I Became the Villain’s Childhood Friend Chapter 16

 

And Reynold, who I thought would be shocked by my words, nodded.

 

…This is allowed.

 

I put the heels’ toe tip I had just taken off on the rim of the glass bottle and pressed it down.

 

I thought it wouldn’t fit because the rim of the glass bottle wasn’t that big, but surprisingly, it went in easily when I pressed down hard.

 

Just when I wanted to crumple it as much as possible, I relaxed and admired the pitiful shape of the glass bottle. It was a sight I couldn’t help but laugh at.

 

Reynold and I burst into laughter like that.

 

He opened his mouth, wiping the tears from his eyes from laughing.

 

“Just in case, should I cast a storage spell?”

 

“You know how to do it?”

 

Reynold nodded his head slightly. I was slightly impressed by his answer.

 

He obviously didn’t have much time to learn magic, so I was just wondering when he learned something like this.

 

Reynold seemed embarrassed by my gaze, so he scratched his cheek and said,

 

“But the effect is not certain. The magic may wear off before we even check the vial.”

 

“But wouldn’t it be better than nothing?”

 

“That’s not true.”

 

Reynold lightly wrapped the funny opening of the glass bottle with paper. Then, he started drawing a magic circle with a pen on the paper.

 

The elegantly drawn curves of the magic circle were enough to give a mysterious feeling just by looking at them.

 

“Reynold.”

 

“Hm?”

 

“The starter spell is my name.”

 

After I said that, he laughed. At the same time, the magic circle on the paper began to glow black and surrounded the rim of the glass bottle.

 

The black light disappeared in an instant.

 

Reynold’s mana is black like his eyes and hair. But even though his mana was black, it didn’t feel that dark.

 

I asked a little hesitantly.

 

“…Is it done?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

Now I see that the glass bottle, which was cracked just a moment ago, is as clean as new.

 

“Now let’s go and bury it.”

 

“Okay.”

 

I got up from the rock with Reynold’s support.

 

Although we didn’t discuss with each other where to bury the glass bottle, we naturally went under a big tree and started digging.

 

But even as I was digging, I felt strangely anxious.

 

“If it rains a lot, won’t the lake water overflow here?”

 

I would have to mention this at least, just in case if Reynold were to threaten me.

 

After hearing what I said, Reynold lightly shrugged his shoulders.

 

“Maybe so.”

 

“…Then should we just bury it somewhere else safely?”

 

“No. But it’s easy to recognize here.”

 

That was true. Because this tree was the tallest tree here.

 

“And it’s okay if it gets swept away by the water.”

 

“It’s okay?”

 

“Yes, we remember it anyway. We can just tell each other when it’s gone.”

 

Saying that, Reynold smiled brightly.

 

Looking at Reynold’s bright smile, I felt like I was worrying about nothing. He was right. Because we won’t forget this moment.

 

I calmed down and answered calmly.

 

“Alright.”

 

Reynold and I worked hard to dig the ground and put the glass bottle in it. Then, the top of the glass bottle was covered again with dirt.

 

Finally, we patted the ground flat so that no one but us could find it.

 

“Let’s come check it out together later.”

 

I nodded slightly at Reynold’s words.

 

“…You can’t come and check on it by yourself secretly.”

 

“Of course. I’ll come with you.”

 

Reynold seemed to have felt a little relieved only then, and slowly raised the corner of his lips.

 

Then he held out his little finger to me.

 

“Promise me.”

 

It seemed like it had become a habit to hang even his fingers.

 

I smiled slightly and linked his little finger.

 

“Yeah.”

 

Honestly, coming back here with Reynold was something I had hoped for more of.

 

Reynold then took out a handkerchief from his pocket and held it out to me. It meant to wipe my dirty hands.

 

As I was wiping my hands, Reynold glanced at my shoeless foot and asked me.

 

“How are you going to walk?”

 

“Of course you should carry me.”

 

Reynold looked as if he was very surprised by my confident answer. But I was confident.

 

“You had to carry me anyway, even if I was wearing heels.”

 

“…Me?”

 

“Look at this.”

 

When I showed him the blood stains that had soaked into my white socks, he pursed his lips as if he had nothing to say. Reynold soon got down on one knee, took off one of my heels, and handed it to me.

 

As I took the heels, Reynold sat down with his back to me.

 

He was telling me to get on his back.

 

….It’s pointless to say that he’s going to give me a piggyback ride anyway.

 

I held the heels tightly in my hands and Reynold quickly carried me on his back. He groaned for a moment then got up from his seat.

 

The wind started blowing towards us again.

 

Reynold smelled like a mixture of grass and water.

 

This was because he had been wandering around the lakeside trying to find the glass bottle earlier.

 

Thanks to this, the smell of the perfume he had sprayed to attend today’s meeting had completely disappeared.

 

Well, I wouldn’t be any different.

 

I rested my chin on Reynold’s shoulder and opened my mouth out of a sudden curiosity.

 

“But, I’m talking about… you.”

 

“Speak. I’m listening.”

 

“Why did you want to be friends with me? When we first met, to be honest… you and I didn’t really get along that well.”

 

There was no answer.

 

I thought he was thinking about it, so I kept my mouth shut.

 

The response was a little slow.

 

“I haven’t really thought about it.”

 

“Then think quickly and answer.”

 

“That’s not it, I never thought I didn’t get along with you.”

 

“What?”

 

I was a little surprised by the unexpected answer and lifted my chin from his shoulder.

 

“Hey, you’ll fall!”

 

My sudden movement caused Reynold to stumble on his leg.

 

“Ah, sorry.”

 

I put my arms around Reynold’s neck. Then, I could clearly feel Reynold stiffening.

 

“Even though you and I fight often?”

 

“That’s true. But I’ve been with you since I was very young… Ah, even before I met you, when Mother said I had to become friends with you, I felt repulsed.”

 

“…Well, I think I was like that too.”

 

There was a moment of silence. Reynold remained silent and then opened his mouth.

 

“…At first, I thought you were weirder than me.”

 

“What? Who? Me?”

 

“Then who am I talking about.”

 

Reynold muttered as if I was pathetic for reacting so violently.

 

No, well… I also thought Reynold was peculiar in the past, so I had nothing to say. Of course, that thought still remains the same.

 

“So what’s the conclusion? Are you saying you wanted to get to know me because you thought I was weirder than you?”

 

“Is that the conclusion?”

 

“…”

 

Reynold let out a small laugh, as if he thought I was funny for not answering.

 

It seems like he has no intention of giving a proper answer.

 

I sighed softly and asked him.

 

“Aren’t you having a hard time?”

 

“I am.”

 

I giggled softly at his words and buried my face in Reynold’s shoulder. Only then did I begin to smell Reynold’s scent scattered here and there from the tip of my nose.

 

Afterwards, when I looked up again, the villa was visible in the distance.

 

Before I knew it, this refreshing breeze had completely cooled down.

 

***

 

“There’s no one, right?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

If they found out that we had gone outside the villa, we would definitely get scolded, so we planned to go in as secretly and naturally as possible.

 

I grabbed Reynold’s arm, which was stuck in the hole, and pulled with all my might.

 

Reynold, who got out of the hole safely, brushed off the dust from his body and then my dress.

 

Then, he suddenly started taking off the shoes he was wearing.

 

What. Did this person enjoy nature for a while and become a natural person?

 

“…What are you doing?”

 

When I couldn’t hide my bewilderment and asked Reynold, he answered calmly as if it was completely natural.

 

“Put them on.”

 

Then he squatted down and tried to put the shoes on for me.

 

He’s never been this kind, though.

 

Although loose shoes were uncomfortable, I didn’t want to take off the shoes he had given me.

 

It just felt awkward for Reynold to be so friendly.

 

I was about to calmly ask if he had picked up anything strange out there, when I heard a rustling sound and saw a force coming towards us through the grass.

 

Only then did I realize why Reynold had been so uncharacteristically kind.

 

Reynold got up after putting my shoes on.

 

The expression on Serik’s face when he saw us was strange.

 

“Your clothes…”

 

“…”

 

“When you ran away earlier… you secretly went out…?”

 

Serik, who had been muttering shakily, stopped. But he soon became accustomed to speaking.

 

“Danae, Mother would like to greet you.”

 

“Really?”

 

I glanced at Reynold and asked him:

 

“Reynold, come with me too.”

 

“No, I have things to do.”

 

Reynold’s calm face looked a little uneasy. If it was the usual, he would have followed me to death, though.

 

Although I didn’t like how he looked, I walked along with the group.

 

Meetings with Viscountess Detwin always repeated the same repertoire.

 

This is a request to get along well with tSerik, just like now.

 

I smiled at Madam Detwin’s request and answered that of course I would, and it was only after the Viscountess heard my answer that her anxiety seemed to subside a little that she let me go.

 

It was a really boring conversation.

 

Serik, who was walking side by side with me, asked.

 

“Reynold didn’t bother you?”

 

“Ah, that’s right. Reynold promised not to bother me again.”

 

“…Do you believe that?”

 

“We’ll have to wait and see. Still, this is the first time Reynold has made a promise, so I’m going to trust him.”

 

Seric’s face became strangely shaken after hearing my words.

 

… Have I been whining too much all this time?

 

Well, I think Serik gave me some advice for whining to him, but I thought it would be a bit absurd for him to suddenly say something like this.

 

“I’m sorry for bothering you for no reason.”

 

When I quickly apologized to Serik for his strange expression, he quickly shook his head.

 

A moment of silence passed between us. And other people’s voices began to fill the space.

 

“For the eternal glory of the House of Chestain!”

 

People were smiling happily while opening champagne in front of the fountain in the middle of the garden. Madam Collin spotted me and waved her hand, gesturing me to come here.

 

Then Serik naturally walked along as well.

 

As I approached Madam Collin, I saw Reynold standing not far from where I was, not knowing when he had arrived.