Reincarnated As The Villainess's Best Friend

Green. A lot of green.

That was the first thought I had when I stepped into the throne room.

The throne, the drapes, the adornments... Everything was in green.

Well... Almost everything. Except for the floor, the walls, and the golden crown on the queen's head. Although, the crown was embedded with green diamonds.

Or were they emeralds? I wasn't too sure.

From the prison chamber below, the knights led us up through a couple of winding stairs, straight into the courtyard of a castle.

My guess was right.

The castle's towering spires loomed above as we emerged into the bright sunlit courtyard, which was broken at the corners with patches of green.

The knights then led us through a series of doors, until we finally went into a large one guarded by four more knights.

Inside was the large throneroom, its ceiling resting on four walls and columns. The gallery was occupied with the men and ladies of the court, while the central aisle was lined on both sides by armoured knights.

Upon reaching the edge of the throne area, the guards stopped.

"These are the rascals causing trouble within Greenhold, your grace"

The guard nudged us forward, like we were made of bags of hay.

"I am a noble of House Stormborn," I snapped at the guard, feigning a frown. "It wouldn't kill you to treat us with a little more dignity."

"Nobles, huh?" The queen's voice rose from the direction of the throne, high-pitched, and cold to the ears. "Interesting."

She was dressed in a long-sleeved green gown, which hung tight to her slim frame and slightly revealed her left thigh. On her shoulder was a white fur coat, and her shoe straps were tied around her leg.

Her long hair was quite similar to her daughter's; a gradient of green and black, but her beauty was far superior. Hard to admit but her large chest could give Reina Stormborn a run for her money.

"Would one of you care to explain, why two academy nobles are causing problems in my city?"

I stepped forward.

"Your grace, I'd like to ..."

"Shush," the queen cut me off, placing a finger on her lips. "When I said one of you, I definitely wasn't referring to you."

My jaw tightened. Who did she think she was to silence me?

"Let the girl speak to me," she added, flickering her fingers

Humbled, I took a step back, while Lucy stepped forward.

"Tell me, fair child, why do you make trouble in my city?"

"We didn't come here to make trouble. We only came to purchase a wand."

"A wand, you say?"

"Yes... Your grace."

The Queen stared at Lucy for a moment. Her eyes were slowly judging her. "Is that why you hurt the wand maker?"

The people in the gallery whispered among themselves.

"That wasn't her," I cut in. "That was me."

"Did I give you permission to speak, boy?"

"Pardon me. I just realised I didn't need it."

Gasps echoed throughout the throne room.

The Queen leaned forward in her chair, eyeing me conspicuously. I returned the gaze, barely blinking.

After a few seconds, the queen leaned back.

"Stubborn as your father, I see. Very well, why did you hurt the wand maker?"

"I hurt the wand maker because he wanted to hurt her."

She turned her gaze to Lucy. "Too bad the wand maker isn't here to share his side of the story. I'm particularly interested to know why the wand maker would want to hurt you."

I remained silent. Lucy swallowed.

Then, one of the green knights marched up to the queen's throne. He leaned closer to her ear and whispered something.

Her gaze narrowed and she stood up from her seat.

"By the gods," she exclaimed. "It is her. The darkblood child."

Every bit of colour suddenly faded from Lucy's face. Her expression went blank, but within her, something had snapped.

"Here I was," the queen continued. "Writing letters to the academy, demanding a trial upon your head. But the gods are true, and they delivered you straight to me."

Like the monarch she was, she graciously descended from her throne, her robe trailing behind her. She stepped towards Lucy, and with her long green fingers, caressed the side of Lucy's face.

"You do not even look like them," she said, "But the eyes... It's the very same eyes. Cold and unfeeling."

The Queen snapped her fingers, and two knights marched out from both sides of the aisle, pointing sharp spears at Lucy.

"Tell me," the queen continued. "How did it feel, when you watched the dark creatures you summoned at the tournament snap my daughter's bones?"

New whispers erupted in the gallery.

I wanted to step in... To explain how Freya had bullied Lucy. But I kept silent. I was also curious to hear Lucy's defense.

"It felt good."

The Queen's eyes bulged forward, then she narrowed them soon after. "It felt good, you say?"

Lucy remained calm. Unflinching. "Freya deserved everything that happened to her. And I would gladly do it again."

My heart sank.

For the first time since my reincarnation, I didn't hear Lucy speaking.

Her voice wasn't soft. It was eerie, unfeeling, and defiant.

Just like the Shadow Queen's...

"So, you intended to hurt my innocent girl?"

Freya was far from innocent, but mothers did have a tendency to view all children as evil except their own.

Tell her, Lucy, I thought. Tell her what Freya did.

"My only regret," Lucy replied, "Is that I didn't break her myself."

The whispers from the gallery grew even louder. I slapped my forehead.

"Very well."

The Queen marched up to her throne and sat back in it.

"For the attempted murder of Freya Lillith, first daughter of Queen Rosa of House Lillith, I hereby sentence the darkblood child to die."

I stepped in front of Lucy. "That's absurd! You cannot use house rules to judge a tournament match."

Queen Rosa leaned forward, her eyes glued onto me. "The rules of Viridale, apply everywhere in Viridale. Now leave the darkblood, or die with her."

I refused to budge.

"Have it your way." The Queen turned to her guards, "Bring forth the creature!"

The sound of rumbling stone reached my ears, followed by a long low growl. The people in the gallery retreated to the edge of the walls

"What the hell is that?" I asked.

For the first time, the Queen smiled.

"You tried to kill my daughter with an evil creature. It's only fair that I do the same to you."

Four knights marched towards the back of the queen's throne. They pushed open a large boulder, to reveal a large dark chamber.

One of them grabbed a chain within the chamber and tugged on it. At that moment, a guttural snarl echoed from the chamber, shaking the floor beneath us.

I had faced many creatures in my past life, but that sound was one of the scariest things I've ever heard.