Chapter 70: A Commoner

After the grand banquet ended, I returned to the mansion. It still felt like the melodies of countless instruments lingered softly around my ears.

“Ugh… Was it too much…?”

After a light bath, I returned to my room, clutching my head in deep agony.

Lillian’s gaze from the banquet hall remained vividly in my mind.

Those pink eyes, brimming with a deep betrayal and on the verge of tears at any moment.

Strangely enough, just for that moment, I quite liked the look in her eyes.

However, what I felt now was mostly guilt.

There had really been no reason to humiliate Lillian.

For some reason unknown to me, an inexplicable disgust surged through my entire body whenever I saw her.

It felt like my insides were twisting.

“…I’ll make it up to her next time.”

I buried my face in the pillow and let out a short sigh, concluding my worries.

Though it seemed I’d ended up bothering Lillian, I wasn’t too concerned.

Reading the posts on the strategy forums, I noticed that players who played as Lillian had similar complaints.

It might seem odd to complain about a character walking a path of flowers, but there was one particularly frustrating trait.

It was Lillian’s excessive kindness.

Her goodness was so extreme that she felt almost like a pushover, overly generous even to those who once tormented her.

Before fully awakening her powers as a saint, Lillian had to endure criticism and disregard from numerous nobles.

It would have been bearable if the criticism was all she faced.

They poured tea on her head, slapped her cheeks, tripped her deliberately—these childish, petty acts of cruelty plagued her continuously.

After she awakened her saintly powers, she gained equal status with the archbishop, and those issues disappeared, but until then, Lillian had to bear endless suffering.

Yet, there was an even greater issue.

Whether it was the developers’ intent to highlight the saint’s purity, there was only one option given to Lillian after she awakened her powers.

Forgiveness.

Lillian forgave all the nobles who had tormented her, meeting them with a gracious smile rather than choosing revenge.

This significantly raised her favorability with them, but it left players who had anticipated a satisfying revenge deeply unsatisfied.

The only person Lillian punished was Mardian.

Although she tried to forgive her until the end, after experiencing an assassination attempt, Lillian had no choice but to send Mardian to the execution block.

In other words, unless there was a particular assassination attempt, there was no way to invoke Lillian’s resentment.

So, I didn’t need to worry.

Besides, it wasn’t like I was the one who actually caused the scene. Someone else staged that farce, and I had merely given a slightly twisted account of the truth.

There was no way Lillian would hold a grudge against me for such a minor prank, and even if she did, it would be directed at the woman who caused the scene.

“Come to think of it, I really didn’t do anything wrong, did I?”

All I did was slightly, very slightly, distort the truth.

Perhaps Lillian would even take this as a lesson not to lay hands on a noble’s body without caution.

Imagine if she had casually taken the hand of someone like Mardian—her hand would have flown off immediately.

I consoled myself, thinking that perhaps my actions had actually benefited Lillian.

“Hmph.”

I can always treat her well next time.

***

But annoyance simmered within me.

Seeing Lillian smiling brightly in the distance made my insides boil.

One of the founding families of the Empire, the House of Count Hibbley.

A small banquet was held in celebration of the birthday of its head, Dirard von Hibbley.

As he was a noble of high repute, many gathered to share drinks with him.

‘But why is that girl here?’

My gaze fixed on a single girl.

A lively girl with pink hair as soft as cotton candy, Lillian.

She was smiling coyly with her hand covering her mouth, and that smile twisted something inside me.

Negative feelings surged within me once more.

I struggled to suppress these unknown emotions as I looked at Lillian.

‘…Has she already learned noble etiquette?’

In the past, Lillian used to stumble around, showing nothing but clumsy manners, but now she maintained a rather dignified posture.

Of course, there were still traces of inexperience, but at least she didn’t seem frivolous.

Instead of overreacting, she responded with a gentle smile, standing quietly rather than moving about excitedly.

‘Strange, Lillian isn’t supposed to learn noble etiquette until much later…’

A chaperone.

A guide who leads inexperienced noble ladies into the social world.

The influence of a chaperone is by no means trivial. Depending on which lady becomes a chaperone, a young lady’s standing in society can change entirely.

Of course, our protagonist will also encounter an excellent chaperone.

The Duchess of Helitiar, one of only four in the Empire and known for her noble character.

But that’s a story far in the future.

No matter how quickly the game progresses, it will be at least a year after Lillian debuts in society before the Duchess of Helitiar appears.

The timing suggests that the two should not have met yet.

Could it be that Lillian learned noble etiquette on her own?

“Oh… so here you are, young lady.”

Had I been lost in thought for too long? I didn’t notice until Lillian had come right in front of me.

“It’s a pleasure to see you again, young lady of the House of Blanc.”

Those unnecessarily bright pink eyes.

The last time I saw her, she was teary and distraught with a look of betrayal on her face.

But now, as if none of that had ever happened, she wore a radiant smile, gently melting the air around her.

Her soft cheeks over her pale skin looked like they’d be satisfying to squeeze, and the blush spreading across them was quite endearing.

Her face was so beautiful that anyone who saw her would unanimously agree she was lovable.

But strangely, the moment I met Lillian’s gaze, something inside me twisted once more.

Negative emotions slowly began to emerge in my mind.

No matter the situation, she never faltered, always maintaining her composure and cheerful disposition.

She believes that the world is ultimately beautiful, firmly convinced that a day will come when everyone is good.

Lillian’s ideals are the complete opposite of mine.

I want to deny her existence.

A desire to shatter her beliefs into pieces was blooming in my heart.

However, whether she was completely oblivious to my emotions or not, Lillian’s expression remained unnecessarily bright and pure.

“I wanted to thank you for what happened back then.”

“…Thank me?”

A surge of bewilderment swept over me at her unexpected words. I hadn’t done anything worthy of gratitude, so what exactly was she thankful for?

“Thanks to you, Lady, I realized just how reckless I was. If it hadn’t been for you, I would have continued behaving shamefully.”

Her eyes held a sincerity devoid of any pretense.

Lillian was genuinely reflecting on herself and expressing gratitude towards me.

“…I see.”

She was exactly like the Lillian I saw in the game.

If she made a mistake, she would acknowledge it and use it as a stepping stone to move forward. While doing so, she would capture people’s hearts and make everyone her ally.

Unlike someone as wretched as me, Lillian was a person of integrity.

[Disgusting.]

Disgust whispered within me. That emotion slowly spread toward Lillian, mingling with jealousy.

What was she so happy about that she kept smiling like that?

She wasn’t even blessed with a wealthy life; she lost her parents at a young age and was deprived of familial love. So what gave her the right to act so dignified?

I couldn’t do that.

‘Why can you?’

Endless questions and suppressed anger raised their heads within me.

“Lady? You don’t look well.”

Lillian looked at me with a puzzled gaze.

Under her innocent gaze, I instinctively touched my lips.

My hardened lips were not smiling.

What expression was I wearing right now?

This is high society.

At a gathering like this, failing to maintain a proper smile stirred a sudden anger toward myself.

“Pardon me, Lady Saint. I was taken aback, not expecting to meet you here.”

Forcing a smile, I looked at Lillian with a harmless gaze.

At the slightly cheerful tone of my voice, Lillian’s expression softened as she stepped closer.

“Since we’ve met like this by chance, would you like to be friends with me, if you don’t mind, Lady?”

“…Friends?”

“Yes, I’ve heard a lot of rumors about you, Lady. I thought it would be nice to get to know you better.”

“…Rumors.”

I wondered what kind of rumors she’d heard about me.

An obedient, harmless pet?

A charming doll for the high-ranking nobles?

Or maybe.

A prostitute clinging to life by ingratiating herself with others despite having no abilities.

Thinking this made my heart turn cold.

“If Lady Blanc doesn’t mind—”

“Are you pitying me?”

“Pardon?”

I took a step closer to the flustered Lillian.

I looked into her eyes.

In her radiant pink pupils, my eyes reflected as hollow and sinister as rotting fish.

I gently wrapped my arm around Lillian’s waist, pulling her close to me.

“Eek?”

Startled by the sudden proximity, Lillian trembled slightly.

I glanced around us and brought my lips close to her ear, whispering softly.

“So, would you like it if I acted cute for you, too, Lady Saint?”

“W-What?!”

“Like the others, do you wish to keep me as a pet?”

“What? Oh, no, that’s not what I meant… I just wanted to say you’re very charming—”

“Wake up from your dream, commoner.”

“Huh?”

I paused briefly and looked at her.

Lillian’s bright eyes seemed a little faded now.

That realization gave me a wicked satisfaction.

“While I do flirt affectionately with those I truly ‘love.’”

I smiled pleasantly and whispered softly once more in her ear.

“For someone as insignificant as you, there’s no way I would act affectionate, so I’d suggest you not get any ideas.”

At my voice, dripping with mockery, Lillian remained frozen, not moving an inch.

***

Artasha Blanc