Chapter: 08
Not only would this improve the young lady’s reputation, but it would also deal a blow to Seraphina at the same time. It was a perfect two-birds-with-one-stone proposal.
As I desperately tried to persuade the young lady with my words,
my mind raced.
The advantage I had at this point was that I hadn’t yet earned the young lady’s dislike.
Because at this stage, Seraphina and the Duke Claudius siblings barely had any interaction.
Naturally, today was also my first time meeting the young lady.
According to the original story, I would have clumsily taken Seraphina’s side and thoroughly ruined the young lady’s mood.
‘Right. I would have ended up getting slapped, insulted, and even drenched with water…’
I let out a quiet sigh inwardly before continuing.
“Even if people are only making baseless guesses and spreading rumors, it would still cause serious harm to Seraphina. After all, everyone sees her as such a kind person.”
The young lady stared at me as though telling me to continue.
I gladly met her expectations.
“Besides, if I become your friend, Seraphina will definitely be furious. Doesn’t that alone make you feel a little better?”
“Hmm. And then?”
“And if we gradually bring Seraphina down little by little, eventually she’ll make a mistake.”
Smiling like a little devil, I drove the point home.
“Don’t you want to see Seraphina’s mask fall away and reveal her true face?”
At that moment, the young lady’s sapphire-blue eyes sparkled.
After a brief silence,
she gave a prim little nod.
“Well… I can’t say your reasoning is wrong.”
Then she straightened her back and looked directly at me.
“It’s true that I need to restore my reputation first.”
At the same time, her beautiful hand tightened around her teacup.
The grip was so firm that blue veins stood out on the back of her pale white hand.
S-Scary!
“Seriously… why did such ridiculous rumors suddenly start spreading…?”
she continued through clenched teeth.
“My brother was quite angry. Since the duke’s family has its reputation to uphold, he told me to put an end to these rumors as quickly as possible.”
After saying that, the young lady slumped her shoulders and let out a long sigh.
“Well… I suppose they aren’t entirely baseless rumors.”
Hmm?
“I know my personality can be rather sharp. I’m sensitive, and it’s true that I can be prickly.”
Wait a second.
You just told me not to put myself down.
And now you’re doing exactly that?
I stared at the dejected-looking young lady before speaking up.
“No. I actually like how straightforward you are.”
The young lady blinked her golden eyelashes in surprise.
“Pardon? What did you just say…?”
“I said I like that you’re straightforward.”
“M-Me?”
“Of course.”
At my answer, she bit her lower lip.
“But everyone keeps their distance from me. Whenever I say anything, they flinch as if they’re frightened…”
“That’s only because they’ve misunderstood you.”
I gave a casual shrug.
After all, I already knew.
Seraphina had subtly manipulated people into avoiding the young lady!
Of course, the young lady did have a few rough edges.
But based on everything I’d seen today, she definitely wasn’t terrible enough to deserve all this criticism.
After silently moving her lips for a while, the young lady cautiously asked,
“Y-You really think that? That… there’s nothing seriously wrong with my personality…?”
“Of course. Honestly, I wish I could be more like you. I think you’re amazing.”
I nodded firmly.
The young lady’s cheeks slowly flushed pink.
But only for a moment.
Suddenly, the corners of her eyes shot upward.
“…Then that means my brother really is the petty one.”
Huh?
The Duke Claudius?
At the same time, the young lady slammed both hands onto the tea table with a loud bang!
“My brother actually threatened to cut my allowance for maintaining my noble appearance just because of a few rumors! Isn’t that unbelievably petty?!”
My eyes widened.
‘Oh… the appearance-maintenance allowance issue… This is exactly the same as in the original novel.’
To be honest, in high society, the only rumor that spread was that the young lady was arrogant.
No one ever mentioned the private matter of her allowance being reduced.
Yet everything matched perfectly.
Even if the characters’ personalities had changed, the direction and events of the story might still unfold in much the same way.
‘The original novel’s information could end up being incredibly useful to me from now on.’
Meanwhile, after fuming for quite a while,
the young lady finally calmed down after gulping down her now-lukewarm tea.
“Anyway, as Lady Ansi said herself… you’re Lady Lopez’s closest friend.”
Leaning back comfortably in her chair, she asked me,
“So how am I supposed to trust you?”
Her sapphire-blue eyes narrowed suspiciously.
“What if Lady Lopez sent you here to get close to me?”
An overwhelming pressure filled the room.
The old me would have crumbled under that pressure and been swept away by her pace.
But…
‘It’s okay.’
I forced myself to stay calm.
During the nearly full day before receiving the young lady’s reply,
I had already simulated countless scenarios in my head.
In other words, I had expected exactly this question.
“Of course. It’s only natural that you wouldn’t trust me.”
After taking a short, deep breath, I smiled brightly.
“In that case, what do you think about this? Let’s have a trial period where we’re temporary friends.”
“Temporary friends?”
A new emotion appeared in her eyes, replacing suspicion.
Curiosity.
“What exactly do you mean by temporary friends?”
“When a shop hires a new employee, they usually have a probation period, don’t they? That’s what I’m suggesting for us.”
“…Hmm.”
The young lady still pretended to look indifferent,
but I could tell.
She was clearly interested in my proposal.
Oh, you’re wondering how I could be so certain?
How many years do you think I’d spent watching Seraphina and Gregory’s every expression and mood?
Naturally, I’d become very sensitive to other people’s emotions.
‘This isn’t exactly the positive side of being a doormat…’
Sighing inwardly, I made another suggestion.
“How about we spend some time together as temporary friends, and if you’re satisfied with the results, then we can officially sign a friendship contract?”
From the young lady’s perspective, it would naturally be difficult to trust someone named Laritte Ansi without question.
After all, I had openly volunteered to act like Seraphina’s devoted attendant.
Then, all of a sudden, I appeared asking to become her friend…
‘Of course she’d be suspicious.’
Even so, rejecting my proposal outright would feel like a waste.
My position as “Seraphina’s closest friend” was, in a way, a double-edged sword.
If I truly appeared to have completely cut ties with Seraphina and chosen the young lady instead,
it would deal that much more damage to Seraphina.
‘That’s why I’m giving her a grace period with this temporary friendship and letting her make the final decision.’
Having that safeguard in place would make the young lady feel much more at ease.
I wouldn’t deny that I got the idea from the romance fantasy cliché of a “contract relationship.”
Well, who says only romance can be contractual?
These days, contract friendships are all the rage too.
And just as I’d calculated,
my plan worked perfectly.
