I Became the Villain’s Childhood Friend – Chapter 24

Author: lipzoldyck

“Brother is the one who will take Father’s place. Father probably doesn’t even think about Brother Rian.”

“…How can you guarantee that?”

Edin’s sharp voice made me pause for a moment. But I tried to smile and say.

“I’m not asking you to get along with Rian. I’m just asking you to avoid making each other’s face red.”

He sighed again.

However, when he saw me smile and grin as if nothing had happened, he had a hard time answering.

“Yeah, I understand how you feel.”

“Really?”

“Uh. Instead, if something happens, you have to take my side rather than Rian, yeah?”

“Got it, got it.”

I raised my hand and nodded to Edin’s words.

I was a person who thought it was better to have no enemies than to have one more of my own.

Only then did Edin smile after hearing what I said.

***

“Madam Collin said you don’t have to visit the mansion anymore.”

“Pardon?”

While I was cutting a steak, I accidentally dropped my fork after hearing Lotte’s words.

Then Edin, who was sitting next to me, naturally grabbed the fork.

“Then what about Reynold…?”

“You won’t be able to see each other as often as you do now.”

So suddenly?

Of course, even if I were told to come, I wouldn’t go anymore.

I was surprised by Madam Collin’s sudden change in attitude, but in fact, all the dresses she promised to send me last time were also surprising.

They weren’t red dresses that hurt the eyes, yet a variety of colors, such as bright yellow or blue.

Still, I was still anxious.

I asked carefully, glancing at Lotte’s eyes.

“Perhaaaps… Did I do something wrong?”

“No, it’s not like that.”

Lotte answered clearly.

But when things turn out like this, it’s like the Madam has been obsessed with me all this time because she wants to show me those shoes!

“Isn’t it better for Sister?”

Sylvester, who was listening to Lotte, whispered in my ear in a voice that only I could hear.

I nodded my head cautiously in response to Sylvester’s question.

Father listened to Lotte’s story, took a sip of water, and nodded.

“The relationship between you two was a useless meeting. You had an accident with that child at the last meeting at the Chestain’s, right?”

Rian, who had been listening to him in silence, visibly flinched.

Of course, when Lotte’s eyes turned to him, he stuck his nose in his plate and continued eating.

“I already received my punishment, so please stop.”

I looked at Father with pleading eyes, yet it had no real effect, perhaps because my face looked so scary.

He sighed deeply.

“Although we kept our mouths shut, rumors will be spreading knowingly or unknowingly.”

“I can’t help it.”

“Tsk, how are you going to get married if you’re acting like that?”

“If I can’t, I will live with Father.”

“Sister, let’s live together too!”

Sylvester, who had come out from the side and was watching Father, quickly attacked.

Oh my, my pretty baby!

I stroked Sylvester’s head with my hand and looked at Father with harmless eyes.

Then he cleared his throat and continued speaking.

“Just like Duke Collin, that guy Reynold has a strange side to him. If you get close to a guy like that, it’s just a pain in the ass.”

Lotte, who heard Father’s words, refuted.

“Why, how mature Reynold is for his age. “If Danae gets closer to Reynold, her personality will become more human.”

“What are you talking about? He was the one who had the accident with her.”

Father clicked his tongue and took a sip of water.

I smiled shyly, feeling like they were unintentionally gossiping about Reynold.

“But Reynold is a good kid.”

After hearing what I said, Father frowned and opened his mouth.

“That guy won’t do. He’ll only have trouble once you two gets married.”

I didn’t know why on earth the progress in Father’s head had gone that far. I frowned reflexively.

“I don’t want to marry that kid either.”

“How very smart of you.”

Father must have liked what I said and smiled, putting the meat in his mouth.

Dinner time went surprisingly smoothly.

The fact that the meat went down easily without getting stuck in my throat felt a bit surprising since it’s not a common occurrence.

If only there was peace like this from now on, I wouldn’t have any other wish.

***

Time passed by helplessly.

In the meantime, Serik never once responded to a letter I sent, possibly because his arm was broken.

Of course, I didn’t blame him for that.

“Isn’t there any letter received in Serik Detwin’s name?”

Still, I waited at first. I visited the head maid every morning at the same time the mail was delivered, yet the answer I got was the same.

“There’s none.”

Then a month or two passed…

“What about today?”

“…I don’t think there is one, Miss.”

Time passed again.

“There’s none today too, isn’t there.”

“Miss…”

“It’s fine. Serik seems to be very busy.”

I eventually stopped asking the head maid if she had received a letter.

So when Serik turned sixteen, on his birthday, to be exact, I stopped contacting him by sending him gifts instead of letters.

I passed the age of sixteen, the legal age by Imperial standards, and I safely turned seventeen.

Still, little has changed from before.

After Madam Collin’s order to ban me from entering the house, I and Reynold didn’t see each other as much as before.

Still, I saw him once or twice a month.

I had no friends, and Reynold had no friends but me.

It was for mutual sociality.

Even though I didn’t meet Reynold much, a lot happened with him until I turned seventeen.

These were events on a scale so large that they couldn’t even be compared to what happened when I was young.

The biggest thing among them happened on my coming-of-age ceremony and debutante day.

Ah, of course my partner that day was Reynold.

“I have to hold hands with you?”

Actually, I was originally planning to enter with Father, but Lotte got angry and said that was out of date, so my partner naturally became Reynold.

We had an accident that day too.

The scale of the accident was such that we escaped from the Imperial Palace, which was under strict security, that day.

To make an excuse that isn’t an excuse, that day happened to be the National Foundation Day, and for that reason, a grand festival was being held in the capital.

Everyone outside the palace flew lanterns with their wishes written on them into the sky, and Reynold and I also had our own wishes.

So it was like that.

Well… before that, I had a huge fight with Reynold.

There have been many times where we have argued and raised our voices, but there has never been a day when we hurt each other as much as that day.

Even while so many things were happening, there was no mention of the Academy.

Even from Reynold.

Even when I asked vaguely when he was going to take the test, I didn’t get a clear answer.

That’s why I thought the plot of the original story had changed.

Besides, I told Dad that I seriously wasn’t going to enter the Academy, so he said okay. The naive me believed what he said.

(somehow she changed from ‘Father’ to Dad’)

However, such Dad applied to the Academy without me knowing!

I screamed loudly, as this was going to be a big problem.

The test is today, at that. I almost fainted when I heard that sound.

All this time, no one, not even Reynold, had said anything about the Academy to me.

It was a completely coordinated game.

“I told you I don’t want to?!”

“Just take the test and come back! I won’t say anything if you fail!”

Perhaps it was because I was overly spirited, Dad raised his voice after me, which was rare. But I couldn’t leave here either.

My life depends on this!

Dad… Dad doesn’t know anything!

I screamed loudly, the veins in my neck standing up. This was possible thanks to me becoming much more comfortable with Dad during this time.

“Why would I take a test when I know I’ll fail! This is a waste of time! I can’t tolerate wasting time!”

Of course, it was a rare piece of bullshit that wouldn’t even work.

“I told you to come and let’s see it first!”

Dad scrunched up his face. Then he called Paul, who was waiting outside.

At Dad’s cried, Paul hurried inside, and he waved his hand toward me. At the same time, Paul put me on his shoulders.

I desperately struggled on his shoulder, but Paul, who was twice as tall as me, didn’t budge. I shouted, glaring at Paul’s back with resentful eyes.

“What are you doing now!”

“I’m sorry, Miss.”

After saying that, Paul walked out of the mansion with great strides and pushed me into the carriage parked neatly in front of the mansion.

Does this make sense?

I jumped up and started kicking the carriage door.

However, the door didn’t budge, as if it had been locked from the outside.

“Let’s go.”

At Paul’s words, the carriage began to move.

I looked out the window with shaking eyes, and Paul outside the window smiled at me as if to reassure me.

Are you smiling now? You’re definitely not making fun of people, so I’m sure you’ll feel safe!

I sat down on the chair and shook my head.

Of course, I knew full well that I, someone whose brain was rotten, had no chance of passing the Academy exam.

But that wasn’t as certain as not taking the test.

If I don’t go to the test site at all, I will be disqualified for sure.

When I looked out the window again, Dad must have been fully prepared, and there were a lot of knights riding horses at the same speed as the carriages.

…Really, what should I do.

Still, since I am a thinker, I thought hard and came up with an idea.

As soon as I could finish my thought, I hurriedly knocked on the carriage window. Then Paul heard the sound and turned his head towards me.

I stood close to the window and shouted.

“Restroom!”

Paul paused, wondering if he understood what I meant. But even for a moment, he looked like he couldn’t believe it.

“It’s urgent!”

When I shouted again, Paul’s face became serious.

He ordered the driver to stop the carriage, and the rattling carriage came to a halt. Paul hopped off his horse and opened the carriage door wide.

And I didn’t miss that moment and shouted in a voice that everyone in the world could hear.

“I want to go to the bathroom!”

Bathroom, bathroom, bathroom—