Unfortunately, I'm an Evil Villainess

Chapter 59 - Debutante Ball (II)

How...bold! Not bad, not bad at all, Lady Catherine. Regardless of her intentions or who was controlling her, the female lead was a worthy opponent indeed. This was even worse than the novel, where she merely witnessed my fiance's heroism in saving her from my bullying. No, we should've never come.

I quickly pushed aside my outrage to think, because I had to act fast. After Oscar accepted her invitation, anything I tried would be suspicious. Whatever I did had to be unquestionable, foolproof, and immediate, and I had an act in mind. It was just a shame to use it so early, since it was the best backup plan for all occasions, but couldn't be used too often.

I swooned and fell, while maintaining my usual elegance. The chivalrous prince caught me and I hung dearly onto his arm.

"My apologies! I simply feel a bit faint."

Catherine's eyes widened as her natural kindness kicked in. I managed not to smirk.

"Oh no! Are you all right, Lady Valentina?"

"I think so, thank you. I just haven't gotten much rest lately, with all my work as the saint and helping out Father, as his successor."

Pitifully, I touched the back of my hand to my forehead, the perfect picture of a distressed and overworked damsel.

"You should go take a break! I'm already really happy you came."

"No, I wouldn't want to- Ah!"

I let my knees give out under me and I practically collapsed forward, pushing myself closer to my fiance and trusting him to do the right thing and properly support me. Sure enough, he swooped me up in a princess carry. I gasped and smiled.

This classic trope never failed to delight me, but this had another purpose as well. Around us, heads turned and quiet gossiping arose, given that we, the young and beautiful royal couple, were always a subject of interest. This showcased to high society that our relationship was lovely, and also hopefully prevented Oscar from doing anything too disgraceful while forcing him to do the polite thing and take me home. I used to be confident that he could keep up appearances well, but I wasn't certain of anything anymore involving him and Catherine.

"Shall we go?"

I nodded. His voice was cold, his gaze indifferent as ever, except I thought I saw a hint of amusement that swiftly vanished. I didn't know how much he actually cared about me, but if he was annoyed I was getting in the way of him and his destined love, he didn't show that either.

Hiding my triumph, I turned my head to Catherine, who was blushing on my behalf and looked at us like we were adorable. Disappointingly, there was no trace of jealousy in her expression.

"I'm so terribly sorry, Lady Catherine. I shouldn't have come so tired."

"No, it's fine! Please rest well! In fact, I'm going to go get some tea to personally bring to your mansion. It's wonderful for sleep and refreshment!"

My glee turned to horror and I cursed silently.

"Please, you're too kind, but I couldn't possibly ask you to do such a thing during your debutante ball. You can have servants send over the tea, but you must stay here and have fun."

Hints of panic returned to her eyes. Ah, it must've been the baron again, determined for her to hunt the prince down.

"I can't have fun when my only friend isn't well! Please let me do this for you, Lady Valentina!"

The downside of attention was that now I couldn't refuse outright without seeming rude, for the whole room was focused on our conversation. I could later instruct my followers to shift the gossip to make it look like Catherine was a devoted minion, but that was the only upside to this horrid situation. I would try my best, though I doubted it would work. It'd be best to end this fast.