CH 25

Author's note: I haven't behaved like a good child at all (> 人 <;)

"Kya~h!"

Sophia was startled.

Well, too bad! The mud dumpling didn't reach her and fell just at her feet. I should get it next time......

I tried to steal the mud dumplings made by my disciple, Elle. However, Elle had run from my side to approach Sophia instead. Is she planning to hit her at close range instead?

"Come play together with Nika.* We're throwing these."

*Nika - this is Elle's nickname for Veronica.

"...... Eh?"

"Huh?"

Elle egged on a confused Sophia.

Somehow, before I knew it, she had made a lot of the mud dumplings and carried most of those in a bucket.

——wait, no way!

I knew it wouldn't hurt even if it hit. But there would be an obvious disadvantage if it's two versus one. Why? We were supposed to be mean to Sophia, so why am I the target?

That Elle, instead of a disciple, she's a traitor.

Since it had come to this there was no need to care about appearances. I ran about, to and fro while holding a mud dumpling.

The half-finished mud dumplings didn't hurt at all and didn't dirty as much as expected. At any rate, as long as it wasn't given time to dry up and harden. It's just like playing intensely with sand.

Screeching and screaming, the three ran around the garden. However, soon enough one ended up paying the price. The mud dumpling I was trying to throw —— rather, the sand got into my eyes and I couldn't open open them.

"Nika, don't rub them. Show me where exactly."

Speaking as if she wasn't the ringleader that caused the escalation, Elle spoke in a worried voice right next to me. I opened my aching eyes little by little, and found a beautiful face peering into mine up close. Her clear purple eyes and innocent expression made her look like an angel.

My tears were streaming from the pain but for some reason I felt nervous.  Our family's Sophia is cute but Elle is just as beautiful too. If I keep just idling by, wouldn't this make me the ugliest noble villainess in the future?!

"Maybe we should wash it with water. Sophia, gimme a hand?"

It seems that Sophia, upon hearing her words, went into the house to get water. I heard some light footsteps. These days, Elle is closer to my step-sister than I am. Even though she said she would be my disciple......

It seems that even those of the same sex cannot resist the charm of the white rose, Sophia. Everyone around me is attracted to the cute Sophia. No matter how much I console myself that it's that kind of story, sometimes it still brings up emotions I couldn't speak about.

I cried for just a little bit. If anyone asked me what for, I could always say it was because of the sand.

"Don't worry, Nika. It looks like it's almost all gushed out."

Elle consoled me like that while patting my head. Sometimes when I try to pretend like this kind of older sister, I feel incredibly uncomfortable. After all, I'm the noble villainess. I shouldn't just lose to a background character* or a mud dumpling like this.

Just to make sure, we washed with more water.

Thanks to Elle and Sophia, nothing bad happened to my eyes. However I, who has grown dishonest, was unable to express any gratitude.

"Ugh, whose fault was it. Playing around like children, who comes up with that? Thanks for all the trouble, that's what."

....... thanks to me. But I was fine with only hitting Sophia's skirt, I didn't expect it to turn into something like a battle. Besides, I learned something this time. Sophia is really quick on her feet. Or maybe Elle protected her and kept pulling her off somewhere safe.

"I had so much fun."

"That's true. But I didn't want anyone to get hurt."

Following Sophia, what Elle said made sense. I'm glad those two didn't get hurt. Come to think of it, Sophia hasn't met the prince yet. Perhaps it's impossible to injure my step-sister until the very scene where the two of them meet.

On that note, isn't the role of the noble villainess actually a matter of life and death? Before, the fruit juice with chili peppers ended up in my throat, this time the sand almost blinded my eye. A husky-voiced, eyepatch-wearing noble villainess...... In its own way, I feel like it would suit me. But as I thought, I'd like to meet Gildo with a beautiful appearance as illustrated in the side story volume.

And thus.

I have, upon reflection,  started working on 『fake gore*』 that will not injure Sophia's skin in the future. I think it would astonish you that it would only require throwing impact to dirty anyone. The main component is pomegranate juice and it is sweet and delicious even if it gets on your face.

The raw materials are easy to obtain. Take the fruit juice thickened with wheat flour and insert it into wiener skin, which is made from animal intestine, then tie it up with string. It's designed to spread out and stain, once hit it will explode. There's a knack as to how hard and how you throw it but I've practiced in secret so that's okay. You won't even see my own dresses that have been dirtied.

I put the homemade 『fake gore bombs』in a wooden bucket and triumphantly carried it to the garden.  If it bursts indoors, it will splatter onto expensive rugs and furniture. Of course I could never go that far. Not only will it be awful to clean later on, the fruit juice will be hard to remove. I'm not just a noble villainess, I also aim to be an eco-friendly noble villainess.

In the original story, this part was only written as 『Due to Veronica's various incidents of harassment, Sophia cried』. Well, even nasty pranks can't pad out the number of pages. However, I can't help but question if the author was cutting corners on this issue.

Well, now that preparations are done, all I have to do is call Sophia. Once the white rose cries, this time the prince will appear for sure.

"Sophie, don't be scared and come he~re."

I made my voice as gentle as possible.

Presently, I had decided that it would be 『one evil a day』, so this whole time I have been stealing her leftover bread, or scribbling in Sophia's favorite picture book and such. For revenge, Sophia herself would eat my dessert or pull my hair. Of course I could retaliate twice over, but recently I've been content with avoiding any more harassment than that.

"At times like these it would've been convenient to have Elle around......"

My step-sister is more fond of Elle than I am. If she had been the one that called, Sophia would immediately show up.

While muttering to myself, a voice called out from behind me.

"Did you call me? Could it be that you were waiting for me?"

Whirling around, I found Elle standing there with a smile.  Even today, she is as cute and as beautiful as ever.

"Thank goodness! You came at just the right time. Bring me Sophia at once."

I ordered my disciple.

However, Elle wanted to know the reason first.

"What for? Nika, are you thinking about something strange again?"

"It's rude to change the subject. If I don't do this, the prince won't appear. Don't you know how rare a Prince Rafael sighting is?"

I have even confirmed with my father, who goes to the palace quite often, whether this prince really exists.

But my father only replied with, "Of course. Though I'd be surprised if I ever run into him," and did not elaborate on any details. Could it be that the prince has a surprisingly bad personality?