5.

As if he had already captured the victory, his attitude was relaxed.

And it was reasonable for him to act that way.

After all, Dante was the only one who could control the mad dog of Rose Cross.

<Please, don’t do that. I was the one who did everything wrong…>

In the original work, Elze feared Dante’s rejection intensely.

<So, don’t say it to Dante, at least.>

It was understandable since, to Elze, Dante was like a god-like existence.

He saved her from being sold off as a strategic marriage, giving her the status of “Dante’s lover,” which provided a foundation for her not to be manipulated by others.

Although Dante only acted towards Elze as if giving a cheap toy to a crying child due to her bothersome begging for affection.

Even those trivial things were precious to Elze.

‘And Victor took advantage of Elze’s obsession with Dante for his own benefit.’

For example, he would use it to manipulate her like now, threatening with statements like, “I’ll tell Dante.”

But I was not the “original Elze,” who passionately loved Dante.

“Do as you please.”

“….Yes?”

Victor, feeling stabbed, widened his eyes.

Towards him, I drove the nail in again.

“Do as you please.”

Well, it’s not like I didn’t expect Victor to report to Dante at all.

Dante had complete control over Rose Cross Boarding School.

So, the current situation was bound to reach Dante’s ears.

Moreover, it was a well-known fact that Elze was incompetent.

‘Besides, Dante doesn’t have any expectations of me anyway.’

Thus, before orchestrating this incident, I had already weighed my options.

Instead of being seen as a foolish woman by Dante, who had no expectations of me whatsoever, I decided to stomp on Lucian’s hopes of escaping.

By doing so, I would prevent any potential disaster that might occur later.

It was a much more advantageous decision for me.

“Oh, Marquis Offenheir will be disappointed in Miss Elze!”

“Disappointed?”

I smiled brightly.

“Why would he be disappointed now?”

“… Miss Elze?”

“Marquis Offenheir never had any expectations of me from the beginning.”

At my nonchalant response, Victor looked greatly confused.

Anyway, I glanced briefly at Lucian, whether he spoke up or not.

“Then, should we just put that student back in solitary confinement?”

“There’s no need for Miss Elze to personally intervene. I can take care of it.”

“No, it was my mistake.”

I shrugged lightly.

“I made the mistake, so I should handle the aftermath too.”

Then, I covered my mouth and exaggerated a yawn.

“I was just about to fall asleep, and now I’m being called out. I’m tired. Can’t I just put the student away and go to bed?”

Without waiting for an answer, I turned around.

“Move aside.”

I gestured with my eyes to the two guards pinning down Lucian.

“….”

As the guards hesitated and stepped back, Lucian lying face down on the floor came into view.

His proud face was filled with humiliation.

I spoke calmly, “However, before going to bed.”

“….”

“We should give some punishment to the child who made the mistake, right?”

Lucian clenched his teeth tightly.

And then, *smack!*

A sharp slapping sound reverberated through the air.

It was because I had slapped Lucian’s cheek fiercely.

His once pale cheek turned bright red in an instant.

“Huff.”

At the same time, Victor gasped.

‘Even though he is a member of the Kalleid family, can she really slap someone in front of everyone like that?’

He might be thinking something like that.

Lucian, who received my slap, just hung his head in silence.

His cheek was probably throbbing with pain; perhaps he couldn’t even speak.

I grabbed Lucian by the collar, getting right in front of his face, and squeezed it tightly.

“I feel really bad because of you, disturbing my nap.”

It seemed like Lucian thought I had taken advantage of him.

His blue eyes were filled with despair, and he looked like he was sinking into darkness.

Feeling somewhat sorry, I turned away from Lucian, pretending to look at the guards.

“You and you.”

I immediately handed Lucian over to the guards.

“Take this ill-mannered child with you.”

Then I swiftly turned around.

Clack, clack, my steps moved on, passing by Victor.

His naive face was etched into my eyes.

It seemed like he had taken a hit.

Well, I quite liked that dumbfounded expression of his.

* * *

After putting Lucian back into the solitary cell again.

“Everybody, get out.”

With just one irritated command, I dismissed the guards.

Though the guards hesitated for a moment, it seemed they didn’t want to deal with the hysterics of the villainess.

They politely nodded to me and left.

“….”

Lucian sat crumpled in a corner of the cell, his head buried deeply.

It seemed like he was feeling quite guilty.

‘Hmm, is this still my fault after all?’

Even though it was true that I planned all this to make him realize he couldn’t escape without me, seeing him in such a pitiful state didn’t make me feel particularly good.

‘His cheek is quite swollen.’

I gazed at the cheek I had slapped with a bitter feeling.

The once bright red cheek was now turning a bluish hue from the forming bruise.

‘At least he doesn’t seem to be seriously hurt or have trouble moving.’

Perhaps, unlike the first time I dragged him here, the guards handled Lucian with more caution this time.

They must have calculated that if he got hurt again, it would be difficult to treat him.

“I’m sorry for hitting you.”

I offered an apology first.

Though it might sound insincere, I truly meant it.

“Shall we start by treating your cheek? There’s some ointment for bruises in the first aid box I gave you earlier.”

Then, Lucian quickly raised his head.

He bared his fangs and growled.

“Don’t pretend to care, it’s disgusting.”

“…I understand your anger. I may have overreacted a bit to prevent suspicion from the people at the dormitory.”

“Overreacted a bit?”

Lucian retorted as if listening to nonsense.

“Can this be dismissed as just overreacting a bit?”

“My Lord.”

“In this trashy school, I should be hearing your dog-like excuses while being stuck here.”

Lucian shot me a sharp gaze.

“Overreacting, you say. Just move on?”

A blue flame flickered deep in his eyes.

I could easily read what emotions Lucian was feeling right now.

Self-loathing, frustration, betrayal, despair.

And even fear of being trapped in an unfamiliar place and confined.

… For the barely adult Lucian, it was an overwhelmingly heavy burden of emotions to handle.

But…

‘Now is not the time to pity Lucian.’

Without a word, I faced Lucian and spoke.

“It must be miserable for you.”

“What?”

Lucian’s expression was instantly flabbergasted.

I smiled arrogantly.

“No matter how much you struggle, you’ll never be able to escape from this school on your own, my Lord.”

I bent down and looked directly into his trembling blue eyes.

Then I calmly asked, “You must have realized that by now, right?”

“What did you say just now…!”

Clank!

Unable to contain his anger, Lucian hastily stood up, but the chains tightened around his body.

As I faced his miserable state, I twisted my expression with satisfaction.

“Look, even now, my Lord, you are trapped in this cell like a tied-up dog.”

“You…!”

Lucian growled, baring his fangs like a beast.

But I didn’t even raise an eyebrow.

“Do you want to break free from being treated like a leashed pup? Then make a decision.”

Snapping.

Lucian couldn’t contain his anger and ground his teeth.

I looked at such Lucian with an affectionate gaze.

“Do you want to firmly grasp a certain way to escape from here, or…”

My smile became even deeper.

It was a villainous smile, akin to a venomous rose.

“…do you want to waver weakly and end up being trampled?”

With that last remark,

I stood up.

As I bid farewell to Lucian for the last time, I elegantly concluded,

“The decision is up to you, my Lord.”

Click!

The door closed.

Lucian’s face, filled with despair, disappeared through the gap in the door.