Traveling by carriage on dirt roads was unpleasant. She had several pillows under her rump and still felt like she might bite her tongue off if she wasn’t careful. This was the first time she realized that paved roads were counted as a modern day luxury...

As much as she was able, she kept the window drapes open so she could look outside. It was nice to get fresh air in a stuffy carriage. But sometimes the wind blew the wrong way and the dust the horses kicked up would come in, forcing her to close them.

She asked a maid why there weren't glass windows in the carriage like they had in the mansion and the maid had looked at her like she was an idiot. She carefully explained that glass was expensive and could break easily. Putting it in a carriage that was going to be bumping over roads for miles was asking for disaster.

Felicia lowered her head quietly and decided not to ask any more questions. She’d never once thought about the development of glass throughout the ages and it showed.

While they travelled she got to see the Fresa March and all its glory.

If it could be called glorious.

The poverty level of people in the smaller towns and hamlets was shocking. People looked thin and haggard, their clothing patchy. She bit her lip as she rummaged through Calle’s memories, trying to see what the normal standard of living was for commoners.

It was fruitless. Calle never paid attention to commoners. Her memories of them were dreary colored blurs. Felicia was reminded again how utterly oblivious her host was to the world around her.

The next day, they entered the Maiz Duchy and Felicia got an answer to her question. No, it wasn’t normal! The Maiz Duchy population was obviously doing much better. They laughed and joked frequently, their clothing had brighter colors and looked cleaner, and they were decently plump. Without a doubt, the quality of a commoner's life was dictated by the noble over them.

The Maiz Family, whatever else could be said, ran their Duchy well. Not only were the people healthy and happy, the roads were better maintained. Felicia’s rump was thankful for them noting that small detail.

Exactly how was the Viscount running Fresa March that the people in it looked so depressed and hopeless? Felicia keenly felt the injustice of the people in her fief and wanted to make things right. If she could, she’d find that Viscount and beat sense into him.

But she wasn’t in a position to deal with him yet. The reason Calle could get away with killing people, even up to and including the Marquess, was thanks to the Viscount covering her tracks. He was the real power in Fresa. If she tried to take him down or get rid of him, he’d drag her down with him in an instant.

Everytime she thought of the Viscount, Felicia felt like scolding her host into a coma. This woman really thought she was the best of the best, above everyone and everything, but in reality she was playing to the tune of her subordinate. The moment she’d made a deal with the Viscount, giving him control of the fief, Calle had lost any real power.

Though the people in the mansion were grateful to Felicia for the changes she’d made, they were loyal to the Viscount. If they had to pick between the two of them, they’d pick him. Simply because if they didn’t they’d die. Her being nice to them wasn’t enough for them to risk their lives for her.

If she wanted to take him down, she couldn’t do it by herself. She needed loyal people. Smart people. Strong people…. Thinking about it, she sighed.

‘How am I suppose to find supporters when this stupid host has no taste in people and I don’t know this culture well enough to judge people without her?’ She rubbed her temple in annoyance.

“Marchioness, are you feeling unwell?” A maid asked her when she started scowling.

“If I was I would have told you.”

The maid bowed her head slightly, “My apologies.”

Calle harrumphed while Felicia inwardly cried, ‘Even if I could find good people, who would put up with this poison-tongued host? DARS I am so screwed!’

[It is not hopeless.] He paused. [I might… be able to help.]

‘What, how?’

[You may recall that I can predict the future to a certain degree.]

‘Yeah, I remember. You use calculations or something, right?’

[I use the data I possess about the timeline I’m in, plus my internal data, and “calculate”, as you say, the probabilities going forward.]

She mentally nodded.

[How much data do you think I need to make an accurate prediction?]

‘Hmmmm… it’d have to be a lot, wouldn’t it?’

[The amount of data I need to make accurate predictions is incomprehensible to the human mind.]

‘Yep, that’s definitely a lot.’

[This includes information on people.]

‘...ah! So you know a lot about people!’

[Yes.]

‘Including their strengths, weaknesses!’ She did an internal happy jig. ‘That means you can look at a person and know whether they’d be able to help me!’

[Correct.]

‘...’

[?]

‘Can’t you use that skill to help me beat the Viscount?’

[My knowledge on the Viscount can’t compensate for the mess your host created before our arrival. To use a chess term: she has been checkmated by the Viscount for years. The current state of the host is no match for him.]

Felicia was quiet for a while, knowing he was right.

‘Do you think…. I could replace his people with my own?’

[Yes, but you’d need to be careful. If he thought you were trying to take over, he wouldn’t tolerate it.]

‘Obviously….’ She tilted her head. ‘Wait, was he around when Querido took over?’

[For a short time.]

‘He got rid of him? How?’

[The Viscount under-estimated the intelligence and viciousness of a child. Querido had been preparing to take over from a very young age. Using another chess term, he’d been bringing in his own knights and pawns and positioning them on the board for years. This is how he was able to murder the host and get away with it. By the time the Viscount realized what was happening, it was too late for him to do anything.]

‘.....eh…. I feel like Querido is way better at this than I am. Maybe I should just sit back and let him deal with it?’

[What a heartless mother you turned out to be.]

‘Hey!’

[It won’t work now even if you wanted to do it that way. The viciousness needed for him to get the Viscount at an early age has already been reduced because you’ve been treating him better.]

‘....I should have just kept being mean to him then….’

[You don’t mean that.]

‘Of course I don’t mean it!’ She glared at him and gave a heavy sigh. ‘Kids shouldn’t be seriously planning to kill their parents from the age of 7, that’s just abnormal. If giving him a happier life means I don’t die but the Viscount is harder to deal with, oh well. It’s a sacrifice I’ll have to accept, I guess.’

[It’s good that you know.] DARS bobbed in the air. [Concerning my data ability, there are limitations.]

‘Yeah?’

[Technically, I am not supposed to use my data in this way to help you—]

‘Boo!’

[Though I scan your surroundings all the time for purposes of predictions, I am not supposed to relay anything to you but the requested prediction itself and perhaps a small summary of how I came to my conclusion. By giving you foundational information used for predictions, I can trigger my automatic debugging system. If it detects me misusing my abilities, it will naturally correct it. Once it fixes the bug, there is nothing I can do about it.]

‘Aw man…’

[Therefore, when using this ability to aid you, I must be careful.]

She gave an invisible OK hand motion.

[The less I use this ability, the harder it will be for my debugging system to flag my actions as a bug. Therefore, the information I give you will be limited to what you need to know. Extra information will not be provided and should not be expected. That also means a person who is not useful to you, I will not even mention them. If I say nothing in response to an inquiry about a person, assume it means they aren’t acceptable. I am also restricting who I scan to only those within your vicinity.]

‘...wah, so many restrictions…’

[It is better than nothing.]

‘True!’ She mentally made a heart shape hand gesture towards him and winked saucely, ‘Thanks for taking this risk DARS, you’re the best! Besties forever! Love ya!’

A single dot appeared on DARS’ face and he slowly floated away, until he was out of the carriage and a good distance from her.

‘Rude!’ She said in mock offense and laughed.

The Duke of Maiz was not born a Maiz. As the King’s Uncle, his original surname was Salvias and lived with the royal family's castle. But the only royal who can govern with the Salvias name is the King. Therefore, any Grandee who wanted to govern needed to do so through marriage. Grandee Salvias married into a Duchy, taking on their family name.

It sounds fairly straightforward but Duke Maiz got lucky. Most nobles have at least one son. Unless that son was incompetent, nobles would pass on their title to their son. In the Duke’s case, it happened that the Maiz Family only had daughters. While the title could be passed to a grandson or nephew, this was not always the best option. When it wasn't, a daughter would be selected to carry the family title. However, for a daughter to retain the family title, she must get married before her 21st birthday. The man marrying in would take on the Maiz surname, inheriting the title through his wife.

This kind of opportunity didn’t come around very often. Any man who married the Maiz eldest daughter would get to inherit an entire duchy! It was said that on the eldest daughter’s coming-of-age ceremony, when she was legally old enough to be engaged, she was fawned over by men so heavily that it actually left her traumatized. She didn’t go out into society for another two years just to avoid the crowds of young men trying to win her over.

Despite how rigid and patriarchal this society and time period may be, the Maiz family didn’t pressure their daughter into an engagement. In fact, they didn’t pressure her into marrying at all. Perhaps it was because they had 4 more daughters who could carry the title, so they weren’t particularly worried. Either way, the eldest Maiz was very cautious about the places she went to and parties she attended. She got the reputation as the “Shy Rose” of upper nobility and by the time she turned 20, men had more or less given up on her and focused on the next available Maiz daughter to come of age.

It was during this time that the eldest Maiz grew close to her now-husband. Supposedly they’d been friends who had a mutual interest in gardening for several years prior. He was 3 years younger than her and, because the earliest a noble could marry was 18, not considered a viable candidate to gain the Duke title. Perhaps that’s why the eldest Maiz was willing to spend time with him. When they fell in love, neither expected him to get the title. But it turned out his birthday was one day before her own. Meaning he turned 18 a day before she turned 21. So they got married a day before she turned 21 and he inherited the Ducal title.

That was the common story that everyone knew. It was considered romantic, a little thrilling, but very sweet. The host, however, was cynical and believed the now-Duke Maiz had planned it all from the start.

He used the age difference and a mutual hobby to get close to the eldest Maiz. Because she believed he couldn’t inherit her family title due to the age difference, he wouldn’t come to her with ulterior motives. She let her guard down and he was able to get close to her in a way none of the other suitors were able to do as a result. He even waited until the last minute, to prove his “sincerity” and prevent her from running away. His patience, endurance, and willingness to take a risk got him the Duke title of the wealthiest Duchy in the Kingdom. A man like that should be respected and feared, in the host’s mind.

Felicia wasn’t sure about her host’s conclusions, but the memories Calle had of Duchess Maiz indicated that she really did love her husband and Duke Maiz at least treated her with respect and affection in public. If he’d plotted everything from the start, he was perhaps smart enough to also realize that “a happy wife is a happy life”.

Maybe the real reason Calle was cynical came down to jealousy. Her pride would not allow her to accept that someone else could be genuinely happy while she lived miserably, married to an old lecherous man. To make herself feel better, she decided all men must have hidden motives. They were either lustful or greedy, guileless love did not exist. Otherwise, what did that make her? A victim? She would not allow herself to be a victim!

Felicia had to admit that, in her own way, Calle was strong. She refused to fall into the trap of feeling helpless and powerless, no matter how badly she was mistreated. It was just unfortunate that the same pride that allowed her to remain a “strong independent woman” also led her to murdering several people, including her husband. Not that Felicia felt particularly bad for that old pervert.

The Maiz Family lived in a Castle. Among the nobility there were castles, mansions, manors, and great houses. The main difference between a castle and a mansion was a castle’s primary purpose was defense—basically it was a fortress—whereas a mansion was a house that was big enough to serve as a 4 star hotel.

Castle Maiz had been built shortly after the kingdom’s founding and was originally where the royal family lived. Over time the kingdom expanded and the royal family moved out, building a better and more secure castle in a different location to the north-west. But leaving an empty castle was a waste, so it was given to a prince who wouldn’t inherit the throne. That prince was the ancestor who started the Maiz Family as it was known now.

Basically, Salvias and Maiz families had always been close. It wasn’t uncommon for princes and princesses to marry into them every other generation or so, though not many got lucky enough to be Duke or Duchess. Not only was the reigning Duke a Grandee, the Maiz Ducal House was a political powerhouse thanks to its close ties to the royal family.

As Felicia was going over what Calle knew about the Maiz Family, she came across something interesting. Calle didn’t pay much attention to “men’s politics”, but she did have a vague sense of it. For instance, Duke Maiz was Uncle to the King and that automatically meant he and the Maiz family were part of the King’s Faction.

There were several political factions within Salvias, but the only one’s Calle knew about were the King’s Faction and Nobles Faction. As to why she knew about them and not the others….. Sadly, it was because their names made them the easiest to remember and understand. Basically, the King’s Faction believed in the King’s Supremacy and the Nobles Faction believed the King only had power thanks to the Nobles. Therefore, the King was obligated to give way to certain demands set by Nobles.

Calle agreed with the Nobles Faction in theory, but in practice she fawned over whoever was powerful regardless of political association. The Maiz Family was part of the King’s Faction but that could be overlooked because they were respected, powerful, and deeply influential. If being around them made her look better, Calle would set aside her personal opinions for her “greater good”.

Felicia rolled her eyes. Her host was the type of person who followed whoever was in power. A total bootlicker.

But in this instance it was useful. Felicia disliked both factions. Who wanted to be under kings or nobles? As a (former) commoner, she understood the commoner’s plight most keenly and felt both factions were full of it. Since everyone knew Calle played both sides, no one expected her to remain loyal to either.

Felicia wondered if there was a Commoner Faction. Should she try and make one if one didn’t exist? Ah, but anything like that would get the ire of both the Royal loyalists and the Nobles. She might get charged with treason, an instant death sentence. Perhaps there was something similar… of course Calle wouldn’t know if there was….

After a two day trip, they arrived at Maiz Castle. All the higher nobles got first class treatment by staying as guests at the castle. This included Calle.

Maiz Castle was a traditional castle, it even had a portcullis and a moat. The ramparts were tall and there were 4 cylinder towers at each corner. To brighten up the dreary brown bricks, large yellow banners were hanging over the ramparts. Felicia stared at everything with wide eyed interest. Calle had never been to a castle, as those were rare even among nobles, so this was a first for both of them.

The “Noble color” of the Maiz Family was yellow. Their herald animal was a yellow hawk. Anything created for the family was also yellow. The phrase “Maiz the Bright” was often used to describe people from this family, not only when they excelled, but also as a poke fun at their bright, sunny family color.

Even though Duke Maiz was from the Salvias Family, meaning his hair and eyes were purple, all his children had yellow hair and eyes. The “muddy colors” of the commoners were usually a combination of purple and yellow thanks to how often the royal family married into the Maiz family, and then how their descendants mixed with the local population over time.

‘I really don’t understand how genetics work in this world.’ Felicia commented as she peeked out of her carriage and saw a woman with bright blond hair and pale purple eyes hastily walking past her carriage.

[It is a mystery.]

‘Woah, even you don’t know?’

[I know why, it’s just that the logic behind why is nonsense.]

‘...eh… how can it be nonsense? It’s genetics!’

[Existence is a strange thing. I wish I could be as ignorant as you, then I would not be vexed by it so frequently.]

‘How about you educate me so we can be vexed together?’

[You want your life to be more frustrating?] Several !!! appeared on his face. [User, this time, I must protect you from yourself. Remain ignorant, for your own mental wellbeing.]

She squinted at him, ‘If you didn’t want to, or can’t, tell me you could have just said so.’

[I thought you hated hearing ‘That information is restri—’]

‘GAH, NEVER MIND!’ She mentally plugged her ears, glaring at him.