"A... tea party?"
Wren thought for a moment for who will invite her or for what reason she's invited for. Obviously she forgot the fact that she was a noble and not receiving one would be unthinkable after all she's a daughter of the Duke.
"... right." She mumbled then looks across the scattered open letters.
"Whose Tea Party am I going to attend?"
The Duchess smiled and said happily, "You will be coming with me," Wren looks confused as she tilts her head with confusion.
"Marchioness Farlon hosted a tea party for noblewoman and their daughters."
Marchioness Farlon—his husband died not too long ago and she remarried last week; her new husband is the current head of Farlon. Normally the son will inherit it, but for some reason the title was passed down to his stepfather.
then the Marchioness hosted a tea party for young ladies too is something she cannot imagine that Marchioness would do. Certainly, hosting a tea party with their kids isn't unusual, but she's known in high society that she hates children. News passed around that she neglects her own son.
"How surprising..." she sighs, forgetting the moment that Wren is still waiting for her explanation.
Wren then noticed the paper on the Duchess' hand, the Marchioness name were written on the bottom. Her eyes widens, gritting her teeth, showing her disdain for the Marchioness.
Looking at Wren and back to the letter, she's really glaring at it. She finds it amusing yet confusing. Wren will meet her for the first time at the Tea Party.
Where does this come from?
"Yes, A tea party hosted by Marchioness Farlon..." she paused and thought of something, "It will happen in two weeks so we might need to buy another dress for you to wear."
"I will not go." Wren sternly said and looked away. There is a reason she doesn't want to go at all.
It is because Marchioness Farlon is another Villainess who will torment Aria in the high society and her son will attempt to murder Wren under her orders. She literally hates the Vacarella that she will do any means to harm them.
"In the end she will throw her son out like a useless toy..." pitiful. Wren mumbled.
"Well, you are not obliged to come... a shame." The Duchess sighs. Her imagination of Wren in a tea party shattered. "Okay you can go now."
the Duchess prepared a paper and started scribbling on it. Her wrist is abruptly being grabbed by a pair of hands, "are you going to attend, mom?"
another thing about the Marchioness is that among all the things she despises, her mother, Carina is on the top of her list.
Why do you ask? It was simple that even an uneducated woman can grasp the situation. It was because the Marchioness still has feelings left for Duke Vacarella. She feels that the position Duchess was stolen from her because of Carina who suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
Till this day she is openly showing off animosity for the Duchess. However, the Duchess finds her antics harmless and nonsense to pay any attention.
another reason why she hates the Duchess.
"mom!" Wren called out the Duchess whose not yet giving her answer. She blink then patted her small head, "yes, since I also need to see the Marchioness."
she was surprised to see when Wren suddenly raised her hands and said, "I AM GOING TOO!" the duchess is bewildered with her daughter's change of mind.
Earlier she was determined not to come along, but realizing her mother will enter the villain's lair made her to attend. Eventually, she also thought of befriending the villainess' son.
clearly thinking that she might do the same thing of those normally transmigrated female leads in the novels she read. Befriend the villains, to be fair those FL's do it unconsciously.
"If we become friends, he might spare me."
...
is what she plans to do, but after attending the tea party made her head ache from what she's experiencing right now.
A girl sitting next to her giggled, teacup in hand as she opened a topic, "I saw His Imperial Highness, the first prince yesterday... his hair really glows best under the sun."
"he has such a warm smile!" one girl squeeled.
'warm smile...?'
She admit liking him his character before, but where is the warm smile they saw?
Then one girl put her hands on the table and commented, "Prince Zairon's hair is like the night sky."
"I know right?! Then he looks at you coldly and it makes my heart pound!"
"These kids are already gossiping about the empire's stars..." Wren thought to herself while drinking her milk quietly.
Apparently, the tea party for the adults is on the far side of the garden. Wren listened listlessly to the kids and said nothing. It seems that no one remembered about the humiliating part she did. They were too busy building a fanbase for the princes of the empire that they didn't even notice her.
Except to the girl with twin braided hair and freckles on her face noticed Wren being quiet, at first she's racking her brain who was this girl since it is her first time seeing her. It has been 2 years since Wren's last appearance outside and there is something else. It is because of her outfit for today that no one realized who she was.
"uhm... I'm Angelie Beneverde of House Beneverde." She introduced herself, almost whispering, Wren did not hear this as she was pre-occupied thinking when the tea party will finish and she hasn't seen the Marchioness' son.
it is almost absurd that not once the Marchioness showed off her son nor talked about him whenever the noblewoman speaks about their children. "she's really showing how much she neglects him."
her gaze landed on the other side wherein her mother seated. It is still looking peaceful over her side, however... she can see how Marchioness Farlon grits her teeth.
"oh well, mom can handle her."
but she can't handle whatever is on her side. She can't bring herself to enjoy this tea party fun as she keeps hearing the prince's name. Angelie looked troubled about being not heard as she fidgets her finger.
a loud clank of tea cups to the tea plate distracts Wren's mind as she looks in front of her.
"how annoying, there is someone here who's rude enough to not introduce herself,"
Wren's eyes wandered around the table and all eyes were looking at her.
"By chance... is it me?"
another absurd thing. After all they all talked like they knew each other and shouldn't they be the one to introduce themselves first?
Wren looked utterly bored and annoyed. The sun is so bright and the heat is getting under her dress. Apart from that she doesn't like anyone here.
The large hat is covering her braided, white, bun-styled hair and blocking half of her face. Then they arrive at the Marchioness mansion they were not seen together. These two are the reasons why everyone is unable to recognize her.
"Wren, I can bury them if you want." somewhere, Adara's cheerful voice popped out in her mind. Wren is terrified that another spirit is added to the list of being a murderer.
"Are you not going to introduce yourself?"
a girl leaned over to the angry girl and whispered, "You know Lady Polly she looks familiar..."
"from what family does she come from?" Angelie squeezed her eyes shut, she felt guilty because she introduced herself to Wren, attracting their attention to her.
Angelie is an outcast and was being picked on because of her face. Wren noticed her as she glanced over her shoulders and back to the girl.
"If she was a daughter of a low-ranked family she can become my servant." the girl thought, a smile flashing as she stared at Wren.
Wren is aware of what is on the kid's mind—she suddenly chuckled as she leaned on her seat and crossed her arms. It silenced the kids because of her sudden laugh and they felt chill as her gaze looked straight at them.
Wren lifted her hat and gently put it on the table, her purple eyes gazing at the kids like she was assessing their worth—resembling a predator on a field ready to bare its fang on them. Their hearts thump loudly. A eerily cool air brushing against their cheeks as they look down.
"How dare a mere daughter of Count... asking for my name without introducing herself to me, a daughter of the Duke." that alone made the entire table become cold so that even the servant and maids attending them were frozen on the spot. Even Angelique is rooted in her spot
"eh?..."
Her mind is still processing the situation and they come to realize who she really is.
"Vacarella... she's Lady Wren..."
"T-the Young Lady..."
her face pales when Wren says, "Unfortunately, I do not plan on having a job of being someone's servant. However..."
her gaze is piercing right through the girl. A smirk formed in her lips. The kids already figured out the rest of what she wanted to say. Seeing how they trembled in front of her is the proof of it.
There is something satisfying seeing their reactions— somehow she can relate to her older brother. She then stood up and grabbed her hat and put it back on to protect herself from the sun.
"I'm going for a walk," they all stared at her back as she turned around.
The table turned quiet and then... a kid put her hands on her cheeks— her cheeks flushed as she excitedly said, "her eyes look cold isn't it? Im not imagining it, right?!"
another one followed, "I wonder if we put Prince Zairon and Lady Wren together what kind of scene will we see?"
"so the thumping of our hearts wasn't because we were scared of her?"
the girl shook her head with a smile—forgetting the tension they felt earlier as she answered, "partially we were scared."
she questioned herself for thinking of making Wren as her servant when in fact she would beg to work for her.
Wren sneezed while walking in the garden, "Someone must be talking behind my back."
she wandered around aimlessly as she looked around. She doesn't plan to go back there with the other girls and wait for the tea party to end while exploring the Farlon Manor. Well, partially she's also looking for the Marchioness' son.
"I'm sure my mother will be fine. Sir Antonio is with her." she is not wrong at all. Duchess Vacarella is having her time irritating the Marchioness.
"Hmmm... I haven't seen his son yet," Wren turned around to see a maid lower her head, "Is he in the academy?"
"Yes, my lady." she hummed and her eyes turned cold. How shameless to answer her with lies that he's at the academy— well, it is the marchioness fault to order the servants around to lie about it too.
in her frustration she stopped in front of a large fence.
"Young Miss, the Marchioness forbids anyone coming there." the maid that follows Wren suddenly stops her before entering inside. Big trees beyond the fence and clearly there's something else in there.
"Why?" she asked the maid with an impatient tone, "the marchioness said there was dangerous t—ahh!"
she shrieked when she saw the way Wren looks at her, "dangerous when there's only flowers there? Are these flowere poisonous? I don't think so. Wild animals? I doubt, besides I can handle myself if there really is." she pointed at the flowers on the trees and sighs.
Disregarding the warning of the maid she entered and ventured deep inside. The maid didn't follow her and she doubts that she will follow.
The big, thick three looks like it has been there for a long time. The lights shine passing through the gaps of the leaves and flowers slowly sways by the wind, silently falling off to the ground creating a cushion made of flowers.
it is a beautiful sight, like watching a...
"Hmmm... say, isn't this place somehow like sakura blossoms?" she walked closer, her foot then hit something hard and her eyes immediately fell on to a boy on the ground.
he's a small, skinny boy and yet... his hair is a vivid pink, similar to the flower of the tree and covering most of his face. Long and rough and there's some dirt around his face.
she crouched down staring at the kid, "Pink hair..."
the boy seems to feel the gaze as his eyelids start to open slowly, gently rubbing his eyes as he does not believe that someone at his age is in front of him. Yet, it is no dream as Wren is still staring at him. Counting to five seconds he soon springs up.
"Who are you?"
Wren finally recognizes who the kid is as his eyes have the shade of gray.
"Hello, I'm Wren Vacarella." hearing the same surname her mother always mentions puts him on his guard as he stared at her, "I introduce myself, you should tell me your name."
Although she knows his name, she doesn't want to look weird that she knows him when this is the first time they met.
"Lane Farlon..." she sees him being wary of her. It also looks like none of them took care of the boy as he was wearing dirty, old and loose clothes. Even their servants wore proper clothing and yet a nobleboy is dressed up like this. She clenched her hands and whispered.
"everyone in here must have loose screws in the head."
Wren suddenly unlocked her big sister mode as she ran away, leaving Lane in daze and wondering why she came here in the first place.
*****
"B-by the way where is your son, Marchioness?" the tea party of the noblewoman suddenly changed into such a tense atmosphere because of the two figures sitting across each other on the table.
the Marchioness calmly smiled as she drank from her cup and looked at the duchess sharply, "at the academy, of course. Where else should be my son if not there?"
not only the Duchess knows that the marchioness is lying. Everyone on the table knows that she doesn't have an interest in her son's needs. But the Marchioness does not have any care for that as long as she has wealth, whatever it is will not affect her.
"Oh my, I didn't know that your son is already in the academy."
The Marchioness bit her tongue and smiled like nothing, "Hmm, my son is a quiet one that you wouldn't know that his there~" the two women showing their smile that is very contradicting to the atmosphere they were showing
"get us out of here!!"
the other noble lady silently wished as they watched the two collide.