Chapter 304: Ch 304: New Decisions - Part 2 - Reborn as a Useless Noble with my SSS-Class Innate Talent - NovelsTime

Reborn as a Useless Noble with my SSS-Class Innate Talent

Chapter 304: Ch 304: New Decisions - Part 2

Author: Reborn as a Useless Noble with my SSS-Class Innate Talent
updatedAt: 2025-07-12

CHAPTER 304: CH 304: NEW DECISIONS - PART 2

The estate was abuzz with whispers, though no one dared speak too loudly. Servants tiptoed down the marble halls, avoiding eye contact with the nobles and ducking out of sight when voices rose.

The meeting between Duke Heinsberg, Kyle, and Nigel had ended, but no word had come out.

What had been discussed behind those doors was locked tight, and that silence was maddening—especially for Christan.

He stood in his study, hands clenched into fists behind his back as he stared out the window at the garden.

His eyes were sharp, narrowed, burning with frustration. A servant stood behind him, trembling, waiting for orders.

"Well? Spit it out. What was said in that meeting?"

Christan snapped without turning.

The servant fidgeted.

"I... I apologize, Young Master. None of us were allowed near the room. The guards said—"

A loud crash silenced him.

The shattered remains of a porcelain vase scattered across the floor.

Christan’s chest heaved as he lowered his arm, having hurled the ornament across the room in a fit of rage.

"Useless! You’re all absolutely useless!"

He snarled.

The servant flinched, lowering his head and backing away.

Christan ran a hand through his hair, gripping the strands at the roots as he paced. His mind was spiraling.

"They didn’t invite me. That can only mean one thing. One thing."

He muttered.

Behind him, Emelia’s soft footsteps entered the room.

"Christan, you need to calm down."

He whirled on her, eyes wild.

"Don’t you get it, Emelia? This was about the succession. About the future Duke. And I wasn’t even considered worth summoning!"

Emelia folded her arms, her expression unreadable.

"You don’t know that for sure. It could’ve been about anything—war, alliances, Queen’s movements—"

"No. No. I know. They’re going to announce the next heir at tomorrow’s banquet. Once that happens, it’s over. Done. No more chances."

Christan said, shaking his head violently.

Emelia’s gaze flickered, but she said nothing.

"I need to act now. I won’t be discarded like a useless pawn. I have status. Skill. Connections. I deserve to be Duke."

Christan muttered, pacing again.

"Then what do you plan to do?"

She asked quietly.

Christan stopped walking, his face shifting from frustration to a twisted grin.

"It’s simple. I’ll let those two tear each other apart."

Emelia raised an eyebrow.

"I’ll provoke Nigel. Push his buttons, sow doubts, feed his jealousy. If he lashes out at Kyle—and Kyle responds—our father won’t be able to ignore the chaos. He’ll have to pick the stable one. Me."

He continued, eyes gleaming.

"You’re going to egg them on? That’s your grand plan?"

Christan smiled wider.

"Desperate times, sister. It’s not like I have other options."

Emelia studied him for a moment longer.

"And if this backfires?"

Christan’s smile didn’t waver.

"It won’t. Nigel is volatile. Hot-headed. And Kyle... well, even he has limits. If I do this right, Father will see me as the only rational choice."

He turned to the window again, his grin fading as his expression hardened.

"No more watching from the sidelines. I’ll make my way into the spotlight. One way or another."

Emelia watched Christan pace with that smug look on his face and wondered, not for the first time, if her brother had lost all sense of reality.

His plan was reckless—stupid, even—but she said nothing. There was no changing Christan’s mind once he had convinced himself of something.

And if he failed... she would fall with him. Again.

That wasn’t acceptable.

She needed to shift strategies. The Duke’s mind was made up, that much was clear. He wouldn’t be naming Christan the heir. No matter how many vases he shattered in a tantrum.

So Emelia made a choice.

If she couldn’t benefit from Christan, she would find another path—through Kyle or Nigel.

Both of them were in the inner circle now, one by title and the other by talent. And while she knew neither of them fully trusted her, especially Nigel, she still had her ways.

The next morning, she rose early and dressed carefully, selecting a pale blue gown that made her look softer and more disarming.

She skipped breakfast intentionally, instead positioning herself in the hallway outside the dining room, where the brothers were sure to pass.

She didn’t have to wait long.

Kyle and Nigel turned the corner, engaged in quiet conversation as they walked down the corridor. Nigel had an easy expression on his face—rare for him—but it vanished the moment he spotted her.

He stopped, stepping in front of Kyle instinctively.

"What do you want?"

Emelia paused, tilting her head slightly as if surprised by his tone.

"I was just taking a walk. Didn’t expect to run into you two."

Nigel’s eyes narrowed.

"Try harder to lie next time."

Emelia sighed.

"I’m not here to cause trouble. Quite the opposite."

Kyle regarded her in silence. Nigel, still on guard, didn’t budge from his spot in front of Kyle.

"I’ve decided to change sides. If Christan can’t see the writing on the wall, then I can. He’s not going to be the Duke. That much is clear."

Emelia said calmly.

Kyle’s eyes didn’t shift. Nigel looked mildly stunned but still skeptical.

"So, what, you’re jumping ship the second things get hard?"

"I’m being practical. We’re all pieces on a board. I’m just repositioning myself. And I thought you two might want to know something important."

She replied.

She leaned forward slightly.

"Christan is planning something during tonight’s banquet. He wants to provoke a scene between you two—to make you both look unstable in front of Father."

Nigel bristled.

"Tch. Of course he is. That snake—"

Kyle held up a hand.

"And why tell us this?"

Emelia smiled faintly.

"Because I’d rather align myself with the winning side. And Christan isn’t going to win. Not this time."

Nigel turned to Kyle, still fuming.

"She expects us to believe that she just grew a conscience overnight?"

Kyle didn’t respond immediately. He studied Emelia for a moment longer before speaking.

"Thank you for the warning. But we likely won’t need it."

He said evenly.

Nigel blinked.

"Huh?"

Emelia furrowed her brows.

"What do you mean?"

Kyle gave them both a small smile.

"Let him do what he wants at the banquet. Let him try."

Emelia didn’t know what unsettled her more—that Kyle didn’t seem concerned in the slightest, or that there was a certain glint in his eyes, a kind of cold amusement.

"You’re planning something,"

She murmured.

"Am I?"

Kyle corrected.

Beside him, Nigel was now grinning.

"Well, if he wants a show, we might as well give him one."

Emelia exhaled slowly, realizing she’d stepped into something deeper than she understood.

She had thought herself clever—thought she could play sides like she always did. But now she wasn’t so sure. Because Kyle and Nigel didn’t look like pawns anymore.

They looked like predators.

And Christan had just painted a target on his own back.

Kyle had a plan to deal with him and even if he didn’t, he was sure Christan would not be able to do a single thing against him.

The pieces moved, not in chaos, but in a perfect spiral of destruction. Soon, war would come. And in its wake, none of these titles would matter. Only survival would.

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