“So, your younger brother never even mentioned the household head’s remarriage. That person named Hailga hated him so much that she framed him? Using me, the young lord of House Austri, to put your family and your brother in trouble?”
“Yes, that’s right! To organize it so neatly, as expected, the young lord is brilliant!”
“Ha…! Are you calling me brilliant right now? According to that story, I would just be a fool who fell for that baroness’s trick and reported the whole slander to my older brother!”
I let out a hollow laugh, curling one corner of my mouth into a sneer as I spoke in a mocking tone.
“No…! Lord Karbaldr…”
“Are you saying I’m not brilliant?”
“I wasn’t trying to deny that! Lord Karbaldr is indeed brilliant. It’s just that that lady Hailga was extremely cunning and vicious!”
‘He’s never even met Hailga, yet he spouts baseless claims far from the truth.’
‘Besides, Hailga and I aren’t close, but we’re not complete strangers either. I’d say we’re acquaintances.’
‘And yet he talks bad about Hailga in front of me so casually… I don’t know if his younger brother didn’t tell him about this, or if he knows and is doing it anyway.’
“I heard that lady has been hiding her true nature and pretending for the past year… Surely she did the same in front of Lord Karbaldr. Didn’t she pretend to be pitiful, fake crying, and slander my younger brother? Lord Karbaldr’s heart just softened at that sight.”
‘He blames Hailga for being too cunning, and defends me by saying I wasn’t foolish but just felt sympathy. Did he think I would eagerly agree to escape being called a fool?’
‘I have no idea what kind of mindset one needs to live by to reach such a conclusion. But I don’t particularly want to know. So instead of activating the [Character Analysis] skill and pondering deeply, I opened my mouth directly.’
“It seems you firmly believe your younger brother’s words, but I can’t do that. As far as I know, the liar is your brother.”
“What do you mean? That lady Hailga deceived the entire student body of Valhalla Academy for a whole year, didn’t she?”
“Not the entire student body. Some have known her true personality from the start… and I’m one of them.”
When I finished speaking, the older of the villain brothers turned his head sharply to look at his younger brother. His gaze seemed to ask if he knew that Hailga and I were close enough to share our true natures. The younger brother shook his head, indicating he didn’t know.
‘Of course he wouldn’t know. Hailga and I aren’t that close. It’s just that when Reysir complained about wanting to get along with his childhood friend Hailga like before, I happened to be there. And since I’m someone who read the novel containing this world’s story and possessed this body, I knew her true nature and the reason she hid it. I merely exposed it, forcing Hailga to stop pretending.’
“Perhaps… are you blindly believing that lady’s words because of your acquaintance…?”
“I’m not particularly close to Hailga. I only found out about her true personality accidentally while spending time with her childhood friend.”
“Is that so?”
“Rather, isn’t it you who is ignoring the truth because of your relationship?”
“I believe my younger brother’s words.”
‘It’s a good thing that the one in this spot is the possessor, “me.” If Karbaldr were here, I wonder if he’d be dying of envy.’
‘The reason Valtraus arranged this meeting instead of handling it directly must be because he didn’t fully trust the contents of my letter.’ As if to hear both sides and judge whose claim is right. His silent listening was truly a sight to behold.
“You are his older brother, right? If so, then it’s you who lost objectivity due to personal ties. Don’t assume I’m the same just because you are.”
“That… I apologize.”
“You’re good at apologizing for this kind of thing, but busy denying the real wrongdoing.”
“I can’t apologize for something I didn’t say, can I?”
‘True to being the villain’s older brother, he has no intention of readily admitting his younger brother’s fault.’
‘If he had just apologized and promised to properly educate his brother in the future, and actually kept that promise, I would have been willing to let it go.’
“Well? Maybe he thought it wasn’t a matter that could be settled with a simple apology, and decided to try to cover it up. Little does he know that doing so won’t cover up the problem, but only add to the offense.”
“Why does Lord Karbaldr completely believe that lady Hailga’s words and doubt my brother? You said you’re not even close with her…”
‘Incredibly, the speaker’s face showed a sense of unfairness. Does he think it’s natural for me to believe his brother, who is a complete stranger to me? Why? I really can’t understand, and I don’t want to.’
“I didn’t completely believe Hailga’s words. I just confirmed that your brother is more than capable of doing such things.”
“Excuse me, but hasn’t Lord Karbaldr had no contact with my brother until now? Surely not from that Baroness Hailga…”
“I didn’t judge hastily based only on what I heard from her. I reached that conclusion based on what I saw and heard myself.”
‘I’m sick of this Hailga nonsense.’ So I cut him off, declared as above, then shifted my gaze slightly to glare at the real source of the problem and continued.
“You, didn’t you confess to Hailga last Tuesday in front of me and get rejected?”
“That…!”
“That, what? Are you going to claim I saw and heard things that aren’t real?”
“Ah… no, that did happen. But I don’t think that story has any relevance to the current situation…”
‘Perhaps unable to bring himself to spout nonsense about my sanity, the confession villain admitted to his confession. Though he added a condition after.’
“You know better than anyone that there is a reason. When she rejected you, you insulted her family and fief, urging her to date you. Would it be strange if she mocked your father for not remarrying?”
“That’s an excessive inference…”
“I wasn’t talking to you, so don’t interrupt and be quiet.”
While Valtraus hadn’t said a single word, the villain’s older brother tried to interrupt again. I wanted to stop this pointless debate about whether to believe Hailga or the confession villain. So I quickly cut him off and told him to shut his mouth. The difference in family rank was obvious, so I let his informal speech slide. But perhaps being ordered around by someone so young irritated him, as the older villain’s face hardened. Yet he couldn’t argue and just bit his lip. I didn’t need to care, so I turned back to the confession villain.
“And on the day you confessed to Hailga and were rejected, you said you would claim her as yours before someone else snatched her away. You also spread false rumors that she likes you and chases after you.”
“It hasn’t been proven that I spread those rumors, has it?”
‘This is a fact that the heir of the world’s top information guild leader personally dug up. If I reveal that, no one would doubt it, but then they’d wonder how I could commission such a person. I can’t expose Pret’s identity over something like this. No, there’s no need in the first place.’
“Then what about Thursday evening? In a place where many people, including ‘me’ who witnessed your confession and rejection by Hailga, saw and heard. You claimed that Hailga likes you but is afraid of being rejected, so she’s trying to save face. Are you going to dismiss that as baseless talk from me?”
“At that time, the situation was…”
“You seem like the kind of person who immediately starts lying when things turn against you.”
“That, that’s something everyone does, isn’t it?!”
As expected of this chapter’s true villain, he’s on a different level of foolishness from his brother. At least his brother would pretend to bow his head when the time came. The younger one seemed to shrink back, then immediately lifted his head high and raised his voice.
“I don’t think everyone does that, but many do. Still, what does that have to do with anything?”
“So when I told that lie, it was just an improvisation…”
“Improvisation or not, a lie is still a lie. And you brazenly said it right in front of me, who knows the truth.”
‘I’m deliberately bringing up his rejection by Hailga to get under his skin, but it’s not good to appear as if I’m siding with Hailga. If I do, this villain will turn all his anger toward her. I sent the letter to Valtraus not because Hailga instigated me or because I felt sorry for her, but because this villain’s actions got on my nerves. I need to steer it that way.’
“What would you have done if I had stepped in then to correct your lie and reveal that you confessed to Hailga and received a rejection? Were you planning to frame me as a liar instead?”
“Ah, no…!”
“If that wasn’t your intention, you wouldn’t have told such a lie in the first place. You would have readily admitted and apologized for the issue I pointed out through your older brother. Instead of making things worse with a pathetic lie to avoid your mistake.”
“That, that really…!”
“You should know your place. Are you trying to insult me again with an obvious lie?”
When I frowned and raised my voice as if angry, the villain looked choked up but couldn’t speak further. He rolled his eyes, showing no sign of reflection or intention to admit his fault. So I looked away from him and addressed his older brother.
“Haah… I heard you and Lord Valtraus are very close, so I didn’t want to make a big deal. I contacted him instead of going straight to my father… but after showing such goodwill, you end up making things this tiresome.”
“Wait. It bothered me from the moment I read the letter… Who told you that nonsense about me and that man being close?”
Finally, words flowed from Valtraus’s mouth. It was quite irritating that he only spoke after I mentioned him, but at least he reacted. Instead of showing displeasure, I feigned ignorance and pointed at the confession villain.
Oooooh someone’s in trouble