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The Scorned Noble Lady Picks Up The Path of Alchemy in Her Second Life

Zeel Roars...!

Translated by: S3

Treat me to a Ko-Fi to give me more motivation!!!

*****

The next morning, I arrived at the Voitos House to deliver the copy of the engagement annulment document signed by both families.

I hoped to avoid meeting Lord Zeel and intended to ask a servant to hand over the papers... but I had no luck.

Lord Zeel and his junior, Catarina, were just leaving the mansion, seemingly heading out.

Seeing the two of them looking so affectionate, it was indeed an affair, not just a night of fun. The fact that they were exiting the same mansion suggested they were living together.

I planned to hide and let them pass, but they noticed me immediately. Then, the two of them approached me with smug expressions.

「What do you want, Mia? Let me tell you now, it’s too late to come crawling back crying. There’s no place for you here anymore.」

「Too bad for you, Senpai ♪ Lord Zeel’s side is already filled by me!」

Lord Zeel and Catarina spoke happily, but… what should I do? I had no lingering feelings and was not the least bit envious.

Perhaps because I genuinely felt relieved to have separated from him, I felt no interest in the two of them getting along.

If anything, knowing that my place here was gone filled me with a surge of relief.

「I have already started a new life, so please don’t worry about me. I'm glad to see you two are happy.」

I wanted to just casually brush off their conversation and finish my business... but that wasn’t going to happen easily.

Lord Zeel and Catarina wore malicious smiles.

「You talk big. Even though you were so frustrated you spread those embarrassing rumors.」

「Rumors?」

I tilted my head, having no memory of such a thing.

It was absolutely impossible for my family, with my strict father, to spread rumors. Moreover, there was no need for it.

「You mean that lie about becoming the Court Alchemist Clein's assistant, a lie even a child wouldn’t fall for.」

「Mia-senpai, that’s seriously too embarrassing! If you're going to lie, tell a better one, please. It's meaningless if you can't trick anyone, pfft.」

The two of them started snickering, but what they called a lie was the undeniable truth.

I had no intention of deceiving them at all... Wait. Did Catarina, who works at the Adventurers Guild, not know that Lord Clein scouted me?

Ah. Now that I think about it, she was caught by the Guild Master processing noble requests carelessly and was being scolded in a separate room at the time. Since she didn't directly witness the exchange with Lord Clein, she must be convinced I'm lying.

I didn't think I needed to report it to them, but maybe I should clearly tell them just in case.

「Unfortunately, that rumor is not a lie. I will be working under Lord Clein as his assistant and acting as an apprentice alchemist from now on.」

However, the two of them showed no sign of believing me. They sighed loudly, completely exasperated.

「What a pathetic woman you've become. You're desperately lining up lies just to get me to turn my attention to you, aren't you?」

「Wasn't Senpai pathetic from the start~?」

「That's true. If she had faced reality, she wouldn't have chosen the foolish option of annulling her engagement with me.」

I worried about them, as they were the ones who needed to face reality, or they would continue to make a fool of themselves.

However, since they wouldn't believe anything I said, there was no way to stop their rampage. As if to prove a point, Lord Zeel directed a smug look at me.

「Listen up, and listen well. The position of Court Alchemist is a job for an elite like me!」

The royal capital seemed to fall silent.

The old me might have readily accepted that, taking the Alchemists Guild’s assessment at face value. But having seen Lord Clein's alchemy, I could confidently state that the possibility of Lord Zeel becoming a Court Alchemist was infinitesimally small.

Because the difference between their alchemy was so vast that it felt like they were on different dimensions.

I involuntarily waved my hands side to side, as if to say No, no, no, no.

「I think it would be difficult for someone who devotes themselves to nightlife.」

Even if he had the technical skill in alchemy, his attitude towards it made Lord Zeel unsuitable.

Yet... why did he genuinely believe he could achieve it? Lord Zeel, brimming with confidence, scoffed at me.

「Hmph, tell me the truth. You don't want me to get serious with alchemy, do you?」

「Hmm? Serious?」

It was impossible for the excuse that he wasn't serious to pass, considering how desperate he was in his compounding.

The "serious" alchemy of Lord Zeel, who used to sweat profusely, breathe heavily, and contort his face while working...!

It certainly didn't seem impressive!

「I'll prove with my serious alchemy just how much of a burden you were holding me back.」

「It’s too late to apologize now, Senpai~. Once Lord Zeel gets serious, he’ll become the Court Alchemist immediately.」

「And when that happens, the one next to me won’t be you. It will be Catarina.」

「Oh, my. I love you, Lord Zeel!」

Watching the two of them flirt without a care for their surroundings, I thought:

What am I being shown right now? And, Why am I being made out to be the villain?

I felt that the more time I spent involved with these two, the more bad rumors would spread, and the more trouble I would get into. Just as planned, I should hand over the annulment papers and cut ties completely.

「I will state the purpose of my visit to the Voitos House today. The Hopewell House has officially accepted the annulment of the engagement, and I came to deliver the copy of the document to you, Lord Zeel. Here you are.」

When I handed over the document, Lord Zeel showed an irritated expression.

Judging from his previous statements, he must have imagined me crying when he presented the annulment papers. Instead, my detached response clearly angered him.

This was evident by the way he snatched the papers from me.

「You won't be able to keep that composure for long! Starting today, I'm seriously getting into alchemy!」

I wanted to ask him what he was doing before, but I bit my tongue and held back.

「That's right~. Don't be jealous just because you couldn't become the Court Alchemist's assistant~.」

I wanted to say that I am already the Court Alchemist's assistant... but I held back on that, too.

「Hey~. Let’s go, Lord Zeel.」

「Right. I don't have time to talk to a pathetic woman.」

As the two of them started to walk away to leave, I bowed slightly, as if to say, Goodbye, and good riddance.

For me, whose happy future was confirmed, their nonsense was trivial. The moment they accepted the annulment papers, my connection with Lord Zeel was severed, so there was no need for me to get angry.

However, as a final parting shot, Lord Zeel deliberately cleared his throat loudly.

「It really was the right decision to dispose of all the medicinal herbs Mia left behind.」

「Of course~. You can’t make good quality potions with herbs pre-processed by a delusional senpai~. It was absolutely correct to throw them all away~.」

Ugh... That's a genuine waste. I spent a whole day on my day off just to pre-process the herbs needed for the potions delivered to the Knights.

Well, perhaps it's better than having trouble later caused by the herbs I processed. With this, the connection is truly and completely severed.

With that change in mindset, I headed off to purchase medicinal herbs.