I will not die a Villainess's death

Not only the court, but the kid who had been pointed out in the royal court froze as well. His eyes looked between Elysia and the emperor cautiously before he spoke up his refusal.

"Ugh, I don't think I will be able to-"

"What are you talking about Feize? Of course, we will be honored to be hosting our lord's guest in our residence tonight. Feize, be a dear, and show the emperor your agreement."

Wide black eyes looked at the similar-looking woman who spoke up from the other side of the gathering. Elysia could connect the dots herself about Feize and that woman's possible connection.

They did not look old enough to be parent-child so they had to be siblings. Both had the same black hair and black eyes with narrowed eyes.

"S-Sister, I don't think it is appropriate for a woman to be living in men's residence. Mother would have frowned-"

"Feize, you might have gotten taller but your thought process is still like that of a kid. No one bats an eye in this day and age if a woman wants to reside in a man's residence. Besides, Lady Elysia was the empire's emperor's former fiance. I am sure she has experience living with a man before."

The court was deadly silent as the black-haired woman dug her grave.

She might not have realized what the words she was saying out loud and where she was now, but that did not give her the right to make such assumptions.

Not to mention, Elysia could see Lucas's temper about to burst. He was taking this defaming of Elysia's character worse than she was taking it.

"L-Lady, you should stay quiet in these matters. Your speaking up is not helping your brother-"

The poor maid who was standing on the proud lady's side spoke up quietly. Had Elysia not trained in stealth, she would likely not have been able to hear that soft murmur.

Not that it mattered much because the rude lady did not allow the maid to step back calmly. Her temper worsened as the maid interrupted and all the anger was now directed toward the maid.

"Who said that you could speak up? This talk is between me and my brother so outsiders should butt out." The maid looked disheartened but she stepped back. But this was not the end of it.

Once the rude lady was sure that there would be no more interruptions, she turned toward Elysia and her brother.

"Now Feize, you should hurry up and accept Lady Dirac's offer. I am sure she has taken quite a liking to you. It will not be easy but I am sure we can nurture the relationship between you two."

Even Elysia was taken aback by the casual remark she heard Feize's sister make. So it was a given that everyone else should have looked just as taken aback as she did.

But no one in the court looked phased, only pained at the rude attitude this noble was showing.

The one who looked the most uncomfortable was Feize himself. The teen was avoiding not only his sister but everyone else's eyes as well.

In the end, the one who could no longer keep up this farce was Lucas. He had enough of everything and of seeing his sister being used as a bargaining tool.

"I think it is enough for now. Elysia, hurry up and follow after me since you will be rooming with me. There is no need to consider any subpar offers right now."

There was a tick in Lucas's brows that betrayed how annoyed he felt by the display he just saw. Chrome looked uncomfortable and amused at the same time but Elysia could see him trying to hold his laughter back.

"'Your highness, I will be excusing myself and my sister from your court now. May you have a good day ahead."

The court looked offended at Lucas's sudden retreat and even Elysia could feel how rude it had been for Lucas to retreat like that.

He had spared the emperor of this nation no face and his words had lacked any form of courtesy. They were as dry and cutthroat as Lucas could have made them sound.

"Yeah sure, do what you want to. I am giving you both as much authority as I have so go wild. But please, keep the external damages to a minimum."

Elysia looked back at the teen she had put in trouble. He had an uncomfortable but relieved smile on his face that made Elysia feel guilty.

She had not thought her actions through and now because of her, another person had gotten in trouble.

"Don't look back at the court because they are not worth it. I knew something would happen once we arrive at the Akatsuki court. Something always happens here anyway."

It had not hit Elysia until then that her plans to make a good first impression in front of the Akatsuki court were down the drain now.

Not only had Elysia given the worst possible impression, but she had also caused an incident that required Lucas to step in. She had even gotten made comments about which had been uncalled for.

"Man, I can never catch a break, right? Why are my social skills so bad? This happens every time."

Elysia knew that she had a gloomy and depressing aura most of the time that kept people from approaching her. And it was not even her fault she felt 'evil' to people.

And most of the time, it led to Elysia not even being able to make any friends on her own. She was not someone easily approachable after all.

"Elysia, there is nothing wrong with you. The world had a place for everyone and yours is by the side of people who love you and are willing to understand you."

Lucas had a way with words as well. It did not happen often but when Lucas was in the mood, flowers came out of his mouth instead of words.

"Anyway, I am curious about one thing though. Why did you choose that kid to host you? You had so many options available to you but you still had to go with the most difficult one. Do you have a talent for landing in such situations?"

Elysia's cheeks hurt from where Lucas was pulling at them. He was surprisingly efficient at it even though he had never done this before.

even though it hurt a lot to be pulled at like this, Elysia was still happy to endure it all for the sake of her relationship with Lucas. And it was not like it hurt a lot as well.

"Lucas, you know that I do not go out of my way to find these situations, right? They just end up finding me and-"

"E-Excuse me. I wanted to, ugh, have a talk with you, my lady. My s-sister sent me to a-apologize."

Elysia's words of protest died at her throat as soon as she realized that she was not alone. The teen she had asked to accommodate her and the one who had rejected Elysia was standing in front of her now.

His head was bowed low and in a familiar arch. His sagging shoulders betrayed his lack of confidence in himself and there was something achingly sad about that kid.

And that was what this person felt like to Elysia - a kid trying to find his way through a dark road.

"Elysia, do you need me to-?"

Lucas left his question hanging, looking between Elysia and this new factor. He looked curious but also cautious about what he should do next.

Elysia knew that the right thing would be to ask Lucas to go away and hear the kid out but she had no intention of being alone with the teen right now.

One thing Elysia realized while being here in the Akatsuki kingdom was that the political structure of this place was not that much different from the empire. Most people in the court only pretended to put up a nice face while trying to drag you down.

And the most likely method they would use just happened to be rumors. They did not hurt anyone physically but they could do a lot of damage if they were spun right.

'Ugh, how did I forget such a fundamental part of the court politics? I must have been out of my mind when I suggested housing with a male like this.'

The other world had spoilt Elysia a lot. No one had thought much of it when Elysia had to room with a bunch of guys and girls in the dormitory of the academy she had been attending in the other world.

And because this kid looked to be the same age as the kids as back at the academy. And Elysia's brain had just taken a dive due to nostalgia.

'It must be because of these familiar features. Feize looks like he would fit in with the other world.'

Elysia could have happily sunk into her thoughts the whole day if not for Lucas's coughing which brought her back, only to realize that Feize was still awkwardly standing in front of Elysia.