The Villainess is Unmotivated: 01

Author’s Note:

Thank you for reading! Nice to meet you.

I plan to keep this short and sweet! I would be grateful if you could read it until the end!

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When Cassandra, the daughter of the Alpenheim Marquis family, was ten years old, she heard the news that she had been promised to Prince Arnold as his fiancée.

The two major ducal families of the Kingdom of Klarvine had no daughters of marriageable age, while the three major marquis families of Alpenheim, Barfut, and Endelbert had suitable young ladies of similar age. Barfut led the royalist faction, and Endelbert led the aristocratic faction, so the neutral Alpenheim family was chosen.

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“When I heard that a young lady of marriageable age had become the prince’s fiancée, anyone would have jumped with joy.”

Hearing this Cassandra spit out the tea she had in her mouth.

After a while, she finally calmed down and, while wiping her mouth with a handkerchief, asked her father with a cheerful smile, “That’s something we can refuse, right?”

However, her father shook his head with a similar expression on his face, indicating that it was impossible to refuse.

On Cassandra’s lap was a book published in the far eastern country of Honyan, a romantic novel about Linfo, who had been raised as the emperor’s fiancée since she was a child but was exiled after having her fiancé stolen by the bright and innocent girl Mayme, causing Linfo’s family to fall, and the story of Empress Mayme, who was loved by the emperor and lived happily ever after.

It seems to be a bestseller in Honyan, which loves stories of underdogs.

“Father... we really can’t refuse, can we?”

To Cassandra’s question, her father continued to shake his head in silence with a smile on his face.

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The Kingdom of Klarvine is said to be a maritime power that focuses on trade with other countries. As the Alpenheim Marquis family, which has focused on the development of port cities and is so affluent that it does not feel the need to rely on the royal family’s power, it was often appointed as the mediator between the two major factions as a neutral party. It was thought that it would be just right to welcome Alpenheim’s young lady as the prince’s fiancée.

Barfut, which was royalist, had married a young lady to the queen two generations ago, and Engelbert, which was aristocratic, had married a young lady as the queen four generations ago.

There was an opinion that it was about time for Alpenheim to produce a queen as well, and Cassandra was chosen. However, she could not accept it at all.

So, when it was decided that she would become the fiancée, instead of going to the palace to greet the prince, she decided to invite the daughters of two great dukes to her house and hold a tea party.

“Thank you for inviting me today.”

“Cassandra-sama, congratulations on your engagement to His Highness.”

Constanze Barhufut is a beautiful girl with deep blue hair and emerald-colored eyes, while Karoline Engelbert has a delicate impression with new green hair and amber eyes.

Both of them seemed to be disappointed and downcast rather than burning with jealousy or hatred that Cassandra had been chosen as the prince’s fiancée. They sat down at the tea party prepared in the garden.

After a colorful small cake was arranged, and the maidservant served the tea.

Constanze opened her mouth with a small sigh.

“We heard that Cassandra-sama is a powerful candidate as His Highness’s fiancée, and we understand that it would be the least problematic for Cassandra-sama to marry him, considering the current factional situation. However, it seems that your father did not think so...”

“To be fair, our father said the same thing.”

Karoline said, her large amber eyes moistening.

“He scolded me, saying that it was my fault for not being aggressive enough towards His Highness. I’ve only met him once at the tea party hosted by the royal family. How could I be more proactive in just one meeting?”

“I didn’t even attend that tea party.”

Cassandra shrugged with a small shoulder, reaching for a macaron. She remembered that event. It was a month after Prince Arnold turned eight years old when a large tea party was hosted by the royal family.

“Indeed, you did not attend that tea party, did you, Cassandra-sama?”

“I caught a cold and had a high fever.”

It was clear that she was lying about the high fever.

Cassandra, who was ten years old, had beautiful hair that seemed to have melted gold and ruby-like eyes. Her large eyes, which appeared to be slightly upturned, made her look like a spirited and arrogant girl. Even if it were a tea party hosted by the royal family, it was always the case that she had no motivation to attend, even though she seemed likely to participate, dressed in the highest-grade flashy dress.

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Author’s Note:

Thank you for reading so far! It would help me to maintain my motivation. If you like, please give me a ☆☆☆☆☆ and some feedback...