Reuden entered in an unusually fancy but still sensible outfit, consisting of a black jacket, a golden tassel on each of his shoulders, dizzying golden embroidery, and a brooch on his chest in the shape of the Blair family crest.

Not only that but half of his hair was combed over to the side, showing off his smooth forehead. From what I had seen so far, he had let his hair down naturally.

What the hell is up with that outfit?

“Not throwing anything today?” he asked flatly.

“Huh?”

“Whenever I come into your room, you always throw things at me as if to kill me.”

“What?”

“Never mind. Anyway, don’t you even think about coming.”

“I don’t understand anything you’re saying.”

“Drop the act.”

Right then, a familiar ding burrowed into my ears as the translucent window popped up.

================================

TODAY’S SECOND MISSION

Today is the day of the banquet celebrating the safe return of the Order of Hugo! You weren’t invited, but crash it anyway!

Accept / Decline

================================

The Order of Hugo? A celebratory banquet? I thought. I stood blinking for a while and then opened my mouth.

“B-banquet?”

“See? You do know.”

“Today’s the celebratory banquet for the Order of Hugo?”

“How do you know about the Order of Hugo?”

I ignored him and silently repeated the words “Order of Hugo” in my mouth. I had seen the mention of Order of Hugo on some report a week ago, but I still had no clue about a banquet.

Oh! That was when I finally remembered. The Order of Hugo consisted of knights who hunted dragons around the world, including those who were hibernating and those wreaking havoc. It had started small, but its influence grew and grew until the king began to take notice.

The novel had explained that the celebratory banquet was so grand because the king wanted the order to join the royal forces.

Oh my... How could I forget? I felt a chill as if blood was draining out of my body. That banquet was where Renee Blair died!

And that’s supposed to be today? This mission was probably the reason she went to the banquet.

In that case, I just won’t go. Problem solved. I stretched out my finger toward the “Decline” button discreetly so that Reuden would not notice, but before I could press it, he began to speak.

“I just asked how you know about the Order of Hugo.”

“What, am I supposed to not know about it?”

“You don’t care about things like that.”

“I may not care, but I still hear a thing or two. And don’t worry, I’m not going to the banquet.”

Reuden stared at me suspiciously.

Ugh. I already said that I wouldn’t go. To show him that I had no interest in any banquet, I sat down on the chair as if I were about to get to work.

His gaze slid to the neat pile of paperwork on my desk and then back to me. “And don’t get into trouble.”

“Come on. I haven’t been getting into trouble at all lately,” I told him.

“Don’t hurt yourself either,” he said nonchalantly.

Surprised, I looked at him with widened eyes.

He maintained his signature cold look. “You thought I wouldn’t know?”

I blinked and remained silent.

“It’s good that you at least stopped beating other people for no reason.”

In a flash, he walked right up to the desk, and his hand carefully approached my cheek. I could feel the chill coming from his hovering hand.

What the hell is going on? I was so nervous that I couldn’t even breathe.

Reuden clicked his tongue. “However, I didn’t want you to start beating yourself instead.”

“I-I thought you weren’t worried about me.”

“Of course that changes if you are the victim. Self-harm? Are you out of your mind?”

What? I thought he was genuinely worried about my well-being, but he was just worried that I was crazy. I felt embarrassed that I had been so nervous. I batted his hand away. As I did so, my hand hit the mission window that was nearby.

“My mind is fine!” I exclaimed.

“Sure.”

Reuden turned his back to me as he rubbed his hand. I was about to talk back to him some more, but I had to shut my mouth. I forgot what I had to say because the sight of Reuden’s face as he turned around made my mind go blank.

I’m not sure, but... No, it can’t be... I could have sworn that he was smiling.

***

If you asked me if Reuden was a smiley guy, I could say with certainty that he was very much not. I never liked him as a romance candidate in the first place because he was always so cold. But now, he was smiling? To his little sister whom he gave up on because she was such a pain in the neck?

“I must have imagined it. Without a doubt.”

As I was nodding to myself in the empty room, I suddenly remembered the mission.

Right, I need to press “Decline.” I hastily turned my head but strangely enough, the window that should have been in my view was gone.

Huh? Wh-why... Where did it go? Suddenly, a thought shot through my head like a lance. Just a moment ago, when I batted away Reuden’s hand… I did hit the window then. Did I press the button? What did I press? If I pressed “Decline,” then the third mission would show up soon. But if I pressed “Accept,” then...

“Mission,” I called out, hoping with every fiber of my being that I hadn’t.

Ding.

================================

MISSION IN PROGRESS

Today is the day of the banquet celebrating the safe return of the Order of Hugo! You weren’t invited, but crash it anyway!

================================

No! Dear god, no! The window was literally in my face. I grabbed my head in disbelief.

Can’t I still cancel? Is there an option to abort? I could not find such an option anywhere. I planted my face in my hands in despair.

I’m done for... If I can’t cancel, then I have to go to the banquet. What if I really die? Wait. What if I just don’t do it? Try me. No... I’ll still get the penalty. It felt like I had lost ten years of my lifespan just by accepting the mission.

It’s all Reuden’s fault. I knew that he wasn’t actually to blame, but I just needed a scapegoat. I let out a miserable sigh as if my soul were leaking out of my body.

I then saw the servant bell at the corner of the desk. It was for me to call the maids. I had never used it before, but today was different. Now was when I needed the maids’ strength and skills the most. I gravely made up my mind, snatched the bell, and rang it.

***

“My lady, if the lord catches you this time, a mere slap on the wrist won’t suffice,” said Catherine as she offered me her hand. She looked concerned.

It must have been because I went against Reuden and came to the palace anyway. I was determined to complete the mission. I gave Catherine my brightest smile and took her hand to get off the carriage.

“Don’t worry! I’m going to be right out.”

“To reiterate, you simply can’t enter without an invitation.”

“And I’ve gone to a ton of banquets without an invitation.”

Catherine pressed her lips together. Mmhmm, she can’t deny that.

“I know what you’re worried about, Catherine, but it’s okay. I’m going to be totally calm. Nothing’s going to happen.”

She stared at me with distrust before she relaxed. I gave her another smile and secretly sighed. I actually had no plan at all. I knew I didn’t get an invitation because the mission window said so, but I just didn’t understand. It was a banquet held by the crown itself.

And they didn’t give me an invitation? Me, the sister of the marquis? Sure, Renee Blair may have been a jerk, but they really didn’t invite a major noblewoman? Is it possible that someone intercepted the invitation? It was a ridiculous thought. I needed to focus on the task at hand.

Forget about the invitation. All I need to worry about is how I’m going to get in. Renee Blair supposedly showed up at any banquet, no matter whether she was welcome or not, and made a scene—but I couldn’t do something like that.

I can’t cause a mess. I need to recover my reputation and hang out with Anastasia as soon as possible. Especially not at the banquet where Renee Blair died in the novel. I shook my head at the chilling thought. I needed to crash the party peacefully, no matter the cost.

Catherine, who had been talking to the coachman, was quick to escort me. The past week’s grind had paid off and Catherine was ever so slightly more friendly.

See? Even now, she holds my hand to help me off the carriage. She’s even escorting me. That’s a good sign, right? Slowly but surely, my notorious image was changing. A satisfied smile spread on my face when Catherine spoke.

“By the way, my lady, you look very pale today.”

“Pale? Oh... I just put on a lot of makeup to hide the bruise.”

Props to Hendel. As soon as I rang the bell, the maids swarmed into my room: Hendel, of course, and Laura, whom I had talked to a few times, and Julie and Lyn, whom I hadn’t spoken with but had still seen often. But the housekeeper was not present, which I considered ridiculous.

What does she even do? I should have asked the maids why she was never around when they were dolling me up. Anyway, when I had asked Hendel to help me prepare for the banquet, she had proceeded to nag me as she powdered my face.

“My lady, why do you keep slapping yourself these days? It breaks my heart.”

If I hadn’t done that, then I would have had to hit you instead, Hendel dear. And I’d never do such a thing. I had almost spoken these thoughts aloud, but I managed to wisely keep them to myself.

My paleness was all the fruit of Hendel’s labor. That said, the makeup was definitely overdone. I knew it and so did the maids, but it was the best we could do to hide the bruise.

I snapped out of my reverie and looked down at myself. My dress was simple but not shabby. The only normal clothes Renee Blair had were funeral attire, so I had borrowed something from Lyn, the maid who was former nobility. She seemed somehow worried that I would ruin her dress.

I get it... If I were in her shoes, I wouldn’t think that Renee Blair would ever return another person’s clothes in good condition either. But Lyn had nothing to worry about because I was going to simply go in and immediately out of the banquet hall.

“Catherine, do I look modest?” I asked suddenly.

Catherine blinked once and answered seriously, “You’re beautiful.”

“Huh? No, I mean, do I look modest? I don’t care about being beautiful.”

“How could I make such a statement, my lady?”

“Why not? Come on. Tell me honestly. The whole point was to look modest.” I pestered Catherine until she answered me with a rare, hesitant face.

“I don’t know about modest, but you do look uncomfortable. Your face is so pale. You must have switched up your makeup,” she said.

“Is it really that bad? I know that it looks odd, but I didn’t realize that it makes me look ill.”

“I think other people might get the wrong idea.”

Well, at least I look different than usual. That was good enough. Relieved, I looked around at all the carriages lining the street.

So my murderer also arrived in one of these... I paced nervously and arrived at the fancy garden that I had seen on the first day of my arrival.

Oh, that’s right. This is where I met Anastasia. That day, I had jumped with joy after realizing who was standing in front of me.

So is that what it’s like to meet your bias? I had walked all the way to the banquet hall door when I snapped out of my thoughts. The doors were closed while soldiers patrolled the door.

I have to somehow find a way in... I was staring in frustration when I saw a familiar head among the guards. The silver strands glistened like moonlight under the sun.

The woman stood with an elegant posture, but she raised her eyes when she felt my presence. When she looked up, her golden eyes quivered, surprised to see me.

“Anastasia. Uh, hi,” I said awkwardly.

Indeed, it was none other than Anastasia herself.