The Guidebook for Villainesses

“I thought the Prince would no longer turn his eyes this way unless he was crazy.”

The day of the banquet had dawned. Eunice, who rushed to Lara’s house early in the morning, tore apart an invitation card with her hands. It was an invitation from Prince Sidhar to Lara.

“I thought you already told him you don’t want to be his friend? You said you snapped at him and even asked him to remove his hand, didn’t you? So why is that prick still pestering you?”

“Because of money.”

“Lara, I think it’s because you’re not ruined enough. You will have to be a totally incurable hellion like us for the Prince to give up on you.”

“That will be useless.”

Lara shrugged. At first, she planned not to attend the banquet. Because she had already coldly declined Prince Sidhar’s invitation and she also didn’t want to get involved with the fake saintesses. But when she found out that there was going to be a massive attack on the banquet hall, she could not just sit back and wait.

Lara was allowed to attend the banquet on the condition that Demian accompanied her. She promised to be protected by guardian knights next to Sonnet in case of emergency.

“Konny, how do I look?”

After getting ready, Lara asked Konny.

“You look like a hungry vampire.”

“Great.”

Lara was wearing a bright red velvet dress with a fancy fan in her hand. With every step she took, her skirt split on both sides, revealing the black lining. Her long hair was hung to one side, and a black floral pattern was drawn on the nape of her neck. The outer corners of her eyes were painted thick like a cat and her lips were filled in pale pink.

Arriving late, Ximena looked up and down at Lara’s clothes and nodded satisfactorily.

“I like it.”

Ximena was also formidable. She wore a dress decorated with black feathers and green glitters and tied her hair high. It was the same for Eunice.

Lara asked them.

“Do you have to go? You don’t really have to go, do you? Just give an excuse like you’re sick or something…”

“Shut up. We can’t just send you to such a dangerous place like that alone.”

“Eunice.”

“Let’s go, Ximena.”

Lara advised them to just stay at home because something dangerous will happen at the banquet. But instead of listening to Lara, Eunice and Ximena came to find Lara early in the morning and insisted that they would be together starting from the entrance.

“Promise me not to do anything dangerous.”

“I got you.”

“Stay with the knights. Don’t ever go next to the fake saintesses. Okay?”

“Ah, I got you.”

It was already afternoon when they finished their preparation. Lara headed to the palace with her friends.

There were already numerous nobles gathering. It seemed that all the luxury carriages in Hautean were gathered there. Among them was the march of the saintess candidates, a spectacle worth seeing. They appeared on the royal palace in carriages without roofs provided by the temple. The two people, covered in long veils, sat separately in two carriages. People on the streets sprinkled white petals on the saintess candidates.

Do they know that the Prince who made them saintesses was going to kill them today?

Who would feel more unfair between Lara, who had to choose to die after sacrificing her 10 years, or those two people who were tricked to death by the Prince without knowing anything?

“Welcome.”

The inside of the banquet hall was already full of nobles who came early. When Lara and her friends got out of the carriage, the attendant of the royal family ran out and served them as a guide.

In the banquet hall, no one was allowed to carry a weapon except for the royal guardian knight. So Lara asked Sonnet to hide Demian among the Princess’ guardian knights. Demian, who was standing still in armor, found Lara and smiled with his eyes slightly lowered.

The banquet has begun.

The King, Queen, Prince, and Princess made their appearance. The murmurs of the nobles decreased in an instant, they bowed gracefully toward the King and placed one hand on their chest.

“All rise.”

It was very rare for the royal family of Hautean to gather in one place like this. The King, who did not like banquets, along with the Queen, who had a weak constitution, all gathered to welcome the saintess who appeared on the land.

“Introducing the saintess candidates!”

The door of the banquet hall opened and two women walked in side by side, accompanied by dozens of priests. It was the daughter of the nobleman and the farmer’s wife. They were wearing white dresses, which came up to the neck. Their dresses flowed long without sticking to the body and there was a fine flower pattern around the sleeves of the arm. With white gloves, white shoes, and a long veil, they were perfectly the same as Lara was in the past.

“It’s the curtain ghost.”

Eunice mumbled.

Ximena bit her lips to avoid bursting into laughter.

“Welcome.”

The King gave them a brief welcome greeting and the saintess candidates bowed gracefully. Then, they were welcomed by the nobles at their appointed seats.

Lara wondered when the attack would take place. Lara took a deep long breath. Cold sweat seeped into her nervous palm. She did not know who was the black sorcerer in disguise or who was the assassin in disguise. She was not even strong enough to stop them with her power like Demian.

But Lara knew a few things that no one else knew. The lady-in-waiting—who followed and attended for Sonnet—was a spy planted by Prince Sidhar, and the black sorcerer must have prepared something in this banquet hall.

Where was it? Lara, who was secretly watching over with her fan open, narrowed her eyes.

Sonnet’s lady-in-waiting approached the Princess and whispered something. Then, Sonnet looked at the saintess candidates with an unwilling face and moved towards them.

The scene seemed very slow to Lara’s eyes. Princess Sonnet was also a saintess candidate. It was only polite for the daughter of the nobleman and the farmer’s wife to go to the Princess to greet her. However, the lady-in-waiting suggested that the Princess approached and greeted first to send the Princess to the candidates.

Lara was so glad she remembered that lady-in-waiting’s face.

As Sonnet took a step, the lady-in-waiting stepped back quickly, turned her head toward Prince Sidhar, and looked at him. Feeling the gaze from the lady-in-waiting, Prince Sidhar finished his greeting toward the saintess candidates and naturally moved away from the table.

‘Ah.’

Now Lara got it. Not only the time, but the location had also already been decided. She folded the fan she was holding and approached Sonnet quickly.

“Princess.”

Lara blocked the Princess’ way to the saintess candidates.

“Lara?”

Sonnet turned her head and looked at Lara. A sense of relief spread across the Princess’ tense face.

What should I do? How can I naturally move the Princess and the saintess candidates to the other side?

Just then, Lara heard someone say ‘Bailey’s immoral daughter’.

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

It was not long after the banquet had begun. In the ears of Eunice and Ximena, who were coming back to Lara after greeting the Queen, an annoying voice could be heard.

“Who invited those people?”

It was the saintess candidate. The daughter of the nobleman, wrapped in a white dress, told the people gathered around her.

“I didn’t know this was a banquet where anyone could come. But then again, God loves all human beings without discrimination.

She purposely said that out loud for people to hear her. She even said something about everyone and their mother. Eunice tried to go to the saintess candidate, but Ximena grabbed her friend’s wrist and shook her head.

“Hold it in.”

But that was not the end. When Eunice and Ximena did not react as violently as usual, the saintess candidate left her seat and came their way. Then, she whispered with a sneer on her mouth.

“Birds of a feather flock together, huh?”

“What?”

“Are you hanging out with a kid without a dad because you don’t have a mom? You guys look good together. She’s that girl, right? Bailey’s immoral daughter.”

“Hey.”

“Ximena Swavy, you still can’t throw away your habit of only befriending trash. I guess you can also call that your talent.”

“Watch your mouth.”

“You guys should watch your mouths. If we fight here, what would people say?”

It was annoying, but she was right. A saintess was still a saintess, no matter what she did.

Eunice’s lips trembled. She growled saying she would not let her get away for insulting her friends. Ximena let out a sigh and was about to open her mouth to stop Eunice, who was very angry, when she heard a familiar voice.

“Did God not tell you it would hurt badly if you were beaten by a kid without a dad?”

“What?”

It was Lara.

Quick on her foot, Lara approached the saintess candidate. She grabbed her hair with one hand. Then, she jerked her hair down and dragged her along.

“Argh!”

The saintess candidate screamed in a painful voice. Drinks poured out on her with a crashing sound. Her beautifully adorned hair quickly became disheveled, her white dress stained red.

“Say it again. Bailey’s immoral daughter huh? Did God teach you that? Are you really a saintess? Do you think it’s okay to just say anything you want?”

“Aargh! Let go! Let me go!”

“At least a dog would look cute when it barks. What about you?”

“Arghhh!”

“If you’re really a saintess, God would save you. Make a miracle!”

Lara did not let go of her hair. The fight between the two stirred the whole banquet and drew everyone’s attention to them. The priests rushed to stop their fight. The farmer’s wife, who remained at the table, opened her eyes wide and left her seat to watch the noble’s fight.

From royalty, nobles, priests, knights, and even the workers, everyone was staring at Lara’s demeanor towards the saintess candidate.

“Lara, what’s wrong with you?”

Unable to bear the sight anymore, Eunice clung to Lara. Ximena also was at a loss what to do in between them.