Chapter 16
Chapter 16
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: Tea Party Champion of the Duel Arena (1)
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Our Young Lady Tiona has no friends.
And unlike most young ladies and young masters who commute back and forth between the capital and their territories from a young age, she spent her entire life holed up in the castle manor of the territory and only recently came to the capital.
In fact, the latter probably influenced the former.
Anyway, with Tiona like that now joining the Tea Party, my worries were beyond words. I even seriously considered just keeping her home.
But my goal is Tiona's reformation.
Eliminating her discriminatory attitude toward those of lower status is important, of course... but she also needs to build basic social skills.
Social skills are skills too. They can be learned, they grow with practice, and they atrophy if unused.
Even a perfectly normal person, if they hole up for years cramming for exams or lounging unemployed, will start stuttering and fumbling in front of others. Their social skills have degenerated.
Conversely, if they reenter society, start meeting people, and converse again, things normalize. Their social skills recover.
Tiona's the same.
She lacks social skills and can only develop them through real-world practice—meeting people and talking.
But sending her alone was out of the question. No telling what kind of disaster she'd cause.
"May I come along?"
Tiona looked puzzled at my question.
"Of course you have to, right?"
"...Didn't I clearly explain I'm not the former butler?"
"That's exactly it—how about renewing the contract? As butler and home tutor."
"No, thank you."
Being a butler for a duke's house is a fine job. Even if it's just for this capital residence rather than the territory castle.
But having glimpsed a future where Tiona clings to me and pesters endlessly, I had zero interest in extending my ties to this family.
"Muuu...."
Tiona grumbled.
But it didn't sway me in the slightest.
>
Unlike preparations for the duke's visit a few days ago, we didn't go all-out for the Tea Party.
We just bumped up the cultural trivia in her regular curriculum a bit and practiced elegantly lifting teacups during Afternoon Tea time.
The skills most crucial for a Tea Party weren't the sort that improve dramatically in a few days anyway.
Finally, the appointed day arrived.
As I headed out, Cynthia hurried over.
"Teacher, good luck...!"
"Thank you."
I meant it. I'd need all the luck I could get—maybe more than at any other point in my life.
"Hurry up and come already, Arthur!"
>
The Tea Party was at Lira's house—the Diarand family's capital residence.
Just crossing from one end of District A to the other, so even in a sprawling capital, it didn't take long.
The Diarand residence was a graceful three-story Rococo-style house. In the impeccably tended garden, white and pink cosmos flowers swayed shyly in the breeze.
The Tea Party setup occupied one corner of the garden.
A large round table held a pristine white porcelain tea set, along with desserts neatly arranged on a three-tiered tray.
Several noble young ladies were already there, chatting amiably.
Only one empty chair remained, so we weren't late—but we were evidently the last to arrive.
Lira spotted us and waved enthusiastically.
"Ah, Miss Tiona~!"
"Ah, a—"
Tiona's hand shot straight up.
"—Hello, everyone!?"
She waved it stiffly side to side, like a paper origami doll.
Looking closer, her breathing was rapid, her shoulder muscles rigid.
...Good grief.
So nervous.
When she's usually so haughty and overbearing.
I blew gently on the fine hairs quivering at the nape of her neck.
"—!?"
Tiona jolted and hopped in surprise.
"Wh-what was that!?"
"Sorry. My mistake."
"If it was a mistake, just apologize already!"
"Which is why I did. Come on, your friends are waiting."
"Friends..."
Tiona hesitated.
"Miss Tiona~? What're you doing~?"
"Ah, okay!"
Tiona scurried over, still flustered but noticeably less tense than before.
The host, Lira, introduced the other young ladies to her. This one's from such-and-such family, that one's from wherever region, and over here are daughters of whosis.... Finally, it was Tiona's turn.
"I-I'm Tiona. Thank you for inviting me to today's Tea Party!"
"Hello~!"
"Pleased to meet you!"
Why did no one bat an eye at her quirky speech? Was I just clueless, or was this some mandatory rite of passage for every noble daughter?
With that, the Tea Party began.
I slipped into a corner to observe whether Tiona held her own.
For starters, she seemed to fit in without major issues.
Honestly, the prestige of the duke's family probably helped. Noble young ladies always want to impress those from even loftier houses.
Nobility doesn't divide neatly by rank.
Even holders of the same count title might lord over a pathetic scrap of rural dirt or sit at court advising the king on the national budget.
It's like corporate ranks. More telling than assistant manager or director is which company and department you're in.
But a duke's house changes the equation.
Peers or superiors to a duke's family were exceedingly rare.
Like in modern Korea—even if you're just "chairman," you're filthy rich no matter the firm.
Still... I remained uneasy.
"What hobbies do you enjoy on your days off, Miss Tiona?"
"Why would you—" Prick. I sent the prearranged warning signal to Tiona.
"—On days off, I usually nap or listen to romance poems!"
This was the source of my unease.
No house outranked the duke's, meaning everyone here was "beneath" Tiona in her eyes.
Even if her bias had faded, old habits made imperious tones slip out.
Warding them off was my main reason for tagging along today.
"Have you visited the new botanical gardens, Miss Tiona? I went last week—the flowers were stunning!"
"Hmph, wasting time on plants—" Prick.
"—S-sounds delightful!"
And so on.
But the other young ladies' glances at Tiona were starting to turn wary.
Lira's kind, easygoing support kept things afloat, but barely...
Does she really have to trip up once before she grows?
Right then, an uninvited guest made her entrance.
The host, Lira, responded with obvious tension.
"Ah... Miss Beatrice, we didn't hear you'd be coming."
Beatrice wasn't in the original story.
But her type was obvious from a word or two.
She was an aura-battle specialist.
"Oh, really? Sorry, must've been an oversight on our end."
She barges in uninvited on purpose, then preempts blame by calling it a "mistake."
Accuse her of intent, and you're the jerk for doubting her sincerity. But you can't stay mad at someone who's already apologized for an honest error.
To avoid being the villain, you have to swallow her words whole.
Her follow-ups were the same ploy: comply or look like the bad guy.
"Oh dear, am I being dense? I had no idea you disliked me, Lira—"
The clincher: self-deprecation to paint Lira as the bully.
But seated right there was the natural predator of petty mind games like hers.
"Arthur! What's that obnoxious woman's name?"
Everyone froze at Tiona's outburst.
Beatrice, who'd been leisurely scaling the ladder of superiority. Lira, facing her down without quite confronting. The other young ladies, fidgeting anxiously. Even the attendants hovering nearby.
Everyone but me.
"That look and the name Beatrice... sounds like the daughter of the Colloraine court barons. Her father is Luxor Colloraine, current chief of the lower courts."
"You, who—"
"—are..."
Tiona regarded her with utter disdain.
"Merely?"
A crack formed in Beatrice's practiced smirk of I'm superior, so keep your eyes down where they belong.
"M-merely...? Aren't you the Krishantimaiu duke's daughter from the rumors? Tsk, ignoring others like that isn't very elegant!"
Tiona shot me a quick glance.
Like a hunting hound seeking its master's permission. No clue why she acted that way—I'd never trained her like a dog.
I nodded.
Tiona's eyes lit up.
"If it's not elegant, what can you do about it?"
"Y-yes...?"
"Beatrice, right? What a laugh. Crawling in late without an invite, yet running your mouth like you're hot stuff?"
"What did you say!? That's enough!"
"We've barely started. How utterly tacky and pathetic you are. Bet you don't have a single friend!"
Ironically, mind games hinge on morality. You have to make them the villain without becoming one yourself.
So someone utterly indifferent to villainy becomes invincible.
"H-how dare a great house's daughter spout such filth!?"
"What's that supposed to mean? I've got noble blood, so of course I look down on trash like you."
Exactly like that.
"...!?"
Beatrice flapped her lips, grasping for a retort.
Standard play against a mind-game immune foe: crush with authority.
Beatrice had probably steamrolled other reluctant villains with her court baron prestige.
But against a duke's daughter like Tiona? Impossible.
Beatrice's total defeat.
"Y-you'll regret this!! I won't forget!"
"Pardon? That gutter talk didn't carry."
With the gatecrasher gone, Tiona puffed out her chest in smug triumph.
"Hmph!"
But she flinched moments later, anxiety creeping in.
Her thoughts were plain as day.
Great to boot the pest, but now she feared her display had alienated the others.
Unfounded, though.
"Miss Tiona...!"
Her actions had proven two things to Lira and the rest.
She was on their side.
And she could've been far more obnoxious but had reined herself in—for their sake.
When you see someone flawed making an effort to hide it, people tend to cut them slack.
"Miss Tiona, that was incredible!"
"So cool!"
Tiona blinked at the sudden flood of praise.
Then the corners of her mouth shot skyward.
"Ehehe! For real!?"