Get Ahead of the Fallen Heroine and Make the Bull-Headed Man the Victim

44. The Blonde Loses to the Hidden Boss and the Suffering Victim, Next Up: No More Losses

Valentina was initially quite confident, believing she would surely find evidence to prove her innocence.

But she would soon realize that this was not an easy task.

Because she discovered that the only ways to prove her innocence were to catch the villain impersonating her while committing crimes and to prove she was elsewhere at the time, making it impossible for her to commit the act.

The former was impossible, as she could not catch Noah, who was impersonating her to do bad things.

The latter was also impossible, because even if she found witnesses for that time, as long as Delia and the noble alliance refused to acknowledge it, her witnesses would be rendered invalid.

Even if the oppressed citizens who witnessed her being bullied supported her, it would still be seen as Valentina leading the people in a riot.

It might even become an excuse for them to pile on more evidence against her.

“Eh? Thinking about it carefully, could it be that my chances of winning are extremely low?”

After about forty minutes of running around like a beast, Valentina suddenly realized that in this contest of victory and defeat, she seemed to be at an overwhelming disadvantage.

“No, no, no, that can’t be right. There must be some way…”

Unwilling to accept that her situation was dire, Valentina finally began to think. As she walked, she placed her hand in front of her mouth, pondering ways to win.

But the more she thought, the more she felt at a loss; all the methods she could imagine were futile.

Of course, to be precise, she actually did have a move.

For instance, she could simply surrender, bow her head before Noah, and admit her defeat, only to be mercilessly mocked by him.

While that would be painful, it wasn’t entirely unacceptable; after all, it wouldn’t be the first time.

The main issue was that, while it would allow her to cut her losses and avoid being completely defeated and branded a criminal, it would undoubtedly make Delia even more smug.

That so-called sister of hers would surely let out that annoying laugh, mocking her as nothing more than a wild child.

Ah… just thinking about it makes me sick.

The moment she imagined Delia’s triumphant expression, Valentina’s face turned as cold as an iceberg.

She could accept being inferior to Noah, but she could not accept being inferior to Delia.

“Perhaps it’s better to surrender early; rather than let that woman gloat, I’d rather be seen as a criminal.”

“Wait a minute, what if I just concede to the Evil God and have him help me defeat that woman? Ugh, it feels so unsatisfying, and who knows what he would demand of me…”

Walking alone on the street, Valentina’s expressions were quite varied—sometimes icy, sometimes complex—causing the nearby citizens of the royal city to worry about her mental state.

—This child, could it be that she’s got an upset stomach?

Valentina was, of course, completely unaware of how conspicuous she was; she was simply lost in her own thoughts.

In the end, no matter how she considered it, surrendering to Noah and finding a way to make him change his mind to support her seemed to be the option with the highest chance of success.

But with that, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she might never be able to hold her head high in front of Noah again.

If possible, she not only wanted to teach Delia a lesson but also wanted Noah to know her strength.

“Right! I can just ask Mr. Allen for help!”

Suddenly remembering that she could actually seek help from others, Valentina’s expression brightened, and she hurriedly began to inquire about Allen’s whereabouts, frequenting the places he often visited.

The search process went smoothly without any unexpected incidents.

In the end, she successfully encountered Allen right in front of the Scholars’ Society in the royal capital, just as he was about to step out, and she straightforwardly conveyed her troubles to him.

“Mr. Allen, I beg you! Please help me prove my innocence!”

As Valentina earnestly stared into Allen’s eyes while saying this, Allen, who had long anticipated that Valentina would come to him eventually, felt a surge of joy in his heart.

Look at this, this is what you call trust, right? Why didn’t she go to that Clyde kid? It’s not like Clyde could help her at all!

Feeling that he had once again easily triumphed over Clyde, Allen nearly couldn’t hold back a victorious smile.

—Really, I’m begging you, Mr. Allen. If you can’t help me, I’ll have no choice but to surrender to the evil god and admit that I’m his toy, just to defeat that woman…

But what Allen didn’t know was that beneath Valentina’s sincere and innocent expression, she was thinking this.

“I see, I completely understand. In any case, let’s find a room in the society to discuss our strategy.”

Finally managing to keep his smile in check, Allen put on a warm and reliable adult facade and quickly invited Valentina into the Scholars’ Society.

After sitting down in a room, Allen, with a smile on his face, straightforwardly offered what he believed to be the best advice.

“Actually, I don’t think things are that bad. After all, as long as you, Tina, find a way to catch that impersonator, it should be fine, right?”

“No, that’s impossible.”

“Uh, is that so?”

Valentina shook her head in denial so quickly that it nearly caused Allen’s smile to falter.

Though he quickly forced an awkward smile, pretending nothing was wrong.

But in truth, he couldn’t understand why it was impossible.

After all, it was definitely Delia who had found Valentina’s double, wasn’t it?

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How could Valentina, with her abilities, not be able to catch her?

Had he overestimated Valentina’s capabilities?

But it didn’t matter; he had other plans.

Pretending to think for a moment, Allen brought up a second idea he had already considered.

“Then why not find witnesses? As long as there are plenty of witnesses who can prove that you, Tina, weren’t at the scene, it should be fine, right?”

After saying this, Allen confidently prepared to pick up the teacup on the table, intending to leave Valentina with a reliable and trustworthy impression.

However, just as Allen’s hand grasped the teacup, Valentina’s voice, as clear and piercing as lake water, rang out once more.

“No, that would only deepen the conflict between commoners and nobles. I’m afraid Lady Dilia has her own considerations in this regard; after all, she looks down on commoners. If it really comes to that, she could use me to strike against them.”

“Uh, y-yeah, um, you’re right, Tina.”

Right about what?! I’d bet that woman Dilia hasn’t thought that far ahead! She simply dislikes you!

Caught off guard by Valentina’s rebuttal, Allen now felt extremely awkward, his hand hovering over the teacup, unsure whether to set it down or lift it.

In contrast, Valentina, with a serious expression, naturally picked up the teacup in front of her and elegantly brought it to her lips.

This sight made Allen feel quite uncomfortable.

Because no matter how he looked at it, he seemed utterly useless.

This was hardly Valentina asking him for help; it felt more like he was the one seeking her assistance!

Allen was also a proud person, and this feeling of being suppressed by Valentina made his blood boil, leaving him very uneasy.

So he decided to take a jab at Valentina, hoping to shake her calm demeanor that irritated him so.

“By the way, Tina, why don’t you just ask Clyde what he thinks? His words might actually help you.”

Allen pretended to have a sudden inspiration, smiling kindly as he suggested seeking Clyde.

But deep down, Allen felt quite disdainful, believing that as a scholar, he couldn’t offer any useful advice, and that commoner boy Clyde was even less reliable—if he didn’t drag her down, that would be good enough.

Valentina generally refused to discuss problems with Clyde, as she didn’t want to worry him further.

But to his surprise, as soon as his words left his mouth, Valentina stood up with a look of realization.

“Right! I almost forgot about Clyde! I’ll go find him right now. Thank you for your suggestion, Mr. Allen. I’ll take my leave!”

With the sound of the door closing, the action-oriented Valentina hurried off to find her childhood friend Clyde.

Leaving Allen, the blond-haired boy, in the room, utterly dumbfounded.

Huh? W-wait a minute! Why is she suddenly willing to involve that kid this time?! This isn’t right!

Unable to comprehend Valentina’s actions, Allen felt as if he had been dealt a blow, remaining in the room for a long time, arms crossed against his forehead, head down, frowning as he stared at the patterns on the table, desperately pondering the answer.

Yet the answer to this question was actually quite simple.

It was just that Allen, who thought he understood Valentina, was unwilling to believe it.

“Mr. Allen is right. I need to see Clyde immediately; his words will surely help me find a chance to win. Otherwise, I’ll really have to concede to the evil god!”

As Valentina rushed toward her childhood friend’s workplace, it was as if she had grasped a final lifeline, placing all her last hopes on him.

In truth, Valentina knew that Clyde wouldn’t be able to help much, but since neither Allen nor Clyde could offer assistance, it was clear that Clyde, who was closer to her and of a lower status, could provide her with more emotional support.

At least Clyde would gently comfort her and tell her not to worry.

Mr. Allen was also very gentle, but after all, he was her private tutor, and she couldn’t show her defeated side in front of her teacher.

—

In general, Valentina really didn’t want to involve Clyde, but this was no ordinary situation.

She was on the verge of losing her patience; she absolutely needed to find someone to vent her frustrations!

Even if she couldn’t tell Clyde about Noah’s despicable actions.

She had to speak ill of Princess Delia, her half-sister, to Clyde!

Even if nothing substantial came of it, just being able to feel a little better inside would suffice!

“Such a look of ‘I just want to vent’ on my face, huh? It seems this state of affairs will last for about two or three more days. I clearly left you a trump card, yet you didn’t think of it right away. Truly, you are the quintessential heroine, so naïve.”

Noah, who had been watching Valentina’s actions through the magic circle monitor in his dilapidated temple, couldn’t help but smile at that moment.

He was quite pleased with Valentina’s performance.

Especially the way she naturally made the blonde-haired Allen uncomfortable without even realizing it; Noah couldn’t help but applaud.

Speaking of which, Allen’s expression right now was truly delightful for Noah!

As the blonde who lost to the hidden boss, Noah could accept that, but losing to the victim? There was no way he could lose any further!

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PS. Although I write less, each chapter is lengthy, and there should be another update around midnight! Thanks to all the readers for your support! A few monthly votes would be even better!

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