The Villainess Will Not Bring Dishonor To Her Family

72 - Honor And Shame - Part 2

Alstair Schwartshertz's Point Of View

I stare quietly at the violent scenery in front of me.

Lionel is covered in blood... again...

The tea set has been shattered against the ground after the table got flipped over in the struggle... chairs are tilted over and the maid's arm is still holding a knife, though it has been separated from the rest of her body.

Lionel tested out the tea and thoroughly cleaned the cup before I had a chance to drink... apparently he noted that something was wrong, and the maid lunged at him with a knife... again today he used an arm to block the attack... again today he got injured and poisoned at pretty much the same time...

My nerves are flossed, and Lionel's even more so. He is in all ways the most dependable man I've ever known, right from childhood. He's the one guy I never thought could be rattled seriously... but Lionel is exhausted. He blanks out during class and goes to sleep before everyone else, and his temper is flying high.

He even stared taking out his stress on miss Talwen, who appears to happily just take it. On the other hand he is avoiding Lily... though, I understand why.

If he slips up in front of Lily, then she will rip him apart. Lily has a near zero tolerance to verbal attacks after all.

"Let's go to the bath and get you cleaned up," I try to speak softly. I realize that he has just about reached his limit. The moment Lionel gets the letter to go home for war, he might snap.

No matter how much time I make him relax he's getting paranoid from this... and I am too. I barely eat, and neither does he.

"Yes, your Highness."

...

On the day of the entrance ceremony I crossed a line with Lionel I never should have. I never expected the sort of welcome I got... one drenched in blood... I was nearly killed four times in one day... and by the fifth time I snapped and asked Lionel to do something I shouldn't. Of course I apologized and made Gil do it instead... but Lionel has been cautious since then.

"Your Highness."

Gil appears without the fake smile he usually plasters on. It is a bad sign... and Lionel straightens up as if to prepare for his next job.

"What is it?" I try to respond calmly and ignore the scenery around me.

"Miss Talwen and Lily have been kidnapped. We went to check up on their private meeting and found them missing. Lily appears to have been leaving recognizable traces by their tea table but there is no sign of struggle."

He glanced to Lionel when he said that last phrase, so I did as well. He frowned more than he usually did.

"Why did they have a private meeting?"

I turned my attention back to Gilbert.

"My guess would be Helena Fox. She has made a few attempts at swaying Claire politically, and so Claire probably went to Lily who has put Helena in her place before."

In other words, she went to someone with more experience? A good decision. You can't always know everything about the situation, and some things will be out of your expertise. In those cases you go to advisors for their help.

Still, to kidnap both of the queen candidates... is it Headal trying to start a war for good?

"Furthermore, we found one of the Listere family's servants killed in the south wing, and signs of struggle. We haven't been able to locate Soleil, so we suspect that he has been kidnapped along the girls."