The Protagonist's Party is Too Diligent

Meeting the Earl of Crowfield was an unexpectedly strange experience.

I knew him well—not just from seeing his face but from actual conversations. There was the time I infiltrated the Crowfield estate disguised as a maid, and another when I attacked a brothel he frequented.

Particularly with the brothel, I had rewound time numerous times to deal with enemies and extract information.

Absorbing the intel stored there, I questioned whether the Earl truly deserved to die. I even spoke with him directly—perhaps he had been acting under duress.

But after a genuine conversation, punctuated by the language of bullets, I concluded that the Earl was, indeed, a wicked man.

And now, here he was, alive in this world.

“My daughter making such good friends at the academy is something I’m deeply grateful for,” the Earl said.

His voice was surprisingly calm—not tinged with fear, anger, or lust as I had often heard before. Despite his gaunt frame, his voice was low and measured, leaving a favorable first impression.

His appearance, however, wasn’t so endearing.

When I had assassinated him before, he had looked relatively healthy, even if his dark circles and slight thinness hinted at stress. Now, he was so emaciated that his bones were visible.

It seemed he had grown out a beard in an attempt to mask his gauntness, but it didn’t help much. The shadows under his eyes stretched so far down that the beard only made him look more haggard.

“Not at all,” I replied with a soft smile. “The blessing is ours. We’re fortunate to have grown close to Mia.”

Mia was seated beside the Earl, while the Countess, his wife, sat on his other side. On the surface, the couple appeared to have an amicable relationship.

Regardless of whatever fractures existed in their marriage, both were nobles to their core. They wouldn’t dare reveal their weaknesses in front of guests—especially with two members of the imperial family present.

In both the original timeline and the world before this one, the Earl of Crowfield had been eliminated after falling out of the Emperor’s favor. While I couldn’t read his exact thoughts at the moment, it was clear that he was wary of us—royalty and staunch supporters of the Emperor.

Mia, sitting beside her father, wore a slightly anxious expression.

“My daughter isn’t much of a conversationalist,” the Earl continued. “I’m not sure how she managed to make friends as distinguished as you.”

His words were straightforward, seemingly modest. But in truth, Mia wasn’t much of a talker. It wasn’t that she lacked conversational skills; she simply didn’t feel the need to speak.

They say children who grow up hearing their parents argue every night tend to become timid. Though she had opened up to us, Mia didn’t make any active effort to form new relationships.

“I’ve heard that Mia’s inclusion in the student council was thanks to your support,” the Earl added.

“Mia had the qualifications to join the student council from the start,” I replied. “Our help was only a small part of her success.”

As I spoke, Claire and Alice continued to scrutinize the Earl. He seemed to notice their watchful gazes, which kept our conversation focused on superficial pleasantries about Mia.

...Hmm.

At this rate, I wouldn’t be able to broach the topics I truly wanted to discuss with the Earl.

For over ten minutes, the conversation meandered aimlessly, as I racked my brain for a way to shift the tone.

*

It wasn’t entirely clear where that monocle-wearing man had planned to sell me off.

However, one of the candidates I kept in mind was the Earl of Crowfield. He had a known preference for children and a penchant for indulging his twisted tastes.

In the original story, it was never explicitly stated how Claire killed the Earl of Crowfield.

The narrative only mentioned her escaping from the brothel, killing the noble who tried to assault her, and setting the place ablaze.

...Which meant that the noble Claire killed that night could very well have been the Earl of Crowfield.

After all, I had only been taken because I was more "interesting" than Claire when we were spotted together.

“...”

With that thought, I came to a conclusion.

The only way to have a one-on-one conversation with the Earl of Crowfield—

“No.”

—was immediately shot down by Alice.

After finishing our earlier conversation with the Earl and his wife, we had moved to Mia’s room. Mia had excused herself briefly to speak with her parents. She was probably confirming what could or couldn’t be said in front of us. Maybe she’d bring tea and refreshments back as well.

For a family of the Earl’s status, such tasks should typically fall to the maids. But strangely enough, there were no maids in this mansion. Only male servants and stewards.

For nobility, having male servants entering a lady’s room while female guests were present was considered improper.

If Mia had been living here alone, it wouldn’t have mattered. But since she now had distinguished guests, her parents likely tasked her with handling it herself.

...It was probably the Countess’s doing.

No woman could avoid developing a neurosis when her husband spent his days—and nights—frequenting brothels. Especially if she still harbored affection for him.

When I had infiltrated the Earl’s estate as a maid, I got the distinct sense that he had likely been inappropriate with the maids as well.

The fact that someone like me, disguised as a commoner, could infiltrate the household as a maid was proof enough. It meant the Earl specifically hired women he could take liberties with.

If the Countess had grown so suspicious that she dismissed all the maids, it wouldn’t be surprising.

And if that had further strained their marital relationship, well, it explained a lot.

At least it gave us time to discuss our next steps.

“I may not be a princess, but I’m still a noblewoman of the Grace family,” I said to Alice. “No matter how bold he may be, the Earl wouldn’t dare harm me.”

Alice frowned deeply.

“But if you were the one to seduce him, that changes things,” she said. “Legally, we’re still minors, but we’re not too young to marry. And nothing prohibits engaged couples from engaging in... certain activities. For someone of the Earl’s status, having multiple wives wouldn’t raise eyebrows.”

“Uh...”

“The Grace family might oppose it,” she continued, “but they’re only barons. If an earl with a proper estate wanted to marry you—and if you personally expressed a desire to do so—there would be no way to refuse.”

“But I wouldn’t want to marry him,” I countered.

“What woman ever says outright that she wants to marry a man?” Alice replied, her tone almost patronizing.

...Really?

I had thought Alice was a fairly progressive woman, but now she sounded positively antiquated.

“A man’s courtship is a clear ‘Please marry me,’ but a woman’s interest must be subtler,” Alice explained. “‘Would you accompany me to a wedding?’ That’s already an explicit invitation. To say something like that openly would make people cringe.”

“She’s right,” Claire chimed in, nodding.

Hearing Claire agree, someone who had shown no interest in romance, made me realize this must truly be the norm in this world.

I already understood that noble interactions often separated emotions from logic. Even minor incidents, which could be overlooked, required displays of anger according to noble etiquette. And resolving disputes often required both parties to display emotional sincerity.

But for that same logic to apply to courtship...

Oh.

It suddenly clicked.

I hadn’t noticed because the couples around me—like Jake and Lottie—operated so far outside the norms of this world that their relationship seemed almost... pornographic by comparison.

“Do you think it’s realistic for me to seduce someone?” I asked Alice and Claire.

The two exchanged a brief glance, their expressions momentarily blank.

Then they turned back to me and nodded in unison.

“Definitely,” Alice said.

“Agreed,” Claire added.

Hmm.

I thought for a moment and came to a decision.

“In that case, it might be better for me to flirt with the Earl of Crowfield.”

If feigning courtship could block any path to marriage and even create the appearance of an engagement, then so be it.

After all, it was something I would never actually do.

Order and chaos, right? If I had to lean into chaos, I’d embrace it fully.