One Year with the Villainess
"Then I'll be heading back. Please take good care of my daughter."
"You needn't worry. I'll do everything in my power to ensure the young lady feels right at home."
"Haha, thank you."
After exchanging a few words with my father, the Northern Duke approached me. I was cursing up a storm inside, but my face wore a bright, innocent smile. No matter how formidable the Northern Duke might be, he would never imagine that a seven-year-old child could harbor such dark intentions.
The Duke knelt down to meet my eye level.
"Child, you'll get along well with my daughter, won't you?"
"Yes."
Even to a seven-year-old kid, the man was issuing threats. The thought that the great Northern Duke's business involved intimidating little children made me wonder if the North's future was rather bleak.
After finishing his conversation with me, the Duke exchanged a few words with the still-expressionless Marine before departing the territory.
Whew. One bomb had been defused.
I gazed at Marine with complicated eyes. A much larger bomb remained, after all.
Time flew by, and before we knew it, evening had arrived. The dining room was filled with the rich, savory aroma of butter. What should have been a warm, harmonious family meal was instead steeped in tension, all because of one outsider.
"Um... does the food not suit your taste, young lady...?"
Father finally spoke up, unable to bear watching Marine sit motionless, staring blankly at the meal before her.
"..."
Marine didn't respond, as if she were attempting some kind of day-long silence challenge. Father's gentle eyes gradually grew watery.
Clink.
Fortunately, she wasn't vicious enough to make a grown man cry. Marine belatedly picked up her utensils and began eating without a word. Father let out a sigh of relief.
After all, if word reached the Northern Duke that we'd starved his only daughter, our family would have vanished from history that very day. Well done, Father! Let's hold out just a little longer.
Before we knew it, a week had passed since Marine began living in our residence. The atmosphere in the house had been restless the entire time, and the cause was obviously Marine. Fortunately, she hadn't fully awakened as a villainess yet and wasn't tormenting the servants. She did, however, cause accidents. Quite a few of them.
The servants, who had grown accustomed to peace because of how maturely I had developed, were learning firsthand just how terrifying a child's thoughtless actions could be.
Amazingly, Marine had succeeded in a week-long vow of silence, but while her mouth remained quiet, her body was anything but.
Crash~
'Ah, she broke another one.'
In the past week, Marine had smashed four statues and three paintings. Mathematically speaking, that was one destruction per day. We'd moved the expensive artworks higher than a child's reach, but somehow she had still managed to destroy them. If she had been the young lady of an ordinary noble family, we might have demanded compensation, but the other party was from a ducal house. Trying to claim damages might result in a Sword Master's aura flying our way.
"M-Maid Chief!"
"First, get the young lady down from that sculpture!"
I was curious what exactly she had broken this time, but I was currently self-isolating in my room to minimize contact with Marine. The isolation would last until she returned to the North. In the worst case, if the Northern Duke never called her back, I was prepared to remain isolated until I reached the age to enter the Academy.
My body screamed with the restless energy typical of children, but I worked it off through exercise as much as possible. I earnestly prayed that the Northern Duke would summon Marine back as soon as possible.
Amazingly, a full year had now passed since Marine had settled into our home. I had spent the entire year hiding as if playing an endless game of hide-and-seek, while Marine was diligently growing into her role as the villainess.
"What the hell is this hair!!! Are you even a maid? Get ouuuut!"
Bang.
Since she was using the room right next to mine, I could tell exactly what she was up to even while holed up in my own. From the sound of it, our young lady—who seemed to have hit puberty early—didn't like the hairstyle the maid had given her. I knew the servants had already cleared out most breakable objects from her room because she threw things so often, but apparently there were still items left to hurl.
"How long do you think this one will last?"
I asked while munching on the snacks Cani had brought after fleeing into my room to escape Marine's wrath. She was the same cute maid who had been horrified when she saw me climbing the windowsill as a toddler. Cani, still sporting those dangerous watermelons, had gained some experience and was now slacking off by pushing Marine onto her juniors and taking refuge in my room.
Cani chewed on a chocolate cookie for a moment, thinking, then gave her answer.
"She'll rage for about two hours and twenty minutes before getting tired and falling asleep."
A strangely specific number. As Marine's exclusive maid who had lasted the longest, Cani's prediction was reliable. Most servants fled within a month, but Cani had endured for a full three months.
"..."
"Looks like it's over."
After expending energy for a full two and a half hours, Marine must have fallen asleep. The room had gone quiet. The margin of error from Cani's predicted time was a mere ten minutes.
"That's amazing. You got it almost exactly right!"
I genuinely admired her ability and offered praise.
"Hehe, this much is basic for me, Young Master."
Cani puffed out her ample chest with pride at the compliment. She treated me like an ordinary child with no defenses, which always put me in an awkward position.
Knock knock.
"Young Master, it's the Maid Chief."
"Eek!"
While I was chatting with Cani, the Maid Chief knocked on the door. From a third party's perspective, the battle between Cani—who dodged around like a crafty veteran soldier—and the Maid Chief trying to catch her was quite entertaining.
"Y-Young Master, pretend you didn't see me..."
"Don't worry."
"Thank you!"
Cani quickly dove into the closet. I chuckled at the sight and opened the door. The Maid Chief gave me a light bow.
"The head of the family is looking for you, Young Master."
"Huh? Me?"
I had assumed she had come to find the hiding Cani, but she delivered an unexpected message. Father usually only brought up matters during meals unless it was something urgent.
"Alright. Is Father in his office?"
"Yes, he is."
There was nothing to prepare for meeting Father, so I left the room without delay.
"Um, Young Master?"
The Maid Chief stopped me as I headed toward the office.
"Yes?"
"May I take a quick look around your room?"
The closet twitched.
"Go easy on her."
"Understood."
The Maid Chief's eyes gleamed. She didn't look like she planned to go easy at all. I'd done my part by telling her to be gentle. I offered a silent prayer for Cani's soul.
"Kyaaaack! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"
I might have been imagining it, but I thought I heard Cani's scream from the room. I desperately pretended not to notice.
Large-scale Monster Horde Confirmed in the North.
Northern Duke Issues Emergency Mobilization Order; Imperial Support Measures Under Discussion.
Reporting Currently Restricted for Civilians.
In the Edgar County Head's Office, Father—who usually wore a gentle smile—sat with a somber expression, absently turning the cube I had made.
"Son."
"Yes, Father."
"The atmosphere among the servants has grown quite dire. Three maids have already submitted their resignations."
"..."
Being a servant in a count's household was considered a dream job among commoners, thanks to the high salary and excellent living conditions. The fact that not a single servant had quit since I was born proved it. For people to start resigning from such a coveted position was a very serious problem.
"Honestly, I thought the North would take the young lady back after about a year."
"I thought so too."
"They were actually preparing to bring her back. Someone from the North visited just last week."
I hadn't known about the visitor since I'd been shut away in my room.
"But it seems the situation isn't looking good. Would you take a look at this newspaper?"
Father pulled a newspaper from his drawer and handed it to me.
After reading it, I was at a loss for words. Of course the large monster horde was frightening, but the most critical point was that the North had declared a state of emergency. Would the Northern Duke really summon his precious daughter back to such a dangerous place? If it were me, I definitely wouldn't.
"Sir Calis the Sword Master is protecting the North, so we needn't worry about the monster horde itself. However, it seems we cannot expect the young lady's return anytime soon."
"..."
"That said, if we continue to leave the young lady unchecked, our family will suffer."
"That's true..."
What exactly was he leading up to with all this groundwork? A bad feeling settled over me.
"Son, I know you're far more mature than others your age, but wouldn't someone of the same age understand the young lady's heart best?"
At this point, I couldn't possibly miss Father's intentions. I shook my head in horror.
"Father, I... I really can't. I haven't exchanged a single word with the young lady in an entire year."
Father said nothing as he took a notebook from his drawer and handed it to me. It was the very notebook I had given him when I begged him to develop modern items that didn't exist in this world. I'd assumed he would dismiss it as a child's whim and forget about it, but it seemed he had kept it with great care.
"After speaking with the mages, they said several of these ideas are feasible. Even that thing you wanted most—Cola?—they say it's possible."
Cola could be developed? I barely held back an instinctive cheer. How I had missed that sharp, fizzy sensation.
"If you take charge of managing the young lady, I'll support you in making these ideas a reality. How about it?"
I nodded, completely entranced. It was an offer I couldn't possibly refuse—not when my eyes had already been blinded by the promise of cola.