"Yoko, sit properly. Don't slouch in your seat like an uneducated moron. First impressions are everything."
Amane wasn't immediately aware that the elderly man was speaking to her. Being referred to by a different name was strange, but Amane would eventually have to get used to it.
If it weren't for the younger girl seated on her opposite side, Amane might not have even noticed that she was being called.
"Sister, I know you do not want this marriage but angering your father is not a good idea. At least meet the man before rejecting him. We cannot anger the Divine Guild and Lady Suzuki."
Hearing the familiar name shook Amane, but she eventually put it down to coincidence. It was undoubtedly not the same person she knew back then.
Amane was confident that if the members of her guild had lived this long, they would have forgotten about her and moved on with their lives. Perhaps this Suzuki was related to the young fox girl that Amane had long ago taken in?
'Suzuki used to be a common name back then. Maybe things have not changed much in the future as well? Not that I know how long it had been since I died.'
Amane had no idea how long she had been dead for. For all she knew, it could have been only a day since her death.
It was not like she kept up with the internal politics or power struggles between organizations. She did not have the luxury of time to be worried about it all.
'Maybe I could take it easy in this life. Well, as long as I break off this engagement I can do as I want.'
Amane sighed as she settled into her seat. She was not one to sit ideally and it showed in her moments. Even sitting ideal for ten minutes was too much for her.
'Why is the opposite family not showing up? Are we being ghosted?'
The elder man's expression indicated to Amane that he was not content. His burning, golden eyes were filled with rage and shame.
Amane had a lot of experience dealing with influential families in her day. She was also certain that impatient people like Lord Tsurugi existed.
"When was the representative supposed to be here? How long does the Divine guild need to keep us waiting? Are they looking down on us? On the Tsurugi name? Have they gone mad?"
Amane jumped up in her seat at the unexpected outburst. Her heart thundered in her chest at the sudden fright.
'Wow. I never thought I would see anyone curse out the Divine guild like this in my life. I guess things are different now.'
When Amane had been alive, no one could even as much as breathe against the Divine Guild without being killed off. The alliance used to rule the lands with an iron fist back then.
Even those with the ability to reject the partnership, like Amane, opted to remain silent. Nobody wanted to make a big deal out of themselves.
The bang of the door interrupted the dismal mood. The security man appeared to be panicking as he dashed inside.
"M-My lord, something has happened to the Divine guild's messenger and our guest. You need to come out right this instant to resolve the issue."
Frankly, Amane was shocked at the braver of this guard. The anger was rolling off Lord Tsurugi in visible waves.
But the guard had risked it all to deliver this news which likely meant that it was important.
"At this time, I don't want to hear anything. The session is adjourned. Go back to your rooms, Sakura and Yoko, and don't come out until I say to. Lady Suzuki and I need to talk about the broken promise and our agreement. She will not get away with this insult, I promise."
The elderly man didn't seem interested in hearing what the poor guard had to say.
"B-But my lord, it's about the messenger-"
"I don't want to hear about it. If the Divine Guild doesn't want this marriage they could have told me so."
The elder man stalked out of the room without giving a backward glance to the panicking guard he was leaving behind.
No one knew what to do in such a situation but Amane could guess a few things just by observing her surroundings.
First, the guard must be carrying incredibly important news for him to stay behind even after being humiliated like this.
Second, it did not seem like this was the first instance of Lord Tsurugi's unexpected behavior. Everyone looked as if they had expected such a temper from their lord.
"Lady Sakura, what should we do now? Your father is not being very cooperative and this is such an important day for us all."
Amane felt insulted when everyone turned toward the younger girl at her side.
"Umm, we should keep away from this problem. I don't want my father to get angry at any of us,"
Since Amane was the older one of the pair, she should have been the next one in line for consultancy but everyone just brushed her off without even a second thought.
Sakura was sparing her glances but Amane could tell that it was not glances of reassurance. These glances asked Amane to sit back and not cause a scene.
Why does Amane spot these particular looks? Because she used to receive these from the one who had reared Amane in a previous life.
But unlike that child back then, Amane was no longer a useless person. Even if her new body felt weak and useless right now, there were things Amane could do. But the very first thing she needed to do was to take note of the situation and find out what kind of situation had occurred.
'I am not doing this because I am bored. I am just lending these people a helping hand because I want to live a care-free life.'
"You guard, lead me to the problem. I will try to take care of it as soon as I can."
Amane's words caused everyone to stare at her. Their startled expressions told Amane that no one had expected her to speak up.
Only the old maid that had manhandled Amane into this room seemed to be annoyed by this development.
"I am sorry. My lady is having a difficult day today. I will take her away now and explain to her what is going on."
Before anyone else could speak, the elderly woman grabbed Amane by the arm and dragged her outside. Amane, to be perfectly honest, was growing tired of being hauled around like this.
The elderly owner of her body appeared to be in a challenging circumstance, but Amane was not going to accept it.
It was not in her personality to sit back and take such things lying down.
Amane allowed herself to be pulled back to her room by the old lady because she did not want to cause a scene in the middle of the corridor but that was all the grace she was going to give the old maid.
"You! Don't cause any more trouble for old master Tsurugi. He took you in when your parents died and he was even gracious enough to take care of your family business. So you should be a good girl and listen to his orders."
"Just because you are the only daughter of the old master Tsurugi doesn't give you any right. You are not even a true demon like the Tsurugis. Abominations like you should just live their lives in silence and not complain about what they are being given."
Amane had not understood what kind of situation she was in yet but this one conversation caused things to become clearer for her.
She didn't appear to be a "pure-breed" in this incarnation either, and it appeared that her current situation is a result of her being a half-breed.
"To think that my half-breed status will follow me into this existence as well." However, I think people here are not as tolerant as I had thought. What should I do next to improve my standing in this family?
Amane had noticed her lack of respect in this household. It seemed like she was the 'master' here in name only.
Even the servants looked down on her.
"Look at me when I am talking to you girl. Don't you dare ignore me!"
Amane caught the incoming slap before it could make an impact on her cheek. The startled old lady quickly tried to pull her hand back but Amane's grip made it impossible.
Amane's body did not have the strength to resist the old lady's power but when she used her core, her body was filled with immeasurable strength.
"You sure are brave to try and hit me. Do you not care for your life? I am the 'master' in this house after all."
Amane's tone went dark and intimidating. The old servant looked close to fainting and Amane could tell that this was her first time seeing something like this.
'Ah, it seems the previous owner of this body was not only a coward but also submissive. Too bad that I am none of these things.'
Amane was not happy with her current circumstances but she did understand why the previous owner of the body chose to live as they had.
Not everyone dared to step out of the norms and face the world. When you did decide on your goals, achieving them was even more difficult.
"M-My lady, please let go. I-I will never serve you if you broke my wrist. Y-You know I am the o-only one who v-volunteered for the position of your m-maid, right? No one else will take my p-place once I am gone."
Was this some kind of weird way to guild-trip Amane? Did the old lady think of her as a child who was unable to do anything without help?
"I don't care if you resign and never return. I would prefer it if you never came back so please die in a shallow puddle somewhere out there. You no longer need to come here from tomorrow."
The old lady went white at Amane's words. The shocked expression on the lady's face was real enough to convince Amane that this possibility had never occurred to her.
Did the old lady seriously think someone would put up with her abuse forever?
"M-My lady, you cannot decide that on your own. M-Master Tsurugi will never allow that. R-Right, we should take this up with Master Tsurugi. I am sure he will be able to change my lady's mind."
The old woman had a smirk on her face when she finished her proposition. It irritated Amane when she looked at the old servant.
Did she look that gullible in the eyes of her servant?
"No need. Since you are my servant, I can dismiss you as I please. Now go and leave me alone."
"You cannot decide that on your own. You are nothing more than a doll who-"
The door opened before the servant could finish her words. Amane looked toward the new entry as well, her eyes guarded.
Amane let the old lady go as soon as she heard the door to her room open.
"What's happening here? I decided to check on everyone because I heard a lot of noises coming from inside. Are things in order?
The person who had arrived was Sakura Tsurugi. Since she hadn't had time to watch the younger girl yet, Amane wasn't sure what to think of her.
Amane was not even sure if she should count Sakura as a potential ally or an enemy.
Thank God you are here, Lady Tsurugi. The strange attitude my Lady is in today is even making her violent. I'm not sure what to do with her. Give us the go-ahead to imprison my lady so that she won't hurt anyone else, please.
The old servant had the audacity to ask it all. She even pushed her injured wrist in a highlighting way so that it became more prominent.
Her intention was clear - to get Amane in trouble with the other female.
But did she think it would matter to Amane? As far as Amane could gather from the old servant's words, she and the current Lord Tsurugi were not directly related.
And if Amane was reading the situation right, then it was the owner of her body who was the real head of the family and not the current Lord Tsurugi.
'So this marriage was likely a ruse to get me out of this house and to take the mantle of the family head for himself. It was a clever trick but it would no longer work on me.'
"Yoko? Is something wrong? You never fight with servants before."
Sakura's voice sounded hesitant when she asked this question. Amane could tell that Sakura wasn't like her father and likely also didn't resent Amane.
So that meant Amane could take a chance with her.
"You are right. I do have a problem with this servant and I want her gone. Do you want to say anything against my decision?"
Amane was giving Sakura a chance. Her answer would decide if Amane would treat her as a friend or a foe from here on.