I Will Create a Good Ending for the Yandere Villainess-Chapter 183: Heading off to a Meeting?
Lillian let out a groan as she walked through the streets of the Bazaar. They had just exited the Virtual Reality pod after she had failed to last even 5 minutes against the Assassin.
She gave a sigh, "I don't think I'm making any progress at all..." This thought was more evident by the fact that the Assassin hadn't even used her element in their fight.
Marionette, who was walking along beside her, patted her shoulder. She then said bluntly:
"Because you're not."
"Urgh..."
Lillian flinched at her cold words — her head drooping.
"You don't gotta be that harsh about it..."
Marionette's eyes softened, raising her hand and patting the back of her head.
"Don't worry, Lillian. How about I rephrase, then?"
"Hm?"
"You're not making any noticeable progress... When it comes to beating me." Marionette then tilted her head, "How about that? Did that make you feel any better?"
Lillian gave her a wry look, "That makes me feel even worse... Am I even making any progress at all when I spar with you?" She asked, letting out another frustrated sigh.
"What makes you say that?" The Assassin raised an eyebrow, "Of course, you are."
"Wha—? But didn't you say I wasn't—..."
"Against me. You're not making much progress in hopes of taking me down." Marionette blinked at her, then added, "But you are collecting valuable experiences in our battles. I even see you potentially adopting my style of fighting."
"... I'm like... way too slow to fight like you." Lillian gave her a deadpan expression.
Marionette shrugged, "I suppose... But you can always become faster, Lillian."
Lillian groaned, impatiently, "I really wanna see instant results, though..." Before shaking her head, knowing that'll be unlikely.
She then added:
"And I really wanna take you down soon..."
Marionette tilted her head at her, curiously.
"May I ask, why?"
"Ehh..."
Lillian turned her face slightly away, rubbing the side of her arm with a sheepish expression, "So... I can prove to myself I can fight along—... side you?" She responded in an uncertain tone.
Marionette tilted her head back up, rubbing her chin, "Is that so?" Before smiling.
"But you have already proved yourself already."
"Huh? How?"
The red-eyed woman smirked flirtatiously at her, "You have already taken my heart~..."
Lillian quickly turned her face away from her, pinching and fidgeting with her hair. She then muttered, shyly:
"... Flirt."
Marionette gave a hum before a chuckle. She moved her arm around Lillian's linking them together.
"Don't be like that. How about I tell you how I got my knife?"
Lillian turned her face back around, staring at the Assassin curiously, "How you got it?"
Marionette nodded before opening her mouth and saying:
"My dagger was gifted to me by my father, which was once owned by my late mother."
"Oh..." Lillian stared at her with guilt. She now felt somewhat bad about wanting to take the dagger away from her, "Sorry for your loss... And... For trying to take the dagger away from you."
Marionette shook her head, "It's fine. I didn't know her anyway. All I know was that she passed away in a Trial and that the team she was in was only able to retrieve her items before the Exit Portal closed."
"Did they... Say anything about what the Trial was like?"
Marionette held her chin with a pondering look, "They said it was a partially infected land of flesh and blood. The monsters that resided in this zone were also said to be difficult to put down due to their high regeneration."
Lillian tilted her head, "Zone...? Did they encounter the True Flesh?"
Marionette gave a nod, "Yes. And one in the early stages, where the Boss Monster still had most of its strength."
"Do... You know what Rank the Trial was?"
"It was said to be around B-rank, while her and her group were around C-rank at the time."
"... How did they defeat the Boss—"
"Bosses." Marionette corrected her, "There were exactly four Bosses in this Trial." She then went silent for a second before adding, "And they didn't defeat them."
"How did they win then?" Lillian tilted her head.
"An Artificial Exit Gate." Marionette answered, "They found an Artificial Exit Gate in the Trial, but it took a large amount of mana and time for them to activate it. In the end, only three out of six of her team, excluding her, were able to escape."
"I see..." Lillian murmured, her voice quiet. "How did your father react to it, could I ask?"
Marionette tapped her chin, "He was upset. But didn't lash out. Death in a Trial is not uncommon or rare." She sighed.
She then smiled at Lillian, "Would you like to know how he told me the death of my mother?"
"... If you're comfortable."
Marionette shook her head, "I don't mind. It doesn't affect me much." She then paused for a moment before telling Lillian:
"He told me it as some sort of fairytale."
"A fairytale?"
"Mhm. I suppose it's just his way of coping through it." The Assassin stared at the orangish sky, admiring it, before turning to Lillian and admiring her instead.
"If you would still like the knife, we can still go through with that previous offer."
"Yeah... No. Especially not after what you just told me."
***
[Next day]
Lillian walked up the stair aisle in the classroom, shooting curious glances at the desks on either side. She then paused as she heard her name.
"Good morning, Lillian."
The girl turned her head around, finding Reph calling out to her, in his usual lazy fashion. Fortunately, besides his eye bags, his appearance was tidy.
Lillian smiled at him.
"Good morning to you too, Reph. What's up?"
"Have you checked the email Mirage sent us yesterday?"
"Eh... What time was it sent?"
The Prince stared at her silently with a blank expression — most likely thinking of an answer.
"Late evening."
"... Could you remind me what it was about?" She gave a guilty smile.
Reph gave a small frown, "Volunteers for the Student Council Office are going to have a meeting. It will take up all first period to finish, likely." He then paused before adding:
"You sure you want to be part of the Student Council...? You seem to be oddly incompetent in this field of work. No offence."
Lillian gave a nervous chuckle at his words, choosing not to respond to his question.
"W-when do we have to be there by?"
"About right now."
"S-seriously...?" Lillian rubbed the back of her head, glancing back at Marionette, who seemed to be giving quite the stare with her blood-red eyes.
"I gotta head off to a meeting. I'll come back here to pick you up, when I'm done!" After saying that, she left with the Second Prince.
This left Millis and Marionette to sit alone on the same curved desk. And currently... The Heroine was internally sweating bullets as she turned her gaze to the side.
With her elbows resting on the desk and the lower half of her face hidden behind her hands that were interlocked, Marionette glared at the doorway Lillian and the Prince left through.
With how intensely she was staring, it felt like it could suddenly go up in flames.
"So... How ya and Lillian going? Well, right?" Millis asked, striking up a conversation.
Marionette glanced at her for a moment before straightening her back. She turned to her and answered stoically:
"Well. It is going well."
"I-I see..." Millis smiled wryly at her cold tone. "Not sure why... But I get dangerous "jealousy" vibes from you."
"Jealous? I'm not jealous." Marionette shook her head, then said bluntly, "Why would I be jealous of the Prince?"
"... I didn't say anything about Reph, though?"
Marionette narrowed her eyes on her, "Yes, you did."
"Wha—huh? I didn't—"
"I believe you did." Marionette interrupted her.
Millis's face twitched, "Are ya trying to gaslight me, right now?"
"I don't know what you mean, Vellen." The Assassin turned her face, staring towards the front, leaving Millis flabbergasted.
"Bruh."
Their attentions were then drawn towards a particular man with a black ponytail, carrying stacks of what seemed to be leaflets.
He then began to hand them out one by one, silently. Eventually, Millis and Marionette got theirs as well.
What was displayed on the leaflet was the word Tournament and two names underneath.
One read:
"Louis Mana Academy."
And the other read:
"Luton School of Prestigious Magic."
This seemed to be some kind of tournament between two academies. This was solidified by Mirage's words.
"Next month we will be hosting the yearly tournament between us and Luton School of Prestigious Magic here! I hope you all train for the upcoming tournament, for it will be the Paragon First Year class facing off against them."
Before some could speak up, he waved his hand dismissively:
"Of course, there will be some other first years mixed in with yours that show more promise."
As Mirage went on about the Tournament, Marionette stared down at the leaflet—deep in thought. She then quietly muttered:
"Looks like I will have to tweak our training regiment a bit..."