I Possessed the Villain’s Daughter – Chapter 85

When I came here, I wondered if it might be a tree species I was familiar with. But even for me, this was the first time I’d ever seen such a tree.

Since it was said to be an imported species, it was definitely not native to the Siwyn Kingdom.

When I asked Eladin if he knew exactly where the tree had been brought from, he shook his head.

“I’m not sure. But seeing how well it’s growing, it must have come from a region with a similar climate.”

It sounded plausible enough.

As I continued to look up at the tree, I suddenly noticed something peculiar.

“What’s that up there?”

If I tilted my head all the way back, I could see a round, purple object nestled near the middle trunk where it stretched upward.

Eladin glanced at it and went, “Ah.”

“Since it’s winter, I think it might be a bird’s nest. The gardeners didn’t touch it—it’s too high, and it doesn’t seem to be the cause anyway.”

I stared at it for a while.

There was this strange sense of familiarity, as if I was on the verge of recognizing something, but it slipped away—like groping through fog.

I touched the trunk, ran my hands over the branches, and even picked up fallen bark and twigs from the ground. For now, I decided to examine those first.

“Will it be alright?”

Eladin looked at me anxiously, but I just shrugged.

“I’ll do my best.”

That was all I could say for now.

As I was about to head back to the office, Eladin insisted on escorting me. I didn’t feel like refusing, so I nodded, and we walked back together—only to run into Ray.

“Prince Ray.”

We both stopped in the middle of the corridor.

“Ah, Lady Laila.”

He smiled at me. His neatly kept lemon-blond hair shimmered in the sunlight, and his green eyes were as bright as ever. Beside him stood his aide, Minuet, with ash-gray hair.

“Good afternoon. Oh, and here’s Eladin too.”

“It’s been a while, brother.”

“Indeed. Prince Ray, Lord Minuet.”

Ray ruffled Eladin’s hair affectionately. The two seemed close. After exchanging greetings, Ray turned to me with a curious look.

“But how is it that you’ve already met Eladin?”

“Well…”

It wasn’t something I needed to hide—besides, he was my superior, so I was obligated to report anything work-related. So I explained how Eladin had approached me. Ray nodded with an intrigued look.

“So that’s what happened.”

For some reason, he looked at Eladin with an amused expression.

“Hm…”

“…Is there a problem?”

He kept glancing back and forth between me and Eladin, as though thinking something over. When I asked, Ray just shook his head.

“Nothing. I’m relieved, that’s all. I’ve been worried about that tree too. After all, it grew up alongside my younger brother—seeing it wither away isn’t a good sign.”

Then suddenly, Ray leaned in close to me.

“By the way, you look absolutely beautiful today.”

“…”

I gave him a look of disbelief.

Even back in our school days, he used to throw such kind words around—not just to me, but to nearly every girl he met. That’s how he earned his reputation as the biggest flirt in Rebekam. But over time, that behavior tapered off, because he had settled on “one person.”

…Though, ironically, that person didn’t seem very aware of it.

In any case, I couldn’t guess why he was suddenly acting like this with me again.

“Work is important, but please take care of yourself. If anything were to happen to you, I’d be terribly ashamed. After all, Lady Laila, you’re an honored guest whom I personally invited.”

“Thank you, Prince Ray.”

He chuckled softly, while I was simply left puzzled. What struck me as odd was the look on Eladin’s face—he looked like he was about to cry as he watched us.

‘What’s with him?’

Before I could figure it out, Ray excused himself to attend to other matters.

After parting ways, Eladin and I continued walking. Unlike before, when he’d been pointing things out and chatting, he was now silent, looking rather drained. Then, all of a sudden, he spoke.

“…Lady, you seem very close with my brother.”

“Of course. We’ve known each other since our school days.”

“….”

For some reason, my answer only made him look even gloomier. I had no idea why.

‘Come to think of it…’

His words brought back memories of my time at Rebekam Academy.

So many outrageous things had happened back then. We’d stayed up all night in the library working on assignments, botched countless potion experiments… There were bad memories too, but the good ones were stronger. It felt like everything worth learning in life, I’d learned there.

‘…Wait.’

I stopped walking.

That same foggy sensation was back—the feeling I was on the verge of remembering something important.

If I just reached a little further, I could grasp it.

Eladin halted when I did, looking up at me with a puzzled expression.

“Is something wrong—”

“Eladin brother!”

A clear, ringing voice cut him off.

We both turned instinctively.

There stood a small girl with jet-black hair and crimson eyes blinking up at us. She looked no older than nine or ten—adorably pretty. Beside her was a boy who, judging by his hair and eye color, wasn’t of royal blood. Likely a friend.

But… why did it feel like the girl was glaring at me?

‘Am I imagining things?’

“R-Rubiana. Raltz!”

Eladin’s face went pale as he looked at her.

Judging by the situation, this must be his precious younger sister—the one and only princess here. Though, oddly enough, she wasn’t exactly how he had described her. He’d said Rubiana was timid and shy, but in person she seemed confident and spirited, arms crossed like a little commander.

Eladin kept glancing at me nervously. Taking it as my cue, I stepped forward to greet her.

“Hello, Princess. My name is Laila Roshahil.”

“…Rubiana Siwist.”

‘Huh?’

Rubiana turned her head sharply before I’d even finished introducing myself. She clearly didn’t like me.

‘Did I do something wrong?’

While I stood there bewildered, Eladin whispered urgently.

“L-Lady…”

“Yes?”

“Rubiana is very shy around new people. She… she’s actually delighted to meet you, even if it doesn’t look like it.”

I blinked at him. All I could see was the back of Rubiana’s head.

“…Really?”

I narrowed my eyes suspiciously, but Eladin nodded frantically.

“O-Of course! In fact, she’s been eager to meet you more than anyone else. She’s just… embarrassed, that’s all.”

I looked at Rubiana again. Her small shoulders did seem to be trembling slightly… perhaps from shyness.

‘Could that be it?’

Since I’d only just met her, I had no way of knowing. It was probably best to take her brother’s word for it.

So I smiled and said, “I’m very glad to meet you as well, Princess.”

“Ahaha… t-that’s a relief.”

Oddly enough, Eladin was sweating, but I dismissed it as my imagination.

Then the boy beside her spoke up.

“It’s an honor to meet you. I’m Raltz Emoril.”

He was expressionless, but at least not hostile. I bent my knees slightly in greeting.

“Laila Roshahil. A pleasure.”

“The prince told us earlier—you’re here to heal the tree in the palace garden, aren’t you?”

“I’m still in the middle of investigating. From here on, I’ll have to carefully figure out how to treat it.”

At that, Raltz gave a faint smile.

“I sincerely hope you succeed. That tree is dearly loved—not just by me, but by many.”

“Of course. I’ll do everything I can—”

‘Loved?’

Something about that word caught me.

The fog in my head seemed to swirl around it, gathering into focus.

‘I’ve definitely seen this before.’

Unknowingly, I furrowed my brow. That always happened when I was deep in thought.

‘In one of the books I read at Rebekam…’

Yes—there had been an illustrated compendium with a tree that looked very much like Eladin’s. I was sure it had explained its properties.

As I racked my brain for the title, Eladin looked up at me nervously.

“Um, Lady, is something wrong?”

“…One moment.”

Yes, that was it. The moment the book’s title came back to me, it was as if the fog lifted. I could see the cover illustration vividly in my mind.

“Excuse me…”

I turned to Eladin with a brightened face.

“Where is the royal library located?”

His eyes widened.

“The royal library?”

“Yes.”

I nodded firmly.

If that book was there, and if I could consult it…

“I think I can heal the tree.”

At my confident words, I saw Eladin’s face slowly light up with joy.