Even a Scoundrel Gets Tired

180 – Side Story: Her Circumstances

The Marquis Valentine family.

In its own way, a family with a name

known within the Empire,

one of the quite old Marquis families,

serving the Imperial family

for quite a long time; a prestigious lineage.

However, despite their

long loyalty,

the evaluations of them

in society or among the public

were far from lofty,

but rather, at rock bottom;

and the primary reason for this

lay in the licentious nature

of their conduct.

While polygamy was certainly

permitted within the Empire,

in actuality, most nobles

did not take on so many wives as their consorts.

Because the emotion known as

love was not infinite,

and there were many who found

even pouring it entirely upon two, or even one, to be insufficient.

Moreover, most noble

wives did not look kindly upon concubines.

Well, who in this world

would be pleased to see the person they loved

bringing in another person

as yet another wife,

but in this world,

that jealousy was particularly intense.

Most were daughters

of proud noble families,

and so, merely seeing concubines

supplant them and win their love

It was impossible to watch it all be monopolized, understand?

There were even knife fights amongst the young ladies, quite often actually.

So, most noblemen, you see,

unless they truly loved,

did not keep many wives.

Because having too many

was nothing but trouble,

as they learned watching their

own fathers.

And because those troubles

continued to repeat themselves,

before long, amongst the nobility,

not keeping many wives became a virtue, whispered

and secretly celebrated.

However, only the

Marquessate of Valentine

paid no heed to such whispers.

Rather, whenever such scandals and

various criticisms were leveled at them,

they would declare, what was so wrong with

spreading the noble seed far and wide?

Moreover, they held the belief that

everyone should be loved equally, so

there was no great difference in treatment between

the legitimate wife and the concubines,

and thus they began to retort to those

who criticized their fickle lower halves.

“Tsk, tsk…so licentious, really…”

“From a man’s perspective,

it might seem like a good thing, but from a woman’s

perspective, it’s quite a pitiful affair.”

“If their thought was truly to spread the noble seed,

then at least they shouldn’t embrace commoners!”

But still, the criticism leveled at them

did not subside.

Rather, it could even be said that the criticism accelerated

after it was revealed that amongst the women

they embraced, commoners, and not just noblewomen, were mixed in.

Especially the families that had

sent their daughters into their household.

Already cherishing their daughters as they did,

to discover they’d been married off to some

libertine, well, few could fail to understand

their heartache. Instead, they offered solace, and

joined in aiming their barbs at the Valentine estate.

Of course, the Valentines were,

strictly speaking, a noble house,

and so no one dared openly insult them.

But if one observed the ladies of society

tacitly avoiding all mention

of that family name,

then one could surmise

the depth of their infamy at that time.

Ironically, however,

it was the young ladies

who’d married *into* the Valentine family

who silenced all the censure.

When observers first beheld them gathered,

they assumed the women’s

wrath had finally erupted.

They believed the ladies would unleash their

jealousy and fury over the

husband who, despite claiming them,

had so dissolutely dallied with countless others.

And so, a certain anticipation simmered in hearts.

In this world, devoid of

much in the way of amusement,

if one were to ask for the most

entertaining spectacle, undeniably,

a love triangle and a good brawl

would reign supreme.

But in truth, they hadn’t assembled for such a purpose.

Far from fighting amongst themselves,

they united, joined as one, and

came to *plead* for an end

to the slander directed

towards their husbands.

Of course, mingled among them

were a few daughters of Marquis houses,

making it a touch difficult to see it as entirely a request,

but however it might be,

their objective *was* a “request,” after all.

Though their parents, in truth,

couldn’t begin to fathom them,

they themselves insisted now

that they were living quite happily,

and after that,

the arrows of blame

aimed directly at them largely subsided.

Still, in places unseen,

there remained those who cursed their libertine tendencies.

And now, some time after that affair,

Erdena Valentine,

thirteenth daughter of Ether Valentine,

the current head of the House of Valentine,

sought to overturn

that perception so deeply ingrained in the minds of the people.

The notion that the House of Valentine

was nothing more than a family of rakes.

She believed that no matter

how Marquis her House might be,

without honor, there was

no worth to it at all.

If she did not change

the perception of her House,

now so deeply rooted

in the minds of others,

no matter what she did later,

her name would be forever followed

by the tail of “Libertine House,”

and she knew this all too well,

for her father, in truth, was the same.

She did not hate her House,

but…

Now and again, when she recalled that her father’s

wives were, truth be told, older than fifteen,

a peculiar shame

would settle upon her.

She longed to reshape this awareness, and swiftly.

‘To do so…I must first prove my worth.’

Regrettably, her present

influence within the family

was effectively nonexistent.

The patriarch’s position was, more often than not,

passed down to a son,

and it wasn’t as though

she was the only clever child

in the family, after all…

Ultimately, her choice bordered on evasion.

‘Ah, you’re of age now to attend

the Academy, aren’t you.’

‘…The Academy?’

‘Indeed. There, you shall receive

a more refined education…’

‘This is it!’

‘…What are you on about?’

To attend the Academy, where scions of

numerous prestigious families gather,

join any faction available, then,

from within that faction,

gradually reshape the family’s perception of her.

It would be, admittedly, a terribly

slow and tedious undertaking,

but in her estimation,

there was no surer path.

At once, she began to put her plan in motion.

…Or rather, attempted to.

‘Oh my, your family is…Valentine, you say…’

‘Ho…hoho, I’m afraid a pressing matter has arisen…’

‘My lady, I’ve long held a

profound interest in the

Marquessate of Valentine, but tell me, perhaps…’

Just as she feared, the rumors

surrounding her family were already

The Academy was thoroughly steeped in it, that atmosphere,

and because of it, the young ladies she truly wished to befriend kept their distance.

Only peculiar men, of dubious origins and

utterly unknown pasts,

began to approach them.

‘…This can’t continue…!’

In the end, she decided to once again

alter her course.

Instead of attempting to join

a faction by engaging in conversation with various individuals,

she would gather those

drawn to her and create

her own faction.

Although a somewhat inglorious rumor circulated,

her family, in all truth,

*was* a Marquisate, after all,

a condition more than

sufficient to build a faction.

Now, only the people remained.

The people she thought

might be suitable for her faction.

Knowing of the rumors

surrounding her family, yet

still needing someone who wouldn’t shun her,

she conceived of an idea.

‘Didn’t Papa say something once…?’

[The strong naturally attract followers!]

One of the phrases

her father, Ether Valentine, always

had on the tip of his tongue.

In reality, he was one of the Empire’s most renowned knights,

and no small number of women

had been captivated by

his reputation and his handsome

appearance.

And thankfully, she seemed to have

inherited a great deal from her father,

showing considerable talent in swordsmanship.

Even after training for far

longer than she had,

She crushed her peers with a dismissive ease.

‘..Is that all you’ve got?’

‘Krrrk..!! Youuu!!’

‘Seriously weak, my family dog would put up a better fight.’

Even the swordmanship instructors

tasked with teaching her

were left speechless by her talent,

grasping ten things from a single lesson,

and were often forced to yield ground.

In any case, her strategy was a success.

The students, witnessing her power,

began to circle her with curiosity,

perhaps already halfway to achieving her goal.

And now, an opportunity presented itself

to complete the remaining

half.

‘If I can defeat the upperclassmen here…!’

Students would undoubtedly surge

towards her like a tide,

and at least amongst them,

her family would be spared

from that label.

Of course, that the seemingly competent lad

she’d brought along decided to

launch a fireball at the door

was an unforeseen variable,

but regardless,

no one was injured,

a fact that filled her with an undeniable joy.

If that attack

voided this spar,

her entire plan would be shattered as well.

‘..Why is he staring like that?’

From then on, she felt

the gaze of the dark-haired

upperclassman upon her, intensely sharp,

but she assumed it was just her imagination.

That strikingly handsome face

was not one easily forgotten,

but in her memory,

Because that semblance of beauty had not remained.

‘…Is he smitten with me?’

And before she could linger on the thought,

it took truly scant moments

to realize that this idea was a

most colossal delusion.