Walking down the empty halls of the academy, Lady Sophia, Alex and I made our way towards the student council room to look for a certain someone.
"Do we really need to ask Prince Leonhardt such a trivial question?" Lady Sophia asked.
"He's the only person that knows Prince Clovis better than anyone else," I answered.
"And this isn't trivial. This will be the event that determines whether you two will have a relationship!" Alex voiced.
Lady Sophia blushed and said, "Please keep your voice down. And it's not like I'm confessing to him. I just want to deepen our relationship as friends, that is all. There are no romantic feelings involved just yet."
I chuckled, "The academy is basically empty. No one will hear. Besides you have some right to love Prince Clovis and express it too since you are a marriage candidate for their Highnesses."
Lady Sophia mumbled, "It's still embarrassing…"
"You know? I was a bit scared because Sophia was intimidating, but she's actually kind of cute," Alex whispered to me.
"You're gonna get yelled at if Lady Sophia hears that," I mentioned.
"Oh, hey! I see Leo!" Alex announced.
"Hmm?" Looking ahead, I saw Prince Leonhardt in the hallway talking to Lady Claudia. I was a bit shocked to see Lady Claudia in the building, I would have thought she'd be attending some random gathering she was invited to.
"I wonder what they are talking about," Lady Sophia voiced.
"Leo!" Alex called out as she ran up to them.
"Alex, you fool!" I tried to stop her, but was too late. She was out of my reach. I can see it all now. She's gonna get yelled, threatened, and bullied by Lady Claudia. Has she forgotten that the heroine will automatically get dissed by the love rivals for trying to get close to the male leads!?
"Leo! I have something to ask y-!"
Well, that was unexpected. I stood by with Lady Sophia as we watched how Alex ran down the hallway only to have someone coming out of the classroom, accidentally trip her. The poor girl went flying through the air, but thanks to her heroine powers, she fell right into Prince Leonhardt.
Alex panicked as she straddled the blonde boy. "I am so deeply sorry, Leo!"
Prince Leonhardt only chuckled, "I am fine, you are as light as a feather. Are you alright?"
Alex nodded, "Yes, I am fine."
"Well, I'm not!" Lady Claudia shrieked. "Get off his Highness!!"
"Eek!" Alex yelped and quickly got off Prince Leonhardt as she apologized. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"
"Did I trip someone?" Coming out of the classroom was actually Lady Viola. Haven't seen her since Lady Rium's gathering.
"Lady Viola, it's good to see you again," I voiced.
Lady Viola flinched and put on a forced smile. "My, if it isn't L-Lady Reiré…"
Lady Sophia gave me a suspicious look. "Lady?"
I giggled, "No need to act so informally, Lady Viola. We are friends."
"No no no, I must show my respect to Lady Rium's precious friend after all," she said.
"So what are you doing in the main building on a weekend?" I asked.
"Ah, I was actually helping Prince Leonhardt with some student council work," she answered.
"You're part of the student council?" I thought it was only Prince Leonhardt, Philip, Raphael and another side character named Quéntin, I believe. Yeah, most of the male leads are in the student council and Prince Clovis would often visit them. Surprise there, not really. It's to make it easier for the heroine to encounter them.
"I am," replied Lady Viola. "I'm part of the finance committee for the sophomores."
Ah, makes sense. The committee had many members so of course the story wouldn't mention everyone that's part of the student council. If she was actually important, her name would have been mentioned in the novel.
"You should be ashamed of yourself! What if rumors were to spread! Do you have any idea what trouble you would cause for Prince Leonhardt!?"
"L-Lady Claudia, please stop yelling," Alex whimpered.
"I will only stop until you learn your lesson, you dirty commoner!"
Alex shrunk as she whimpered.
"Claudia, I think that is enough. You don't have to yell at her," Prince Leonhardt voiced.
"I only tripped…" Alex murmured.
"Then you should have done everything in your power to fall on the ground, not on Prince Leonhardt!" Lady Claudia shouted.
"But then it would've hurt."
"That's the point when you fall!" Lady Claudia shrieked.
My god, things are going south so fast over there.
"What is going on over there?" Lady Viola asked.
Lady Sophia answered, "You accidentally tripped Alex into Prince Leonhardt when you were coming out into the hallway."
"Oh. Good that I tripped her, but bad that I tripped her into Prince Leonhardt. I wished she hit the ground."
"Oi, that's my friend you're trying to hurt," I voiced. "Didn't Lady Rium threaten you to not bully me or my friend?"
Lady Viola grumbled, "I'll apologize to her later. L-Lady Alex seems busy."
"Lady Rium must have frightened you if you are calling both the commoners with courtesy titles," said Lady Sophia.
"I'm only an Earl's daughter. I can never go against Lady Rium," Lady Viola replied.
"Reiré! Lady Claudia is being mean to me!!" Alex ran towards me with tears in her eyes.
"Don't you run away!" Lady Claudia reached out to grab her arm.
"Claudia, just leave Alexandra alone," Prince Leonhardt voiced.
Prince Leonhardt grabbed Lady Claudia by her arm, causing her to miss Alex's arm and grab her skirt instead. Alex yelped as she held her skirt down, but ended up losing her balance. Lady Claudia panicked and let go of Alex, which only caused her to trip. I quickly stepped out of the way as Alex fell.
I heard a crash and another voice along with Alex's behind me. Looking back, I saw Lady Viola on the ground with Alex on top of her. Wow, so the heroine's powers even work on girls. Very frightening. I feel terrible for Lady Viola, but at the same time, not really. Because if I didn't sacrifice Lady Viola, it would have been me on the floor with Alex on top. I don't want to be in that kind of situation ever with Lady Claudia watching.
"Uh, I'm so sor- ah…" Alex turned pale as she saw Lady Viola's reddened cheeks. Alex had one of her hands on the ground to support her weight, while her other hand was on Lady Viola's, must I say, bountiful chest.
"W-Where… Where do you think you're touching, you lowlife pervert!!" Lady Viola slapped Alex across the face. The force was so strong that it pushed Alex off of Lady Viola. "I'm suing you!!" Lady Viola threatened. "I'm suing you for sexual harassment!!"
Alex held her swollen cheek as she tried to explain herself. "I didn't mean to grope you! It was an accident!"
"How dare you touch me in such a manner!! Have you no shame!?" Lady Viola shrieked as she covered her chest defensively. "You must be punished!! Punished, I say!"
"Please, Lady Viola, have mercy! I only tripped!!" Alex begged.
"A hundred, no, a thousand!! I demand you to get a thousand lashes on your back!" Lady Viola screamed.
"Please, Lady Viola! I beg for your forgiveness! If it makes you feel better. I think you are very developed. Any guy would love to have you!"
This caused Lady Viola's face to turn even redder. "How… How…"
I groaned as I hung my head in my hands. Oh god.
Lady Sophia only giggled, "Your friend sure is bold, isn't she?"
There is no saving Alex now. She's dead, she's so dead.
"Um… Lady Viola?" Alex shrunk in fear as she saw how red Lady Viola's entire face was. "Do I have your forgiveness?"
Lady Viola exploded, "HOW DARE YOU!!"
"I'm sorry!!" Alex cried as she covered her head in fear.
- - - - 0-0-0 - - - -
Half an hour later, after Prince Leonhardt was able to calm the situation, we are all in the student council room. Alex sat in the corner all alone while she, as Lady Viola worded, 'atoned for her sins.' She looked like a kicked puppy and I actually felt pity for her.
"L-Lady Viola?" Alex whimpered.
"Hmph!" The blonde noble didn't even look at the girl.
Alex hung her head as she had tears in the corner of her eyes. God, I felt so bad for her, but that's what she got for being clumsy. Remember kids, never run in the hallway.
Prince Leonhardt sighed as he held his head. He sat behind his desk while the rest of us was sitting on the sofas.
"Here's some fresh tea." A tall boy with long black hair served us a cup of tea.
Lady Sophia smiled, "Thank you, Lord Quéntin."
He fixed his glasses and voiced, "It's a pleasure."
Quéntin Badön. His family holds the Viscount tank and he's also a freshman like us. He was mentioned a few times in the novel, but he didn't play a big role. He's just a supporting character in creating alone time for Prince Leonhardt and Alexandra. He's also the Vice President of the student council.
"So? What were you three even doing in the main building?" Lady Claudia asked.
"We could ask you the same thing," Lady Sophia returned.
"We wanted to ask Prince Leonhardt about Prince Clovis," I answered.
This caught his attention. "My younger brother?"
Lord Quéntin set a cup down for Prince Leonhardt and asked, "What is it that you want to know about Prince Clovis?"
Alex jumped at the chance, "We wanted to know what his favorite cookies are."
"Quiet, you rodent!" snapped Lady Viola. "You have no right to speak!"
Alex whimpered as she shrunk back.
"And here I thought Claudia was bad," Prince Leonhardt quietly grumbled so no one could hear, but I heard it.
"I answered your question, Lady Claudia," I voiced. "So how about you answer ours."
Lady Claudia crossed her arms and stated, "I was merely keeping Prince Leonhardt company."
"Sooooo, you were distracting him," I said.
"No, I was keeping him company," she corrected.
"No, Reiré's right, you were distancing him," Lord Quéntin agreed.
Lady Clauida gave him a look of disbelief. "Wha-!"
I smirked, "So I was right."
"I was not distracting him!"
I quickly placed my attention back on Prince Leonhardt and asked, "Do you know Prince Clovis's preference in cookies? That's all we wanted to know. We planned on baking some sweets to have him try."
"Don't ignore me!" Lady Claudia yelled, but I still ignored her either way.
"I see." Prince Leonhardt sat up straight and replied, "My brother isn't that picky, but he is quite spoiled. I believe he's quite fond of those half chocolate dipped cookies."
"That's quite easy to make. Thank you for your insight," I voiced.
He smiled, "It is my pleasure to help such beautiful ladies."
Hah! And Lady Claudia called me a sweet talker. I stood up and turned to the left, "We got what we came here for. Let's return to the kitchen, Lady Sophia."
"Of course."
I then turned to the corner to call for Alex, but Lady Viola stood in my way.
"That pervert of a commoner stays until she has atoned for her sins."
I only shrugged. "Okay."
"What!? You're abandoning me!?" Alex cried.
"This is what you get for running in the hallways. Maybe with some guidance from Lady Viola, you can learn to behave more."
"But I've been doing so well, haven't I? I even learned to use courtesy titles in the presence of others!"
"Your manners may have improved, but your behavior has not," I voiced. "Please sit in that corner until you have reflected on your actions."
"Reiré!" Alex whined.
"Hey, I wasn't the one groping a noblewoman of higher status. Do you see me groping Lady Claudia?"
"Why is that it's my name you use!?" Lady Claudia yelled.
I once again ignored her. "Exactly, no. I kept my hands to myself."
"But it was truly an accident," Alex cried. "Why are you being so mean to me…"
Walking over to the corner, I knelt down in front of Alex and smiled. I placed my hands on her shoulders and looked straight into her turquoise eyes. "Because you deserve it."
"Eh?"
I narrowed my eyes into a glare as I tightened my hold on her shoulders. "It must've felt nice, right?"
Alex blinked, "E-Eh?"
"I wanted to feel that softness too, but why is it that you were able to touch a noble woman's chest and get away with only a light punishment?" My grip tightened.
"R-Reiré… It… it hurts. Lady Reiré, it hurts!?"
"If touching a woman's chest leads to only sitting in a corner then I would've touched Lady Claudia's large boobs as much as I wanted sooner!" I shouted, but not loud enough for everyone to hear.
"What does that have to do with me!?" Alex yelped.
"I'm jealous! That's what!" I shook her shoulders as I vented, "Tell me! Tell me, you cheating protagonist! How did it feel, huh!? Huh!? I won't forgive you when you had all the fun! How was it that a straight board like you was able to touch a woman's chest when I'm here suffering!?"
"I-I don't know! Stop shaking me!"
"I won't stop until you tell me! Tell me! Tell me how it felt, you fool!"
"Fine! It felt great!" Alex shouted at the top of her lungs. "Viola's chest was super soft! It felt like touching a pillow! She was really warm and she smelled nice too! I wished I had her large breasts, that's how I felt! Now please stop shaking me! I'm getting dizzy!"
I grinned and stopped shaking her shoulder. "I see. Like a pillow. As expected of women raised in nobility."
Alex let out a breath of relief when the spinning finally stopped. "I thought my brain was gonna turn to mush."
"Lady Sophia, let us leave. It seems Alex will be busy."
"Wait, you're not taking me with…" Alex's voice died out as she saw Lady Viola standing before her with a bright red face. Alex shuffled back closer to the corner as she stuttered, "L-Lady Viola?"
Lady Sophia chuckled as she followed me to the door, "Your friend sure is bold. I didn't think she was that type of girl."
I turned back to give Alex a cold smile. "Lady Viola. Please be gentle with Alex. She is quite fragile after all." I then turned to Prince Leonhardt, "And please don't try to get in Lady Viola's way, Prince Leonhardt."
Prince Leonhardt had a smile on his face, but I could see the slight uneasiness in his eyes. "I'll, ah… try not too."
Lord Quéntin sighed, "I do believe Prince Leonhardt will try to stop Lady Viola's misconduct on Lady Alexandra."
I shrugged, "I figured, but I thought I'd try and ask."
"I didn't think Reiré would betray her own friend like that," Lady Claudia voiced.
"I'm not betraying her, I'm training her," I clarified.
"Rairé, halp meh!" Alex shrieked.
"How dare you have indecent thoughts when touching me!" Lady Viola scolded as she pinched Alex's cheeks, causing the girl to tear up even more. "As I thought, you need a thousand whippings!"
"NOOOOOO!"
Hey, guys! Thought I get a chapter out early as I’ll be busy with school for the next few weeks. I’ll try to keep it once every two weeks at most, but I’m not sure. I know I don’t update as quickly as other authors, I can’t really do anything about it when I’m prioritizing my projects first and this second. I do hope you understand.
As always thank you for reading, if you enjoyed the chapter, feel to comment, review or vote! ^^