Lizzy Lynn August, the eldest daughter of the August Marquis family.

She was like a representation of a diligent noble lady who had grown up building many connections while immersing herself in high society from a young age.

Until now, she had easily built up her network using her eye for people and the position of the August Marquis family.

At this masquerade ball, though, she was earnestly realizing that something was going wrong.

 

‘Is that man really the only son of the Blackwood family…?’

 

At first, she just thought he was some viscount or baron’s son that she wasn’t aware of.

With his slightly messy black hair, toned muscles, and outfit fully armed in drab black, even at this banquet hall…

…she naturally assumed he was from some unpopular noble family in the outskirts since he was a type of person she had never seen before.

It was hard for her to even imagine there being a high-ranking noble that she, who had participated in countless social circles since the young age of eight, didn’t know.

Moreover, the fact that the other party was actually Ethan Richard Blackwood, who was revealing himself at a social gathering for the first time, was such an exceptional case that it was impossible for her to even consider it.

However, looking at just the results, Lizzy failed to recognize Ethan Richard Blackwood until right before he revealed his identity himself.

The mistake she made, as a result, had long passed the point where she could smooth things over on her end.

Having immersed herself in high society since childhood, Lizzy had a knack for reading people’s psychology.

In particular, one of her specialties was guessing the emotions the other party was experiencing in a given situation to elicit the reaction she wanted.

In fact, in many situations, Lizzy used this ability to make the other party feel indebted to her or, conversely, to naturally smooth over her own mistakes.

While searching for the masked Third Princess Seraphine among the many people, bumping the cocktail in her hand into someone else’s shoulder was definitely a “mistake.”

However, in that situation, instead of admitting her fault, she got angry at the other party, which was a calculated action that popped out after grasping the situation and calculating her gains.

Since both the other party and their partner were faces she had never seen in high society, she naturally assumed they wouldn’t be higher ranked than the August Marquis family, at the very least.

It was a situation where, in an accident where her own fault was clearly greater, the other party ended up suffering more damage.

If she admitted her mistake first, it could sometimes be seen as the August family owing a debt to the other family.

To prevent such a situation, she took a brazen attitude instead.

If she could provoke the other party’s anger and draw out insulting remarks, at least it wouldn’t simply end as a disgrace for the August family.

Of course, what actually returned from the other party was a calm response, completely different from what she expected.

 

“How about we consider this both our faults and just let it go rather than making a fuss?”

“…?”

 

She thought the other party would naturally get angry at her for spewing brazen words despite being the one who caused harm, but the other young lady just summarized what happened as “both our faults” and ended the situation in an instant.

When she came to her senses, she found herself absently nodding her head after hearing the other’s apology.

Although it felt like she lost a psychological battle, the situation itself was actually going well for her.

From Lizzy’s standpoint, making her mistake disappear as if it never happened was the most amicable solution.

Moreover, Lizzy, who had been rolling around in high society for over 10 years, was instinctively sensing a danger on her radar for some reason.

It was a moment when she had an ominous premonition that if she didn’t meekly accept this proposal, her life could be in danger, depending on the circumstances.

 

“I have no choice. I’ll have to mercifully forgive you this time.”

 

That’s why Lizzy tried to wrap up the situation as quickly as possible and hurriedly leave the scene, but right after the conversation, the young lady’s partner, whose clothes were damaged, called out to her again.

Getting fired up at those words and arguing again ended up being the worst mistake she made today.

Lizzy never could have predicted that the young lady’s partner would be the eldest son of the Blackwood family.

In a situation where she felt she also had to reveal her family name, she was caught in quite a dilemma.

 

‘…What should I do?’

 

If she had known he was the young master of the Blackwood family, she would have immediately prostrated herself on the ground and begged for forgiveness the moment she made the mistake.

Even if she didn’t directly offend the Blackwood family’s young master, the damage done to his partner was no different from insulting him.

But, since she had never seen the man nor the woman in high society before, Lizzy mistook them both for people of lower status than herself.

That became a fatal mistake that ended up cornering her.

 

‘If I get on my knees and apologize now, could I be forgiven…?’

 

If forgiveness was possible, she was willing to prostrate on the ground right this instant, but that would not be enough, considering the gravity of the deed she had committed.

The Blackwood family’s young master was clearly exuding a sinister aura that felt like murderous intent towards her.

Lizzy was certain that she had long missed her chance to be forgiven.

At best, the possibility of this passing without incident would be if that man was actually a lower noble impersonating the Blackwood family…

 

‘…Ah.’

 

But Lizzy ended up spotting the sword hilt at his waist.

The Blackwood family crest and the pattern that only one family in the empire could use. The hilt of the sword depicts a black double-headed eagle.

 

‘…I have to leave right now.’

 

Now that apologizing and receiving forgiveness was impossible, and she was certain the other party was the Blackwood family’s young master…

…the best action Lizzy, as the young lady of the August Marquis family, could take was to just avoid this place and hurriedly escape.

It was a bitter failure not to be able to meet Princess Seraphine, which was her original goal, but right now, the biggest loss was her relationship with the Blackwood family becoming strained even more than it already was.

She had no choice but to quickly flee from the ballroom before more people gathered and someone recognized her identity.

 

‘First, I need to quickly find Caraham inside this banquet hall. If he stays, my identity will end up being revealed. And as soon as I return, I need to change my hairstyle. On top of that, I should refrain from attending high society events for a while…’

 

If she could just take her younger brother, who participated in the masquerade ball as her partner, and hurriedly leave the scene, there was a high possibility those two wouldn’t be able to chase her to the end.

In any case, their main purpose was also to build ties with the Imperial family, so they would prioritize that over tracking down some noble.

 

“You seemed to have quite a lot to say, but suddenly became quiet.”

“……”

“Since I revealed my family to you first, I’d like to hear who you are and which family you’re from this time.”

“……”

 

Feeling pressured by Ethan approaching her step by step, Lizzy desperately moved her eyes behind the mask to search for her younger brother, Caraham.

Fortunately, before long, she could confirm a man with striking sky-blue hair like her own entering her field of vision.

Now, she just needed to take her younger brother and get out of this ballroom as soon as possible, she thought.

However, unfortunately for Lizzy Lynn August, there was one fatal problem she failed to consider.

 

“S-Sister! Get away from that nasty guy!”

 

Her younger brother, Caraham Jamuel August, was a muscle-brain with no tact whatsoever.

“You seemed to have quite a lot to say, but suddenly became quiet.”

“……”

“Since I revealed my family to you first, I’d like to hear who you are and which family you’re from this time.”

 

The sky-blue-haired young lady instantly fell silent the moment Ethan revealed his family name.

Seeing that hesitation, I could immediately tell that her family definitely wasn’t at a level that could overwhelmingly dominate the Blackwood family.

To begin with, it was doubtful whether there even was a family within the empire capable of dominating the Blackwoods.

It was sufficiently predictable that this would happen the instant Ethan revealed the Blackwood name.

I could also cautiously predict what judgment she would make in the end after being cornered.

 

‘She’ll probably run away. She won’t reveal her family until the end.’

 

Ethan was already creating a menacing atmosphere around that woman, and the karma she had accumulated was far too great to receive forgiveness through an apology now.

She, who had brazenly raised her voice relying solely on her family’s prestige, saw her ace in the hole backfire. She was essentially no different from a cornered mouse.

Among the methods that the woman could attempt in the current situation, the only plausible solution was to flee.

…Well, I should probably tell Ethan that she’s preparing to run away.

After confirming the young lady rapidly moving her pupils behind the mask, I quietly whispered to him beside me about what I saw and felt.

 

“Ed.”

“Li-Lilith…?”

“I think that woman is planning to run away.”

“Huh…?”

“…Just keep that in mind.”

 

It was information I shared literally just for him to keep in mind.

I wasn’t telling Ethan to stop her from running away or to be on guard in case she does manage to escape.

I thought this sudden acceleration from Ethan to make the situation rough could be his political move in a way.

Although I wasn’t actually Ethan’s fiancée and was just his exclusive maid, in any case, the only ones here who knew that fact were Ethan and me (+Princess Seraphine).

The situation just now where his partner was insulted was an opportunity that could be utilized as no small political gain for Ethan.

 

‘He probably calculated that he could make them sufficiently indebted to him since the other party’s family doesn’t seem to be a small one either.’

 

In reality, it was that young lady’s cocktail that spilled on my commoner clothes, but if he wanted to, it could be inflated into an issue between families without any problem.

In particular, such one-sided insults could be used as a significant weakness in future deals between nobles.

Considering the possibility of getting entangled with that opposing noble later on, it was advantageous in many ways to definitely place them indebted to him.

 

‘He’s certainly using his head well these days as he’s considering territorial management, too.’

 

Just like how he pressured Emilia through the guards last year, he clearly knew what would or wouldn’t benefit him and his family.

Although I ended up being used twice in the process, I didn’t particularly feel bad about it.

In any case, that woman was someone I found unpleasant too, and watching her get screwed over was a refreshing spectacle for me as well.

…However, it was a bit embarrassing when I realized it was just my misunderstanding to think Ethan stepped up to defend me.

 

‘Still, the fact is he gave that woman who annoyed me a piece of his mind as a result. I’ll consider that as a reward.’

 

From now on, it was Ethan’s freedom to do as he wished.

Whether he just roughly kicks her out after watching her run away…

…or completely blocks her escape and accuses her of greater crimes…

I was watching the situation unfold with the mindset of a spectator watching a fire across the river, predicting he would choose the latter. Then Ethan, who heard my advice, also began muttering something quietly to me.

 

“Got it. If that’s what Lilith wants.”

“…Pardon?”

 

What did I want?

While wondering about Ethan’s sudden monologue, I observed the situation, and the cornered young lady finally showed a movement as if trying to escape.

Both Ethan and I were focusing on the sky-blue-haired young lady’s actions, unable to let go of our tension, when…

 

“…S-Sister! Get away from that nasty guy!”

“…!!”

“……”

“…?”

 

At the man’s voice coming from outside our field of vision, the eyes of the three of us, including that woman, instantly shifted in that direction.

 

“D-Don’t touch my sister Lizzy, you sinister-looking bastard!!”

“…Huh?”

 

I’ve definitely heard this voice before.

No, it wasn’t just the voice.

Although part of his eyes were covered by the mask, I could clearly identify that character.

Sky-blue hair, a familiar physique, a voice I’ve heard before, and a recognizable sword design.

…Moreover, he just called that woman Sister Lizzy.

Considering all of these, there was only one character that fit all the conditions.

 

‘…Caraham Jamuel August.’

 

Alias, Swordfiend Caraham.

Yeah, there’s no way I could forget him even if I tried.

That’s because he was the miniboss of the “Seraphine Kidnapping” incident in Part 3 of Luminor Academy.