I will not die a Villainess's death
Chapter 52 52: That Grey Lady [Pt2]

"I hope you both become good friends in the future."

The words echoed inside Elysia's ears but they did not register in her mind. Elysia was in too much of a shock to reply to her brother's request.

That girl, Emma White was still staring at Elysia with a curious look in her eyes but it was saner than anything Elysia had seen in her vision.

'I should stay away from her. Getting involved with Lady White is not a good idea if I want to live a long life.'

Elysia had not been able to escape Adam and Eve but she could try her hardest to escape Lady White.

After all, if Elysia didn't have anything to do with her then Lady White will have no reason to kill Elysia off as well. It was all for her self-preservation.

"Elysia, is everything alright? You look a little pale."

"No, everything is alright. In fact, everything is fantastic and I am so happy to meet Lady Emma White as well. Now if you will excuse me! I wanted to look around the forest today and the sun is already so high up. I should head out now if you don't have a problem with it brother."

Elysia was sure she did not even breathe as she forced it all out in one breath.

Lord Dirac looked confused but he only gave Elysia a 'go ahead' in response. She was fortunate that he did not ask Elysia the reason behind her little freak-out.

"Sure, you can go ahead if you want to. Lord White is just here on some business so I'll accompany him. Would you like to spend time with Lady-"

"I gotta go, brother. Hope you have a nice day."

Elysia felt guilty for cutting her brother off but it was nothing compared to the crushing guilt she felt when she looked at Lady White.

The words and feelings Elysia had felt in her vision were still bothering her and now they were affecting her real life as well.

Elysia was sure that Lucas had a lot of questions about her current behavior but she would face them later when once she had gathered her thoughts.

'What a disaster of a day. I wish it does not get any worse than this.'

Elysia knew she was running away from her problem but what other choice did she have? Getting involved with lady White was a death sentence for Elysia.

But if only things were that easy for her.

"E-Excuse me, Lady Dirac. Lady Elysia Dirac. Hey, Elysia, stop right there."

It seemed like Lady White had not taken Elysia's little freak out that well. There was a sour look on lady White's beautiful face as she followed after Elysia.

'Why did she follow after me?'

Elysia freaked out in her mind but she kept a calm expression on the outside.

"Ah, do you need something from me, Lady White? I am sorry but I am kind of in a hurry."

Elysia knew that she had been found out. She was not hiding the fact that she was avoiding lady White.

"Did I offend you somehow Lady Dirac? Whatever I did to you, I apologize for that. I actually accompanied you here today because I wanted to be friends with you but I see that it is not possible."

Elysia opened her mouth but then closed it. She had a lot to say but nothing sounded appropriate for the moment.

Lady White had caught Elysia off-guard with her words.

"F-Friends? Ah, sure. But why does Lady White want to be friends with me?"

Elysia had her doubts but she was sure it was mainly because of her standing. Her status as the 'Royal fiance' was a big factor for ladies to approach them.

You see, native girls had a fantasy where they tried to befriend Elysia to meet the Crown Prince. Many of them thought they once they met Adam, he would fall for them instead and discard Elysia.

This had happened quite a lot in the start before Eve had taken the place of Adam's lover in the rumors. Once that was over, ladies had stopped approaching Elysia with that intent.

"Why do I want to be friends with Lady Dirac? Why does it even matter? If you don't want to be friends then think of me as an ally. Don't you know what kind of battleground the high society is? It would do well for my lady to consider her situation."

Now that Lady White had said it, Elysia did know she needed reliable people to help her out.

"I see. If that is the case then I will consider your offer and form a tentative alliance with you. But whether it develops into a friendship or not, only time will tell."

To Elysia, it was clear that Lady White would not back down. From her body language to her voice, everything was posed like a predator.

It was in Elysia's best interest to keep her distance from that lady. Elysia would not be her friend but she could be an ally for now.

'Just for now. I will use this to keep an eye on Lady White. It doesn't look like she's aiming for the Crown Prince yet but as soon as she does, I will dip my hands out.'

Elysia nodded in her mind at her brilliant (stupid) plan.

"Ah, now that we have an alliance, can I ask my lady to accompany me for today? I am afraid that I don't know what to do in a base like this but I want to explore the place as well."

Elysia gave a reluctant smile back to her 'partner'. She did not want to spend any more time in Lady White's presence than what was necessary.

But the younger one was taking this decision out of her hand. And it was even more out of her hand when Sora arrived at the scene.

"Are we getting another person to join us? I heard from Lucas that Lady White will be joining us today."

"Ah, is this your famous familiar Lady Dirac? Doesn't he look a little young to be one?"

The words triggered Sorias enough to make him transform into his real form. His majestic coat dream a lot of eyes from around the camp but it was the shine in Lady White's eyes that worried Elysia.

Her stare was hungry as she looked at Elysia's familiar. That kind of hunger generally never ended well for anyone.

"Lady Dirac, can I ask you a favor? Can your familiar become my bodyguard for today? I have heard that Lady Dirac is an excellent fighter and can hold her own out there but I am not as able to. Won't my lady do this favor to me?"

Elysia stood there stunned at Emma's words. She was not even sure if she had heard those words right or not.

Lady White's proposal was scandalous. A familiar contract was an intimate relationship between the people. A familiar was supposed to prioritize his owner above all else.

If Elysia's familiar prioritizes anyone above her then it would be a hit to Elysia's reputation. It was alright to ask in secret or alone but Lady White had not done that.

Instead, she had asked that question right in the middle of the gathering and it had attracted a lot of curious eyes.

'What should I do now? I cannot refuse Lady White since she's my brother's guest but I cannot possibly agree as well. This is a difficult situation to be in.'

Elysia was stuck. She had no idea what she should do in this situation but agreed.

But before Elysia could answer Lady White, Sora decided for her. He ignored Lady White completely as he draped himself behind Elysia's back in a silent motion of 'don't you sare.'

His hostility was quite clear in his motions which caused Lady White to instantly back down.

"I don't think Sora likes that idea much Lady White. But if you are worried then we can take a few guards with us?"

Elysia tried to offer an alternative but the other female looked irritated and disappointed. Her glare was acidic before the girl masked it.

"No need to. I am sure an accomplished person such as Lady Dirac will be able to keep me safe on her own. I don't want to take unnecessary guards with me."

The guards flinched at the harsh tone. Elysia could see them seething in anger but they did not do anything else after that.

'This is so awkward. How did I end up in this situation? Can I take back my offer of the alliance now? I don't think it will work out in the end.'

Elysia felt like she was stuck between a rock and a hard place. The more she tried to ignore the feeling of doom, the faster it approached her in the form of Lady White.

Why did Elysia have to have that dream today of all days? It would have been so much easier to deal with all this if Elysia was living in an unaware world like before.

The trio left for the forest but they were not the only ones who did. There was one more person who was thinking of taking advantage of this sudden opportunity.

Victor watched the scene happen in front of him and his mind instantly started planning.

Lady White's sudden appearance was a surprise but it was a welcoming surprise. If he used her right then he could tear apart Lady Elysia and her familiar.

Currently, that familiar was the biggest obstacle he had in conquering Lady Dirac. The familiar tended to stick to his lady as glue and foil any plans Victor had.

But if the familiar had another priority in the form of Lady White, then not only would it create a rift between the existing pair but also provide Victor with an opportunity to make a move on Elysia.

'But first, I need to get out of this camp. My uncle is a big pain in my plan since he's keeping an eye on me this whole time. How do I go about getting rid of him?'

There were a few things Victor could try to do to solve this situation. But he chose the easiest way.

"Hey Emily, do you think you can do me a favor? Can you distract uncle Hector for me? I need to get out of here for a few seconds."

Emily looked startled at being addressed so suddenly but she only gave a small smile in return.

"Of course, I will help you out. Leave distracting your uncle to me."

'Oh, poor Emily. You are so easy to take advantage of. Keep being like this and help me out.'