Volume 1 Chapter 24 Mean Villainess, Swept Away By Rumors
I heard an incomprehensible rumor.
Recently, it seems that Elena Alfano has been bullied.
Oh, poor Lady Elena.
Lady Elena hasn't done anything wrong.
About those incomprehensible rumors.
What's incomprehensible is that the very person, Elena Alfano, is unaware that she is being bullied.
...Or is that really me?
It's not that I'm oblivious and just haven't noticed.
Because honestly, nothing at all has happened to me.
Another strange thing is that Ms. Natalia, who gathers all sorts of information, doesn't know about this rumor.
I consulted her, mentioning I've heard rumors about being bullied, but she says she knows nothing about it.
I don't know if she really doesn't know or if she's pretending not to know.
Well, since she's such a kind person, I have a feeling she might be pretending not to know because she thinks I could be shocked to learn the truth.
Even so, what exactly is this bullying that has no actual harm?
I mean, who is bullying me, anyway?
I can't even figure that out.
I wondered if Ms. Parsley and Ms. Percella might know, but unfortunately, the two crucial people aren't here right now.
Where did those 2 go?
Class is about to start.
I can't talk to them since they're not here, so I'll ask Leve and Rudger who just showed up...
"I'm sorry Elena, but starting today, I'll have a tutor come every day for a week, so I won't be able to hang out after school."
It's so hard.
"What, every day?"
"Yeah, the regular exams are coming up soon."
Now that you mention it, it's almost time for the regular exams.
I need to study too.
I want to be Lady Elena, the top-ranked girl, for a little longer.
"You're right, tests are important..."
I wondered if Rudger was studying too, but he gave me a bitter smile.
"I have to study too, but..." I'm supposed to help Professor Bruno organize his materials."
"Everyone is busy, huh?"
I suddenly have a whole week free.
Yeah, I need to study though.
Well, it can't be helped that I ended up having free time.
As a student, there are times when studying should take priority over playing.
But let's set that aside for now.
"Oh, by the way, both of you"
"Oh, the teacher is here"
"Ah"
Haven't you heard that I'm being bullied?
That question of mine fluttered away somewhere with the teacher's entrance and the start of morning HR.
By the way, Ms. Parsley and Ms. Percella, who had just been absent a moment ago, have somehow returned.
I wonder if they were in the bathroom.
That carefree thought lasted until that point.
Because in the end, I couldn't consult anyone that day.
Everyone seems to be busy with something, and I can't catch anyone, and even if I do, they leave without giving me a chance to talk.
Could it be that this is bullying?
I'm, being avoided by all my classmates, aren't I?
That anxiety slowly creeps in.
But it's still too early to be sad.
Because I have Rolus with me.
"Well then, let's go home, Rolus"
"...Aren't you supposed to be playing board games with Sir Leve?"
"I'm busy!"
I unintentionally raised my voice.
Isn't this just taking it out on him?
Rolus has done nothing wrong.
"Lady?"
"Everyone is busy for a week starting today. I'm the only one who's free."
"Really?"
"...Rolus is busy too? Are you going to leave me alone and go somewhere?"
"No, I'm Lady's Servant, so I'll always be by Lady's side."
"That's good, after all, what you should have is Rolus, the Servant."
"...I'm not being presumptuous, Lady, but isn't it the other way around?"
"...What you should have is the Servant, Rolus."
Anyway, I have Rolus, so even if I'm free, I won't feel lonely.
I think I'll stop by the toy store on the way home and buy a two-player game.
Something to play with Rolus.
"Hey Rolus, why don't we go buy a new game to play together?"
"Sure"
"Even if you're going to refuse, I'm going... but wait, you're not going to refuse!?"
I was surprised.
I never thought Rolus would refuse something to play for 2 people.
I don't know, but it feels suspicious after going around in circles.
"Lady seems to be feeling really down, so"
"...well, I am feeling down. Hmm? But Rolus? You won't refuse to go buy a game for 2?"
"Did you want me to be refuse?"
"No, that's not it, but it's suspicious. Rolus being too nice is suspicious."
"Huh? "
"It's nothing. Let's go."
This is bad, to doubt the kindness of Rolus who's worried about my sadness is very paranoid.
In the first place, there's no way Rolus would bully me within the academy.
While reflecting on this in the carriage, I headed towards the toy store.
"I wonder what kind of game we should get."
At the toy store I arrived at, I started browsing for games with Rolus in tow.
However, while Rolus didn't refuse to accompany me, it seems he won't help me choose.
"How about this? It says 'The Old Witch's Mansion.' You've been kidnapped by a witch, can you escape from her clutches... Sounds interesting."
"If you fail to escape, a hologram of the witch pops out and laughs loudly, but if it scares you and you can't sleep at night, I won't be responsible."
"It's okay, I'm a bit scared of scary novels, but scary games are fine for me."
In my past life, I loved games about defeating zombies, games about escaping from ghosts, and even games about being chased by murderers.
In my previous life, I loved games where I killed zombies, games where I ran away from ghosts, and games where I was chased by a murderer.
"Just a little?"
"Don't question that."
Games are fine, but novels are no good.
Maybe it's because of my useless imagination, but I always end up having scary dreams.
I have a bad habit of thinking that I should rely on Rolus when I have scary dreams.
"Anyway, let's buy this game. And then, well. Hmm."
I wonder if the mysterious rumor is the reason why I'm so unexcited in the toy store, where I would normally be more excited.
I'm apparently being bullied, but I'm not aware of it, but since there are rumors, people around me think I'm being bullied, and it makes me feel really uncomfortable.
"...I think I'll leave it at that."
"That's not very ladylike, is it?"
"Well... hmm."
"Sir Leve might not prefer this game, right?"
What Rolus pointed at was definitely a board game that Leve would like.
"Yeah. I wonder if he'll play with me once he's not busy..."
"I believe he will. Sir Leve seems to be looking forward to playing with you, Lady."
"When are you talking about?"
As I tilted my head, Rolus mirrored my action.
"It's the usual story."
"The usual... but not today, right?"
"We didn't meet him today, that's true."
Since he said he was busy and hurried off, it makes sense we didn't meet.
Maybe.
"Did Sir Leve say something to you?"
"He just said he was busy. But since everyone keeps saying they're busy, I thought maybe he was avoiding."
"I think he really might just be busy."
"You're asserting that, huh?"
As I said this with a wry smile, Rolus muttered, "Of course," with a puzzled expression.
"Everyone around Lady cares for you very much."
Yeah, that's true.
Seeing Rolus say it so matter-of-factly made me feel like I was coming out of my slight paranoia.
He must really just be busy, so once he has some free time, he'll definitely play with me.
I think I'll leave the mysterious incident of him being bullied alone without giving it too much thought.
"Hey Rolus, I'll buy this cute balance game after all! If you put strawberries on top of the cake and it falls over, you lose!"
"Cake"
It's a simple balance game where you put a strange amount of strawberries on a sponge that is obviously unstable for a cake.
It seems like it can be played by two or a large group, so let's buy one.
"Oh, by the way, can I stop by the bookstore for a bit?"
"Sure."
Since it's this time, I might as well buy some things to kill time.
I've been curious about the Six Magic Knights story that Mister Bruno mentioned the other day, and the tale of Lady Ruby that Mister Eliseo told me, so I was thinking about whether there might be any books on that.
"...You've bought quite a lot, haven't you?"
To be honest, I feel like my excitement got the better of me as my mood improved.
But, well, I suppose it's fine.
Not really.
The bill will go directly to my father, but I'm sure he'll forgive me.
"There were more books about Lady Ruby than I thought, as Professor Eliseo mentioned. They all look interesting, and I couldn't help but"
There were many fictional stories featuring Lady Ruby as the main character.
Most of them are fantasy stories with strong female protagonists, and they all seem really interesting.
"It seems Lady is feeling better, which is a relief."
"I'm sorry for worrying you, Rolus."
"It's only natural for a Servant to worry about their master. And a Lady who apologizes to her Servant loses about 5 points in mean-spiritedness, you know."
"Aah, I've lost points again!"
It has dropped to over minus 20 thousand points; I can't get it back.
In fact, once it exceeds 20 thousand points, counting becomes a hassle...!
This was a week after I had been so carefree.
It seems that everyone who was saying they were busy has become free.
And for some reason, the rumor that I was being bullied has also vanished.
What became clear as the rumor disappeared was the identity of the person who was bullying me.
Surprisingly, the one who was bullying me was that wealthy Lady from House Margrave whom I encountered at Sir Lorentz's match.
"Hmm?"
That was my first reaction when the identity of the bully was revealed.
Because, until now, since the rumors started, I hadn't even seen her face.
How did she even bully me?
Or rather, what is this bullying that she has done to me, the future Mean Villain?
If she had been bullied in a clear way, I would have used it as a lesson.
If she had been bullied in a way that was more insidious than insidious, like being secretly bullied, I wouldn't have noticed and it wouldn't have been of any use.
Well, putting that aside,
along with the revelation of the bully's true identity, another thing became clear.
That is, regarding Sir Lorentz's bride candidates.
It seems that a formal bride candidate has been chosen.
And it was that wealthy Lady from the Margrave family.
It appears that once Sir Lorentz's bride candidates were narrowed down to either her or me, her bullying started, and it subsided once the bride candidate was determined.
"Hmm..."
The rumor that I was being bullied, everyone suddenly getting busy, the conclusion of the bullying and the determination of the bride candidates, the disappearance of the rumor...
I can't help but feel like it all resolved smoothly.
"I'm glad it resolved safely, Lady Elena."
Ms. Natalia, who explained the series of events to me, is smiling.
"Is it really safe, I wonder?"
"Huh? Lady Elena, did someone do something to you!?"
"...No, I probably wasn't done anything to."
After all, Ms. Natalia, who didn't even know at first that I was rumored to be bullied, is explaining this, and the way she said, "Did someone do something to you!?" seems to assume that nothing happened to me, which feels very unnatural.
"Well, I'm safe, but Sir Lorentz is going to get engaged to that bully soon, right?"
"It seems that way, yes."
Is Sir Lorentz really okay with that?
No, I'm not saying it would have been better for me, though.
The rich seem to stick with the rich, and that lady.
"Hmm...?"
In the end, it has resolved, so there's no problem, but something feels off.
I don't feel clear about it.
"Elena! I have some free time for a while, can we play today?"
"Yes, we can play!"
I'm not satisfied, but since Leve is playing with me, it doesn't seem like he's being bullied by his classmates, so I guess it's okay.
"I have a game that will make Rolus jump up in surprise. What? Ms. Natalia wants to play too."
"What, it will make Mr. Rolus jump up in surprise...? I'll pass!"
Ms. Natalia has run away.
"That Rolus will jump up..."
"Yes, I won't let Leve get away. For leaving me lonely for a week, you'll have to pay the price."
"Ah, I'm sorry, Elena...!"
No matter how much he apologizes here, he's already certain that he'll become the witch's prey!
I'll intentionally make mistakes just to ensure him become the witch's prey!
Then, while eagerly and intentionally making the witch leap out, I received a nice boost of a thousand points in mischievousness from Rolus.
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