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Chapter 195: Isabel's Declaration of War.
Just before this, Sharin was silent for a long time.
And at some point, a languid smile crept across her lips.
"I didn’t think I’d get a declaration of war~."
But Sharin didn’t seem upset at all.
Isabel, who had always suppressed her emotions, was now saying she wouldn't hold back anymore.
They were rivals over a lover, but before that, they were friends.
So this declaration, signaling Isabel’s emotional change, was actually something that made Sharin happy.
"But that doesn’t mean I’m planning to lose~."
Even among friends, there are things one can't yield.
Sharin had already let Vikamon into her heart.
And once that whimsical heart accepts someone, it never lets go.
Isabel and Sharin looked at each other.
Neither looked like they had any intention of backing down.
But there was something they needed to talk about first.
"Of course, before that, we need to get his emotions back. Someone who doesn’t even care for his own body has ended up like this—he’s really in danger now."
"I agree with that."
Vikamon had suddenly become regarded as a reckless headbutting dinosaur who didn't care for his own life.
It wasn’t inaccurate.
"Knowing his personality, I’m sure he’s been agonizing over our situation all this time.
It’s annoying how he doesn't take care of himself... But it’s also something I like about him, so I can’t say much."
Maybe because she had admitted it once before in front of Sharin,
Isabel’s words had become quite unrestrained.
Now she no longer cared about anyone’s judgment.
Maybe Sharin had unleashed a beast that should’ve stayed caged.
"That’s why, Rin, we need to join hands—at least until he gets his emotions back—to protect him."
Their feelings were important, yes.
But even more important was Vikamon’s safety.
That’s what Isabel was saying.
Sharin didn’t object to that.
"Specifically?"
"Instead of all of us acting impulsively, I’m saying we should cooperate to help him recover emotionally."
Isabel shifted her gaze behind her.
"Same goes for Seron."
"Hmph, so that’s why you called me here."
That was, in fact, the reason Seron had been brought into this conversation.
Her feelings for Vikamon were just as strong.
"If we rush things in this situation, it’ll just make his mind more of a mess. He’ll get even more confused, trying to take everyone’s feelings into account, and that’ll only slow down the process of him regaining his emotions. He’s the kind of person who gets anxious about making the right decision between us."
They couldn’t let that hold him back from regaining love.
That’s what Isabel was saying.
"So I’m suggesting we cooperate."
All three women had feelings for Vikamon.
At Isabel’s request for cooperation, Seron and Sharin glanced toward him.
He was sneaking glances over, clearly curious about what they were talking about.
Seeing those worried eyes—he was still the same.
Just like Isabel had said, he was probably agonizing all by himself.
If things stayed like this, recovering his emotions wouldn’t be easy.
"I’ve looked into things myself. I recently came into contact with the Duke of Whitewood."
The Duke, was someone with extensive knowledge of the mystical.
So Isabel had subtly asked her for advice.
Duke of Whitewood had even looked into Vikamon’s condition independently
and passed that information to Isabel.
"The most important thing in recovering his emotions is his own will. He has to feel that he needs those emotions."
He must want them back.
Isabel considered this the most crucial point.
"Guess I’ll just have to love him a lot, then."
Sharin puffed out her chest proudly.
Isabel didn’t really object.
"That’s fine—but on the flip side, if he starts feeling that regaining his emotions would be troubling, that’s bad."
"Ah..."
Seron grasped what Isabel meant.
"We can’t make him constantly stress over our situation, huh."
"Exactly. When he gets those emotions back, he needs to imagine a happy scenario.
He must not imagine it as a problem."
That’s why Isabel had asked the two of them to cooperate.
Vikamon was still troubled about the complex relationships among the three of them.
He especially didn’t like that they were fighting over him.
Rather than thinking about love, he was more focused on making peace among them.
That made him hesitant about regaining his emotions.
More than anything, it wasn’t just love he needed to get back.
"Love isn’t the only emotion he’s lost."
Anger and sorrow.
Those two were completely gone from Vikamon as well.
"Honestly, those might be even harder to recover than love."
Seron spoke bluntly, and Isabel agreed.
Anger and sorrow are complex emotions.
He’d need a situation where he had to feel anger,
and a situation sad enough to make him feel he needed to be sad.
Could they create that kind of situation?
"One step at a time. For now, even recovering one emotion is a win."
Both Sharin and Seron agreed with Isabel’s take.
"So what, you’re saying we shouldn’t fight in front of our husband~?"
"That’s part of it—but more than that, I think we should set up a schedule."
"A schedule?"
Seron looked baffled that they were going this far.
But Isabel was dead serious.
"Like who gets to go on dates and when. So we don’t interfere with each other."
"Ugh, that’s kinda..."
"It’s fine if you don’t want to. But are you really confident you won’t interfere when he’s out with someone else?"
Seron glanced at Sharin.
Previously, Sharin had tried to crash one of her dates.
It had already happened once—could it happen again?
"This is to prevent that. It’s not about making strict rules—it’s just practical."
"Ughh... I don’t like it, but fine. I get the point. So basically, we just have to make the sweet potato prince super happy so he wants to love again, right?"
"Exactly. The more peaceful we are with each other, the less he’ll worry."
"Then the one who makes him want love the most is the one with the best shot, huh~?"
It was cooperation—but it was also a war.
But even more important than that right now was one other thing.
"There’s something even more urgent."
Isabel clenched her fists tightly.
"On Christmas Day, Senior Nikita confessed to him."
Nikita’s sudden appearance had given Isabel a serious sense of crisis.
It was because Vikamon had liked Nikita in the past.
And the same applied to Sharin and Seron.
Sharin slightly furrowed her brows, and Seron clicked her tongue.
Nikita was a formidable rival.
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Even after Vikamon had lost his love, Nikita had always stayed by his side.
To Vikamon, Nikita was more than just someone important.
"I’m not going to sit back and watch Senior Nikita manipulate him unilaterally."
Both Seron and Sharin agreed.
"That’s part of the deal."
Isabel extended her hand.
She absolutely did not want to lose to Nikita.
That was Isabel’s genuine feeling.
Whether or not to take that hand was up to Sharin and Seron.
Sharin and Seron looked at each other.
Then, they raised their hands and clasped Isabel’s.
"There's one thing I want to say."
At that moment, Seron brought up a point.
Isabel nodded without hesitation.
"What do you two think about Lady Iris?"
At the mention of Iris, Isabel and Sharin locked eyes.
Iris Hysirion.
She originally played the role of a cousin older sister, so there had been no romantic connection.
But things had changed significantly now.
Vikamon had revealed his identity to Iris, and he’d maintained a close relationship with her since.
Sharin’s eyes grew slightly sharper.
"A potential threat."
It might not be appropriate to speak that way about a princess of the country, but neither of them could deny it.
Especially since Iris and Vikamon had spent the night together, alone in a room.
If she made up her mind, anything could happen.
"...We’ll need to watch carefully."
There were already too many rivals as it was.
Adding another was out of the question.
So even Iris couldn’t afford to let her guard down.
"This is all husband’s fault~."
At Sharin’s comment, the other two nodded in agreement.
It really was all something Vikamon had brought upon himself.
"Let’s include that in our cooperation too."
Both agreed to Isabel’s suggestion.
This was the day the three of them joined forces—
Before entering the Winter Demon Dungeon.
And of course, Vikamon had no idea about any of it.
＊＊＊
What in the world were they talking about?
I kept watching the three of them with growing concern.
I could understand Isabel and Sharin making peace.
But why on earth was Seron brought into their conversation?
Maybe it was because the three of them had recently been clashing a lot.
Either way, it made me uneasy.
As I kept watching them, they finally seemed to finish their talk and headed back toward me.
"Isabel, Sharin, Seron."
I called their names, and they glanced at each other.
Then they nodded and stood firmly in front of me.
"Don’t worry about us. We made up with Rin."
"Forgave her~"
Sharin waved a hand hidden inside her long sleeve as she chimed in.
Their faces were bright.
That was a relief in many ways.
"Prince Sweet Potato, once this Winter Demon Dungeon thing is over, go on a date with Isabel and Sharin each."
At Seron’s words, my eyes went wide.
Now what was this about?
Seron looked displeased but seemed to be showing that she was willing to yield.
"That way, my turn will come faster."
What on earth had the three of them talked about?
"You’re going, right?"
"Let’s gooo~"
Isabel and Sharin joined in urging me, so I nodded reluctantly.
I had no idea what they’d discussed, but I could feel that the three of them had come to a united front.
‘Not a bad thing, I guess.’
We were about to enter the Winter Demon Dungeon.
Better that they were cooperating than fighting each other.
"All done?"
At that moment, Hania called out to us.
"Yeah, looks like everything’s resolved."
"That’s a relief. So, could you introduce the replacement for Lady Iris now?"
She was referring to the first-year student she’d mentioned.
Hania asked about that.
"Ah, they’re coming now."
I looked ahead, and in the distance, a group of first-years was approaching.
There were three of them participating this time.
The top of the martial arts department, Aisha Bizvel.
The spirit lord’s contractor, Foara Silin.
And lastly—
Second in martial arts, Midra Fenin.
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