CH 119

Helene was frustrated when things didn’t go as planned. It all stemmed from failing to burn Flora’s face with Fire magic. Since then, Sophie and the rest of the quintet have shrunk back and stopped listening to what they’re ordered to do.

If that plan had succeeded, Flora would have lost her engagement, and after doing something so decisive and irreversible, the quintet would have made up their minds and would have become perfect subordinates who would follow whatever Helene said. However, it all came to naught when that plan failed.

Sophie, Emma, and the others were unable to take the plunge because their preparation had already failed once. If they succeeded there, they would have decided that they would never be able to take it back. And yet, because they failed there, they calmly looked back at what they had tried to do and began to fearfully shrink from it.

It’s annoying. Nothing ever goes right. Helene can’t give the quintet instructions to directly harm anyone anymore. Even if she orders them again, this time they will surely stop before it comes to executing the plan.

Besides, Helene still doesn’t know know why the Fire spell suddenly disappeared at that time. Did Simon fail? Or does Flora have some kind of amulet to protect herself?

In any case, as long as they don’t know the cause, they can’t make another mistake. If you use the same play too many times, those around them will become suspicious. If that happens, there is a risk that the quintet will break their will and spill everything. Once the perpetrators confessed, it would be difficult for even Duke Bayen to brush aside the fallout.

“This is so frustrating!” Helene yelled.

While she bit the nails of one hand, BANG! She slammed the table with the other and suddenly shifted her gaze to the letter on it.

“Even though it was an invitation from Second Queen Amelie, it’s just a nuisance to have an evening party at this time of year!” Helene yelled. “I wonder what Her Majesty is thinking…”

An invitation to an evening party that arrived about 2 weeks ago. Of course, she has no choice but to attend, but she doesn’t have time to waste time like that. If she doesn’t somehow get rid of Flora and break off her engagement… at that thought, Helene suddenly changed her mind.

“…No, can’t I use this instead? …Fuh, fufufu! Ahahahahaha! That’s right! This is a wonderful idea! I just have to hurry and ask Father about it!”

With Amelie’s invitation as the inspiration, Helene thought of something sinister again. Later on, Helene figured she would hold an evening party, too At that evening party, only Flora would be invited and the rest would be Helene’s faction. Let them shame Flora on the spot and laugh at her. If she does that, she will be embarrassed because she’s a country girl and cannot stand to stay in the royal capital any longer for the damage to her reputation.

What kind of humiliation should Helene inflict? Is it better to throw a drink in front of her while in everyone’s view, to make her a laughingstock? Wouldn’t it be better to just have her stand alone as a wallflower and make someone laugh at her as she fails to have anyone dance with her? Or should she deliberately hand over food that is difficult to eat and make a joke out of her as she fails to display proper etiquette in front of everyone?

Helene racks her head over the ideas that come up one after another. She’ll only be inviting people from her faction anyway. She can do as much as she wants with any kind of preparation. And she’ll tell everyone to mock Flora and laugh at her.

If a high-ranking aristocrat’s daughter was made fun of at an evening party, she would be embarrassed and wouldn’t be able to show her face in public ever again. After all, if Helene were to do something terrifying for even her to imagine, Flora would surely be so embarrassed that she would never be able to get out of bed again.

“Fuh, fufufu…! What a horrible thing I’m thinking about,” Helene said. “And to be able to carry out such a terrible act, I must be on top of everything. Now then! I have to prepare quickly!”

As expected, it would be disrespectful to suddenly say that a party would be held before the Second Queen Amelie’s soiree, especially as the invitations were already sent out. In that case, there is no choice but to hold it after Amelie’s evening party is over. Considering the time it takes to send out the invitations and prepare, it will take more than a month from now no matter how hard Helene tries.

It’s doubtful that she could manage to do it in one month with preparations from now, but Helene, who felt compelled to do it the moment the idea hit her, immediately sent out invitations and decided to hold an evening party in a month. 2 weeks after Amelie’s soiree ended, Helene’s soiree was to be held.

After already sending out invitations to her faction members and completing her preparations, Helen was looking for the right time to catch Flora alone at school.

There are many other students in the school classroom. There is also Flora often coming home late after school, but she often talks casually with Mikoto Vandenlissen while they waste time in the classroom, for some reason. Helene does not know how a country girl all the way out on the border is befriending a member of Del’s royal family, but it would be difficult to enact this plan in front of foreign royalty.

Helene, who had been watching the situation for several days to see if there would be any chance, finally grabbed it as soon as it presented itself. After school that day, for some reason, Flora wasn’t with Mikoto Vandenlissen as usual. Helene calls out to Flora as she’s walking alone in a hallway.

“May I have a word with you, Lady Carruthers?” Helene asked.

“Yes?” Flora said.

Though naturally always so aloof, Flora looked back curiously. Without knowing that Helene was the leader of the quintet, Flora probably thinks Helene is one of her few allies who she can talk normally with like this. Helene almost sneered at her from the thought, but held herself back and continued,

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“I’m going to have a party at my home next time. So here, take this,” Helene said as she extended the invitation.

“Huh?” Flora went as she took it.

Helene puts up with her usual cattiness. Those who show anger and ridicule here are second-class or below. A cream-of-the-crop noble like Helene wouldn’t make a fool of herself here, of all places.

“Might you read it now and give me your answer?” Helene asked.

Helene cut through Flora’s prolonged silence and delay by asking her explicitly. She must be a country girl who has never been invited to an evening party. In that case, she should be overjoyed to be invited to an event by a prestigious family like House Bayen and reply immediately.

And if she were to take the invitation home and ask around, she may be intimidated and refused. Before the excitement and novelty of it all cool, Helene must quickly get an answer. 1

“I understand,” Flora said. “I’ll get back to you in a moment… I see. 2 weeks after Second Queen Amelie’s evening party. I am free to attend that day and will.”

“Ah, I see… then don’t forget your promise,” Helene said.

She was surprised for a moment when Amelie’s evening party was brought up, but Flora still confirmed her going without losing her cool. If Helene didn’t get a confirmation now and Flora tried to say she would consult with others back at her home first, and then she got scared and refused, there was no turning that around anymore.

Helene doesn’t know know why Flora knew about Queen Amelie’s soiree, but Helene succeeded in inviting Flora to the party which would only be attended by her faction, so she grinned at her victory. And at that moment…….

“Is something wrong, Flora? To find you in a place like this… it was getting late, so I came to check on you, did something happen?”

“Yo-Your Highness Ludwig…?!” Helene yelled.

“Good day to you, Your Highness,” Flora said. “I apologize for the delay. I was invited to a little soiree.”

Helene cannot hide her surprise at Ludwig’s sudden appearance. And from the content of their conversation, Helen figured out why Flora was walking alone today. The two of them had promised to meet somewhere after school today. That’s why Flora was walking down the corridor alone instead of with Mikoto Vandenlissen, who always seemed to be with Flora. And Ludwig must have come all the way here because Flora didn’t show up at their agreed-upon time.

“Oh?” Ludwig went. “That Lady Helene is here must mean it’s an event by Duke Bayen? Now let me see… I understand. Then, I’ll attend on this day, too. I’ll be your escort, Flora. There will be dancing, after all.”

“Huh!? Pardon…!?” Helene panicked.

She can’t use the bullying and shaming techniques she’s thought about if Ludwig were there. If that happens, she doesn’t know what kind of scolding Prince Ludwig will give to the people who did and condoned such outrageous acts. And then Helene might be outed as the mastermind. If that happens, even Helene might be ruined.

“What? Is there something wrong? …Could it be I’m not invited?” Ludwig asked.

“Ahh! No…! O-Of course you are, I will send you an invitation as well,” Helen said quickly.

Even though it’s a gathering of only faction members, inviting Flora makes it a completely different affair, it is no longer exclusive to them. With House Bayen’s standing, there is no way any one member would not send an invitation to the royal family to an evening party when they’d already invited guests outside their faction. Regardless of whether or not you will attend, it is only natural to invite them as a formality.

If it were found out that only Flora was summoned to a place where the only other guests were members of an opposing faction, it would be immediately guessed that Helene was plotting something foul. So she must hastily invite Ludwig as well. And, strangely, only Flora and Ludwig were invited, the public would think. Besides them, if Helen doesn’t send invitations to all the other influential aristocrats, it will raise suspicion all over again.

“Then, I’ll be certain to welcome the both of you…” Helene said. “Apologies for the delay. Good day to you.”

“Good day, Lady Helene,” Flora said.

“Mm,” Ludwig hummed.

As Helene left the hallway in a panic, she was worried about what she had to do from now on. It’s an evening party made up just to gather only faction members and make Flora a laughingstock. She was only thinking about the contents of the evening party itself as a bare-bones mock-up for the sake of speed.

However, since Ludwig found out about the evening party and Helen had to invite him, the content had to match the appropriate status of the guests. And inviting Ludwig meant calling the other influential aristocrats.

Even though she was just trying to make Flora a laughingstock at a lazy evening party, from the blue she had to hold a full-fledged, top-quality evening party. In less than a month, she has to prepare something suitable for inviting His Highness Ludwig and other members of Ploiss’s most influential.

Father will surely be furious… Helene has no idea how much it will cost, so she will be running around to prepare for the party.

Christiane von Reingen, one of Helene’s five minions who are bullying Flora, was walking down the street alone. House Reingen is 13th in the school’s hierarchy and is only a step above the 14th, House Carruthers. She is the lowest-ranking House among Helene’s close aides and is looked down upon even by her peers. However, in reality, there is not much difference between those Houses…

She’s not particularly concerned about that. If anything, she was following Helen and her entourage because of her family situation, and she didn’t agree with Helen’s way of doing things from the start. However, due to the power relationship and connections in her House, she has no choice but to obey Helene and the other four members.

It would be unbearable if she rebelled alone and became bullied, too. Above all, she is strictly ordered by her family members to follow, so she has no choice but to obey Helene. One of Christiane’s few pleasures is to go to a recently opened crepe cafe.

Christiane’s first taste of real sweetness was at a royal party several years ago. She heard her parents and grandparents had never tasted sweet treats like she had, which suddenly started being served at royal parties. Cookies, donuts, pound cakes, hot cakes, she still can’t forget her shock when she first tried them.

Even high-ranking nobles can hardly eat sweets in this world. Christiane doesn’t even remember eating them at her parent’s House. She can still remember the taste of the many dishes and sweets she ate at the royal party where she met the royal family themselves.

When Christiane heard that sweets that were supposed to be super-luxury items were being sold in the downtown area at a price that even commoners could buy, she immediately went to the store. And from the moment she took a bite of a sweet crepe, she became a regular there.

If Christiane had free time, she would secretly go to the Caanza’s crepe cafe by herself. She doesn’t have a chance when she’s called by Helene or when the quintet gathers. Even if one member of the quintet is missing sometimes, the rest are all gathered together most of the time. Cristiane rarely has the time to be alone.

Today, on such a rare lucky day, Christiane was excited and waited in a long line to finally finish her order and take a seat. And she was surprised when a clerk called out to her and said,

“Pardon me, Dear Customer. May we ask you to share your table?”

“Huh? Yes, go ahead,” Christiane said.

Now she’s dressed like a commoner. For a moment, she was about to cry out, “How rude of you!” But, she swallowed her words and accepted. In the first place, since she goes alone, she has been asked to share her table many times before. But, she changed her mind about accepting seatmates when she was forced to.

For those who love this same sweetness, if there are comrades who can quickly get Christiane crepes faster than if she’s alone, she’d share as many seats as her table had. It’s not bad to humor the common people today with such generosity. And as she thought that, the person she’d share a table with came forward…

“Oh my? Lady Reingen, good day to you.”

“What…?!”

How do you… Christiane was at a loss for words before the words could come out. The young lady who came before Christiane was Flora, dressed like a merchant’s daughter though her behavior did not match her outfit at all.