Title: Pivoting Plots

Summary: A collection of alternative key moments. Olivia centric.

Title: Repossession

Summary: If Leon capitalized on the opening.

"Sir Knight, please help me!" Olivia cried out after her momentary collapse.

Something was clearly wrong.

Just act, don't think.

I quickly grabbed the bracelet and staff and quickly pulled them off her person. The staff and bracelet were thrown to opposite corners of the room. I had no idea whether or not doing such a thing would help. After all, the spirit fragments might have already migrated onto Olivia permanently. It was still better than doing nothing though.

Fortunately for me, the pained and panicked expression on Olivia disappeared immediately. Her relief was palpable.

"Sir Knight, I knew you would save me," she said with a heavy breath but in a reverent tone.

I was still wary. Ann had been able to manipulate so many people up to this point. For all I knew, she could have been doing the same to me. Unfortunately, there was no sure fire way to confirm the truth.

Well... there might be one way. Play on Ann's obsession.

"Ann? Is it you? Is it truly you," I said in a hopeful tone.

Olivia cringed.

"I see... so you were looking for..." she said weakly. The air of despair hung around her. I sincerely doubted the former Saintess would have any other response besides sheer ecstasy if the thought that her precious Lea had found her from beyond death.

"Well, glad to see Ann isn't possessing you anymore," I said with a sigh of relief. The tension bled from my shoulders.

"Eh? You mean it was a trick?" Olivia said in shock.

I walked to the bracelet and picked it up. As I walked towards the staff, I explained, "A trick for the grudges of the Saintess. I wasn't too sure whether or not Ann was still inhabiting your body. Figured I'd play on her obsession with my ancestor."

"I see. I'm sorry for doubting you."

"You give me too much credit," I said as I collected the staff.

I then approached the table in the room and put my suitcase on it. I had been able to smuggle it in on the pretense that it was carrying an offering to the Saintess and would hold the mask I had been using to hide my scar once she healed my injury. Unlatching the top portion, I revealed a hidden compartment containing a replica of the staff and bracelet.

I quickly exchanged the items and resealed the hidden compartment. I then placed the offerings on the desk, took off my mask, and placed it where the offerings had once been.

"There, the items are replicas and should fool anyone at a glance. I doubt anyone will doubt their authenticity unless you allow them to have a closer inspection," I said as I turned around with the suitcase in hand.

"No! Don't leave me here! Please, save me Sir Knight!" Olivia said frantically as she hugged me. I made sure to keep the suitcase as far away from her as possible. While Luxion had lined it with the same material that had contained Ann, I did not want to risk it.

"Oliva, I can't just whisk you away from here."

"Please, I beg of you! Please take me away!" she sobbed into my chest.

This was not good. She was making too much noise. At this rate, she was going to attract the guards. Actually, she was too distressed regardless of the noise. The guards would likely apprehend me simply because of how distraught Olivia was.

As it was, I was not going to be able to leave peacefully.

"Luxion, knock out the guards and plot an escape route," I called out to my cheat item.

"Do you intend to kidnap Olivia? Doing so will incur the wrath of the founding heirs and loyalists. It will likely ignite a civil war."

"... I'll not leave Olivia behind. She's suffered enough."

"... Very well."

Title: Low Affinity

Summary: Who would fight for the honor of a pet?

I stared in confusion at the glove Angelica had thrown at me. She had just challenged me to a duel over the Julius's and his friends' defense of me.

What was I supposed to do? I didn't want to accept the duel with Angelica. It was a scary prospect. Going against a ducal daughter was sure to be bad for me regardless of the outcome.

I instinctively looked towards Julius for some guidance. He simply looked unimpressed at Angelica.

"Must you really tarnish the Redgrave name by challenging my pet?"

Pet? What did he mean by that? By the way he said it, it didn't feel as though it was meant as a term of endearment. But that can't be right. He had whispered such sweet words to me when we had been intimate.

Yes, it must have been my misunderstanding. None of the other boys whom I had given my body to seemed to take offense to what Julius had said. They would not allowed their friend to speak so disrespectfully about me.

"And this unrepenting whore disrespects you by not being exclusively yours!"

"Is it really disrespectful to me when I gave her to my friends?"

Again, the way he said it sounded weird. He was treating me like property. He also made it sound as if the others weren't really my friends. He must have meant permission. After all, they were all such good friends. Jilk, Brad, Chris, and Greg must have felt guilty for developing feelings for me when Julius had already claimed me.

"Your Highness, regardless of how you feel, there are those that will seek to view you negatively! Just think about your half-brother Jake! He would surely make claims about your inability to please a woman to the point you need help of your friends to do the job! And that's just the tip of the iceberg! What will happen when she bears a child?! Your relationship brings issues in determining who the father is! Even if you set up a system to address the issue, people will always question the child's heritage! Hell, even if you had a system, there's no telling if her child would even be any of yours since she has no loyalty! For all you know, she could be breeding with someone else!"

"... Hmm. Would it even matter if she got pregnant? She's only a commoner. It's not like any children she bears will be recognized as heirs to any of the founding families."

"... What did you mean by that, Julius?" I asked numbly.

Julius gave me a look of surprise.

My heart sank. Looking at the other boys, I noticed that they too were going me confused looks.

Angelica took on a smug look. "See? Even your pet has misunderstood your intentions. The girl was under the delusion that she was a suitable partner for you."

"She wrong. Right, Julius? Surely this is all some misunderstanding."

"... Olivia, what exactly did you think was between us?"

"... You don't love me?"

"... You did?"

"Of course I did. I gave myself to you. I gave you everything!"

"I truly thought it was just a bit of fun. If you had truly loved me, why would you have thrown yourself at my friends?"

"I did no such thing! I thought... I thought we had all fallen in love!"

Julius gave me a look of disgust.

"Love? Is that what you thought your promiscuity was? Love is supposed to imply loyalty. Love is supposed to be exclusivity. Love isn't spreading your legs for every available dick."

"Is that so? How can you say such a thing when you've been sleeping around despite being engaged? How can you call my love into question when you have done the same? How can you do such a thing when you allowed your friends to have their way with my body!"

Julius just shook his head and walked towards Angelica. Turning around, I saw the others also looking at me with various levels of disgust.

Why? Why was everything going so wrong?

Title: Not a Pet

Summary: In which Leon could speak properly.

"Who says friends need to be equals?" I asked in confusion.

"Does it matter? Is it not wrong?! Friends do things for each other! Friends help each other! Friends are people who you can rely on and be relied by! But I'm nothing but a burden to you! As it stands, I can hardly be called your friend! I'm really just a pet for you at this point!" Livia cried out in pain as her emotions overwhelmed her.

Just a pet? A pet? Pet?

"Is that what Stephanie told you?" I asked softly.

Livia's sobbed an affirmative.

"The girl who revels in tormenting people?"

"Leon?"

"You shouldn't take her words to heart. She just a cruel vile bitch who will get what's coming to her. Also, she isn't exactly swimming in friends herself. Carla sold her out pretty quickly and had nothing flattering to say about her."

"But she's not wrong. I'm just a burden! Just nothing but trouble! A failure who can't do anything right! Just being near me hurts you and Angie! I can offer you nothing! So why?! Why are you so kind to me?!"

"Because you are kind."

"Huh?"

"In all your time at the Academy, have you met any girl kind besides Angie?"

"No... but..."

"And have you ever heard me tell you of any girls treating me nicely, even before the duel?"

"Well... no..."

"And my family, you've seen how the girls treat me."

"... What are you saying?"

"What I'm saying is that you are the kindest girl I have ever met in my life. I'm tired of being treated like scum. Only when I'm with you I can relax."

"But Angie is a much better fit for you," Livia sniffled.

"And your her best friend. You say you don't offer her anything, but what have all her other friends done for her? Abandoned her in her time of need that's what. Fair-weather friends are hardly friends."

"... Surely that can't be enough! You two do so much for me, and I keep causing trouble for you."

"And we value your kindness far more than whatever trouble you cause. Besides, a lot of those problems are also on us. Or, are you saying that Stephanie didn't plan to set me up with the pirates."

"But she used me to try to trap you!"

"She would of found a way regardless."

"... So I'm not a burden?"

"No, Livia."

"I'm not just a pet?"

"Of course not. Your my friend."

Livia just leapt into me and held on as she let out relieved sobs of joy.

I was a shitty human being. While I did not treat her like a pet, I had not treated her like a real person. I had only seen her as the protagonist up until this point.

AN:

1) Another random collection of ideas that I couldn't work up the will power to continue. Personally feel that Repossession could turn into an interesting fic. The other two feel more like ideas that kind of just end there.

2) For Low Affinity, notice Julius's description also is a dig against Angelica as well. His roundabout way of saying he has no love for her. Not that Angelica would notice since she finally got a win over Olivia.

3) Not a Pet has that slight cliffhanger at the end for people who would want to keep the drama. Makes Leon more emotionally manipulative for his purposes while also acknowledges the guilt he feels for not having the most honest of intentions.

Review Response:

lupus23: It's not out of character. Olivia was just dropped down a chute to a much deeper level in the dungeon where she could die at any moment. Plus, the nobles were just caught for attempted murder. Anything that isn't cutting right through them is the inappropriate response as Olivia's chances for survival dips significantly. Leon has also been shown to kill people if he deems it necessary. Trying to bargain or blackmail is also a stupid idea to even attempt since these nobles would likely just decide to murder him. As for Luxion, you're assuming he came with none lethal options in a situation where you are likely to just kill monsters on sight.

Leon leaving the Kingdom is a useless option. Immortal god monsters are immortal god monsters. He has no reason to believe the monsters would stop at Holfort's destruction.

Qriiz: Missing my point. He doesn't do anything because he sees Olivia as a person, which goes against your definition of psychopath. Adding on, the novel goes out of his way to point out that he sees the characters as people. The only reason he ever considers them game characters is specifically to identify the roles they had played and how they either match or deviate from what he knows. Commentary at most, not to make claims that they are different species.

Golden Nova: Wait... is it too unrealistic or realistic?

skyblue454: Eventually.