target chapter 5

“…is the book that’s all the rage these days? Oh! My dear ladies, hello! The weather is simply lovely, isn’t it?”

Lynne pivoted smoothly, turning her words to the young noblewomen who had gathered before her. To further divert their attention, she fanned herself with an air of practiced elegance. The ladies smiled and followed her lead, albeit a bit awkwardly.

“Lady Lynne, has your cold cleared up?”

“We haven’t seen you at all lately. We were so worried. Are you alright?”

“That’s right! You didn’t even come to the soirée. We were dreadfully concerned!”

A cold, my foot. Unless you count the one I got from snooping around the grand duke’s residence!

The ladies all knew her ‘cold’ was code for ‘chasing the grand duke,’ but they played along, feigning concern.

These sweet, simple girls. It must have been so trying for them, putting up with the ill-tempered Lynne.

In the original novel, Lynne had been too busy trailing the grand duke to make any friends among the other ladies, but that was the original novel. If she played her cards right, couldn’t these ladies become her staunchest allies?

Lynne offered a faint smile and a nod.

Come to think of it, hasn’t life been handed to me on a silver platter? All I have to do is enjoy myself.

After all, was the Sert Viscounty some ordinary house? Of course not! It was a perfectly normal noble house that was well-connected and wealthy!

If one had to point out what set them apart from other families, there were only one or two things.

First, Viscount and Viscountess Sert were quite rich, yet they were exceptionally greedy.

Second, their eldest daughter, Lynne de Sert, was Grand Duke Miller’s stalker.

Aside from those two points, they were a family that was uncommonly close to happy for a novel so full of suffering. The reason this ordinary family was crushed by Grand Duke Miller and ultimately destroyed was singular: Lynne, in a fit of jealousy, had framed the heroine, Mirian.

Which meant all she had to do was enjoy her life!

Ha, so easy. The main characters will probably stick to the grand duke’s residence, so I’ll never even have to run into them. I’ll just run with my sweet ladies and conquer the party scene.

Lynne smiled, her dimples showing. At the same time, she spread her arms slightly before slowly bringing them to rest over her chest, not forgetting to flash a benevolent, goddess-like smile.

“It’s all thanks to the heartfelt concern you’ve all shown me!”

The energy is good, the expression is good, and a spoonful of sincerity to top it off. Ah, perfect.

Just as Lynne was admiring her own performance, the ladies’ eyebrows twitched. They exchanged glances, their confusion palpable.

“Are you… truly alright?”

Another whispered in the ear of Lynne’s lady-in-waiting, asking if Miss Sert was really okay, and when she had become like this. But the maid only defended Lynne.

One of them took Lynne’s hand gently.

“Um, my lady… please, don’t be too heartbroken. Half the men in the world are bachelors, you know?”

“That’s right. Let’s go on a tour of the dress shops and visit the dessert parlors together. Yes?”

As the ladies patted her hand with pitying expressions, Lynne grinned.

“Oh, of course! I’ve been thinking for the past few days, and I’ve realized I was far too excessive.”

“Well, one can get excessive when one is in love. Haha.”

The ladies all offered awkward laughs.

So my obsession seemed over-the-top even to them…

Well, it had been. Exceedingly so. Perhaps Miller and Lynne had been a good match for each other, in a way. They were both so sincere in their obsessions.

Lynne smiled, her lips curving gracefully.

“In any case, I’m putting the past behind me and living my own life! So you must all promise to spend time with me often!”

“My, you don’t even have to ask!”

“Of course!”

At their replies, Lynne’s eyes went wide like a rabbit’s before she grinned.

“Then, shall we have a picnic this weekend during the day? Oh, and we can go to the opera tonight. And… are there any soirées this weekend?”

“Er… um.”

“W-well…”

“Ah, what a shame. I simply must make the rounds at a soirée on a weekend evening!”

Lynne bit her crimson lip as she smiled. Unable to watch any longer, one of the ladies glanced at the others before speaking cautiously.

“W-well, there is one party. But it’s one His Grace the Grand Duke may be attending…”

“But it’s more likely he won’t. As you know, His Grace doesn’t particularly enjoy parties.”

“Still, he might attend this one. It’s no ordinary soirée.”

The smile vanished from Lynne’s face at the information the ladies shared. A part of her was curious to see that handsome face in person at least once, but she wasn’t about to risk her life for it.