Rubbing her eyes, Hina woke up to a subtle headache once again. The pain had gotten bearable, slowly decreasing as the days passed. She lazily stretched her right hand towards the side table to grab her watch, checking the time. It was barely past 7 am.
[No wonder]
She usually woke up to the sight of Suki or Aoi, so she knew she must've gotten up earlier. The climate was colder during these early times of the day and the skies were darker.
Hina pushed off her duvet and headed for the dressing table. She studied her reflection in the mirror. There was a deathly smoothness to her skin tone. She brought her hands to her face, rubbing the slightly dark bags under her eyes. She looked exhausted and sick. What was happening to her?
Although she slept more often than before, she still found it difficult to sleep properly. Her mind still often drifting away, fifty kilometres per second, keeping her up for hours. She also still had nightmares sometimes, often waking up with a throbbing pain in her head.
[I might need to see the doctor...] She solemnly admitted to herself.
She laid her head on the cold table, unsure of what to do, regretting having woken up so early.
"I'll be meeting her today again.." she whispered. The day had already come for Hina's official first etiquette lesson with Emi Chiba. Their last meeting had left a sour feeling for Hina. The woman spoke nicely but her words held a venomous meaning.
Plus, she still couldn't recall why the name sounded so familiar to her. What was she missing?
Walking to the floating shelves, Hina stood on her tiptoe to reach the top shelf, retrieving a key she had hidden under a stack of books.
She slipped the key into the lock and turned it, opening the drawer with ease. She took out the journal where she jotted down everything she could recollect about "The Knight's First love". Searching through the pages, she looked for anything that could help her learn more about Emi.
The journal was titled "my way to survive". Hina had been meticulous when writing down her information; from important character names and detailed descriptions to characters to stay away from, characters that could be valuable, as well as several scenarios of possible ways to survive. She also added a line that stated "I must celebrate my eighteenth birthday" at the bottom of several pages, a reminder that death could steal her away once she turned seventeen.
As she flipped through the scribbled pages, she noticed she had insufficient knowledge on Kai and Tanaka. Two characters she had no previous data to rely on. She also couldn't find anything on Emi but she knew without a doubt that the blue-haired woman was suspicious.
[I need to find out more about her before she does something]
Although the real timeline had yet to begin, Hina was unfazed about encountering weird situations before time. It was only expected that the villainess would experience terrible happenings to truly evolve into one, but Hina didn't plan to take it all while sitting down oblivious.
[Damn you, author]
She tiredly sighed and placed the journal back in its safe position, locking the drawer and keeping the key in its place.
She returned to her bed and laid on her back, staring at the artistically beautiful ceilings. Her thoughts soon drifted to a memory of her previous life. She and her family at the beach.
One summer afternoon.
She stood at the beach, her toes curled up in the sand as hair fluttered in the wind.
She watched her younger sister push their father into the waves, wetting the ugly shorts he liked so much.
They were all laughing.
A seagull had flown overhead, shading her from the sun for a brief moment.
She hated to admit it but the memories from that life were getting duller. Fading away with the passing days. She felt like she had lost something so precious; the happiness of a life that was once all she had.
"Lady Hina?" Suki peered her head through the half-opened door, surprised to see the young lady awake in bed.
"Suki..."
"Good morning, lady Hina. Did you sleep well?" Suki walked into the room, a tray in her hand.
"Hmm, I slept okay"
"That's good to know. Please drink this, lady Hina. It will help with the cold" she smiled at her, placing the glass cup in her hands. The scent of mint leaves and lemon filled the room as Hina sipped from the sweet tea.
[It's so sweet] she smiled lightly.
"I'll prepare your bath and help you get ready, my lady"
"Okay" Hina replied calmly.
She needed to focus on right now and the coming obstacles.
_____
The study room had been spotlessly tidied up. The room was comfortably furnished with deep couches, mahogany shelves and drawers and tasteful wall hangings. The large windows had an excellent view of gardens and the estate.
There was still some time left before her class was supposed to begin, but here she was, sitting and waiting per the head maid's request.
She spotted the familiar carriage through the window and sat up.
The woman's elegant footsteps could be heard down the quiet hallways.
"The etiquette tutor has arrived, my lady" Suki quickly informed her before retreating the room.
"Good day, Lady Hina. It's a pleasure to see you again" Emi greeted with a nod.
"The pleasure is mine, lady Emi" Hina bowed softly.
"Please address me as "tutor Emi" during our lessons, lady Hina." Emi retorted with a smile as she placed her hair behind her ears.
"Our first class is going to focus on proper posture for a noble lady. I believe it'll be beneficial for the lady during official gatherings so as not to embarrass the Merchant's reputation" she added. Her words held some form of mockery directed at Hina.
"I see" Hina replied.
Emi stood up from her position and walked towards the shelves. She picked out a few thick hard covered books.
"For your posture training, we will start with perfecting the way you walk. There is nothing more important than the way you carry yourself when you walk. As a noble lady, you must walk with class and elegance. These books shall be very helpful to you" she held the books up.
"Aren't these books a bit too big?"
"I would appreciate it if you didn't doubt my judgement, lady Hina" she dropped the books on the table before them.
"For your first training, you will walk from here to the end of that shelf with these books placed on your head. Please ensure none of them fall as you walk back and forth" Emi advised.
"You should walk as lightly and elegantly as possible without dragging your feet or hunching your back" She added.
"I understand"
Hina stared at the huge books as Emi walked towards her. She placed them on Hina's head with a subtle thud.
Hina glared at the woman from her stance, noticing the small curl at the edge of her red lips.
[She's messing with me]
"Please begin, lady Hina"
Hina took a few steps forward and the books tumbled down. It was an obvious play out of the situation.
"I know this may be hard for you, as you've never had a proper etiquette lesson before, but please put in more effort. The merchant has high expectations for you. You wouldn't want to shame the merchant after all his hard work, right?" Emi's satirical tone was mixed with one of pleasure.
Hina could tell that she was having fun.
"I'll do it again" she stated, picking up the books and placing them on her head. She tried walking the expected distance, but a book or two kept falling off. Time and time again.
"I expected a better performance from you, lady Hina. Even commoners could do this much. You must work harder, my lady" she smiled softly.
"I will heed your words" Hina replied. The class was almost over and Hina planned to ace this lesson before it was up. She placed the books on her head again, taking a breath before starting.
She walked lightly from her position to the end of the shelf, carrying herself with utter refinement. She walked back and forth without a single book out of place.
"Was that good enough for you, tutor Emi?"
"Indeed, it was. I see that the young miss is a fast learner. I'm so proud of you" Emi clapped her hands.
Despite the compliments, Hina discerned the unenthusiastic tone in her voice. She was very good at reading people after all. Having been abandoned and experiencing all sorts, she had spent the better part of her previous life scrutinizing people's expressions and body language. That was why Hina could tell for sure that Emi Chiba was not in the slightest bit interested in her. The woman was hiding something beneath her gorgeous smile. Her eyes were glinting with malice. Jealousy even. But why? It made no sense to Hina.
"Seeing as you're learning so fast, I believe we will be able to move on to a different topic in our next class, lady Hina" Emi smiled at her.
"Thank you for the compliment, tutor Emi. It's all thanks to your passionate teaching" Hina stated, her smile was a mirror version of her tutor's.
"It's good to know that I can be of help to the merchant" she asserted,
"This brings us to the end of our lesson for today. See you next time, lady Hina"
"Yes, until next week, tutor Emi"
With Emi gone, Hina sunk into a couch with a long sigh. She was exhausted and her shoes were killing her ankles.
She glanced at the books that she had used to practice. As if she didn't already have enough mess to deal with, now there was a weird character trying to frustrate her.
"Emi Chiba, huh?" She quietly muttered, a cold tone encased her voice as she said the woman's name.
"I'll have to teach her a lesson soon enough".