ICTV - Chapter 22

ICTV - Chapter 22

I Changed The Villain

Washing before grooming is an essential step. Rose soaked herself in hot water. This is what bread soaked in water would feel like.

Rose put on a gown and sat down on a chair. The other maids were all crowded into the dressing room, but Becky, who was in charge of the massage, was making a sticky mixture by finely pounding various herbs and tree nuts.

“It’s done. It’s a popular pack these days.”

Becky showed me the inside of the bowl. Becky's pack looked strange, but it smelled very sweet. It is natural since the fruit of the tree was used in the first place. Becky carefully applied the pack to Rose's face with a brush.

“It sounds delicious.”

“Don’t eat it, give it to your skin, Miss."

After some time, Becky washed off the pack. Rose's face sparkles. It was shiny. Becky exclaimed.

"What do we do. Today, Lady Judith is the main character. What should I do because you're prettier than the main character,  Miss? You’re so pretty that I can’t breathe.”

“It’s not that bad.”

Becky's hospitality did not end there.

“Do you remember that, Lady? Before you fell in love with Duke Serenity, you hid in the Serenity family garden and were caught by patrollers.”

"When did I?"

“But because you pretended to be a rose, I, who followed you, almost got caught, right? It was really hard to keep track of them... Still, I don’t blame you, Miss. What can you do with a girl who is like a rose?”

“... Please stop liking me.”

“What, how do you do that, Lady?”

Let's not talk. Rose put on her gown and went out. The maids were still discussing what clothes to wear.

“Today is Judith’s birthday party. Lady Judith is the main character. You have to go for a style that doesn’t stand out more than the main character.”

Rose spread her arms. The maids changed between a light blue dress and a green dress and looked at Rose's body, thinking about it.

“Considering the color of your eyes, I think green would be better.”

“Considering your pure white skin, this would be better.”

“Guys, look at this.”

Rika came carrying a box. Inside the box were ivory-colored shoes.

“Why don’t you wear these today? The heels are not that high and the decoration is simple.”

“Oh, it’s really okay.”

“Then let’s make the dress green.”

Rose changed into a green dress with rounded shoulders and sat in front of the dressing table. The maids braided the hair on the sides and pulled it back. The maids gathered the braided hair into a round and fixed it with a thin pin, a rose-like hairstyle was completed.

“Oh my, it’s so pretty!”

“It’s much better than wearing a rose headdress.”

“Miss, you have to wear this hair at the engagement ceremony as well. Why don’t you do it?”

“Okay, if you say so."

Rose lightly held the hem of her skirt and left the room. Belial was waiting in the hall on the first floor in black formal attire.

Belial's long hair was also braided thickly and hung over his chest. As soon as Belial saw Rose coming down, he extended his hand in greeting.

"Rose."

“Belial.”

Rose took Belial's hand. Ha, all the hardships accumulated so far are washed away. The maids wiped the sweat from their foreheads.

“I never get tired of seeing you two together... .”

Rika was even wiping away tears.

“Before I moved here, there was a Baron and his wife who were famous for being really nice people. I think they came back alive.”

The couple was always relaxed and had smiles on their faces. Is it true that the saying that people become alike when they are in love is true? The way they spoke and acted similarly was similar. The two walked through the village holding hands every evening. It was so beautiful that she would look like that when she got married.

I wanted to. The moment Rika's eyes became faint, the other maid looked dumbfounded.

“I heard that they are both still alive and well.”

"Oh."

***

“Look over there.”

At the words of an older woman, the other women's heads turned as if they had made a promise. A woman dramatically covered her mouth with a fan.

“It’s that Young Lady. The lady who broke down Avalon’s iron wall.”

The first thing that caught their eye was Rose's hair, which was as bright red as a bonfire on a winter's day. Rose was wearing a green dress similar to the color of her eyes.

“So, is this your first time seeing her, Madame Etral?”

“Yes, this is my first time seeing it. As you all know, I was recuperating in another country not long ago. But I never dreamed that while I was away, the iron walls of Avalon would collapse at the hands of a Young Lady.”

“This is something that we, who have been in this country for a long time, did not expect. What’s even more shocking is that that Young Lady comes from a humble family.”

“Can you tell which family it is?”

“This is the family of Viscount Pale.”

The other wife whispered secretly.

“They say they have a territory on the outskirts of the Empire that is as small and light as a sugar cube.”

“Before that Lady showed up, I didn’t even know that such a family existed.”

“Hoho, that Lady must be having a hard time too. I don’t think the Ladies’ jealousy is a joke.”

Rose's preparing to get engaged to a man who is envied by all the ladies.

“No, that’s not it."

It was a woman who was sipping a glass of wine. The wife put down her champagne glass.

"Didn’t your daughter also admire the Duke right now?”

“I did. I heard that she sent a love note to the duke whenever she had time. But I can't see her these days. Is she in sick?”

"No."

The woman shook her head resolutely.

“Then why are you going to social events? They say it’s all pointless.”

A question mark hovered over the ladies’ heads.

“It’s useless, What does that mean?"

“As a mother, I don’t know. At some point, he started saying things like, ‘How long should I live like this? Why should I criticize others?’ and then he left the room.

“I’m just looking at the book.”

“That sounds like something a philosopher would say. What on earth happened?”

“I don’t know the exact details either. There’s only one thing I know.”

The Lady winked at Rose.

“I started to feel strange after meeting that Young Lady.”

“Can’t I just ask you directly what she said?”

“I want to do that, but it’s like a chimney. I, an old woman, held on to the young lady and asked her questions. Isn’t that funny?”

“Well, what are you talking about?"

"I'm a window. More than anything..."

The wife blushed because she was embarrassed even as she spoke.

“I am afraid that the Duke may have some misunderstanding.”

That was her true intention. But they understand. The wives agreed. Because Belial was one of the most powerful people in the Avalon Empire.

“The Duke just happened to show up over there.”

Belial received two glasses of champagne from the servant holding the tray. It was obvious who owned the other drink.

“I wonder how you two became such sweet lovers.”

Belial handed Rose a glass and whispered something. Rose also moved her lips and said something. A smile slowly spread across Belial's face. The two began to whisper in earnest. It was a moment of curiosity on the women's faces.

“It’s clear that something special happened between the two. Can anyone guess??”

What you just said was a lie. As if speaking, the table became quiet. The women looked at each other, but none of them seemed to know anything. Someone sighed as the ground fell.

"Well. Isn’t Duke Serenity so sad? There are a lot of people who just say hello and then leave for fear of making a mistake.”

“The vassals who work under the Duke are also very talkative.”

“Then you’re saying there’s no way to find out after all?”

There was regret on the women's faces.

Then, Beryl, dressed in formal attire, appeared at the party.

“Uh, who is this!”

Kedis, who was serving guests at the table next to where they were sitting, suddenly stood up. Beryl shook hands lightly with Kedis.

“Who is that Young Master again?”

“It’s probably Rose Pale’s one and only brother. What kind of gem was it called? I don't remember a thing. He rarely goes out in social circles.”

“But now the social world will remember Young Master’s name. Because he will definitely be indebted to his younger sister. If she gets married, the Pale family will be greatly strengthened.”

“If you have a good younger sister, your older brother will also become arrogant. I’m already worried that the Serenity family’s power will go wild thinking it’s theirs.”

And at that time, Beryl was grumbling to Kedis.

“Those two are stuck here too. Oh, I came here late on purpose because I didn't want to see them like that."

“Is that why you entered separately from your sister?”

Beryl was a brat and he just hated Belial. Beryl and Kedis let go of their holding hands.

“Anyway, I’m really happy. Rose, who is receiving the most attention in the social world, came to celebrate my sister's birthday. Thanks to you, today’s party was a huge success. Most people who received invitations attended.”

Kedis smiled with genuine joy, but Beryl's face still showed no smile. He seems to think about something for a while. Beryl, who was talking, suddenly asked. 

“By the way, were  your sister close to my younger sister?”

“Um, no. They run each other a few times at parties. They’re similar to us.”

"Okay? Then it means they’re not close friends like us.”

“That’s right, they're not close friends at all.”

Beryl stroked her chin seriously.

“Then, as expected, Rose is very interesting. Is that why you invited us?”

"Why? So what? You know that our family is active in social circles. We're glad that many guests attended the party, and it's great that you all became familiar with our family. Don’t you kill two birds with one stone?”

“No. That’s true, but…”

Beryl feels confused because it seems like there are already people trying to take advantage of his sister with impure intentions. Although he is disgustingly aware that nobles are not pure in the first place. 

At that time, Kedis was amazed.

“But as expected, your sister is really pretty. When she decorates it, the light doubles. It was also this year that Duke Serenity hanged himself."

Beryl, who had been worried about Rose just a moment ago, immediately snorted.

“Really, is she? She's just ugly.”

"Why? I heard she's the Pale family’s official rose?”

“What is the official rose? It is the official pumpkin flower. Pumpkin flower!"

“Why are you really like this? If I had a younger sister that pretty, I would carry her around."

Kedis did not give up and continued to insist that Rose was pretty, but Beryl did not budge.

“Anyway, you're a strange guy.”

Why are you so stubborn about something so useless? Kedis clicked his tongue and then paused. Now that he think about it, he didn't understand every time the elders said that Judith was pretty. Beryl is probably in the same vein. When he thought about it that way, Beryl also understood. Okay, from now on, just agree accordingly.

Kedis nodded.

“After hearing what you said, I think it’s a bit like that.”

Beryl immediately looked down.

“Don’t criticize our pumpkin flowers.”

“It’s something you shouldn’t say in a place like this, but can I hit you?”

So Beryl and Kedis grabbed each other by the collar. This was only possible because they were not close friends at all.

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