NOVEL NEXT Chapter 33
If we hadn’t brought Claire along to the student council, maybe the atmosphere would’ve been better.
Two Crown Princesses and one Princess. It’s not an odd arrangement, is it? The children of those standing at the peak of a nation. One might not share blood with them, but who’s gonna raise any objections?
But in between them, there’s a Baroness, which messes up the hierarchy.
Truthfully, it wasn’t something to worry about too much. If any of them were sharp enough or had experience mingling as high-ranking noble offspring, they’d know how to treat the Baroness and her sibling.
For instance—
“Oh, Your Highnesses, and the Princess.”
Just like the student council president who just walked in.
This noble, stylishly flaunting brilliantly cut blonde hair, belonged to the ‘Grandchester’ Duke family, the second most noble after the imperial family in this empire. Actually, aside from imperial family members, they have the most royal blood flowing in their veins.
Of course, the most famous figures in the royal family are the Emperor and Alice. That doesn’t mean there are no other royal family members. Some live leisurely in places somewhat detached from central power, and there are those who accept honorary positions and live like high-ranking officials.
All of them are just prioritizing their safety.
Among Dukes and Counts, there’ve been cases of individuals who foolishly got into troubles, ending up on the Emperor’s hit list or assassinated, but it’s precisely because they’re part of the royal family that they know to keep their heads down.
In fact, frequently in games, royals turn up as extras, usually speaking blankly as if they know nothing, but sometimes they inadvertently reveal that they indeed keep their heads down and ask for it to be kept a secret.
Of course, they wouldn’t reveal it like that in reality. It’s just a way of conveying the situation in games.
“And… the Grace family.”
Just as the student council president greeted me, Alice, and Charlotte, he politely and equally greeted the Grace family members with a smile.
The reason it had been quiet until now was probably because he didn’t know the names or personalities of the Grace kids, so he hadn’t engaged in conversation. Since they were brought directly by the Crown Princess, they might have more power than they appear to.
As mentioned before, in noble society, it’s considered rude for those of lower rank to speak first to those of higher rank… Anyway, there were several reasons for the student council room being quiet until now.
“I apologize for making you wait. I had some work to take care of.”
That statement is likely true. The student council president is indeed busy. Even if he sent an invitation, he wouldn’t know when we’d actually arrive.
“No, we didn’t wait long.”
“Hmm.”
Hearing Alice’s response, the student council president briefly squinted his eyes. He quickly returned to his original demeanor.
Alice likely used honorifics when addressing him because she wanted to show respect for him as a ‘senior.’
The student council president’s gaze lingered on Alice, then shifted to Charlotte, and finally landed on me. The duration of each gaze was short. As for Claire and Leo… it would be more accurate to say they slipped by rather than drew his gaze.
“It’s an honor that you came so soon after sending the invitation. How do you find the tea?”
“Is it leaves from the salon? Using something similar to what the royal family uses, it seems the student council is quite considerate.”
I had no clue about it at all.
No matter how much I rewound time and ate again, distinguishing the origin of food was impossible by my standards. It would be different if I listened to the whole story and then came to a conclusion.
This is part of why I play the quiet card. It eliminates the need to reveal information while tiring myself out.
“We brought the leaves from our territory. I’m glad it suits your taste. However…”
Finally, the student council president’s gaze lingered longer on the Grace children.
“May I ask what the relationship between the Crown Princess and others is?”
This time, Claire and Leo’s eyes also turned to Alice.
So, what kind of relationship do we have?
It’s not like we’re friends; we’ve only known each other for a little over a week, and while we’ve talked, we don’t exactly have any deep connections.
Alice brought along the Grace siblings merely because she thought it would be fun, after hearing Charlotte.
“They’re friends.”
But Alice confidently answered.
And then, she became slightly flustered under Claire’s sparkling gaze.
For some reason, it feels like their images are turning completely opposite.
…..
Well, it’s not like it’s a bad thing.
In fact, doesn’t it create balance? Alice doesn’t need to feel jealous of Claire, and Claire doesn’t need to envy Alice for having parents.
It feels like a conflict was sealed before it could even start.
Moreover, I thought it looked good. You know, there are those fanfics where relationships are reversed or the gender switches. In a game with many female characters, pushing for gender switch would’ve had me coughing blood, but this relationship reversal isn’t a bad idea.
“Oh, really?”
However, the student council president didn’t seem to believe it at face value.
He might have partially grasped Alice and Charlotte’s intentions. After all, they would have been raised with noble education in a strict household and attended social parties like nobility.
“If so….”
The student council president slowly walked to his seat.
And then he leisurely sat down.
“Do you know why we sent you an invitation?”
“Was it to encourage us to join the student council?”
“That’s correct.”
The student council president smiled at Alice’s response.
In noble circles, there’s no reason to dislike someone who speaks so bluntly. They’re the type who wouldn’t even realize that they’re revealing their weaknesses.
Except for the fact that the other party is Alice.
“Do you perhaps have the intention to join us?”
That means he’s likely asking Claire and Leo too, who are sitting here. In the original work, Leo inadvertently followed Alice and got presented with the choice to join a bit earlier than expected.
At that time, Alice and the student council president were exerting their power against each other in various ways. Now, however, that’s not the case.
“May I ask which positions are still open in the student council?”
“What positions—”
However, the student council president wasn’t able to continue with that suggestion.
Knock, knock.
There was a sound of knocking at the student council room.
“Is it okay for a moment?”
The student council president asked politely.
As Alice nodded, the student council president also nodded towards a female student.
The person outside the door was likely someone the student council president had summoned in advance…
…or maybe not.
“Oh.”
The student council president’s eyes widened slightly. As if an unexpected visitor had arrived.
It wouldn’t be strange for other high-ranking nobles to visit since invitations weren’t sent only to us.
However, the problem was,
“Lady Crowfield.”
Yep, the person the smiling student council president addressed was none other than Mia Crowfield.
And she didn’t look like a well-maintained Countess’s daughter. But since she’s high nobility, it seems she doesn’t neglect hygiene altogether.
However, her normally glossy black hair appeared quite dull. Some ends were slightly tangled.
The most ominous part of her hairstyle was the long straight bangs that carelessly draped over her face.
Do you know the ghost from the Japanese horror movie Sadako
?Her hairstyle looked like it was about to crawl out of an old black-and-white TV screen.
If this were a normal Earth setting instead of a game-based world, I bet beneath that hair would be an unkempt, acne-ridden face. Because no matter how well you manage the hair, oil will inevitably shine through.
Of course, the face beneath Mia Crowfield’s hair was that of a lovely girl with a pure image.
“…I received an invitation…”
The somewhat weak voice was so gloomy that even I, with over ten years of experience, could immediately recall that sound. Gloomy enough to be thought of as distinctive. Not a bad voice, though.
“Indeed, I sent the invitation.”
The student council president, who had been using honorifics to us, suddenly dropped his tone. But it wasn’t like he tossed courtesy out the window. It felt like, as if it were rightful, a polite boss talking to a subordinate.
“Oh, but…”
“It’s okay.”
As the student council president began to apologize to Mia, Alice interrupted.
“It wouldn’t be a problem for her to listen in on our conversation, right?”
“That’s true, but…”
As we were talking about joining the student council, there shouldn’t be an issue with Mia Crowfield, who came for the same purpose, listening in.
Though it’s not technically an issue…
That would only be true from the perspective of the student council president and those listening, but honestly, it posed a slight problem for me.
Er, did Mia Crowfield even show up in the original work?
Her grades were decent, and the Count Crowfield family didn’t fall into ruin. The family head had merely died; the territory was intact, and there were no revelations of wrongdoing. The Emperor ordered that assassination strictly for political reasons, not out of a desire for justice.
In fact, with power and territory intact, Mia Crowfield’s personal worth might have risen. If she graduated from the academy or dropped out midway to marry, she could manage the vacant territory somehow.
There are methods to seduce the now-aloner Countess as well, but a Countess wouldn’t easily fall for such blatant temptation.
Although her face was hidden, if one looked closely, their eyes could be seen through the locks of hair. Naturally, she had to look ahead, so when she glanced this way, part of her eye would naturally peek out.
And I was convinced that Mia Crowfield and I met eyes.
In fact, she stared at me for a while.
“…”
It doesn’t really matter how outstanding Crowfield’s information network might be. The Emperor undoubtedly had backdoor dealings with the remaining Countess after the Count’s death. He probably advised her to keep her mouth shut and live quietly, turning a blind eye to what transpired in the territory, who the Count was, and so on.
He must have told her not to confront him politically, or she’d be next.
And if she chose to live quietly under such circumstances, that would create a significant grudge against the Emperor.
That resentment would be passed down through generations. Parents teach their children only reasons to despise the opposing party, without explaining how such weaknesses came to be.
If Crowfield was raised that way, it’s only natural for her to hold extremely negative feelings toward me.
If she did her homework, she had likely heard the rumors about the Emperor’s children.
“…Huh?”
Alice’s gaze was going back and forth between Mia Crowfield and me. Since I could read my expression, it was natural for her to notice Mia’s ‘behavior’ as well.
“…Are those people over there…”
“Hmm?”
The student council president seemed somewhat flustered by Mia Crowfield’s sudden statement.
She hadn’t shown any etiquette toward the Crown Princess or Princess, nor to those who had greeted her.
“Are those people also interested in joining the student council?”
“…”
Her voice was ominous and somewhat unclear, but I could almost grasp her intent.
Does she want to participate in the same activities as me?
…Is she trying to approach me?
I scrutinized Mia Crowfield’s face once more.
This time, our eyes indeed locked.
And if my guess was right, Mia Crowfield was glaring at me.