F-Rank Puppeteer!! But I'll be Queen, and I'm not a narcissist!!!!!-Chapter 172: Warning Given

"...So then... Eve, could you explain... ah... well... this scene?" Syl’Vyr asks me as I arrive at the mansion. She came ahead because she ran to prepare the mansion for the prisoners, while the soldiers returned to camp to be healed by Faye. As for me, I walked here with this fake Evelyn, so I was slower.

"Syl’Vyr, what do you mean?" I ask, hoping she won’t bring up what I think she will.

"Well..." Her gaze drops to the damp stain on "Evelyn-sama’s" dress, which is also smeared with blood—but that stain is obviously not blood.

"The smell of this is... how should I put it..." She struggles to say something, while the fake Evelyn smiles with a grin that seems disgusting to me.

"What’s the problem, Syl’Vyr? Are you having doubts about this? Because it’s exactly what you’re probably thinking it is," Evelyn asks, lifting her skirt and showing her dripping panties. Syl’Vyr blushes, not expecting such boldness.

The drops trickling down her thigh, together with the soaked panties, make it blatantly obvious what that liquid is. My hand trembles with anger at her doing this.

"E-EVE!! Explain what the hell she is!! I can smell it! She smells dangerous! She’s definitely not the real Evelyn-chan, even if she smells like her." Of course Syl’Vyr notices—it’s impossible not to.

"...I’m not entirely sure either, but we can’t let anyone know that Evelyn-sama has been temporarily replaced," I say with a serious look, warning her not to speak too loudly.

"Hey, hey, I won’t say anything, you know? I’ll act like our sweet little fruit in front of others. I’d prefer if no one knew I exist here, understand?" She interrupts us, still holding her dress up. I pull it down to make this depraved creature stop showing off Evelyn’s panties.

"Don’t do that! Evelyn-sama would never be a depraved person who shows something like that out in the open," I say as I pull her inside the mansion. We’re in the village, and if any villager sees this, bad rumors will start to spread.

"..." When the three of us enter, I close the mansion doors. The only person inside is Clarissa, but we can easily deal with her if problems arise.

"So, care to explain what you are?" Syl’Vyr asks her directly.

"Hmmm, I don’t think so. The less you know about me, the better! But know that Evelyn will return in a few days—it’s just a matter of time until her mind recovers from what happened."

"...?" Syl’Vyr looks at her, confused.

"Oh, you don’t know, do you? While you were fighting, Evelyn was attacked from behind by an angel, and then out of reflex and survival instinct, she killed the angel using most of her magic in her threads! But it seems killing someone was too much for her!!"

"So she retreated deep into her subconscious! It’s the equivalent of fainting after trauma! However, she’ll take a little longer to wake up because I’m here! But I didn’t want to be here, so it’s 100% Evelyn’s fault," she explains everything with a smile so sweet it’s poisonous.

"..." Syl’Vyr bites her lip, feeling what I felt. Both of us failed to protect Evelyn-sama. After all, even though we were following her orders to help defeat the angels, we should have also kept her safe. I should have insisted that Evelyn-sama not come with us.

"Well, where can I take a bath? I don’t like being dirty with blood—it ruins the beauty of this body. Although... being dirty with blood like this while I’m all wet with Evelyn’s sexual fluids does turn me on. It feels so profane, doesn’t it?" She spouts more irritating nonsense.

"Syl’Vyr, we have to take turns keeping an eye on her and..."

"Hey, hey, hey! I’ll act like Evelyn outside the mansion!" She interrupts me.

"I know what you’re thinking: keeping me here is safer for Evelyn’s image. But you’re wrong! Keeping me here will make the soldiers think Evelyn is hiding after a single battle."

"They already don’t trust Evelyn much, but with me here after the success of this battle, we can help Evelyn gain authority through respect!" She says something intelligent, but the fact that she’s not trustworthy makes this a dangerous move.

"..." Syl’Vyr and I exchange glances, thinking it over. We can’t keep her hidden in the mansion. She’s right—if she disappears after the fight, the soldiers will think something’s wrong. And the fact that she was wounded won’t serve as an excuse, because this fake has already shown the wound didn’t debilitate her.

"Tsk... Fine, we’ll take you to the camp. But don’t even think about destroying everything Evelyn-sama is fighting for," I say sharply. Even though this is Evelyn-sama’s body, I’ll still do everything to stop her from causing trouble.

"Great, great..."

"O-Oh? Evelyn-sama, I didn’t think you’d be back so soon." Clarissa appears on the stairs carrying a bucket of water and a cloth, apparently cleaning the windows.

I look at this impostor, wondering if she’ll really pretend to be Evelyn or if she’ll start ruining everything right away.

"Yes, I came back early because I need a bath. As you can see, I’m dirty from the battle that happened a little while ago. Go prepare the bath with hot water, and then start preparing my meal." She actually speaks without that perverted tone now, and her excuse is plausible because she is covered in blood.

It shows this depraved creature does know how to act like Evelyn-sama but chooses not to, just to irritate us.

"...Understood, Evelyn-sama! I’ll get right to it." She starts to leave with the bucket. Syl’Vyr looks at me and nods in approval, showing she also agrees it was convincing.

"Good. After you bathe, we can discuss what you should say to the soldiers and..." Before I can finish, she raises her hand, asking for silence.

"After? No, no, no. We can talk during the bath. You should clean my body," she says with a devilish smile.

"What!?"

"That’s right, Eve and Syl’Vyr. I want you to clean every nook, every fold, and every bit of dirt you find. I won’t lift a finger to clean this body—it’s not my responsibility. In fact, I won’t lift a finger to eat either, so you’ll have to feed me." Her smug smile irritates me. It’s totally different from Evelyn-sama’s.

"What a freeloader..." Syl’Vyr mutters, though unfortunately we’ll have to obey.

"Freeloader? No, I’m practical. I don’t want to waste my effort cleaning and feeding a body that isn’t mine. And you don’t want Evelyn’s image to crumble, so you’ll have to put in the work."

"Besides, this body is much more sensitive than I’m used to, so maybe from time to time I’ll end up getting aroused by some... thoughts. So you’ll really need to get some new panties for me. Oh, and I want something soft."

"I want it to be smooth and light. Of course, I also want the food to suit my tastes perfectly. And I want the water temperature to be just right... hmmm... what else do I want..."

"Ah, yes. I also need you to help me set up a barrier around the mansion. I want to avoid spying, you know? It’s because Evelyn has a wife who seems quite jealous and controlling..." She says, winking conspiratorially.

As if, at this very moment, she’s being watched by someone and really doesn’t want that to happen.

"...Don’t push your luck, fake Evelyn."

"I’m not pushing my luck, Eve. I’m just stating my conditions. If you want me to behave with this body, you have to give me what I want. Otherwise, I might just ruin Evelyn’s reputation."

"Besides, I’m not being perverted when I say I’ll soak the panties. I’m someone with, let’s say... a strong affinity for water, and I have many thoughts that cause arousal in this fragile body. It’s not my fault—my real body didn’t react this way."

"Now, shall we go? I have a bath to take. The smell of blood is already spreading and drying. If we take too long, this dress will be ruined, and the smell of blood will start clinging to my body." She speaks demandingly after having explained everything so clinically.

"Syl’Vyr, go finish preparing the prison for the captured angels. I’ll follow this spoiled fake here and help her with her bath. Afterward, you’ll look after her while I handle the paperwork Evelyn-sama was supposed to read and sign regarding the village." I don’t trust this thing signing those important documents.

"Okay, see you later..." Syl’Vyr understands this isn’t the time to argue about who does what and just accepts. Meanwhile, I start heading toward the bathroom.

"Hmmm... hmmm... hmmm..." She hums as we walk, until she suddenly grabs my arm. I look at her just before letting out a pained groan—her grip is strangely strong for a body that should be physically weak.

"Keep an eye on that Syl’Vyr and Faye..."

"What do you mean?" I ask as she releases my arm. I see her hand emit a faint blue glow that disperses.

"...Who knows? Maybe I don’t mean anything by it... but I know Evelyn and her mind well, and I suggest you pay very close attention to this. Or you might regret not heeding my warning in the future. Anyway, I’ve said what I needed to say. I won’t speak anymore on the subject." She returns to her silly smile as if she hadn’t said something extremely suspicious.

"..." I decide to ignore it. I’m sure she only said that to unsettle and distract me. Why would I need to keep an eye on Syl’Vyr and Faye? It doesn’t make sense, and it would be practically a betrayal to doubt those two based on the words of this depraved creature.