Chapter 111: Reinhardt’s antics
"Kyaa~! This portrait is unbelievable!" one of the noble girls squeaked in excitement, holding up a freshly printed instant photograph of her with trembling fingers. "It looks as though the exact moment itself was frozen in time! It’s so clear!"
"Right?!" another girl joined in, leaning over her shoulder to marvel at the tiny print. "Not even the most renowned court painters with huge fees could ever capture a scene with this level of flawless detail!"
"And it’s so small and cute!" a third added, fanning her flushed cheeks.
The high-society chatter echoed across the lavish academy cafeteria while Aria seated at the table. She set her teacup back down onto its saucer, her soft lips giving off a proud smile.
"Naturally," Aria mused, tapping the metallic casing of the instant camera resting on the table. "I can capture as many portraits as I desire, whenever I please."
"This invention is completely marvelous!" the first girl gasped, her eyes gleaming with envy. "How could anyone possibly conceive such brilliant magical engineering?! Who gave you such a divine artifact, Lady Aria?"
Aria’s golden eyes glinted with a triumphant spark. She leaned back in her chair, stoking her long, blue hair over her shoulder with elegance.
"Of course," Aria declared with smug satisfaction, "it was crafted specifically for me by my lovely fiancé, Lord Eren. There are only two in existence across the entire continent, and he presented this one to me as a personal gift just two days ago."
The three noble girls froze, their collective mouths hanging open in shock, looking like a group of flytraps.
In their memory, Eren Volsver had been famous with a very specific list of infamous traits: a trashy, arrogant noble with a history of stalking and harassing the Saintess candidate, a hot-headed idiot who terrorized lower-ranking nobles, and the reckless fool who got himself suspended after an duel with Reinhardt Angulus.
Sure, rumors had been circulating lately that a sneak attack from Reinhardt had somehow knocked some sense into his head, turning him into a cool, laid-back, strangely charming heartthrob.
But... a revolutionary magical inventor?!
"Um... Lady Aria?" one of the girls raised her hand hesitantly. "Please do not take this as a sign of disrespect toward your fiancé, but... did Lord Eren truly invent this himself?"
"Yes, it just seems... entirely unbelievable," another added timidly, nodding along. "The Lord Eren we all knew..."
Instead of taking offense at their obvious skepticism, the blue-haired villainess merely offered a cool, confident smile.
"I assure you, my fiancé’s intellect is thoroughly unprecedented," Aria purred, resting her chin on her palm. "He has transformed entirely. Why, did you know he recently developed a device that completely cured his little sister’s hypermana condition?"
The three girls gasped in unison, their eyes widening to the size of saucers on the table.
"Wait... those rumors were actually true?!"
"I thought it was just fabricated propaganda from House Volsver!"
"He actually cured hypermana disease?!"
The girls began frantically whispering among themselves.
"So... Lord Eren was secretly a genius all along?"
"My goodness... to think he was wasting all that talent on stalking..."
"Lady Aria is so ridiculously lucky...!"
Aria took another slow, luxurious sip of her tea, listening to her circle rewriting Eren’s public reputation. A wicked, affectionate smirk touched her lips as she mentally filed away another grand victory for her future Duke.
’That’s right, ladies keep singing his praises...’ the villainess thought with supreme pride, her cheeks flushing slightly.
"We’re just so happy you found such a caring, talented man this time, Lady Aria," one of the girls said warmly.
"Honestly, yes," another added, sighing in relief. "Especially after everything you had to endure from Lord Reinhardt’s erratic behavior."
"You look so much brighter and genuinely happy now compared to how you used to be," the third girl noted softly, offering a sweet, genuine smile.
Aria’s golden eyes softened. For all her villainess bravado, hearing such sincere support from her social circle was warmth in her chest. "Thank you, everyone. That truly means a great deal to—"
Before she could finish her words, a shadow loomed over their table.
The cheerful chatter of the three noble girls died instantly. Colours of their faces drained, eyes widened in terror as they stared at the towering figure looming directly behind Aria.
Aria froze, slowly she turned her head and her golden eyes trembled slightly as they locked onto Reinhardt Angulus standing right behind her.
***
Meanwhile, in the academy’s grand engineering workshop, Eren sat hunched over a heavy workbench, staring down at a terrifyingly thick stack of papers with a look of overworking corporate employees.
What was his original life plan?
Step 1: Keep a low profile. Step 2: Secretly assist the ultimate villainess from a safe distance. Step 3: Earn huge money. Step 4: Retire quietly to a tropical estate with his beautiful girlfriends and zero political responsibilities.
He looked down at the mountain of complex mana-circuit schematics, patents, and research notes currently occupying his desk.
"Fuck my life sideways and my early retirement plan," Eren grumbled aloud, massaging his temples before picking up the top stack of documents to neatening them into a clean pile.
CREAK—!
The heavy doors of the workshop suddenly slammed open, echoing like a thunderclap across the quiet hall. Every student, researcher, and senior arcanist present immediately froze, turning toward the entrance in stunned silence.
Eren also looked at it in confusion.
Standing at the doorway was the white-haired golden retriever, crown prince himself. He was leaning against the doorframe, his academy blazer slightly disheveled, panting heavily as if he just had a full marathon across the entire campus.
’Why the fuck golden retriever is here?’ Eren noted dryly, setting his pen down.
Theo’s eyes quickly scanned the crowded workshop before locking straight onto the guy he’s searching for.
"Eren!" Theo shouted at top of lungs, completely ignoring every academy etiquette as he ran towards his workbench.
Eren raised an eyebrow as the prince skidded to a halt, grabbing him by the shoulders. "What on earth happened to you, Your Highness? Alice rejected your date proposal?"
"It’s Reinhardt!" Theo gasped, his chest heaving as he tried to catch his breath. "Eren... we need you right now!"
Eren’s blue eyes narrowed. His mind instantly jumped to the most logical assumption. "Is that delusional simp harassing Aria again?"
Theo shook his head, his face pale with.
"No! It’s not Aria!" Theo yelled, his grip on Eren’s shoulders tightening. "It’s Violet! Reinhardt cornered her near the central courtyard... and Alice’s trying to stop him!"