"Guests?" Dmitri glances at Arthur with hostile eyes before shifting his focus back to Josephine. "Nonsense! Witnesses saw them entering here as customers!"
"What people think is none of my concern," she responds in a calm tone. "They are old friends of my family, and I invited them to spend a while at my home. They arrived this morning and came straight here to meet me."
Dmitri and Anastasia look towards the store's receptionist, and the girl quickly nods, making Josephine smile.
"Be that as it may, this only makes what you've done worse!" Dmitri exclaims rudely. "This is a personal affront to my family, and you must answer for it!"
Josephine picks up the glass recording device and shows the image to Dmitri. "Look, it was your daughter who started the offense."
"This..." Dmitri sees the image of Anastasia trying to hit Margaret but ending up on the ground herself. The girl looks concerned, but he doesn't even glance at her. "This proves nothing, Josephine; for all I know, my daughter came here to buy a dress, and you mistreated her until things reached this point."
"Come on, Dmitri..." Josephine feigns disappointment. "Do you really want to make this a big deal?"
His eyes gleam maliciously. "You made it this way; now I have every right to demand a public retraction!"
She pretends to be concerned. "Alright, alright... how about I give another dress of similar quality for free to your daughter?"
This suggestion displeases Anastasia and especially Dmitri, who glances at Arthur again. "This is not enough. They attacked my daughter and her bodyguard, so I demand a formal duel."
"A duel?" Josephine shakes her head. "Who's going to fight? I bet it's not your daughter against Margaret, right? Don't tell me you're going to duel a fifteen-year-old boy?"
"Fifteen years old?!" Dmitri looks at Arthur in shock, especially because of his aura of Astral Energy. "No way..."
Oliver steps forward. "Yeah, he's such a young genius, isn't he? I'll use an age stone in front of everyone, letting the whole town know that the great Lord Isambard likes to bully a fifteen-year-old kid..."
Josephine winks at her son; her lips curved in a provoking smile. "Imagine how that's going to boost your reputation..."
'DAMN!!' As Dmitri feels his blood boils inside his veins, one of the young men behind him steps up to Oliver with an aggressive expression. "Why don't we settle this between us?"
"Aren't you tired tired of losing to me, Elias?" Oliver taunts, making Elias clench his teeth just like his father
But the young man tries to look cool. "Are you scared to face me because you know you got lucky last time?"
Oliver maintains a confident expression. "We can find out right now."
"Let's-" Elias tries to move closer to Oliver, but Dmitri pulls him back by the shoulders. "Your rivalry isn't at stake here, but a serious offense against our whole family."
"I hope so..." Oliver doesn't seem as confident, but his eyes sparkle with excitement.
Josephine approaches Arthur, who remains seated on the sofa with Eve and Margaret. "Thank you for trusting me,"
"I have nothing to lose," he says in a casual tone. "But you, on the other hand... are you really wagering your legacy on this? What happens if I walk out that door and never come back?"
"Then Oliver would be in trouble," she laughs. "I don't know how much longer I'll live, and honestly, I want to make sure my son can handle this kind of situation when I'm no longer here. Also... Dmitri has been trying to steal my shop for decades. I saw an opportunity to ensure he never gets that chance again, and I took it."
"Oh..." Arthur begins to understand Josephine better. "So, you're using me? Perhaps you foresaw such an outcome from the start?"
"Hehehe..." She giggles. "How could I do that? I didn't force you to come to my shop, nor did I push Margaret to like that dress, or even Anastasia to attack her... things simply happened, and even though I benefit from it, I'm genuinely trying to help you here."
"It's a peculiar kind of help..." He comments, but his expression is amused and curious.
"Isn't it?" She also smiles, seeing his interest. "I know it seems bad to have you face a dozen Elite Warriors, but they won't be able to use any advantage against you. You can beat up on spoiled Young Masters as much as you like with my son's help.
And in the end, Dmitri won't be able to cause you any more trouble without completely losing what's left of his family's reputation... You're welcome, dear."
Arthur still knows much of nothing about the nobles of Lakeview, but he can see that Josephine is extremely cunning and manipulative. He saw malice in her eyes the whole time she interacted with Dmitri, but none of that sentiment remains when she interacts with him.
"You've convinced me, I'll keep playing your game,"
Josephine claps her hands, but Oliver shakes his head. "You two are alike, crazy! But I'll have to deal with the consequences... We only have until tonight to prepare, so how about we get to know each other better, Arthur? I need to understand your skills to plan our strategy."
"Sounds right," He stands up. "But first, I need to talk to my mother. Can we meet here in two hours?"
"Yeah, sure," Oliver nods. "I'll look for my useless cousins; we'll need them tonight so we can at least breathe between the duels."
Arthur nods as well and then approaches Josephine while reaching for the coin bag on his belt, but she shakes her head. "No need to pay for the clothes and materials, after all, you are now my guests of honor."
Margaret smiles, and Arthur also finds making new friends not a bad thing. "Considering the situation you've put me in, that seems fair..." He picks up the bags full of clothes and materials and leaves the shop. "I'll be back in two hours."
"I'll be waiting for you," Josephine waves, and as the trio leaves through the door, she turns to Oliver. "I think I've found you a good friend; why aren't you happier?"
"He seems like a cool guy indeed..." Oliver stares at the door. "But who dives headfirst into one of your crazy plans like that? He's probably as insane as you are, or he has someone even more insane behind him..."
"Maybe both?"