"Lady Liliane," Tristan repeated, his voice soft as velvet… if velvet could be poisonous. "Is this… your version of a rescue?"
His gaze fell upon our hands, which were still interlocked like two panicked crabs solemnly swearing allegiance under life-threatening pressure. Oh, these damned hands. They had just changed professions from the hands of an elegant noblewoman to the tools of a heavy-duty kidnapper.
"I... I didn't mean to!" I exclaimed, letting go of his grip as fast as someone who just realized they were holding a live electrical cable. "I did want to run away, but the plan was to run away alone! You… you're just in the wrong place at the wrong time! Like a cameo that overstays its welcome!"
Tristan just stared at me with a flat expression, flat as the royal family's ironing board.
"I truly do not understand what you mean, Lady, but one thing is certain. You are kidnapping me."
"No!" I waved my hand as if warding off a curse. "I'm Cupid, okay?! My main mission is to match you with Lady Genevieve, not drag you like lost luggage at the airport!"
Silence.
Duke Tristan merely raised one eyebrow.
And I swear, I saw the corner of his mouth twitch slightly, as if he were suppressing a rebellious army of smiles.
"So," he said slowly, "your Cupid strategy is… kidnapping your own match-making target? Interesting. Very… unique."
"Don't discuss it! When we talk about it, it sounds absolutely evil!" I let out a small shriek. "I just aimed wrong! Wrong target! Wrong universe even!"
God must be watching this from the heavens while eating popcorn. I, the Cupid, had just shot an arrow of love and successfully embedded it into my own butt.
Instead of bringing Duke Tristan closer to Genevieve, I looked exactly like a villainess desperately kidnapping the school idol.
"Why did you pull me, Lady Liliane?" Tristan's voice dropped, low and soft.
The softness was dangerous. Like a deadly whisper from a man too handsome to resist.
And as his eyes met mine—cold, dark, yet beautiful like a moonless night—my mind went instantly blank.
"Because… uh… well, you see…"
Because you were standing there like very sweet sugar and I unconsciously ate you.
No, Liliane, don't be honest!
But before I could come up with another idiotic excuse...
"LILIANE!"
The voice exploded like thunder in the dry season.
I turned—and there, stood my Father, Duke Valerian Hohenberg.
His face was as pale as a corpse who just realized his taxes went up.
"Father!" I chirped cheerfully, like a dutiful child just caught stealing candy.
"What… WHAT are you doing with Duke Blackwood?!" His gaze darted between Tristan and me, his eyes widening as if he had just watched a thriller movie scene. "What did you do to my daughter?!"
"WHAT?! No, Father, please don't misunderstand!"
I waved my hands frantically like a flag of peace. "He's the victim! I'm the perpetrator! I'm the one who kidnapped him!"
"You… pulled a Duke?" Father blinked. His eyebrow twitched like a worried silkworm.
"My daughter… performed advanced-level kidnapping?"
Then he looked at Tristan in horror. "Duke, forgive our family! But what mistake did you make that my daughter would desperately drag you like this?!"
Truly, I wanted to scream, "Blame me, Father! I just have active criminal reflexes!"
But what came out instead was, "I am truly sorry, Your Grace! I will explain everything, I swear, after that, I will exile myself to the North Pole!"
Before Tristan could speak, I ran over to Father and whispered quickly,
"He is innocent, Father! Don't panic! This is just… a failed social project!"
Then I dragged Father away.
Yes, dragged. Again.
It seemed I had a natural talent for forcefully pulling high-status nobles.
***
The memory ended there with shame as high as a church tower, panic as wide as a continent, and a strong desire to move planets.
Now I returned to the bitter reality.
The clinking of a teacup sounded in the air. I stared at the half-eaten slice of chocolate cake in front of me, its steam dancing as if mocking me.
"Why does every one of my flashbacks always start with disaster and end with a desire to bury myself in the ground?" I complained.
"Is this fate… or just because I'm genuinely an idiot?"
The bedroom door creaked softly.
"Young Mistress?" The maid peeked in, her face tense like an overloaded clothesline. "Does the Mistress want... extra tea?"
I turned slowly, dramatically. "Tea?" I whispered. "Tea can't erase the criminal record in my life, Martha."
The maid immediately trembled. Her cup clinked, her tray wobbled, and the tea spilled onto the floor.
I slapped my forehead. "She's scared again. This villainess image is stuck like super glue."
"F-Forgive me, Mistress! I will accept any punishment! Whipping! Jail! Or forced labor in the kitchen!"
"Huh?!" I was shocked. "I don't want to punish anyone! I just—look here!"
I smiled widely, showing all my teeth.
"... am trying to be a good person!"
The maid merely let out a small shriek. "P-Please don't kill me with your smile, Mistress!"
Ugh, is this really destiny or karma?
Okay, gentle mode activated.
I patted her shoulder slowly, like taming a kitten.
"Listen," I whispered, "I'm not mad. You're just tired, right? You need rest. Sleep. Eat. Read a book. Do happy things, alright."
"REST?!" she shrieked, her eyes wide. "P-Please don't fire me!"
"I'm not going to fire you! I'm just telling you to sleep, eat, and be happy!"
She stared at me as if I had just told her to ride a dragon.
"R-Really, Mistress?"
"Truly!" I raised my hands like a campaigning politician. "I'm Liliane 2.0! Anti-sadness, pro-calmness! Now go and… rest with pride!"
The maid immediately burst into tears of emotion. "You... you are too kind, Mistress!"
"I know."
I smiled, proud.
"Please inform everyone: I am kind. Very kind. Super kind!"
Unfortunately, as she left, another servant saw her tear-streaked face and immediately panicked.
"She's crying! Liliane tortured her again!" that's the meaning of the expression on his face
Well. Being a hero turns out to be harder than being a villain.
***
The next day I decided to reach out to the common people.
If I wanted to match-make others, my reputation had to be clean first.
Thus began the Reputation Rehabilitation Tour.
I walked the corridors, smiling as wide as the sky.
"Good afternoon, everyone! I am now the reformed version! A new Liliane, without poison, without hatred, and very… friendly!"
The servants I passed froze. Some flattened themselves against the wall, some bowed until they nearly toppled over.
I approached, waving my hand. "Don't be scared! I'm a vegan now! No toxic!"
They whispered, "What is a vegan? A new type of curse?"
Well, besides that action, there were many others I performed. These are a few actions I still remember.
Action 1: Praising Appearance
"Your new ribbon is beautiful!" I exclaimed to a servant cleaning a painting.
She instantly paled, dropping her cloth. "A-Apologies! I will remove it!"
"But—it suits you!"
Unfortunately, she immediately ripped the ribbon off and knelt. "I was vain! Please punish me!"
Action 2: Helping a Servant
I saw an old servant lifting a heavy basket. "Let me help!" I cried.
She shrieked, "No, Mistress!" We tugged at the towel until it ripped in two.
Silence. I gripped my half bitterly. "I just… wanted to help."
She prostrated herself. "I have ruined the Mistress's property!"
Action 3: Greeting in the Kitchen
"Good morning, everyone!" I greeted cheerfully.
Immediately the entire kitchen froze. Someone dropped a spoon, someone dropped to the floor.
"You don't have to be afraid. I just wanted to say—I smell the aroma of love in the air!"
The servants looked at each other, then one of them whispered, "The aroma of… love poison, you mean?"
I could only hug myself. "Okay, this is worse than I thought."
Action 4: Giving Motivation
I met a group of young servants in the back garden. "You know," I said wisely, "life is short, so enjoy every day."
They immediately stared at me in horror.
"Is that… a subtle threat, Mistress?"
"WHAT?!"
"Like, 'enjoy every day… because tomorrow you might be gone'?"
"No!! I mean—ARGH!"
That was my heroic effort to change this villainess image. And the day ended with me having a headache and my reputation becoming increasingly ambiguous.
Some servants started calling me "The Frightening Goddess of Forgiveness."
Others called me "The Demon of Reform."
***
However, the next morning, a loud knock echoed at the door. I hadn't even had time to chew my cake before the door burst open roughly and there… "LILIANE!" Dominic stood in the doorway with a face like he had just witnessed a small apocalypse.
"What are you doing?! I heard from your servant that you walked around the palace shouting you were a goddess of reincarnation and smiling… like a demon!"
I paused for a moment.
Then calmly replied, "That was… part of the image recovery program. But it seems… the side effects traumatized everyone."
Dominic stared at me for a long time. "Liliane," he said flatly, "you need a priest."
I raised my teacup high. "I just need a little understanding, Dominic. Calm down, just like those who are traumatized by me. I am also traumatized by that mission. So, I will accept this life gracefully."
Then I took a big gulp of tea and smiled faintly.
"Besides," I whispered softly with a determined gaze, "instead of thinking about an image that is already ruined like a pie that fell on the floor. I should probably focus on my life again."
More precisely, thinking about Duke Tristan again.
"Well, you're right, don't worry about that. Better to think about a gift for Max. You haven't forgotten, have you, his birthday party is in a month." Dominic's words made me truly focus on him now.
"Brother is having a birthday?"
"Yes, that's right. And, you really didn't know?! But what did I expect. Last year you forgot and didn't give him any gift. But at least this year, please pay attention to Max. Even if he's like a living stone, he's still our brother. Understand, little sister."
After that, Dominic left me.
However, who would have thought, Max's birthday would actually become the path to saving my image.
A process... and a beginning I had absolutely not expected.