Episode 121: Our First Collaboration

Siegfried and Sylphirosé sat down across from each other, settling into their chairs. The dishes laid out on the table had already gone completely cold.

(It feels wrong to leave such carefully prepared food untouched… I’ll have to make sure to eat it properly later.)

Muttering such thoughts to herself, Sylphirosé addressed him with a serious expression.

“A collaborator—you said as much, didn’t you? In other words, I lend my hand to your goals, and in return, you assist me in ascending to the throne… Is that the arrangement you’re proposing?”

“You may think of it that way. However—my own goals take precedence above all else. You’re free to prioritize your ideals as well. A relationship where we use each other for our own purposes… that’s the kind of bond befitting villains like us.”

Sylphirosé scrutinized Siegfried’s expression with a steady gaze.

(To speak so brazenly of using each other without hesitation… Just how far can I trust this man?)

After all, this was a man who’d broken off their engagement for the absurd reason of “being a villain.” Trusting him easily was out of the question.

(But… I can’t afford to stop now.)

She had made up her mind. She would make Siegfried her ally. To reach the throne—no other path remained.

“However… in that case, it would surely be more convenient for us to maintain the façade of being engaged. So—I have a proposal.”

Sylphirosé’s jade-green eyes gleamed with a challenging spark as she fixed her gaze on Siegfried.

“Let’s get engaged again. I’ll accept the annulment from earlier. But now, I propose a ‘second engagement.’ If I asked you to take back the annulment, you’d refuse, wouldn’t you? So instead, I suggest we start anew with a fresh engagement. Surely this arrangement would be acceptable to you, yes?”

“Well, now…”

A smile curled at the corner of Siegfried’s lips.

“That’s a rather intriguing proposal, Your Highness Sylphirosé.”

“I’m not exactly delighted by your praise. A-and just to be clear, it’s not as if I genuinely want you as my husband or anything! It’s merely… more convenient for both of us, that’s all.”

“Very well. I accept your proposal.”

Siegfried rose quietly from his seat, approached Sylphirosé, and knelt on one knee.

In his hand, glimmering faintly, was a silver ring—produced from who-knows-where.

“Th-that’s…?”

“A hobby… or rather, a ring I crafted for an experiment. It’s not particularly valuable, but… I thought it might serve as an engagement ring.”

“Y-yes… you’re right. An engagement ring does make it feel more official, doesn’t it?”

Hesitantly, Sylphirosé extended her hand.

The silver ring was gently slipped onto her ring finger.

Siegfried watched the moment unfold, then gave a soft smile.

“With this, our ‘second engagement’ is official. Now then—”

Siegfried stood up, his expression turning serious as he declared:

“Sylphirosé Lucerina de Serodonia—I hereby annul our engagement!”

“Wha…?”

“Six seconds and forty-one milliseconds. In a novel, that’d be about three lines, wouldn’t you say?”

“E-excuse me…?”

“That’s the time it took for our second engagement to be established and then broken. Quite possibly a world record for engagement annulments. As expected, if I’m to tread the path of a true villain, I must be the champion of annulment speed as well.”

“Y-you…!”

Sylphirosé’s voice trembled with anger.

“You’re just mocking me, aren’t you?!”

 

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And so, afterward—

Siegfried and Sylphirosé repeated the bizarre act of getting engaged and immediately annulling it a staggering ninety-eight times, bringing the total, including the first two, to exactly one hundred.

Finally, Siegfried formally accepted the engagement with her.

The pleasing round number of “one hundred annulments” had satisfied him.

“One hundred engagement annulments. In terms of sheer quantity, this surely makes us the champions of the annulment world. A record forged through our collaboration—hold your head high with pride.”

“As if I could take pride in such a ridiculous record!”

With a face showing both exhaustion and exasperation, Sylphirosé glared at the silver-haired young man.

Yet, through the relentless cycle of annulments, she had come to a certain realization.

(This man… he’s serious about this, isn’t he?)

He hadn’t gone through a hundred annulments on a whim or as a joke. An ordinary person would have grown bored partway through.

But Siegfried had carried out each annulment with utter sincerity… and unrelenting dedication.

Caught up in his fervor, Sylphirosé found herself roped into this absurd exchange until the very end.

(And, if I’m being honest, partway through it started to feel… a little fun. N-no, absolutely not!)

For someone like her, raised as a princess and treated with reverence, spending time on such a foolish endeavor was unprecedented in her life.

To earnestly engage in something so meaningless, something others would deem utterly pointless—that was a perspective she’d never even considered before.

And yet, that bizarre stretch of time… felt strangely pleasant.

But she buried that feeling deep within her heart and spoke.

“I still don’t understand what this ‘villain’s path’ you’re aiming for is supposed to be. But, as per your suggestion… I’ll make full use of you.”

Siegfried gave a satisfied smile at her response.

“Excellent. That’s exactly what I hoped to hear. I’ll make full use of you as well, without holding back. …Though, if someone ever surpasses our record, I’ll be counting on your cooperation.”

“And just what is that supposed to mean?”

“The record we’ve set for engagement annulments will, someday, be broken by someone else. That’s the nature of records. When that time comes… we’ll have to annul our engagement a thousand times, ten thousand times, to reclaim the record. Otherwise, I can hardly call myself the champion of the villain’s path.”

“I sincerely pray such a future never comes to pass…!”