Chapter 27
What was even more shocking than the siblings’ fight was the butler’s reaction.
This was mild. Usually, it was even worse. The butler acting as if nothing was happening was scarier than the fight itself.
How do the staff even work in this house? It looked like they had to risk their lives to do anything here.
The butler, who had been quietly watching me, finally spoke in surprise.
“Lord Lloyd… has cast Reverse-Protection Magic on Miss Kae.”
“Ah… yes. That’s why the two of them were fighting just now. But how did you know I had magic on me?”
“Though I am not very skilled, I learned magic in my youth. I am a 4th Circle Mage.”
With that level of skill, he could have been a royal court magician and lived comfortably. Yet here he was, working to support that impossible pair of siblings in the Helderios household.
I admired the butler grandfather’s amazing skill, but I wondered what kind of protective magic could be strong enough to require that.
“Reverse-Protection Magic is a spell where Lord Lloyd takes all the physical and magical damage that Miss Kae would receive. The greater the damage you take, the more it multiplies on the caster, Lord Lloyd. If misused, the caster could even die. Only someone willing to risk their life uses this magic. First the Ring of Lurangel, now Reverse-Protection Magic… Lord Lloyd must really care for Miss Kae.”
The butler blinked back tears as he finished speaking.
Crazy. So if anyone hits me, Lloyd takes all that damage?
I think I finally understood why Dabien attacked me earlier. She must have known Lloyd would take the damage.
But why would he go this far?
Does he really think Dabien will kill me?
A strange ring that shocks my heart if I move too far, and now he casts such powerful magic on me. I could not understand why he paid so much attention to me, a so-called villainess.
“Lord Lloyd is already so great… this butler would die satisfied now.”
I tried to ignore the butler grandfather’s sudden drama and turned to watch the “mansion destruction” by the overpowered siblings in front of me.
The room was now falling apart, the steel beams visible.
“Llooooyd, Daaabieeennn!”
At that moment, a low, deep resonance echoed in my mind from deep inside.
“Huh… what?”
“It will be over soon.”
The butler seemed to hear it too, taking a pocket watch from his vest as he murmured,
“Looks like it will finish quickly today.”
Ruuuuummmble!
The building shook even harder with a loud vibration.
The low voice echoed in my mind again.
“Again… are you fighting again?!”
At the second voice, the two fighting siblings froze. The continuous shaking made the dangling door collapse into smoke.
“I told you not to fight among yourselves…”
Through the smoke, the Duchess appeared, her face furious. The previously raging siblings turned pale at once.
“Uh… Mother…”
At that moment, I saw flames rise from her hands.
In a flash, the Duchess disappeared and reappeared beside the siblings, landing a perfect uppercut to both their chests. The two flew backward through the air and collapsed to the floor.
I would never have guessed such a petite Duchess could have such strength.
“Cough, cough!”
“Ugh…!”
The siblings, coughing and wincing, got up to see the Duchess standing before them, her face terrifying.
“How can you still fight at your age? Open your eyes and look around. What is this mess! Dabien, Lloyd! You are grounded for a month. Only official duties allowed; otherwise, stay in your rooms.”
She looked like a mother disciplining naughty children.
“But Mother, Dabien attacked first!”
“Mother! Lloyd kicked me from behind!”
Their bickering, blaming each other, was exactly like small children.
So this was the true nature of these siblings.
“Enough! Go to your rooms immediately!”
Even as they left the destroyed room, they were glaring at each other.
Watching them, the Duchess shook her head and approached me.
“Kae, are you all right?”
Ah, my body is fine. My mind, not so much.
“These children were born after a difficult birth, so I spoiled them too much. Still… thanks to you, Kae, Lloyd seems to have matured a little.”
“Uh… matured? That appearance?”
I blurted out my shock, and the Duchess laughed brightly.
“There was a time the whole mansion was destroyed in their fights. Compared to that, this is a huge improvement. Thank you, Kae.”
A whole mansion destroyed… these siblings were monsters. And the petite middle-aged woman who had calmed them was also a monster in her own right.
She was even grateful that the room was only partially destroyed.
Their childhood must have been terrifying.
“Alfred, please clean the room. Kae, I’ll go first. There’s much to do.”
Watching the Duchess weave around the ruined room, I realized my life among these monstrous siblings would be a thorny path.
The next morning, after breakfast, I went for a walk to ease my feelings.
In the beautifully arranged garden, my eyes caught the mansion with large cracks.
“Hah… hahaha.”
They really did a number on it.
Soon, wagons carrying supplies arrived, and workers began unloading.
“Another job done, huh?”
“But this time, it’s smaller.”
“Are you hurt?”
Hearing the workers’ chatter, I returned to my room.
Just how monstrous are these people?
I had read in the novel that they could crush rocks and destroy trees, but this was on another level.
I vowed to never provoke them and headed to my room.
On the stairs, I saw Lloyd waiting.
As I approached, he walked toward me briskly.
“You’ve waited long.”
His hair fluttered in the wind like a model on a runway.
A stunning, handsome, perfectly fit model.
Hmm, at least his face is exactly my type.
Dressed in a neat uniform, he looked perfect, a treat for my eyes in the morning.
After yesterday’s mess with Dabien, he had no mark on his face.
As I admired him, he met my gaze and blushed.
Huh? What’s this?
Lloyd approached me and handed a beautifully wrapped gift.
“A gift.”
What’s the occasion?
Not one to refuse gifts, I took it.
“Open it.”
Inside was a necklace with a red gemstone, beautifully cut.
It clearly said, “I am no ordinary item.”
“Terrina’s Tear.”
I froze at his words.
“Isn’t… this a treasure from the temple?”
Terrina’s Tear. Its value was beyond measure—the kind that could buy a kingdom.
And the gem came from the Ascenta Dungeon recently cleared by the Helderios siblings.
He placed it around my neck and spoke.
“When Loa fell long ago, her beloved deity Terrina wept. These are her tears, also called the Tear of God.”
The jewel on my neck sparkled brilliantly.
The price of a kingdom… My neck felt honored just wearing it.
“I’ll be busy for a while, so you might not see me often. Think of me when you see this necklace.”
Embarrassingly cheesy, I blushed at Lloyd’s words.
Then I felt soft, warm lips on my forehead.
Huh…?
By the time I realized it, Lloyd had disappeared. Only Terrina’s Tear remained shining on my neck.
Could it be… he’s fallen for me?
From the moment he kidnapped me, claiming he would take responsibility for a single night, I should have guessed. The “villainess charm skill” was truly powerful—even Lloyd had fallen for it.
Though I was from another world, I had been the villainess’s body before.
For the righteous protagonist to fall for the villainess after one night… this skill shattered all realism.
I silently screamed at the author: “Distribute the stats properly, please!”
Not long after Lloyd left, Dabien arrived.
Her neat black bob bounced, and she wore glasses, trying to keep up her “teacher” persona.
Her long, straight legs matched her stylish pants.
When reading the novel, I imagined Dabien as a delicate girl with long flowing hair in a gown. The cover had shown her that way.
But the real Dabien was completely different.
Her beautiful face was as imagined, but her tall, muscular figure gave the impression that a single hit could send someone straight to the afterlife.
Of course, a Sword Master and mansion-crushing knight wouldn’t be frail.
Ah, indeed. I nodded, noticing the books she carried.
Though her arms were full of thick books, her steps were feather-light.
She slammed the books onto a table, the weight vibrating through the room. If she could lift such weight as if it were nothing… how strong was she?
Dabien’s gaze turned to me. Her eyes, terrifying as they looked at my face, suddenly lowered. Her expression hardened as she surely saw the Terrina’s Tear around my neck.
A treasure of enormous value.
