My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! Volume 5

by Satoru Yamaguchi

  Nobody but Katarina usually came here, and she was at the academy right now... so who could it be? I turned around and saw one of the boys that had been working as gardener for the Claes family for the last few years.

  He was tall for his age and had an earnest, loyal personality, making him popular amongst the maids. I’d often seen them chat him up, but I’d never talked with him myself.

  “...Yes?” I asked, confused.

  “Well... I... I really like sweets, and actually, I’ve eaten some of the ones you made. The young miss shared them with me. I really loved them, and... Could I maybe... have some?”

  “...Oh, of course,” I said to the blushing boy in front of me, also blushing myself.

  I offered him a few of the confections, and he took them with the brightest of smiles.

  Eventually, the dream of marrying and having my own family, the one that I’d given up on, came true. But that was a few years later.

  The tales I had read as a child were true. That day, the girl who came out of the grass to meet me in the garden really was a fairy, using her magic to bring me happiness.

  At the Ladies’ Club

  My name is Millidiana Claes. Last spring, my daughter Katarina — the main source of my headaches — left for the Academy of Magic.

  My house regained its peace, and the wrinkles that had accumulated on my forehead in the last years slowly began to disappear. I did not receive any troubling communications from the academy, and therefore I believed that even a child as problematic as mine had managed to grow up now that she was attending school.

  When she came back for summer vacation, she began tending to the fields and practicing throwing her strange toys, as usual. But as long as she behaved at the academy, I thought that I could forgive her abnormality at home.

  But... I had been naive... Terribly so.

  Today was the monthly tea party of the Noble Ladies’ Club. This club was composed of several women from the highest ranks of nobility, some of whom were the mothers of boys and girls who were attending the academy and currently home for the summer. Considering this, it was only natural that our conversations that day would revolve around the school.

  I listened to the stories that the ladies had heard from their children, while offering some of the stories that I had heard from mine. It was then that I heard about that rumor.

  “I heard from my daughter that someone has made a field inside the academy’s grounds!”

  “A field? As would be in a farm?”

  “Yes, indeed. And what’s more, it would seem that it is a student who is responsible for this.”

  “Oh my!”

  I tried to match the surprised expressions of the other ladies, carefully hiding the fear that had started creeping up inside of me.

  “...But most of the students are from high-ranking families. It would be hard to believe that one of them would do something like that.”

  “Indeed! One of the children must have invented this rumor as a joke.”

  “That is most likely so.”

  “It still is a very ridiculous idea, is it not?”

  The others were laughing, and I joined them. “Ridiculous indeed,” I said with a smile. All the while, cold sweat was chilling my back...

  Among that collection of noble children, who would ever think of playing farmer? The very thought was no doubt worthy of laughter. But my mind went to the field slowly taking over the Claes Manor garden... and to Katarina, happily tilling the soil...

  I had believed that, at least at the academy, she was behaving properly. I had been wrong.

  Just wait until I get home...

  I clenched my fists below the table.

  At the Academy of Magic

  Wielders of magic from all over the country must enroll at the Academy of Magic once they turn fifteen. I was no exception — I was the daughter of a baron living far from the capital, and at the age of six, I used magic for the first time.

  I entered the academy last spring. But as I came from a countryside family, I didn’t feel at ease amongst the other, higher-ranking nobles. Had my magic been particularly powerful, my academic performance stellar, or my appearance beautiful — or, maybe, had I been a Light Magic user, like Maria Campbell — then I could have kept my head high from the start.

  Alas, my magic was weak, and I lagged behind in my studies. I was sometimes told that I had a very friendly face, but I’d never been called beautiful. I felt out of place.

  When they found out that their daughter could use magic — a first in the family — my parents were overcome with joy. But once in the academy, the others looked down upon me for coming from a relatively poor family from the countryside, and even bossed me around like a servant.

  After a few months, I already wanted to go back home.

  ...But then, something happened.

  I was discreetly reading a book in a corner of the classroom, one of the romance novels that aristocratic society scorned. But I had loved them since before moving to the capital, and I had secretly brought them with me from home.

  “Is that... a romance novel?”

  I looked up at the person who had asked me that question, and found that it was someone of such a high rank that it was surprising that they would bother talking with the daughter of a poor country baron.

  Katarina Claes was a duke’s daughter, and she was engaged to a prince. She stood near the top of the country’s hierarchy, and therefore, even as her classmate, I could not simply talk to her like I would with another girl my age. In fact, I had never spoken with her even once.

  Surprised by being spoken to, I froze on the spot, confused. But she smiled at me.

  “I like romance novels too! Would you like to chat sometime?”

  I accepted her invitation, and before I knew it, I was regularly meeting with her to have tea and talk about novels. And once I started spending time with her, the others at the academy stopped looking down on me and treating me like a servant.

  Katarina was a wonderful, incredible person. She had the confident demeanor of a duchess, but she never put on airs like other high-ranking nobles, and never looked down upon anyone. She was even kind to me, the lowly daughter of a baron from the country.

  I eventually realized that Katarina had stolen my heart. When I watched her playing with dogs in the thickets near the academy, or tending to the plants in the garden, I was reminded of the saintly girls of romance novels.

  I was so focused on admiring her that I fell down and got dirt on my dress. Seeing this, Katarina offered me her handkerchief.

  “It would get dirty,” I said, trying to refuse.

  But she smiled at me and said, “No problem! You can keep it!”

  I held that handkerchief to my chest, swearing to treasure it forever.

  I didn’t want to go back home anymore... I wanted to stay here, near Katarina, for as long as I could.

  ★★★★★★★

  “Big Sister, what happened to that thing you used to wear on your head?”

  “Oh, the kerchief? I gave it to a classmate.”

  “What?! You didn’t make that classmate wear it like you always do, did you?”

  “No, she fell down and her dress had got dirty, so I gave it to her to clean herself up.”

  “I see... Phew... Wait, why didn’t you just give her your handkerchief?”

  “I used it to clean my hands after working on the field, so it was all dirty.”

  “Oh, I see... Hm? Isn’t the hem of your dress a little frayed?”

  “Yep, the other day I was in the thicket and I met my worst enemy... a dog. It bit the hem of my dress, but it was only a puppy, so I managed to chase him off!”

  “That’s... That’s wonderful... Anyway, I’m glad to see you so full of energy, but try to tone it down while you’re at the academy. A few days ago you were picking fruit from the trees in the garden and eating it, weren’t you? This isn’t home, so you can’t eat anything that you find lying down on the floor.
..”

  “But it wasn’t lying on the floor! I got it from a tree!”

  “You’re missing the point... Keeping Mother in the dark is starting to become difficult, so please, try to behave.”

  “...Okay,” I said with a half-hearted nod, and my brother sighed.

  At the Ladies’ Club, Again

  “Your daughter really is wonderful, Lady Claes. A lot of students worship her and say that she is like a saint.”

  I was at the monthly meeting of the Ladies’ Club, talking with the mother of a child who, like Katarina, was currently attending the academy.

  I thought I had misheard her, but when I asked her to repeat what she had just said, I realized that this was not the case...

  This must be a misunderstanding... She must be mistaking my child for someone else’s.

  I only had one daughter, and a very problematic one at that. So problematic, in fact, that I often wondered where I went wrong in bringing her up.

  Despite being from a noble family — a duke’s family, no less — she climbed up trees in her dress, tilled the soil while wearing a kerchief over her head, and ate things that she found on the ground. Had I heard of a problem student who was known for her monkey-esque behavior, then sure... that would be my daughter.

  There was no way that Katarina was thought of as a saint. And yet...

  “Are you quite sure that it is my daughter you are referring to?”

  “Of course. I am talking about Katarina Claes.”

  “My own daughter is actually part of the Katarina Appreciation Society.”

  “...A-Appreciation Society?”

  “Yes. Of course it is not an official organization, but it has quite a few members.”

  I was so shocked that my mouth fell open and I almost froze that way.

  This is impossible!

  An appreciation society? For that devilish daughter of mine? Who could appreciate that monkey? Are they sure it is not Keith they are talking about?

  I am very sorry for Katarina, but looking at them objectively, Keith is much more talented and admirable, despite not being biologically related to me.

  Knowing this, I asked again and again... but there was no mistake. Katarina was the one with a fan club. And all the things I heard about her sounded like they were about someone else’s daughter.

  She loves plants? She only climbs trees and picks fruit to eat...

  Animals love her? I have only seen dogs bark at her and chase her around...

  I could hardly believe that this was the Katarina I knew. Perhaps the way I saw her behave at home was only a facade, and her real self was a saintly, admirable lady.

  Coincidentally, she was now at home for the summer. I decided that, after the tea party, I would ask her directly.

  ★★★★★★★★

  “Heigh-ho! Heave-ho!”

  As soon as I came back home, I found Katarina with a kerchief on her head, loudly bringing down the hoe to the field.

  Seeing her like that... I was sure that the ladies at the club must have been mistaking her for someone else. Moments ago, I had thought that perhaps she really had a proper, lady-like side to her... But not anymore.

  “Huff! Heave-ho! Heigh-ho!”

  Her appalling exclamations echoed through the garden of the venerable Claes Manor. Hearing that was enough to make me feel tired, and I elected to retreat inside.

  Katarina... I know you cannot become the wonderful lady the rumors say you are, but at least... try to become presentable... Alone in my room, I let out a deep sigh.

  Once Katarina came back from the field, I told her to stop those weird sounds of hers... but the next day, once again, the garden of the venerable Claes Manor echoed with the sound of “Heigh-ho!”

  ★★★★★★★★

  “Your daughter, today...” I was complaining about Katarina to my husband in our bedroom, as I often did.

  “She’s always full of energy, isn’t she?” replied Luigi Claes with a smile.

  He was handsome, kind, and talented; a truly wonderful husband. But he had one fault: When it came to Katarina, he was extremely soft. He loved her so much that no matter what incident she got herself into, he would laugh and forgive her.

  He had better realize what kind of girl his daughter has turned into...

  “It is nothing so endearing as her simply having too much energy... She is always so rushed, never stopping to think before she acts. Once she has her mind set on something, she never listens to those around her. Who did she get that personality from?” I said with a sigh, and Luigi looked at me as if wanting to say something.

  “What is it?”

  “...No, it’s nothing,” he said, so I continued to complain about Katarina for a while.

  I still cannot fathom how she could grow up with a personality like that. That is what I thought as I fell asleep, and luckily, the words that my husband muttered by my side never reached my ears.

  “Katarina didn’t only get her face from you...”

  Having Met You

  ～Keith Claes～

  “I wish you were never born!”

  “Why must that brat stay in my house?”

  “Go away, you monster!”

  Why? Why does everyone hate me?

  Why doesn’t anyone stay by my side?

  I don’t want to be alone.

  I’m so lonely.

  Please... Someone... Anyone. Stay with me.

  I woke up and looked at the ceiling that, in the past months, I had become used to seeing. That’s right, I thought, this is Claes Manor. This is my family now. I sighed in relief.

  Ever since I was born, I had always been hated and treated like a nuisance. However, this was not the case anymore since I had come to Claes Manor. My kind family was happy to share their meals with me, and cared about me and my health. I had all that I had ever wished for.

  And yet, I still sometimes had those dreams from the past. Dreams of being insulted and rejected. It should have all been behind me, but... it still made my chest hurt.

  Today, I was supposed to attend a tea party along with my sister. With my chest still hurting, I started to prepare.

  “Thank you for coming with me, Keith,” said Katarina, smiling at me on the carriage that was to take us to the tea party. Her smile made me feel better.

  “I’m bad at remembering faces, so going alone is a bit scary. I’m so happy you’re here with me!” Her blue eyes were looking straight into mine. “Thank you for coming to our family, Keith. I’m so glad that I could become your sister.”

  Hearing these words almost made me cry. Happiness warmed my chest, that had been filled with pain from my dream, from the inside.

  Katarina Claes is such a mysterious girl. She always says just the right thing at the right time.

  “...I’m just as glad to be part of the Claes family and to have you as a sister,” I told her, and she gave me yet another one of those kind smiles of hers.

  I’m so grateful to have met Katarina, I thought from the bottom of my heart.

  ～Mary Hunt～

  After first meeting Katarina, I spent the next few months trying to become a lady respectable enough to be worthy of her company.

  I had to train in a wide variety of fields: academics, dance, etiquette, and more. With no particular talent, I was actually a slower learner than those around me, which is why none of this training went smoothly. I had to put in more effort than anyone else.

  I studied all night, asking question upon question of my instructor whenever he was there. I practiced etiquette day after day until I finally managed to behave correctly in any situation. I worked on dancing for so long that I wore out my shoes and my feet began to bleed.

  My half-sisters from another mother laughed at my efforts.

  “Look at this talentless fool trying so hard!”

  “A noble lady training so obsessively is nothing short of embarrassing.”

  “She is just as bad as expected of someone born from a low
-ranking mother!”

  These words felt like arrows piercing into my chest, poisoning it with pain.

  But whenever I was with Katarina, the pain became lighter. And then, one day...

  “Ouch...”

  “Mary? What’s wrong? Are you okay?”

  As soon as I stopped walking and crouched down, Katarina worriedly called out to me. I had come to her house for a visit, and we were now going through the garden and to her field. My foot had suddenly started aching, and, taking a good look at it, I saw that it was bleeding slightly.

  “Mary! You’re hurt! Did you hit your foot somewhere?!” said Katarina.

  Influenced by her panic, I replied with a hint of panic as well. “...It’s fine. Yesterday I practiced dancing for too long, and my feet are a bit worn out... that is all.”

  “Dancing?”

  “Yes. I’m a bad dancer, so I have to practice harder than most people...”

  I immediately regretted saying this. Will she think that I can’t even dance without practicing until my feet bleed? Will she laugh at me?

  Worried, I looked at Katarina. But her eyes held none of the contempt that my sisters did. She was looking at me in awe.

  “Working so hard to improve at something you’re bad at... Mary, you’re incredible. I should really learn from you!”

  I gave my best day after day, only to be made a fool of. “Why are you trying so hard?” they said, laughing at me.

  But I didn’t care anymore... because she was here. And she told me I was incredible for working so hard.

  “Let’s go back to the manor and tend to your wounds,” said Katarina, dragging me by the hand. But I could only think of one thing:

  I’m so grateful to have met Katarina Claes.

  About Our Engagement

  I called for my fiancée, Mary Hunt, telling her that we had to talk. We planned to meet in a private room in the dorm so that nobody would be around to overhear us.