Mastermind: Genderbent Villainess

The ballroom was filled to the brim with nobility from a variety of nations. Among them were people of young and old. 

The lights were as bright as day and the marble gleamed beautifully as the reflections from the indoor fountains bounced in all directions.

So much though had been put into making this party absolutely perfect. One could not help but gasp at the splendour. Even Tanya felt taken aback as she saw the scene.

It was clearly Serena's first public power play. In showing off all of this wealth and architecture, she had displayed her ability to use monetary funds to produce grand occasions. This had in fact hurt some of the visitors' pride. They could not dream of matching Serena's skills and resources in party planning, not in this lifetime.

"Serena, you really used every single card in your deck. I am rather impressed at how well the venue has turned out~" Tanya could not help but give a genuine compliment. She would be lying if she said that this party was average.

"Thank you, Tanya. Your words give me confidence in what I am going to do tonight." Serena replied with a warm smile. She had been planning this for months, of course it would turn out magnificently. She would not dare invite foreign nobility if she could not host a proper party.

Hosting a bad party would be as bad as accidentally stepping on a landmine. Firstly, one would be humiliated. Secondly, one would suffer the wrath of the attendees that had felt that they wasted their time attending the party in the first place. Of course, Serena knew this. Therefore, she had decided that she would definitely pull all stops to create an ideal atmosphere. This included accommodation and excellent entertainment.

"This place is amazing… I can't believe you built this right next to the academy!" Diana's eyes were fixed on the complex marble etchings and statues that filled the room.

"Meh, this much was easily approved. I just asked my parents to send the royal army builders to this place and build a party venue to remember."

What one must understand is that the venue was situated right next to the academy. Any closer and it would have become a part of the academy. Serena had really taken into account that she needed to accomodate Tanya, so she put the venue close to their primary abodes.

"I cannot believe that it only took us a few minutes to walk over to this heaven…" Erina gawked.

The sound of loud chatter and inaudible laughing could be heard from all directions. The music was playing over the top of the guests' voices but it could only be heard by those that were near. 

"Greetings, your highness." A group of young nobles approached Tanya's group and immediately gave a shallow bow to Serena. They quickly reset to standing positions afterwards, revealing lecherous smiles as they eyed Serena and the rest of the group.

"My my… we did not know that this kingdom would have so many beautiful ladies… we should toast to this great fortune!" The leader of the young men shouted enthusiastically, holding a cup of wine.

Serena gave an irritated look at the young men, clearly not interested one bit. Although she wanted to build relationships, she did not desire those built on unwanted skinship.

"..." The Leader glared with hostility. He felt quite annoyed that his request was left unanswered and the girls had not joined in the toast. He would accept having such beautiful women run away from him on a night like this. 

"Come on now… it's just a few drinks~" a tray of wine glasses were brought forth on the order of the leader. In speeds that not many young people could see, the man waved one hand over the glasses, seeming to sprinkle an unknown substance into the contents of each glass.

'Scum.' Tanya immediately noticed what the leader of the young men had done. This practice is commonly known as 'spiking'. Tanya could not help but feel disgusted at the leader, nearly spitting at his feet. As a gentleman in her past life, she valued respect and the art of proper courtship. Drugging women is simply despicable in her eyes.

"Tanya, what is wrong?" Serena asked, noticing Tanya scowling behind her.

"Oh? Are you unhappy about something that happened during the day? This is the perfect time to drink, beautiful~"

"My my… I am afraid I do not want to drink your wine." Tanya calmly responded with a fake business smile plastered onto her beautiful face.

"Come on… We won't bite." The young men all snickered under their breaths. It would seem that they all knew what was going on. 

The leader had already gotten his eyes on Tanya at his point, noticing that she seemed perfect. He was fairly confident that he could take her to his bed this very night, believing in the effects of the drugs he had spiked into the drinks.

Even if the man seemed to act warmly and give of the airs of a gentleman, he was far from it. The leader only looked at Tanya for her looks, he did not care about her personality. He could give each of his friends a girl each tonight, that would be more than enough to earn their gratitude. Along with Tanya in his bed, he believed that tonight would be the greatest he would ever have.

However, nearly 100 sets of eyes were watching from all corners of the room. Each and every pair had killing intent hiding within them. 

It seemed as though they would strike at any moment, perhaps now.

"Please refrain from that." Tanya smiled.

The boy's smile twitched, unable to take Tanya's refusal. His friends were also feeling rather irritated that none of the girls seemed willing to drink either. They clenched their fists in unison as if they were ready to attack.

"Halt!" An identical group of young men suddenly approached.

*Gasp*

The crowds suddenly noticed that two identical groups of young men were now facing each other down. It was like a scene out of a novel.

"Wha-what! You look like us!" The leader of the previous group shouted in shock.

"We are us. And you are imposters!" The man from the newcomer group that looked like the leader immediately responded, pointing his index finger at the unruly men.

"Lies!" The despicable young men cried in unison, pumping their fists into the air.

"We have proof on this matter." 

The crow was silent, as if watching a play in the theatre. None of them dared to make a single sound or move a single step. All of them were firmly engaged in the scene taking place before them.

"This is the proof."

DOOF

A bag was thrown onto the ground, immediately expelling its contents as soon as it landed on the hard floor.

*Gasp*

"Those are masks!" A man in the crowd shouted.

"We also have a witness." Immediately, a bruised and battered young man was brought to the centre of the action with his entire body seeming to be writhing in pain.

"Tell everyone what you told us!" The newcomer leader ordered.

"Eeek!" The man scrambled to his knees and began speaking, "These men hired me to craft masks for them to pose as young nobles! They paid me 100 gold coins each! I have these as proof!"

It was fairly predictable what happened next.

'The guards' soon arrived and took the men away while they kicked and screamed for their innocence. However, no one dared to stand up for them. Their parents had been fooled by the imposters and their children were now being sent away.

The homunculi had practiced the art of acting to amazing degrees. Combined with their information gathering skills, they had easily replaced just two random foreign nobles. This much was easy for them.

They smiled for the crowd and offered their apologies afterwards, sending the mood back to normal. Tanya of course gave a hidden grin as she saw the tray of wine now gone. It had been disposed of by her loyal homunculi.

"It seems like they will be reporting to the dungeons soon enough." Serena sighed out of relief.

'No, they won't make it to the dungeons. They won't even make it 6ft under. There will not even be any bodies left for burial.' Tanya's heart was not soft. If anyone wanted to play dirty, they would not be able to survive for long.

CHOP

Far off in the forest, a few corpses were piled up unceremoniously, only to be burned into ashes. They would get their just dessert.