"Now, what should we do to start our game of manipulation?" Eris pondered.

"I'm not sure," Armand said.

He placed a hand on his chin.

"The game has already started, just as I thought it would. Eris is going to try to find out what I want for a game of manipulation. She'll try to manipulate it out of me," the boy thought.

"Thank you, Armand. We've already started on our game. Let's see if I can find out what you want to do for a manipulation game," Eris thought.

She lay down on the bed. Her eyes gazed listlessly at the ceiling. The girl looked as bored as possible.

"I mean, I'm not sure either. I don't think I can come up with anything," she said before thinking. "Let's start off small. Armand will easily counter this, but it's a good warm-up."

Armand pondered.

"Is this it, Eris? You can do better than that," he thought before speaking. "You must be losing your touch, Eris. I'd think that you'd easily come up with a manipulation game."

Eris smiled.

"Perfect counter, Armand! Let me counter with what aboutism," she thought.

"I'd think the same of you," Eris said.

Armand smirked.

"It looks like I fell into Eris' trap, but it's an easy trap to walk out of. Eris is the one who wants the manipulation game. So, she has to make it happen," he thought before speaking. "I suppose we're at a standstill, then."

Eris grinned, turning her head towards Armand.

"What would Armand want a manipulation game to be about? It can't be about his family. He doesn't trust me enough to tell me much about them. It could be something about him personally or something about me. I need to say something to narrow things down," Eris thought.

"I could try to find something about you," she said.

Armand shrugged.

"If you want," he stated.

"Your suggestion brought you in the wrong direction, Eris. Or maybe the right direction if you can figure things out?" Armand thought.

Eris entered deep contemplation.

"Armand's response is noncommittal. If he wants a game of manipulation about finding something about himself, he'd try to deflect it more. Which means he wants a game of manipulation about me. No, wait, Armand knows I know that. That means that he actually wants me to have a manipulation game about him. Or maybe he wants one about me and is trying to make me think I want one about him?" she thought before speaking. "Such a shame. There's a lot of things that I think you'd like to know about me."

With a smile, Armand pondered his next move.

"I need to think fast. Eris is trying to lure me out. She's probably implying future plans, but those are too much for playful manipulation. Therefore, my next action is clear," Armand thought before speaking. "I already know everything about you."

Eris grinned wide.

"Armand's trying to dismiss my inquiry while also baiting me into giving up information. This is so much fun! Now that..." Eris halted her train of thought.

She became dead silent. Concern crept through Armand.

Boy,nobleman,light Brown Hair,red Eyes,worried,con [https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/313aaab4-767f-4cea-91cb-69c8d8fbef2a/dh2fj3d-afc1f780-f9bd-462a-b535-f54e14084f42.png?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7InBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzMxM2FhYWI0LTc2N2YtNGNlYS05MWNiLTY5YzhkOGZiZWYyYVwvZGgyZmozZC1hZmMxZjc4MC1mOWJkLTQ2MmEtYjUzNS1mNTRlMTQwODRmNDIucG5nIn1dXSwiYXVkIjpbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0.o7jfTkuSB1iBDPjPnsc9M_cjgxD__Ndnwx_TG44M4_M]

"I shouldn't be worried about Eris. Whatever she's feeling now, she deserves it. But I have to do my duty as her fiance. I need to make sure she's okay," he thought before speaking. "Eris, are you alright?"

"I'm not having fun anymore," she answered.

Shock flowed through Armand.

"Why not? You seemed happy just a moment ago," he said.

"I'm not having fun because you can't win this game of manipulation, and you know it," Eris replied.

Armand nodded.

"You can win by finding out what I want to have a game of manipulation about, but I don't have a victory condition. And I don't have any reason to stop playing with you. There's no way you'll give up either. So, you'll win sooner or later," he admitted.

Eris sat up, her expression one of shock and confusion.

"You set this up so I'd win, and I didn't even notice until now. I was too excited that I'd get to play a manipulation game with you," she said.

"But you noticed it. I suppose we can say that means you won this manipulation game," Armand replied.

The girl clenched her fists. Rage poured through her.

"Why? Why did you do this, Armand?" Eris asked.

He sighed.

"It should be obvious why. I don't care about this manipulation game. I'm just playing it to make sure you like me. This is for you, Eris, not me. Winning or losing here are meaningless compared to my real goal," Armand thought before speaking. "I wanted you to have fun, and winning is fun."

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Then, Eris said something that Armand didn't expect her to say.

"This isn't fair," Eris stated.

Armand stumbled backward, falling off the bed. His head raced toward the ground. Just before the boy could hit, Eris grabbed Armand and pulled him back up.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

"I'm fine," Armand answered. "I just didn't expect you to complain about things being unfair in your favor."

Eris let out a weak chuckle.

"I didn't expect that either," she said.

A moment of awkward silence passed between the two. Neither of them looked at the other. Then, Armand let out a deep sigh.

"I need to make sure Eris likes me, and I need to do the right thing," he thought before speaking. "Thanks for catching me, Eris. I see that you've already cast your enhanced reflexes spell."

Eris nodded, turning her head to look at him. Armand was still gazing away.

"I'll need to cast it again after this. The spell lasts a few hours, and it'll take about half an hour to recast it. Did you cast your third arm spell?" she asked.

Armand pulled down his clothes. There was a magical rune carved into his flesh.

"I don't have to recast this spell every time, but it's pretty painful to take my third arm out," Armand answered.

"Eris told me how her spell needs to be cast. It's only fair that I tell her about mine," he thought.

Then, Eris took a deep breath.

"I'm trying to have a fun couple's activity with Armand, but I don't think he enjoyed it at all. Is he just going through our manipulation game for my sake? I appreciate that he cares about me that much, but I care about him too," she thought before speaking. "Armand, I want you to enjoy the manipulation game too."

"I am enjoying it," Armand lied.

He turned to face her, trying to convey honesty.

"Well, I'm not. I don't think I can enjoy it when you don't have a chance of winning. And no, I don't want more of a challenge. I want to be fair to you," Eris spoke before thinking. "Is Armand being honest? He clearly wants me to be happy, but I don't want that to come at the cost of his happiness. By the gods, if I knew I'd think like this before Armand turned back time, I'd have punched myself in the face. I might do it anyway."

A twitch of annoyance crossed Armand's face. He hid it, but not before Eris noticed.

"Why is Eris pretending to be a nice girl now? Does she just like me that much, or is she trying to manipulate me? I know she loves me, but it's hard to believe that Eris would want to be fair to anyone. She only ever cared about fairness when it benefitted her. And even then, she'd try to make things unfair in her favor the moment they became fair. It didn't matter if it was a trade deal or even a game she'd been forced to play. There's no way Eris would change that fast," Armand thought.

He sat there in silence. A great discomfort rose in Eris.

"Did I mess up? Does Armand hate me now? Did I go too far at the banquet? Did I say something wrong? Please, Armand, tell me what's making you mad," she thought.

Finally, Armand sighed.

"Eris, you figured out that I set our manipulation game up so you would win. I didn't think it was possible for anyone to notice it since I did it so subtly, but you did. That means you've won," he said.

"No. I can't accept this victory," she replied.

Another twinge of annoyance crossed Armand's face.

"Eris, please just accept this. I'm doing this for you, not for myself," the boy stated.

"And I'm trying to do this for you!" Eris declared. "I thought a manipulation game would be the perfect couple's activity for us. We're both supposed to enjoy it."

Armand grimaced.

"It looks like you miscalculated," he spoke before thinking. "Why did I say that? I just set myself back. I know that I want to be more honest with Eris since she's more honest with me, but that's too honest. I need to make sure she likes me."

Eris sighed.

"I've failed as a fiance. I thought that Armand would enjoy a manipulation game. It looked like he was having a lot of fun when we last had one. What am I going to do now? If Armand hadn't gotten in my way the last time around, I'd have become the most powerful woman in the kingdom. But I don't know anything about romance," she thought.

Then, Armand grimaced harder.

"Am I really being honest with Eris? No, am I really being honest with myself? Was I really not having fun with our manipulation game, or am I just upset that Eris doesn't like something I set up for her? I'm just trying to make sure Eris loves me. I don't actually love her, even if she had her admirable qualities, so I'm definitely not being honest with Eris. But am I lying to myself?" he pondered.

Eris looked away from Armand. She put her head in her hands.

"I should have asked Mother about romance. I shouldn't have tried to take this on by myself. What should I do now?" Eris contemplated.

Then, the two of them sighed at once. They turned to face each other.

"Eris, our relationship is really messed up," Armand said.

To his surprise, the girl burst out laughing.

"As a drunk subhuman would put it: it's fucked up to the max!" Eris declared.

"You've been surprising me a lot recently," Armand stated.

She sighed.

"Honestly, I'm more surprised that we aren't hitting each other," Eris said.

"Do you want me to hit you on your posterior?" Armand held up his hand with an open palm. "I've heard some people like that."

Then, he and Eris chuckled. A smile crossed Armand's face.

"Eris, I actually was enjoying our manipulation game. I was just mad that I subtly set things up so you'd have fun, and you didn't like it. It's completely unreasonable for me to be mad about something like that. That's my fault, not yours," he said.

She placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Thank the gods. Armand was having fun," Eris thought before speaking. "After everything I did to you the last time around, I think you have the right to be unreasonable a few times. You have every right to be mad at me for so many reasons."

Armand nodded.

"I do, but I'm not," he said.

"Then you aren't mad about that time I shot you in the face?" Eris asked.

"Which time are you talking about?" Armand replied.

She pointed a finger into the air.

"The time I actually hit you. I still haven't figured out what magic you used to survive," Eris stated.

"I'll tell you when you get older," Armand gave her a playful smirk.

Eris sighed before giving him a grin back.

"I'm 12 years old, Armand. I'm old enough that we could get married right now. You could tell me about all sorts of uncouth stuff," she said.

Then, Eris' face turned serious.

"But Armand, please tell me. Do you hold any grudges against me? I know that you love me, but I don't want you to resent me," Eris stated.

Armand looked right in her eyes.

"Eris, I know you're evil. I hate that about you. But I don't have a grudge. I got over everything you did to me. Besides, I hurt you just as much as you hurt me," he said.

"That's true," Eris nodded. "You were more than a worthy opponent."

"I could say the same about you," Armand stated.

Eris hugged him.

"Armand, I have you now. You are mine. There's no way I'm ever letting you go. Please tell me that you won't ever let me go either," she said.

He sighed.

"Eris, do you think I'm an idiot?" Armand asked.

Shock covered the girl.

"I don't, Armand," Eris answered. "Why would you even ask me something like that?"

"Because you're worried that I'll let you go. Now that I have you in my sights, I'm never keeping my eye off of you," Armand said.

"Eris belongs by my side where I can keep an eye on her. If she's ever on her own, she'll go back to the way she used to be. And I can't love her if she's like that. Of course, I don't love her. But that's a moot point," he lied to himself.

Then, Eris pulled Armand down. She curled up with her arms around him.

"What are you doing?" Armand asked.

"I'm feeling your warmth. I don't feel any physical attraction to you yet, but touching you still feels nice," she answered.

Armand smiled.

"Then hold me as much as you want," he said.

Eris shuffled closer.

"Honestly, Armand. I'm glad we fought so many duels the last time around. You stabbed me a lot," she stated.

"Why are you glad about that?" Armand questioned.

"Because it's good practice. When we're married, you'll be stabbing me even more. And unlike back then, I won't be trying to stop you. In fact, I'll be the one asking you to do it," Eris smiled.

Armand shook his head but gave Eris a playful smirk.

"Come, now, Eris. A rapier is different than what I'm going to stab you with," he said.

"Yes. A sword takes life, but you have a weapon that creates life," she replied.

Eris nuzzled her head against Armand's shoulder.

"I like the idea of being stabbed by a weapon like that."