Even if the Villain's Daughter Regresses

Laila frowned unconsciously. What?

“Exactly one week. If you don’t come by then, or if you come and don’t say what I want to hear…”

Kidon paused for a moment, letting out a breath. It was hard to tell if it was a sigh or chuckle. Then, his dry voice echoed again in the air.

“Something interesting will happen. It will be entertaining for me, but for you, Lady Laila… well, who knows?”

“….”

“What do you think?”

Laila kept her mouth tightly shut. She didn’t feel inclined to respond to such nonsensical words that were difficult to comprehend.

After a brief moment of contemplation, Laila decided to express her own thoughts instead of answering Kidon’s cryptic words.

“Please leave. I’m too worn out and want to rest alone.”

“I intend to. I didn’t come here to have a conversation with you anyway.”

Laila thought naturally. Then why?

If he didn’t come to talk, does that mean he only came to say what he wanted?

Did he come all the way to her bedroom just to drop a mysterious phrase and disappear?

‘What kind of person is he…?’

Well, she had known for a while that Kidon Reisic wasn’t exactly a normal person. Laila quickly regained her composure and spoke with a calm voice.

“Yes, then please return safely.”

“Lady Laila.”

Ah, he said he was leaving.

“A week.”

That damn week… it would be etched in her ears.

Is that why he keeps saying it?

“I’ll be waiting.”

Leaving those words behind, Kidon finally brushed past Sion and Laila.

As soon as Kidon’s footsteps faded completely, Laila let out a sigh she had been holding back.

“… Let’s go inside.”

With a tired voice, Laila entered Sion’s bedroom instead of her own, as if it were the most natural thing to do.

Sion hesitated for a moment before following her in. Laila sat on the bed and then immediately collapsed sideways.

She was exhausted.

More mentally than physically.

Sion slowly approached and sat next to Laila. After a moment, he asked a question.

“Who was that?”

Laila lay there, deep in thought. Who was Kidon Reisic? Kidon Reisic was Kidon Reisic, and…

Someone like Hildegarde.

Her expression crumpled again. Trying to erase the lingering image of Kidon that floated before her eyes, she finally spoke.

“…Just a noble. He’s someone you don’t need to worry about. He’s staying here temporarily and will leave soon.”

Laila paused, then added quickly.

“We’re not close.”

“Okay.”

“I find him rather annoying, to be honest.”

“He does seem that way.”

“Right?”

Her crumpled expression smoothed out.
Laila began to smile, not with a forced expression but genuinely relaxed.

“By the way, earlier in the garden…”

Laila chattered away like she was talking to a close friend. As she spoke, she suddenly became curious.

Are Sion and I friends?

They had become close. Much closer than she had initially intended.

So, are they friends after all?

Is her relationship with Sion one that can clearly be defined as friendship?

“Sion…”

“Yes.”

Sion responded quietly when his name was called. Laila blinked, then swallowed the words that were swirling in her mouth.

“It’s nothing. I’m going to sleep now. Good night.”

Laila sprang up from the bed. As she heard Sion’s “You too,” she left his bedroom.

She recalled the question she had swallowed instead of voicing.

Are we friends?

…No matter what answer she might receive, it didn’t seem like it would bring her much joy. Strangely, she felt certain of that. So she swallowed the question.

Once Laila entered her own bedroom and got ready for bed, she didn’t immediately fall asleep.

She lay in bed without turning off the light, reflecting on herself.

Lately, when she was with Sion, she often found herself lost in thought.

It wasn’t like before, where she worried about the future or pondered her relationship with Sion.

It’s just… she gets caught up in various thoughts. Mostly trivial ones. Things that don’t really matter.

Is good skin and hair something you’re born with? If so, is Sion someone who was born with those qualities? Probably. Even when he was dirty and unkempt, Sion’s hair had always been soft. His skin was clear too…

But what about the muscles? Can muscles be innate, too? Probably not, right? The reason Sion had a solid body compared to his peers was probably because he practiced with a sword almost every day.

But what about before his regression? Back then, Sion hadn’t been able to practice with a sword… he had abruptly met his death at the age of ten.

Yet, at twenty, Sion seemed to be wearing a suit of muscle armor. How were those muscles formed?

After coming back to life, did he build those muscles through training? Let’s see if she calculates the time: did he develop those muscles in about two years?

Perhaps, but what about the knights, who have trained daily for over a decade but look smaller and softer than Sion?

“…Here I go again.”

Realizing her train of thought, Laila came to a halt. She got up groggily and turned off the light in her bedroom.

Darkness settled in. Only then did Laila try to sleep.

 

☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓

 

Laila acted as if Kidon Reisic didn’t exist in the marquisate.

She pretended not to see him even when he was right in front of her, and when others talked about Kidon, she acted as if she couldn’t hear their conversations.

Occasionally, when she unexpectedly encountered Kidon in the castle and he greeted her first, she would ignore him, not even glancing in his direction.

All the while, Laila sincerely hoped.

This time, may the noble young lord’s pride be sufficiently bruised.

Enough for him to cancel his decision to purchase her for a high price…

And as time passed, today came.

Laila felt relieved when the sun set and the sky turned twilight.

Nothing had happened.

All day.

Today marked exactly one week since Kidon had stayed at Hildegarde’s estate…

‘It seems that what he said back then was just a spur-of-the-moment remark.’

Laila thought about this while wearing clothing comfortable enough to sleep.

“Thank goodness.”

Her true feelings escaped her lips.

Exactly one week ago, Kidon had stood in front of her bedroom and unexpectedly thrown out a warning.

Talking about mistakes, atonement, and how something interesting would happen—it was all nonsense; he probably didn’t even know what he was saying.

Still, she felt a bit anxious.

What if that crazy Kidon Reisic really did something insane?

However, Kidon remained silent. Laila felt a sense of relief once again.

Whether he had no intention of causing a scene from the beginning or if he had changed his mind along the way, the reason didn’t matter.

In the end, the only thing that held value was that Kidon hadn’t caused any trouble all day.

The tension that had kept Laila’s lips tight during the day relaxed on its own.

That’s when she heard it.

Knock, knock.

At the sound of a knock, Laila turned her gaze to the door. Who could it be at this hour? Is it Marie? She wondered and spoke up.

“Come in.”

The door opened silently, revealing one of the maids who worked in the marquisate.

She looked familiar, but Laila couldn’t immediately recall her name.

Laila tried to remember the name of the maid, who seemed to be a few years older than Marie but eventually gave up.

“What’s the matter?”

“I brought you some tea.”

The maid, whose name she couldn’t remember, was indeed holding a tray with a teacup on it.

“…Is it tea that helps with recovery?”

“It’s a tea to help you sleep.”

“Really?”

Not the tea Marie used to bring her frequently until recently… Laila wasn’t sure if she should be relieved or not.

The maid approached Laila and set the tray down in the empty space beside her on the bed. Laila watched silently before asking.

“But why bring tea suddenly? I didn’t ask for it.”

“Marie asked me to bring it to you.”

“Marie?”

“Yes. She said it seemed like you hadn’t been sleeping well for a few days. “

Did she? Laila racked her memory. It seemed like it might be true. No, it was true. Because of Kidon, she’d been anxious without realizing it, and she hadn’t been sleeping well.

“Where is Marie now?”