The Ball

"The smell is faint, but unmistakably holy. You've come in contact with the Saint recently."

There was no use denying it, not from Rieva. But I was surprised that she was able to tell.

"Indeed. The saint must be one of the three students I've encountered inside the dungeon."

Rieva would have figured this much soon anyway, perhaps she already knows as much. Once she figures out Lily is the Saintess, my school life will come to an end. I'll need to make sure Seraphine is safe by then. I already shifted the story quite a bit, but is it enough?

I decided to play it safe and keep my contact with Lily to myself. Soon the school would hold its annual ball. There, I will see if the story will still correct itself and set Lily on a route. If not, then perhaps I succeeded in saving the villainess.

Rieva seemed satisfied. "Only three targets. Very well. I shall investigate them. What should I do if I find the Saint?" she asked.

"A direct confrontation may be dangerous. Handle it discretely."

I don't care if she assassinates Lily while she's asleep, or whatever, once I make sure Seraphine won't end up executed, I will be done here.

The ball came sooner than expected. This would be my last major event at the academy. I decided to ask Seraphine to accompany me to the ball and not intervene in Lily's life for once. Left to herself, Lily's choice would tell me if the game's plot was still active.

"I refuse." Seraphine said flatly. I was stunned. I had thought we had become close enough for her to at least consider it.

"And why is that?"

"I do not need to explain myself to you. Please leave."

What is wrong with her? I thought we had a pretty good relationship. Why is she so cold now?

Seraphine left me speechless. I then saw her look at something behind me, before scoffing and leaving. I turned around and saw...

Lily.

"Lady Everlight." I said, "What are you doing here?"

"I was looking for you. I wanted to ask..." she fidgeted, clearly nervous. "I was wondering...will you accompany me to the ball?"

"Huh?"

Nothing was going according to plan. Seraphine wouldn't come with me, and now Lily was asking me to take her to the ball. This was...

This is the story reasserting itself.

When Lily didn't up with any of her normal love interests, I had assumed she was on none of the routes. I was wrong, so very wrong. Lily was on the Lucien route.

This is the worst possible outcome. I can't be her love interest! Not only am I a villain, but this now meant my attempts to get closer to Seraphine put her in just as much danger as she was in the game.

"Lord Draivelle? Are you okay?" Lily asked. I didn't realize I had been staring at her without moving. I quickly got a grip on myself. I couldn't let her see my reaction to this revelation. I had to act like nothing was wrong, like I was still the Lucien she was expecting.

"Apologies, Miss Everlight. I was simply caught off guard by your question." I said, "But I will have to decline, as I am already attending with someone else."

Lily looked heartbroken. "Is it...Lady Mireidyne?" she asked.

If Lily sees Seraphine as a rival, it'll put her in danger!

"Ahem, sorry, what I meant to say was, I have no intention of attending the ball at all. I am not much of a dancer."

"Oh, that's no problem! I can't dance either. We'll just talk or something." she said. I tried to think of another excuse, but Lily didn't let me. "Please, Lucien? I'd really like to attend the ball with you." she pleaded.

There's no use fighting fate. I'll just need to steer her clear of Seraphine until Rieva can take care of her.

"Ah...very well then." I conceded. "I shall pick you up at the start of the ball."

Lily was overjoyed. "Thank you so much! I look forward to it! I'll make sure to look extra pretty!"

She bowed and then left, leaving me alone to digest what happened.

What the hell just happened?!

Lily's dress was an elegant white gown, a perfect fit for her. I was dressed in my finest, wearing a silver coat with black trimmings and a golden rose pin, a symbol of House Draivelle. When I picked her up from her dorm and we made our way to the ball, all eyes were on us. The academy had not expected the two of us to attend together, but as the two winners of the assessment, we made quite the pair.

Lily only had eyes for me. Thinking about it, she has been like that for a while, I was just trying hard to ignore her. Luckily, this meant Lily did not care much that Seraphine was also there, stunning everyone with her beauty in a red dress, her hair elegantly tied up in a braid and wearing an ornate mask. She didn't dance much, apparently she came without a partner.

I'm so sorry, Seraphine.

Just like she had said, Lily was a terrible dancer. It reminded me a little of my sister in my original world, the one who introduced me to 'Midnight Lily's Bloom'. She was terrible at rhythm games, even though her reaction time was usually excellent when playing action games.

When the dance ended, Lily wanted to go outside and bask in the moonlight. It was a beautiful night, so I didn't object. She went ahead and I followed her. Outside in the academy's gardens, Lily was waiting for me. Her white gown contrasted against the darkness.

In the darkness and from this distance, I could not make out her face very well. With my sister still on my mind I pictured her standing there, smiling at me. All this time, I had never once thought about what it was like back home. Was she alright? Did she miss me?

"I miss you, Val." I said quietly. I didn't mean to say it out loud at all, and I hoped Lily hadn't heard.

But she did.

The only difference was that instead of being confused or offended, she was...

frozen.