***
“To use a gun in a duel? How cowardly…!”
The marquis glared at me with bloodshot eyes.
Judging by the way he was sweating and groaning through his tightly clenched teeth, he seemed to be in a great deal of pain.
“Oh my, you should get your facts straight. We agreed that each of us would use the weapon we were most confident with, didn’t we?”
“Even so—”
“I told you, didn’t I? I’d be at a disadvantage if I used the same weapon as you, Marquis, since you’re skilled with a sword. Shouldn’t you have considered the possibility that I might choose a gun?”
“Grr…!”
He glared at me as though he couldn’t bear his humiliation.
‘And what are you going to do about it if you keep staring?’
Even if the marquis had used a gun, the outcome would’ve been practically the same.
After all, no one could defeat me, the Lightning Hand of the Gale and the Bloody Hurricane.
“Anyway, I won the duel. Isn’t that right, Grandfather?”
Count Rosetti nodded solemnly, then called over an attendant and instructed him to take his injured master away.
“Damn it! Damn it…!”
Marquis Fenley cursed in frustration, but there wasn’t much he could do.
As I watched him disappear with the help of his attendant, Count Rosetti approached me.
“I had no idea you had such a talent. When did you learn to use a gun?”
“You flatter me. I only started learning recently.”
That wasn’t a lie. I’d only been holding a gun in the young lady’s body for about two days.
“Anyway, after what happened, it’ll be a little awkward for you to meet His Majesty. Even if the duel was justified, you’ve injured his son.”
“Pardon?”
A royal audience? Was I supposed to meet His Majesty the Emperor?
I looked at him in confusion, and he stared back at me as though I were the strange one.
“You received an invitation, didn’t you?”
“An invitation to what?”
“The imperial ball, of course.”
“Did I… receive an invitation?”
I stammered as I looked at the viscount and viscountess. They wore awkward expressions, as if to say, ‘We forgot to tell you.’
“W-when is the ball?”
“Tonight.”
Yeah, I’m not going.
***
“Not going? What do you mean, you’re not going! Change into your dress this instant!”
“Aaaaaah! I’m not going! How am I supposed to go?!”
I threw myself onto the floor and screamed at the top of my lungs.
I’d gladly put up with being scolded for acting like a child at my age if it meant I could avoid going to the imperial palace.
No matter how gutsy I was, I wasn’t brave enough to walk into the home of someone I’d just shot of my own free will.
‘And apparently, his father is His Majesty the Emperor.’
I’d known that from the beginning, but for some reason, I’d vaguely assumed I’d never have anything to do with the emperor.
‘Because I was a maid!’
Besides, what kind of lunatic would send an invitation saying, ‘Hey, come over to my house!’ to the enemy who’d fought his son?
‘If you’d received an invitation from the imperial palace two weeks ago, you should’ve told me!’
I understood that they’d been too distracted by the whole incident of the young lady and me switching bodies, but still! They’d forgotten about the imperial ball while remembering Count Rosetti’s banquet perfectly well?
‘And even if I do go…’
What if I arrived at the imperial palace only for the emperor to shout, ‘Capture that wicked, shameless little minx who injured my precious petite angel! I’ll make her pay for every injury my son suffered!’ Then he’d throw me into a dungeon and torture me!
They say children take after their parents. What if His Majesty had the exact same personality as that marquis?!
“Just the two of you go! I’ll stay at the estate and do some cleaning! I’ll do the laundry, too! I’ll even polish the chandelier on the first floor!”
“Ulpina!”
Come on, I’d won! I’d won the duel and protected the family’s honor! So why weren’t the master and mistress protecting me?!
“Just tell them I’m sick! Say I collapsed from the aftereffects of the duel and am recovering in bed—”
“Someone did collapse, but why should you be the one recovering?!”
“How many people have seen you with all your limbs perfectly intact? Do you really think you can get away with saying that?”
Damn it. If I’d known this would happen, I should’ve pretended I couldn’t win and let that bastard’s sword graze me once!
“Stop throwing a tantrum and hurry up and change. His Majesty tacitly approved the duel, so surely he won’t be so petty as to hold a grudge against you.”
“But…”
“And it’ll look even stranger if the winner of the duel starts avoiding everyone. Don’t you think so?”
Now that I thought about it, she had a point.
‘Why should I avoid him? I have nothing to be ashamed of.’
Once I thought of it that way, I somehow felt more resolute.
“Grr…! Fine! I’ll go. Even if it means walking straight to the executioner’s block…!”
“You’re not going to your execution.”
“Please, bury my body in a sunny spot in my hometown, not in the Nezer family cemetery.”
“I said you’re not going to your execution…”
The viscount and viscountess tried to persuade me, but I wasn’t particularly convinced.
***
As I’d expected, the imperial palace was far more magnificent and beautiful than Count Rosetti’s estate.
Everything gleamed from the entrance onward, making it clear that far more effort had gone into decorating the place.
Amid the lively atmosphere, the lavishly dressed guests all seemed to be enjoying themselves immensely.
“The imperial palace really is magnificent. It’s a feast for the eyes every time I visit.”
“Indeed. It’s truly splendid.”
“I wonder whose work this is this time. Constance? Or Marquet?”
“Could it be someone else? Perhaps that person who recently entered the palace…”
‘Good. It seems they’ve all forgotten about what happened this morning.’
Or perhaps they were deliberately avoiding the subject. It was an unusual incident, but hardly something anyone would want to discuss openly at the imperial palace.
‘If things stay like this, perhaps the emperor will let it pass without saying much. Honestly, the reason for the duel alone proves that he failed to raise his child properly.’
Your Majesty, wasn’t it your son who made the insolent remarks first?
As we crossed the lobby and stopped in front of the ballroom doors, an imperial attendant held out his hand.
“May I see your invitation?”
The viscount took the invitation from his pocket and handed it over. After checking the list of distinguished guests, the attendant opened the doors.
“Viscount and Viscountess Nezer, and Lady Ulpina Nezer, have arrived.”
Oh, no. I’d been wrong. I’d been completely, utterly wrong.
The moment we stepped inside following the attendant’s announcement, every gaze in the room turned toward us.
High society was so obsessed with sensational gossip that people even created newsletters to circulate it. Why on earth had I assumed everyone would pretend nothing had happened?
A sudden silence fell over the ballroom. Even the music seemed to grow quieter.
Unlike me, who was utterly bewildered, the viscount and viscountess showed not the slightest sign of agitation.
They’d kept telling me, ‘It’s fine, it’s fine,’ all the way here. And yet, it turned out the two of them had surprisingly thick skin.
‘Still, this is a little unpleasant, isn’t it?’
Even so, this was such blatant hostility. Was this how the ostracism was going to begin?
Just then, the young noblewomen who’d been watching me from a distance began approaching one by one.
“Um… Lady Ulpina. Have you been well?”
Having encountered troublesome nobles many times before, my mind immediately conjured up all sorts of unpleasant possibilities.
‘Have these so-called villainesses, who are just as bad as Rosemay, come to shun me?’
I’d heard stories from maids and servants who’d worked for other families.
Young ladies of high society would humiliate people they disliked, exclude them, spread malicious rumors, or secretly sabotage them behind their backs.
Were they about to say, right in front of everyone, ‘Hohoho! Lady Ulpina doesn’t belong in our high society. Now, get out of here at once!’
Would they put thumbtacks in my shoes or dump water all over me?
‘If I’d known this would happen, I would’ve brought an extra pair of gloves.’
So this was why. This was why the young lady had chosen to be an outsider in high society.
‘Damn it… I didn’t know any of this… I’ll carry on the young lady’s will in her place.’
All right, ladies. Come at me with those delicate little bodies of yours. Whether it’s words, fists, or a bucket of water, I’ll pay you back twice as hard.
“What can I do for you?”
I asked in a gentler voice than usual, trying to conceal my irritation.
The ladies exchanged glances and seemed to engage in a silent battle of wits. Were they deciding who would make the first move—
“Lady Ulpina, would you tell us about the duel?”
…Huh?
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