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15.

"W-why?"
The Countess's Daughter's face drained of color as she clutched the empty wine glass.
Drip, drip—crimson droplets fell steadily to the floor.
Between strands of wine-darkened hair, Wilhelmina Lopez's ‌‌‌gaze bore down upon ‌‌‌her with lethal intensity.
"How utterly unbecoming. Has some peculiar fashion emerged in high society during ‌‌‌‌my time at Kingdom Academy?"
Wilhelmina exhaled sharply, brushing back her wine-soaked hair with deliberate grace as she addressed the Countess's Daughter.
"This isn't some trivial gathering—there are dignitaries of the Kingdom present. What were you thinking?"
"I... I was just... trying to teach you your place..."
"Teach me my place? You are the Countess's Daughter, and Miss Salice ‌‌is a Baron's Daughter?"
Wilhelmina let out a scoff of sheer disbelief.
"Then ‌‌as the Duke's Daughter of House Lopez, am I not entitled to teach you yours?"
With those words, Wilhelmina raised her hand to the side.
An attendant, cowed by ‌‌her commanding presence, immediately ‌‌‌placed a wine glass in her hand.
Without the slightest ‌‌‌‌hesitation, Wilhelmina poured the wine directly over the Countess's Daughter's face.
"Kyaaah! My ‌‌Lady! How could you! Do you know how much this dress costs?!"
"Consider it a courtesy—I'm merely ensuring you don't receive a bill for the gown you ruined."
With that, Wilhelmina turned on her heel and walked ‌‌‌‌away, clearly done with the entire affair. ‌‌‌
'What?'
For some reason.
She held my hand firmly.

*

Upon entering the lounge prepared for Duke Lopez's House, Wilhelmina finally seemed to come to her senses as she looked at me.
Then, her face flushed as deeply as the wine she'd been drinking, she let out a sharp cry. ‌‌‌‌
"W-what are you doing here!"
"The young lady brought me here, and I thought it was her kindness in considering my embarrassment, so I leaned on that—was I overstepping?"
I first ‌‌‌‌wrapped my words in praise for Wilhelmina's actions.
At that, contradicting what she'd just said, Wilhelmina spoke as if stifling a scream.
"Who said that!"
Then she instructed her handmaidens to prepare a fresh dress for her, and told them to serve me tea as well.
She really was ‌‌‌‌considerate.
And also....
'She was acting like the original Wilhelmina.'
In truth, it was only because I'd startled her so much—the original Wilhelmina in the story had possessed the ‌‌charisma befitting a noblewoman.
Just as she'd rebuked the Countess's Daughter at the ball moments ago.
'In the original, she'd gotten angry when some other noblewoman clumsily tormented Roselita instead of ‌her.'
That's why later readers debated whether she was obsessed with Cassian or with Roselita.
I sipped the tea the Duke Lopez's House servants had prepared while waiting for Wilhelmina to finish changing her clothes.
When she finally sat before me with a reluctant expression, I bowed respectfully and expressed my gratitude.
"Thanks to you, I was able to avoid trouble. Thank you. And ‌‌‌I'm sorry as well."
"...An apology isn't necessary. I was just being presumptuous on my own."
Wilhelmina said that, then murmured something ambiguous under her breath.
"Why did I really have ‌‌to ‌‌step in for Miss Salice...."
I heard it all, but I decided to pretend I hadn't.
And in my mind, I was recalling information about that Countess's family.
It seemed there was one matter related to a business operated by the Countess's House among my duties next month.
Should I ‌‌‌apply some pressure beforehand?
I smiled broadly while entertaining these wicked thoughts.
At that, Wilhelmina flinched as if by spinal reflex and spoke to me.
"N-now get out! How long do you plan to stay in my lounge? This makes it seem like we're close. We're competitors!"
How she does love to be bashful.
So I ‌‌decided to be shameless instead.
"I thought we'd become quite close, but I suppose that was presumptuous of me?"
"...What?"
"It was my first time—a noblewoman greeting me so frequently."
This was true. More than just being a mere baron's ‌‌‌daughter, it was because of the infamy that had accumulated over the past year.
The Male Lead had destroyed all my social connections.
Even the original Roselita had a friend or two....
At my words, silence fell in the room. Wilhelmina looked troubled, as if she'd said something she shouldn't have, and turned her gaze away.
"S-stop saying I'm overstepping. It's nothing ‌‌‌‌special to just greet someone."
Her face ‌flushed red once more.
Indeed, she was far too adorable.
Our Wilhelmina.

*

Wilhelmina Lopez told me to leave, yet ‌‌insisted I stay for at least a cup of tea.
"Y-you should at least keep me company while my hair dries! Surely you ‌have ‌‌‌that much sense of responsibility?"
Of course, I seized this precious opportunity and showered Wilhelmina Lopez with praise. ‌‌‌
Save Wilma with a ‌‌few compliments!
Save myself too!
It's a win-win situation, isn't it?
"I heard you graduated from Kingdom Academy with truly excellent marks! That's truly remarkable, ‌‌‌Miss Lopez."
"Remarkable is too much. I simply read a few books, that's all."
"You're so humble, Miss Lopez! It's something even the Duke's son couldn't accomplish!"
I clearly saw how Wilhelmina Lopez's lips twitched at my words before she hid them behind her teacup.
And no wonder—those were words she could never hear at home.
After all, that household viewed their daughter as nothing more than a tool for marriage transactions.
In any case, the past two weeks of my efforts hadn't been entirely in vain.
"N-next time."
"Yes?"
"I'd like to have tea time with ‌‌‌you! You won't refuse, will you?! Surely you, the fiancée ‌‌‌‌of ‌‌Prince Cassian Artez, won't avoid me?"
I could see right through your act, Wilma.
You could have just said you wanted to ‌‌‌‌have tea together!
Wilhelmina Lopez doesn't really have friends either.
I smiled at her honest yet dishonest words and nodded.
"Of course, Miss Lopez. How could I possibly ‌‌‌‌decline your invitation?"
Yet at my response, Wilhelmina Lopez frowned slightly, looking displeased.
"...I wish you'd stop ‌using that word."
"Pardon?"
"I think you're the only ‌‌person I can compare myself to, but when you speak like that, it makes me feel insignificant too."
I looked at her for a moment, genuinely surprised.
Beneath words that seemed arrogant lay hidden affection.
My heart swelled with pride.
The fruits of my two weeks of effort!
My sparkling wine!
And so I gained a friend and managed to shatter a few doom flags.
...
That must be it, right?

*

"You're abandoning me?"
After parting ways with Wilhelmina and returning alone, Cassian Artez, who had been leaning against the wall with a cold expression, approached me.
"Surely you understand the situation?"
At my words, his face crumpled slightly.
He stared at me with an expression of clear displeasure, then instead of saying anything, extended his hand toward me.
Soon the dance music ‌‌began, and I surrendered myself ‌‌‌‌to Cassian Artez's hand, moving my feet in rhythm.
Just as I'd felt before, he danced with near-perfect skill—truly befitting the Male Lead himself.
"...Why do you pay so much attention to the Duke Lopez's Daughter?"
"...Because she's adorable?"
Still thinking back on my tea time with Wilhelmina Lopez moments earlier, I gave a reflexive answer.
At ‌‌that, my superior gazed at me with an excessively bright smile and replied.
"I see—so Rose likes cute things."
Don't tell me you're thinking of ‌‌‌‌tormenting Wilhelmina Lopez right now?
I offered him a smile somewhat kinder than usual, desperately hoping this devilish Male Lead wouldn't extend his grasp toward the Duke Lopez's Daughter.
Then Cassian Artez, who had been smiling beautifully, ‌‌‌‌twisted his lips slightly,
"Mmph—!" ‌
and in the next turn, he pulled my body sharply toward him, whispering,
"No matter how I think about it, I seem to have given Rose more of what she wants." ‌‌‌‌‌
"...Your Highness?"
"I need to try harder, I think."
Yet his violet eyes gleamed with a dangerous light that contradicted his words.
No, if you say you need to try harder, why do you have such a sinister look?
It's the same expression you had three months ago when you were crushing corrupt nobles.
"That way Rose won't abandon me."
At those words, I made no ‌‌‌effort to hide my bewildered expression and showed it plainly to him.
"I'm faithfully honoring our contract, Your Highness. That's hardly fair."
To regard someone with such irresponsibility.
Whether it's a labor contract or an engagement contract, both are binding.
With my precious salary on the line, there's no way I'd flee on a whim.
As I gazed at him with displeasure, Cassian Artez finally laughed with satisfaction, bringing the fading dance to a beautiful close in perfect timing. ‌‌‌
The fact that he'd thrown in variations to catch me off guard, yet led the entire dance flawlessly so that no one else noticed—it was truly infuriating.

*

Unlike the callous and ruthless Cassian Artez, the innocent and promise-keeping Wilhelmina Lopez, the Duke's daughter, truly ‌‌‌did send me an invitation to tea several days after the ball ended.
So, was I able to attend the tea time, you ask?
The answer was a resounding no.
Was this intentional?
I gazed at Cassian with resentful eyes as I stared at the mountain of documents piled before me like a range of hills.
I want to make friends too, Male Lead!
That prickly Duke's daughter sent me a tea invitation.
At this rate, I would have to send a third ‌‌rejection letter.
There simply wasn't time with so much work piling up.
Of course, I ‌‌‌understood well enough that there were state dinners, receiving distinguished guests, and all manner of diplomatic ‌‌negotiations on top of everything else.
"What's wrong, Rose? Curious about tonight's menu?"
The ‌‌‌‌way he casually mentioned overtime made it seem far too deliberate.
I simply turned my head away to avoid protesting.
I swallowed my tears over my nonexistent free time and bitterly composed ‌‌a rejection letter.
Wilhelmina would have to see this state of ‌affairs. ‌‌‌
Only then would her affection fade away.
I genuinely believed that if my overtime could save an innocent young lamb, it would be worth it.

---------------
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and ‌enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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