The Villainous Young Lady Would Even Risk Her Life for Her Beloved ～ Her Fiancé, the Prince? By All Means, Please Be Happy with the Heroine! - Chapter 1.17 (Part 2)

I had already heard from Eliza that Lisa had been actively gathering other young ladies around her.

(As a fan of the original story, learning these behind-the-scenes details makes me both excited and heartbroken!)

This wasn’t the Lisa I knew. She had always been strong-willed, but she never deliberately hurt anyone. Well, she was only ten years old now—maybe she would grow into the character I remembered… I could only hope!

To put it simply, Lisa had been excluding me. Not that I cared—I had no interest in childish power games. Emotionally, it didn’t affect me in the slightest. However, as Eliza pointed out, it wasn’t a good look for a duke’s daughter—or more importantly, the fiancée of the First Prince. If I couldn’t gain the support of the noblewomen, Geoffrey’s path to the throne would be far more difficult. After all, half of the nobility were women.

“Oh my, Lady Lydiana of House Flores all alone? Whatever has happened?”

(Oh, you’re really going to say that? Please, you’ve been waiting for this exact moment!)

I had been immensely popular today. And yet, this was the narrative they wanted to spin: You’re being left out. You have no friends. No influence. How pitiful. You’re unworthy of being the prince’s fiancée. Their hostility was on full display… They could have at least tried to hide it. And those attendants giggling in the background—you lot too!

“My younger brother has gone to fetch some drinks for me.”

Stay calm, stay composed. I had just set my goal for the year—to befriend girls like these. Besides, a ten-year-old’s attempt at insults was almost adorable.

“Oh, you mean Lord Luca… My, my… Hehe.”

“The eldest son of House Flores, isn’t he? I’ve heard quite a few things…”

“Hehehe… That he was the only one among his siblings who didn’t contract Ice Stone Disease.”

Ah. So that’s what they were laughing about.

They were mocking Luca for his low magic reserves. Among noble families—especially those with a lineage of healers—having little magical power was seen as a disgrace. To them, Luca was the family’s black sheep.

(Good thing Luca isn’t here to hear this.)

Now I understood their strategy.

Previously, at another young lady’s tea party, someone had mocked my family, and I had lost my temper—causing a major uproar. They were trying to provoke me into doing the same thing here, right in front of the king.

(Too bad for you! I’m not the same person I was before I nearly died!)

They started it, after all.

“Oh, Lady Lisa! I heard that you recently got engaged! Congratulations! By the way, where is your fiancé?”

Yeah. I gave up on befriending her. Looks like I had to revise my New Year’s resolution already.

(But I won’t let this slide. You’re underestimating an official villainess, aren’t you?)

Lisa fell silent. She knew exactly what I was about to say. The smug smile from before had vanished.

“I heard it was Lord Ryan of House Wessler. Was I mistaken?”

“…Yes, that’s correct.”

Ryan was the second son of the Wessler Marquisate and was set to marry into Lisa’s family. His lineage and magical power were impeccable—he came from a long-established noble house. However, he was seven years older than us, known for being violent, and already gaining a reputation as a compulsive gambler.

The other girls hadn’t heard these rumors yet, so they started glancing at each other in confusion, whispering, “What? What’s this about?”

(More than anything, he’s not Lisa’s type.)

Lisa’s first love was Geoffrey.

That meant I was her first rival in love. She eventually accepted her loss to the second rival, Iris, because she admired her purity and kindness. But for someone like me—an arrogant, self-indulgent noblewoman—to be Geoffrey’s fiancée? That must have been unbearable.

(Acting like this… Is she just venting her frustration?)

Despite being born into the same prestigious lineage of healers, she had been given a fiancé with a tarnished reputation. Meanwhile, my own fiancé was both brilliant and strikingly handsome.

I could understand why she was upset.

But in the end, House Calvina prioritized lineage and tradition. Even if she had feelings for Geoffrey, a marriage between her and the First Prince—who had a commoner mother—was never an option. Both House Calvina and House Wessler were aligned with Lady Serena, the Second and Third Princes’ mother.

(That doesn’t mean I’m going to forgive her, though!)

That was that. This was this.

“Speaking of Lord Ryan, I recently heard some concerning rumors about him… Are you alright?”

“Oh… I… well…”

She hadn’t expected her own fiancé to become the topic of conversation. She immediately averted her gaze. Her attendants, who had been laughing moments ago, looked confused at her sudden change in demeanor.

“If there’s anything I can do to help, please don’t hesitate to ask. I’m sure Geoffrey would be more than willing to assist as well. He’s such a kind and dependable person.”

And thus began my campaign to brag about my fiancé.

If she wanted to play dirty, I would stoop to her level and hit back just as hard! I am ten years old, after all!

Lisa must have realized what I was doing—she glared at me, seething.

“Geoffrey truly is an exceptional person. Not only is he remarkably talented, but he never lets it make him arrogant. He works hard every single day. And despite my many flaws, he treats me with sincerity… I’ve truly come to admire him.”

Might as well throw in an “I’ve changed for the better” monologue while I was at it.

Even though I was currently engaging in the pettiest revenge possible.

“And what kind of person is Lord Ryan?”

“…I… well…”

“Oh, that reminds me! I should host a tea party soon! Why don’t you come, Lady Lisa? And please, bring Lord Ryan along as well!”

“…Thank you… If our schedules align, I would be delighted.”

Her voice kept getting smaller and smaller.

(‘If our schedules align’ means ‘I’m not coming,’ doesn’t it?)

Just then, a familiar voice called from behind me.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Lydi! Oh, are these your friends?”

It was Luca.

“What’s with that dad-like way of asking? You know I don’t have any friends.”

Luca handed me a chilled juice, a sly grin tugging at his lips. He definitely said that on purpose.

Immediately, the surrounding girls perked up. They must not have realized who he was until now.

Behold! My incredibly handsome little brother!

(This is Luca, the younger brother of Lydiana Flores, the villainess! A main character in the original story!)

I resisted the urge to let out a classic villainess laugh.

“Isn’t that getting warm?”

Luca suddenly turned toward one of the girls in Lisa’s entourage. Her face flushed bright red.

With a flick of his fingers, he conjured three small star-shaped ice crystals using magic. They floated in the air, catching the light from the grand hall’s chandeliers and sparkling brilliantly.

“May I?”

“Y-yes!”

As the ice fell into her cup, the drink transformed into something that would be perfect for a social media post.

“I’ve been practicing ice magic lately! If Lydi’s friends don’t mind, I’d love to have their help.”

Luca’s warm, friendly smile sent the young girls into a flustered frenzy. One after another, they held out their glasses eagerly.

With an effortless grace, he guided the ice into their drinks like shooting stars, even freezing some juices and sculpting the ice into delicate shapes—birds, horses, and more. Soon, even the other children, who had been growing bored of the party, gathered around him. In no time, Luca had become the star of the event.

“He can wield ice magic so proficiently at his age?”

“I heard he can’t use healing magic… But it seems the Flores bl00d runs strong after all.”

Hearing the astonished whispers from the nobles, I couldn’t help but feel a little proud. In the end, the true highlight of this party wasn’t me—it was Luca.

Before I knew it, Lisa had disappeared. It felt a bit anticlimactic, but considering that she indirectly set the stage for Luca’s moment in the spotlight, I supposed I could let it slide.

(She should just annul her engagement already…)

In the original story, Lisa did break off her engagement after graduating from the academy. If it was bound to happen anyway, wouldn’t it be better to do it now, while the damage was minimal? Of course, it wouldn’t be that easy, but if she had the energy to take her frustrations out on me, she should channel it toward fixing her own situation instead.

“Looks like everything’s fine now.”

“Oh, welcome back.”

Geoffrey stood beside me, looking somewhat pleased. His gaze was fixed on Luca.

“What did Lady Lione say?”

“Nothing—because you already took care of it.”

Later, I learned that House Calvina and House Wessler’s heads had been visiting Lady Serena frequently. Apparently, Lady Lione had warned Geoffrey to keep an eye on them. It was likely those two houses were the ones spreading the recent rumors.

The New Year’s party concluded without any major incidents, and I returned home feeling relieved.

“I know what people say about me.”

“Luca…”

“You don’t have to go out of your way to be considerate. That’s not like you, Lydi.”

Inside the carriage, Luca smiled.

“I’ve decided to hone something other than magic power.”

As he spoke, a delicate, shimmering snowflake—just like the ones our instructor, Master Alibara, had created—floated above his palm.

“Everyone was praising you today.”

Right? Luca beamed, clearly pleased with himself.

“Well, my training to increase my magic reserves starts this year too. If you slack off, I might just steal the title of the greatest mage in history.”

Judging by what I saw today, that might not be so far-fetched.

I should add improving my magic control to this year’s goals.