BJ Villainess Chapter 168

“Do other people know about wings too?”

 

“Only Professor Ilya, myself, Miranda, Donovan, and the family doctor know, apart from the direct descendants of the Squire lineage.”

 

It meant that this matter wasn’t ordinary, known only to the closest confidants and Eloise, who attends to me.

 

“Let’s get cleaned up first.”

 

I washed myself in a pre-prepared bath, magically dried my hair, and put on a simple indoor dress. Not in the mood for adornments, I declined the accessories Eloise held in her hands.

 

Upon stepping outside, I immediately made eye contact with Raul. “Father? How long have you been here?’

 

Raul responded bluntly. “I just got here.”

 

Then Eloise hurriedly whispered to me. “Master has been waiting in the parlor since before Lady woke up.”

 

“What are you whispering about there?”

 

Raoul pointed out in a curt voice and gestured to the doctor to check on me. I naturally went to the sofa and got examined. The doctor asked some questions, looked around, and told the diagnosis.

 

“You’re perfectly healthy. You can start activities right away, but don’t overdo yourself.”

 

Raul immediately showed his displeasure. “Don’t talk like a quack, and take a closer look. She had collapsed earlier, so how can she be fine now?”

 

“The young lady seems even more energetic than young master Giuseppe.”

 

Indeed, as the doctor said, I felt completely fine. Free from the confining situation of relying only on Ilya in the dream, I felt so energized.

 

“Father, I’m fine. Resting at home seems to have helped me recover quickly.”

 

Only then did Raul’s expression soften. “Hmm. I didn’t mean to doubt your skills.”

 

“I know. It’s not the first time you’ve done this.”

 

“Always have to have the last word, don’t you?”

 

I felt it before, but the doctor really had a lot of guts.

 

When the doctor left, Libby came into the parlor as if she had been waiting.

 

“Good morning.”

 

Raul laughed in vain. “I was about to call you, and here you come like a ghost.”

 

“Hehe.” Libby looked at me and giggled. Seeing her face made me smile too.

 

“But what about your school?”

 

“I skipped today. It didn’t seem right to go to school nonchalantly under these circumstances,” she said, pointing to the white butterfly on her shoulder.

 

“Ah, I see,” I made room for Libby to sit as she approached.

 

Watching us giggle, Raul commented, “I don’t know what you two find so amusing.”

 

Then he asked with a serious look as he looked at us sitting side by side. “I hear Libby has a white butterfly following her? It has healing powers and even brought you out of the demon’s dream?”

 

White butterfly with healing power? It’s Libby’s main feature after her awakening as a white wizard. The coincidence was too perfect.

 

Raul and Libby looked at me as if demanding an explanation about the black butterfly.

 

“At first, the black butterfly looked like this white one. It appeared in critical situations, and then suddenly, these wings appeared in my shadow in the demon’s dream.”

 

“In the demon’s dream? What happened there?”

 

I hesitated, unable to talk about the heavenly world. How did Ilya report it?

 

Ding!

[The Constellation ‘Explanation Bug’ has sponsored 1,000,000 coins.]

[Ilya explained without mentioning the heavenly world, saying it was a strange world. He said he didn’t know why they could leave the demon’s dream.]

 

“…I don’t know how much Professor Ilya revealed, but I was working as his subordinate employee in the demon’s dream.”

 

“…Employee?”

 

“Yes. Then, um, I wasn’t in a good state, so he took care of me a lot.”

 

I only explained that much, but Raul pressed his forehead.

 

“What has that son of a motherf***** done?”

 

“N-nothing happened!”

 

“Sure it didn’t.”

 

Raul was more troubled with Ilya than the sudden appearance of Squire Butterfly.

 

“Just thinking about what that madman did yesterday in front of many people makes my teeth grind.”

 

Libby explained embarrassingly on behalf of Raul, who was huffing with anger. “Actually, it’s obvious to anyone that Professor Ilya likes Older Sister.”

 

“I see…” I tore off my hair and added it carefully. “Actually, I did receive a proposal.”

 

As soon as he said this, Raul sighed. It was not surprising.

 

Thud! “I hate that man!” Suddenly, Giuseppe burst into the room, apparently eavesdropping on our conversation.

 

“I won’t let you go if you get married to him! Got it?”

 

Behind Giuseppe, Roseanne was laughing awkwardly. Raul looked at the two of them with astonishment.

 

“Why didn’t you just come in?”

 

“…It’s embarrassing.”

 

Eventually, the whole family huddled together in my parlor.

 

Roseanne fanned her red face with a feeling of awkwardness, soon settled down, and opened her mouth. “I don’t think Professor Ilya is a bad match. He’s good in terms of conditions and appearance. Don’t you agree?”

 

Raul, unable to argue, kept silent. Roseanne smiled knowingly and continued. “Marriage out of love in a grand noble family is ridiculous. We are responsible not only for the Squire family but also for hundreds and thousands of people connected to our family.”

 

 

Therefore, nobles should strategically form alliances through marriage in consideration of future safety and prospects. That was the duty of the nobility. Raul and Roseanne could marry out of love only because it was a remarriage.

 

“Moreover, you carry a heavy weight because you are the eldest daughter. Your influence among the vassals is growing day by day.”

 

Everything Rosanne said put me under pressure. Although it may be a selfish idea, I wanted to help the Squire family but not take responsibility for it. There was no way that duty and responsibility could touch me, who was thinking of running away to paradise.

 

But it didn’t seem to be the purpose of Roseanne bringing this up to pressure me. She smiled calmly as she held Raul’s hand by her side.

 

“But we are still young and healthy. You won’t need to worry about inheriting the family for a long time.”

 

The family is passed on after the head’s death. But Raul and Roseanne seemed likely to live long. If I stayed here, I planned to ensure that.

 

“So, it’s okay to choose whoever you want.”

 

I looked at them in surprise.

 

“If you have Professor Ilya in your heart, we will proceed with the marriage talks quickly, but if not, we will wait.”

 

Raul was looking at me calmly, perhaps because it was a topic that the two had already talked about. Well, the two respected whatever Libby had chosen. Perhaps that’s why they supported my choice like that too.

 

I answered honestly. “I don’t plan to marry anyone yet. I don’t have someone I like. I just want to focus on graduating from school.”

 

Giuseppe, who was sitting next to me, smiled as if he liked my answer.

 

“Right. Students should study, not marry.”

 

Although Raul intended to respect my choice, he also welcomed the decision to focus on studies because he wasn’t thrilled with the idea of marriage.

 

That’s how the marriage story ended. The remaining problem was the Squire Butterfly.

 

“Is this butterfly related to our family’s arcane magic?”

 

Raul answered my question with a troubled face. “I’m thinking the same thing. Some of the records left by our ancestors had the phrase ‘summoning butterflies’.”

 

Did that mean the butterfly was like a familiar?

 

“Old Squire members were known as dark magicians, and one of their traits is summoning. Maybe the butterfly has been in a contract with our family for generations.”

 

But the specific powers of the butterflies were unknown, as the Willow family had burned all the arcane magic books 100 years ago.

 

I suddenly looked at the shadow ahead and said awkwardly. “I can’t hide this shadow. What should I do?’

 

Raul immediately answered if he had thought about it all night. “I intend to announce that the Squire family has reclaimed the butterfly. But Theresa, what exactly can your butterfly do?”

 

“I’m sure it has the power to teleport. In the demon’s dream, I wished to go to where Professor Ilya was, and it moved me to the exact spot.”

 

“Was it impossible to bring you back from the dream to reality?”

 

“Yes.”

 

But that wasn’t something suspicious either.

 

It’s possible, but I feel like it didn’t let me go on purpose.  There was a time when butterflies moved me to a safe place in the dimension of Ozworld in the past, not in <God’s Play>.

 

Raul looked at my shadow and said, “So, the butterfly can take you almost anywhere you wish? If it can bypass the imperial palace, that would be troublesome.”

 

Teleportation was blocked in the imperial palace. However, if the butterfly can bypass that, it might raise the emperor’s suspicions. That was where Raul was concerned.

 

Especially the Sun Palace, which blocks most magic. Can the butterfly bypass that? It was when I thought like that.

 

“…Huh?”

 

Suddenly, the floor seemed to rise. No, I was falling. It was the same sensation as when I searched for Ilya in hell.

 

Could it be?

 

As Raul’s bewildered face was the last thing I saw, my surroundings shifted. From the sunny parlor to a space filled with cigar and whiskey smells.

 

This is crazy…

 

The moment I was about to ask the butterfly to return home, a large shadow loomed over me. I swallowed my dry saliva and lifted my trembling eyes up. I had to tilt my head painfully backward from my crouched position to see the face above. The emperor, wearing a loosely fastened robe revealing his chest, looked down at me.

 

Clink. Breaking the heavy silence, the sound of ice melting and moving from the glass he held in his hand could be heard.

 

Emperor Euges, appearing drunk, smiled. “Thought it was an intruder, but it’s the young lady?”

 

He pointed a sword nonchalantly to my throat with his free hand.