Born as the Hidden Daughter of a Villainess and the Male Lead

<Episode 82>

***

 

I went out to see the sights with such excitement, but there was something I did not expected.

As I was still an outsider, I couldn’t enter most areas.

“What’s this…..”

The only place I could enter was the hallway where people were busy coming and going.

I was feeling drained.

As I trudged and walked feebly, I arrived at a deserted hallway.

There was a room there that could be recognized as a library through a small glass window in the door.

“Excuse me, are outsiders allowed to enter this library?”

“Oh, yes. You may come in.”

When I asked a young man who seemed to belong to Litera, fortunately, it was an area open to outsiders.

I carefully opened the door and looked inside.

The unique, gentle, soothing scent of wood lingered in the air, and the moment I opened the door, it immediately rushed to the tip of my nose.

Even though it was an area open to outsiders, it was full of books, hundreds of them at best.

I walked between the bookshelves and looked at each book spine.

‘You only live once, how to live wisely’?

What is it? It’s like the title of a human resources’ book……

“Ah.”

At that moment, I stopped reaching for the book and looked to the side as I felt a presence so close to me.

A boy who seemed to be a couple of years older than Ashmed was standing there, looking slightly surprised, as if he had bumped into me while walking through the bookshelves.

His gray, almost white hair was braided and hung down to his chest, and he was wearing clothes that looked exactly like Mekaila’s..….

The boy wearing a flashy white cape with a large hood looked down at me blankly for a moment with his silver-gray eyes hidden behind glass.

“Are you visiting for the purpose of taking an exam?”

He immediately spoke with joy.

“…….Yes”

Who was he?

As I was wondering, I quietly took a close look at his facial expressions once again.

I didn’t notice it before because it was covered by those big eye-catching glasses.

Just then, I realized that the boy with a piercingly pure and elegant aura around him had an unusually beautiful appearance, I also thought that that gentle yet rational smile was somehow familiar.

“Nice to meet you. My name is Idris Robin Juppes, a lowly student who has the honor of studying under the chairman of Mekaila Euphorium.”

And at the greeting the boy gave me, I finally realized his identity and was filled with surprise.

“Juppes……wait a moment, are you talking about Count Juppes?”

Idris Robin Juppes, who heard me muttering softly, asked with round eyes that showed their sharpness even through thick glass.

“Do you know my grandfather?”

This boy was none other than the grandson of Count Juppes.

“I am late in introducing myself. My name is Edith Ronen Hailien, and I am visiting Litera to take the upcoming Spiritualist Qualification Examination. I don’t know if you know this, but Count Juppes is my teacher.”

“…… Ah, you are the Grand Princess Hailien, whom I have only heard about. It’s an honor to meet you like this.”

Then Idris smiled brightly, placed his hand on his chest and slightly bent his back.

“I heard a lot about you from my grandfather. Do you remember? I am embarrassed to say this because it seems like I am bragging, but…five years ago, I received a request from my grandfather regarding a visit to Litera, and the Chairman allowed the visit of the Grand Princess and the Second Prince.”

“Oh, of course I remember. I was really grateful at the time. Although something unpleasant happened afterwards…I was also really sad that my visit at that time was thwarted.”

It was true that I was thankful, so I smiled brightly as I answered.

Since it was bad conduct to talk in the library, Idris and I exchanged words as we left the library.

“You are still young, but you are already taking the Spiritualist exam. Of course, I knew well that the Grand Princess had outstanding talent, but…”

“I was frustrated that I couldn’t take the exam because I wasn’t old enough. I am finally able to be recognized as an official spiritist.”

As I spoke energetically, Idris burst into laughter.

“……..”

Although Count Juppes was a renowned teacher of spiritual knowledge, he was not a spiritist but an ordinary human being.

“Your Excellency, the Count is already an official spiritist, right?”

“…..I took the test at the same age as the Grand Princess and was luck enough to be accepted”

Idris answered while staring ahead.

Yes, Mekaila wouldn’t have accepted someone who wasn’t a spirit master as a disciple.

Idris was a genius with outstanding talent, as befitting of Count Juppes’ grandson.

What attributes does this boy have?

Count Juppes also boasted so much about his grandson, but he never said what kind of spirits he had.

I asked, gazing at the side face of the boy that had such pure beauty that he could have been mistaken for a woman at first glance.

“What kind of spirit’s blessing did Your Excellency, the Count receive?”

“……..”

However, unexpectedly, Idris showed a slightly troubled look.

“Ah…….”

He seemed to hesitate to answer.

“I think it would be difficult to tell you about my attributes.”

“What?”

Why was he avoiding answering?

Lost in doubt, I was about to say something more, but at that moment.

“……..?”

I felt a figure approaching me in a straight forward manner.

I turned my head.

“……Uh?”

Approaching from a distance, was someone I never dreamed I would meet again here.

“…..Riat?!”

I cried out his name in horror.

“It’s been a while, Edith.”

As if no changes had occurred in the past, several years ago.

Riat, who seemed to have walked straight out of my memory, was directed his unique, dark yet captivating smile towards me.

I asked, looking up at him blankly.

“No……why are you here?”

Whether I was in shock or not, Riat’s cool gray eyes, which were sparkling as he stroking my head with a smile on his face, fell on Idris who was right next to her.

“…….”

At that moment, Idris trembled slightly, as if he suddenly felt cold.

“Chairman Mekhaila’s disciple, could you please leave?”

Riat completely erased the soft voice and bright expression he had used towards me and spoke to Idris in an extremely cold manner.

“It’s because I want to resolve an issue with the Grand Princess.”

“……Ah.”‬‎

Idris, who was looking up at Riat with a stiff expression, instinctively gave me a worried look that seemed to ask if it would be okay to be alone with a man who seemed dangerous.

……Well, what could go wrong?

Although I hesitated a little, I nodded slightly towards Idris, indicating that it was okay to go.

“Then……see you next time, Grand Princess Edith.”

“Take care, young Count Juppes.”

Idris left the scene, and as I watched his white figure moving away, I realized that I had not heard anything about Idris’s attributes as a spiritist due to Riat’s sudden appearance.

“……What did you visit Litera for?”

Ugh, I felt like my plan would be ruined when this person appeared.

So I asked Riat in a sharp voice.

“Is this a place I shouldn’t be? This is so sad.”

That’s not what we are talking about right now, you idiot…….

No, you are an abomination.

As I watched Riat staring at me with lowered eyebrows, as if he was truly hurt, I thought to myself that this person had truly not aged.

There had been no change in his personality at all.

For a man who loved his mother, this is a very disturbing subject.

……No matter how desperately he liked me as the daughter of the woman he had a crush on, the past actions of recklessly trying to kidnap me and taking me away wouldn’t disappear like nothing.

Maybe he approached me again with a strange plan……!

I looked up at him with wary eyes and said,

“If you are planning to kidnap me again…”

“Do you think the only thing on my mind is kidnapping?”

Then Riat narrowed his eyebrows and answered as if he was wronged.

“You have a record!”

I shot back in a growling voice.

Moreover, he also serves as the head of a guild that only handles underhanded requests that come in from various countries!

“I am a person who studied at Litera. I am in a position to be indebted to Chairman Mekaila. It was entirely thanks to her that I was able to enter the Sanctuary of Wisdom, where I would otherwise have been unable to enter, as the prince of Nisha.”

When the topic of his past came up, I softened my hostility and kept my mouth shut.

Riat, who was looking down at me as if he truly found me annoyingly cute, patted my head and continued.

“I haven’t seen you even once in over four years, but even taking that into account, you have grown a lot. I can’t believe you have already reached my waist.”

The emotion in his voice was nothing more than genuine joy.

…… Really. He was a person I couldn’t hate at will.

I let out a small sigh, pulled my head out of his grasp, and said,

“I came to take the Spiritualist qualification exam. So, let me ask you again politely. For what reason did Your Majesty the King of Nisha visit Litera?”

Riat, who was still staring at me as if I was a special child as I solemnly asked with all courtesy as a Grand Princess, turned around and said,

“Nisha is isolated from the outside world.”

I found myself walking towards where he was heading.

“The only force with which we can interact is this Litera. I am receiving various types of assistance in return for delivering various artifacts developed by Nisha.”

Nisha.

It was a name I hadn’t heard about in a long time since the kidnapping four years ago.

At that time, I still didn’t know anything.….

My mood sank deeply as I recalled the past, when I had foolishly taken no notice of the reality of Arkane, the spirit king of darkness, even after encountering it for the first time.

A nation of people who favors Arkane.

Although they had stained their hands with numerous sins, they did not side with Arkane and his followers when the onset of disaster arrived.

By fighting together with the other countries, they were able to escape the crisis of destruction and continue their existence to this day.

“By the way, it has been such a long time since we last met, so why not go to Nisha after the exam?”

“Yes?”

…..Eh?

I couldn’t believe my ears and suddenly raised my head and looked up at him.

Riat just smiled mischievously like a boy excited about something fun.