Noa stepped out of her room with a plain face. The stupid Eugene must have been in his study and so would have been Albert and Luka. Lethe had long since gone to sleep and the teachers had decided to take a stroll outside in Apollon. The two girls with Princess Hoya were a slight trouble, but nothing special.
For the girl that had been long looking for spice, no better opportunity was going to come around.
She stepped out of the rooms on the first floor of the mansion and found most of them sitting in the hall of the mansion. Around the fireplace, the remaining members of the troupe which were mostly ladies sat together.
Maria and Lily leaned against the couch and read a book each. Lady Sophia was filing her nails, while Dawn meditated to increase her Ki.
Other than them, she was lucky to have only seen one white haired girl in the mix. Meryl Fonias.
Noa stepped in the center, and turned toward Dawn, the only person she had gotten comfortable with in the last few days.
"Say, Miss Dawn," she called. "Do you like Eugene?"
Two books were dropped.
And so was a nail filer.
A poor Meryl was shocked by the sounds and had no choice but see the scene of carnage.
"L-l-like? That bastard?" Dawn muttered. "I mean, yeah, why not—"
"Haven't you been sleeping with him?"
"Ahak! Ahem, ahem!!" Lady Sophia at the back coughed out loud. Her hand hovering over her mouth and her chest.
Sleeping with him?
Before marriage?
And also, wasn't Lord Eugene already a thing with lady Lethe? If she knew he was available she would have long since attacked him!
"What? Do you like him too?" Noa asked, peeking at Sophia who was busy coughing.
"His power? Yes, I am quite hungry for it."
"Oh…"
Noa turned away.
This girl had different intentions.
"Excuse me?" This time, Maria interrupted. She was initially going to interrupt Noa, but Sophia's words intrigued her more. "What do you mean, Lady Sophia? Does that mean you like that he is strong?"
"Uh, no." Sophia shook her head. "I mean, I would have to be either blind or stupid to like him romantically."
The others in the room flinched.
"I like his strength, not that he is strong. Well, what is the point here, Miss Noa? You should have such conversations… in private."
Meryl nodded in agreement.
She wanted to send them packing on her own, stand guard on their doors holding a do not disturb sign. Anything to not see carnage with her own eyes. Women were scary.
"I am not here to have a personal talk. I am sure the lot of you like him."
Noa sighed and slumped down on the couch.
Almost, she was almost nailing it.
How hard was it to change her expression in front of people that were plain. But she still did.
It was all for the spice.
"Well, I like him too. Quite a bit."
The weeks of journeying, and the way they got to know each other, it was all some of the spiciest stuff she had ever experienced.
In all of it, a different type of feeling naturally bloomed in her chest.
"But, I bet you're sitting back twiddling your thumbs in fear of that Acacia girl," Noa continued. "And that little piece of shit either doesn't realize we like him or doesn't want to admit it. I doubt he's dense though, he probably thinks many-timing is good."
This part was heartfelt.
She swallowed some words, though.
Words she had heard not that long back…
About love.
Was what she felt love? She wasn't sure. Maybe the others here did, but Noa, who had barely experienced enough spice in her two lifetimes, had barely any idea of what love was.
And that was why she found Eugene and Lethe's relationship special.
And that was why… she was jealous.
As if she had just eaten a flaming hot chilly, her heart had been burning with spice after witnessing that scene.
So she wanted to figure it out. And if it was love, she also wanted to win and keep him all for herself. Whatever that would take.
"I am still going to take him for myself. Lady Lethe is great, but all is fair in love and war, and I don't about love, but this sure is war."
The other girls in the room were stunned at Noa's words.
"You keep twiddling your thumbs, losers. Just do it in fear of me next time. Ciao."
With an extremely ungraceful closing line, Noa hopped off the couch and dashed back away into her room, her exit just a notch more ungrateful.
But this was enough…
"War? Young master has enemies?"
"Young master has been sleeping with others? Even though he told me never to leave his side? Eh? I thought we were going to get married?"
"Miss Lily? You should know that is asking too much. You need status like mine! Cuteness like mine…"
"Haha, that brat. She just said her piece and left."
Meryl was trapped helplessly in between four fearsome vixens.
She wanted to cry and run away in front of the murderous intent all of them released, but she thought just moving around was going to get her killed.
Her cousin sure was loved.
She just hoped they could handle that some other time, like, any time she was not around.
"Young master…."
"Mommy…"
***
"So, you called me about drugs?"
Luka asked, now out of the box, he seemed rather pissed at the two of us for leaving him like that, but it was totally his fault for going all woe is me on us.
"Pretty much," Albert said. "Did you ever notice any strange or special drugs in your previous life? I don't know of any such thing."
"Why would you? You're not a regressor like me," Luka said. "Well, I am sure you're something though. Tell me whenever."
"Why whenever?" I called. "I thought you knew we were from another world?"
Luka and Albert both looked at me, and then they both sighed.
"So it is true…"
"We had never really told him, you know?"
They seemed strangely affected by it.
"Who cares, grow up, get used to such things. Now, Luka, drugs."
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