Reincarnated Into A Dead Woman's Body In Another World-Chapter 180: Arc 4, Act I, - 25: Intoxicating

Her anger subsided for a second. There were several waiters and waitresses, pouring what looked to be expensive bottles of wine. The purplish-red liquid sloshed and poured into each cup.

Their appetizers had not arrived and the guests all gossiped and laughed. Once the wine had been poured, they awaited the princess to take the first sip.

Luciean made his way towards the front end of the table, escorted by a waiter. He leaned in close to the archduke’s ear. The archduke listened before he smiled, changing to the empty seat next to the countess.

Luciean smiled taking the seat next to his brother. Feyan gave a smile before shying away a little. Fumeko tugged on Jotou’s red blouse sleeve, "Jotou."

The blonde turned, "Huh, what is it?"

"The drinks seem weird. Yours and mine look the same, but the countess’s and the archduke’s look different," she hushed.

Jotou knitted her brows, "What do you mean?" she glanced at her cup.

"There’s this weird, glimmer on ours... when they poured it in. It’s the same with Feyan’s, Daiyu’s," Fumeko turned left and right, "Hotaru’s and Asobi’s too... It looks like, illusion magic?"

Jotou fluttered her lashes, "...Alright," she leaned back on the chair to reach Hotaru’s shoulder across Fumeko.

"Hm?" Hotaru’s ears pricked.

"Check if Asobi’s casting any illusions and, don’t drink the wine," she whispered lower.

"Oh, okay," Hotaru turned back.

"Act normal," Jotou whispered to Fumeko before turning to Daiyu, "Hey psychopath."

"What?" Daiyu cocked a brow.

"Has the wine been spiked or something?"

"No...? If you think I’m pranking you, I’m not," Daiyu could still read that look Jotou would give.

"Can never be sure. Act normal, but Meko’s seeing something in some of our cups. Illusion magic maybe; don’t drink the wine... Feyan either."

Hotaru pulled Asobi a little closer, "Sobi, are you doing any illusions right now?"

Asobi’s brows raised as she pondered, "Hm... right now I’m concentrating on, Meko’s makeup, my makeup, my heels and because of my heels, my entire self too and... that’s it!"

"Feyan normally drinks before me, but Arabella’s doing it this time," Daiyu pointed to her down the row.

Jotou scrunched her face...

"It’s not like I ask them to do it!" Daiyu hushed, "It’s just procedure. But she won’t drink till I say everyone can start either so I’ll just hold off. You think its poisoned?"

"Could be, I don’t know," Jotou felt a tug on her shoulder, "Warn Feyan," before she glanced back to the brunette.

Hotaru leaned over Fumeko’s head, "Sobi’s not doing any illusions other than on herself and Meko."

"Great, I’ve been outed," Fumeko’s eyes glazed over.

"Okay, make sure she doesn’t drink the wine either," Jotou turned back to Daiyu. "It’s not Asobi who’s doing illusions."

Daiyu turned back from warning Feyan, whose eyes had widened, "Not that I don’t trust you or Fumeko, but are you sure?"

Jotou side-eyed the wine... Perhaps she could see a slight difference between the cups, but it could just be the lighting? "I’m not sure about the wine, but I trust her; I’d rather not risk it either."

"Well, that’s all I need. But if it’s not Asobi, then there’s only one other illusionist in our midst."

"My thoughts exactly."

Both Jotou and Daiyu took quick glares to the countess in red. "I’d love to openly ask her, but I need to keep up appearances."

"You wanna use your foot tap thing while I talk to her?"

"Gladly."

Jotou leaned back in her seat as did Daiyu. "Countess Keya~?" Jotou sang.

The pleasant voice caught her ears, "Yes dear?"

"Would you mind switching drinks with me? I think mine’s alcoholic, isn’t that right Feyan?"

Feyan glanced up at the blonde as Daiyu lightly kicked Feyan’s shin under the table, "Uh, yes, it’s alcoholic."

The countess tilted her head, "Well dear it’s wine, and so is mine."

"...True?" Daiyu muttered to herself and enough so Jotou could hear.

’If I don’t get specific, Daiyu can’t detect it can she? What the hell do I ask?’ "Oh, silly me. But yours still looks a little different, if you wouldn’t mind just switching?" Jotou cocked her head, beaming with her eyes closed.

The countess smirked, "My, my, it’s hard to resist such an adorable face, I could eat you up."

"True...?" an ick grew on the princess’s expression.

"But I believe my wine’s the same as yours dear."

A smile crept up on the corner of Daiyu’s lips, "...Lie," she uttered to herself; she glanced at Arabella down the table who glanced back.

"Uh, actually countess, the Thundering Blade has cherry wine which I believe you prefer?" Feyan tried to cover.

"I, already specifically asked for cherry wine," the countess furrowed her brows.

"If the Thundering Blade wants something non-alcoholic she merely needs to ask the staff," Count Keya budded in.

"No need to switch anything. Arabella," Daiyu called over. The other guests turned their eyes and squinted their glances as the Ashen Whisper got up from her seat and approached with her armour clanking.

"Would you please arrest Countess Varshini Keya and take her to the dungeons?"

"Dungeons...?" Fumeko spoke, a little surprise in her voice.

The countess sat upright and swivelled her head left and right; all the other guests got quiet to her announcement and stared in her direction. "Dear, what are you doing...?" the countess turned to Daiyu.

The archduke glanced back and forth and so did Luciean. Count Keya leaned in, "What is the meaning of this?" Arabella walked up behind the countess’s seat and held her chair.

"Oh, don’t worry. I simply have a suspicion, everything will be alright. There’s just some things we need to question Countess Keya about and we’ll let her out, that’s all.

The dungeons are just where the holding cells are, it seemed appropriate. But if the interrogation room would do, then, I leave it to our admiral’s judgement," Daiyu blinked several times.

Arabella pulled the chair back with a befuddled countess. "Al-alright, I hope there’s good reason for this," the countess glanced to all the guests and her breath grew a little heavier seeing them all stare.

She got up, allowing Arabella to swiftly grab her wrists and hold them behind her back. The countess looked to the cups of wine and then noticed Jotou’s smile had turned into a glare...

Something clicked in her head. The silence reigned across the dining room till the countess gulped. She wrenched her wrists out of Arabella’s grasp quickly as water droplets filled the air around her.

The water trickled all around her and flung across Arabella’s eyes, causing Arabella to flinch back. The countess raised her hand as gasps went around the room and she disappeared into watery mist, including the count.

As she did, dozens of illusions faded away on Royal Guards around the dining room, all in various positions—now widening their eyes as the invisibility faded around them.

Some of the waiters and waitress swivelled their heads, more in worry rather than confusion, as they themselves unsheathed small knives from their pockets.

Arabella staggered back, holding her eyes as the water seeped in. Opening her eyes, all she could see was glowing blue water—some form of a blindness spell having been cast on her.

The revealed guards, all not knowing what to do, raised their halberds; a scream came from one of the guests at the table before they charged forward from all directions.

"YOU FOOLS, FLEE!" the countess’s command reverberated throughout the room. With a moment to react, Jotou, Daiyu and Fumeko got up, whilst the others at least pushed their chairs back.

The Royal Guards and the staff who were ready to attack glanced at each other around the room and at the various entrances and exits.

They all booked it in a flurry, leaving the innocents of the staff stunned and the Royal Guards, who were seemingly not involved, spun around to glance at the blinded Arabella.

Some of the rogue guards and staff were able to run out the main door seeing that they were closer.

"You’re not getting awAY WITH THIS!" Jotou screamed as she ripped the threads on the inner waistband of her skirt, where her sword handle was haphazardly stitched into the fabric.

Jotou held her sword up and leapt onto the table, causing more gasps, louder chatter and screams to come from all the people seated.

The blonde’s eyes were locked onto the main doors as her boots thudded across the table in a sprint. "What she said!" Fumeko reached into her stockings and pulled out her dagger wrapped in a pillowcase.

Shadows went around her form as she blinked forward, a quarter of the table’s length, as far as she could blink before she had to cast it again.

"That’s it!" Daiyu lifted the hem of her dress and raised her leg high before stomping her heeled shoe onto the floor. "Rummm...bbBle! RRRR!!" The table shook, the ground began to tremor.

The chandeliers swayed, the dishes and cutlery all rattled and clinked. And the fleeing enemies stumbled and fell or stood still as they felt their bones quake.

Jotou made it to the end of the table and jumped before the quake could shake her, only feeling its aftermath as she landed at the doors with her hair flying forward.

She hurried out the door to see onto the second floor corridor; the windows were open while many guards and staff ran down the inner path.

It seemed like the countess’s warning cry had made it much farther than the dining room alone... Jotou huffed, holding her blade coalescing in lightning up before she rushed down the hall.

A shadow bounced from the wall beside her as Fumeko landed on her feet and blinked forward past Jotou—her purple dagger out.

Arabella stood steady and raised her hand in the air before she whistled loudly, garnering the attention of the Royal Guard who had not fled yet.

She spun her hand signals, and the Royal Guard all nodded and rushed to her command, guarding the exits they could; some still recovered from shaking.

Hotaru and Asobi got up, alongside the archduke whose hands lit up in a golden light and whipped a spell in Arabella’s direction.

The golden light lit up Arabella’s eyes as she shook her head, no longer blinded. Arabella immediately nodded her thanks and ran to the princess’s side as Daiyu recovered from breaking her shoe’s heel.

Feyan and Luciean got up. "Everyone stay seated, please do not panic!" Feyan shouted out.

"The countess is evil! Where did she go!?" Asobi glanced around.

Archduke Guuraj put a finger up, "One second," his eyes went blank gold, as he concentrated on a spell. He could see them, the count and countess whilst he stared down at the table.

Way behind Daiyu, closer to the exit into the kitchens, a golden spotlight exposed them and the count and countess widened their eyes and halted their running steps; the golden light followed above them.

"There!" the archduke turned from the table and pointed.

Arabella unsheathed her blade, glaring to the couple.