Chapter 52
Chapter 52
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 52
Chapter Title: The Young Ladies' Tea Party
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On a warm weekend afternoon, in an exclusive venue accessible only to the elite, three young noblewomen of impeccable poise gathered for a tea party.
"Hee-hee, hello. Luina Ober? It's our first time meeting in a setting like this, right? Allow me to introduce myself properly. I'm Cecilia Asil. Pleased to meet you."
"Hello! We're not total strangers, are we? I'm Aria Melts. Looking forward to getting to know you!"
"...H-hello, everyone? This is... a bit surprising. Ahem, I'm Luina Ober. Pleased to meet you all as well."
Luina Ober appeared flustered by the utterly unexpected sight of these two,
but Cecilia Asil and Aria Melts smiled as if it were the most natural thing in the world, greeting her warmly.
"Professor Raine had some urgent business, so we offered to step in for him."
"I've been dying to have a get-together like this with you, Luina! It made me so sad that you kept turning me down!"
"Oh, my apologies. I've been quite busy lately. I didn't mean to keep refusing you."
"It's all right! We're here together now!"
Luina, who had been desperately avoiding a meeting with these two, found the situation profoundly uncomfortable.
Aria Melts—the original story's protagonist who had stolen her love... or so she'd thought.
Cecilia Asil—the witch who had unleashed a horrific massacre, yet was strangely subdued in this world's narrative.
Both were far too formidable for her to handle.
"So, what brings you here? I've heard your names, of course, but we don't have enough of a connection for something like this... I'm curious."
"I just wanted to get to know you! You're the most famous person at the academy, Luina!"
'Know your place. What kind of etiquette is it for a low noble to barge in and demand a meeting like this?' Luina wanted to snap,
but
"Hee-hee."
Cecilia Asil's enigmatic chuckle from the side made her hold her tongue.
In the original story, that laugh had preceded murder, so Luina couldn't help but shrink back.
"Oh dear, if you'd given me advance notice, I wouldn't be so caught off guard... What a pity."
That roundabout response was the best Luina could manage.
'Hmm? Why is Miss Ober acting like this...?'
But it only aroused Cecilia's suspicions.
The Luina she knew was cold and sharp, despising rudeness like this.
She would normally speak her mind bluntly.
'Yet she's forcing a smile and brushing it off. And she's clearly aware of me... As expected of Miss Ober. She might have noticed something...'
'...Shall I test the waters, then?'
"We wanted to, but we were worried about starting rumors. I had questions about Father's... treatment."
"...Treatment?"
"It's no secret, is it? Everyone who frequents the infirmary knows you're receiving treatment from him."
At the mention of Deok-bae Asil's treatment, Luina visibly panicked.
Memories of his touch flooded back, along with dread over how much Cecilia knew to bring it up so casually.
If she knew about Luina's disgraceful behavior, what did this question mean? What answer was she seeking? The uncertainty terrified her.
"W-what about it? It's not... strange, right? Just a simple act of getting treatment for an illness."
"Oh my? You're so flustered it's making me worried. I was only asking, as his daughter, if there were any issues with the treatment... Is something wrong?"
"That's..."
But that was Luina's mistake.
Her unnatural demeanor had backfired, arousing suspicion in both of them instead.
'I should have questioned them boldly...' she regretted, but it was too late to take it back.
"Hee-hee, actually, we know everything."
"...What? How... He promised not to tell anyone..."
"We have our ways of knowing."
"Cecilia knows everything!"
Cecilia's confident reply, backed by Aria's enthusiastic agreement, left Luina's face frozen.
Her hand trembled around the teacup, spilling tea everywhere.
She could breathe, yet it felt like she couldn't.
Her breath quickened, her vision blurred.
Shame seeped into her bones, and she felt on the verge of fainting.
Seeing Luina like that, Cecilia spoke up.
"Luina Ober. Stop receiving treatment from my father. Let me say it again. Stop receiving treatment from my father."
"Exactly! You have to stop! For your own sake, you should quit from now on. My therapy sessions have been getting shorter... Um, anyway!"
"...What... did you say?"
Luina had imagined the worst.
The witch turning her into a plaything and toying with her using this weakness as leverage.
The true protagonist seizing everything around her.
But contrary to her fears, they comforted her and advised her to end it.
It was nothing like the two from her memories—or the original story.
'Why... why?'
She was grateful. Relieved. Yet repulsed at the same time.
'Why... me?'
Stopping the treatment would be suicide. She needed it to survive. Their words were tantamount to telling her to die.
'Telling me to die...?'
Chills ran through Luina's entire body.
Refusal spilled from her lips reflexively.
"N-no! I don't know what you're so worried about. The professor treated me, and I received it. My body's healthy now—that's all. I can't understand what gives you two the right to tell me what to do."
It was a desperate act of defiance. Rude, even, rejecting their goodwill.
But she had no room to care.
From the moment they appeared, rational thought had been impossible.
"You said... no?"
"Yes! I'm grateful for your concern, but don't cross the line. If that's all, I'll be going."
All Luina could do was throw a tantrum and flee the scene.
Aria couldn't help but laugh at Luina's uncharacteristic flailing. Despite the rumors, she was just as easy as Aria herself.
But Cecilia couldn't laugh.
'The suggestion... didn't work?'
Her prized suggestion magic had failed on Luina.
She'd planned to use this tea party to plant a suggestion preserving Luina's virginity, but it had backfired.
'Hee-hee, hee-hee... Ahaha!'
'To think it wouldn't take...! I never imagined. As expected... Luina Ober! She's truly a perfect match for Father!'
This was the first time suggestion magic had failed on anyone besides her father.
She felt the challenge, and with it, destiny.
The very difficulty made Luina seem all the more precious.
"W-wait a minute! What if I tell everything to Lucius Hesse?"
"...What?"
"If you're so confident, it shouldn't be a problem, right!"
"Ugh..."
If suggestion wouldn't work, she had to accelerate her plans.
She didn't know when Deok-bae Asil might claim Luina's virginity—time was running out.
'I'll have to force it a little. Good thing we have Raine. She'll buy us plenty of time.'
"Miss Melts! Stop harassing Miss Ober."
"Yes, ma'am!"
"What...!"
Luina, trembling under Aria's pressure, was dumbfounded to see her switch sides instantly at Cecilia's word.
Aria was utterly Cecilia's lackey.
"Hee-hee, my apologies, Miss Ober. You're right—we have no right to dictate to you.
But please, treasure your body. We'll take our leave now."
"See you later, Luina!"
"......"
Luina felt as if she'd been caught in a storm.
Exhausted, dizzy, nauseous.
The two left her behind without a backward glance.
'The next full moon will be perfect. Any later, and it might be risky.'
Cecilia mulled over the day's events, adjusting her plans.
The total solar eclipse she'd originally considered was too far off.
She pondered the variables to advance her timeline.
'It's feasible enough. Separating the prince and his guard from her was the right call. Hesse alone can't stop us.'
'Ahh... I'm thrilled already. It's so close now.'
'The moment I claim Miss Ober's body...!'