The Double Life of a Wicked Woman

“El? Is something wrong…?”

“Are you crazy?! You bought all that?! Are you trying to give me diabetes?!”

“I don’t know what diabetes is, but I’m not crazy.”

“Don’t tell me you’re planning to use this as a bribe for something else, like… advance payment?”

“…I’d prefer to say no, but I suppose it could be considered a bribe for an unpredictable situation.”

With that, Arahan guided me to the carriage. When I, dressed in men’s clothes and a servant’s uniform, tried to board the same carriage as Arahan, some nobles glared at me. Arahan, completely unconcerned by their stares, escorted me without hesitation.

“Tomorrow… I have a feeling we might be front-page news for some other reason…”

“Well, I think it’ll be too late to worry about that tomorrow.”

Arahan smiled brightly, and I was speechless. Oh my God, it seems that the incident with my slap was quite a shock to him. What should I do?

When the carriage door closed and we set off, Arahan kept staring at me. His gaze made me uncomfortable, so I looked out the window, trying to distract myself by watching the streets. Soon, we left the city behind, and trees began to appear.

“So, where are we going?”

“To a secret location.”

“…??”

Hee-hee.

As the horse made a loud noise and stopped, the carriage also halted. Arahan quickly got out and extended his hand to me. Taking his hand, as I stepped out of the carriage, a fresh breeze blew so forcefully that my wig came off, revealing my naturally red hair, which gleamed brilliantly in the sunlight.

“…Wow, I’ve never seen such a wide field before.”

“I’m glad you like it.”

Arahan spoke slowly, and I turned to look at him. Only then did I realize that my wig had come off, and I started looking for it while touching my hair.

“I’ll find it for you later. Let’s eat the cakes now.”

“But the setting looks more like a picnic than a place to eat cake.”

Even though I said that, my face lit up with happiness, and Arahan smiled in response. Seeing him like that, I couldn’t help but feel a little flustered. How strange that my heart flutters over Arahan when it should be the Emperor who makes my heart race. How ironic.

Whether he knew what I was feeling or not, the carriage driver spread out a mat I didn’t know where he’d gotten, and started arranging the cakes we’d bought earlier. It seemed like they had prepared everything like an afternoon tea set, so it looked like they had planned to come out today.

“I guess buying the cakes was part of the plan?”

“There was a plan to buy the cakes, but coming out here to eat them wasn’t part of it.”

“For something that wasn’t planned, you seem pretty well-prepared.”

“As I mentioned earlier, I was supposed to visit the lady’s mansion.”

“…As part of an apology?”

“Well, that’s one reason, but it’s also for other purposes.”

When I heard him say “other purposes,” I tilted my head, and once again, he made another suggestion. No matter how I thought about it, I was beginning to think that all these cakes were a bribe or an early reward for that suggestion. Damn it, I shouldn’t have let myself be swayed by the desserts!

“I was actually planning to ask you to attend the Soboron Marquis family’s ball in a few days.”

“The Soboron Marquis family…?”

Who are they? Who are you? Another insignificant supporting character? Was there such a person in the book?

“Yes, as you guessed, they are one of the most prominent families among the nobles. And they are the family closest to the Bellua Marquis family.”

Bellua Marquis. Unlike the other two, Soboron Marquis and Lady Charlotte, who were insignificant side characters, Bellua Marquis was different.

The leader of the noble faction, and the one who dislikes Elizabet the most. The one actively pushing for Ozburn to become empress. That person was Marquis Bellua. In the book, it was Marquis Bellua who first proposed Elizabet’s execution—wait a moment. Then, at that ball…

“Is Marquis Bellua attending as well?”

“Probably. I believe it’s a joint hosting. Of course, Lady Luciela will be there, and His Majesty will attend as well.”

“Lady Luciela…?”

“Yes, it seems she has received an invitation. And since many powerful factions will be gathered in one place, His Majesty will attend in disguise.”

So, Ozburn will attend this gathering of powerful factions…? Wasn’t the Luciela family neutral? Or is it just because she’s the Empire’s saintess that she has to attend every ball?

“But if His Majesty will be attending in disguise… isn’t that too dangerous?”

“That’s why we need your help, Lady.”

What does the Emperor’s danger have to do with my help? I think His Majesty would rather avoid needing my help. Even as I couldn’t figure out what I was supposed to do, he handed me a piece of cake and continued speaking.

“I think you’ll need to enter with His Majesty in disguise.”

“Ah, I see… wait, what?!”

“Lady, please be careful of your ears.”

“W-What did you say?! You want me to enter with him…?”

“You’ll be his partner.”

So why does it have to be me, and why is it the damn Emperor’s son, of all people!! Of course, I’m in a position where I need to seduce the Emperor!! But Ozburn and Luciela are here too!! And this is a noble faction ball, right?! Ozburn was invited, so why can’t I just go with him?

“…But Lady Luciela is also attending.”

“She may have danced the first dance, but the Luciela family is neutral. Plus, the fact that Lady Luciela was invited to the noble faction ball suggests that she is supporting the noble faction, not the imperial faction. Because of this, His Majesty has to be cautious. If the Luciela family were clearly supporting the Emperor, he would have brought her along.”

In other words, the Luciela family is balancing between the imperial and noble factions, so they want to use Elizabet, the granddaughter of the loyal Vincent family, to help… But even without Elizabet, there are plenty of noble young ladies who belong to the imperial faction. There’s no reason for Elizabet to be the Emperor’s partner, is there?

“…But why me specifically?”

“Because only those with a partner can enter.”

“So why me specifically?”

“Well, it’s because you like His Majesty.”

‘That’s Elizabet, not me!!’

But that was a silent outburst. How did things get so tangled up? Wait, actually, when I think about it, maybe this is a good thing. If I openly torment Ozburn in front of the Emperor, I might die even faster. After all, I’m already being called a villain, so by the time I torment Ozburn and die, I might be called the Great Villain. Plus, if I make a bad impression on Marquis Bellua, he’ll probably say that I, the villain, must be killed. Yes, crisis is an opportunity!

“Ahem, that said… His Majesty knows about this, right?”

“Probably.”

“…”

What’s with the “probably”? That word is really irritating. It sounds like he’s about to say something, doesn’t it? Is that just me imagining things?

“Don’t worry too much, he won’t say anything too harsh.”

“Duke, just to be sure… the reason you ordered that salon outfit earlier wasn’t to have it ready for the ball, was it?”

“Of course not. Although His Majesty dislikes red, so I thought it would be better to prepare a different outfit for him, instead of asking for one. But there’s no ulterior motive behind it, absolutely none.”

I think that “ulterior motive” is exactly what you mean. Just like how you managed to sell out the dessert shop. Because I’m useful, and I’m the granddaughter of the Vincent family. I see. This man has no reason to be nice to me as Elizabet. Everything has a purpose, and he’ll use bribes to get me to move, because I’m useful. Plus, he’s trying to use Elizabet’s affection for the Emperor.

“…This is the worst.”

The words I muttered so softly that Arahan couldn’t hear them were quite bitter. The cake was really sweet, but the cream I swallowed tasted bitter. It was probably something with dark chocolate or coffee in it. My feelings right now were the same. Kindness always has a reason. Just like in the original world, there’s no world without hypocrisy, so I can’t say this world is any different.

“Lady…? Does it taste strange?”

“…No. It’s delicious.”

It wasn’t pleasant or enjoyable. Whether it was this person or that person, I couldn’t help but feel bitter thinking that all the kindness shown to me was just a reward for being used. Of course, that might not be the case, but looking at the situation right now, wasn’t that how it seemed?

After I ate a few more bites of cake and set it down, he didn’t say anything further, just looking at me. The breeze no longer felt refreshing. A heavy, oppressive atmosphere seemed to fall, and the shadow started to cover my forehead as well. For a moment, I almost had an illusion. There is no kindness without a reason. Even for a brief moment, the flutter I had felt for Arahan seemed ridiculous.

Sigh, I feel so down. Yeah, that’s how it is. Whatever.

While we were eating the cake, the coachman returned with the wig that had blown away in the wind and handed it to me. I needed to put it back on, but I didn’t want to.

“I’ll have the rest of the cakes sent to the young lady’s mansion. Shall we be on our way now?”

“……”

“Lady?”

“One more thing. I have one more question.”

“……??”

“What exactly is the role I’m supposed to play at that ball? What exactly am I supposed to gain from this? After all, if you’re using me, there must be a benefit to it, right? You’ve gone so far as to prepare clothes and cakes for me. What exactly do you want in return?”

“……”

He looked startled for a moment, his eyes wide, as if he realized his mistake. Arahan then knelt slightly and kissed the back of my hand briefly.

“It seems I’ve upset you, Lady. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to say anything like that. It seems there was room for misunderstanding…”

“Room for misunderstanding… Maybe, or perhaps I’m just being overly sensitive, depending on your answer.”

“To be honest… The clothes and cake were truly gifts with pure intentions. You’ve had to hear things you shouldn’t have and seen things because of me.”

“…Then, it’s fine.”

I wasn’t sure if it was Elizabet’s feelings or mine, but deep inside, my heart began to ache. If you think about it, maybe the reason she became such a villain was because people like this used her.

Perhaps it was the naive Elizabet who got possessed by a naive person like Sehwa, and thinking about it, for some reason, the future seemed like it would be a bit easier.