In the hidden room where Avril was imprisoned…

Only a few minutes should have passed since being brought there, but Avril felt as though her surroundings were starting to get noisy for some reason.

“It’s getting pretty late, but Teresa hasn’t come back yet.”

“Isn’t she spending time with Wallace, the salesman? She’s even neglecting her guard duties. The absolute nerve!”

“Aah, I want to sleep in a bed too.”

Listening to the voices of the evil women who were guarding her, Avril sat on the floor and combed Lynn’s hair.

It should be about time for Lady Teresa to return. In does, things might get a bit troublesome, so I’d appreciate it if Lord Dylan could catch her before that…

But since she hasn’t returned, maybe everything is going smoothly?

She left a note. Upon apprehending Teresa, he should be able to find the door at the end of the emergency stairs quite easily. Only then would Avril and the everyone else be rescued.

Well, that’s if he read the TWO notes properly!

Closing her thoughts with uneasy feelings, Avril put down the comb and tied the ribbon.

“Okay, done.”

“Wow, Villainess Avril sure is amazing! She can even style my hair like this!”

“Yes, for I am a villainess.”

Although Lynn had deceived Avril and took her there, she was surprisingly obedient.

“Villainess are amazing, aren’t they?” she said while admiring her own reflection in the cracked mirror in the corner of the room.

Lynn’s hair was a bit messy, but after carefully braiding the sides and retying the ribbon that was originally on it, she instantly became adorable.

“You were even willing to do this for me. As expected, you are a nice person.”

“The same goes for you, Lynn. You could’ve escaped on your own when you were outside earlier. How very kind and strong of you.”

Then, Avril noticed that the women around her were looking at her with confusion. Having mistaken her for being a notorious villain, they were wary of her.

The entire time, Avril and Lynn had been conversing in a foreign language. Although they couldn’t comprehend it, they probably got the gist of it. Avril smiled at them.

“It’s not acceptable for villains to bully children.”

“““???”””

It was meant to be a clarification, but the women stared at each other, their eyes swimming. Her eyes met with one of them. The girl seemed a little older than Lynn.

Her hair was also disheveled. She kept glancing alternately between Lynn’s new hairstyle and Avril’s hands with sparkly eyes.

“Ugh, you are hopeless. It can’t be helped, then. Come here.”

She beckoned with her hand like a villainess would, and the girl hesitantly stepped over, before sitting down in front of Avril.

“What kind of hairstyle would you like?”

“…Something ladylike…”

“I see, I’m not very good at it, but I’ll do my best. I may be like this, but I used to help a ‘lady’ get dressed.”

“Eh?”

“Although, Corinna is no ordinary lady…”

“What?”

“N-no, it’s nothing.”

She had lowered her guard and blurted out exactly what she was thinking. Perhaps it was because of how happy Lynn seemed.

No good. Pull yourself together.

For Avril, mindless task simplified the thoughts in her head to an astonishing extent. Combing hair was one of such example.

According to the schedule, the ship will arrive at the next port tomorrow. From there, it’ll be a long journey to the foreign land. I need to prepare for the possibility that Lord Dylan will not be able to come to my aid before we reach the next port.

—In other words, I need to delay the departure.

How does one hold a ship at port?

The easiest and most reliable way would be to damage the ship.

The book about luxury cruise ships I read last night described the structure of a typical ship. Judging from the number of smokestacks I saw, this ship has three engines. However, destroying all three engines as soon as it reaches the port would be nigh impossible.

Avril had repaired boilers before, but she had no experience destroying a ship’s engine. She was also aware that reading a book didn’t just magically grant her any such ability.

In that case, I better ask someone else…

Next, she went through her knowledge of the salaries for crewmates on cruise ship in her head. Considering the structure of the ship with such obvious hidden rooms, she easily concluded that the company that owned the ship was also in on it.

I can ask the engineer to stop the ship until Lord Dylan gets the signal. But would he trust me, a total stranger, to do it? Even if I say I’ll pay, it’ll be difficult if I can’t prepare the cash right then and there.

She thought while moving her hands. There was no curling iron there, so she couldn’t curl her hair. Nevertheless, the girl’s hair was fluffy and curly. It looked like she’d be able to give her the ladylike hairstyle she wished for.

Avril skillfully braided the hair into a bundle, little by little. She secured it all in place with a pin she had in her pocket, turning it into a gorgeous updo that a lady would wear for an evening party.

“It’s done.”

“?! Eh… Really?! Wow! Thank you!”

Avril was lackluster when it came to getting herself ready, but she had done Corinna’s hair many times. If she made a mistake, a hot iron or vase would fly at her.

Avril was good at dodging them, but her fellow servants—such as Keira—would sometimes get hit. Hence why she practiced thoroughly.

Just like Lynn, the girl seemed very happy upon seeing her own reflection in the cracked mirror. In turn, it also made Avril happy.

I’m very happy that what I learned at the House of Allingham has proven to be useful.

“Can you do mine next?”

“Please do mine, too.”

“After that, please do mine…”

As she smiled, people called out to her one after another. It was supposed to be quite late, but no one was asleep yet. On the contrary, everyone seemed very interested in the unusual hairstyles Avril was braiding.

When Avril first arrived, the people there were wary of her, but that seemed to have subsided. Fashion was a common and fun topic among women.

Indeed, no one can pull off a hairstyle like that on their own. Only nobles who can afford to hire maids could.

“Understood.”

While replying, Avril secretly glanced toward the corner of the room. Katie was asleep while sitting up, while the granny had disappeared somewhere. The other guards were yawning as well.

---

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***T/N:

>Avril: ugh there’s no curling iron…

>Also Avril: Ait, how do I destroy this ship and possibly sink everyone onboard?

That’s the duality of man right there.

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