Chapter 36: The Villainess’s Dilemma: Not Quite the Villain (But Still Winning)

“Then, shall we begin?”

A few days had passed since the fire incident within the territory.

Gathered early at the training ground, Dariann glanced between Gordon and Rosaria, who were both watching him intently.

Closing his eyes, he began to concentrate.

‘Let’s recall it. That fire. The mindset with which I swung the axe.’

Thick smoke clouded his vision, and his entire body felt like it was baking in an oven.

Before he knew it, Dariann was once again at the scene of the fire in the wooden building from a few days ago.

Just like then, he held an axe in his hand.

In front of him was someone who needed rescuing.

The desperate pleas for help faded into the distance, as flames that seemed to devour everything danced at his feet.

Dariann focused.

That feeling.

The powerful surge he pumped through his entire body from his heart.

“Haaaah!!”

His heart pounded, and every muscle in his body tensed with strength.

Slowly—

A faint, but unmistakable, blue aura began to seep out over Dariann’s entire body.

“…It’s certain. Although it’s still irregular and the color is dull, the aura has definitely manifested.”

“What? He actually learned it? This quickly?”

The two watching could not contain their exclamations of astonishment.

“Phew, phew…! You saw that, right? That’s me!”

Dariann, who had demonstrated his aura, opened his eyes, drenched in sweat, his whole body trembling, but he looked at them confidently with a smile.

“This… I had heard I possessed some level of talent, but I never imagined such a remarkable gift resided within the lord.”

“Hahaha!! Naturally! Do you know who I am?!”

Encouraged by Gordon’s praise, Dariann raised his chin with pride and let out a hearty laugh.

He had awakened his mana at the fire scene and, although still faint, had officially become an aura user.

“Wait, something’s really strange here…?”

Just then, Rosaria tilted her head in thought, sensing a hint of familiarity.

“My brother… I mean, Felix also awakened his mana in a dire situation, and Father became aware of his mana after narrowly escaping a dangerous fire scene, too.”

“Should I throw myself off a cliff or something…?”

“…Miss, awakening mana in such a way is not typically something one does intentionally.”

Gordon interrupted as Rosaria mumbled about trying anything to awaken her mana, given that her brother and father had both done so in life-threatening situations.

“Hey! It’s only possible because it’s me!”

“Then what about him?!”

“…Well, even I wouldn’t intentionally set myself on fire.”

“…Oh, right.”

“Ahem! Anyway, since you’ve gained mana, we’ll alternate between basic close-combat training and mana utilization practice.”

“Alright! At first, I thought this was all nonsense, but experiencing it myself makes it interesting!”

“Then, what about me…?”

Watching all the attention go to Dariann, Rosaria timidly approached Gordon, hoping he would notice her, too.

“Miss, you still haven’t even learned to swing a sword properly.”

“No, you two are the monsters! How can you swing that heavy iron sword for an hour straight without tiring?!”

“…Is that so?”

“Still, this is the first stepping stone for fundamental training…”

However, Gordon’s response was simply that her stamina was still lacking, leaving Rosaria frustrated.

While Dariann sparred with Gordon and even demonstrated mana manipulation, Rosaria spent her days running laps around the training ground.

There was some progress.

Her cardiovascular endurance and strength improved day by day, and her pace increased to the point where she could now complete her laps without resting.

However, she hadn’t even gotten to the point of sparring or wielding a sword properly.

Stamina. Stamina was the issue.

Honestly, by the standards of women her age, Rosaria had quite a well-conditioned body, but the stamina they required was simply excessive.

“Father says he’s so bored with just running that he straps four sandbags, two on each leg, and still runs around—he’s not Captain America! How am I supposed to keep up with that?!”

Just the sight of Dariann pushing his limits in basic strength training made Rosaria feel like she could never catch up.

Yet, Gordon and Dariann viewed it as utterly basic, leaving Rosaria exasperated as she pointed a finger in protest.

“Hah, sorry, dear. I’ve always been like this.”

“…Ah.”

“Those are just excuses.”

“Oh, really…! Unbelievable. I really can’t argue with that, can I?”

Realizing that Dariann had already been a powerhouse who threw herself into firefighting even before coming here, Rosaria’s raised finger faltered.

“Anyway, that’s it! I don’t care anymore! I’m quitting!!! Go ahead and train with Father as much as you want!”

“Huh? Daughter! Where are you going?!”

“I’m quitting for real!”

“Finish today’s laps before you go!”

“Ughhhhh!!!!”

At that, Rosaria stomped away, fuming, but didn’t forget to finish her laps despite her anger.

‘…She’s diligent, though. She’s still running, even while yelling like that.’

“Yes, she’s a tenacious young lady. I hope she won’t rush it too much.”

Watching Rosaria run with gritted teeth, looking like she was ready to quit, the two exchanged words.

“Sigh…”

Later, sprawled on her bed after completing her training, Rosaria let out a heavy sigh.

“Doesn’t it feel like I’m falling sooooo far behind?”

“The family reincarnated into a romance fantasy world.

At first, Rosaria felt relieved just to be with her family.

Since they’d become nobles, she thought she could enjoy a carefree life of leisure.

She hadn’t given it much thought until she noticed Freya swiftly taking on the role of the estate’s owner and Felix, though he stayed locked up in his room, mastering magic and becoming proficient in it.

‘Am I the only lazy one here?’ she thought, feeling a pang of unease.

She had been somewhat reassured by Dariann, who was in a similar situation, but now that even Dariann had awakened his aura, Rosaria truly felt left behind.

“Is that so? But does it really matter? Honestly, I also feel a little uncomfortable just idling around all the time.”

“…You’re fine because your existence alone is helpful.”

Tene, munching on a cookie, offered a word of comfort upon hearing Rosaria’s muttering, but it didn’t really help.

Although Tene, who was staying at the Evergarden mansion as a guest, also passed the time leisurely, her situation was different from Rosaria’s.

The cute girl happily munching on a cookie was a dragon.

Simply by being there, Tene was a hidden card and a formidable force, making her presence beneficial in many ways.

“Then, why not seek advice from your older sister?”

“What?! I should get advice from my younger sister?”

“Isn’t she your elder brother right now?”

“What nonsense! She’ll be my little sister till the day she dies! No way I’d ever see her as an elder brother!”

Then Tene suggested she consult Felix if she had any concerns, but Rosaria yelled in surprise.

It would hurt her pride as an older sister to ask her younger sibling for advice.

“Still, she knows more about this world than I do, and she knows magic, so wouldn’t that be helpful?”

“…I suppose that’s true.”

Eventually, Tene’s reasoning began to sway Rosaria.

“Then, maybe I’ll just hear her out…”

With that, Rosaria and Tene went to Felix’s room.

Felix’s room had changed so much that it was barely recognizable.

Originally filled with bright furniture, lavish gems, and spacious decor, it now held more books than the mansion’s library, and books that couldn’t fit on the shelves were stacked in towers on the floor.

The walls were adorned with incomprehensible magic formulas, and magic stones hung everywhere, making Rosaria think, ‘This is fantasy, but even this is a bit much…’

“So, you feel like you’re the only one falling behind?”

“Well… everyone’s so focused on their areas, and I’m just sitting around doing nothing, so it feels a bit…”

Felix, who had been engraving runes onto a mana stone before they arrived, removed his goggles and got straight to the point.

“…Isn’t that what being a noble lady is all about? It’s nice not having to work hard, isn’t it?”

“But I’m a man! What, am I supposed to just flirt with guys? Am I insane?!”

Felix, however, dropped a casual remark that only aggravated Rosaria further, making her yell in frustration.

“…Doesn’t seem like that’s the case with Father.”

“What?”

“Oh, nothing. So, what do you want to do?”

“Well… Honestly, I don’t know what I should be doing. I can’t manage the estate like Father, I don’t know magic like you, and I don’t have a sense for aura like Mother.”

“But, still, I want to… I don’t know, feel stronger?”

“…Wouldn’t it be quicker to just tell Tene to punch anything that causes trouble?”

“Hey! Then why are you even learning magic? She could handle it faster!”

“Magic is different. It’s a supreme academic pursuit that brings miracles to reality, unlike simple brute force—”

“Alright, alright, I get it. I don’t even know why I bothered asking…”

As the two bickered, Rosaria finally let out a deep sigh.

“But do you really need magic or aura to get stronger?”

Then, Tene, who had been listening intently, popped her head in and asked.

“Like, for instance, I’m a dragon, a different species, and characters like Superman and Spiderman have superpowers, but Batman and Iron Man are just regular people who are still superheroes.”

“That’s true, but why…?”

“Then maybe Sis could just make a magic tool? Like an Iron Man suit?”

Tene suggested that rather than struggling to get stronger, she could just use a magical device to do it.

“Oh, come on~ That’s absurd. How could we make something like that in this medieval world?”

“Is that so? I just thought I’d mention it…”

“It was funny, though. Don’t you think?”

Rosaria, laughing at the idea of using superhero examples from modern comics, looked to Felix for agreement.

However—

“…Hooh. A magic tool, huh…? This could be interesting.”

“…Huh?”

Instead of laughing along as she expected, Felix folded his arms, lost in thought, and Rosaria’s laughter quickly faded.

“Did… I say something wrong?”

Seeing the gleam of excitement in Felix’s eyes as he grinned at them, Tene scratched her head, muttering.