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T/N: Today I want to give a shout out to my Cookie Donors Katherine and Casey! Thank you guys so much for the sweets! I’m enjoying them ❤
Looking down at the ground, I see the two neat, little halves of the apple lying there.
No way…. I really did it.
I look back up in the direction of my brothers and their friends and they all look shocked. Their beautiful eyes look as if they might pop out of their heads and they’re all standing there as stiff as if they were mannequins.….Please don’t be like this, okay? What am I supposed to do now? How can I fix this awkward atmosphere?
Oh, wait…. Might this be a good chance to firmly plant the seed of my villainy into their minds?
I take in a deep breathe, straighten my back so that I’m standing as tall as possible, and then I look directly at them.
“Oniisama, I believe I told you not to make light of me. I want to become stronger. I have a clear goal in mind. And if it’s for that goal, then I’ll show you that I’ll overcome any difficulties that lie in my path.”
Ooh, that sounded just like what a villainess would say. Good going, me! But it’s true too. If it’s for the sake of my goal, I’d be willing to do whatever it takes.
In a fairytale that I read recently there was a tantalizingly attractive villainess that had tens of thousands of men from all over the world just lining up to catch her attention. But out of all of those hopeful guys, she allowed only a handful to stay by her side. She personally met with each of them one-by-one to decide on who would be allowed to remain with her.
I can’t even imagine how many days that must have taken her. I’m sure it must have been an extremely difficult task. But she was able to accomplish it perfectly in the end. That just goes to show how truly amazing villainesses can be when they put their minds to something.“Amazing,” Duke-Sama says, with the corners of his mouth quirked up ever so slightly and his gaze fixated, staring at me.
He’d been the first one to manage to say something after seeing my somewhat shocking display.
I wish he wouldn’t stare at me like that though. If only he could understand the power that his beauty can have on people….. It’s kind of embarrassing to be watched so closely….! But I need to get used to this sort of thing. This isn’t the time for me to be acting bashfully. I’m going to become a villainess! And villainesses don’t shy away from such situations as these.
Albert-Oniisama comes towards me, stooping to pick up the two halves of the apple that had fallen to the ground. His usual smile has finally slipped from his face and has been replaced with a thoughtful expression as he stares hard at the two pieces. After a moment, he slowly turns to look over at me.
“Do you really want to learn swordsmanship?”
That’s what I’ve been saying this entire time! But it looks like I never managed to get my sincerity across to him.
I give a huge nod of my head.
Albert-Oniisama ponders my request seriously for a moment and then finally murmurs his consent.
Huh? Just now….. Did he really say that it was okay!?
Does that mean that I can finally start learning how to use a sword!?
“Really~!?”
Whoops… I was too excited and I ended up blurting out exactly what I’d been thinking.
……Darn it! Up until that moment, I had been perfectly playing the role of a villainess! I can’t believe I ruined that image at the very last second.
Sigh. I guess it’s understandable though. I was feeling over the moon, I was so happy…. To be told that I could finally learn swordsmanship after having been completely underestimated like that, anyone would have slipped up in that situation I suppose.
And since my villainous acting had been so awesome up until that point, I guess it all evens out in the end.
Albert-Oniisama smiles broadly at me.
“Really,” he says kindly, rubbing my head again.
Although the last time he had touched my head had been irritating, for some reason this time it just makes me feel extremely happy.
It feels like he’s finally recognized my hard work and determination, which is amazingly satisfying. Completely overjoyed, I throw my arms around him.
“Thank you!! Albert-Oniisama’s the best!!”
Somehow this feels almost like how I acted before I’d gotten the memories from my past life back.
No, maybe it’s a little different. I feel a lot more free than I did back then.
“Don’t you look happy, Albert~”
“Feeling shy, are ya?”
“Al-Nii, lucky~”
Oh? Does Albert-Oniisama look happy right now? I want to see~!
But when I raise my head to look at his face, his usual kind expression is firmly back in place…….. Awww. No fair.
Oh! That’s right! I need to be heading over to the library soon!
“Okay, Oniisama, I’ll see you later!” I say, turning around and hurrying back towards the house.
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T/N: And with that, Alicia’s recorded life as a 7-year-old comes to an end. Next chapter we’ll be hearing from the older and wiser 8-year-old Alicia! (Probably minus the “wiser” part lol)
