The Villainess turns the Hourglass-Chapter 22: Changed Future, Part VI

“Uh… uh? When did I fall asleep…?”

“Oh, I was surprised that you did and so suddenly.”

John woke up and, rubbing his half-closed eyes, rose up from the seat.

“How could I not notice? It was already so late.”

“It was as expected… I see.”

It was unfortunate, but there was no way for him to find out more, so John left the general store and headed for the mansion.

It was a difficult time in the morning to call for a carriage, so it was not until about sunrise that he arrived at the mansion of the count’s family, and as soon as morning came, he was scolded severely by the leader of the guard. It was only half a day’s investigation, but it did not yield any results, and it was not until noon that he reported that to Aria.

Waiting for the punishment to fall like a bolt of lightning on his head, it never came. Rather, she urged him to stop looking into it.

“You don’t have to show up until I call you. You didn’t forget what I asked you to do, did you?”

“Yes, yes! Of course.”

Aria asked John never to reveal her name. If there was ever a situation where he had to name someone, she ordered him to mention only Lady Roscent.

“But you didn’t hear anything last night?”

“No… I was been waiting all night for news in the general store, but nothing…”

“… OK. From now on, don’t show up in front of me. However, stay as close to Mielle as you can.”

“Do you mean Miss Mielle?”

“Yes, Mielle.”

“… OK.”

Aria handed him some gold coins with words of thanks, and John bowed his empty, tin-like head several times.

As he left the room, Aria frowned, crumpling the fresh flowers that decorated the vases.

‘How could he not know that Viscount Lupre was caught last night in a shabby inn near the casino?’ How very stupid of him.

It had not been announced to the public, but when John did not return at night, Aria had sent another knight, Paul, to find out what had happened. He had said that at around midnight, the royal knights had arrested Viscount Lupre, who had been hiding in an inn closet and had intentionally dragged him out noisily.

Aria thought he was a little bit foolish, but she had no choice but to doubt him because he was being much too stupid. ‘Did he lie to me?’ Maybe he didn’t know because he was blind and deaf.

Anyway, even if she had found his weakness, keeping him close wasn’t good. It would be better for her to have the stupid dog show his talent around Mielle. In the meantime, if he found something about Mielle, that would be good too.

‘If need be, I will throw him away.’

There was an unknown event somewhere, but since Viscount Lupre had been arrested, the past was back and things wouldn’t go awry.

Mielle was still suffering with the embroidery, but Aria herself was free. As the orbit came back on track, Aria went back to reestablishing her position and making sure that she would live.

Aria visited her mother after a long time. Her mother’s appearance resembled a jewel, and she was completely adorned in jewels. Her mother was like a ceramic doll and dressed as such, unaware of when her life might run out.

Of course, it would be natural for her not to know the future. Her beautiful appearance had brought her such a great rise in status.

Perhaps content with bringing Aria into the count’s family and keeping her alive, her mother hardly called for her. She went out and spent her time passionately buying dresses and jewelry, except for when she really had nothing to do, or when she was having tea in her free time.

But that didn’t mean that Aria didn’t like her mother or found her odd. Her mother had taken advantage of her best qualities and found her own happiness.

In addition, she was a craftsman who was able to constantly sharpen her weapon despite her achievements. It was not like ordinary people would get tired and fall apart when they achieved their goals.

Her mother was a craftsman, a master craftsman who lavishly polished her appearance, her greatest merit.

‘In addition, I owe my life to you, so you deserve to be praised.’

As for her mother’s immature behavior, it would be enough if her daughter did things right. It would be a small gift for her mother, who had wasted all the money she had earned with decorations but helped her get out of the hellish slums.

The countess, who was looking in the mirror and checking on which pair of earrings to wear, asked Aria without looking back, “What brings you here? I’m going out a little later, so I don’t have much time.”

“It’s no big deal. I’d like you to acquire some private tutors for me as well.”

“Private tutor? But, you said no before. Well, you’ve changed lately.”

When she had first come into the count’s family, she turned down the idea of having private tutors. She remembered rolling on the floor, saying, “I hate studying!”

Still, some private teachers had taught Aria, saying, “Etiquette is essential,” but whenever she had bragged about what she had learned, Mielle had repeatedly robbed her of the initiative and humiliated her. Having come to realize shame sooner than etiquette, she had been unable to keep up with her learning.

But now, things were different. It was necessary to build connections to prevent the evil girl, Mielle, from playing solo. Because she was still young, she was praised for her embroidery and was able to join the group, but she knew things would be different from now on.

The Aria of the past had been thoroughly ignored by other groups, other than the crowd that had praised her looks. If people wanted a pretty face, they could find a lot of that in brothels. Among the nobles, she was nothing but the shameful daughter of a prostitute who dragged Mielle down.

Even though they had invited her to a party, she had just for an ornament for them to glance at, not to talk or get acquainted. That was done as an intentional form of humiliation, normally reserved for the outcasts in gatherings.

If she had had pure blood, it might’ve been different, but a dumb little girl who suddenly rose in rank was treated less than the commoners by the nobles. Even the slightest amount of networking she had done so far would surely disappear if she stayed stupid.

‘For now, culture, history and literature will be good. There is something I really want to learn, but it is impossible now… Well, I can learn it slowly, so I’ll put my priority on building my personal network first.’

——————–

Aria hadn’t known it before, but now that she thought of it, Mielle had had a group of people around her who would become her supporters since she was very young. She had hired them primarily as private tutors to build her personal network. The relationship between a teacher and a student was a wonderful one that would continue for a lifetime.

Of course, she had not done so by her own power, but by the count’s help. Nevertheless, it was true that they were of great help.

——————–

However, Aria, who was mostly neglected, had to prepare her own supporters by herself. At first, she had thought to take over Mielle’s tutors, but that had been a very foolish idea.

——————–

Mielle’s tutors were all of high nobility and well-known in many ways. Like Mielle, blessed by birth, they would be afraid of even a speck of dust from a dirty, wicked woman, so they would not even make eye contact with Aria. The group, consisting mostly of countesses and their children, treated Aria in a way even lower than dirt.

Aria, who didn’t know how to greet them properly, couldn’t say a word to them. Among them, there were none who treated Aria, who had been born of humble status, properly.

——————–

Furthermore, no matter how much she knew the future, there was only a small amount of information that she could give those with already vested interests and opinions.

‘Maybe I could take information out of them, but there’s no way to approach them at all. I don’t want to be mocked.’