MPBAGS Chapter 17

Indeed, as she said, the Grand Temple was remarkably fancy. Probably on par with the imperial palace. Even Henna let out a small gasp of admiration, but Kanna's words were dry. A child her age would normally exclaim over something so beautiful, yet there was even a faint hostility.

Henna attributed it to the young lady's aversion to the temple influencing her younger sister. What other reason could there be for her sister to feel hostile toward the temple?

Whether because of the coachman's extreme courtesy or because they'd alighted from the count's lavishly decorated carriage, people's gazes gathered on them. The Grand Temple's main clientele were nobles, so the exterior landscaping was well-maintained, and many people enjoyed the outdoor scenery.

"That carriage's crest—which family is that?"

"What crest? That crow?"

"No, it's a phoenix. The Rohanson County."

"Did the Rohanson count have children? I've never seen them."

"There's that sickly daughter."

"Oh, right. So which one of them is the daughter?"

"Who knows. The sicker-looking one?"

"Oh my. I heard she died—must have all been rumors."

"Or maybe she resurrected like her family crest."

"What a joke. Haha."

Their jeering carried mockery. Was this why the young lady didn't want to come? Though Henna knew the real reason was different, she felt that way for a moment.

Did those people have any idea that their joke, made to mock the count's family, came close to the truth?

If the young lady had actually come, they wouldn't have dared open their mouths. Transcending social status, Evangeline Rohanson possessed overwhelming authority. Standing before the young lady, anyone would be reduced to a mere human.

"Excuse me, my lady. Are you Lady Rohanson?"

From the group that had been appraising them like merchandise on display, one particularly bold man approached. His gaze was fixed on Kanna. With Henna standing nearby, her face tanned and hands roughened, he seemed to have mistaken Kanna for the young lady.

"You must be confused because we came in a carriage. I'm Miss's maid."

"Oh, really?"

The moment the man learned Kanna wasn't the young lady, his attitude changed immediately. His gentlemanly demeanor vanished in an instant, revealing his true arrogant, condescending nature.

Had Kanna been hurt by his sudden transformation? Henna discreetly checked her sister's condition. Fortunately, Kanna still wore her smile, seemingly unfazed.

"Well, you're dressed too shabbily to be Lady Rohanson."

Henna flinched. She should have followed Kanna's earlier suggestion and stopped by a dress shop before coming. While she herself was just a maid and it didn't matter, having Kanna hear such things felt unpleasant.

And it tarnished the young lady's name too. The young lady didn't care about such things, so Henna should have paid attention.

"Your mistress is too much."

"My mistress is too much?"

"If she's sending you to the temple, she should at least lend you some clothes so you don't embarrass yourselves in public. Don't you think? The Rohanson count has plenty of money. Oh, maybe you wouldn't know?"

"What wouldn't I know?"

When Kanna asked, the man covered his mouth with both hands as if sharing a great secret. But since his voice didn't drop at all, it was clearly just performative.

"That young lady's maternal family is the Hosaquin duchy, right? But the duchy doesn't seem to be supporting her much? Seeing as she doesn't even have money to buy clothes for her maids."

The man laughed as if he'd made the joke of the century. Since his voice remained loud, the people who'd been pretending not to look while glancing over covered their mouths with fans.

Henna was the only one not laughing there. No, there were two.

More than the man's or the nobles' sneering, Henna couldn't bring herself to laugh because her sister's face beside her was far more frightening.

Kanna's smile had frozen when the young lady's name came up, and now her expression had completely vanished. Even Henna, who'd cared for Kanna so long, didn't recognize that look. Or had she seen it once before? When was it? When she'd looked down at Donau's corpse after he'd killed himself by cutting his own throat?

Henna suddenly felt afraid. Surely her sister wouldn't kill that man right here? It was absurd, but Henna genuinely worried.

Fortunately, the man's and people's laughter quickly died away.

"...Miss."

Because no one could laugh frivolously in front of Evangeline Rohanson.

When would Henna and Kanna come back... It had been a while since they left, but there was no word from the girls. So this was how my parents felt waiting for me when I came home late. I suddenly missed them so much I felt tears prickling.

Were they doing well? Mom. Your daughter became a romance fantasy villainess...

"When will they be back?"

"They probably haven't even arrived at the Grand Temple yet."

Looking at the clock, hardly any time had passed at all. So many eventful things had happened in between that I thought it had been five hours.

Today, with Henna and Kanna gone, I went down to the dining room to get lunch. Since I hadn't been in so long, everyone was in a panic. The cook was so nervous with me in the dining room that they cut themselves with the knife, and the maids serving trembled so badly they dropped and broke plates.

Then they apologized on the broken glass, bowing and saying sorry, and even though their hands and legs were bleeding with glass embedded in them, they just watched my reaction. What kind of blood-demanding villainess was I? I told them it was fine and sent them away, instructing the butler to treat them with holy water.

The count didn't eat with me either, so I ate alone while everyone held their breath. The only sounds in that enormous dining room were me eating, silverware clinking, and my chewing. I nearly died of embarrassment.

I miss Kanna and Henna...

Just being friendly with those two apparently wasn't enough to shake off Evangeline's infamy. Well, even if the contents changed, the evil deeds accumulated so far didn't disappear. They probably just thought Evangeline had amnesia.

I hadn't realized how empty it would feel without Kanna, who treated me comfortably. I was worried too. Should I have just gone with them? I hadn't gone because I couldn't muster the courage to look at a corpse painting, but maybe I should have said I'd wait outside.

This wouldn't do.

"Jelly. Let's go to Kanna."

I had a taxi upgrade right here—an otherworld beastfolk ma— no, a sorcerer. Let's teleport there with a whoosh!

I felt like an overprotective parent secretly following their kids on an errand to see how they were doing.

Before going, I needed to change clothes first and grab some money. For clothes, I rummaged through the dressing room and found a modest white dress. Most of the clothes Evangeline used to wear were too frilly for my taste, so I didn't have many options.

If I wanted to escape being a villainess, I should dress more modestly. I'd need to buy some clothes in that style. I hadn't paid attention until now because I never left the house.

"Aren't you favoring that human too much?"

Jelly grumbled as I busily prepared to leave. Even while complaining, he helped brush my hair and picked out a parasol that would suit this outfit. Jelly was the tsundere type. A taciturn knight and a tsundere wolf beastfolk—seeing how the character types didn't overlap, maybe the next one to appear would be a friendly noble who smiled with crinkled eyes in any situation?

"That's overprotective."

No, Jelly, you don't understand!

This was an angsty romance where the heroine got kidnapped and nearly died in the early chapters. In angsty stories, the heroine's carriage just overturns randomly and assassins appear!

I'd kept Kanna by my side ever since she was kidnapped, so I hadn't realized I'd worry this much. Separation anxiety...

Meanwhile, my actual cat was quite independent. Pudding had gone for another walk and wasn't around, so I just left a note. At least it was fortunate Pudding was a beastfolk in this regard. But he was still too young to talk—could he even read? Looking back, Jelly nodded. So he could read.

"Shall we go now?"

Jelly extended his hand.

Physical contact seemed to be a universal requirement for teleportation. When I placed my hand on his, Jelly cast his spell and teleported.

I blinked, and when I opened my eyes, I was inside a carriage. There wasn't even the usual dizziness. Jelly must be quite a skilled magician. Well, looking at Jelly's appearance, he was definitely a major character in this romance fantasy, and major characters had to be capable.

"I teleported us into the carriage to avoid attention. Satisfied?"

"Yeah. Good job."

We'd teleported into the Rohanson estate carriage. The girls had already gotten out and weren't visible. Looking out the carriage window, I could see the Grand Temple.

I thought they'd gone inside, but then I spotted familiar silhouettes standing in the garden. People around them were glancing over and whispering, and a man was talking to them. From the looks of it, they'd been stopped while trying to enter the temple.

The well-dressed man looked like a noble. Don't tell me this was that friendly noble character I'd just mentioned? I hesitated briefly, then relaxed after getting a good look at him. He looked smarmy and arrogant—judging by his face, he definitely wasn't a main character. So maybe he was one of those hunting males who hit on the heroine?

I started to rush over and intervene, then stopped. Wasn't this usually the cliché where some creep bothered the heroine and the male lead rescued her? I had a track record of stealing Gabriel's entrance scene like this before, so I was conflicted.

Right. Let's wait a bit. This was the Grand Temple, so Gabriel's power-up event should trigger.

While waiting, I decided to eavesdrop on what that bastard was spouting.

"...dressed too shabbily."

What did that son of a b*tch just say?

Right now, Kanna and Henna weren't wearing the Rohanson estate's maid uniforms but their everyday clothes. They looked neat and pretty—what was shabby about them? What followed was even more ridiculous.

"Your mistress is too much. If she's sending you to the temple, she should at least lend you some clothes so you don't embarrass yourselves in public. Don't you think?"

Henna had said taking the Rohanson count's carriage would prevent trouble, but it seemed to have backfired. They were probably drawing aggro because Evangeline was a villainess.

That last comment honestly pricked my conscience. In my defense, I hadn't been paying attention to my own clothes either. This was genuinely my fault, but having it pointed out by someone who wasn't even Extra 1 but more like Extra 18 made me furious.

"That young lady's maternal family is the Hosaquin duchy, right? But the duchy doesn't seem to be supporting her much? Seeing as she doesn't even have money to buy clothes for her maids."