One of the young ladies quietly observed the situation. After the incident with Angela Morvell, The Butterflies had allowed a few potential recruits to start attending their events. This young lady was one of them. On the surface, Corrine Bilton was an obedient, loyal first-year worshipper of Vanessa Landrienne from a Landrienne vassal family. However, she and her family were loyal only to the current Landrienne City Lord.
This young lady was very ambitious and loyal to the cause, earning the appreciation of the Landrienne City Lord and Professor Foryl. Ultimately, the end of Vanessa's usefulness would come sooner rather than later with her poor personality, talents and reputation.
The question was, who would replace Vanessa? They couldn't allow just anyone to replace her. They needed someone with talent, intelligence and drive. Someone that they could trust. Someone who could replace Vanessa instantly without suspicion and play a key role in recruiting new talent.
Corrine aimed to be that young lady. She had been aiming for it ever since she was a child. The City Lord secretly loathed his younger brother's family. Her father was the right-hand man of the City Lord. He struck a deal with City Lord and his real allies. Corrine could marry into the Landrienne family if and only if she usurped Vanessa's position.
While crazy, Vanessa was still a fox. She had never made any large mistakes before. The Butterflies were still largely loyal to her and the conservative faction. Fortunately, Corrine was extremely patient. With Marc's intelligence, she knew that Vanessa was slipping. One tiny, little push would start Vanessa's downfall.
"Um, is that tramp, Aayla Glowery, one of the resident advisors? She's handling the event in the dorm tonight? I heard some students talking about the game night on my way up, and apparently Daren is there as well."
Vanessa nearly fainted from rage. She grabbed Corrine firmly by the shoulders.
"WHAT?! IS THIS TRUE?!"
Corrine tearfully nodded. Quivering, she quickly shook her head up and down.
"Yes, yes, I think so?"
"You think so, or you know so?!"
"No need, I heard something similar, my lady."
"You did too, Enid?"
"Yes, your ladyship. I thought that I heard it wrong at first. Your fiancé loves to spend his time studying magic away from the rabble, after all. Some rat is most likely trying to rouse your emotions then frame you for an incident while you are blinded with anger."
Of course, Enid didn't hear wrong. She simply knew that her lady would explode at this news, even if Daren himself showed no signs of fondness for Aayla as anything other than a colleague. Vanessa's position was too unstable right now. Enid would take any measures to ensure Vanessa's safety. She would need to have a word with that idiot Corrine later.
Her fiancé does love his peace and quiet. Still, she couldn't leave this alone. Vanessa bit her lip. What should she do? Professor Foryl told her to stay in her room except for class, yet the university didn't officially punish her. She could technically go. That would anger Professor Foryl, though.
Corrine timidly raised her hand. "I can go check for you, my lady. That way, you don't anger Professor Foryl by leaving your room."
"No, let me go, Lady Landrienne! Lady Bilton's too timid to properly expose that stupid wh**e!"
"Bah, what good can you do yelling like a common shrew! Please, allow me to aid you, my lady."
The Butterflies, both potential and full members, volunteered to help. They would love to get on Vanessa's good side. Watching their eagerness, Vanessa made up her mind. How could she let these scheming vixens get any of Daren's attention? They would surely backstab her while trying to 'help'.
Hmph. Professor Foryl may be prestigious, but he's all bark and no bite. His status is far too low. She'll just have to give a few extra apologies and he'll let it go. After all, she's acting to secure her man.
**********
Downstairs, the trivia game was in full swing. Overall, the atmosphere was merry and bright. The students had been studying for so long that their legs felt numb from sitting on their behinds all day.
To the angry curses of the other teams, W-321 and 322 pulled ahead once again. The happy ladies cheered and high fived. Rooms W-321 and 322 joined together to take the lead, but the other teams were right behind them. Another question. Another bell. And the answer was… correct! In their dreams. They were actually wrong. Very, very wrong.
Howls of laughter broke out across the hall as the poor girl who answered reddened like a tomato. The other girls comforted her while she laid her head down on the table in shame. The other teams scrambled to answer. They finally had a chance to overtake first place!
Several students filled in the space along the walls. Unable to find a table, they stood munching on their dinner or late-night snacks. Eventually they got tired of simply standing around. Someone began playing the violin in the lounge. A few more pushed the sofas around to create a small dance space.
More students trickled down from their rooms for food and to see what all the noise was about. It's a shame that the rear courtyard still wasn't open. The night sky was as clear as a bell. A chill lingered in the air, but it was nothing that a light jacket couldn't handle.
Just a few well-dressed young ladies entered the room, one of the Halcyon students looked up. He grabbed Chris's shoulder. With a pale face he gestured towards the door. Chris wrinkled his nose in disgust.
"Chris, we have a problem! That loony is here!"
"I see them. Let's reorganize so Daren's more hidden. Darn it. I thought that woman was on house arrest."
Unfortunately, The Butterflies quickly spotted the Halcyon students and barged their way through the crowd. Vanessa sneered and narrowed her eyes when she saw the female students sitting at the table. As she suspected. More vixens trying to steal her place. Which one was that Aayla Glowery rat?
The female students would spit out their drinks if they knew what she was thinking. They either had a boyfriend or fiancé already, or were too busy studying to care. Not to mention they all belonged to the Forolan's vassal families. Just because a certain someone was obsessed doesn't mean that they were as well. That's really infuriating to be brought down to that certain someone's level.
Daren's face darkened as she sashayed over. He really hated dealing with Vanessa. She was as sticky as the gum on the bottom of your shoe, yet you couldn't throw her in the trash due to her high social status. Her clinginess was manageable when they lived in different cities. Now, Vanessa was simply unbearable.
A bright smile rose on her face as Vanessa caught sight of Daren. She delicately batted her eyes and gently waved her fan in front of her face.
"Oh, what a lovely surprise to see you here Sir Forolan. How are you feeling? I'm sure that you've done splendidly on your exams as always, but please don't forget to take care of yourself."
Her high-pitched voice and the obnoxious giggles of The Butterflies wormed their way through the ears of those sitting in nearby tables. A few of them decided to move. They didn't want to deal with crazy at any day or time of the year.
"… Thank you for your praise."
"No worries, Lady Landrienne. I've been keeping an eye on him. Daren's in excellent health, so you don't need to worry about him. We're in the middle of trivia night right now, so could you please finish your business so that we stop delaying the other players?"
"Sir Vear, how lovely to see you," Vanessa spat through gritted teeth.
By now, the dining hall was silent. Faint little chirps and the pitter patter of tiny feet could be heard in the ceiling. Vanessa and Chris glared daggers at each other. The other Butterflies politely greeted Daren and Chris. The remaining residents at the table were blatantly ignored.
"A trivia game? How lovely! Lady Landrienne is extremely knowledgeable about many subjects. She can support Daren much better than those from lesser families. How about the rest of you make way so that Lady Landrienne can catch up with her fiancé?"
Vanessa shot Corrine an appreciative look. Looks like that girl had a bit of smarts. Too bad she was usually so timid and cowardly. The rest of The Butterflies eagerly chimed in.
"An excellent idea, Lady Bilton! A table just opened over there."
"We could create our own team. How fun! Though there's no way we could defeat Lady Vanessa and Sir Forolan."
Sour looks crept onto the faces of the Halcyon students. Clearly, the "lesser families" referred to them, who came from vassal families. Then, The Butterflies treated them and their opinions like air. Furious and disgusted, the Halcyon students argued back.
"Ara? You seem a bit confused, young lady. Sir Forolan does NOT have a fiancé."
"Besides, none of us really have anything to catch up about. You wouldn't understand our conversations anyways."
The small squabble turned into a fierce argument that threatened to consume the entire dining hall. All eyes were on them, especially the calm eye of the storm centering around Vanessa, Daren and Chris.