The Knight Who Broke Off Our Engagement and Told Me to Never Show My Face Again Still Clings to Me Today, Even Though I Was Possessed and Turned Into a Villainess for Ten Years - 6 - Only Friend
After that, the man who had been acting strange also thanked me, and I had some delicious cake and tea. Then I went straight home.
While eating dinner, I told my parents about what had happened that day and how much fun I had. They both listened happily. It seemed I usually had my meals brought to my room and ate alone. Thinking about how lonely that must have made them feel hurt my heart.
And Father promised to find a private tutor for me soon.
“I’m sorry, I’ve offered very good conditions, but…”
“Please don’t apologize. It’s not your fault, Father.”
Yes, even though the offer had surprisingly good conditions, they still couldn’t find anyone.
But if you think about it normally, it would be strange for Sadie Arclight, who had a bad reputation, to suddenly look for a tutor. It was too suspicious. Even I probably wouldn’t take the job.
So, for a while, to avoid pushing myself, Mother would teach me different things every few days.
“You’re really good at sewing.”
“Right? I always did it in the dark and in a hurry, so doing it slowly in a bright place like this is easy.”
“My lady…”
“Oh, it’s totally okay! Sorry, don’t worry about it.”
Because of that, I spent most of my free time sewing. I kept making gifts for everyone with a happy feeling, hoping they would like them.
Hara always kept me company and talked with me.
“By the way, did I really not have any friends?”
“No. You often picked fights with other young ladies and caused trouble… But, Lady Eliza came to visit you a few times. I think she was your only friend.”
“Eliza…?”
“Yes, the daughter of Baron Haynes. She was very kind, even to us servants. A very lovely person.”
Coincidentally, the friend I was closest with over the past ten years in that place also had the name Eliza. I thought it might be the same person, but that name was pretty common among our generation.
I think I heard her last name once, but I couldn’t remember it at all. In that place, we were just “Sadie” and “Eliza.”
We didn’t talk much about our noble lady days because it only brought pain. I hoped she, like me and Gerald, had returned to her original body.
“Lady Eliza, huh…”
She was someone who could be friends even with the terrible person I used to be. She must be truly wonderful.
I thought I wanted to meet her.
◇◇◇
A week had passed since I returned to my original body, and now I was writing a letter to Gerald. My handwriting was terribly bad, but I hoped he would understand.
I wrote that I was living happily and doing well, and that I wanted to see him and talk someday. I put the letter in a cute envelope.
I was a little worried that a letter from Sadie Arclight might not be accepted. I prayed that it would reach Gerald and handed it to a maid.
The weather was nice today, and I was thinking about asking Mother to have tea in the garden, when Hara told me Father was calling for me. So I headed to the parlor.
My parents were sitting on the sofa with gloomy expressions. Worried that something had happened, I sat across from them.
“Actually, this just arrived. I thought I should tell you too.”
Father said that and placed a letter in front of me. It looked like some kind of invitation.
I opened it carefully and slowly read the letter. It used a lot of stiff and difficult words.
“Um… a ball?”
“Yes. The royal family is hosting a ball next month. This is an invitation for you.”
A royal ball. And for me. I had a bad feeling.
“You see, Sadie. Actually, all noble sons and daughters who turn 18 have to attend this ball.”
“What?”
“We attended it too when we turned 18. It’s a tradition from long ago.”
In this country, the suitable age for marriage is 18, and the ball is a traditional event for that reason. I had no idea.
“But if you go now, it’ll only be painful for you. You don’t have to attend. We just thought we should tell you, in case you hear about it from somewhere else.”
“Are you sure it’s okay…?”
“Yes. There’s no punishment or anything if you don’t go.”
That’s what they said, but it was called mandatory. I couldn’t believe “I don’t want to go, so I won’t” would actually work.
“…Alright.”
For now, I gave that answer and returned to my room.
I was still worried whether it was really okay not to attend. I had no manners, and I couldn’t dance at all. Going might make things worse.
At times like this, who should I talk to? Asking the servants would just get me the same answer as my parents.
After thinking for a while, I decided to write a letter to Lady Eliza, who was said to be my only friend.
◇◇◇
“Hehe, it’s been a while. You calling me over is quite rare, isn’t it?”
A few days after I sent the letter, Lady Eliza came to visit. I thought writing something like “Actually, my body was taken over and I recently got it back” would just cause confusion, so I only wrote that I had something to discuss and wanted to meet her.
She had beautiful golden hair like silk and pink eyes. She was very pretty. Her manners and way of speaking were gentle, and from the first impression, I could tell she was a wonderful woman.
I took her to my room, asked the maid to prepare tea, and then requested to be left alone with her. Lady Eliza took a sip from her teacup and smiled gently.
“By the way, I heard Lord Rufus finally broke off the engagement with you? Well, I think that was the obvious result.”
“Um… did I do something?”
“Oh, don’t play dumb. I heard you used the Langridge Marquis family name and got involved in something almost criminal.”
“What?”
This was the first I had heard of it. I had done something way worse than I thought. As she said, it was no surprise the engagement was canceled.
Actually, I was lucky that was all that happened. I couldn’t imagine how much trouble I caused the Langridge family. I didn’t really understand, but it might have been something that could’ve gotten the whole family punished.
Even so, my family hadn’t been blamed or held responsible yet. I could only be thankful to the marquis family and Rufus.
“But in the end, it worked out well for both of us. I’ll take him.”
“…Huh?”
Take him? What did she mean? I didn’t understand, and I was wondering how to start the conversation when—
“Still, you’ve really changed. Even someone like you must have been shocked when Lord Rufus dumped you.”
“Um, actually, I—”
“Hehe, you’re not about to say something silly like ‘I’ve returned to my original body,’ are you?”
She giggled with a voice like a bell.