History Webcomic / DearNemesis

* ExcellentJudgeOfCharacter: Ellua absolutely hates Storoni [[spoiler: even though he's unaware Storoni was behind the attempt at his life]] and makes it clear he wants him to stay away from his sister.

* ArrangedMarriage: The engagement between Calmia and Rudbeckia.

* SayingTooMuch: Rudbeckia accidentally reveals to Calmia he knows a bit too much about what happens at the Phlox estate to brush it off as a mere guesswork. This, and his irrational animosity towards Storoni, prompts Calmia to check the employee records, which make her realize he started planting his spies at Pliaze at roughly the same time he came with his first visit, [[spoiler: and confirms her suspicions Rudbeckia is a regressor as well]].

* {{Timeskip}}: There's a three year gap between Calmia's engagement to Rudbeckia and the next time they meet.

* {{Timeskip}}: There's a three year gap between Calmia's engagement to Rudbeckia and the the next time they meet.
* UnwittingPawn: Calmia for Storoni in the first timeline. The realization of how much she was used and manipulated all her life is what prompts more major changes in her character than even Ellua's survival.

* ArmorPiercingQuestion: Rudbeckia poses several ones to Calmia on his first visit to her after the timeskip, when she tries to rip into him for leaving her alone and not helping with becoming the heiress. Namely: what had she done to advance her chances in the meantime? Does she expect him to do all the work, and if so, why would she then deserve the title? And most importantly, what does she even want to do when she gets it?

* ParentalNeglect: Count Phlox refuses to see Calmia after Ellua's death in the first timeline. Sadly, his treatment of her in the second timeline, where Ellua is still alive is only marginally better.

* WellDoneDaughterGirl: Calmia towards her father in both timelines. In the first one he rejects her after Ellua's death, but still has to make her the countess since she's his only living relative, so Calmia gives up trying to win his approval and even deliberately keeps her hair short so he will keep refusing to see her. She assumes he would treat her better in the second timeline, since Ellua is alive there, only to realize he still views her as unnecessary baggage no matter how well and hard she works to be acknowledged by him (and the discovery of the basement library, of which she had no idea in the first timeline, makes it even more clear he never considered Calmia his rightful heir). She stops trying altogether and doesn't even bat an eye when the Count suffers from a stroke in front of her.

** Invoked when Calmia notices the infrastructure development in the second timeline takes longer than in the first one and wonders whether her current friendship with the baroness (whose husband is involved with the project and currently in conflict with another noble) influenced it somehow. Subverted when it turns out it was Rudbeckia who deliberately prolonged the project.

* SayingTooMuch: Rudbeckia accidentally reveals to Calmia he knows a bit too much about what happens at the Phlox estate to brush it off as a mere guesswork. This prompts Calmia to check the employee records, which make her realize he started planting his spies at Pliaze at roughly the same time he came with his first visit, [[spoiler: and in turn makes her realize Rudbeckia is a regressor as well]].

* YouShouldHaveDiedInstead: Calmia's father says it almost word for word after Ellua dies in the first timeline.

[[ItWasADarkAndStormyNight On a dark and stormy night]] Countess Calmia Phlox and her co-conspirator/lover Storoni enjoy AGlassOfChianti after killing her longtime opponent, Duke Rudbeckia Matari, cementing their political faction's final victory in the struggle for the throne. However, a few moments later Calmia suddenly wakes up to find herself a ten year old girl again, twenty years in the past, on the day of her twin brother's death. Said death is what allowed Calmia to become the countess in her previous life and she's torn on whether or not should she prevent it from happening again. This time, however, Ellua is rescued by another boy, who unexpectedly comes to the Phlox estate: no other than Rudbeckia Matari. As it turns out, Rudbeckia came there to deliver the letter from current Duke Matari to Count Phlox, proposing a marriage between their children. Both kids dislike each other on sight, but Calmia assumes Rudbeckia wants the engagement to strenghten his position as the future duke, so she concedes to it on the condition he helps her inherit the title of the countess. They agree to remain engaged until she turns 20, at which point they can dissolve the deal.

[[ItWasADarkAndStormyNight On a dark and stormy night]] Countess Calmia Phlox and her co-conspirator/lover Storoni enjoy AGlassOfChianti after killing her longtime opponent, Duke Rudbeckia Matari, cementing their political faction's final victory in the struggle for the throne. However, a few moments later Calmia suddenly wakes up to find herself a ten year old girl again, twenty years in the past, on the day of her twin brother's death. Said death is what allowed Calmia to become the countess in her previous life and she's torn on whether or not should she prevent it from happening again. This time, however, Ellua is rescued by another boy, who unexpectedly comes to the Phlox estate: no other than Rudbeckia Matari. As it turns out, Rudbeckia came there to deliver the letter from current Duke Matari to Count Phlox, proposing a marriage between their children. Both kids dislike each other on sight, but Calmia assumes Rudbeckia wants the engagement to strenghten his position as the future duke, so she concedes to it on the condition he helps her inherit the title of the countess. They agree to remain engaged until she turns 20, after which they can dissolve the deal.

[[ItWasADarkAndStormyNight On a dark and stormy night]] Countess Calmia Phlox and her co-conspirator/lover Storoni enjoy AGlassOfChianti after killing her longtime opponent, Duke Rudbeckia Matari, cementing their political faction's final victory in the struggle for the throne. However, a few moments later Calmia suddenly wakes up to find herself a ten year old girl again, twenty years in the past, on the day of her twin brother's death. Said death is what allowed Calmia to become the countess in her previous life and she's torn on whether or not should she prevent it from happening again. This time, however, Ellua is rescued by another boy, who unexpectedly comes to the Phlox estate: no other than Rudbeckia Matari. As it turns out, Rudbeckia came there to deliver the letter from current Duke Matari to Count Phlox, proposing a marriage between their children. Both kids dislike each other on sight, but Calmia assumes Rudbeckia wants the engagement to strenghten his position as the future duke, so she concedes to it on the condition he helps her inherit the title of the countess. They agree to remain engaged until she turns 20 and achieve their respective goals, after which they can dissolve the deal.

[[ItWasADarkAndStormyNight On a dark and stormy night]] Countess Calmia Phlox and her co-conspirator/lover Storoni enjoy AGlassOfChianti after killing her longtime opponent, Duke Rudbeckia Matari, cementing their political faction's final victory in the struggle for the throne. However, a few moments later Calmia suddenly wakes up to find herself a ten year old girl again, twenty years in the past, on the day of her twin brother's death. Said death is what allowed Calmia to become the countess in her previous life and she's torn on whether or not should she prevent it from happening again. This time, however, Ellua is rescued by another boy, who unexpectedly comes to the Phlox estate: no other than Rudbeckia Matari. As it turns out, Rudbeckia came there to deliver the letter from current Duke Matari to Count Phlox, proposing a marriage between their children. Both kids dislike each other on sight, but Calmia assumes Rudbeckia wants the engagement to strenghten his position as the future duke, so she concedes to it on the condition he helps her inherit the title of the countess. They agree to remain engaged until they turn 20 and achieve their respective goals, after which they can dissolve the deal.

* StayInTheKitchen: Count Phlox's attittude towards his daughter's ambitions. He deliberately instructs her tutors to teach her only the most basic etiquette and subjects, refuses to even acknowledge her efforts, limits her social outings and tries to actively bar her from gaining any knowledge. [[spoiler: Even at his deathbed, he still tries to convince Ellua to become the count.]] While historically noblemen may have had problems with allowing their daughters the same education as the sons, they usually still tried to marry them well; Count Phlox plans to ultimately break off Calmia's engagement to politically powerful House Matari and marry her to Storoni, a poor minor nobleman from a fallen family.

** However, it's implied there might be more to his attittude than just misogyny, considering House Phlox's sudden and inexplicable withdrawal from politics and social life a few generations prior.

Calmia sets out to work hard to gain her father's approval and earn her title, but along the way she makes some unpleasant realizations about her previous life, while on the present not everything is going according to her plans.

* CountryMouse: Sometime in the past Phlox family for some reason removed themselves from the capital and their function as royal tutors, and moved to the countryside. In the first timeline Calmia remained there until she made her social debut at 20, when she went to the court and was thoroughly mocked by other nobles. In the current timeline Calmia basically uses her engagement to Rudbeckia to force her father to hire better tutors for her and allow her to socialize more, as well make her debut earlier. She still prefers staying at her estate more than the city life.

* ForWantOfANail: Ellua's survival makes Calmia realize how much his death influenced her life in the previous timeline. Her rejection by their father left her alienated at the family estate, where servants didn't even talk to her for fear of the count, and vulnerable to Storoni's manipulation, since he was the only person to acknowledge her existence. The rumours surrounding Ellua's death placing the blame on his sister also influenced Calmia's reputation long before she entered the high society.
** Invoked and subverted when Calmia notices the infrastructure development in second timeline takes longer than in the first one and wonders whether her current friendship with the baroness (whose husband is involved with the project and currently in conflict with another noble) influenced it somehow. Jossed when it turns out it was Rudbeckia who deliberately prolonged the project.

* StayInTheKitchen: Count Phlox's attittude towards his daughter's ambitions. He deliberately instructs her tutors to teach her only the most basic etiquette and subjects, refuses to even acknowledge her efforts, limits her social outings and tries to actively bar her from gaining any knowledge. [[spoiler: Even at his deathbed, he still tries to convince Ellua to become the count.]] While historically noblemen may have had problems with allowing their daughters the same education as the sons, they usually still tried to marry them well; Count Phlox plans to ultimately break Calmia's engagement to politically powerful House Matari and marry her off to Storoni, a poor minor nobleman from a fallen family.

* WellDoneDaughterGirl: Calmia towards her father in both timelines. In the first one he rejects her after Ellua's death, but still has to make her the countess since she's his only living relative, so Calmia gives up trying to win his approval and even deliberately keeps her hair short so he can refuse seeing her. Calmia assumes he would treat her better in the second timeline, since Ellua is alive there, only to realize he still views her as unnecessary baggage no matter how well and hard she works to be acknowledged by him (and the discovery of the basement library, of which she had no idea in the first timeline, makes it even more clear he never considered her his rightful heir). She gives up altogether and doesn't even bat an eye when the Count suffers from a stroke in front of her.

[[ItWasADarkAndStormyNight On a dark and stormy night]] Countess Calmia Phlox and her co-conspirator/lover Storoni enjoy AGlassOfChianti after killing her longtime opponent, Duke Rudbeckia Matari, cementing their political faction's final victory in the struggle for the throne. However, a few moments later Calmia suddenly wakes up to find herself a ten year old girl again, twenty years in the past, on the day of her twin brother's death. Said death is what allowed Calmia to become the countess in her previous life and she's torn on whether or not should she prevent it from happening again. This time, however, Ellua is rescued by another boy, who unexpectedly comes to the Phlox estate: no other than Rudbeckia Matari. As it turns out, Rudbeckia came there with a letter from his father, proposing a marriage between Rudbeckia and Calmia. Both children dislike each other on sight, but Calmia assumes Rudbeckia wants the engagement to strenghten his position as the future duke, so she agrees to it on the condition he helps her inherit the title of the countess. They agree to remain engaged until they turn 20 and achieve their respective goals, after which they can dissolve the deal.

* ForWantOfANail: Ellua's survival makes Calmia realize how much his death influenced her life in the previous timeline. Her rejection by their father left her alienated at the family estate, where servants didn't even talk to her for fear od the count, and vulnerable to Storoni's manipulation, since he was the only person to acknowledge her existence. The rumours surrounding Ellua's death placing the blame on his sister also influenced Calmia's reputation long before she entered the high society.

* TheGhost: First prince, who is constantly mentioned thorough the story as the man whose candidacy for throne Calmia and Storoni supported in the first timeline over his older sister, and for whom Storoni still works behind the curtains in the second timeline as well. He's eventually introduced in chapter 65.
* LikeASonToMe: Count Phlox says so about Storoni, when introducing him to Rudbeckia. In the first timeline he basically considers Storoni his proper heir, teaching him everything Calmia was supposed to know as the next head of House Phlox. In the second timeline Storoni actually seems to care about the count more than his own children do, staying at his bedside most of the timer, although it also does allow him to manipulate the count even more.

* RunningGag: Calmia receiving bracelets from men vying for her. In her country, Elmark, giving someone a bracelet is an expression of romantic intent.

* WellDoneDaughterGirl: Calmia towards her father in both timelines. In the first one he rejects her after Ellua's death, but still has to make her the countess since she's his only living relative, so Calmia gives up trying to win his approval and even deliberately keeps her hair short so he can refuse seeing her. Calmia assumes he would treat her better in the second timeline, since Ellua is alive there, only to realize he still views her like unnecessary baggage no matter how well and hard she works to be acknowledged by him (and the discovery of the basement library, of which she had no idea in the first timeline, makes it even more clear he never considered her his rightful heir). She gives up altogether and doesn't even bat an eye when the Count suffers from a stroke in front of her.

* FloralThemeNaming: Kalmia, phlox and rudbeckia are all genera of flowers.

* ForWantOfANail: Ellua's survival makes Calmia realize how much his death influenced her life in the previous timeline.

* NeverASelfMadeWoman: This is Calmia's biggest issue, in both timelines. In the first one, she only became the countess because her twin brother died, leaving her father with no other choices, and even then, he treated Storoni more like his heir, while Storoni was puppeteering Calmia all her life [[spoiler: until he decided he doesn't need her anymore]]. In the second one, despite all her talent and hard work, she still becomes the countess only because Ellua willingly gave up his position for her. Even though Pliaze territory flourishes thanks to her, after arriving to the capital, Calmia is only seen as the fiancee of future Duke Matari and sister of Ellua, who just became an overnight sensation thenks to his linguistic skills, while people only talk about her looks.

* SayingTooMuch: Rudbeckia accidentally reveals to Calmia he knows a bit too much about what happens at the Phlox estate to brush it off as a mere guesswork. This prompts Calmia to check the employee records, which make her realize he started planting his spies at Pliaze at roughly the same time he came with his first visit, [[spoiler: which in turn makes her realize Rudbeckia is a regressor as well]].

** And this is just the second timeline. In the first one, in addition to completely rejecting her, Calmia's father never taught her anything she should know as his heir, instead giving all his knowledge to Storoni and basically treating his as his own son. Calmia didn't know about the basement library until the second timeline.

* WellDoneDaughterGirl: Calmia towards her father in both timelines. In the first one he rejects her after Ellua's death, but still has to make her the countess since she's his only living relative, so Calmia gives up trying to win his approval and even deliberately keeps her hair short so he can refuse seeing her. Calmia assumes he would treat her better in the second timeline, since Ellua is alive there, only to realize he still treats her like unnecessary baggage no matter how well and hard she works to be acknowledged by him (and the discovery of the basement library, of which she had no idea in the first timeline, makes it even more clear he never considered her his rightful heir). She gives up altogether and doesn't even bat an eye when the Count suffers from a stroke in front of her.

* NeverASelfMadeWoman: This is Calmia's biggest issue, in both timelines. In the first one, she she only became the countess because her twin brother died, leaving her father with no other choices, and even then, he treated Storoni more like his heir, while Storoni was puppeteering Calmia all her life [[spoiler: until he decided he doesn't need her anymore]]. In the second one, despite all her talent and hard work, she still becomes the countess only because Ellua willingly gave up his position for her. Even though Pliaze territory flourishes thanks to her, after arriving to the capital, Calmia is only seen as the fiancee of future Duke Matari and sister of Ellua, who just became an overnight sensation thenks to his linguistic skills, while people only talk about her looks.

[[ItWasADarkAndStormyNight On a dark and stormy night]] Countess Calmia Phlox and her co-conspirator/lover Storoni enjoy AGlassOfChianti after killing her longtime opponent, Duke Rudbeckia Matari, cementing their political faction's final victory in the struggle for the throne. However, a few moments later Calmia suddenly wakes up to find herself a ten year old girl again, twenty years in the past, on the day of her twin brother's death. Said death is what allowed Calmia to become the countess in her previous life and she's torn on whether or not should she prevent it from happening again. This time, however, Ellua is rescued by another boy, who unexpectedly comes to the Phlox estate: Rudbeckia Matari. As it turns out, Rudbeckia came there with a letter from his father, proposing a marriage between Rudbeckia and Calmia. Both children dislike each other on sight, but Calmia assumes Rudbeckia wants the engagement to strenghten his position as the future duke, so she agrees to it on the condition he helps her inherit the title of the countess. They agree to remain engaged until they turn 20 and achieve their respective goals, after which they can dissolve the deal.

Calmia sets out to work hard to gain her father's approval and earn her title, but along the way she makes some unpleasant realizations about her previous life, while not everything is currently going according to her plans.

* Bifauxnen: Calmia in the first timeline, who kept her hair short to spite her father and wore male clothing mostly out of insecurity after being rejected by other noble ladies at her first official outing due to her inadequate upbringing for a noblewoman. She has long hair and exclusively wears dresses in the second timeline, implying she no longer has problems with her femininity.
* CoordinatedClothes: Calmia and Ellua usually wear similarly cut clothes from the same or similarly patterned/colored fabrics and.

* FloralThemeNaming: Kalmia, phlox and rudbeckia are all genii of flowers.

* WellDoneSonGuy: Calmia towards her father in both timelines. In the first one he rejects her after Ellua's death, but he still has to make her the countess since she's his only living relative. Calmia assumes he would treat her better

* StayInTheKitchen: Count Phlox's attittude towards his daughter's ambitions. He deliberately instructs her tutors to teach her only the most basic etiquette and subjects, refuses to even acknowledge her efforts, limits her social outings and tries to actively bar her from gaining any knowledge. [[spoiler: Even at his deathbed, he still tries to convince Ellua to become the count.]] While historically noblemen may have had problems with allowing their daughters the same education as the sons, they usually still tried to marry them well; Count Phlox plans to ultimately break Calmia's engagement to politically powerful House Matari and marry her off to Storoni, a poor minor nobleman from a fallen family. However, it's implied there might be more to his attittude than just misogyny, considering House Phlox's sudden and inexplicable withdrawal from politics and social life a few gen

* SayingTooMuch: Rudbeckia accidentally reveals to Calmia he knows a bit too much about what happens at the Phlox estate to brush it off as a mere guesswork. This prompts Calmia to check the employee records, which make her realize he started planting his spies at Pliaze at roughly the same time he came with his first visit, [[spoiler: which in turn makes her realize Rudbeckia is a regressor as well]].

* FloralThemeNaming:
* NeverASelfMadeWoman: This is Calmia's biggest issue, in both timelines. In the first one, she she only became the countess because her twin brother died, leaving her father with no other choices, and even then, he treated Storoni more like his heir, and Storoni was, in fact, puppeteering Calmia all her life [[spoiler: until he decided he doesn't need her anymore]]. In the second one, despite all her talent and hard work, she still becomes the countess only because Ellua willingly gave up his position for her. Even though Pliaze territory flourishes thanks to her, after arriving to the capital, Calmia is only seen as the fiancee of future Duke Matari and sister of Ellua, who just became an overnight sensation thenks to his linguistic skills, while people only talk about her looks.

* AllOfTheOtherReindeer: In her first life Calmia was shunned by other aristocrats for her unladylike appearance, unfashionable clothing and provincial upbringing. Interestingly, despite their enmity, Rudbeckia was the only person who never criticized her appearance and even told off a fellow nobleman for mocking her looks.
* NeverASelfMadeWoman: This is Calmia's biggest issue, in both timelines. In the first one, she she only became the countess because her twin brother died, leaving her father with no other choices, and even then, he treated Storoni more like his heir, and Storoni was, in fact, puppeteering Calmia all her life [[spoiler: until he decided he doesn't need her anymore]]. In the second one, despite all her talent and hard work, she still becomes the countess only because Ellua willingly gave up his position for her. Even though Pliaze territory flourishes thanks to her, after arriving to the capital, she's only seen as

[[ItWasADarkAndStormyNight On a dark and stormy night]] Countess Calmia Phlox and her co-conspirator/lover Storoni enjoy AGlassOfChianti after killing her longtime opponent, Duke Rudbeckia Matari, cementing their political faction's final victory in the struggle for the throne. However, a few moments later Calmia suddenly wakes up to find herself a ten year old girl again, twenty years in the past, on the day of her twin brother's death. Said death is what allowed Calmia to become the countess in her previous life and she's torn on whether or not should she prevent it from happening again. This time, however, Ellua is rescued by another boy, who unexpectedly comes to the Phlox estate: Rudbeckia Matari. As it turns out, Rudbeckia came there with a letter from his father, proposing a marriage between Rudbeckia and Calmia. Both children dislike each other on sight, but Calmia assumes Rudbeckia wants the engagement to strenghten his position as the future duke, so she agrees to it on the condition he helps her inherit the title of the countess. They agree to remain engaged until they turn 20 and achieve their respective goals, after which they can dissolve the deal.

[[ItWasADarkAndStormyNight On a dark and stormy night]] Countess Calmia Phlox and her co-conspirator/lover Storoni enjoy AGlassOfChianti after killing her longtime opponent, Duke Rudbeckia Matari, cementing the final victory of their political faction in the struggle for the throne. However, a few moments later Calmia suddenly wakes up to find herself a ten year old girl again, twenty years in the past, on the day of her twin brother's death. Said death is what allowed Calmia to become the countess in her previous life. This time, however, Ellua is rescued by another boy, who unexpectedly came to the Phlox estate: Rudbeckia Matari.