My cheeks felt warm. I wanted to recall that face for a while, and remember how absurd it all was.
“On another note... did you not have yet another challenge with Katarina today? Are you going to challenge her again soon?”
“Hmm... Yeah. About that... I think we’re good.”
While I did think about it, I now felt that I was done with these challenges. All this time, I had been obsessed with winning and losing. Now, however, that all seemed like a distant lie — and a strange peace washed over my heart.
“Well then, in that case, we would never meet at the Claes Manor again.”
“Eh? What? Why?” I said, suddenly jolted back to my senses. I didn’t understand what he meant by that.
“Why? But of course, now that you are done with your challenges, there is no further need to visit, no?”
“Well... yes, there’s that I guess...”
Come to think of it, I had only been visiting the Claes manor to compete with Katarina. Now that a contest was no longer necessary, I supposed I no longer had a reason to visit...
I could see Katarina’s azure eyes staring straight at me. Even if she was my brother’s fiancée, not visiting the Claes manor anymore meant that I would not see Katarina again. At least, not often.
...I did not like that thought.
As I stood, lost in thought, Jeord suddenly looked straight at me, his eyes determined and serious. It was the first time I had seen such an expression on his face.
“She is my fiancée, Alan.”
“??” What is he going on about? I know that already! Confused, I asked Jeord for a clarification.
“Ah, so you do not notice it yourself. Even so, brother... I will never let you have her,” Jeord said, once more with that smug smile. With a quick turn, he was gone, swiftly walking in the general direction of his room.
I didn’t quite understand his point — all I could do was watch as Jeord disappeared down the hallway. Up until now, such a sight would have filled my heart with pain and sorrow, but for some reason I felt fine now. While I did not exactly like him all of a sudden, that black aura that haunted my vision seemed gone, along with the emotions that it brought about.
I walked back to my room as well. On my way back, I looked out of a window — and there in the garden were two tall trees, standing side by side. Again, I recalled a certain strange daughter of a duke, who was ridiculously good at climbing trees.
Was she sad after being reprimanded by Madam Claes? I was the one who had challenged her in the first place... so I felt somewhat responsible for her predicament.
Well, I suppose I could just visit and apologize the next time — and maybe bring some of those candies and snacks that the silly girl loved so much. She would stuff her face full of them, just like some sort of tree squirrel.
Ah, the mere thought of it... hilarious. I feel better already.
Chapter 5: My Meeting with the Beautiful Siblings
It was now the second summer since I had retrieved the memories of my past life — I was now ten years of age.
At around this time last year, my crops had been facing a wilting crisis, and Alan had been visiting all the time, challenging me to this and that. Comparatively, this year was somewhat peaceful.
With my fiancé Prince Jeord setting the pace and precedent, quite a few other guests showed up at the Claes manor. Alan and Mary were also visiting at regular intervals this year.
Although the two prince brothers did not seem to get along very well at first, they now seemed to have made amends. Alan, for his part, had begun to seriously study the piano and violin, giving his all when it came to music and instruments. His talent was noticed eventually, and now he was referred to as some sort of musical genius, blessed by the gods themselves.
Mary, too, made her fair share of progress — while she was a somewhat shirking and timid girl when I had first met her, she was now the very image of a young noble lady. Despite this, she still seemed to look up to me.
In fact, just the other day, Mary had made quite the bold statement, looking all dizzy as she did so. It was something along the lines of... “If I were a man myself, I would very well take Lady Katarina as my bride!”
Ah, Mary. A lovable girl, really.
While I did suggest to Mary that, “Well, Prince Alan is your fiancé. Should you not spend time with him instead?” Mary’s response, however, was swift: “I refuse, as that would mean I would have less time to spend with you, Lady Katarina.”
It was an utterly merciless refusal. I found myself at a loss for words.
Even my cute adopted brother, Keith, was now out and about, no longer locked up in that room of his. Of course, it would be a lot of trouble if Keith ended up becoming a playboy, charming the womenfolk around him. To that end, I often reminded him to be kind and gentle to women, and I personally felt that it was working.
On that note, I had also been improving my Catastrophic Bad End avoidance strategies... namely, a key strategy to escape from the clutches of Jeord should he ever come rushing at me with a drawn sword. To ensure that I would not be unjustly cut down, I trained hard at my swordplay and footwork, even earning praise from my tutor. Gone was my old weakness!
In addition, I had one more trick up my sleeve should Jeord go on the offensive. The head gardener of the Claes manor, “Grandpa” Tom, was quite talented with his hands. With his advice and expert consultation, my toy snakes had become even more lifelike in every possible way.
With this, Jeord would surely jump up in fright, mistaking the toy for the real thing. In fact, they were so impossibly lifelike, that I could probably make a fair amount of coin selling these at the local marketplace. Yet another strategy to cope with exile, should it ever happen.
I had not exactly been slacking off in the magic department either — it was, after all, part of my plan to make a living with my magic if it came down to it.
It had only been a year since I started receiving formal magic tutelage. At first, my “Earth Raiser” spell could only create bumps of two to three centimeters. I had made significant progress since, and was now able to make small hedges around fifteen centimeters in height. If I kept going at this rate, I would have to change my incantation to reflect its newfound impressiveness. Perhaps “Rise, Wall of Earth!” would be more fitting.
My adopted brother Keith had also made good progress, and was now fully capable of controlling his own magic. In fact, even a golem the size of the one that had previously sent me flying now obediently did his bidding.
Encouraged by Keith’s success, I too tried manipulating an Earth Golem. The infusion of magic into a golem was unexpectedly difficult, however, and such precise magical techniques were still beyond me.
Having been reincarnated as a noble daughter of a duke, I had assumed that my physical precision would have somewhat increased, but this was unfortunately not the case. If anything, I felt like I had not changed much at all in that regard.
My magical tutor reminded me on a regular basis that one required adequate reserves of mana and magical capacity to utilize magic appropriately. Magic was truly a deep and complicated subject.
And so, I spent my days in this carefree, yet fulfilling fashion. Along the way, however, I had developed one more hobby, in addition to tilling the fields and climbing trees.
Said hobby was... reading. By reading, I did not mean books on history or economics — no, none of those hard, stuffy subjects. The books I liked were none other than romance novels.
While spoken about in hushed tones and whispers, a definitive romance novel boom was spreading across nearby towns as of late. Such novels were considered beneath a noble’s tastes on account of their supposedly vulgar nature. In spite of that, many continued to enjoy them in private.
As for how these books reached my desk, the answer was simple — it was thanks to a certain maid in the manor. This maid, for one reason or another, had a good understanding of current trends and other goings-on in the streets.
&
nbsp; All it took was a single loaner book — it wasn’t long before I was completely hooked. My reaction was perhaps somewhat natural, given the fact that I no longer had access to the manga and anime I had so voraciously consumed in my previous life.
The subject matter of these novels were varied — love stories about charming princes, knights, or even stories on the beauty of friendship. While the offerings in the market paled in comparison to what I had in my past life, I immediately took to these novels like a fish to water.
Perhaps it was also worth mentioning that my absolute favorite at the current moment was a story of a beautiful friendship between two girls, a princess and a commoner girl. It was called Princess Emerald and Sophia.
I was ecstatic that my mother quickly approved of my newfound hobby, and promptly handed me some allowance to purchase said books. Anne’s commentary probably had something to do with it — if I recall, she had said something along the lines of... “In my humble opinion, Madam, it would be far more appropriate for the young miss to quietly read books in her room, as opposed to getting up to no-good outside.”
I suppose my mother had heard this statement enough times to make up her mind. At any rate, I was now able to purchase and read the books I liked, and that was a blessing, truly.
Amidst all the good news, however, was a single unfortunate development — the maid who had introduced me to these novels in the first place had recently left our employ because she was getting married. With her departure, I lost a friend and comrade, and I no longer had anyone to discuss these novels with.
Ah, it filled me with such an itch! I really did want to share my passion with someone else. In my search for a kindred spirit, I even attempted to introduce such books to Anne and Mary. But they weren’t interested in romance novels of any kind. A most unfortunate development indeed.
Ah, I want a friend, I really do! I’ll have to go looking for one at the next tea party we attend.
As it happens, news arrived a few days later that Jeord and Alan were holding a tea party at the royal castle. Due to the party’s royal nature, many young lords and ladies were slated to attend — and with these numbers, perhaps I would be able to find someone who truly understood my passion... for romance novels.
Before I knew it, I had started looking forward to this royal tea party. The event would be held in a corner of the royal gardens — a wide corner, at least, given how large the grounds were. The format would be similar to the first one I had attended at the Hunt manor; an event mimicking the social dance parties one would attend once they were of age.
As expected of a royal-hosted party, this event was larger and more grand than any I had been to before. It was on a different scale altogether, and there were also many more people in attendance.
Given the fact that Jeord and Alan usually visited and spent quite a lot of time with me, it was somewhat different to only exchange brief pleasantries with them. The two were hosting the event, after all, and didn’t have much time for our usual, longer conversations.
Having learned my lesson from my first tea party misadventure, I refrained from stuffing my face with snacks, and instead sat still, drinking my tea as elegantly as I could manage.
Of course, as expected from the royal kitchens, the tea and the snacks were both unbelievably good. I couldn’t even count all the varieties of snacks on display!
Suppressing my desire was slowly becoming a herculean feat. While I tried to be strategic by limiting myself to one of each snack, I didn’t expect to see a wide variety of teas on display. In a rare, but equally unfortunate occurrence, I sampled each and every one, and soon realized that I had a little too much. My stomach puffed out slightly, visibly rounder than before.
I, however, had grown as a noble lady. After temporarily excusing myself as elegantly as I could, I left Keith and Mary behind, slowly and calmly heading to a nearby bathroom as my resolve was tested.
As I quickly navigated the castle grounds in search for relief, however, I came across a most horrifying sight. It was a vicious dog, running free and unchained — a guard dog of some sort that had escaped from its keeper, perhaps.
Honestly speaking, I was no good with dogs... if only because they seemed to have always hated me. In fact, this held true even in my past life. For some inexplicable reason, most dogs flew into a rage at the very sight of me, as if they were being confronted with an ancient enemy.
To make things worse, the escaped guard dog now bared its fangs at me, as if to signal that it was a threat. But we’ve just met mere seconds ago! What the heck!!
Of course, the unchained guard dog wasted no time in making a beeline for me. While I could have scared away certain types of dogs, notably that of the Chihuahua-class, this one was as large as a Doberman, and was not an enemy I could defeat.
Hiking up my dress, I ran, escaping as quickly as I could. This in turn logically led to me climbing up a nearby tree for refuge.
Unable to harass me as I hid amongst the tree’s branches, the dog howled and growled for what seemed to be an eternity. Before long, however, a voice called out — its master, perhaps, having noticed that his hound was missing. Obeying the voice, the dog turned and left, and for a while, all was still.
Relieved, I started making my way downwards... only to be greeted with several humans I had not seen before. The dog was nowhere to be seen. There were six, maybe seven of them — and of all things, they had decided to start a conversation at the bottom of this very tree that I had climbed.
If I go down now... they would know that I climbed up to begin with! A perfect, infallible daughter of a Duke... climbing trees in the royal castle gardens? If word of this got out... it would really be bad. I have to quickly move to another location...!
I was, however, at my limit. To begin with, I already needed to go to the bathroom — and then I was chased by a rabid dog, and was eventually chased up this tree. It had been... quite a while. Very soon, my bladder would reach its final, ultimate limit.
Even if my descent from a tree were to become a cause for rumors... I no longer had a choice. It’ll be infinitely preferable to wetting myself — at this age, no less! The shame!
Steeling myself, I slid down the tree at full speed. The gathered individuals could only stare at me blankly, obviously taken aback by my sudden appearance.
“Do excuse me, but you’re in my way,” I said to the small crowd that had assembled here for no apparent reason. It was as if they had been placed here by some divine force — all for the terrible purpose of preventing me from going to the bathroom.
My panicked, anxious voice sounded more stern than I had intended it to be — it was almost cold and demeaning to my ears! But now was not the time to be concerned about such trivialities.
As if terrified by my sudden entrance and prompt dismissal, the children scattered rapidly, like leaves in the wind. Was I that fearsome? Surely there’s no need to run away from me like that!
Upon closer inspection, there was one girl left standing before me — too stunned to escape, I suppose. The girl had her back to the tree in question, and didn’t seem to have witnessed my dramatic entrance.
As she turned around, I found myself taken aback. I swallowed, surprised at the sight. She was... beautiful, to say the least. Her crimson eyes complimented her snow-white hair — a stunning girl with smooth, fair skin that was almost translucent.
For a split second, I was entranced by her beauty, only to be rudely jolted back to reality by the intense pressure in my bladder. If I didn’t make it to the bathroom soon, a tragedy would surely occur.
Mustering up all my willpower, I smiled as gently as I could to the somewhat frightened girl — my best attempts at reassuring her, given the situation. And then I turned and rushed off in the appropriate direction.
By some stroke of luck, I eventually made it, thus preventing the outbreak of a true tragedy over the course of this tea party. The worst was now over — but I couldn’t shake the feeling that I would one day be
bested by these treacherous events.
From now on, I would have to seriously consider a portable toilet of some kind whenever I attended a tea party. I entertained the thought for a while with a serious expression on my otherwise relieved face.
Having managed to reach the bathroom without incident, I returned to where I had originally sat at the tea party, only to find that Keith and Mary where nowhere in sight. There were simply too many people.
Complaining inwardly, I soon acted on my frustrations, stuffing whatever leftover snacks I could reach into my mouth.
“Ah... Um.” A small voice drifted out from behind me.
Turning around, I came face to face with the stunningly beautiful girl whom I had met at the tree.
“Ah... you were the one from just now...”
“Y-Yes. That is correct...” the beautiful girl said, nodding slowly.
Now that I had a good look at her, she truly was breathtaking. Although I was used to beautiful people in general thanks to Prince Jeord and my merry band of friends, this girl was in a class of her own. I swallowed hard in spite of myself.
Her pure-white hair almost seemed like strands of silk, cascading in a silent, frozen waterfall. Her skin was reminiscent of freshly-fallen snow — impossibly pure and soft. Her features only seemed to accentuate her crimson eyes — those very same eyes were staring straight into my soul.
She reminded me of... a character in a romance novel.
Actually... AH! That’s right! She looks exactly like Sophia, from that trending novel Princess Emerald and Sophia!!
Sophia was of common birth. She had black, silky hair, and equally black, soulful eyes. Her skin was white — white like snow. A true beauty. The Princess, who had sneaked out into the town, was captivated by Sophia’s beauty.
My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!, Volume 1 Page 14