I storm off into the garden while gritting my teeth and cursing at the useless high heeled shoes, the heavy dress, the pointless accessories and my lack of a wakizashi.

I want to scream.

I want to roar.

But I cannot.

All I can do is grit my teeth. It's okay, it's just a kid being stupid... it's not okay!

It is not okay!

I'm from a clan where three year-old kids have enough willpower and courage to match a grown man in this one! Lord Tepet! Teach your son proper manners!

RAAAAARGH!

...I take a deep breath.

Just think of this as a scorpion clan party. They always do everything in their might to make you lose composure...

Yes, that will do. Just assume it's hostile territory and things will be easier. The tension slowly releases from my shoulders, but a swirl of anger is still curled up in my stomach like a trapped lion.

"Lily-sama!"

I lift my bitter gaze from the grass and spot two girls running towards me in their big floofy dresses.

My stomach tenses further at the sight of them. I'd nearly forgotten. I am the villain of a story, everything is here to make me lose my mind and look bad...

Those two girls are my 'followers' in the book. Two nameless girls standing behind me with crossed arms to make me look scarier and more like a villain.

They run up to me with worried eyes, and the first one to reach me is Magdalin. She's the smallest one of them by far, and honestly, she is far smaller and scrawnier than she should be for her age. Lily probably never noticed. Magdalin brushes a strand of her creamy brown hair back to cover a streak of cyan hair strands by her temple. She's clearly trying to hide the colorful strands, but it stands out quite sharply. This means her mana has strong wind attributes. Her pretty round eyes are a beautiful deep grey and they peer at me with a mixture of worry and child-like admiration.

"Lily-sama! Are you okay?! Lionel-sama was so cruel." She tears up a bit as her gloved hands take mine. It's midsummer. I glance down to her simple green dress and then back to those white gloves with discomfort.

"Soleil-sama too! Even though Lily-sama is so pretty today," Bridgette chimes in.

I turn my attention to Bridgette. She's about my height, and her dress is almost as stupidly elaborate as Lily's used to be. The biggest difference is that there's barely any lacing. After all, lacing is far more expensive. It has been replaced with a lot of small ribbons though. The sun colored dress is all out of place from running though. The ribbons here and there have gone up, and a flap of cloth had flipped over. Magdalin may be smaller but apparently she runs faster... or some shoes are getting in the way... Bridgette's pale blonde hair is done up with a nice piece of jewelry to match her reddish eyes. It's a good sign of attribute. Both Bridgette and Magdalin are lower nobles, but since they both have physical signs of their attributes this puts them at good advantage socially.

I end up staring back blankly at their adoring and hold in a sigh. Bridgette is definitely trying to copy Lily's gaudy style. At least she is better and choosing colors than Lily was.

"I am fine, I merely lost my head for a moment at their horrible behavior." I step up to Bridgette and start fixing her clothes since she seems ignorant to the mess.

Bridgette gives a somewhat troubled and embarrassed look. Let's be honest, she likely isn't able to tie the ribbons herself if she's anything like Lily was.

"Thank you, Lily-sama..."

"You were so cool when you punished Lionel-sama!" Magdalin chirps out happily. Her eyes are shining as she clasps her gloved hands together. I have no idea how the two of them even saw it, but I grumble internally at the memory of the rude behavior. I'm about to answer Magdalin when Bridgette chirps up as well and changes the subject rather abruptly.

"Oh, Lily-sama! Come, you must see this!" Bridgette perks up before she rather boldly takes my hand and starts leading me through the garden. I don't quite feel like rejoining the party, but even Magdalin seems to pick up on what Bridgette is thinking and takes my other hand...

For a moment I wonder whether I should look for Ameline. I think I ended up losing her after tossing Lionel. The crowd there was probably too big.

---*---

So... after letting the two girls pull me around, I am now sitting at a tea table with Prince Alstair and... Gilbert Salender, the kid I slapped a few months ago in return for him slapping my butt.

So, here I am, with my two followers, one on each side. Alstair with Gilbert on the other side of the table, along with an extra empty chair. There is already a cup there though, half empty and probably cold, so they were already having tea with someone else...

I finish my first cup of tea calmly. You see, Magdalin and Bridgette pulled me there and bowed to Alstair and Gilbert. This was to be read as wishing to enjoy tea with them. Once invited by the crown prince because of this, there was no escape. I know Bridgette and Magdalin did it with the best of intentions, but it's uncomfortable. Though, I should have guessed this is what they wanted. Just as Lily was, both of them adore Alstair. The view of Alstair drinking tea in the garden must have been too much of a temptation.

Bridgette takes my empty cup of tea to personally fill it. She keeps glancing to Alstair once in a while, but Bridgette looks as though this meeting is soothing to her.

"L-Lily-sama..." Magdalin's voice draws my attention and what meets me is this puppy like expression.

"Yes?" I give her a polite smile.

"Uhm, I heard that his Highness and Lily-sama had an argument..."

Magdalin carefully tests out the waters carefully while looking at me with upturned eyes. She appears to be truly worried that she was stepping on a landmine, but jumps right in anyway, in what appears to be a desperate attempt to have us make up.

As you'd expect of someone adoring both Lily and Alstair.

Still, despite her good intentions I am not giving in on this matter. Getting something like this deal arranged again would be impossible, and I am quite enjoying not being under full pressure from Adela.

"Ah... I suppose you could say we had a slight disagreement..." I reply softly and glance to Alstair. He is smiling calmly and politely.

"...After all, he didn't believe me when I said I was no longer in love with him, but that is all. Nothing is wrong at all."

Alstair's mask cracks just for a moment as his eyebrow twitches, but he doesn't do anything.

I turn my eyes back to Magdalin and find her solidified at my words with a slack jaw.

"Magdalin, you must not pry so much in other people's matters." Bridgette corrects Magdalin's behavior. That aside, it is interesting how fast the rumor has spread... Did Alstair talk about it?

Bridgette puts my tea back down in front of me and sits down on her chair calmly as Magdalin gives a dejected look.

"You're right... I'm sorry, Lily-sama."

I give Magdalin a nod and then briefly glance to Gilbert. He hasn't made a move yet and just kind of sits quietly with a smile plastered on his face.

Unfazed with the tense atmosphere I bring my cup of tea to my lips and take in the sweet aroma of the tea.

I love tea. I have always adored tea. So just the scent of tea, even if not my usual kind, calms me down.

Or it was supposed to have...

I grit my teeth and feel my brows begin to furrow... something is wrong.

I glance to Bridgette while trying to relax my face... why? Was it possible that it could be anyone else? No... it wasn't an unopened can. I'd gotten tea from it in the last cup I drank, and she was the only one that had access to my cup.

Why would she do this...

Is it because of Alstair? Bridgette adored him about just as much as Lily had... in fact, though less extravagant she had definitely been trying to walk in the shoes of the previous Lily.

The tea had a definite off smell to it. The Lily before the poisoning always enjoyed her tea, but she wasn't one to enjoy the aroma... perhaps that is why something like this was chosen... It's a slightly pungent smell mixed with the aroma of the tea... and since I can already smell it now, I have no intention of drinking any of it.

The good news is that it isn't a deadly type. It has a clear scent of laxative berries... It has probably been powdered so she could mix it in with the sugar.

I can't help but to wonder if Magdalin had been a part of the plan. After all, she had been the distraction.

I could just call Bridgette out on it and go by Magdalin's expression... but there's a complication. The manipulative boy sitting across the table calmly sipping his tea.

I don't want to give him any incidents of 'bullying' to latch onto to use for later, but how do I deal with this without appearing like a villain and without losing face?

"Your Highness, who is the one seated by your side?" I hint at the empty spot.

"Lionel."

...What a nice coincidence...