"A... tea party?"
Wren thought for a moment for what reason she was invited for. Obviously she forgot the fact that she was a noble and not receiving one would be weirder.
"... right."
"Whose Tea Party am I going to attend?"
The duchess smiled and said happily, "You will be coming with me," Wren looks dazed as she tilts her head with confusion.
"Marchioness Farlon hosted a tea party for noblewoman and their daughters."
Marchioness Farlon is a widowed and recently remarried and both of them were the current head of Farlon. However, there were some unconfirmed things she need to see that this Tea Party cannot be ignored.
The Duchess is confused on why she added a tea party for young ladies is something she did not imagine that Marchioness would do. Certainly, hosting a tea party with their kids isn't unusual, but she's known in high society that she hates children that she even neglect her own son, the heir of Farlon.
"How surprising..." she sighs, forgetting the moment that Wren is still waiting for her explanation.
Wren noticed the paper on the table, reading the Marchioness' name. Her eyes widens, gritting her teeth, showing such hatred that her growl is heard by the Duchess.
Looking at Wren and back to the letter she was really glaring at it. She finds it amusing yet confusing. Why? It's because Wren hasn't seen the Marchioness and yet she already hates her.
"Yes, A tea party hosted by Marchioness Farlon..." she paused and thought of something, "It will happen in two weeks so we might need another dress for you to wear."
"I will not go." Wren sternly said and looked away. There is a reason she doesn't want to go at all.
It is because Marchioness Farlon is another Villainess who will torment Aria in the high society, besides that her son will attempt to murder Wren under her order. She literally hates the Vacarella that she will do any means to harm them.
"In the end she will throw her son out like a useless toy..." pitiful. Wren mumbled.
"Well, you are not obliged to come... Okay you can go now," Duchess said as she prepared a paper and started scribbling on it. Then her wrist is abruptly being grabbed by a pair of hands, "are you going to attend, mom?!"
another thing about the Marchioness is that among all she despises Carina.
Why do you ask? It was simple that even an uneducated child can grasp the situation. It was because the Marchioness still has feelings left for Duke Vacarella. She feels that the position duchess was stolen from her because of Carina who suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
So, until now, there is an openly showing of animosity for the duchess. However, the Duchess finds her antics cute as to why she doesn't find her annoying.
another reason why the marchioness boils with anger.
"mom!" Wren called out the Duchess whose not yet giving her answer, she blink at the gaze of Wren, "Y...yes, since I also need to see the Marchioness....!"
she was surprised to see when Wren suddenly raised her hands and said, "I AM GOING TOO!" the duchess is bewildered with her sudden declaration.
Earlier she was determined not to come along, but realizing her mother will enter the villain's lair made her to attend. Eventually, she also thought of befriending the villainess' son.
clearly thinking that she might do the same thing of what normally transmigrated female leads on the novels. It is to befriend the villains.
"If we become friends, he might spare me."
is what she said, but after attending the tea party made her head ache.
A girl besides her giggled, holding a teacup on her hand as she opened a topic, "I saw His Imperial Highness, the 1st prince yesterday... oh my, his hair really glows best under the sun."
"he has such a warm smile!" one girl squeeled.
Then one girl put her hands on the table and commented, "Prince Zairon's hair is like the night sky."
"I know right?! Then he looks at you coldly and it makes my heart pound!"
"These kids are already gossiping about the empire's stars..." Wren thought to herself under the cup and was astonished at them.
Apparently, the tea party for the adults is on the far side of the garden. Wren listened listlessly to the kids and said nothing. It seems that no one remembered about the humiliating part she did. They were too busy building a fanbase for the princes of the empire that they didn't even notice her.
A girl with twin braided hair and freckles on her face noticed Wren being quiet, at first she's racking her brain who was this girl since it is her first time seeing her. There is nothing unusual for this. It has been 2 years since Wren's last appearance outside and there is something else. It is because of her outfit for today that no one realized who she was.
"uhm... I'm Angelie Beneverde of House Beneverde." She introduced herself, almost whispering, Wren did not hear this as she was pre-occupied thinking when the tea party will finish and she hasn't the Marchioness' son besides that it looks like her mother is still doing fine with the Marchioness.
She sighed again. She do not find any of these fun as she keeps hearing the prince's name. Angelie looked troubled about being not heard as she fidgets her finger.
a loud clank of tea cups to the tea plate distracts Wren's mind as she looks in front of her.
"how annoying, there is someone here who's rude enough to not introduce herself"
Wren's eyes wandered around the table and all eyes were looking at her.
"What...?"
Is their such thing? After all they all talked like they knew each other.
Wren couldn't believe that no one recognizes the daughter of the Duke. The large hat is covering her braided, white, bun-styled hair. Besides, when they arrive at the Marchioness mansion they were not seen together. These two are the other reasons why everyone is unable to recognize her.
"Wren, I can bury them if you want!" somewhere, Adara's voice popped out in her mind. Wren is terrified that another spirit is added to the list of being a murderer.
"Are you not going to introduce yourself?"
a girl leaned over to the angry girl and whispered, "You know Lady Polly she looks familiar..."
"from what family does she come from?" Angelie squeezed her eyes shut, she felt guilty because she introduced herself to Wren, attracting their attention to her.
Angelie is outcast and was being picked on because of her face. Wren noticed her as she glanced over her shoulders and back to the girl.
"If she was a daughter of a low-ranked family she can become my servant." the girl thought as she smirked seeing how Wren has her head down and not speaking.
Wren who also knows what's on the kid's mind, she suddenly chuckled as she leaned over on her seat. It weirded out the kids with her sudden laugh and they felt chill as her gaze looked straight at them.
Wren lifted her hat and gently put it on the table, her purple eyes gazing at the kids like she was assessing their worth and made their hearts thump loudly.
"How dare a mere daughter of Count, asking for my name without introducing herself to me, a daughter of the Duke." that alone made the entire table become cold so that even the servant and maids attending them were frozen on the spot. Even Angelique is rooted in her spot
"eh?..."
Her mind is still processing the situation and they come to realized her purple hair.
"Vacarella? As in that Panther Vacarella?"
"T-the Young Lady..."
her face pales when Wren says, "Unfortunately, I do not plan on having a job of being someone's servant. However..."
her gaze is piercing right through the girl. A smirk formed in her lips. The kids already figured out the rest of what she wanted to say as they all trembled under their seat.
It is fun all of the sudden upon seeing their reactions. She then stood up and get her hat.
"I will walk around." they all stared at her back as she turned around.
The table turned quiet and then... some lady put her hands on her cheeks and her cheeks flushed as she excitedly said.
"Doesn't her eyes look so cold?!"
another one followed, "I wonder if we put Prince Zairon and Lady Wren together what kind of scene will we see?"
"so the thumping of our hearts wasn't because we were scared of her?"
the girl shook her head, "partially we were scared." she questioned herself whether she thought of making Wren her servant because she might even begged to let her be her maid despite her being rude.
Wren sneezed while walking in the garden, "Someone must be talking behind my back."
she wandered around aimlessly as she sighed boredly. She doesn't have a plan to go back there with the other girls. Just seeing how one of them plans to make her as a servant was enough to lose patience.
"I'm sure my mother will be fine. Sir Antonio is with her." she is not wrong as the Duchess having her time irritating the Marchioness who was boiling mad.
"Hmmm... I haven't seen his son yet," Wren turned around to see a maid lower her head, "Is the young master in the academy?"
"Yes, my lady." she hummed and her eyes turned cold. How shameless to spread news that she sent her son to the academy.
in her frustration she stomped on her way.
"Young Miss, the Marchioness forbids anyone coming there." the maid that follows Wren suddenly stops her before entering inside the big trees
"Why?" she asked the maid with an impatient tone, "the marchioness said there was dangerous t--- ahh!"
she shrieked when she saw the way Wren looks at her, "dangerous when there's only flowers there?" she pointed at the flowers on the trees.
Disregarding the warning of the maid she entered. The first thing she saw is the big tree, lights shine passed its leaves to the flowers spread underneath it.
"Hmmm... say, isn't this place somehow again familiar to me?" she walked towards it as she saw someone laying on the ground.
light-pink hair flutters along the breeze and a small yet petite boy is resting under the big Tree.
she crouched down staring at the kid, "Pink hair...?"
the boy seems to feel the gaze as his eyelids start to open, gently rubbing his eyes as he does not believe that someone at his age is in front of him. Yet, it is no dream as Wren is still staring at him. Counting to five seconds he soon springs up.
"Who are you?"
Wren finally recognizes who the kid is as his eyes have the shade of gray.
"Hello, Im Wren Vacarella." hearing the same surname her mother always mentions puts him on his guard as he stared at her, "I introduce myself, you should tell me your name."
Although she knows his name, she doesn't want to look weird that she calls him so friendly by his name.
"Lane Farlon..." she sees him being wary of her. It also looks like none of them took care of the boy as he was wearing dirty and old clothes. She clenched her hands and whispered.
"everyone must have loose screws in the head"
Wren suddenly unlocked her big sister mode as she ran away, leaving Lane in daze and wondering why she ran away.
*****
"B-by the way where is your son, Marchioness?" the tea party of the noblewoman suddenly changed into such a tense atmosphere because of the two figures sitting across each other on the table.
the Marchioness calmly smiled as she drank from her cup and looked at the duchess sharply, "at the academy, of course."
not only the duchess knows that the marchioness is lying. Everyone on the table knows that she doesn't have an interest in her son's needs. But the Marchioness does not have any care for that as long as she has wealth, whatever it is will not affect her.
"Oh my, I did not know your son is already studying."
The Marchioness bit her tongue and smiled like nothing, "Hmm, my son is a quiet one that he doesn't need to be supervised~" the two women showing their smile that is very contradicting to the atmosphere they were showing
"get us out of here!!"
the other noble lady silently wished as they watched the two collide.