She turned to go back.

“I brought it.”

Delia’s face lit up at Kaiel’s words. He handed her the box he had been carrying behind his back.

“Kaiel! When did you grab it?”

“Leaving such confidential research materials lying around, how careless.”

“Thank you.”

Delia took the box and examined the small vial that came with it.

“What’s this?”

“Smell it.”

“What am I, a dog? No, thanks!”

When Delia glared at him, Kaiel finally spoke.

“Medicine.”

“What kind?”

Instead of answering, he glanced at her ankle and then back at her. Delia was moved once again. With the princess gone, she expressed her gratitude openly. She exaggeratedly bowed.

“I’m deeply grateful for Your Grace’s immense kindness! Thank you, Kaiel.”

“…Enough.”

As they walked, they soon reached the end of the expansive garden. Delia glanced at Kaiel from the corner of her eye.

Once they returned to Tranade, she might not see the busy Kaiel for some time. It would be wise to increase her plausibility score a bit now.

Just before getting into the carriage, Delia threw a line that would boost her plausibility score.

“This medicine…”

He turned his head slightly to look back at her.

Delia held up the vial and shook it lightly. The sound of the liquid inside clinking against the glass rang clearly.

“Kaiel, will you apply it for me? I think it would heal instantly if you did.”

At the same time, she lifted one foot slightly towards him.

Kaiel, curious about what she was going to say, disappeared into his carriage as soon as she finished speaking.

Ding.

[The villain ‘Kaiel’ feels displeased.]
[Plausibility score increases by 1 point.]

Though the expected notification appeared, Delia wasn’t satisfied.

‘Only 1 point…’

Having decided to help cure Lady Rant’s illness for Kaiel’s sake, it was natural that her plausibility score would drop significantly. It would be safer to increase the score as much as possible beforehand.

She called out to the system.

‘System, what’s my current plausibility score?’

The status window soon appeared.

[Current plausibility score is 32 points.]

At 32 points, the penalties were minor, so it wasn’t a problem. She was already accustomed to minor penalties.

Things like getting splashed by muddy water from a passing carriage while wearing her favorite outfit, getting hit by a stone kicked by someone else, tripping over a rock, having her hair catch fire while cooking, or pricking her finger while sewing—those were nothing.

The problem was that when the plausibility score dropped to the low twenties, the penalties became more severe and caused physical pain.

Helping Lady Rant would likely cause a significant drop in her plausibility score due to helping the villain.

‘System, how much will my plausibility score drop if I help the villain?’

After a moment, the system displayed the status window.

[The expected decrease range is 10-80 points.]

‘What!’

Delia almost grabbed the back of her neck and collapsed.

The plausibility score she could easily raise by annoying Kaiel was at most 1 point, maybe 2 points if she was lucky.

Moreover, now that he was used to it, calling his name no longer increased the plausibility score every time.

Considering she had gained about 3 points by badmouthing him before meeting him, staying close to him seemed like a losing game.

Her plausibility score was like a carefully stacked domino. Losing points felt like knocking over the dominoes.

And with an expected decrease range of 10-80 points, her plausibility score could drop to zero or even go negative.

She wouldn’t die because of her immortal body, but not dying could mean more suffering.

Shivering from a sudden chill, Delia felt her resolve to help him waver. She looked at the vial in her hand.

Delia closed her eyes tightly and then opened them.

‘Alright. Just this once, since I’ve decided.’

But before that, she needed to accumulate at least 10 points, the minimum to feel somewhat safe.

“What are you doing?”

Kaiel glared at Delia, who had barged into his carriage without permission. This was not the first time she had caused trouble with the carriage.

“Get out. That’s an order.”

“Let’s go together.”

Delia sat closer to him. Kaiel’s hand moved to the hilt of his sword at his waist.

“Get out!”

***

Coachman Ian was once again nervously watching the Grand Duke and Delia argue over sharing the carriage. He had thought things would go smoothly with two carriages, but the young lady was the problem.

Hearing the bickering from inside the carriage, Ian finally got off the coachman’s seat. Standing a bit away from the carriage, he put a tobacco leaf in his mouth and decided to wait until their argument ended.

“Get out…!”

Kaiel’s voice, filled with anger, came through clenched teeth as he gripped his sword tighter.

“Let’s go together.”

“If you don’t get out, I will cut off your leg.”

“Then cut it. Go ahead!”

Delia extended her leg even more. Her silk skirt slipped, revealing her ankle. Kaiel’s pupils constricted at the sight of her white skin.

“This…”

Kaiel immediately turned his head.

“Move…!”

“Go ahead and cut it. If my leg is injured, I won’t be able to move, so I can’t get out!”

Kaiel, who leaned away from her leg, ran his hand through his throbbing head and sighed.

“Then move.”

He held his sword horizontally to keep her from getting closer. Blocking her path, he opened the carriage door and got out.

However, as soon as he got out, Delia followed him, so it was all for nothing.

“Why are you doing this?”

His voice was lower, likely because he was barely holding back his anger.

“Because I want to go with you.”

“Why…”

“Because I like you, Kaiel.”

She was like a broken record.

Kaiel ran a hand down his face.

“If you’re trying to provoke me, stop here… I’m serious.”

Kaiel was on the verge of going mad, but Delia was satisfied with the slowly increasing plausibility score. She could have pushed further, but she didn’t want to anger him more, so she decided to take a step back.

“…Alright, Your Grace. Please get in first.”

Delia stepped aside to let him back into the carriage. When he continued to glare at her, she took a step back.

“I won’t follow you.”

Only then did Kaiel re-enter the carriage. Ian, who had been watching from a distance, threw the tobacco leaf to the ground and approached Delia.

“Oh, you lost again?”

“Haha, yes… That’s how it turned out.”

Seeing Delia’s awkward smile, Ian sided with her, thinking the Grand Duke was too harsh. Though, in reality, the Grand Duke hadn’t done anything too harsh, Delia thanked Ian for his support.

The coachman waiting in front of the other carriage nodded quietly, agreeing that the Grand Duke was too harsh. Having watched the situation unfold with great interest, he clicked his tongue at the unfortunate outcome.

The sight of the pretty young lady being repeatedly rejected stirred a mix of pity and a protective instinct.

“Are you alright?”

“Of course! Let’s go.”

Delia smiled brightly.

Though her smile was genuine, it made him feel strangely sad.

As the coachman closed the carriage door, he said,

“I greatly respect the Grand Duke, but I’ve never seen him act so harshly.”

Delia gave a meaningful smile at his words.

“Is that so?”

The carriage she boarded soon followed Ian’s carriage.

As soon as she sat down, Delia slumped like a deflated balloon. She was tired. As someone who could sleep anywhere, she quickly fell asleep despite the carriage ride not being as smooth as Ian’s.

Halfway through the journey,

Delia’s carriage stopped in the middle of the road. The coachman heard a thud from the back.

“Oh no. Another wild boar?”

The coachman got off to check. When he knocked on the door to inform her, he spoke.

“Miss, I need to check the back. Something seems to have hit us.”

But as soon as he finished speaking, his face turned pale.

The source of the sound wasn’t a wild boar.

“Miss?”

When he opened the door, an arm fell out.

Startled, the coachman quickly checked her condition.

She was lying on the floor between the two seats as if she were dead.

Carefully turning her over to check her face, the coachman’s heart sank.

Her hair was stuck to her face with what seemed to be a mix of tears and sweat.

Lifting her onto the seat, he realized her body was burning hot.

It was the greatest crisis of his life as a coachman.

“Miss! Please hold on! You can’t die…!”

Closing the door quickly, he climbed back to the coachman’s seat and started the fastest and smoothest ride of his life.