‘Aslan Vermont. The man who rapidly revived the Vermont family, which had been on the path of ruin after the Countess’s execution…’

Merilda maintained a calm expression on the outside, carefully observing Charlotte and Yulia’s reactions.
She had already figured out that Aslan Vermont wasn’t the reckless rogue the rumors made him out to be.
Seeing how much these girls admired him, she decided to pretend to misunderstand Aslan, hoping they would reveal more information on their own.

‘He’s definitely someone unusual.’

Usually, when a family grows this quickly, internal and external issues tend to arise.
But the Vermont Count eliminated internal discord through a major purge
and blocked external attacks by forging a connection with the Emperor.
It was hard to believe such skill could come from someone who had lived quietly in seclusion for years.

Her father hadn’t given her any specific instructions,
but it was clear that he, too, was wary of Count Vermont.
Since she was now among his closest associates, gathering information was a natural next step.

Moreover, her targets were still young.
They were far too inexperienced to realize she was probing them for information, making them easy prey for her diplomatic skills.
Now, let’s see what Aslan Vermont’s true nature really is…

“I heard that Count Vermont took in a commoner slave with the intention of making her his wife in the future?”

“That’s…!”
“Uh… Well…”

Charlotte and Yulia simultaneously reacted, starting to protest but letting their voices trail off.
If they wanted to protect Aslan’s reputation, they needed to deny it here.
But Merilda’s statement was entirely accurate, leaving them uncertain.

“That’s actually true, but…”
“Cha-Charlotte!”
“Well, it’s the truth… They always said lying was bad.”
“What? So it’s true?”

Merilda’s eyes widened.
She had expected them to defend him passionately,
but to think it was actually true…

“Yeah, actually, I used to have insomnia, so… well, I would sleep next to Aslan. And every time, he’d smile in that sly way and touch my cheeks…”
“He asks me to give him massages almost every day! He just loves it when I step on his back…”
“Aslan really likes my hair, you know! So when I pretend to be asleep or act like I don’t care, he secretly touches it.”
“Hmph… He likes my hair even more. Even if I don’t ask, he often braids it for me.”
“Wha-what!? He braids… your hair?”
“Well, Yulia gets annoyed whenever he touches her hair, so he doesn’t do it for her. If she’d just be honest about wanting it, he would.”
“I-I don’t particularly want him to braid it…!”

Before they knew it, Charlotte and Yulia were bragging about their stories with Aslan,
while Yulia, who had been goaded by Charlotte, blushed deeply.

In truth, she didn’t like Aslan touching her hair.
He handled it without any consideration for how it would tangle,
leaving it messy every time…

His clumsy touch did irritate her.
But she didn’t completely hate it.
She just wished he’d handle it with a bit more care…

‘Ah, I get it now.’

Merilda nodded, watching Charlotte and Yulia bicker.
She had a general idea.

‘Count Vermont took these children in out of goodwill and raised them with care. Since it would raise suspicions if he did so without any reason, he lets those rumors spread deliberately.’

From what she could tell, Charlotte and Yulia seemed to have a bit of a misunderstanding.
Cheeks? Hair? Those are innocent enough gestures, aren’t they?
From a third-party perspective, it seemed he just doted on the kids with no ulterior motives.

Charlotte and Yulia clearly admired and respected Count Vermont greatly.
They were simply overinterpreting his small gestures of affection.
Despite their great powers compared to others their age, they were still kids.
Merilda stifled a laugh behind her hand.

Meanwhile…

‘Touching Yulia’s cheeks… secretly touching her hair… braiding her hair…?’

Yuri’s world was collapsing in real-time.

She had anticipated it.
She had expected that Aslan Vermont would use every sleazy trick to make Charlotte and Yulia his.
But imagining it in her head and hearing it directly from them were two very different things.

Watching Charlotte and Yulia proudly show off their connection with Aslan…
was even more painful than she had imagined.

She wanted to close her eyes and cover her ears.
She wanted to wake up from this nightmare.
Behind her mask, Yuri was already on the verge of tears.

“Aslan even signed up for tutoring sessions he had no interest in, just to spend more time with me!”
“That’s probably because he genuinely enjoys studying. Yulia is smart, so he’s just using that to his advantage.”
“No way!”
“Did you know he helps me put on my armor too?”
“Th-that’s a lie!”

Before they knew it, Charlotte and Yulia were in full competition mode, ignoring the stares of everyone around them.
Meanwhile, Yuri was nearing a mental breakdown.

Please. Please stop.
I don’t think I can take any more of this.

The theory that Charlotte and Yulia had been brainwashed was already dismissed.
The way they chatted and laughed together was too lively to be faked.
They were definitely the friends she knew…
And that made it even harder to bear.

So they’re saying all of this in their right minds?
They’re that captivated by Aslan Vermont?
If it’s not brainwashing, what kind of trick did you pull, Aslan Vermont…?

‘Haha, it’s adorable how desperate they are to catch the Count’s attention.’

On the other side, Merilda was barely holding back her laughter.
While she found it strange—okay, very strange—that they liked someone as gloomy-looking as Aslan,
everyone has their own preferences, right?

Personally, she preferred someone with a face like Yuria’s.
Smiling contentedly, Merilda scooted even closer to Yuri.
Knowing that Aslan Vermont wasn’t as wicked as the rumors made him out to be,
she could get closer to Yuria without worry!

‘Seriously, Yuria’s like a machine.’

Despite Merilda’s bold attempts to close the distance, Yuri didn’t react at all.
Puffing her cheeks in slight annoyance, Merilda found herself even more intrigued.
How cool and focused on her mission he was!
It almost made her fall for him all over again.

But Yuri was simply in a state of mental collapse, unable to react to any kind of stimulus.

‘I’ll admit it. Aslan Vermont doesn’t treat Charlotte and Yulia like objects or use them for human experiments.’

From this brief journey and the stories from her friends,
Yuri came to realize there was a significant gap between public perception and the real Aslan Vermont.
Aslan Vermont might not be as bad as she originally thought.

However, one thing was certain:
Aslan Vermont had corrupted Charlotte and Yulia, turning them into a dark knight and a necromancer.
And now, he was planning to marry the two of them, who had been tainted to suit his needs…

That was something she had to stop.
She absolutely had to prevent it.
But how? No ideas came to mind.

Could she win if she confronted him by force?
Would Charlotte and Yulia come with her willingly?
She didn’t know… There was no way to be certain about anything.

But there was one option.
An option with a very high chance of success.

‘They said Aslan Vermont has a twisted preference for raising pure, innocent commoner children…’

She bit her lip hard.
She never thought she’d resort to something like this.
An innocent commoner child.
There just so happened to be one here who fit the bill.

Me.
I could fit Aslan Vermont’s preferences too, couldn’t I?
Maybe I can attract his attention and get him to let go of Charlotte and Yulia?
If I become the Countess first and firmly oppose polygamy…

‘But there’s a problem. Aslan Vermont thinks I’m a man…!’

But Aslan Vermont didn’t see her as a woman.
So would she have to make him see her that way…?
Wearing feminine clothes, like a flowing skirt, growing her hair out…?

I’m terrible at things like that; how would I even manage?
Yuri was hesitating when—

“Yuria!”
“Everyone, get down. Someone is approaching the carriage.”
“…!”

With a strange sensation, Yuri’s body instinctively sprang up.
Someone was approaching the carriage.
And there were multiple people!
This presence… could it be the same bandits they encountered on the way to Esther?

“Kya-hahaha! This time, we’ve hired a wizard to hide our presence! Hand over everything you’ve got!”
“…!”

Looking outside, she saw that the carriage was already surrounded.
This was serious.
If Yulia or the princess, both non-combatants, were taken hostage, things could get troublesome.
Just as Yuri was about to draw her sword and step forward—

"Sylvia. Draw the sword."
“Sigh. Do I really have to draw it from your mouth?”
“It doesn’t come out from anywhere else, so what choice do I have, ugghh—!”

Sching.
With a slightly embarrassed expression, Sylvia drew the sword from Aslan’s mouth and took a stance.
Yuri was dumbfounded,
and the bandits froze in shock, rooted to the spot.