Minerva Blare and Viola Bryce sit opposite of each other while Minerva's hands are holding Viola's on the table between them.
"I need to reaffirm what you told me before. You went to Lambert castle for apprenticeship and was raped for a week by Margrave Lubreo. You told your best friend Fleuret Valois about that?"
Viola nods timidly.
"What she didn't know is Lubreo threatened you to expose your lack of virginity to your father and fiance. Unless you bring the daughter of Count Valois to his chamber? He wants to rape Fleuret. You hesitate on that and come to me?"
Hearing Minerva's words, Viola bite her lips before nods.
"May I have a word?"
Viola Bryce jolts at that voice. While the voice is hushed and controlled… Her rage seeps through.
"…I figured it was about time you came to me, Miss Fleuret Valois. I would love to have a nice chat with you."
While her tone is collected, Minerva is tense to keep herself from being overtaken by Fleuret’s anger. While she couldn’t let Fleuret calm down, and she could possibly handle her exploding here and now, that isn’t what Minerva hoped for.
While Fleuret is furious, Minerva knows that she isn’t stupid. With that in mind, she chooses her words carefully.
"U-Um, Fleuret…"
Desperate to contribute, Viola speaks out. Fleuret looks at her face, and notices something odd.
"Viola, did you cry again…"
"Take a look at this girl, Fleuret."
Even Minerva’s whispers sound close to Selena's ears through the telepathy provided by Hanabi. Selene looks inside her mind to see what Minerva is seeing. While Selene couldn’t be completely certain, she couldn’t see anyone hiding with magic, or any magical tools in her line of sight… Or so she thinks.
"You’re safe, my lady. The girl looks enraged, but not under a spell."
Selene's voice travels by Hanabi's telepathy to Minerva.
"Hmm."She has no time to verbally respond, but she hums a sound of acknowledgment.
Minerva told Hiro at the same night, Viola Bryce, after being raped, was blackmailed with that fact and her fiancé, and coerced to lead Fleuret Valois somewhere. Most likely, Soraya Zoen had planned to have Lubreo take Fleuret for himself. While Hiro couldn’t discern Soraya's goal in its entirety, any gain for House of Lambert would likely end in their disadvantage. So, Hiro had decided to sabotage it. He sent Irijina and Ivanna as sexual partners to Minerva's chamber to win favour from House of Blare.
They ended up rescuing Fleuret as a result, but only because it benefited Hiro and Minerva, not because it was the right thing to do… Although, if they could befriend Fleuret, who is the only daughter of Count Valois, they could potentially befriend all of House of Valois. Hiro had no problem doing as much as he could for the future.
He had Hanabi stealthily guarding outside but he never expected that decision comes in handy now. As the meeting participants know of Soraya's danger, Minerva asks Hiro for help. Coincidentally, the telepathy user, Hanabi and sorceress, Selene are here.
”Why are you with her, out of all people?”…It’s written all over your face."
Minerva says, as she stands up purposefully slowly.
"I’m not…!"
With some tension in her stance, Minerva leers at Nora.
"Lady Fleuret. I’ve heard that you are Viola’s best friend."
"That’s right. And you have no right whatsoever to...."
Minerva swallows quietly. She speaks with a forced light-hearted tone, as if to taunt Fleuret by interrupting her. Choosing her words with care:
"I’ve only recently come in acquaintance with Lady Fleuret, so I’m a little jealous. But I don’t think we can have the chat, after all."
A mocking delivery. But Minerva’s expression is far from relaxed. She paints on a defiant smile, but if one looks closely, they should have been able to see the tiny beads of sweat.
With those words, Fleuret’s face flushes bright red, then drains immediately. She falls quiet, with her eyes pointed down, to the side. After several moments of silence, Fleuret looks up, and declares:
"Is that so… But I have something to say to you. Won’t you join us, Viola? You won’t say no to me, would you?"
Minerva nods subtly, and encourages Viola to come with them. All blood has left Viola’s face by this point, but she starts walking alongside Minerva. That only makes her best friend becomes jealous.
"Lady Fleuret. Where shall we go? It’s a mess right now, but should we use my office?"
"Why would we? Just shut up and follow me, won’t you?"
With utter disregard for the murmurs of the spectators around them, Fleuret keeps walking. Minerva slowly looks around, smiles, then follows her along with Viola. No one in that room would understand why she has smiled.
They exit the palace, and climbed into a carriage that adorns the sigil of House of Valois. While it is decorated to catch an eye, it is a large carriage with a reinforced roof, as if to exemplify the lifestyle of House of Valois.Most likely crafted with any potential attacks on it in mind.
As soon as they have boarded the carriage, Fleuret commands the coachman, and they start moving. The wheels clamour, at first, but once the door is closed, it is less noticeable.
"No one will overhear us in here… Gosh....what in the world is going on?"
Fleuret instigates, her rage seemingly to have subsided. Hearing this, Viola seems to finally relax. With tears in her eyes, she embraces Fleuret.
"Fleuret… Thank goodness. I was so, so worried that you and Lady Minerva would fight…"
Surprised by her best friend pushing into her arms, Fleuret gapes at Minerva willynilly. Minerva holds something up to her mouth and staggers as if talking to someone who is not there, but soon turns back to Fleuret, composed.
'No tricks in this carriage, it looks like." Minerva says smilingly and that irks the tomboyish lady in front of her,
"Both the carriage and the coachman have earned my house’s trust. That’s without question. What did you want to do exactly, other than piss me off?"
While Nora is somehow level-headed, she is hot-tempered, true to the rumors. As she consoles her best friend’s tears who wouldn’t let go of her, her heed is devoted to the conspicuous newcomer, Minerva.
"Oh, please forgive me. But I’m glad your secret code with her worked… Even though I knew what it meant, I was worried that you wouldn’t believe me if I was the one who had said it."
「Right. Your indirectness made you cause such a scene… I just thought there had to be a reason for Viola to tell you that code. If this is all for nothing, I’ll going to beat your pretty face to a pulp."
"…I wanted witnesses to see that you forcibly took Viola away. Even it is my place, there could be spy. There is that magical thing too. Otherwise, it won’t end well for her."
Hearing this, Fleuret’s expression switches again.
"What do you mean? Don’t tell me…"
"Yes, Viola is being blackmailed. We don’t have evidence for who’s behind it so I can’t tell you… But they’re after your body.'
"I’m sorry, I’m sorry, Fleuret… I couldn’t do anything… I couldn’t even, tell you… I wanted to die, but I was scared…"
"Sh-Shut up! Don’t you talk about dying! Oh, what in the world is going on!?"
As she consoles her sobbing friend, Fleuret urges Minerva to continue.
"…I have many enemies. When I was looking into things, I found out, by coincidence, that she was in a desperate situation. From my point of view, I just wanted to prevent you from aiding my enemies, since I wasn’t sure whose side you would take… I only rescued her for my own gain, so don’t thank me for it."
Don’t tell me what to do."
With Fleuret’s immediate response, Minerva has now lost her words.
"But I was just…"
"Fine, I can’t figure out yet if you’re virtue or malevolent, sure. Still, Viola was so desperate, so much as to make her cry this much, and I was oblivious to it, and you brought us all to this point. She’s my best friend. You helped her, and now you don’t want me to feel grateful for it? What a load of crap.'
Minerva breaks up laughing despite her best efforts not to. She is not guffawing at Fleuret, but out of relief.
"W-What? Why are you laughing, looking like that?"
"Hee… Hee hee hee… Well, because I’m… Relieved. You’re so much nicer than what I’ve heard in rumors."
