――Always compared.
“Honestly, you’re so capable, why are you such a failure?”
“Your sister’s so kind, and you—”
That was a scene from a past life.
Sisters have always been compared.
A brilliant, cute older sister.
And a clumsy, inadequate little sister.
Everything I did was measured against her.
Even my first love—
“Introduce me to your sis next time.”
――It was a disaster.
Gradually I got hooked on games, and the first one I started was “that otome game.”
A world where the men I pursued would only look at me, only praise me.
There was happiness there, and as long as I chose the right route—made the right choices—I could stay happy forever.
In reality, my sister marched smoothly through life—while I fell behind.
My sister graduated from a good university and got a job; I finished a vocational school and started working right away.
No matter what I tried, I could never beat her.
Then, one day, I started dating a guy.
He was the upcoming president of the company I worked for—nothing huge, but the next‑in‑line CEO.
He wasn’t a model, but he was kind and earnest, with real potential.
A solid, respectable second‑generation businessman.
I thought luck finally smiled on me.
For the first time, I felt I could finally beat my sister.
But—less than a month after I went to my parents’ house to tell them—
“You’re going to date my sister?”
I didn’t even understand what they were saying.
I tried to consult my parents, but they said,
“Whatever, it’s fine. Find someone else.”
“It’s not a good match for you.”
They kept siding with my sister, making the conversation impossible.
So I talked to my sister.
“I’m sorry. But… if it’s you, I’m sure you’ll find someone great next time. I’ll support you.”
I don’t know who said what first.
All that mattered is he betrayed me and chose my sister.
No one blamed him.
――I came to hate my family.
――I came to hate the very idea of a sister.
◇
Night.
Relia jolted awake, drenched in sweat.
The sweat felt disgusting.
My breathing was ragged, and I realized I’d been haunted by a dream.
“Another old dream.”
An old—past‑life—dream.
Knees drawn up on the bed, face buried, recalling something awful.
Even though I knew it was different, I kept mixing my past‑life sister with Noel.
I thought of Leon and Marie.
“What’s with you, always treating your sister like a queen? I’ve been thinking about a lot, too.”
I was blamed for pushing Erik onto Noel.
I’d thought Erik’s possessiveness was a bit much, but I never imagined him being that cruel.
I couldn’t believe he’d assault a woman and change my bright sister into someone broken.
I felt guilty, but being blamed made me angry.
“I’m thinking things through, too. I chose Emil appropriately, gave Erik to my sister. What’s wrong with me?”
Relia—a pink‑haired, strong‑willed girl—understood herself.
Just because she was reincarnated didn’t mean she’d chase a reverse harem like Marie.
Among the attractive men, she’d picked the unremarkable Emil after a lot of thought.
She reasoned that Noel would take the top spot, so she might as well pair with Emil.
“—No one would ever expect it to end up like this.”
Where had she gone mad?
She stood up to wash off the sweat and headed for the shower.
◇
The next day.
With dark circles under my eyes, I took Angelica and Libya to Marie’s manor.
Why?
We had a bunch of meetings to sort out.
Angelica probably felt uneasy showing up at the house where Marie and Julius live, but she couldn’t refuse.
Whether we stayed in the Republic or returned, we needed to talk.
“Leon‑san, are you alright?”
“—I’m fine.”
Libya, worried about my wobbliness, grabbed my arm and steadied me.
At the manor’s entrance, Angelica rang the bell.
“Couldn’t sleep last night? Take the room, rest a bit. I’ll handle the talks.”
“I’m— I’m fine. I’ll push through.”
Luxion and Claire, watching us, chimed in,
“The master who couldn’t push through yesterday won’t manage today either.”
“Excitable kids can’t sleep, huh? The reason isn’t childish, though.”
—Should I just toss these AI clods like a ball?
Their refusal to treat me as a master irritated me, and after a while the door still wouldn’t open.
Angelica’s temper flared.
“We told them we’d visit. What’s going on?”
A manor that big should have staff dispatched. It’s hard to imagine they’re just swamped.
“Is there a problem? Luxion, fetch Marie.”
‘At your service. Then—’
As Luxion tried to breach the manor, commotion rose beyond the front door.
Claire warned us,
“Everyone, stay away from the entrance. Quickly!”
When the three of us stepped back, the door burst open and five ruffians stormed out.
The five were driven away by—Marie.
“Get out, you bastards!!!”
The five, kicked out at the doorway, stared dumbfounded at Marie.
“What the—?”
What on earth was happening this morning?
An enraged Marie stormed back inside.
I turned to Julius.
“What did you guys do this time?”
Julius, noticing us, stammered an excuse.
“No, no—we didn’t do anything!”
It sounded dubious.
I looked at Jilk.
“Did you buy more junk and get scolded again?”
“‘Junk’ is rude. You don’t understand the value of things. Besides, I didn’t purchase anything from that.”
He’s a patsy for scammers who see value in trash and pay top price.
But if that’s not it—then—
“Red, you?”
“Don’t call us by hair color! I didn’t do anything either.”
Red—Greg—was sulking, sitting cross‑legged on the floor.
Next I eyed Brad.
“Then it’s you.”
“No! Not me. I did nothing!”
“Really? Marie was furious. There must be a reason. But if they’re all innocent—”
Finally I looked at Chris.
Adjusting his glasses, Chris stood, looking confused.
“It wasn’t me either. I truly did nothing.”
All five claimed innocence.
Was it true?
Angelica and Libya were also bewildered by the expelled five.
Into this uneasy atmosphere stepped Kyle.
“Ah, Count, I’ve been expecting you.”
Kyle, looking a bit weary—more like exhausted—invited us into the manor.
“What? Ignoring those five? Explain what happened. Angelica and Libya are also confused.”
Kyle glanced at the five, then sneered.
“You! What’s with that attitude!”
Julius, angry at Kyle’s tone, held his tongue as the conversation stalled.
“Silence, you all. Now, tell us what they did, Kyle.”
Kyle, with a tired expression, replied,
“They did nothing.”
“What? No way. They must’ve done something for Marie to lose it.”
I realized I’d completely missed why they were being blamed.
“So they were kicked out because they did nothing?”
“—Huh?”
◇
Let’s backtrack a bit.
It was breakfast at Marie’s manor.
“Not enough staff!!!”
Delegations of servants kept arriving, but never enough.
Just enough people to get by, but they were fresh hires who still needed training.
So Marie and the others had to handle breakfast themselves.
The Republic’s academy was on summer break, so no worries about tardiness—that was a small relief.
In the kitchen, Marie hurriedly placed fried eggs onto plates Carla had set out.
Kyle was also busy preparing breakfast.
Then—
“Whoa!!!”
Erik, wearing an apron, dropped a plate and shattered it.
“What are you doing?”
Hungry ruffians waited outside while Kyle sighed, “More work…”
Carla fetched cleaning tools with a sigh.
Erik slumped,
“S‑sorry.”
Marie approached him, noticing a cut on his finger.
“First, we need treatment.”
“I’ll—help.”
Erik, who’d been a disaster since day one, kept making things worse when he tried to help.
Marie, however—
“No. If you bleed, you can’t help with the meal. Let Carla treat you, then you rest. Once breakfast is ready, I’ll treat you later.”
Dejected, Erik obeyed.
Because of his help, breakfast was delayed even further.
The five, still growing up, were already irritated by morning.
During breakfast, Julius scolded Erik.
“Honestly, you’re a useless hindrance.”
Jilk agreed.
“Enjoying messing with Marie, huh?”
Brad shot a cold glance.
“Can’t even prep breakfast; a noble of the Republic without the Sacred Tree’s blessing is useless.”
Chris, polishing his lenses, added,
“Agreed. Better not to help at all.”
Greg, munching on toast, said,
“Just go home. There’s no place for you here.”
His tone was cold, yet he was the one trying to get close to Marie.
Their attitudes weren’t exactly friendly, which was understandable.
But—
Seeing Erik down, Marie stood and addressed the five,
“Erik helped this morning.”
Julius and the others were confused by Marie’s change of tone.
“Marie, what’s up?”
“It’s fine. Erik helped. Sure, it delayed breakfast, but he helped. Yet you all did nothing.”
She suddenly realized—
(Wait, why am I the one cleaning up after everyone? In a shared house, shouldn’t they help?)
“You guys just complain—have some remorse!”
◇
After hearing Kyle’s speech, I thought,
“You idiots. You get yelled at for doing nothing.”
I laughed at the five, and Julius and the others glared at me.
“What about you then?”
“I can at least take care of myself.”
In my past life I lived alone; now I’m a poor noble. I couldn’t survive without help.
Seeing the five look frustrated, Luxion muttered,
“But we really aren’t doing anything now. I’m the one handling things.”
Kyle gave me a look that said, “Wow…” in disbelief.
“The Count can’t even speak for others, huh?”
“You’re an idiot too. I’m a count. It’s fine to have people around to take care of me. I’m great.”
Jilk, pouting, said,
“We’re not that different.”
“Recognize the huge gap. Well, I’m leaving it to Luxion for now.”
“That’s not your personal power, is it?”
“You can’t hear me. Unlike you who can’t do anything, I can—but I choose not to.”
There’s a big difference between can’t and won’t.
These handsome guys’ weak point is earning and living skills.
Good thing there’s a field I can win at.
It’s not my power, but Luxion’s.
Brad, watching me, asked,
“Will you get thrown out too?”
Libya chimed in,
“Never! Even if Leon can’t do anything, I’ll support him! I can cook and wash. I’ll take care of everything, so it’s fine.”
Angelica gave me a gentle smile,
“If Leon can’t do anything, that’s fine. We’ll handle the rest. If needed, I’ll earn for us. So you don’t have to worry.”
—Wait, does that make me a freeloader for both of them?
Claire giggled,
“Master, you’re loved! But it’s kinda… a bit of a gigolo vibe.”
Someone snorted, “Don’t mess with me! I’m not a gigolo! I’ll prove I’m better than those guys!”
Julius shouted at me,
“I’m better than you too! I may lose a lot, but I won’t lose everything. This is a showdown!”
Fine, I’ll take the challenge.
I have to prove I’m better than those useless five, or my reputation suffers.
“Ha! You useless brats think you can bark?”
Luxion muttered in exasperation,
“What a pitiful match.”