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

<Episode 83>

 

Riat paid no heed to my bewildered reaction to the absurd suggestion and said.

“What does it matter if Roshan and Nisha are in a hostile relationship? As long as you agree, there will be no diplomatic problems. The relics that could not be taken out of the country due to various reasons may also be of interest to you… ‎‫”

In the past, I might have agreed out of curiosity, but now….

I shook off my surprise, hardened my expression, and thought.

Now I know that the true mastermind, who ruined the lives of my mother, Mariette, and grandfather, was the Spirit King of Darkness.

Arkane is a being who seeks to destroy the world at any cost.

I don’t know why the world didn’t perish even though he had already drove out the Spirit King of Wisdom and his spirit master, Mariette, according to his will..….

Arkane will definitely do to me what he did to Mariette and start targeting me.

Wasn’t that already evident during the incident with Meinhardt?

What was Lore planning? What should I do?

I am the only child left behind by the woman who was blessed by his archenemy.

……Although I am a little embarrassed to boast about myself, but I am an unparalleled genius blessed by the Spirit King of Life, Water, and Earth.

I am also the biological daughter whom Archduke Hailien is obsessed with, and knowing that Arkane wanted to take him under his control using a card called Chastia.

I’m sure I’m a thorn in Arkane’s eyes.

What good would there be if I went into the stronghold of the dark side, which was no different from my mortal enemy?

“I have to go back right away after taking the exam……I’m sorry, but I don’t think I can accept your invitation.”

“…..Couldn’t you just spare a little bit of your time?”

Riat openly expressed disappointment at my euphemistic refusal.

Still that won’t work.

I don’t have any ill feelings toward you, but your people and the beings they glorify will never……

“I’m already twelve years old. I have to worry about my reputation, and walking around like a child without knowing anything is…”

“A twelve years old is still just a child. There’s no need to act like an adult already.”

This person really…, if I say no, just accept it!

Riat, who continued to persistently argue back, and I, who had absolutely no desire to go to Nisha with him, were arguing for a long time.

“……Edith.”

I heard a familiar voice and turned around to see Meinhardt, who I had no idea when he had come here, looking at me with a rare frown on his face.

“Meinhardt?”

Was he looking for me?

I stared at him in confusion.

Of all times, I couldn’t believe we ran into each other while I was with Riat like this..….

At that moment, when I was somewhat surprised but just passing it as nothing serious, a memory passed by my mind.

…… Now that I think about it, the incident that led to my first encounter with Meinhardt was…….

Wasn’t it because none other than Riat kidnapped me?

‘These are…….’

A voice like the growling of an animal lingered eerily in my ears.

I was horrified as I recalled Riat staring at the light falling from the sky with his back to the black night.

The kidnapping incident and the grandfathers and grandmother who came to rescue me.

And……The appearance of Meinhardt who fought alongside them!

Holy ***, these two had met before.

They also had a very bad relationship!

Meinhardt, who was staring at me, soon turned his gaze towards Riat.

The two people’s eyes finally met.

I looked up alternately at Riat and Meinhardt, who were staring at each other in excruciating silence, immersed in confusion mixed with fear.

“……Who is this?”

It was Riat who spoke first.

Riat’s reaction was unexpected as he frowned slightly and mumbled as if he was seeing Meinhardt for the first time.

Oh, he didn’t remember?

I was confused for a moment, but soon smiled out of relief.

Yeah, it had been a few years.

There was a higher chance that one wouldn’t remember an opponent they had only passed by once in a battle.

“He is Mainhardt, who was originally a servant to my mother, but now he is staying with me and helping me in many ways.”

It was a good thing Riat didn’t remember Meinhardt.

“Is he a Roshan noble?”

“……No, he is not.”

Riat, who asked me about Meinhardt’s identity, muttered with an expression of displeasure.

“………He served Mariette?”

As expected, this human’s interest was only directed towards Mariette!

I smiled awkwardly, walked away from Riat, ran towards Meinhardt, and grabbed his hand.

Unlike Riat, Meinhardt looked down at me with an indifferent expression, showing no emotions.

“This is, King Riat Ilkay Khalid of the Kingdom of Nisha, who previously studied at Litera with my mother.”

“I know.”

….Hmm?

When I sensed strong emotions behind Meinhardt’s soft reply…

“Isn’t this the person who kidnapped Edith a few years ago?”

I asked in a trembling voice, feeling goosebumps rising on my back.

“Well, you remember……?”

“How could I forget that?”

Now I see that Meinhardt was not indifferent.

My mind, which had only just discovered the sharp hostility flashing within him, blared a fierce siren sound, hinting at the fact that an ominous situation was about to come.

“The kidnapping, you know about it……Wait a minute, you. Seeing you again, you look familiar.”

Riat was slowly recalling his memories due to Meinhardt’s remarks!

When I looked at Riat in horror, I felt that his cool, narrowed eyes flashed for a moment.

“He was the one who brought in the Great Spirit masters and disrupted my plan.”

“You remember.”

Meinhardt answered briefly in an extremely calm tone.

On the contrary, Riat gritted his teeth and showed fierce hostility.

“How could I forget your face? So, you ruined my plan and shamelessly stayed by Edith’s side? Now that I see it, it was done on purpose.”

“Riat, it’s not like that..….”

“I had no intention of staying this close to Edith. Your plan was nothing more than a crime that should never have come true in the first place.”

I, who had been watching their conversation anxiously, stepped forward to mediate, but Meinhardt’s bold remark once again filled me with silence.

At that moment, everyone’s eyes, which was just mine and Riat’s, turned to Meinhardt.

“If Edith had not personally asked me to stay by her side… I would have been satisfied with just protecting her from afar, as I have done before.”

I looked up at Meinhard from afar.

“What……?”

Riat’s hostility was filled with complete jealousy and anger.

“How dare you, a lowly being without even a proper family…..”

“Stop it, Riat.”

No matter what, it was wrong to insult someone by mentioning their origin.

And, you were the one who was wrong in the first place.

I stopped Riat in a calm, composed voice.

“Meinhardt is my benefactor who saved me many times. He was also a loyal servant to his mother. Looking at it objectively, shouldn’t Meinhard be a person I can trust more than Riat?”

“……Edith.”

His gray eyes wavered helplessly, the hostility disappeared completely, and my heart weakened slightly at the sight of Riat’s broken expression.

“It was nice to meet you after such a long time, I really mean it. But I hope no further disputes arise.”

I spoke firmly, saluted the King of Nisha, and grabbed the hem of Meinhardt’s sleeve.

“Then I will take my leave now. Let’s go, Mainhardt.”

I left that place without even looking back once.

 

***

 

“Anyway……I felt like I was caught up in a strange love triangle that I had never even thought of.”

“……So something like that happened.”

Ashmed silently stared at Edith, who was lying on the sofa in her assigned room and speaking as if she were lamenting.

As Edith was slowly recalling the strange situation she had experienced when she was caught between two men, his was in turmoil.

When he was walking alone on the outskirts of Litera, he heard an auditory hallucination out of nowhere.

It was just a voice that he couldn’t see or touch-

It had creating an optical illusion as if it was bitter cold and white frost was blooming everywhere.

Although it was just a weak voice….

[Ashmed, you shouldn’t be here. Take your companion and go quickly, leave, run away.]

What exactly was the identity of that voice that pointed at him and Edith and begged them to leave quickly?

Whose earnest whisper was it?

Ashmed sighed deeply and was lost in thought.

 

***

 

The next day, at Mekaila’s call, Meinhardt and I headed to Litera’s castle.

There, an elderly woman was waiting for us, looking at the vast sky.

“Are you here?”

Mekaila looked back at us with her eyes still sparkling with vigour and smiled softly.

“I can’t believe the time has come to gather and face the children of my comrades like this. It’s a new feeling.”

Although Meinhardt was not Judith’s child, Makaila seemed to regard him as her child.

Did he feel that fact?

A slight ripple appeared on Meinhardt’s indifferent face.

I looked up at him and put more pressure on our joined hands.

“How is Siorn doing? When he stayed in Litera for a while, he complained to me to an annoying extent, saying that he had handed over his granddaughter to the hands of his enemy¹She is talking about the time when Roberick separated them for a while. . Now that he has been clinging to you, his face must have regained its color.”

I responded with an awkward smile, not knowing whether to laugh or not, to Mekaila’s caustic tone.

“I know that you always correspond. So, as you already know, my grandfather is doing well.”

“Well then, I guess you’ll be fine. You will also work hard to create a war of nerves with the Duke of Hailien who is coming to visit you.”

Mekaila muttered in a cynical tone.

I laughed again out of embarrassment.

Because it was true.

“How are you?”

And the question moved from me to Meinhardt.

Meinhardt, who was silent for a moment, looked down at me, who was holding hands with him for some reason.

“……I can’t say it’s perfect, but I’m leading a life that can be described as peaceful.”

He answered like that.

“Okay, that’s good then.”

A light of regret appeared within the eyes of Mekaila.

However, as if she had never shown such an emotion, Mekaila turned her head away with an expression that seemed indifferent.

“Information regarding the subjects and methods of the Spiritualist Qualification Exam is strictly controlled and confidential. Even if you are the Grand Princess of Hailien, you probably don’t know the exact truth.”

“Yes that’s right.”

Mekaila raised the corners of her mouth and said with a deep smile.

“The chairman of Litera must live only by protecting fairness and neutrality. That was precisely why Litera reached out to me a long time ago, when I had no family or country to rely on, but my honor was infinitely high.”

She spoke in a quiet tone, staring into the distant sky as if reminiscing about the past.

“But…..I was born as a Great Spiritualist, so I can’t live my whole life sacrificing for the majority? I’m not that noble.”

And she spoke in an honest tone with a cheerful smile.

 

***

TL:

What are going to do grandma(⁠ ⁠╹⁠▽⁠╹⁠ ⁠)