I Reincarnated As A Villainess, But Why Did I Become A Cat Butler Instead? - Chapter 307

Chapter 155.1

Herman was taken aback by Renée’s sudden appearance.

‘Why is this woman here?’

Standing beside Renée was William with a serious expression on his face. To Herman’s surprise, the two were walking arm-in-arm as if intentionally showing off.

‘What is going on?’

He was dumbfounded.

Wasn’t Renée the one William had introduced in agreement with Count Larscel just to provoke Rowaine’s jealousy? But now, here he was with Renée?

‘So that’s why I haven’t heard from him lately!’

William, who used to drunkenly cry out for Rowaine every night while making a scene, hadn’t called on him in the past few days. Herman had assumed he’d either come to his senses or gotten busy with work. Either way, he’d felt relieved to be spared from a bothersome situation…

‘Ha, did he really abandon Rowaine and start spending time with that woman?’

Herman had to make an effort not to regard his cousin, the Emperor, with a patronizing look. Although he couldn’t criticize too much since he himself had a habit of mingling with various women, this was a little too much.

‘He was just whining about wanting Rowaine back, and now he’s already moved on? I thought his interest in Rowaine would last longer this time, but here we are again.’

William was truly, unbearably pathetic.

He was the same man who, in a fit of passion, had rushed into marriage with the former Empress without a second thought. Not long after, he’d fallen head over heels for Iris, the princess of a fallen kingdom. He dethroned the former Empress and married Iris instead.

And then, as usual, he started pursuing other women again, until he finally met Rowaine.

Even so, Herman had thought William might actually be serious about Rowaine this time. His interest in her had lasted unusually long. In fact, after Rowaine married, William’s obsession only seemed to grow.

At least, that was what he had believed.

‘D*mn it, I guess old habits really do die hard.’

Herman clicked his tongue silently as he watched William gaze adoringly at Renée. Oblivious to his disgusted look, Renée clung to William’s arm, smiling coquettishly.

‘So, she’s just another shallow woman from the Larscel family.’

After being dragged back and confined to the palace for running away with a man, she’d ended up falling head over heels for William.

‘The frivolity of the Larscel family.’

At that moment, Renée, wearing a triumphant expression, cast Rowaine a condescending glance once over before opening her mouth with a smirk.

“You really don’t get it, do you, Rowaine? If you had the audacity to return to the capital, you should’ve kept a low profile. Who here would ever welcome you to an event like this?”

Rowaine’s fists clenched as her entire body trembled with rage.

“What? How dare someone like you…!”

Herman pressed a hand to his forehead.

‘Just when things were going smoothly, and now this.’

Rowaine’s anger was supposed to be aimed at Elaine. His plan had been for Elaine and Rowaine to create a scene, turning them both into a laughingstock in front of everyone.

While Herman inwardly cursed over his plan going awry, Renée continued her taunting excitedly.

“Someone like me? You still don’t know your place, Rowaine.”

In truth, it was Renée who didn’t know her place.

Even though Rowaine was no longer the Emperor’s mistress, she was still the Duchess of Blois. No matter how highly Renée valued her new status as the Emperor’s mistress, her rank was still far below Rowaine’s. Yet, blinded by her infatuation with the Emperor, she seemed fearless and oblivious to reality.

“As your older sister, let me give you some advice. Instead of making a scene and embarrassing yourself, why don’t you just quietly disappear?”

“Are you done talking, Renée?”

“Oh, I heard you’ve been causing trouble with His Majesty’s hunting dog recently. Isn’t having a cat shapeshifter husband enough for you? Now, you’re even eyeing a dog shapeshifter? Ha, honestly. You’re disgusting.”

“You’ve really lost it, haven’t you?”

Rowaine, utterly shocked, shot a resentful glare at William, who stood silently beside Renée.

William ignored her angry look, feigning ignorance as he made a half-hearted attempt to break up the fight between the women.

“Ahem, let’s settle down, ladies.”

He seemed to take pleasure in watching Rowaine, who had once wounded his pride, being humiliated by Renée. On the other hand, Renée, mistaking William’s indifference as support, clung even tighter to his arm, her tone playful and taunting.

“Oh, Your Majesty, are you really planning to execute that poor hunting dog just because of her? I hear the Princess is particularly fond of him for his remarkable skills. It would be such a shame.”

William glanced briefly at Rowaine before turning to Renée with an affectionate smile.

“Then, do you have a better idea?”

“Well… considering the Duke of Blois’s reputation, we can’t simply let the hunting dog go unpunished after being involved in such an incident.”