The Reincarnated Count's Daughter Is the Strongest as She Is Loved by the Spirits, Though She Is Only Wishing for Regular Romance!

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**Author Notes:**

I have written about "Reflections and Character Relationships" in the activity report.

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Since Suzanna was coming, I didn’t really have anything to do in particular.  

While my parents and Chris-niisama brought a mountain of gifts to the Orlandi Marquis house, I went about my usual daily routine. Suzanna had been visiting my mother for advice about dresses or coming to see me, so she was already familiar with the people in the castle. I thought it would be best to welcome her with the usual atmosphere and smiles, with just a little more attention to her dress than usual.

When Suzanna appeared in front of me and Alan-niisama in the parlor near the teleportation array, I noticed she had become even more beautiful in the short time since I last saw her. She wore a lilac dress with a large white collar as an accent, with no frills or ribbons. The design was neat and modest, covering her neck fully.

We were supposed to have dinner together, so Chris-niisama suggested that she spend time talking with Dia until then. Of course, I asked her if she didn’t want to go to Chris-niisama's room, considering their engagement. But the official engagement would only be announced in front of everyone on the Crown Prince's birthday, and it wouldn't be proper for her to visit his room just because they were engaged. Since Suzanna needed to study various things about Berisario, a room had been prepared for her, and it was fine for Chris-niisama to visit there.

I wanted to say, "What's with that!" but seriously, it had to do with the areas of the castle that people were allowed to enter. Until she officially became a member of the family, she couldn't enter the areas where my parents or the heir had their private rooms. Even as family, there are rooms I'm not allowed to enter, so it can't be helped. It's normal in this world for the treatment to be very different between the heir and everyone else.

Suzanna had come to my room many times before, so we were used to each other's company. As always, we sat down, and Nelly prepared tea for us. Nelly and Suzanna were classmates. Despite studying in the same classroom, one became my attendant, and the other became my brother’s fiancée. How did it come to this?

“Nelly, why don’t you join us? I’m sure there are many things you want to ask.”  

“No, as Lord Chris’s fiancée, her position is different from mine as a maid.”  

“You’re not a maid. You’re my attendant.”  

“Please think of me as the head maid.”

Hey, Count’s daughter! Why do you want to be a maid?!

“It’s pointless to say anything. When her family got rich enough to hire people for cleaning and gardening, she cried because she couldn’t do the cleaning anymore.”  

“She’s an eccentric whose hobby is polishing glass, after all.”  

“Can we not focus on me right now?”

Nelly quickly placed the tea and retreated to the corner of the room.  

She’s standing there because she’s a maid, ready to attend to guests at any moment.  

I don’t understand why she finds that fun.

“Hey, Dia. How did you feel when you heard I was chosen as Chris's fiancée?” Suzanna asked, staring into her teacup.

“How did I feel? I was going to welcome you or Monica either way.”  

“That’s not what I meant… I never thought I would be chosen by His Highness from the beginning.”  

“Is that because you’re from a marquis family?”  

“Yes. We didn’t want to disappoint the Marquess of Norland, who governs the region assigned to Lady Suou, right? Carla’s territory is in the region handled by Lady Ruri, and when I first became a candidate, with the Johannes Marquis family and the Berisario Marquess family being on good terms, there was a chance I might be chosen. But even my family thought I wouldn’t be.”  

Is that so?  

The Marquess families, as the Crown Prince’s assistants, are all quite close to the center, but only Duke Powell among the central nobles is present.  

From the perspective of nobles who have served the royal family since before the Marquess families joined the empire, I think they might feel dissatisfied with the current situation. So, choosing a daughter from a marquis family as the Empress wouldn’t be an impossible idea.

“As someone from Berisario, you might not understand. The contributions Berisario and the Fairy Princess have made to the empire are so significant, they don’t even leave room for such complaints… It’s intimidating. It’s only natural to want at least Norland as an ally.”  

“But honestly, it wouldn’t matter where the bride came from when it comes to war.”  

There are cases in the history of every country where wars happened after marriages were arranged.  

It’s always the women who end up suffering.

“I’d like to believe the empire won’t have a civil war.”  

“It won’t. At least, as long as my eyes can see… as long as I’m watching, there won’t be a war.”  

“Is that so?”  

“You see, I want the Crown Prince to become Emperor, and Berisario fully supports the Crown Prince.”  

“Did you convey that properly to His Highness?”  

“Huh? But, we’re already assisting him.”  

“You want to go back home. You want to stop assisting. Lord August also said he finds it more enjoyable to stay in Berisario, and Chris doesn’t seem to have any affection for His Highness either.”

Yeah, that’s right.  

My sly, tsundere older brother would never say something like that to the Crown Prince.  

Elton even said that Chris-niisama’s role as an assistant seemed like it would be bad for his stomach.

“Can you, Dia, subtly suggest to Chris that he should talk about it?”  

“Why me? Why don’t you, his fiancée, say it?”  

“Chris loves his little sister. It would be better if you said it.”

Why is this conversation about me mediating between the Crown Prince and Chris-niisama?  

This wasn’t the topic we were supposed to be discussing.

“Huh? Was that what you wanted to talk about?”  

“No, that’s not it. So, when the idea of marrying someone who wasn’t chosen arose, our entire family, no, our entire clan, was delighted. We thought I’d be labeled as the girl who wasn’t chosen by the Crown Prince, but then I became Chris’s fiancée instead.”  

“I heard that before, and for us, it’s also great to be related to a marquis family…”  

“Wait. Listen.”

I closed my mouth and waited, but Suzanna, uncharacteristically, hesitated, her eyes wandering and fidgeting.

“Suzanna?”  

“Well, after the academy, since Chris became an assistant, he often ran into us while we were receiving education as potential brides at the royal palace.”  

“Yeah.”  

“I thought we were meeting a lot…”  

“Yeah?”  

“But when I asked Monica, she said she never saw him.”

So, does that mean Chris-niisama only went to see Suzanna?  

All while pretending it was a coincidence?

“Tell me more!!”

Nelly, who had just said that their positions were different, dashed from the wall to the sofa at an incredible speed, seating herself next to Suzanna.

“Hey, Countess, calm down.”  

“But you want to hear it, right?”  

“Of course I do.”

It’s a love story.  

We’re having a girls’ talk.  

We’ve talked the night away about our favorite things, but I’ve hardly ever experienced talking about love stories.

“Um, may I continue?”  

“Of course.”  

“And then?”

Don’t grab Suzanna's arm and shake her.  

Why is Nelly so excited?

“I think it was just before you went to Luftanen, Dia, that Chris told me he would bring me to Berisario. He also said he’d mentioned it to His Highness.”  

“What? It wasn’t the Crown Prince who decided, but my brother?!”  

“I’m not sure, but he said it was decided even before the candidates for the engagement were chosen. That’s why he suggested I consult Lady Nadia about the dress.”  

“When was that?!”  

“…Nelly, you’re failing as a maid.”  

“Wow, but this is an amazing story. It means Chris-sama had intended to marry Suzanna all along!”

An excited Nelly and a now bright red Suzanna.  

I’m completely shocked.  

What? Was everything I said about romance pointless? Was Chris-niisama planning this from the beginning?  

What?! He never showed any signs of that!

“I think Chris, being Chris, researched all the young ladies in the empire and decided that I fit the criteria best, so it’s probably not about love or anything like that. Or maybe he set it up that way so I wouldn’t feel indebted or guilty.”  

“No.”  

“Huh?”  

“Listen, Chris-niisama is the next head of Berisario, and he values Berisario more than the entire empire.”

I placed my hands on my hips and puffed out my chest while sitting in my chair.  

The spirit beasts, who had been lounging around the room, lifted their heads and looked at me, only to lose interest and turn away.  

So cold. The spirit beasts are so cold.

“Is that something you should say with such certainty?”

Even Nelly looked exasperated, and it hurt a little.

“Just listen. Chris-ni

isama cares deeply about Berisario. He cares deeply about his family.”  

“I know that. Especially Dia and Alan, right?”  

“So, Chris-niisama’s weak point is his family, right? The fact that he decided long ago who the next head of Berisario’s wife would be is practically a passionate proposal. It means there was no woman in this empire better than you.”

Suzanna’s eyes widened as she covered her mouth with both hands, her face turning a deep shade of red.  

Don’t faint on me, okay? Are you alright?

“Yes… that’s right. I should be confident, shouldn’t I?”  

“Yes, be proud and stand tall.”

Only they know their relationship, and what brings a couple together can vary from person to person.  

There might be more important things than whether romantic feelings are involved… But isn’t it possible that Chris-niisama is actually in love with Suzanna?

Wait. Why did Chris-niisama have Suzanna talk to me first, instead of guiding her to her room, when she came to the castle?  

Did he think I should talk to her because she still felt insecure or lacked confidence?

“Chris-niisama, you should say important things yourself.”  

“What are you talking about?”

When I complained before dinner began, he replied with a cheerful smile.  

I knew it! He used his sister for convenience.

“What’s going on?”  

“Oh, Mother. Chris-niisama had liked Suzanna for quite a while, it seems.”  

“Dia!!”

Hmph. It’s too late to panic now.

“Oh, I knew that.”  

“Huh?”  

“The only girl Chris introduced me to was Suzanna.”  

“That was for the dress consultation, right?”  

“Whatever the reason, he wasn’t that kind to other girls.”  

“Mother, let’s eat.”

As expected of Mother.  

I’ve never seen Chris-niisama look so flustered.

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**Author Notes:**

Thank you for reading. Your typo reports are helpful.

If you found it even slightly interesting, I’d be happy if you could rate it below.

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