Rohel was soaked in water in the original story too.

But being drenched in water heroically in place of Noxia and getting drenched like a bolt from the blue were entirely different matters.

Drip, drip, drip. Rohel silently swept back his dripping red hair. Irritation was evident on his exposed face.

“…You wouldn’t call this an accident, would you?”

He seemed to be referring to my tripping over his foot. Since I caused him to move, and water happened to fall right there at that moment, suspicion was understandable.

Since I had to handle the current situation, I snapped my dazed mind back into focus.

“I was so startled by the unexpected firework noise that I stepped backward and tripped over Your Highness’s foot. I’m sorry, Your Highness.”

In an instant, I cleverly fabricated a plausible excuse.

I couldn’t honestly admit I’d tripped him to bring the two together, so I needed a reasonable pretext Rohel might accept.

“So you expect me to believe that?”

But Rohel’s misunderstanding didn’t seem to clear. Perhaps he interpreted it as me and Noxia conspiring revenge after hearing what he said in the imperial garden.

“It’s entirely my fault—I have no excuse even if I had ten mouths. For now, at least let me offer this…”

I tried to hand him the handkerchief I was holding, but Rohel moved faster.

Thwack. He snatched the handkerchief right out of my hand. His action still carried unmistakable suspicion toward me.

The problem arose here.

What I absolutely did not anticipate was the anger flaring in Noxia’s eyes as she watched this scene from the side.

“Are you implying, Your Highness, that my sister and I conspired to splash you with water on purpose?”

Noxia couldn’t help but feel wronged—she was being falsely accused of something she hadn’t done.

As Noxia stepped forward from among the encircling nobles, Rohel’s gaze naturally turned toward her.

“Then are you saying you didn’t? One trips me, the other splashes water. Must be the twin synergy—you two work together awfully well.”

“You’re slandering people without any evidence.”

“I saw it with my own eyes—what more evidence do you need here?”

In the novel, I thought Rohel and Noxia were destined soulmates, but now that the first button was misbuttoned, they were running on completely parallel tracks.

“Wait a moment! It seems there’s been a misunderstanding between you two…”

I tried to mediate between them, but both Noxia and Rohel simultaneously turned to me and spoke.

“Sister, stay out of this.”

“This doesn’t seem to be a place for the young lady to intervene.”

I was clearly involved in this incident, yet somehow, the two of them were now having an emotional quarrel while completely excluding me.

“My sister and I are not the type to play tricks on others from behind. I’m sorry you got drenched, Your Highness, but that was clearly an accident. Apologize for your rudeness toward my sister earlier.”

“Ha, are you telling me to apologize? I’m the one who should be receiving an apology.”

Murmur, murmur. This place was already crowded with nobles.

Due to Rohel and Noxia’s argument, the nobles began whispering among themselves.

Normally, the most entertaining things are watching disasters and fights—no one here found this situation anything less than thrilling.

“Sigh—.”

I pressed my head, overwhelmed by the headache creeping in.

Neither Rohel nor Noxia showed any willingness to back down even a single step. It felt as if sparks were flashing between them.

“Your Highness, please don’t continue like this here—perhaps we should move elsewhere…”

Reigard belatedly stepped forward to mediate, but it was futile.

I tightly shut my eyes.

My plan to successfully orchestrate Rohel and Noxia’s first meeting had failed. I now had no choice but to accept that.

I slipped away, leaving Rohel and Noxia behind. Their relationship had already slipped beyond my control, so watching further held no meaning.

‘Come to think of it, where is Ascan?’

Due to Rohel and Noxia’s quarrel, spectators had gathered, yet nowhere could I spot Ascan or Reiana.

It suddenly bothered me that I’d asked Ascan to keep Reiana occupied as long as possible.

Ascan was a slave. Holding onto a noble like Reiana given his status wouldn’t be easy.

‘Moreover, Lady Crisha’s personality is anything but ordinary…’

Just as Tanashia had treated lowborns arrogantly in the original story, Reiana was no less outrageous.

The more I thought about it, the more worried I became for Ascan—I couldn’t stay still.

I began walking briskly around the ballroom, searching for Ascan.

“Have you seen my attendant?”

Every time I encountered staff working in the ballroom, I asked, but all either said they didn’t know or simply shook their heads.

Few people recognized Ascan’s face, and describing him as “a handsome attendant” yielded inconsistent results since everyone had different standards.

“What about Lady Crisha?”

“No, I haven’t seen her.”

After a moment’s hesitation, I decided to change my line of questioning.

“Has there been anywhere in the ballroom recently where trouble seemed likely to erupt?”

“…Ah!”

The servant seemed to recall something.

Somehow, I felt I’d found the right answer. If there had been friction between Ascan and Reiana, the surrounding area would surely have been noisy.

“Where is that place?”

“Well, um…”

The servant hesitated to answer, perhaps fearing fallout might reach them.

I spoke firmly again to the indecisive servant.

“No time. Answer quickly.”

Perhaps they sensed some villainess aura from me—the servant immediately pointed cautiously in one direction and whispered,

“Please keep it secret that I told you, Miss.”

“Understood. I’ll keep my promise.”

I walked straight toward the direction the servant indicated. Not long after, I finally spotted Ascan, whom I’d been searching for so long.

Ascan was leaning diagonally against a door, arms crossed. His posture looked so elegant—more so than any noble—that I couldn’t help but smile faintly.

“What are you doing here?”

“You’ve arrived?”

Ascan didn’t seem to have encountered any trouble—he looked perfectly fine.

I was about to ask him what had happened, when suddenly a hysterical female voice rang out from inside the room.

“You! Open this door right now! If I get out of here, you’re not getting off easy!”

Hearing the woman scream at the top of her lungs, a sudden thought struck me, and I stared at Ascan in surprise.

“Don’t tell me… Lady Crisha is inside there?”

“Yes.”

Inappropriately brief for such a serious situation, Ascan’s reply was simply “Yes.”

“You locked Lady Crisha inside this room?”

“Yes. You told me to hold onto her by any means necessary.”

Looking at Ascan’s expressionless face, I unexpectedly burst into laughter.

“…Haha.”

It suddenly occurred to me again—Ascan was the ultimate villain in the novel . He was famous not only for monstrous abilities but also for his brilliant intellect.

Thinking about it, this was indeed the most suitable method to detain Reiana.

“What did you tell Lady Crisha to lure her in?”

“I told her Miss Tanashia was waiting for her inside here.”

“Clever. And you’ve been guarding the door like this?”

“Yes.”

“All this time?”

“You told me to hold her as long as possible, but since I didn’t know until when, I stayed.”

As I spoke with Ascan, Reiana’s shout rang out again.

“Open this door!”

Immediately afterward, he subtly gestured toward the inside of the door and murmured softly,

“As you can see, I didn’t think I could handle the aftermath, so I waited until you arrived.”

His calculation had even included my arrival just like this—he truly had a knack for surprising people.

As I stared fixedly at Ascan, he asked with a puzzled expression,

“Did I do something wrong?”

“No, you did well. I’m just surprised you perfectly executed what I asked.”

Even with my praise, Ascan’s expression didn’t change. But somehow, after spending so much time together recently, I felt he seemed satisfied.

“…It’s the first time I’ve ever received a request like this.”

I wanted to say something in response to his quiet remark, but—

Bang! Bang! Bang!

A loud noise suddenly erupted from inside the room. Reiana was apparently throwing objects at the door.

I couldn’t continue chatting with Ascan while leaving Reiana trapped like this.

Before opening the door, I deliberately raised my voice.

“Reiana, it’s me.”

This was to prevent Reiana from throwing anything the moment I opened the door.

As expected, Reiana recognized my voice and stopped her tantrum.

“Tanashia?”

“Yes. I’ll open the door now—wait a moment.”

Only after confirming Reiana had calmed down did I open the door.

The scene inside the room was a sight to behold. The sofa, table, even the carpet on the floor—nothing remained intact.

Reiana glared fiercely at Ascan standing behind me.

“How dare you lock me in here?!”

She looked ready to lunge at Ascan at any moment, so I stepped in front of her and spoke calmly.

“Don’t say anything to my attendant. I ordered him to do it.”

“What? Why would you do such a thing…?”

“I just wanted to surprise you, but I ended up arriving a bit late. Sorry.”

“That’s ridiculous!”

Since I hadn’t prepared a better excuse, I passed it off as a prank between friends—but Reiana clearly didn’t believe a word.

“You knew what I’d prepared for today. Do you really expect me to believe that?”

Judging by Reiana’s reaction, it seemed the original Tanashia also knew Reiana would set off fireworks today.

I’d misjudged.

In the novel , the protagonist’s childhood passed quickly, so I hadn’t realized Tanashia would have known in advance.

Even if I had known, given how things had unfolded, finding a suitable excuse would still have been difficult.

I’d hoped to slip away like a snake sliding over a wall, but it didn’t seem things would resolve so easily.

To make up for my mistake, I deliberately laughed louder and made a fuss.

“Sorry, sorry. I completely forgot. But the fireworks went off properly, so don’t worry.”

Even after my words, Reiana’s expression didn’t soften—but for some reason, she stopped speaking and just stared fixedly at me.

Trying to ease the tense atmosphere, I spoke to Reiana again.

“By the way, who set off the fireworks?”

“…I told the servants to set them off when I gave the signal. Even without my signal, since I’d instructed them in advance, the fireworks went off properly.”

“Ah, I see.”

Only after hearing Reiana’s explanation did I fully understand what had happened.

“You must’ve felt stifled being stuck here—shall we go down to the ballroom together?”

“No, you go first. I’ll fix my dress and come later.”

Come to think of it, Reiana’s dress was slightly disheveled—probably from her tantrum while trapped inside.

Her attitude was icy, leaving me uneasy, but there was nothing more I could do.

My head was already pounding from Rohel and Noxia’s broken relationship, and I’d confirmed Ascan was safe—all I wanted now was to return to Brellof Mansion as soon as possible.

“Alright, then I’ll see you later.”

When I offered my farewell, Reiana nodded slightly as if acknowledging it.

Thus, I left the room with Ascan. I couldn’t clearly see Reiana’s expression left behind alone, but the last glimpse of her gaze strangely lingered in my mind.

‘I must’ve seen wrong…’

She’d glared at me with an expression far too venomous for a supposed friend.

The moment Tanashia completely vanished from Reiana’s sight, she could no longer contain her rage and swept every object off the table.

Crash!

With a loud noise, glass shards flew everywhere.

Even afterward, Reiana couldn’t calm herself, breathing heavily and roughly.

“…So in the end, you’re still part of the Brellof family, aren’t you?”

She’d trusted Tanashia but, just in case, had ordered servants to set off the fireworks—and even instructed them to do it without her signal if necessary.

Had things proceeded as in the original story, her suspicions toward Tanashia would have dissolved, and their bond would have grown stronger. But now, circumstances had changed.

Tanashia’s actions appeared exactly as Reiana had suspected—shielding Noxia to prevent her humiliation.

“Ha, you claimed to hate Noxia more than I do. Is this what blood ties mean after all?”

It was disgusting.

To approach me pretending to be an ally, only to stab me in the back…

As Reiana recalled Tanashia from moments ago and clenched her fist tightly, a force of wind slowly began gathering within it.

Whooooosh—

The power that hadn’t responded at all while she was trapped in the room now finally stirred.

Like Noxia, who controlled water, Reiana had also inherited the Crisha family’s supernatural ability.

Though far weaker than Noxia’s ability and barely controllable, Reiana’s power was precisely the mastery of wind.

Due to the Crisha family head’s fondness for women, illegitimate children overflowed in the household—and Reiana was one among many.

Even when her mother, a bar hostess, went to the Crisha family claiming Reiana’s birthright, not a single person listened.

Originally, she would never have been recognized as a member of the Crisha family in her lifetime.

But one day—

Reiana manifested the supernatural ability to control wind.

She later learned that the power to command wind was a special ability passed down exclusively within the Crisha family.

From that day onward, Reiana’s life turned 180 degrees. Overnight, she was acknowledged as a member of the Crisha family and began living the noble life she’d always dreamed of.

At first, everything felt like a dream.

The person who woke Reiana from that blissful illusion was none other than Noxia.

—Lady Crisha can use supernatural powers? Pfft, she’s still nowhere near Lady Brellof.

—Exactly. Just because she can use a little power, did she think anyone and everyone could become like Lady Brellof?

—She’s far too lowborn to mingle with us. Her mother’s a hostess, after all.

Since supernatural abilities manifested sporadically across generations, few in the current Arwen Empire possessed special powers.

Unfortunately, Noxia and Reiana were close in age and thus inevitably compared.

Noxia, the socialite darling, was always adored by everyone, while Reiana, as the runner-up, had to relinquish all glory.

—Ugh! We brought her in because she inherited our family’s power, but she’s utterly useless!

—What did you expect from such lowborn origins? Did you seriously think Reiana could become like Lady Brellof? Wake up. Send her off to some rich old man and be done with it.

Her father clicked his tongue every time he saw her; her stepmother schemed constantly to marry her off to anyone.

—You and I siblings? Don’t make me laugh. You’re disgusting!

The man destined to inherit the Crisha family and whom she should address as “older brother” outright denied Reiana’s very existence.

When her ability first manifested, she felt as if she possessed everything—but the reality she faced was utterly different from her dreams.

Social attention, men’s affection, wealth and power.

Everything Reiana desired had been taken by Noxia.

She couldn’t help but feel furious. Noxia’s very existence felt like a curse.

‘If only Noxia didn’t exist…!’

At the very moment she always thought this, she met Tanashia—someone gazing at Noxia with the exact same hatred in her eyes.

Reiana and Tanashia were bound to get along from the start. Their shared rage toward Noxia tightly bonded them.

But Tanashia had changed. Against all odds, she’d saved Noxia from near disaster.

‘According to my plan, Noxia should’ve been humiliated so badly she couldn’t show her face in society…’

Many who’d praised Noxia until now would’ve fallen silent. Perhaps people’s attention might’ve shifted slightly—from Noxia to Reiana.

It was regrettable, deeply regrettable, to have missed such an opportunity.

‘I thought you were my comrade…’

I’d momentarily forgotten—Tanashia was also a member of the powerful Brellof family.

Unlike Reiana, Tanashia would never be dismissed for lowly status.

‘Turns out you deceived me.’

The sense of betrayal was greater than I’d expected.

Noxia’s fake kindness was detestable, but Tanashia, who’d approached me while concealing her true intentions, felt even more repulsive.

‘Tanashia…’

Reiana opened her tightly clenched fist. Instantly, the gathered wind power scattered and flew in all directions.

Swish, swish-swish!

The wind, like blades, slashed through every corner of the room.

Gazing at the room’s pitiful scene—now instantly reduced to rags—Reiana smiled coldly.

‘You’ll pay the price for deceiving me.’