Meanwhile, the young duchess quietly watched me as I sat lost in thought.
Then she spoke in a flat voice.
“What are you doing? You're not even drinking your tea.”
“Oh—right.”
Startled, I hurriedly took a sip.
It's delicious.
Whenever I had tea with Seraphina and Gregory, we always drank whatever tea they preferred.
How long had it been since I'd actually had tea that suited my own tastes?
The duchess studied my expression carefully before suddenly asking,
“So? How is it?”
“...It's very good.”
“Well, that's all that matters.”
Replying curtly, she pushed a plate of madeleines toward me.
“That black tea goes well with those madeleines.”
This time, I didn't hesitate.
I immediately popped one into my mouth.
The soft sweetness spread across my tongue, and an involuntary smile blossomed on my lips.
“It's delicious.”
The compliment slipped out before I could stop it.
For a brief moment, the corner of the duchess's lips curved upward.
...
Wait.
Did she just smile?
Startled, I stared at her with wide eyes.
But by then, her face had already returned to its usual expressionless state.
Hmm. I must have imagined it.
At that moment, a question suddenly surfaced in my mind.
Sure, she was a little prickly.
But she wasn't nearly unpleasant enough to be feared as some legendary villainess.
Could this woman really end up tormenting Seraphina and being locked away in a convent?
I replayed the original story in my head.
The Duchess Claudia became consumed by jealousy over Seraphina monopolizing her brother's affection.
Eventually, she lashed out at Seraphina.
And in the end, her own brother confined her to a convent.
But...
Up until now, the duchess had never once harmed Seraphina.
Which meant—
Just like me, perhaps she was only destined to act that way because she had been assigned the role of the "villainess" in the original story.
Seriously, what is so important about that stupid original plot?
Just because the male lead and female lead needed obstacles before ending up together...
Did that really justify sacrificing the duchess as a villainess?
Absolutely not!
I frowned internally.
Even if this world revolved around Seraphina, there had to be limits.
It was already irritating enough that she could manipulate people so effortlessly just because she was the heroine.
And now—
To pave a flowery road for Seraphina's happiness...
I had to become a doormat.
And the duchess had to become a villainess?
That's completely unfair!
I ground my teeth silently.
Just then, the duchess glanced sideways at me.
I immediately snapped out of my thoughts and hurriedly fixed my expression.
Whew. That was close.
I almost went on a rant right in front of her.
“Come to think of it, Lady Ansi.”
The duchess spoke.
“You said you knew a way to restore my reputation, didn't you?”
Though her tone remained indifferent, there was a faint trace of anticipation she couldn't quite hide.
“What exactly is this method?”
For some reason, her eyes looked strangely bright.
Was it my imagination?
“Well...”
I swallowed nervously.
I'm so nervous I could die.
What if she laughed at me and called it nonsense?
But my mouth was already moving on its own.
“You become friends with me.”
The moment I said it, I squeezed my eyes shut.
My brain immediately conjured every possible negative reaction.
"Ha. You think Lady Ansi and I could become friends? What an ambitious dream."
Or perhaps—
"You requested a private audience just to spout such nonsense?"
Yet no angry outburst came.
The duchess remained silent.
And then—
“Friends?”
A calm question drifted back.
...She's not angry?
Carefully, I cracked one eye open.
The moment I did, our gazes met.
Ack!
My shoulders stiffened reflexively.
With that expressionless face, she really did resemble an Ice Queen capable of freezing people with a glance.
“What is that reaction?”
The duchess clicked her tongue.
“Do I look like I'm going to eat you?”
“N-No! That's not it...”
“Forget it.”
She waved me off.
“More importantly, I'd like to hear why that would solve my reputation problem.”
“Hm.”
I cautiously gauged her mood before speaking.
“Currently, the rumor circulating through high society about Your Grace is...”
“The rumor is?”
The duchess swallowed.
Huh?
I blinked.
I'd always assumed she didn't care about gossip regarding herself.
Apparently, she paid more attention than I thought.
“May I be honest?”
If I repeated the rumors exactly as they were, she might be offended.
Fortunately, she nodded.
“Of course.”
Well then.
I chose my words carefully.
“The rumor is that... you are so arrogant that you look down on everyone and refuse to socialize with anyone.”
“What?! That's—!”
The duchess immediately protested, looking utterly wronged.
But perhaps remembering her dignity, she quickly shut her mouth.
“...Never mind.”
What was this?
She was surprisingly cute.
Far more human than the version I'd read about in the novel.
“This is just my opinion,” I continued, “but if you made a friend and people saw you getting along warmly with someone... wouldn't your reputation naturally improve?”
I spoke earnestly.
“And if that friend happened to be a lower-ranking noble like me, people would feel much more comfortable approaching you.”
“Hmmm.”
“The idea is to soften your image so others won't find you intimidating.”
As I explained, I carefully watched her expression.
She still looked proud and aloof, but it was obvious she was beginning to warm to the idea.
Good.
I decided to dangle a little bait.
“Besides... forgive me for saying this, but you dislike Seraphina, don't you?”
“Of course I do!”
The duchess practically exploded.
“Lady Lopes is incredibly irritating!”
Every word you speak is correct, Your Grace!
I nearly jumped to my feet and applauded.
“She really needs to stop manipulating people!”
The duchess continued, growing increasingly indignant.
“She always hides behind that innocent and fragile act, and whenever there's something she doesn't want to do, she pushes it onto someone else!”
Wow.
She had Seraphina figured out perfectly.
I nodded vigorously.
“Exactly! I completely agree!”
“Right?! Lady Ansi thinks so too, doesn't she?!”
Clearly excited to find someone who agreed with her, the duchess suddenly paused and narrowed her eyes.
“Then why were you so close to Lady Lopes all this time?”
My words caught in my throat.
I couldn't exactly explain that this world was actually the setting of a novel I'd read, and that I had originally been written as Seraphina's devoted attendant.
As I struggled to answer, the duchess continued.
“To be honest, I've spent years wondering if your eyes were attached to the soles of your feet.”
Ouch.
Your Grace, my bones are breaking here.
Her merciless remark left me reeling.
“A-Anyway!”
I quickly changed the subject.
“From your perspective, becoming friends with me wouldn't be such a bad thing either.”
“Why not?”
“Well, because I'm Seraphina's closest friend.”
I proudly shrugged.
“I'm planning to distance myself from Seraphina from now on. And when I do, people will naturally wonder why our relationship suddenly soured.”
Lowering my voice conspiratorially, I posed a question instead.
“...And won't they also wonder why I chose to leave Seraphina behind and go to you instead?”