Sisters' Reunion and a Delusion's Shadow
Years of pent-up emotions poured out as Eve and Riel sisters sat together, finally giving voice to the stories they had kept hidden for so long.
My reaction, as I listened to every word, was simple: *Is this horror?*
I had seen it happen to too many people in this world—sudden, inexplicable betrayals by those who should have stood by them, without any real reason. Who else could this be if not horror?
...No, wait. I had lived through something almost identical just recently.
Liliana Edwin.
She had betrayed me too, without any solid cause, by falling for Alan Ludwig.
No. I had sworn to forget her. I would not think of her anymore.
So I pushed the thought away and refocused on the present.
The situation had grown unbearable. Even my closest allies had begun to turn on me, as if they had lost their minds.
Anyone might have cracked under such pressure. Me included.
It should have been impossible. A mere servant betraying her master? But it was happening right in front of me.
If this had been my old world, it would have been dealt with immediately. Yet this world was different—far too lenient.
This was the world of a harem story.
And in its harem members were not only maids but slaves as well.
What made it worse was that one of the original harem members had betrayed her tyrannical master to help Alan Ludwig.
If I had applied strict rules and executed any rebellious servant or slave on the spot, the heroine would have died before ever becoming one.
In the end, convenient plot convenience had produced tragedy for two sisters.
I had called Eve for a reason—Alan Ludwig’s attempt to frame me had ended in nothing.
There was no real reason at all.
“You are the eldest son of the Ventus Count, are you not?”
Power. The most powerful force in the world.
*Scribble, scribble.*
“Even if Alan says whatever he wants, in the end he is just the son of a knight—a commoner. Without evidence, he gains nothing.”
*Scribble, scribble.*
“Count Ventus’s influence is so great that even high nobles cannot ignore it, and the family has connections with the royal family. Honestly, it is strange that Alan is acting so strangely…”
Eve added with a small smile, “Though I always knew he was a little off.”
At the end of it all, the two of us—Riel, who had always feared Alan, and I, who had seen him as something more because he was the original protagonist—had teamed up to ease her worry.
*Scribble, scribble.*
Ugh, how embarrassing.
*Scribble, scribble.*
More than that, Ventus County…
This was the house I had been born and raised in. Yet was it really too grand to call the family of a villain who had exited the story in the early chapters?
In the original novel, the early villain exit had happened because of the late-entering characters, who had added layers of extra setting. But that was old business. No need to bring it up now.
“Once the princess heard the full story, she wanted to intervene,” Phyllis said.
The words sent a chill down my spine.
If Princess Aine stepped in, even small matters could drag on and on.
For Riel’s sake, I preferred quiet resolution, but this was not a welcome development.
…Personally, it felt a little awkward too.
*Scribble, scribble.*
And in the original story, Eve had appeared as an antagonist and Aine Guine Palajinia as her senior. I could have guessed the direction.
Among the original antagonists, Aine was one of the figures who stood against Alan Ludwig.
Precisely, it was Princess Aine and her twin sister, First Princess Lune Erna Palajinia, who had been the main foes.
Meeting the twin princesses who hated Alan as fiercely as they did in the original story would have been troublesome.
Of course, it would happen eventually. But not yet.
With Phyllis having worked so hard to keep Princess Aine away, I sent her a silent thank you.
*Scribble, scribble.*
Well, I had finally learned not to blindly trust the original story. But better to stay cautious than sorry.
Right in front of me, the original story’s plot was already unfolding completely differently.
*Heh heh.*
Riel laughed, a bright and cheerful sound.
Eve had Riel sitting on her lap, stroking her hair.
…There had been no “sister who hated her little sister” dynamic in the original.
Anyone who had muttered that about Eve deserved to have their mind examined.
“First, during today’s duel, young master’s victory is absolute. The former Saint’s attempt to approach him is forbidden.”
Phyllis began explaining the situation in a clipped, briefing-like tone, as if she were running a company meeting.
Something about it felt… familiar.
“As long as the young lady is with the young master, the former Saint cannot approach due to the promise. That part is settled… but the opponent is that rotten brat.”
I could not relax.
Unlike a simple frame job, this was not something power alone could fix.
Strange things were happening around Alan Ludwig.
Things went far too conveniently for him, and people around him rallied to his side.
The two sisters and Phyllis, who had actually experienced it, could not feel at ease.
Honestly, the first thing I had suspected was magic.
But that had been ruled out, naturally.
By the kingdom’s highest-talent mage herself.
“Magic is impossible. There was never even a faint magical presence.”
Eve Ignis had been a child prodigy in magic since she was small.
After suffering the terrible event in her childhood, how could she have doubted magic?
“If it were magic, it would have to be a charm-type spell that affects the mind. Such spells are strictly banned in this kingdom.”
Yes. If Alan Ludwig had shaken the ducal house with a charm magic, Eve would have already reported him.
“Even if it is not magic, something mysterious must be at work. I feel he is hiding it.”
Listening to Phyllis, I felt a chill.
If Alan Ludwig truly possessed such power and had realized it himself, the hell that would unfold would be far worse.
“Moreover, it seems to vary by individual. Not every student is welcoming to him.”
Oh? I had never noticed that.
I had only ever seen Alan wedging himself between girls with a creepy grin.
Eve narrowed her eyes at Phyllis.
“Specifically, which individuals were unhappy with him?”
“Chief among them were the Bruin Marquess’s daughter and the Raime Count’s daughter. They disliked him.”
I only vaguely remembered they had been in the same class, but I knew their faces.
“And the Grace Duke’s daughter—she outright hated him.”
“…All high nobles. Is there some connection?”
“I am not sure.”
The name I recognized at once.
Grace Duke’s daughter.
Seira Grace, the only daughter of Duke Grace and the kingdom’s most powerful artistic family.
As a high noble, I knew her, but her original-novel role as villain also mattered.
Of course, I could not trust the original story anymore, so my evaluation of her could wait.
“Since I know nothing about the power he possesses, it is dangerous to act rashly. We will simply watch and wait for now.”
Eve’s tone was not entirely calm, but that was the only conclusion.
Having confirmed Riel’s feelings, I wanted nothing more than to punch Alan Ludwig right then.
But if I could have done so without reason, I would have killed him as a child.
Killing someone without justification was nothing but a crime.
But reasons were lacking.
Eve gazed at Riel, still sitting on her lap.
A cute child who still carried traces of her childhood. Yet I also felt a strange new brightness in her.
It was thanks to the girl in front of me.
It was time to return to my troop. Eve rose from her seat.
After hugging Riel tightly—much to her reluctant protest—she turned to Phyllis and offered her thanks again.
Then she looked at me.
“This matter is truly appreciated.”
She extended her hand for a handshake.
I took it. Eve smiled and said,
“Riel seems to follow you closely. I will ask you to take good care of her so she does not cry.”
The chill that ran down my spine when I met her smile directly—was it just imagination?
After the farewell, Eve stood to leave.
But then she paused and looked back at Riel.
“By the way, Riel. That personal maid of yours—what was her name again?”
“You mean Ilia?”
“Yes, that’s the one.”
The maid who had taken Phyllis’s place behind Riel.
Ilia Anies.
That was the name.
“Send that girl on some errand for me. Anything at all.”
Eve’s smile as she said it was beautiful—and slightly eerie.