"Rachel..." the marchioness sighed deeply, "I stood up for you, and you prove me wrong. You are unbelievable."
As Rachel's eyes met her mother's, she politely curtsied while properly pinching her dress and bowing her head lightly. "A-Alice. I am sorry for making you wait. I thank you for finding the time to answer my invitation."
"Much better. You may now state the purpose for this summon."
"Alice, I want you to accompany me to a friend's party."

(A party? Me...? What am I, a foil?)

"... Which friend are you talking about, exactly?" Elaina inquired, with suspicion in her voice.
"Oh, it is Isabelle. She sent me an invitation to her birthday celebration a while ago and mentioned I could bring whoever I wanted."

Alice didn't recognize this name but, judging from the faces of the marchioness and her son, Rachel was making this sound more casual than it was.

"Rachel. When you say 'Isabelle', are you referring to the daughter of Duke de Lockmond, by any chance...?"
"Correct. I guess she is famous."
"H-how are you acquainted with Lady Isabelle to the point that she would send you a personal invitation to her Grand Banquet? No, how do you two even know each other?!" the marchioness cried out, no longer able to keep her cool in front of a guest.

(... Eh? Did it really go from a friend's party to the Grand Banquet? Even I got wind of that event...)

"W-well... I met her during my coming-of-age ceremony a couple of years ago, and we have been talking from time to time via letters. She said she liked how genuine I was, I think..."
"... Let me get this right, Rachel," Elaina started before marking a threatening pause. "You kept up a privileged correspondence with one of the most influential women in the entire kingdom for years, but you never told me about this even once. Is that really what happened?"
At that, Rachel's complexion became visibly paler. "Uh... You never asked, so..."
"How could I have considered it could possibly be the case?! She is three years older than you! How in the world did you even manage to talk to her at the temple?"
"I don't really know... She seemed interesting, so I guess I just approached her."
"What kind of monster did I give birth to...?" the marchioness mumbled.  

(... She's got a point. No one in their right mind would talk to a stranger without a purpose. Or maybe that's just me.)

"Ask someone else to accompany you," Elaina continued. "Alice has not made her debut yet. The Grand Banquet would be overwhelming."
"I agree," Maximilian said in support. "I do not mind going in Alice's stead. You can write in your response that I will accompany you." 

(These two are heroes...! )

"About that," Rachel began with an uneasy expression, "I... might have already sent a confirmation to Isabelle that I would bring Alice with me. Is that a problem?"

(...)

Seeing everyone lost for words, Rachel eventually broke the silence. "I-I mean, Isabelle sent me another letter the other day urging me to tell her who I would bring along to make the necessary preparations, so..."
"Did you not think for even a second that it would be wise to tell me about this before sending that letter...?" Elaina asked with her face now devoid of any emotion.
"... Sorry?"
"You should not apologize to me!"

Rachel turned to Alice who had become unresponsive, certainly because of this emotional rollercoaster. 

"Alice... I am sorry. It appears I underestimated the significance of what I did and caused you trouble."
"C-can we not send another letter saying I cannot attend?" Alice suggested. "Maybe it could work...?"
"This is true. If we immediately send a new letter before Lady Isabelle sends her response, Alice might be freed."
"W-well..." Rachel said, at this point looking at her feet to avoid everyone's gaze, "Isabelle sort of... already sent another letter to thank me for informing her. I think she wrote that she was looking forward to meeting her... or something."
"Rachel, how many letters did you two exchange? How much vital information are you still keeping from me?!"
"T-that was the last one, I swear!" 

With only a subtle head movement, Elaina beckoned her daughter to another room, presumably to reprimand her.

With a resigned look, Alice turned to Maximilian. "There is no way out for me, is there?"
"Once the daughter of Duke de Lockmond has made it clear that she expects to meet you, it is too late. If you had something planned for this day, cancel it."
"Seems like I have run out of options... I suppose Fate has made up its mind, then. I do not even have much time to prepare myself, do I...?"
"... Good point. It will occur four days before my coming-of-age ceremony, so that will be logistically difficult."
"That means I cannot possibly attend! I have a way out after all!"
"The Lockmonds' estate is located not too far from here and it is in the direction of the capital. You can still attend."
"You could at least pretend to be on my side!"
"As I said, even if you could not do both, you would have had to cancel the trip to the capital."
"P-please let me go with you after the banquet... If I know I am going to the capital afterward, it will give me courage."
"That goes without saying that we will make the necessary arrangement."
"Maximilian..."
"... After all, we have only one carriage with the family crest. Rachel will need that carriage to go to the Grand Banquet, so I need to meet up with you two and exchange said carriage for my trip to the capital."
"... Oh."

(I've been had by false kindness for the second time today?!)

"Still, I apologize on behalf of my sister. She always acts before thinking."
"Well, she can be a bit heedless from time to time... It is part of her charms, and this is certainly what made her closer to that duchy. In the end, it might even be greatly beneficial for your family."
"That is true. You should also put on a good front when you meet Lady Isabelle. If my sister truly is a good friend of hers, you might have an advantage as she chose you to accompany her."
"... I am not too interested in getting close to this person. As long as I avoid embarrassing myself, I will call it a win."

Elaina then returned to the room with a smile, followed by her daughter who was harboring a lifeless expression.

"Given the importance of this gathering of nobles, Rachel fears she is not quite prepared. As such, she requested to take advanced etiquette lessons until that time. Is that right, Rachel?"
"... Ah. Yes," Rachel confirmed with a strained voice.
"Alice. Since you two will attend the banquet, please consider you are bound together. You will be impacted if she embarrasses herself, but the opposite is also true. Since you are still inexperienced, I want you to be taught these lessons as well. Would it be alright if I schedule them to start by the end of next week?"
"I understand... I will attend them as well."

(When am I supposed to go adventuring between Rina's study and those lessons...?)

"Good," the marchioness said before looking contemplative at Alice. "I will arrange for a renowned tailor to visit at the start of your etiquette lessons."
"Um... Is it really necessary?" Alice halted. "I already have a couple of dresses that might work for this banquet."
"This will not suffice, I am afraid. The Grand Banquet is an event of a different magnitude."
Alice shrank under the experienced noblewoman's scrutiny, "I suppose you are right..." 

(Gaah... I'd rather avoid being told I haven't grown in the last two years...)

"So," Elaina's gaze shifted back to her daughter, her voice carrying weariness. "Was there anything else you needed from Alice?"
After thinking for a moment, Rachel shook her head. "No, that was all."
"Naturally, you would make a busy noblewoman like Alice rearrange her entire day, only to ask her in person to accompany you to a - supposedly - informal gathering when a simple letter could have achieved the same outcome."
Not seeing the tightened expression of her mother, Rachel began to nod enthusiastically. "Exactly! Face-to-face conversations are so much bet-"
"I was being sarcastic, idiot!" Elaina snapped, making her daughter let out a shriek at the sudden rebuke.

***

"Lady Alice? It has been quite some time."
"Lucius... Good morning."
"From your expression, I assume you are not here just to greet a servant like me. Did you... hurt yourself?"
"... I did. Do you mind looking at it?"

As Alice exposed her neck, the healing mage gasped but still stepped forward to examine the wound.

"This looks like it was caused by a sword. Did Lady Rachel do this?"
"N-no, of course not! I got this a few days ago due to my own carelessness. I cannot have it seen..."
"Can you help her with this, Sir Lucius?" the maid added.
"... I will do my best. The wound does not appear to be that deep."

***

"It is not too bad," declared Alice, twisting her head to catch a glimpse of her neck in a hand mirror. "The wound has shrunk quite a lot."
"Calling it 'not too bad' is almost insulting to Sir Lucius, my Lady. Did you not see how pale he was after using most of his mana pool just for you?"
"Well, I know that I owe him. How about I offer some high-grade mana potions as a token of gratitude?"
"Are you that eager for people to start associating those potions with you?"
"You have a point there... In any case, do you think the resulting tiny scar will go unnoticed, Mia?"
"It is difficult to say."
"It will at least be subtle enough for you to not spill the beans to Mother and Father, right?"
"You are in the clear for now," Mia warned. "However, if that tailor spots the scar, you will come clean. If not, I shall reveal everything myself."
"... Fair."

As she watched the ever-changing landscape from her carriage, Alice couldn't help but internally complain about how her schedule for the next month would be.

(Well, I did promise Father I would still handle all my noble duties, so that can't be helped. As soon as I'm back from the capital, however, I'm putting up a marathon of quests! I'd like to become C-rank soon.)

She didn't know yet, but a few obstacles encountered along the way would make that goal ever-so-slightly more difficult to attain.