Episode Three
IN the limousine, I changed out of my gym clothes and into the dress that had been prepared and waiting for me. After quickly fixing my hair and makeup, I pulled out my phone to see if my villainess app had any updates. Sure enough, there was an updated mission titled “Stop Asuka’s Matchmaking Meeting.”
My heart swelled a little. “Thanks, Shizuki,” I muttered under my breath.
She didn’t have to do this. This little side quest was irrelevant to Nonoka; Shizuki could’ve easily deemed it unnecessary and told me to focus on the task at hand, but she hadn’t. She did this—for me.
As I passed my eyes over the mission details, a soft incredulity slowly took root. “Shizuki… This is your plan?”
It was tight. If even one element of the negotiations didn’t go according to plan, I wouldn’t make it back in time for the kibasen. It almost seemed reckless, like an idea thrown together without much thought, but then I reached the end of the page.
I see. So, this is how you’re going to do it.
On the car ride over, I drilled the plan into my brain—every line, every detail. Two hours later, we arrived at the hotel lobby designated as the meeting site. My accompanying maid and I strode purposefully through the posh space. “We’re meeting with Asuka’s mother first,” I told her. “Before that, we have to find out which room the meeting is—” Just then, a familiar cascade of jet-black hair caught my attention. “Never mind.”
Slipping into a sly smile, I approached Asuka. “Ah, Asuka, so this is where you’ve been hiding instead of gracing our school’s most important Sports Day with your presence.”
She whipped around and her eyes stretched wide. “Ms. Mio? What are you… I, um…”
She floundered, not knowing how much I knew. To spare her, I stated briefly, “Sayaka told me the gist of it.”
Upon hearing that her best friend sold her out, her expression knitted in displeasure. “Did she now?” It then softened, realizing her friend’s concern, before finally hardening with resolve. “Ms. Mio, I apologize for not informing you beforehand, but I cannot apologize for my actions. This is an Azumaji family matter. I must kindly ask you to refrain from getting involved.”
The unwavering resolve in her eyes, that willingness to sacrifice everything for something dear, was all too familiar, for it was the same resolve I saw staring back at me in the mirror each morning when I thought of Shizuku.
Who knew this lowly minion of the villainess had so many layers to her? I thought dryly. Once again, it struck me that while this world was based on a game, it was not tidy, convenient, or two-dimensional like one.
With a dismissive brush of my hair, I let out a long sigh. “I’d been prepared to persuade you to not do something as hopelessly naive as sacrifice yourself for your family’s sake, but it seems I’ve underestimated you.”
Asuka smiled weakly. “Thank you for understanding.”
“Oh, I do understand, all too well. And that’s exactly why you must call off this marriage—for your family’s true benefit.”
“Wait, what?!”
Before I could get in another word explaining the plan, a new voice interrupted our conversation. “Asuka, there you are.”
“Mother,” Asuka muttered bleakly.
The older lady, evidently Asuka’s mother, gave me a look before turning to her daughter. “Asuka,” she began, “are you sure you want to go through with this?”
“I do,” Asuka replied immediately. “This is my duty as an Azumaji.” Her eyes fell away and found mine sheepishly. “Not to mention my fault, as well, after what happened.”
Wait… Huh? Don’t tell me Asuka’s hastily arranged marriage is because she lost her standing confronting…me?
Asuka’s mother’s attention returned to me. “And who is this young lady, Asuka?”
“Oh, I’m sorry. Mother, this is—”
I snapped out of my thoughts and stepped forward, interrupting Asuka. “Mio Sakurazaka, a pleasure.”
Surprise washed over her. “S-Sakurazaka?! Forgive my ignorance, Lady Mio.” Realization then took place on her face. “Lady…Mio? But that would make you…” Her gaze darted between me and Asuka. “Asuka, what is the meaning of this?” she asked, her voice full of confusion.
“Well, you see…” Asuka trailed off as she looked to me for help.
I nodded and gladly filled in the blanks for her. “Indeed, Mrs. Azumaji. Your daughter and I have once clashed, but that is all in the past now. We’ve made amends, and she is now a valued friend of mine.”
The mother looked disbelieving. She turned to Asuka. “Is…Is that true?”
“It…It is,” Asuka replied. “As Ms. Mio has so graciously said, we are now…friends.”
Understanding took a moment to settle in. Then the mother gasped and turned to face me completely. “Please accept my apologies for the delayed introduction. I am Asuka’s mother, Ayame Azumaji. A pleasure to meet a friend of my beloved daughter.”
“Not at all,” I reassured her. “It must’ve come as quite a shock to you.”
Ayame’s slight reaction to my words didn’t go unnoticed. By accepting her apology instead of brushing it off or overlooking it, I asserted my intention to hold my status as a Sakurazaka over her. It seemed as farcical to me as it would to anyone else to pretend that an adopted commoner like me was superior, but this pretense was vital for my plan. For Asuka’s sake—for my next line to land with the impact I needed it to—I had to project and maintain my arrogance.
I slid into an innocuous smile. “An arranged marriage, in this day and age? How quaint. You must hold your family’s interests in the highest regard to so readily barter away your ‘beloved’ daughter.”
My words were vitriolic, spiteful, but necessary. This was my litmus test for Ayame. Should she speak up and endorse her daughter’s obligation to family without hesitation, I’d be forced to adopt more drastic measures. Yet, something told me it wouldn’t come to that. After all, her initial reaction upon seeing her daughter had been a hesitant, are you sure you want to go through with this?
That line led me to believe that Ayame held her daughter dear, and her subsequent silence seemed to confirm my suspicions. Clearly, she wanted to vehemently deny my insinuations of her indifference, to defend her love for her daughter, but she was paralyzed—unable to refute when it was Asuka herself who had suggested the marriage.
Caught in a struggle between her reluctance to release her daughter and her respect for Asuka’s wishes, Ayame’s silence resonated deeply with me. It, and the grief-torn expression etched on her face was an uncomfortably close reflection of the one my mother had worn during the talks of my adoption. Call it a feeling, a hunch, something even more instinctual than that…but I just knew somehow that Ayame and Asuka were just like me and my mom.
The plan was unfolding without a hitch. Here, I reached for my phone and dialed a certain number. One ring later, he picked up.
“Hello, this is Mio. Mio Sakurazaka. You’ve heard, yes?” I spoke to the man on the other end of the line.
“I have,” he replied. “You’re not playing games with us, are you?”
“Perish the thought. Now do you accept or refuse?”
“I accept. Of course, I accept.”
“Good. Hold on, I have someone else here you should speak to.” I held out my phone toward Ayame.
“What’s going on? Who is that?” she asked.
“Why don’t you find out for yourself?” I pushed the phone into her hand, and she hesitantly brought it up to her ear.
“Hello? Who is— Honey, is that you?! I…I am, but— What?!”
Indeed, the voice on the other end of the line was none other than the Azumaji company president—her husband. Ayame, caught off guard, couldn’t hide her surprise, which only intensified as the call progressed. As the spouses conversed about specifics, I grabbed Asuka’s hand. “I trust you brought your gym clothes with you?”
“My gym clothes? Why would I?” she replied in disbelief.