“Calling my name?” Liana looked at Erinna with confusion. She could indeed see from her lip movements that she was calling her name.

“Fine, anyway, that Oliphia is also there.” It definitely wasn’t because Erinna called her that she was going over.

Liana walked to the gate. Today, not just Erinna but also Cain and other noble children from Venus Manor were heading to Ibett Magic Academy. People with free time like Liana were quite rare.

Liana approached Erinna. “What did you need me for?”

“How’s your body? Any better?” Erinna asked with concern.

“I don’t need your concern. My body is naturally fine; I can recover quickly,” Liana said.

This demeanor was completely different from what she had shown on the first day, as if the words weren’t coming from the same person.

“Is that so? It seems your recovery ability is quite good, Liana.” Erinna looked at Liana, who indeed appeared to be completely fine now.

“So, what did you want to find me for?” Liana asked.

“I didn’t expect you to actually come, Liana.” Erinna wasn’t in a hurry to answer Liana’s question.

“It’s not for you.” Liana went to Oliphia and kicked the iron person beside her. “You seemed quite happy the day before yesterday.”

“Princess Liana, just tell me if it had any effect,” Oliphia said.

“Tch.” Liana had no rebuttal. She had to admit it was effective; otherwise, she would probably still be bedridden for a day or two. But that didn’t change the fact that this person had certainly done it with a bit of revenge in mind.

“You’re not a member of our Venus Manor, so why are you here seeing people off?” Liana asked.

“...If Princess Liana had gotten up a bit earlier, I wouldn’t be here.” Oliphia was simply wandering around with nothing to do, and also taking the opportunity to see if Venus Manor had any promising talents that could be recruited to the royal knights like Loraviel.

“Hmph.” Liana had indeed been getting up later than before. After all, she was now undergoing substantial training, which was much more tiring than before, so naturally, she needed proper rest.

This made Liana respect Loraviel more. Loraviel never showed any signs of tiredness. Whether she went to sleep earlier or later than Liana, she was always up before her, preparing breakfast.

“I thought Liana had come specifically for me.” Erinna looked at Oliphia. “I wonder how long Sister Liana can persist. During this time, I’ll entrust Lady Oliphia with taking care of my sister. If you need anything, you can always tell Naibert, and she’ll help you.”

“Yes.” In fact, Oliphia didn’t even need to seek out Naibert; Naibert would proactively come to inquire if she needed help with anything, or if Princess Liana had made any unreasonable demands. Essentially, all of Oliphia’s meals and room arrangements were entirely handled by Naibert.

“Calling me ‘Sister Liana’ over and over, it’s sickening. Hurry up, what do you want? Tell me quickly; I need to begin today’s training,” Liana said impatiently.

“I’ve conveyed your message to Tari, but she doesn’t seem to be leaving. She’s still staying at Venus Manor,” Erinna said.

“Let her do as she pleases. It’s not my time that’s being wasted,” Liana said indifferently. “Oh, and don’t let her stay here for free. Remember to charge her.”

“Our Venus Manor isn’t so petty as to charge guests for such expenses. Besides, even without your reminder, Miss Tari had already planned to pay the appropriate fees. It seems Miss Tari truly values her deal with you,” Erinna noted.

That was natural. This was an untapped market. If one could seize this opportunity first, it would attract more noble ladies to choose the Angus Commerce Guild.

If Liana chose someone else, it would deal a blow to the Angus Commerce Guild’s monopolistic model, which was something they didn’t want to see.

“So, you just wanted to tell me about this?”

“I mentioned before that I wasn’t very interested in this matter, but now, I find I have a bit of interest. After all, for a merchant, without absolute profit, they wouldn’t spend time, energy, and money on a thankless task.”

“Moreover, Miss Tari is a fairly formidable merchant in our Risade Square’s Angus Branch. For someone like her to waste her time at Venus Manor for you, Liana, this deal’s profit must be something she can’t refuse.”

For someone of Tari’s caliber, each day wasted was a day of lost income. At her level, the revenue she could generate for the Angus Commerce Guild in a day was substantial. At least at the Risade Square Branch, she would be considered a top salesperson.

Yet such a person would choose to stay at Venus Manor for a deal with Liana.

“Liana, are you in desperate need of money?” Erinna asked.

“Hmm? Do you think that’s possible?” Liana asked with confusion, wondering how Erinna had reached such a conclusion.

As the young lady of Venus Manor, being short on money was obviously unlikely. But because Liana was still underage, coupled with various other reasons, spending large sums of money would definitely come to Countess Rose’s attention.

This was also why Liana hadn’t directly purchased materials before. Under other circumstances, Liana wouldn’t be short on money at all.

“It is indeed unlikely. However, if you truly need money, you could always come to me,” Erinna offered.

“It seems you’re still not letting go of what happened yesterday,” Liana remarked.

“Perhaps?” Erinna smiled.

“Is this why you called me over?” Liana asked.

“Not entirely.” Erinna took out a bottle from her pocket. “Although I’m not sure if this will help.”

“What is this?” Liana inquired.

“Perhaps it can help you use magic again? I’m not entirely sure. I got it from a teacher at the academy.” Initially, Erinna had considered whether Liana would revert to her former self if her magic was restored.

But the previous Liana had discarded all the medicines Erinna gave her as trash, and later, had never mentioned such matters again.

“Loraviel.”

“Yes.” Loraviel stepped forward to accept Erinna’s gift.

“Before I leave, I’ll say it once more: If you ever need my help, Liana, you can come find me anytime. Of course, the price...” Erinna smiled mysteriously before boarding the carriage.

“How strange.”

“Liana, what did Erinna say to you?” Since Cain was also returning to Ibett Magic Academy, Countess Rose was naturally in the vicinity.

“None of your business.” Liana waved dismissively.

The countess still smiled politely, but one can notice the imperceptible twitch of her mouth if they have a sharp eye.

There was no longer any need to show this person a good face, so naturally, she had no reason to engage with her.

Moreover, this way, she could expose more flaws. If the once obedient Liana now entered a rebellious phase, how would she handle it?

“Oliphia, let’s continue. Oh, and when Mephilia comes, remember to say some nice things about me. After all, I truly persevered. Even if you say strange things in front of Mephilia, it would only be disadvantageous to you,” Liana said in front of Countess Rose.

Countess Rose narrowed her eyes. Liana was increasingly disregarding her, becoming somewhat uncontrollable.

“Liana, do you have time a week from now?” Countess Rose asked.

“No, I’m preparing a surprise for Mephilia, and I don’t have any spare time during this period,” Liana replied.

“Perhaps I’ve found a way for you to use magic,” Countess Rose said.

Liana’s foot, which had just been lifted, paused in mid-air before stepping down again. “There’s no need anymore, Countess Rose. You’ve done enough for me. Magic is now something I can take or leave. I don’t care about others’ opinions. Regardless of whether I can use magic, Mephilia won’t abandon me. That’s enough.”

These words from Liana were indeed heartfelt. If she truly cared about others’ opinions, perhaps she would have sought to change her status as a villainess from the beginning. But she hadn’t done so.

While there were reasons for concealing her identity, part of it was also that Liana genuinely didn’t care about the opinions of people who had no relation to her or held no weight in her heart.

Moreover, this wasn’t enough; she needed to continue making Countess Rose expose even greater vulnerabilities.

“If... if you could use magic, Liana, wouldn’t that be an even bigger surprise for Princess Mephilia?” Countess Rose suggested.

“That does seem like a good option, but how can Countess Rose be sure this method will [N O V E L I G H T] be effective? After all, there have been many failures before, and I’m starting to lose patience,” Liana said. “If this attempt fails, I’ll truly give up completely.” 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Liana was telling Countess Rose that this was her last chance. If she still couldn’t use magic after this attempt, Countess Rose would no longer have the magic issue as a condition to negotiate with Liana.

In other words, this time, Countess Rose would have to produce the antidote to the forbidden drug.

“Of course, this time it will definitely work,” Countess Rose assured.

Those unaware of the forbidden drug would certainly not know of the antidote’s existence. Now, she just needed to expose Countess Rose when she handed over the drug, and make sure many people witnessed it.

Otherwise, with her prestige and Liana’s behavior, Countess Rose could easily muddle through.

“Then, a month from now, let’s meet in the back garden,” Liana proposed.

“Back... back garden?” Countess Rose was visibly startled. In the back garden, others would definitely see them...

“The antidote is somewhat special. It would be better if you came to my room to get it,” Countess Rose suggested.

“We’ll see about that,” Liana couldn’t be bothered to engage with Countess Rose. The message was clear: if she wanted to give Liana the antidote, she would have to come to the back garden and risk being seen by others.

“...I understand.” Countess Rose was now in a difficult position. She needed to carefully consider her next steps.

“Let’s go, Oliphia,” Liana urged. “Oh, and by the way, I’ve told Mephilia about what you did to me the day before yesterday. You’re done for!”

“...” Oliphia couldn’t be bothered to argue with Liana anymore.

They arrived at the back garden, which had become their exclusive training ground.

“What are we practicing today? More of that boring sword swinging?” Liana asked.

“Boring sword swinging? Let’s see if Princess Liana can persevere first,” Oliphia wasn’t planning to tell Liana that this was merely a warm-up exercise.

“Bring it on. This is already too simple for me. If you hadn’t made me use a stone sword last time, I wouldn’t have even broken a sweat,” Liana now felt invincible.

Oliphia had seen this kind of situation before. Usually, a bit of training would humble them.

“Lady Oliphia, let me train together with Princess Liana,” Loraviel suggested. Last time, while training, Loraviel had ended up touching Liana.

But this time, Liana’s stance and movements were already correct, so she had no excuse to touch her. So she might as well train alongside her.

“Alright.” Oliphia nodded.

[Create, Stone, Long Sword.]

A stone sword appeared in Loraviel’s hand. For the current Loraviel, wooden sword training was clearly no longer challenging enough.

Seeing Loraviel using a stone sword, Liana felt confident again. “How about this: let’s have a competition, shall we?”

“A competition?” Loraviel held the stone sword with one hand, appearing very relaxed. “What would Princess Liana like to compete in?”

“Since your stone sword is much longer than mine, you naturally have a significant advantage. So, how about this: you swing the stone sword five times, and I’ll swing the wooden sword once. We’ll continue like this and see who lasts longer. How about it?” Liana wasn’t foolish. Loraviel, being the protagonist who had trained many times, would find one hundred swings of a stone sword extremely easy.

“This... doesn’t seem fair?” Loraviel hesitated.

Oliphia was already secretly amused.

“...” Liana vaguely sensed something was off, but due to pride, five times already seemed excessive. “There’s nothing unfair about it. Are you afraid?”

“Alright then.” Loraviel gripped the stone sword with both hands. Worst case, she would just let Princess Liana win.

“Then let’s begin,” Oliphia announced.

Loraviel swung her sword at a rate of once every five seconds. Liana was stunned.

Indeed, warm-up exercises shouldn’t waste too much time, which was why they were set at one hundred repetitions. Simultaneously, to prevent wasting too much time, these one hundred repetitions also had a time limit—they couldn’t exceed half an hour.

“What’s wrong, Princess Liana? Tired before even starting?” Oliphia inquired.

“...Hmph, she’s just showing off in front of me. Let’s see how long she can keep this up,” Liana now felt something was slightly amiss.

She hoped Loraviel would understand the situation!

Loraviel’s rhythm was very steady, never exceeding five seconds per swing. Twenty minutes had passed, and Loraviel had already swung the stone sword over two hundred times, but not a single drop of sweat appeared on her forehead, and her breathing remained steady.

On Liana’s side, the situation was becoming precarious. Loraviel’s two hundred plus swings equated to forty for Liana.

And this was without any breaks. Liana’s breathing was beginning to become irregular, but she still gritted her teeth and persevered. Admitting defeat now would be too embarrassing!

But Liana didn’t know that there were some scenarios where saying “I can’t continue” would be even more embarrassing.

Loraviel didn’t choose to slow her pace. Since she was holding a sword, going slower would put more pressure on the muscles. Now, finishing quickly would be best for Liana.

Soon, Loraviel reached five hundred swings, equivalent to Liana’s one hundred.

Liana was clearly struggling to keep up, having only completed around eighty swings. But she didn’t say anything and continued to grit her teeth.

After about twenty more minutes, Liana finally completed her one hundred swings, but she was drenched in sweat.

Loraviel clearly still had energy to spare. Liana had previously stated that for every number of swings Loraviel did, she would do a corresponding number, without specifying that one hundred was the endpoint.

This meant that if Loraviel continued, Liana would have to as well.

“Would you like to take a break, Princess Liana?” Loraviel asked with concern.

Liana’s body was telling her not to push herself, but her mouth had its own ideas. “No need. Don’t tell me you’re the one who’s tired?”

“...” Luckily for Liana, she was dealing with Loraviel. “Yes, I am a bit tired. It’s been a while since I’ve done this kind of training, so I’m a bit out of practice.”

“Hmph, then let’s take a break,” Liana conceded.

Oliphia naturally saw through it; Loraviel was merely providing an excuse for Liana.

“Let’s rest for a bit then.”

Liana, disregarding her image, sat directly on the ground, breathing heavily, her hands starting to shake.

This was barely manageable without Oliphia calling “stop.” If Oliphia had intervened, it would probably have taken twice as long.

This was still far from sufficient for Royal Knight training.

“Not bad, Princess Liana. This time, you persevered all the way through,” Oliphia praised.

“That goes without saying. I am Liana, after all.”

“Yes, yes.” Oliphia had grown accustomed to this aspect of Liana. Regardless, Liana had completed this warm-up.

“Princess Liana is truly amazing,” Loraviel lavished praise on Liana.

“Even if you flatter me, I won’t give you any favors. This is what you’re supposed to do. Besides, your physical condition is really poor. If I had the same amount of training time as you, this would be absolutely effortless for me. I wouldn’t feel tired at all.”

“...” Loraviel just smiled with squinted eyes, wiping Liana’s sweat with a towel.

“Your Highness, your tea.” Loraviel had already prepared tea, ready to provide Liana with refreshment at any time.

Liana drank the tea, feeling much more at ease.

“Once Your Highness has rested, let’s proceed to the next phase of training,” Oliphia said.

“Alright.” Liana had roughly guessed that royal knight training certainly wouldn’t be this simple. “Whatever training comes next, bring it on!”