Of course, at first I endured it quietly, but when you get hit on the back of the head repeatedly, you can't ignore the sting. The moment Daphne appeared, everything around me started striking me from behind, one by one.
"I'm on my way to see His Imperial Majesty, so it wouldn't be fitting for an illegitimate daughter to go, would it? I'll call for you separately when needed."
The duke, who had gladly brought me in as his long-lost daughter, immediately started treating me like a shameful illegitimate child not fit to be shown anywhere. On days when he went to have an audience with the emperor, he now took Daphne instead of me.
Of course, it was an exception when the emperor was unwell and called for me. My ability was still a valuable asset to the duke.
"I'm sorry, Miss. Because Lady Daphne has an outing, they say there's no one available to attend to you."
The servants of the duke's household were the same. Servants were bound to side with power, so it was only natural that they treated me—abandoned by the duke—like cold rice.
Even with my reincarnator buff and good luck, I apparently didn't have the power to defeat the heroine. Of all the things I'd possessed, the last thing remaining was my fiancé, Prince Felix.
But even he started desperately avoiding me after falling for Daphne.
In front of others, he openly revealed their relationship, but even then, I endured it.
Of course, he was the male lead, and he was already falling in love with Daphne, who had appeared like fate—so I hadn't expected him to stay with me anyway.
I was prepared for it. I was... but—
"Because of my concern for you, Daphne refused me. I was promised a marriage with the Cheshire house, not with you, so I'd appreciate it if you'd step aside now."
Did it really have to be this soon? I'm not even prepared yet!
Felix's final three consecutive blows drained the last of my patience.
Unable to bear it any longer, I sprang up from my seat, grabbed a cup full of water, and poured it right over Felix.
'After all this, if I don't become a villainess, I'm just an idiot, damnit!'
As long as I don't do anything bad, it'll be fine.
That resolve began to crumble about a month after Daphne appeared, starting from Count Franz's birthday party.
It was about a month after Daphne had come to the duke's residence.
Daphne had become the talk of high society the moment she appeared, so naturally, news spread—that the duke had found his real daughter, and that I, the empire's only duke's daughter, was actually an illegitimate child of the Cheshire house.
But that didn't change things immediately.
Nobles had their reputations to maintain, so even the duchess couldn't easily cast me out. Rather, in public, she treated me like her own daughter and displayed noble dignity.
Though as the duchess's dignity rose, my reputation was chipped away day by day.
High society, which loved gossip, couldn't possibly miss this kind of scandal. Even things that never happened grew like snowballs as they passed through countless mouths.
Pushed into attending the birthday party by Daphne's coaxing and the duke and duchess's cold glares, I sipped wine with a bored expression, using the inevitable gossip about me as my appetizer.
"They say she collapsed the moment the real duke's daughter appeared. Just to get the duke's attention."
"I heard that too. And then she woke up right away when the duke didn't come to see her?"
"Oh my, she must have thought she was the real duke's daughter all this time."
"The kind duchess treated her so well. So this illegitimate child of unknown origin managed to fool us all into thinking she was the real daughter."
"There's even a rumor that she secretly found the real daughter and hid her so she couldn't be found."
"Good heavens, how wicked..."
'Aren't you tired of this?'
They were saying it loud enough for me to hear, so it came through crystal clear.
This was exactly why I hadn't wanted to come to the party. And Daphne was smiling, saying she was so happy I came with her—it was enough to drive me crazy.
'Say whatever you want.'
I'd been hearing this tiresome gossip for a full month now, so I'd grown calluses on my ears.
The speakers kept changing, but the stories were always the same—I could recite all the lines by heart at this point.
"Lydia, let's go dance too."
"I'm fine. There's no one who asked me anyway."
Daphne seemed about to drag me along, so I showed her my empty dance card to let her know no one had asked me.
An empty dance card meant no one had requested a dance—it was often a source of mockery in high society.
"Th-then I'll stay with you."
'No. Please go away. Look at those men glaring at me because I'm keeping you from dancing!'
I wanted to beat my chest in frustration. Was a kind heart one of the essential virtues of a female lead?
Daphne's excessive consideration made this place feel even more like a bed of nails.
'This is why I didn't want to come.'
Just a month ago, I had been the center of attention. Now, everywhere I went, I was an unwelcome outcast.
"I'm fine. You said you wanted to dance at the party, right? Go ahead. I'll wait here."
"Are you really sure you'll be okay?"
"Of course, I'm fine."
Daphne asked with an innocent face. I barely managed to lift my stiff lips into a smile as I answered.
The man whose name was first on Daphne's already full dance card approached with a smile and offered her his arm.
Just as Daphne carefully placed her hand on his arm and was about to step onto the dance floor, people began murmuring and stopped moving all at once.
My gaze naturally turned toward where everyone's attention was focused. There stood my fiancé, Prince Felix, entering.
"Greetings, Your Highness."
People bowed, but they all seemed confused about why the prince would appear at such a modest count's daughter's birthday party.
'Why is he here?'
But the question was soon answered. Felix's eyes were fixed precisely on Daphne.
'Of course.'
There was no way he'd personally come all this way just to see me when he saw me every day anyway.
I was about to slip through the crowd of people staring blankly at Felix and retreat toward the wall, desperately looking for a place to hide.
"Lydia!"
Someone grabbed my arm and held me fast. 'No way,' I thought as I turned around—and there stood Daphne, beaming brightly.
'Damn it.'
I barely held back the curse that almost escaped my lips and tried to pull my arm free, but Daphne was stubborn. Thanks to her, people's attention now focused on us.
'Oh, please...'
The music had stopped in the banquet hall. People held their breath, watching the three of us—Daphne, me, and Felix.
"Daphne, let go of me!"
I whispered quietly, but Daphne just thought I was shy and pretended not to hear. When Daphne finally stopped in front of Felix, I gave up and placed my hand on my forehead, letting out a deep sigh.
"Ha."
"Greetings, Your Highness. You came to see Lydia, right?"
Daphne's eyes curved prettily like crescent moons. Felix smiled back at her, then spotted me and stiffened as if his smile had never been there.
'As if I'd be happy to see him.'
Right now, I was the one who wanted to escape this place more than anyone. I wasn't happy with Felix either, but I couldn't make a sour face in front of His Highness the Crown Prince.
"Greetings, Your Highness."
"Yes. A fine evening."
A conventional greeting. Daphne slipped aside and placed my hand on Felix's arm.
I curled my fingers to avoid touching Felix as much as possible, holding them slightly above his arm without being noticeable.
"Lydia's dance card happens to be empty! Your Highness can be her first partner."
Daphne clasped her hands beside her cheek, making an adorable expression as if this situation was terribly romantic.
Every man in the banquet hall was staring at Daphne as if they had hearts in their eyes, utterly spellbound. But Daphne had overlooked one thing.
She had just publicly revealed that my dance card was completely empty.
