I Never Wanted To Be A Villainess!!! Chapter 20: A Trustworthy Ally (Patreon)

“Rosa? Are you alright?” Cerise asked, helping Rosa to her feet.

She was so scared when she saw Rosa on the ground that she worried her friend was hurt. She wanted this to be a happy day, but whenever that fool of a crown prince was involved, he always complicated things for Rosa.

“I’m fine…”

Rosa didn’t even look at Cerise as she was helped. How could she? She acted all brave before, but in truth, she was scared. This mask hid her emotions from everyone else but not from her. She could feel her body trembling when in the face of true power.

The prince was an arrogant fool, but he was still the prince. As a woman, she would never be above him. She’ll never have the power to resist him. Her death flag would always remain so long as he’s alive. Her entire life was pointless.

The system was stupid. Allies? No one would ever want to be her ally. She was just a placeholder for the honest Princess Flora. She should accept her fate.

“Rosa!” Cerise yelled, dragging Rosa back to reality. “You’re not alright. Come on, let’s go inside so you can rest. I can’t believe the crown prince left you alone like this.”

Cerise led the trembling Rosa inside, still questioning what happened to her friend. Not long ago, Rosa was still the bright and happy girl she knew. Now she was barely able to stand.

“Cerise we should get back to the party,” Rosa said, trying to act like she was fine now, but Cerise wasn’t going to believe her.

Cerise wanted to make sure that her friend and sister were safe.

“No, we are staying here,” Cerise said, forcing Rosa to sit down once they entered a restroom. “You’re in no state to go back to the party. What happened? Did the prince do something to you?”

“It doesn’t matter…” Rosa said, mumbling under her breath.

“What?”

“It doesn’t matter if my family loves me, if I have friends, or even have magic; my fate won’t change. Nothing will change as long as–”

“Rosa! It’s okay! You don’t have to let that fool of a prince push you around!” Cerise yelled, furious that Rosa was acting like this.

“No… Cerise it’s okay… I-”

“No! I will not hear it! The prince doesn’t control you! You are a strong, intelligent, and beautiful girl. The prince is a fool for not seeing that. He doesn’t deserve you.”

“You’re wrong; my family is strong; I’m weak. I’m not intelligent. If I were, I would learn my place and stay silent. And you can’t even say I am beautiful when you can’t see my face.”

“Rosa, you’re wrong,” Cerise said, gently holding Rosa’s hands. “You’re strong not because of your family but because of your character. You always want to do the right thing and even put up with the crow prince. If that isn’t strong, then I don’t know what is. And, of course, you are smart. Only an intelligent girl like yourself would have made it this far.

As for your outer beauty, I don’t care about that. No matter what you look like on the outside, you will always be beautiful on the inside. You will always be my friend and my sister. If you asked me to, I would smack the crown prince on the back of his head without hesitation just for you.”

“Pfft! You shouldn't let the Crown Prince hear you talk like that. If he did, he would go over to his father and beg for your death.”

“He probably would, wouldn't he,” Cerise said, happy to see Rosa finally talking with her.

It's tough watching a friend belittle themselves when you know there is no reason for them to do so. Rosa was more potent than anyone she'd ever met, but she could tell that there was something different about Rosa these days ever since she was forced to become the crown prince's fiancée.

She had to force herself to be someone she wasn't, and after all the traumatic experiences she'd been going through, it never seemed to be easier for her, only harder. As her friend and future sister-in-law, it was Cerise’s job to stay by Rosa and ensure she was all right. This was the least she could do.

“I'm sorry,” Rosa said, placing her hands over Cerise’s. “Sorry for acting like this. It's hard knowing that I can't do anything to stop him. I don't want to cause my family trouble.”

“Then don't worry about that.”

Cerise knew full well that Rose's life would be difficult, mainly because of the Crown Prince. He was nothing more than a shellfish and an inconsiderate jerk. Most nobles allied their selves under the King's direct command. Many opposing factions were indeed dealt with before they caused any issues.

If Rosa wanted to keep her family safe, she would have to do what the Prince wanted, at least for now. Hopefully, he would lose interest in her in time due to his nature.

“What do you mean?”

“All we need to do is make it so that the Prince wants nothing to do with you. He already hates that he can't see your face and even hates your monotone personality. So how about we make it so whenever you're with him, you just do things he hates.”

“Do you mean intentionally annoying the Prince?”

Rosa was slightly shocked by Cerise’s willingness to mess with the Crown Prince, knowing the power that he possessed. She was indeed a fearless girl whom Rosa wished she could be like.

“Of course, I do, though we won't make that known to him intentionally. The Crown Prince is more violent than anything else. He hates studying and the mundane tasks that need to be done to be a noble. If we focus on this, there's no way you'd ever want to spend time with you. And in turn, that would leave him less time to torment and harm you as you did before.”

“Don't worry. I promise I'm on your side. We're going to be sisters, after all. There's nothing that he can do to you at this current moment. He can't harm you again.”

“… I'm sorry, what did I just hear?” Relena asked, walking through the door. She was worried about where her daughter and her future daughter-in-law had gone, and then she was surprised when she found them sitting alone inside her home.

Her daughter's dress was dirty, and her hands were covered with scuff marks. She could even see the faint outline of Rosa trembling, trying to stay brave.

“Mother, it's fine. It's nothing.”

“It is not nothing. What did that boy do to you?”

“He hit Rosa, and he called her… his property…” Cerise paused for a second, not knowing if she should say these words, knowing that she never wanted to hear them in the first place.

“You're telling me that this boy hit my daughter and called her his property…”

An icy chill emanated across the room for a split second before the temperature rose. Smoke had started to emanate from Relena's hands out of pure rage.

“The royal family will pay dearly for this. I hope they're ready to see the sunshine from their son's head. Yes, he will get no mercy from me.”

“Mother, please.”

Rosa wanted to stop her, knowing that causing problems now would harm her family, but Relena didn't care. What mattered to her right now was getting revenge for her precious daughter.

“My dear, sweet angel. You are too kind for this world,” Relena said, removing the mask covering her daughter's face while Cerise looked away.

Rosa’s face was covered in tears. That's the mask that only hid her true feelings beneath the surface. No girl… no, no one should ever have to be called someone else's property and be abused the way that her daughter was.

She had hoped that the Prince would not act rashly this early in their engagement, but she was wrong. At times, it is hard to judge someone's characteristics. It's as foolish as him.

“You cannot allow this man to treat you like this, especially since he had already broken his side of the agreement. He's not allowed to lay physical harm upon you, so if he does, the royal family will pay dearly.”

“Dearest mother-in-law, I don't think that we should take action against the Prince right now,” Cerise said, to their surprise.

“Excuse me? Do you not wish to seek justice for my daughter? Your friend?”

“I wish you sick justice, but there's no proof that he did anything. It's his word against hers.”

“…. Fair, you are correct with that statement.”

Know what surprised her daughter-in-law? It was a pretty clever one where she had overlooked a simple matter in her rage. Her daughter-in-law had seen through the truth. They could make any claim, but since he was a Crown Prince, his words would hold more excellent value than theirs.

“Alright, since we can't make him pay for this, what do you suggest we do?”

“I have a plan, but I'm pretty sure it will leave the Prince screaming back to the castle.”

A devilish grin appeared across Cerise’s face. She would not let Rosa be treated the way she was without getting a bit of payback for herself.

[Congratulations, the first of two trustworthy allies has appeared before you. She will help you concoct A devious plan to get revenge against the Prince that shattered your sense of worth. Revel in the fact, knowing that you're no longer alone. She will be there with you every step of the way, and now her fate is intertwined with your own.]

[As a bonus for unlocking the first of two trustworthy allies, the system will hint at what is coming. Beware the one-eyed cat.]