The graduation party that had been interrupted safely recommenced.
While Tia and I were talking,
they kept things moving along. So it's all thanks to them.
However...
An Observation Log of My Fiancée Who Calls Herself a Villainess
Chapter 11
An Observation Log of a Self-Proclaimed Villainess and the Royal Family.
The Next Day
Problems still remained.
Regarding the treatment of Heronia, a baron's daughter...
I believed in you!
Your Highness would never fall into that villainess's evil clutches.
I knew that you would realize that I was right!
Do not come near me.
What?
I've merely come to deliver a message and chat for a bit.
For now, why don't you sit over there?
I understand.
Your Highness wishes to know about the sacred light, right?
That was my—
That was caused by an out of control light spirit.
What?
Your pet bird was a light spirit.
A spirit?
I knew it! I am the heroine, after all!
I am a saint that all divine creatures acknowledge as—
It would cause difficulties were you to misunderstand, so I'll say this.
Spirits are indeed rare, but a large number of them exist,
and there are people who keep them close
You aren't special.
Th-That can't be true!
After all, there wasn't any mention of spirits in the game!
In order to prevent the government from using them,
their existence is hidden from everyone but the highest of nobility.
It's only natural that a baron's daughter like you wouldn't know about them.
If you speak of this to anyone in the future,
your safety cannot be guaranteed.
Your cooperation is appreciated.
A Few Days Later
Your Highness.
Your Highness?
Your Highness, Lady Bertia has come to see you.
Sir Cecil! What happened to Lady Heronia?
Welcome, Tia.
You wish to know her fate?
Of course I do!
Then, come over here.
What?
You want to hear about her, don't you?
W-Will this do?
Yes, so I'll tell you, as promised.
While I was unconscious,
the light spirit showed me the "correct future" that exists in your memories.
Then you know that you should choose me!
Because that's the future that will make you the happiest!
If that's what you call my happiest, then I don't want it.
That's only because you're still a doll, so you can't feel happiness!
After all, you and I aren't together.
At the very least,
I ceased being a "doll," as you call it, before I came here to see you.
My Maiden of Destiny...
my Bertia has made me human, you see?
What?! What's that supposed to mean?
She's supposed to be the villainess!
It's only because she went and changed the scenario to begin with!
That's true.
The Miss Bertia that the light spirit showed me was indeed a different person.
Right? That is her true nature.
So, you see, she's deceiving—
And I know of one other individual who has changed completely.
What?! Does that mean there was someone else changing the game's scenario?
But who?
You.
I-I advanced the plot events just as the scenario dictated, didn't I?
Just how am I a different person?
The you of that other world...
In the beginning, she was a country lady, unused to the ways of noble society.
By the time I was graduating, she had grown into a wonderfully refined lady.
In comparison, you do not abide by the rules of society.
You never cultivated any refinement.
Just recently, I heard that the professor
was exasperated with your lack of manners at tea.
In these last four years, just what have you learned?
To become the crown princess means that your every move
will be perceived as representing the kingdom.
Your personal mistakes will become the kingdom's failings.
Your lack of refinement will be seen as the kingdom's lack of dignity.
Are you saying that you could fulfill such an important role?
Sh-Shut up!
What is all this?
There is no event like this in that game.
I won't have it.
I won't have it. I won't have it!
I will never accept a future like this!
That's right. Where did Pii-chan go?
If he's with me, then everyone will understand that I'm special.
If you're speaking of your pet bird, he no longer exists in this world.
What?
That life has been extinguished.
It happened back then, when he tried to protect you in your recklessness.
Pii-chan?
This is the result of everything you've done,
and the future the two of you chose.
Y-You're lying.
Pii-chan?
Pii-chan!
Pii-chan? Pii-chan!
It can't be true.
I don't want this! Even if no one else believed what I said,
Pii-chan was the only one... who was always by my side.
This is the first time she's shown me this side of her.
Though the shape of it may have been warped,
there truly was a bond between her and him.
This is where this conversation ends,
but to finish things off, I've been asked to deliver a message to you.
"Even if you can't see me, I will always be with you."
That's what he asked me to tell you.
This is a memento of him.
It's a fragment of his soul.
I'll leave it with you.
Just as his core was about to crumble away,
I borrowed Zeno's power to retain this piece.
It's faint, but a trace of his will remains inside.
Well then, we'll leave the rest for the audience hall.
Pii-chan...
After that, as part of her punishment,
it was decided that she would be sent to a convent.
Father, I have one request.
Please allow me to decide which convent Heronia will go to.
Do you really distrust me so much that you must look at me that way, Father?
Do as you like.
Thank you.
We've brought Heronia here.
Now, you will be told what punishment has been decided for you.
Cecil.
Yes.
The baron's house will cut all ties with you,
and you will be sent to a convent as a commoner.
We are content with that as well.
Now then, I will give you a choice.
Lift your head.
You should listen very carefully to my words.
A convent in the harsh environment of the northernmost point of our kingdom,
or a convent in a temperate area three days carriage ride south of the capital?
Where would you like to go?
The choices seem quite unbalanced.
Due to the harsh conditions at the northern convent,
I've heard that, while rare, some have lost their lives.
Really?
On the other hand, I've heard that the north believes in the Divine Light,
and that its power is strong there.
If someone prays consistently, that which they have lost may regain its life.
That's the kind of miracle they say might occur there.
The light spirit gave his life for you.
And you? How far will you go for him?
North or south? Which will it be?
I-I...
I will...
go to the north!
Will you?
Then we'll have the arrangements made.
Now, until a specific date has been decided upon,
she will continue to be treated as she has been.
Yes, sire!
Goodbye.
You're no longer the heroine. You're not special.
Just a young lady named Heronia.
If you are abandoning your role as heroine
and living as a woman, alone, for your friend's sake,
then I will welcome your decision.
I'm certain that Tia wouldn't want you to be unhappy.
And so she has left on a journey to a convent in the northern reaches.
That's the heroine for you!
To think that she'd go to offer prayers for a wounded spirit!
Well, I did omit the troublesome bits and say it in a manner that Tia would like,
but I haven't told her any lies.
That decision truly required so much courage!
What a beautiful self-sacrifice!
The heroine really is different from the rest of us!
I have you captive like this, and she's all you're thinking about.
Perhaps I should make a slightly more serious effort.
S-Serious effort?
I've already sent everyone away, and everyone already thinks that we're—
Your Highness, what are you saying?!
Yes, as usual, even if I dismiss everyone, I am unable to send the spirits away.
It was merely a joke.
That sort of thing is a pleasure I will reserve until after we're married.
Oh.
What?!
And to be in that position, stacked like a turtle with its offspring...
H-How are you able to sweet talk like that?
Zeno.
Will you be a horse for me over there?
What?
A horse, I said. A horse.
It's not good to leave people out, so you be a horse, and I'll ride you.
Come on. Give me a whinny.
I'm sorry!
Well, whatever the case, you don't need to worry about the heroine any more.
So, Tia, set yourself at ease and come be my bride.
B-B-Bride?!
It was decided when we were very little.
Why are you surprised about it now?
But, um, I've always only aimed to become a first-rate villainess,
so I'm not confident that I could be a queen.
I know you, Tia. You'll be fine.
But...
Everything is all right.
I-I...
Now that things have come to this,
I will devote myself entirely to helping Sir Cecil become a magnificent king!
That's how I'll make sure he becomes incredibly, overwhelmingly happy!
In that case, you must never leave my side.
I promise you I won't.
I'm an irregularity that caused the scenario to change,
so I will take full responsibility and begin anew!
Hearing you say that has reassured me.
Even if the scenario changes, the most important conclusion never will, you know?
Conclusion?
The most important thing...
is that my Maiden of Destiny is right here...
and that we will continue enjoying our delightful lives together.
Yes!
And that's why you don't need to know.
You need know nothing of this blood I carry within me.
It was the night of the announcement of Heronia's punishment.
Congratulations on your graduation.
You've worked very hard.
Thank you.
The situation involving Miss Heronia was a difficult one, wasn't it?
Now that one troublesome matter has been resolved, I feel better.
Though, you're likely to grow busy with preparations for the wedding now.
That isn't a troublesome matter. I'm looking forward to it, so I don't mind.
Is that so?
It may be odd to ask after so long, but Cecil, do you enjoy being with Bertia?
Do you think you'll be able to find happiness?
Yes, of course!
There is no other woman who could delight me or make me as happy as she does.
If there were one thing I might take issue with,
it's that I might accidentally destroy a nation because she is so dear to me.
Is that so? I see!
Father, may I ask a question as well?
That's why you came here, isn't it? What is it?
I asked you before about the Maiden of Destiny.
Has anything occurred to you since then?
No, I know nothing about it.
Then, what do you know of people like me?
There's something you're keeping secret, isn't there?
Where did you learn about it?
It was merely speculation based on information I've gathered,
but that reaction just now has convinced me.
Honestly, you're just so...
You'll tell me now, won't you?
It's likely just as you suspected.
In the royal family, people like you,
children with exceptional abilities are born from time to time.
In exchange for their advanced abilities, they show a lack of emotions
and show so little interest in anything that one might say they show none at all.
As such, they're in constant pursuit
of something that can evoke their emotions,
and when they do find something, they cling desperately to it.
And it's said that it's the influence of the blood
of our kingdom's founder, King Toujin.
Do you mean the Hero King?
That name was given to him later.
King Toujin was simply...
someone who loved battle.
I see. He was bloodthirsty.
But then people started calling him the Hero King.
The woman who became his wife was heavily involved in that.
King Toujin and Queen Annei.
In order to maintain friendly relations between their tribes,
the two of them were brought together and betrothed.
From a young age, King Toujin was brilliant
but he showed little interest in anything.
However, Queen Annei would come to him with challenges,
and he would often play with her.
Say, this time, why don't we have a footrace?
I don't want to. No one can beat me anyway.
Oh yeah?
Whoever touches that tree first wins!
I suppose I have no choice.
The thing he found a profound interest in was a battle game.
He became deeply absorbed in the game,
and just when playing on a board started to leave him feeling unsatisfied,
war broke out between the tribes.
King Toujin had grown into a young man.
He led troops into battle,
and before long, he had brought many tribes under him.
King Toujin sought even more battles, but one woman stood in his way.
If you decide to take lives needlessly, then I will come to hate you.
Those words struck King Toujin with such a deep sense of unease
that it's said that he immediately ceased going into battle.
She was truly his Maiden of Destiny.
You're right. I can't say that she wasn't.
Fortunately, battle wasn't the only thing that held his attention.
He was also invested in Queen Annei.
That served to restrain him.
He devoted himself to building a peaceful kingdom,
and came to be called the Hero King.
If Tia were to say something like that to me,
I think I would likely do as she told me to, too.
After that, once every few hundred years or so,
someone like King Toujin,
possessing exceptional abilities, has been born into the royal family.
Without exception, each has held the potential for evil in their hearts.
They were truly double-edged swords.
If their interests were turned to good, they became wise kings,
but if used in harmful ways, they became foolish kings,
or they disappeared before that could happen.
So, the author of the books I found in the hidden library
was one of those members of the royal family, then.
There, I found knowledge that was not out in the world,
knowledge that should not be out in the world, filing mountains of books.
Soon after you were born,
it was clear that you'd understood words far sooner than other babies.
My mind went blank.
Even though I knew the possibility existed,
I never thought that my own child would be one of them.
You must have been very disappointed.
Why would I be disappointed?
Wouldn't the royal family want an intelligent heir?
I was just worried.
Because I wanted my child to feel all sorts of things and find happiness.
And that's why I took a gamble.
That would be Bertia, wouldn't it?
Yes. She has a scatterbrained side to her,
but she's emotionally expressive, compassionate, and kind.
In a way, she is your exact opposite.
I thought that if you were with her,
then maybe something would grow within you, too.
It seems your thoughts were correct.
Ever since you met her, you've seemed like you're enjoying yourself,
so I've been quite relieved.
Oh, yes. Do you remember the first time you asked me for a birthday present?
Yes, I asked for luona leaf seedlings, didn't I?
Back then, the queen and I shared a celebratory toast, you know?
I seem to have caused you a lot of worry without ever realizing it.
It's nothing. That's the fate of a parent.
You'll just have to show your devotion to your parents to make up for it.
Are you saying that you'll be pushing more of your official duties onto me?
That's the privilege of being a parent with a brilliant child, I'd say.
For the time being, as long as Tia is at my side, I will do my best.
Which means that she holds the fate of this kingdom in her hands.
Translator: Elanor Sakamoto Timer: Edgar Cruz Editor: Salem Alabanza Quality Control: Alicia Ashby Final Quality Control Michelle Tymon
If I told her about the blood the royal family carries,
I'm certain I'd be able to bind her to me for the rest of our lives.
But what I want isn't a marionette that will do whatever I say.
Ta-dah!
It's the person that runs wild in ways I can't predict,
the woman who's like a surprising jack-in-the box that I love.
More than anything else,
I want to be a version of me that she would choose of her own free will.
I'm coming in.
Oh, dear.
I just knew things would turn out this way.
Honestly. To get so drunk that you pass out in front of your child...
Perhaps he felt a great weight had been lifted from him.
You knew, didn't you?
Yes.
You are our son, and we're proud of you.
We'll still be watching over you.
However, if you make darling little Bertia cry, I will never forgive you.
I will keep that firmly in mind.
Well, then, I'll take this man away.
Cecil, you should stop at an appropriate time as well.
I will.
Darling, please walk on your own, won't you?
I will.
Thank you, Father, Mother.
2 Years Later
Noches House
Things I want to do at my wedding, top 100
I want everyone to celebrate us with a shower of flowers!
After the ceremony, I want to be carried away like a princess!
Sir Cecil and I
the cake
Both families
A wedding? I'll never allow it.
Chapter 12 An Observation Log of a Self-Proclaimed Villainess as a Wife.
"An Observation Log of a Self-Proclaimed Villainess as a Wife."