Chapter 58

I'm late!

And it's long!

I've split it into two parts, so I'll update again tomorrow morning!

Please look forward to it!

Then, a week later—

"Basically, you're saying we have to do another dangerous tightrope walk, right?"

"…Yes."

"Haa…"

"I'm really, really sorry…"

Cecilia apologized with a guilty voice to Gilbert, who sighed heavily on the other side of the door.

That day, Cecilia was in her dorm room.

She slipped on a brand new jacket and spoke to Gilbert, who was outside the door.

"But, after thinking about it, I still think this is the most reliable method."

"To exorcise the 'hindrance'?"

"Yeah. So, even though I don't want to, I have to do it! I might worry you, Gilbert…"

"I don't mind worrying. It's not like it's a big deal now…"

Cecilia smiled wryly at his resigned tone. She felt guilty for worrying him, but at this point, she had to deal with the 'hindrance' herself if she wanted a peaceful future.

First, she needed to meet with Ein and Zwei.

She carefully set her wig and straightened her collar. Then, she checked her appearance in the mirror.

"Alright!"

In the mirror, there was the figure of the well-dressed young baron, Cecil Admina.

The outfit was more formal than her uniform but less ornate than her evening wear, which she had prepared before entering school in case she needed it.

When she opened the door, there was Gilbert, also dressed formally. His usually tousled bangs were half-pinned back, giving him a generally darker impression.

"Shall we go?"

"Yep!"

With that, the two of them walked down the dormitory hallway side by side.

In the game, the meeting between the twins and Lean is depicted at a spring tea party held at the Vruhel Academy.

Vruhel Academy, where the future nobles and noblewomen who will bear the weight of their families and countries study, holds large-scale tea parties modeled after social gatherings once in spring and once in autumn. While participation is generally voluntary, many students attend to build connections that will be useful in the future, so most students participate.

Lean, invited by Cecilia, attended the tea party. However, she came in her usual uniform without a dress, and became a laughingstock among the young ladies, including Cecilia and her entourage. Of course, Cecilia knew that Lean didn't have a dress and was unaware of the etiquette of social gatherings, and had invited her with the intention of making her a laughingstock from the start.

In other words, it was bullying.

Lean, who didn't understand the common knowledge of the nobility, couldn't grasp why she was being laughed at and looked down, almost on the verge of tears.

At that moment, the twins from the Makias family appeared gallantly.

They shielded Lean and spoke to Cecilia.

"That kind of thing, we don't really care about, you know."

"You don't have the right to judge her just because you're dressed up, do you?"

Cecilia, who was already red-faced, became angry and left. To the stunned Lean, they said:

"It's okay, right?"

"Would you like to rest over there with us?"

And so, Lean gradually became friends with the twins…

Cecilia was about to recreate this event.

Not at the spring tea party, but at the autumn tea party.

"The problem is how to meet them. I don't want to give them a bad impression, so I don't want to bully Lean…"

"Leave that to you. For now, can you tell me where Ein is going to be held captive? And any information about Zwei's feelings?"

Cecilia blinked at her stepbrother's matter-of-fact words.

"Gil. Isn't that assuming I'll fail?"

Cecilia's words met with a cold stare from Gilbert.

"Reflect on your actions so far. …Do you really think nothing will happen and everything will go smoothly?"

"Well, that…"

He had a point.

In less than half a year, Cecilia had made numerous mistakes. From his perspective, who had been closest to her and had covered for her, this was probably to be expected.

"You, you act on instinct without thinking."

"Ugh…"

"You make important decisions without consulting anyone."

"Ugh…"

"Then, you only report after the fact and leave the follow-up to me…"

"Ah…"

"To be honest, I wonder why I fell for such a person once a week."

"I'm really sorry."

Cecilia, pierced by his words, slumped her shoulders.

Gilbert, seeing her out of the corner of his eye, raised the corners of his lips in a resigned manner.

"Well, it's fine. I'm used to being dragged around."

"Gil…"

"Right. If you understand, spill it quickly. We can't let it turn into a real kidnapping or suicide. You have information from Grace, right?"

"…Yes."

At his urging, Cecilia shared the information she knew. However, since she hadn't cleared this route in her previous life, the information she had was limited, mostly from Grace.

Volume 2 of the manga will be released on December 28th!

Thank you very much! (Loudly)