiot, they said he tried to defend them all. What an idiot, you were always a cowardly liar and tried to play the hero to show me off... really, I hate that you thought of what would make me happy instead of your own life."

"He was a knight, but they recognized him as a hero since thanks to him, many were saved. The other houses sent their heir as a minimum to participate in the burial. And yet they to a representative."

From what I heard, Vermillion Household was really horrible too, wasn't it? Their attitude toward the Rosenberg Household was too pitiful.

They were on the side of justice in the game, right? So why did they act like that?

Sara was really sore. She hated Vermillion Household not for Romeo, but for indirectly taking away her special someone. I guess, it's a way of expressing her pain. Something like this was normal in my previous life, even Erselica blamed my death on herself.

If I think about it in fact, the Vermillion Household did horrible things to her father, younger brother and most of all to her special one.

What did they want the sapling for anyway?

"Sara, forgive me, but was there any need to have the sapling with such importance?"

"I-I don't know, the search for the sapling was a normal thing, but they were very desperate. The weird thing is that there was a theory of where there might be one, it was that map I gave you. That monster was just hanging around, but no one could get near it."

"Mind you, they temporarily ceased the search and stopped appearing in front of everyone. After a while that incident occurred."

The event that marked the beginning of the game. The Vermillion Household fire.

Sara said. "My father came back that night different, we never asked him why he did it, he would just stand near a window and say 'It was for Aster's sake', while looking at the sacred tree."

"... I hated those two because they didn't know anything. I hate them, I really hate them── but, I knew deep down that my hatred is just a childish tantrum, still, it's so frustrating how carefree they can be after living for a decade without fear of getting caught. But, Rudel went there because it was important to the priestess, he somehow always told me that Lucy was going to be the next head."

Sara protected Lucy because Rudel knew she would be the next head? This is a little weird. No, what exactly was it that happened?

"Still, you were actually protecting Lucy. Since if you did this, other people wouldn't be able to do anything to her while you were arguing with her."

So this person was protecting Lucy from troublesome guys like Derrick and Jude. The situation was too complicated that it was already lost.

It would be better if the bad guy was more malicious. Otherwise, it would make me feel bad about making my decision.

"It was partly because Rudel risked his life for the future of this country, it was also because my father also asked me to. He said those two are innocent. I told my father that it would be dangerous if those two became the priestess. But, my father said that was not going to happen."

(He thought that neither of the two would become the priestess?)

What does that mean?

There I remembered what Ixion mentioned.

Why did the Vermillion Household lose to the Rosenberg Household, which had a lower ranking?

"But, now that this is happening, there is nothing we can do. If Lucy is chosen as a priestess, then even my father won't be able to do anything to oppose her."

"That is, even if she is the sapling priestess?"

"There is also that possibility. But, the important thing is the existence of the priestess. That's how important the priestess is in our country. No one will care even if she is the priestess of the sapling instead of the actual sacred tree."

"Aah~, as I thought."

I could confirm that this didn't change Lucy's value at all. Thus, it would be hard to save her.

Sara grabbed my hand.

"Hey── do you want to save Lucy?"

◇◇◇

In a waiting room of the party venue.

Lucy was pushed in there after finishing meeting with the members of the six great nobles, the heads of the houses.

Lucy was sitting in front of a mirror with Jude hugging her from behind.

Lucy was getting goose bumps, but she endured it and showed no reaction. She would only be beaten if she showed her displeasure.

"Lucy, Rudel came to the party, you know?"

She reacted to that name.

"Tsk!"

Jude's expression disappeared when Lucy reacted to that.

He grabbed one of Lucy's twintails violently and forcefully made her look at him.

"You like that man so much!!! You, who are the priestess, are choosing a foreigner!!! You're choosing an upstart noble instead of the heir of one of the six great nobles!!! Hey!"

Jude violently flung Lucy who was sitting up. Her breathing was harsh.

He began to choke her. His eyes opened and were permeating with red liquid.

"What's so good about that guy!"

"I'm better than him in every way! Appearance! Status! Influence! I'm better than him in every possible way! But why do you seem to think of him!"

"...!"

But he immediately stopped and hugged her.

"I'm sorry, Lucy! I don't want to hurt you. But, it's your fault because you're thinking about another man!"

Jude was always acting like this after inflicting violence on Lucy. His mind was unstable. He would suddenly be kind.

It became painful for Lucy to think about when she was in this kind of situation for days. Besides─

(I won't be able to run away anyway.)

The necklace would not allow Lucy to get away from Jude.

If she couldn't escape, she had no choice but to obey. If she tried to escape recklessly, she would only suffer.

"Lucy, our marriage ceremony will come soon. After that, no one will be able to stand in the way of our bond anymore. I will protect you if I am chosen as guardian."

Lucy said nothing to Jude.

Jude was irritated by that attitude and pressed Lucy's head. He pressed her head against the carpet on the floor and pressed it hard.

"Lucy, why don't you understand my love, you are always, always───!"

Lucy was waiting for Jude's violence to end.

(I want to go home. Somebody save me ───Rudel, save me...).

She wanted to escape, but she couldn't.

Lucy was enduring this desperate situation alone.

◇

An expressionless Felicia welcomed me when I returned to Erselica's mansion.

"Welcome back, Rudel-san. ... Did you have fun going to a party together with Miss Erselica?"

"It was fun. I was able to get a lot of information."

"... That's good to hear."

Her gaze became even colder than before.

Ada was also at his side. She took the jacket I took off.

"It must be hard for nobles to go to so many parties like that."

Unlike Felicia, this maid was warm and healed my soul. Erselica was making a tired face.

"Geez, it feels like my head is exploding. There's nothing but trouble. I couldn't even eat the food."

After that we had a talk about what we were going to do.

It was a great result that we managed to get Randolf and Sara's cooperation. Liam showed up when we got back home.

"So they're back, what's the situation now?"

I explained in simple words.

"It's really a power struggle. I get the impression that the Banfield Household wants to overthrow the Rosenberg Household and entice the others to do so."

They were fully motivated to make use of the existence of the priestess that no one could ignore to ascend to a higher status.

Jude himself was obsessed with Lucy, but the head of his house, Cliff, was aiming for the Acting Chairman position.

No, should I say he wanted the position to control the country? Liam nodded his head.

"So that's how we think. Everyone's already gathered."

We walked into the room where the five idiots and... Allen and Cana were waiting. However, it was just the dining room.

Everyone looked nervous when Erselica and I came in.

After Erselica sat in her chair, Cana prepared water for her.

Allen was the one who brought me water, so I took the glass and drank it all in one gulp before wiping my mouth.

"It's annoying, but the situation is just as you guys thought. Jude aside, the Aster groups are starting a power struggle making use of Lucy."

Frey didn't seem particularly surprised.

"So that's how it is. I gathered information at the embassy. I found out that right now Banfield Household is using various ways to obtain the sapling."

Clovis looked a little concerned.

"There will be officials who will turn traitor if they are offered a lot of money, and it will be problematic if they bribe officials who are at the level of a minister of a position far above you. It will be better to resolve this before that happens."

Chlust was... why aren't you wearing a shirt? Wear clothes, you idiot, clothes!

"A country's benefit and a personal benefit are not the same thing, after all. Even if we secure Lucy quickly, Aster is a rich country. It will be problematic if they use a large amount of funds to use clandestine tricks."

Next up was Warren, but why weren't these guys wearing pants?

"We need to decide the battle decisively in a short time. After saving her, let's ask Her Majesty the Queen to protect Lucy. That person will prioritize the country's interest rather than her own personal interest."

Leonis' name did not come up in the conversation. It was clear that the central pillar of our country was not him, but Lecia.

Erselica lay down on the table.

"In the end, it will still be troublesome even after we rescue her. Aah~, there are too many problems. Isn't there some way to solve this easily?"

I also felt the same.

So, I would solve this problem perfectly. Liam looked at me.

"Bradford, what are you going to do? If it is possible to rescue her, we can leave the rest to my mother in the Kingdom. Just as Warren said, my mother will prioritize the country's interest. She will surely protect Lucy."

That wasn't wrong, but it wasn't right either.

I was a coward, so I wanted to eliminate as much future trouble as possible. Besides, there was also Weiss's diplomat in this country.

It was a country that was in dispute with Lecia's home country.

If the Supreme Kingdom became serious, they would surely support the Weiss Holy Empire.

They would also support the countries that were in dispute with the Kingdom to harass us.

We also didn't know how long it would take until the sapling could show the same power as the holy tree.

Would Lecia help Lucy even if she had to turn everyone around her into enemies?

As a coward, I couldn't accept a method that would leave so much anxiety.

"That's not right. If Aster gets serious, even Lecia might not be able to fully protect Lucy. It will be really troublesome if they come to us with clandestine tricks. That's why... I'll break the pride of this country."

Liam made a worried face when I said I would break their pride. But he didn't reject my opinion.

"Do you have some kind of ingenious idea? It's not easy to break a country's pride. Are you planning to make a fuss with Schwert again?"

"Are you thinking of me as such a predictable person? I'm not a barbarian who will resort to something like war when I'm in trouble. I'll settle this as peacefully as possible."

Frey shrugged and smiled.

"In the most peaceful way, you say? If only peace in the count's dictionary had the same meaning as our definition of peaceful."

These guys have a lot of thorns in their words.

"Don't worry, as a matter of fact I'll break their pride. Now then, we have to rescue Lucy first before that. I'm thinking of doing it on the day of the marriage ceremony, what do you guys think?"

If you're going to do something, do it thoroughly.

Erselica seemed excited to hear my proposal.

"Finally Rudel is getting serious! But, the enemy will also strengthen their security on the day of the marriage ceremony, won't it?"

Warren put his hand to his chin and added to Erselica's opinion.

"They surely will. It will be an important day for Aster. They will surely gather many soldiers and knights. Besides, the six great nobles will also gather on that day. If we cause a commotion there, Banfield Household will look bad─ don't tell me, that's your goal?"

To make Banfield Household look bad.

That was certainly tempting. It was one of the things I was aiming for. But, the enemy would only be mad at that.

"You think I'm just going to do that?"

Chlust shook his head and laughed like a child.

"No way. You're a human who can do something even more horrible."

"Thanks for the compliments."

"I absolutely won't forget those words, so you better remember this." I extend my hands in front of the eight people present.

"Now, let's begin... let's break Aster's pride so that they can't oppose us again."

Everyone hesitantly celebrated with one "Ye-yeah" and raised their fist.

"Louder!"

It'll be a fun time, after all, it's so they can't be bothered again after saving Lucy.