Regressor Instruction Manual

Chapter 1380. An Unexpected Debut (15)

The eldest sister, Alps, couldn't hide her embarrassment, and the engrossed-in-her-role second sister, Belier, appeared surprised to see someone who wasn't supposed to be here. Of course, their faces told me the truth.

'These two... Commander Jin sent them. Damn it.'

He said he wouldn't watch, but he had been watching all along.

"Marquis Jayce, I’m grateful for the help you have given my younger sister, but... I don’t wish to cause any further disruption in the ballroom. I'd appreciate it if this matter ended here," Belier—no, Karina Peneloti said, immediately taking care of the ballroom.

The atmosphere was so tense that it felt as if a duel was going to break out.

However, their presence was like a bucket of cold water poured over the irrational and agitated Marquis Jayce and Duke Pinkrain. Even though Marquis Jayce maintained a calm face, there was something chilling about it, making it seem as if the ballroom itself had grown colder.

Regardless of how the events had unfolded, they had prevented the situation from spiraling into a disaster. It was safe to say that they effectively blocked the route of me getting engaged to Marquis Jayce for the sake of Lady Peneloti's honor.

After challenging and defeating the reckless Duke Pinkrain, we would have gotten engaged. Fortunately, I avoided the bad ending of going to the Republic.

'Belier... seems to be really engrossed in this, though.'

"U-unni," I said.

"Keep your mouth shut, Aina. I think I told you to stay out of trouble and stay quiet... and here you are causing a scene," Belier said.

"I-I didn't do anything, unni. I just stayed still, but Duke Pinkrain—"

"Aina Peneloti. So you think what you did was good? There are so many things to say about your conduct, Aina. So you stayed up all night and nothing happened? You're still pathetic," Belier interrupted me.

"P-pathetic... A-Aina, so... pathetic," Alps remarked.

'Alps should probably just keep her mouth shut. Her acting was bad during the Rohen incident, too, I think...'

According to her lore, Aina Peneloti was a lonely young lady with nothing but a shadow for a friend, so it was only natural that her two sisters disliked her. In addition to that, she even had a heartbreaking story of not wanting to be hated by them any further.

Sure enough, glimpses of disgust appeared on Belier's face. She revealed an expression and behavior that made it clear that she wasn't seeing her sister as a fellow human being. It was almost like she was looking at a bug.

‘But... something feels different...’

Could it be that she did not want to become a one-dimensional character who would simply hate and torment Aina Peneloti?

I could see hints of affection for Aina Peneloti in her face.

‘Belier has grown... No... she has already become Karina Peneloti, hasn’t she?"

She had given her side character her own story.

Essentially, Karina Peneloti loved Aina Peneloti, but there was something important preventing her from fully embracing that love.

'Damn it, I don't even know that detail.'

Considering Aina Peneloti's lore, however, it was probably connected to the family—some internal strife, perhaps.

‘That’s it, isn’t it? That’s what you want to say, right?’

The exact nature of the curse or problem was not specified, but the key detail was hidden somewhere in that backstory. Perhaps Aina Peneloti had caused the death of Karina Peneloti’s mother, or perhaps Aina Peneloti’s curse had brought about great discord to the family.

'Something along those lines, I guess...'

“Duke Pinkrain,” Karina said.

“W-what is it, Miss Karina Peneloti?” Duke Pinkrain asked.

“Apologize for insulting the Peneloti Family,” Karina demanded.

“W-what...?” Duke Pinkrain stuttered.

“Is it because the Peneloti is a lesser-known family from the outskirts that you felt free to insult our name?” Karina questioned.

“A-ahem...”

‘So she’s not asking for an apology for insulting Aina. I see. She’s playing it straight, sticking firmly to her character. To her, family comes first.’

“I request a formal apology, accompanied by appropriate compensation,” Karina added.

“Ahem... I-I may have gotten... carried away...” Duke Pinkrain mumbled.

“This is a request for a formal apology, Duke Pinkrain,” Karina said.

“...”

“A formal apology for insulting the Peneloti Family. I have made myself clear,” Karina said.

‘Wow. Pure charisma. Karina Peneloti.’

Even the notoriously reckless Duke Pinkrain had no choice but to take a step back. Regardless of any personal involvement with Aina Peneloti, he had, in fact, insulted the entire Peneloti Family. And he had to have noticed how heated he had gotten; he was like Kim Myung-Won upon witnessing injustice.

Cornered, he revealed his true nature, acting as tyrannically as he would in his own domain, but with things spiraling this far, he could no longer ignore the eyes of the public.

Now that his head had cooled down, it was time for rational thoughts.

At this moment, he had to yield.

“Ahem... I apologize for my rude words; I was worked up earlier. I will clarify my side of the story through a formal letter later. Regarding the compensation—Ahem... then I shall take my leave,” Duke Pinkrain said.

‘Exactly. The best move now is to run.’

Duke Pinkrain made a hasty retreat, but of course, it remained unclear if it was out of embarrassment or if he had realized Karina Peneloti had put him at a disadvantage.

The immediate crisis was resolved, but it wasn’t really over. Aina Peneloti still couldn’t lift her head. The guests in the ballroom buzzed about the sudden incident and began scattering to resume their own activities.

Belier, looking down on her, was the reason why Aina stood frozen with her head lowered. Finally, once the hall had calmed down somewhat, a cold voice cut through the silence, and it was directed at Aina Peneloti.

“Later, once you've calmed down, send a brief letter of apology to Duke Pinkrain, Aina.”

It was clear to anyone watching that this was far from the behavior of normal sisters.

Naturally, Marquis Jayce spoke to defend her, saying, “Lady Peneloti doesn’t need to apologize for anything, Lady Karina Peneloti.”

“...”

“...”

“Whether someone was at fault or not is irrelevant, Marquis Jayce. You know better than anyone that who’s at fault isn’t what's important here,” Karina said.

“That’s—”

“The Peneloti Family doesn’t have the kind of power that the Jayce or Pinkrain houses possess. Even if the Union of Kingdoms steps in to handle this issue, we'll have no way to stop the House of Pinkrain if they were to harm the Penelotis.

"Marquis Jayce, unless you intend to take my useless sister with you and take responsibility for her, you must take a step back. That is the course of action that will help us and Aina,” Karina explained.

“...”

“Furthermore, even if that were the case... Aina is not yet part of the Jayce household. She’s a member of the Peneloti Family. Of course, we’re grateful for the help you have given to her, but the Penelotis must bear the consequences of the goodwill that created this outcome,” Karina added.

“I-It’s... it’s a matter of the family, Marquis Jayce,” Alps chimed in.

‘Alps, why are you letting your junior perform better than you?’

“Do as K-Karina says... Aina Peneloti,” Alps added.

Just then, someone shouted, “What apology are you talking about?! Seriously!”

The young ladies of the Black Rose Salon were finally here.

“You... must be Lady Pastel,” Karina said.

“What do you mean by Peneloti should apologize? What on earth are you talking about?! It's obviously that swine's fault! Peneloti did nothing wrong!” Lady Pastel shouted.

“Lady Pastel is correct, Karina Peneloti,” Lady Palette said.

“This is absurd! To demand that Lady Peneloti apologize is... not revolutionary at all!” Lady Brush argued.

“Lady Brush is right. There’s no need to apologize, Lady Peneloti,” Lady Paint said.

“E-Everyone...” I mumbled.

‘M-minna...’

"This matter concerns our family. It’s not something for others to worry about. I believed I had made that clear. Aina, do you hear me?” Karina questioned.

Of course, Aina Peneloti had no other choice but to obey. She wanted to boldly refuse, but for the sake of the Peneloti Family, she couldn’t do that. Karina was correct. If Duke Pinkrain were to nurse a grudge over today’s incident, it would surely bring trouble to the Peneloti house.

The young ladies from the Black Rose Salon revealed serious faces.

Marquis Jayce looked solemn as well.

From the shadowed conversations with Aina, he had already made deductions as to what kind of life she had been living, but now, he realized that it was even harsher than he had imagined.

Apologizing was the right thing to do here. Considering what could happen to the family, Aina Peneloti had to endure the personal dishonor and formally bow to the House of Pinkrain, at least on the outside.

However, Aina Peneloti couldn’t turn her back on Marquis Jayce and the young ladies of the Black Rose Salon, who trusted her.

Summoning her courage, she said, “I-I won’t apologize."

She looked a bit more confident now.

‘I-I’m not alone anymore.’

“What?” Karina asked.

“I won’t apologize. I did nothing wrong. If anything, I should receive an apology,” I said.

“You only ever think about yourself, don’t you, Aina Peneloti,” Karina said.

“It’s not just about me, unni! I—”

“Shut up and come with me,” Karina interrupted me.

“...”

“You’ll need to be punished,” Karina added.

Karina Peneloti walked down the long corridor alone; her steps were steady and deliberate. The young ladies of the Black Rose Salon watched her go with worried faces. Marquis Jayce bitterly swallowed the taste of a failed plan and could only watch her leave as well.

I could see the faces of fans urging me to stay here with them, but there was no way to refuse Karina Peneloti’s words. As we continued down the corridor, I heard her speak again, but this time, she was Belier rather than Karina.

“Shall we move closer to Count Kim Hyun-Sung, Sub Guild Master? I think he’s in the garden right now.”

“Ah. Yes. That should work,” I answered.

‘Look at her, picking up on things so quickly. She’s really reliable.’

She even noticed that I was trying to get closer to Hyun-Sung. Perhaps she was worried about breaking my immersion, as she asked no questions whatsoever. If there were any third party here, they would probably think that a camera was rolling somewhere.

Alps had yet to become fully engrossed in her character, so she decided to return to her duties, relaying various matters to everyone. In the meantime, the three Peneloti sisters entered the garden where Kim Hyun-Sung was taking a walk.

‘There just wasn’t a chance to step in before. It was all because of Marquis Jayce.’

“...”

‘Hyun-Sung probably wanted to help, too.’

I wondered if a part of his heart still felt uneasy.

With that in mind, it was only right to give him another chance to ease that tension.

Just then, I heard Karina Peneloti’s voice.

“Aina Peneloti.”

“Yes, unni?” I answered.

“Clench your teeth,” Karina ordered.

“Huh? W-why?” I asked.

'Why are you taking off your gloves?'

‘Why do I have to clench my teeth?’

'Why... are you raising your hand?'

‘Was this the punishment you mentioned earlier?’

'Is... this was some sort of disciplinary action between us where one punishes and the other is punished? The idea was fresh, but isn’t it a bit strange? No, even so... Damn it, I can’t even tell what’s going on right now.'

I was familiar with the Peneloti lore, but I was baffled. However, it wasn’t really a bad choice. There was probably no better way to draw attention than this. If it were just a verbal quarrel, it could be dismissed as a simple matter between sisters, but a physical attack was a different story.

Kim Hyun-Sung would definitely hear it as well.

Fortunately, Marquis Jayce wasn’t around at this moment.

‘Even better! Damn, it's a good idea!’

Had she realized that this was the most rational approach here?

Karina Peneloti’s eyes glimmered, seemingly asking for permission.

I nodded without thinking, and—

Slap!

—My head turned violently to the side. No, the slap was stronger than I expected, and I even wobbled before collapsing to the ground with a thud.

‘D-Damn, my lips... it’s cut. Damn... it’s blood...’

“Stand up, Aina,” Karina ordered.

I was sure I wasn’t the only one who noticed that her eyes had changed.

Alps was shocked by what the insane rookie had just done, and she immediately shouted, “W-what are you doing! Bel—”

“It’s Karina, unni,” Belier interrupted her.

“Huh?”

“And right now, I’m educating my useless younger sister, so please do not interfere, unni,” Karina said.

“H-huh?”

I had never seen this kind of method acting.

‘We don't even have a safe word, do we?’