Lila arrives

Both Laius and I were done dancing and we seperated. Of course, I reluctantly seperated from him, after a long debate about why I should stay with him.

I knew that since our conversation had ended and we both returned to our own social circles, it was time for our dear protagonist to arrive.

Everyone was happily chatting when we heard the big door open. In came a gentle looking girl, heaving a breath. She opened her mouth and softly said, "I'm sorry that I'm late. I couldn't find my way here."

I could feel everyone's discontented gazes aimed at the casually clothed girl. Not only did she not bow down, she didn't even prepare proper clothes.

The nobles must be feeling like this is a disgrace to their status. A banquet with many high-ranked nobles, crashed by a girl wearing commoner's clothes. Adding to that she didn't know proper etiquette and didn't bow down.

At this moment, even the nobility disliking prince felt discomfort. And this is my cue.

I walked forward, expectant gazes on my back. The prince would frown but not say anything. "Little girl, who are you to crash a party of nobility? You do know the consequences of entering this school if you're not admitted."

I showed her eyes with disdain and she shivered, knowing her tereible mistake. "I-I apologise, Miss. I never intended to crash the party. Truly sorry!"

"I'm not called 'Miss'. My name is Eluvia Claudius."

Now it's time for her to make a mistake. "I-I'm sorry Miss Claudius! B-but I'm a proper student of this school! Here, this is my letter of recommendation!"

There she went. Not only yelling at a high-ranking nobility, but also not naming herself when I told her my name. How foolish.

The people around us started whispering. With slight snickers in between. I know exactly how it feels to be in her position, but I don't have the time to pity her. I have my job to finish.

I looked at the letter she held in her hand and didn't accept it. The disdain within me started to swirl even more seeing her act so stupidly.

"I don't need it. I won't touch something so dirty. Why do I need to accept something from you? To confirm that you're innocent? How foolish. You heard my name yet didn't name yourself. Not only that, you yelled to me, a Duke's Daughter, without any restraint. I really wonder who'd think giving you a letter of recommendation was a good idea. That person must be even dumber than you."

I chuckled. At this moment, her palms should start sweating and she should be clenching her teeth, trying to stop the tears from falling. She looked me straight into the eyes and said, with a loud voice, "I won't mind it if you make fun of me! But don't make fun of Grandpa! He took me and mom in, he's a good person! Unlike you, who publicly shames someone!"

The people around us laughed. They had seen this sort of person more than once. After all, every year, the headmaster would take in a random mother-daughter duo from the common, and let the child enter the school. It's his yearly fun. Though this confrontation had been my task in the previous years of school, it was the only time I could call the headmaster stupid without him getting angry. Because this was his playtoy now.

The headmaster enters the scene. The girl turns around and yells, "Grandpa!"

She ran to him and wanted to hug him, but he evaded her and said, "I apologise, Miss Claudius. I would've never thought that this child would be a rowdy one too, I thought I finally found a child that wouldn't make a scene. But I guess commoners only amount to this.... Please leave it be with this, since you've already called me dumber than this child."

Eluvia: "Of course. A request from the headmaster, how would I reject. And since I've already called you dumb that's enough for me. Though it really is something, how you seem to find a child in but a few weeks when we're not at school."

Lila looked at her 'grandpa' with confusion in her eyes. She slowly asked, "Grandpa? What's going on...?"

"Oh, brat. Well, if you just apologise that's enough. I'll support you through your school years. Though stop calling me grandpa, since you were a failure too, I don't really care about you anymore. Sheesh, why do all these commoners think that we, nobility, bite? We are so prestigious, yet we're seen as nothing but money-sucking monsters."

Lila showed a shocked expression. "Wait, grandpa, you didn't take us in because mom and I look like your long-lost daughter and grand-daughter? All that affection was fake? Why! We truly liked you, yet you throw us away like nothing!"

The headmaster heaved a sigh and the other people laughed. "Brat, my affection wasn't fake, but now that I know you're no different from other commoners, I've no use for you anymore. And don't say I'm throwing you and your mother away. You'll get to live a luxurious life as a noble for the whole year. Have some gratitude."

Yes, the headmaster's yearly experiment was testing if a commoner can be dignified like nobility, even when shamed. He seems to be waiting for a child that'll be able to do that. But it seems that his expectations have almost nearly disappeared.

Lila's tears fell. She who had an 'average' face, seemed ever so vulnerible. At this moment, the men around me would want to protect her.

Though too bad for her, because her prince Laius had already left the room. Nobody actually intended to befriend her, she is just the strange pet/mascot for the year.

It hardly ever happens so that we actually hate on the commoners, more that we would feed her and raise her as a pet.

The headmaster left the party after seeing that the prince was gone. The girl stood there in a daze, not understanding that she had been left behind. People started swarming to her, and I went back to my friends. We all chuckled, "What a poor soul."