They are all characters I control.

In contrast, Earl Orlando calmly curled the corners of his mouth and stared at 'Lia' in front of him, saying, "So what? My reputation is 'The Playboy Earl'."

"Even if others find out about this, I can just say that I like you so much that I followed Miss Lia. It won't affect me at all."

“You, on the other hand, are much more interesting, Miss Leah, who is much more uncouth.”

"You were the one who proposed the new tax, weren't you? And you were the one who made that spectacular escape using imprint magic, weren't you?"

"It's so exciting to be able to face you again. If someone like you were handed over to the Inquisition, the nuns would be very happy, don't you think? Rude Miss Lia."

The truth has come out; Earl Orlando has now completely laid his cards on the table with Claire.

Unlike the Marquis of Rost and his group, who were trying to gain benefits from him and thus pretended to be completely unaware, Earl Orlando was interested in Claire herself.

He didn't need any extra steps; he just wanted to uncover Claire's secret.

“You won’t do that,” Claire laughed dismissively.

Earl Orlando's smile faltered.

Judging from her attitude, she wasn't worried at all that he would expose her?

This immediately piqued the handsome count's interest: "Oh? Before I hand you over to the Church of the Goddess, I'd like to ask you where your confidence comes from?"

"Where does this confidence come from? Of course, it comes from this." Claire suddenly moved.

Like a street thug, he raised his knee without warning and rammed it into Earl Orlando's groin, while his right hand, in a claw-like motion, viciously and precisely grabbed at Earl Orlando's chest.

Count Orlando never expected his opponent to be so decisive, just like when they ambushed him in the alley.

Fortunately, he reacted quickly, dodging the opponent's "Monkey Stealing Peaches" and then blocking the opponent's "Dragon Claw Hand".

Just like their fight in that dark alley, Claire's attack was parried, but this time Earl Orlando was not careless.

Claire was quickly subdued, but he raised his hand and flicked a fire imprint at the fire magic stone that was exposed under the floor.

As the fiery imprint flew toward the floor, Earl Orlando seemed to have known all along what was there.

Without hesitation, he cast a holy magical shield on the floor.

When Count Orlando turned around to look at 'Lia', she was calmly straightening her clothes.

The two faced each other again, looking at each other as if nothing had happened.

"You naughty 'Miss Leah', aren't you worried at all that your actions just now might affect your father, mother, and sisters?"

This remark made Claire laugh.

"Laughable! Are you pretending to be stupid or are you genuinely dumb? Do you think I'd like them alive? What do you think I originally intended to do with all those fire magic stones?"

Earl Orlando feigned sudden realization, smiling as he looked at Claire: "Oh dear~ that's a real shame. It seems Miss Leah doesn't like the Rost family?"

Looking at the two people in front of her, the maid Anna felt out of place standing there.

They were just fighting, how come they're all smiles and talking now?

“You’re the same way, otherwise why would you visit the tomb of the first Marchioness?” Claire stared at Earl Orlando with a smile.

For a few seconds, the smile on Earl Orlando's face froze.

The next moment, Earl Orlando instantly switched to a battle-ready expression.

He seemed to have shed his disguise, revealing a cold expression he had never seen before, staring at Claire as he uttered each word, while simultaneously drawing a knight's sword hanging on the wall.

"What are you talking about? I don't know anything about this. What else do you know? You'd better give me a satisfactory answer, otherwise..."

Looking at Count Orlando, who was clearly intent on killing her, the maid Anna felt a chill run down her spine.

If the one who attacked them earlier was none other than Earl Orlando, then Anna felt that she absolutely had no chance of escaping this time.

Last time, Earl Orlando didn't really intend to kill them at all, but that might not be the case now.

"Mom." Looking at Earl Orlando, who was now filled with murderous intent, Claire unexpectedly uttered the famous quote from her junior, Wa.

However, before Claire could see Earl Orlando's reaction, a sudden system notification flooded her view.

[System Notification: Intense emotional fluctuations detected in the proxy 'Lia von Rost', her latent bond value has exceeded the critical point...]

[The player has triggered Leah's most important memory, unlocking a special CG - Mother's Warmth]

[Current Bond Level: 71%↑]

[Unlock new feature: 'Heart-to-Heart Bond' mode.]

In this mode, the agent can engage in "bullet screen" style commentary, sharing some of the agent's senses and surface thoughts with the main body's actions during the controlled period.

[The consciousness of the proxy, Lia, is awakening...]

[Lia: Hmm? Where am I? Something seems off. Why am I seeing myself?]

What? No, this is AI awakening?

Claire was also starting to lose her composure as she looked at the system notification.

He woke up Leah by saying "Mom"? Leah was just watching?

Chapter 52 Happy Cooperation

[System notification—The consciousness of the proxy, Lia, has awakened.]

[The agent's consciousness barrage has been activated, entering a state of mental bond.]

Please speak politely and communicate harmoniously to create a loving and enjoyable gaming environment.

【…】

In addition to the game system prompts, there was also a CG image.

The CG image looks like a statue of the Virgin Mary, depicting a gentle-faced woman holding a beautifully sculpted girl in a garden.

The sunlight shone on the mother and daughter, giving them a sense of sacredness.

Upon closer inspection of the woman's face, Claire immediately realized that she looked remarkably similar to Leah.

Next to this CG image, several more bullet comments featuring Lia's avatar appeared.

Lia clearly didn't understand the current situation.

[Lia: Where am I? Something seems off. Why am I seeing myself?]

[Lia: What's Anna so nervous about? Why is he holding a sword? Oh... I remember now, he found the Fire Magic Stone and asked me about imprinting magic.]

[Lia: But if I'm here, then who's sitting behind Anna right now?]

[Lia: What's wrong with me?! What happened?! Why can't I move?!]

【…】

Claire felt a headache coming on as she looked at the comments Lia had sent.

If Lia stays offline and asleep, then I'll do whatever I want.

Now, some kind of "Mental Bond" state has been activated, allowing Lia to observe clearly while she is in control of her body, which is equivalent to having an extra spectator.

Although Lia could only send comments at this point and wouldn't fight for control of her body, she was still annoying.

As one comment after another flooded her screen, Claire couldn't find the option to mute anyone.

[Claire: I'm in control of your body now, stop sending comments!]

[Lia: ? Bullet comments? What are bullet comments?]

Claire: ...It's what you saw me say.

[Lia: Oh, I see. So this is what bullet comments are. The name is quite interesting, but why is your name in black? My name is written next to my bullet comments.]

Huh? Leah can't see my name in the chat?

Claire was somewhat surprised that he could see Leah's name, probably because she hadn't revealed her identity.

But if this naive and innocent noble lady knew that he was the evil god emperor, it's likely that they wouldn't be able to communicate normally.

Claire: My name doesn't matter.

[Lia: Oh, then how should I address you? Did you perhaps take control of my body before this?]

[Claire: A fool suddenly becomes smart? That's rare.]

[Lia: Why do you seem to treat me like an idiot? (angry)]

Claire: Isn't that right? How many messes do you think I've cleaned up for you?

[Lia: !!!!!!!!! Could you be the guiding god who led me to the library to learn meditation and inscription magic!?]

Claire: ...Yes, but what guiding god? You can call me dad.

[Lia: So the God of Guidance really does exist! That's wonderful! Thank you so much for your help. Although there are some things you did that I don't quite understand, thank you for your assistance.]

[Claire: Since you know that, then stop sending comments. This is a crucial moment in the negotiations.]

[Lia: Negotiation? With whom? With Earl Orlando? Isn't he a bad guy? (Confused)]

Ignoring Lia's questions, Claire's gaze returned to Count Orlando, who was gripping the knight's sword.

It wouldn't be wrong to say that this guy is a bad person; in Lia's eyes, he really is a bad person.

But bad people aren't necessarily enemies. Claire looked at Earl Orlando across from her, who had already snapped out of his reverie after hearing the word "Mom."

"Oh? Miss Liya, you want to beg for your life, and you're even calling for your mother?" Count Orlando revealed his usual frivolous smile.

But Claire certainly wouldn't forget the count's fighting face from just now.

[Lia: Begging for mercy? Mother? Isn't Earl Orlando a man? All the nobles in the capital know that Earl Orlando is a very popular man.]

A man? Hehehe.

Claire looked at Earl Orlando, who indeed showed absolutely no feminine features, at most possessing a stunningly handsome appearance.

To be honest, he was initially fooled by the other party, and it was thanks to Liya that he began to doubt the other party's gender.

“Earl Orlando, your scent is exactly the same as that of the first Marchioness. How should I address you? Should I call you Auntie or Auntie?”

While Leah might hesitate, Claire wouldn't.

After learning that Leah was very fond of and familiar with the scent of Earl Orlando, and that he had appeared in front of the first Marchioness's tomb, they realized that...

That's why Claire called Earl Orlando "Mom".

In this magical world, nothing is surprising.

The Earl of Orlando is not a sissy, but a real sissy.

This countess is a woman, and also a member of the Nolan family, right?

Only in this way can her attitude towards the Rost family be justified, and her leniency when attacking Leah be explained; everything becomes reasonable.

[Lia: Mom's scent?! I remember now! Earl Orlando's scent is definitely Mom's!]

[Lia: Guiding God! Is this Earl of Orlando a relative of my mother?!]

[Lia: But I've never heard my mother mention this before, and why is this Earl of Orlando a girl? Isn't he a boy? Guiding God, why...]

Before Leah could finish posting her comments, Earl Orlando gave her a sharp critique of her.

"Oh? So who are you? You're not Miss Lia, are you? Miss Lia isn't that smart."

Count Orlando was completely unaware that the real Leah was watching their conversation.

Of course, she would say that even to Lia's face.

[Lia: ...She's so mean! Is she really my mother's relative!?]

Claire swiped away Leah's comment and added to Earl Orlando, "Leah is not only not very smart, she's also very noisy."

[Lia: ...Sob...]

“Really? I think my niece has a very quiet personality, just like my sister.” Earl Orlando sheathed his knight’s sword to show his sincerity.

The count neither denied his relationship with Leah nor the fact that Claire said she was a woman.

The answer is obvious.

"Since we both know each other's secrets, I know you exist, and you know my identity, how can we guarantee that neither of us will betray the other?"

"Although I trust Lia, you are not Lia. You are just controlling Lia's body, right?"

"Although I know that some mental magic can affect other people's consciousness and thoughts, and even their sense of pain, I have never heard of anyone being able to completely control another person's body like you do."