A Strange But Effective Villainess Life - Chapter 199

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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Commemorating the Webtoon Adaptation
Side Story 2
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Watching Antesiani sitting on the grass, smiling brightly and conversing warmly, Wolf felt as though he had been reborn.
From the moment he arrived at the Prelai Ducal Residence in response to Alex’s call until now, there had never been a time as peaceful and ordinary as this.
Of course, the household had been peaceful when Enes was alive, but even so, all the children were strange in their own ways. Even Enes—whenever he had a conversation with her, her eyes would gleam so brightly that communication felt oddly impossible.
Well, that was something you were born with.
【What? You came to get photographs? So you’ve already had the Summoners prepare cargo carriages too? Goodness, the Prelai Estate really has poor fortune. Why do all the Summoners staying there suffer so much? Even Daram has been frustrated lately, saying “I’m not the one teaching my child!”】
The only thing disrupting this moment was Piyak.
【Well, ever since staying in the Capital, you’ve had a hard time meeting the wrong master! Watching you always running around, I’ve always felt sorry for Wolf!】
Of course, Wolf quickly closed that beak.
【The one who really met the wrong master is you, little chick.】
It was a brief retort, but its impact was tremendous. It was truly Piyak who had “wrongly” met their master.
As Piyak staggered from the verbal blow, Wolf turned his gaze back to Antesiani.
The young princess, who was pestering him to tell her about the journey here, was exactly like an “ordinary girl” from a fairy tale.
So Antesiani listened intently for a while as Wolf recounted his journey running to the Capital. When the story ended, Antesiani spotted someone in the distance, jumped to her feet, and waved her hands enthusiastically.
“Lea! Isaac! Benjamin!”
Two young men and Lea were approaching them.
“Over here, over here!”
A beautiful garden in full bloom, children playing with bright laughter, cheerful chatter….
Wolf watched the scene with a wistful expression and murmured to himself.
【I never expected to see a scene like this in my lifetime. Alex, Joshua, Kiana—none of them could maintain proper conversations from childhood. Whenever one of them excitedly opened their mouth, silence would follow.】
In the meantime, Isaac and Benjamin arrived.
Antesiani eagerly sat between Isaac and Benjamin and began chattering away.
“Wolf came to play by himself!”
“Oh, really? Uncle Alex didn’t come?”
Isaac tilted his head and murmured, then greeted Wolf warmly.
“You must have had a hard time getting here, Wolf! But I’m glad we get to meet.”
Wolf was nearly breathless.
To think he could have such a normal conversation with Prelai’s children!
As Wolf was overcome with emotion, Piyak whispered in a very small voice.
【He’s normal. He takes after Hyde. Since he’s the next head of the Prelai family, everyone put in tremendous effort.】
Meanwhile, Isaac’s younger brother Benjamin said nothing and simply gazed at Wolf with blue eyes resembling Seliet’s.
Benjamin was now six years old, and in truth, Wolf had never had much of a conversation with him. In most cases, Benjamin would step back and keep silent. So Wolf had been thinking that “Joshua’s second son is quite shy.”
“Ben!”
However, there was only one person who could break Benjamin’s silence. That was Antesiani.
“What are you thinking about? Hmm?”
“Ah.”
Benjamin slowly opened his mouth.
“It seems you were planning to depart directly for the Northern Region, but you wanted to see her more, so you’re staying here for a while. You changed your plans along the way, so the Empress must have been quite surprised. You must have passed through Phelpur Swamp and Gayonde Lake on the way, and you came with just a single letter. About ten minutes since arriving at the Imperial Palace?”
Wolf was taken aback. Every single answer had been correct!
【What, what, how did you know?】
Seeing Wolf’s shocked expression, Benjamin continued speaking in a flat tone as if wondering when he had ever closed his mouth.
“I deduced that you brought a letter from the cord with a ring on the necklace. Uncle Alex only writes letters to the Empress, so naturally he must have met her. But since you haven’t removed the cord yet, it seems you were about to leave immediately. The Empress must have changed her mind before writing a reply and reattaching it to the cord. As for the reason, well, it’s easy to deduce since you’re with the princess right now.”
Wolf suddenly felt dizzy.
Everything he said was correct, but to observe him in an instant and deduce all that… it didn’t seem normal.
Honestly, it gave me goosebumps.
Lea, who had been slowly pushing her belly from far away, finally arrived and said something.
【Benjamin likes to pry into others’ affairs from the shadows and gather information. He takes after Joshua in being interested in people, and Seliet in quietly observing from behind.】
But this child was only six years old! Was it even possible to have such a conversation?
Of course, Benjamin’s words continued in the meantime.
“There’s reddish mud stuck in your claws, and that kind of mud only exists in the Pelpure Swamp. But there’s none in your fur. That means you washed yourself. The clearest water and best place to wash on the way from the Pelpure Swamp to the Imperial Palace is only Gayonde Lake.”
【Of course, if one thing excels, another thing falls short. He has no social skills.】
Wolf felt defeated.
【What, he’s just an ordinary Prelai?】
【That’s how it turned out. But Isaac is fine. We’re all trying to provide him with a good environment.】
It was exactly what Piyak had said earlier. That Isaac was fine…
Wait, hold on.
Wolf had a bad premonition and looked at Antesiani, who was wearing an affectionate expression.
Piyak had definitely said ‘she’s normal.’
Then what about Antesiani?
Something was off. Now that I thought about it, she had even complimented me saying ‘you raised your child well,’ and Piyak, who should have been boasting proudly at those words, had kept her beak firmly shut the entire time.
If Antesiani had been just an ordinary and lovely girl, she would have already bragged so much that she would have turned Lea’s insides upside down.
【Hey.】
Wolf turned his head toward Piyak and asked.
【When Kiana was pregnant with Sia, didn’t you say you’d raise her differently than Kiana and live with all sorts of fairy tales and poetry collections? Did it work?】
However, before Piyak could answer, Antesiani spoke to Benjamin in a bright voice.
“Wow, Ben! That’s right! All of it’s right! I’ve been listening to that story from Wolf the whole time! He ran without stopping once from the main gate of the Prelai Duchy. It must have been so exhausting, right? You wouldn’t have had time to see even one beautiful landscape…”
Good heavens.
Wolf was deeply moved. If she had resembled Kiana, she would never have said things like ‘it must have been exhausting’ or ‘beautiful landscape.’
“He crossed the Arillar Mountain Range by the shortest route, passed through the Pelpure Swamp as Ben said, went through Gayonde Lake, arrived at the Capital, and then came to the Imperial Palace via the main road. My goodness, how fast—it only took four days and nine hours in total? Of course, he slept an average of four hours a day, though.”
She had listened so intently to Wolf’s words that she had memorized exactly the journey and time he had explained earlier.
Wolf felt hope again.
Since attentive listening was the foundation of social skills, this child surely did not resemble Kiana.
Wolf looked at Piyak with an impressed expression.
【Hey, it’s working…】
But before Wolf could finish speaking, Antesiani smiled brightly and asked.
“By the way, if you calculate Wolf’s average speed of travel, what would it be?”
A moment of silence fell.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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