Episode 48

“Wh-what…?”

For a moment, my mind went blank.

Seeing my hardened expression, Diana finally showed a faint smile that had disappeared from her lips.

“Why… would I be…?”

I asked in a trembling voice, and Diana replied nonchalantly.

“Didn’t you disappear last year during the goddess’s birthday because you couldn’t do it well?”

“That’s…”

I barely closed my mouth.

I didn’t want to tell her that I ran away because I didn’t want to be compared to her.

Diana’s words were not true.

With the healing potion, I had become quite adept at using my healing abilities freely.

And last year, I was able to heal minor wounds well.

Joshua’s illness is also improving smoothly.

‘But, who are you… who are you to say such things to me.’

It shouldn’t be like that, though.

Diana seemed to know better than anyone how to corner me at times.

“I’m really sorry, Belze. Actually, I came to apologize to you too.”

“……”

“If I had done better, you wouldn’t have had such a hard time healing Young Master Joshua.”

She seemed to firmly believe that I was struggling with healing Joshua.

‘Ah.’

At that moment, I realized.

That I would never become friends with the heroine.

I clenched my small hands tightly as if they would break.

‘Did you think I would just obediently play the villain?’

Maybe because I’ve lived twice.

Smiling through gritted teeth was not as difficult as I thought.

“It’s okay, Diana. Josh has gotten a lot better with my healing!”

“……Josh?”

“Yes! Jo-o-sh.”

For Diana, who reacted sensitively to the friendly nickname, I kindly repeated it syllable by syllable.

“Joshua prefers being called by his nickname!”

“I see…”

The smile painted on Diana’s face cracked.

She looked at me quietly with a gaze not fitting a child, then abruptly spoke.

“Don’t overdo it, Belze.”

“Overdo it?”

“Yes. Since I’m here today, shall I help you a bit?”

“What do you mean?”

“Healing. You can’t do it well…”

It was the second time she said it, so it didn’t hurt much.

I just smiled brightly.

“Earlier, you said because you couldn’t do it well, it was assigned to me, Diana.”

“Yeah, that’s right…”

“So, how can you help?”

“Gasp.”

Diana took a deep breath at my words.

After a while, she looked at me with tearful eyes.

“Aren’t your words too harsh? I was just… worried that you might be having a hard time, Belze…”

There it was, Diana’s specialty.

When she was in a difficult situation, she would make the other person flustered by tearfully pleading.

I don’t know anymore.

What’s the truth, and how much is an act.

I spoke with an expression that didn’t show any remorse.

“I’m sorry if you felt that way… I was just worried you might get upset later…”

“…What?”

“Healing Josh requires the Duke’s permission.”

I grinned, and Diana’s expression twisted.

‘She must think I don’t know.’

Diana will never be allowed to heal Josh.

Because she failed, and I succeeded.

In a voice filled with disbelief, she stammered.

“Then… you really healed Young Master Joshua and got to live at the Duke’s estate?”

“Yes!”

“It wasn’t that the Duke, who was passing by, saved you when you were being hit by the High Priest?”

“That too!”

“Yes?”

Color returned to Diana’s face.

She seemed to think there was no way I could have succeeded in healing where she had failed and gained the Duke’s support.

I shattered that thought with an innocent face.

“But the support was decided before that.”

“…What?”

“The very first day I healed Josh, he got better right away! So the Duke came to the temple to get me, and it just so happened that he saw it. That nasty dog was about to hit me…”

“Is that… so?”

“Yes! So, what I’m saying is, I succeeded in healing Josh and got the Duke’s support! So you don’t have to feel sorry for me, Diana.”

“……”

Diana’s face darkened abruptly at my words.

I looked at her with cold eyes.

‘She must have something to say to me now.’

I waited, but no apology came from Diana.

She was the kind of person who would apologize for trivial things but pretend not to know when she said something that genuinely hurt me.

‘Maybe it’s because we don’t match in any way, from one to ten, that she’s the heroine and I’m the villain.’

But it didn’t matter anymore whether Diana apologized or not.

Because I was no longer hurt.

“……But. How did you know about that?”

Instead, I changed the subject casually.

“Huh? About what?”

“That I almost got hit by that nasty dog.”

“Oh~ A knight from the imperial palace came looking for me.”

“A knight?”

“Yes! He asked if I had ever been hit or severely punished at the temple!”

‘It seems the Duke’s report yielded results.’

It was somewhat reassuring to know that the investigation was making progress.

Of course, Diana would have answered that she had never experienced such a thing.

“I didn’t know the High Priest was such a bad person…”

As expected, Diana mumbled with a dejected face.

“It must have hurt a lot, Belze. You were punished often.”

“It’s okay.”

“I heard the Room of Repentance is gone too? That’s really a relief! The goddess will surely punish such a bad person!”

Diana looked at me with tear-filled eyes.

While I was half-listening to her words of comfort, I hesitated and looked back at her.

“…But, Diana.”

“Huh?”

She said she didn’t know the High Priest was such a person.

‘But how do you know about the Room of Repentance?’

I was about to ask that when there was a knock.

“Miss! It’s me, Tara.”

Tara announced her presence.

I had no choice but to put aside the uneasiness that had risen to my throat.

“Yes, Tara! Come in!”

“Were you having a good conversation? Were you playing with dolls or something!”

“We’re too old for that now…”

“Yes, yes. Is that so? Sorry for being a bit late. I was preparing a few more snacks.”

Ignoring my words, Tara pushed in a trolley.

My eyes widened at the sight of a large, ornate three-tier tray decorated with flowers.

‘Just a few snacks? This looks like… did she raid a bakery?’

The plates were filled with various desserts, from cookies to macarons, cakes, and sandwiches.

“Wh-why did you bring so much?”

“It’s the first time you’ve had a friend over, miss! The head chef put in some extra effort!”

“Is the chef a wizard or something…?”

“If the head chef heard that, he’d be flying around on a ladle.”

Tara grinned as she finished setting up.

Everything was very small and cute, as if specially made for children: tiny cups, teapots, and teaspoons were lined up in succession.

‘Playing tea party at this age.’

Unlike my somewhat skeptical attitude, Diana’s eyes sparkled.

“Wow! So pretty!”

“Isn’t it? The Duke had these custom-made for when our young miss would host tea parties, and now we finally get to use them!”

“The Duke…?”

“Yes!”

Tara’s words touched a part of my heart.

‘Come to think of it, he bought something like this in my previous life too…’

The tea set the Duke sent as a gift was very luxurious and beautiful.

It was clearly meant to encourage me to invite friends over for a tea party.

But those pretty teacups never got used.

After hosting a tea party that no one attended, I put them away in the cabinet and never used them again.

‘I should have just invited the Duke to drink tea with me. Or Edwin, or even Tara…’

That kindness. That warm-hearted gesture.

I shouldn’t have let it go to waste in the cabinet.

‘It’s okay. This time, I’ll make sure to have a tea party with the Duke!’

And I’ll invite Joshua, and Edwin too!

‘I’ll make lots of money and buy all the famous desserts from the capital!’

Just as I was clenching my fist and making my resolution, a refreshing sound of water pouring into the teacup brought me back to reality.

“Princesses, what would you like to have first? Just let me know, and I’ll serve it right away.”

Tara, who had poured tea into Diana’s and my cups, started the princess roleplay again.

“Princess…?”

Diana mumbled, looking puzzled.

Used to this, I replied without hesitation.

“How about we start with the pecan pie Diana brought?”

“Okay, sounds good!”

The palm-sized pies she brought were neatly cut into bite-sized pieces.

Tara used tongs to place a piece on each of our plates.

“Enjoy your meal!”

It felt like I was finally having the tea party I never got to have in my previous life, and I was a little excited.

I eagerly stabbed the pie with my fork and took a big bite.

Crunch!

The crispy, savory tart crust crumbled in my mouth, and the finely chopped pecans and sweet jam filled it.

“Wow… it’s delicious!”

An exclamation escaped my lips.

‘They said it was the most famous in the capital…!’

Even a child (like me) who didn’t particularly like nuts found it delicious!

“I’m glad you like it.”

Diana smiled broadly at my reaction.

Unlike me, she was elegantly cutting the edges with her fork and eating small bites.

Having quickly devoured a piece in a few big bites, I felt a bit embarrassed and quietly put my fork down.

“Don’t you like it? Why are you eating so little?”

“No, it’s not that…”

Diana’s smile deepened at the corners of her mouth.

“Actually, it’s my first time eating so much like this too.”

“…Huh?”

“Thanks to you, I get to try all these things, Belze.”

I didn’t understand what she meant.

‘Didn’t she say earlier that the Marquis bought it for her?’

It was then.

Suddenly, I saw a small yellowish glow bloom near Diana’s neck.

“…Wait.”

I instinctively called out to Diana.

But it was already too late.

“Hoo, ha…”

Suddenly, Diana took a deep breath and plunged a forkful of pie into her mouth.

Before I could stop her, she had already shoved the large piece into her mouth.

Crunch, crunch. Gulp!

It seemed a bit too big for a child, so Diana quickly chewed and swallowed it with the tea that Tara had poured.

And at that moment.

Whoosh―!

The small yellow glow at her neck instantly swelled up.

I jumped up from my seat.

“Spit it out immediately!”

“Ugh…”

Diana grimaced and clutched her neck.

“Miss Belze. What’s wrong?”

Tara, looking flustered, turned to me.

And then.

“Gack!”

Diana’s face suddenly turned red, and she started gagging.

“My, my body feels strange… I can’t… breathe…!”

“Ah! Miss! What’s happening!”

At that moment.

Bang!

The door flew open.

“Lady Diana!”

Diana’s maid rushed in through the open door.

“…What’s going on?”

Another person followed her in.

It was Edwin, his face filled with shock.

Everything felt like it was moving in slow motion, like a scene from a movie.