Charlotte and I were sitting on one of the benches, just letting things settle for a moment after everything that had happened.

Earlier, she had taken a video of Myrcella while she was delivering her speech. After that, she posted it on social media, and things escalated faster than I expected. Within just a few hours, the video had already gone viral. It spread like wildfire, popping up everywhere, shared again and again like people couldn't get enough of it.

The reactions from the public were… surprisingly positive.

That alone was already impressive, considering how people usually are online. Well, on my previous world, at least.

Of course, there were still some critics here and there. There always are. A few people tried to pick apart her speech, question her intentions, or just complain for the sake of complaining. Standard behavior, really. Still, those voices didn't last long. They were quickly drowned out by the ones supporting Myrcella. It almost felt coordinated, like her supporters had been waiting for an excuse to step in and defend her.

At this point, there was even a movement forming around her.

They called themselves the First Princess Fanatics. The name alone sounded intense, and honestly, it kind of was. They were openly supporting Myrcella, pushing for her to succeed to the throne and become King. From what I heard, their numbers had already reached around a hundred thousand people. That wasn't small by any means.

There were still people who opposed the idea, but they were in the minority. Fortunately. And even then, Myrcella wasn't ignoring them. She was actively trying to reach out, trying to convince them, and trying to bring them over to her side instead of just shutting them out.

It felt like she was putting in an unreasonable amount of effort just to make sure no one would feel left out or dissatisfied. She was trying to balance everything, even things that probably didn't need balancing in the first place.

Meanwhile, Charlotte was right beside me, sticking close like glue.

Not that I minded.

"I'm surprised you managed to get this much traction," I said, glancing at her. "You're pretty famous, huh?"

That wasn't an exaggeration. This world had developed something similar to social media, and Charlotte had already made a name for herself on it. If I remembered correctly, she had around fifty thousand followers. That was already a solid number, especially considering this whole thing still felt like it was in its early stages.

It looked like the social media scene was just starting to boom. More people were getting into it, more content was being shared, and information was spreading faster than ever.

At the same time, fake news was spreading just as quickly. Maybe even faster in some cases.

That was the problem.

The internet really was a double-edged sword. Useful, powerful, and at the same time, kind of a mess if you weren't careful.

"Well, you should've seen Ella's," Charlotte replied casually. "Hers was twice as much."

"Oh yeah, I heard Ella became the ambassador of your mercenary group," I said.

"Yes," Charlotte nodded. "And she's doing such a good job that it's honestly hard to believe sometimes. She feels like a completely different person now. If you saw her before and now, you probably wouldn't think they're the same person."

"Well, she's always been quite beautiful," I said. "She just seemed shy. That probably held her back before. She couldn't really show what she was capable of. Still, she's always had that presence."

"Fufufu, I know," Charlotte said with a soft laugh. "That's why I'm impressed you haven't taken her out yet."

I looked at her. "What do you mean?"

She gave me a look that made it obvious she thought I was playing dumb.

"You know what I mean," she said. "When are you going to fuck her and officially make her part of your harem?"

Honestly, I saw that coming from a mile away.

It wasn't like she was wrong either. Making Ella part of my harem wouldn't be difficult. If anything, it would probably be straightforward. The issue wasn't whether I could, it was more about when I should.

There had just been too much going on lately. Between everything that needed attention, I hadn't really had the time to focus on that side of things. Going around trying to conquer women while juggling everything else didn't exactly sound efficient.

Still, it wasn't something I could ignore forever.

Timing would matter.

"Well, enough about that," I said, deciding to shift the topic. "That can wait for now. What about you? Aren't you going to attend your graduation?"

She smiled at me, completely relaxed, like the question didn't bother her at all.

"I don't think it's really necessary," she said. "With how often I've been absent, I've already dropped to the bronze class. At this point, I'm just there on paper."

"That bad, huh?"

"Pretty much," she replied, sounding amused rather than concerned. "Besides, the only thing I'd get from the academy is a diploma. And honestly, I don't really need it. With how successful the Mercenary Guild is right now, something like a diploma doesn't really mean much."

"I see…"

That made sense.

Diplomas weren't everything here. They were useful if you wanted a certain kind of job, sure. They gave you some credibility, opened doors, made things easier in a structured path. Still, if you had already built something successful on your own, like Charlotte had, then the value dropped a lot.

She had already proven herself in a way that a piece of paper couldn't really match.

"Well, it looks like Myrcella and the current administration are planning to change the academy system within this month," I said. "If that goes through, you could become a magic knight, you know?"

"Well, I already told you, didn't I?" she said, still smiling. "I don't really have any desire to become a magic knight. I'd rather spend my time doing something I actually enjoy."

"And that is?"

She looked at me directly.

"Making sure you're happy," she said. "And helping you."

Right.

That was exactly like her.

The reason she built the Mercenary Guild in the first place was because she wanted to support me. That had always been her goal, even from the start.

"By the way," she added, as if remembering something, "I've come across some really interesting women with great abilities. I'll send you a list of members. If any of them catch your interest, just tell me."

"Alright," I said.

And by helping me, she meant things like that.

She was actively searching for women who had abilities that would be useful to me, and at the same time, ones I might personally take an interest in. It was efficient, in its own way.

She reminded me of Amon when she did that. The way she handled things, the way she anticipated what I might want before I even said it.

Honestly, I wasn't complaining.

If anything, it made things easier.

Now all that was left was to see what kind of people she was going to send my way.