A Strange But Effective Villainess Life - Chapter 209
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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 – Episode 12
When Edmund rushed to the Prelai Ducal Residence in such haste, he found it in absolute chaos—the kind of pandemonium that defied description.
First of all….
“What did you say?”
I had to witness Kiana’s father, unmistakably Hyde, charging forward wielding a massive axe.
“An engagement?! Kiki has an engagement?! Kyaaaaaaah! Struggle! Certain death!”
“Hyde! Stop this! He’s the Crown Prince! Hyde!”
Edmund felt a chill far more sinister than during the picnic incident. Though admittedly, it wasn’t particularly threatening.
“Kiki! Kikiiiiii!”
Edmund quickly dodged the axe.
Scari shouted while restraining Hyde.
“My apologies, Your Highness! Right now… Kiana has disappeared, and everyone has lost their minds!”
Edmund was equally startled by those words.
Seeing Edmund’s ashen expression, Joshua interjected with his arms crossed.
“That summoned creature called Piyak was apparently Kiana’s all along. A proper summoning just occurred, and Piyak’s power went haywire. It seems she was transported to the place she most wanted to go, but no one knows where that is.”
“What?”
Edmund’s mind was completely scattered.
Honestly, he couldn’t comprehend a single sentence.
Piyak was originally Kiana’s summoned creature? Was such a thing even possible?
As he blinked, Scari, who had completely subdued Hyde, spoke.
“It seems Tailizes may have suffered from some poison as well. We did bring Tailizes’s stone from the north, but… let’s discuss the details after returning to the Imperial Palace. According to Kiana, destroying Tailizes’s stone should cure the Emperor’s illness.”
“Ah.”
Edmund slowly nodded.
“That’s right. Despite being of royal blood, I too have been poisoned at this moment. Only a minute amount, but it appears fatal. However, the Princess….”
“For now, Your Highness, you should return to the palace with me. It would be best to see the Emperor and destroy Tailizes’s stone. And according to Hyde, the Third Empress is involved in this matter. We must arrest her immediately.”
Scari issued the command with an exhausted expression.
“And Hyde, Alex, and Joshua—spread out and search for Kiana. Think of where she would truly want to go… Your Highness, do you have any idea where that might be?”
“Kyaaaaaaah! Annihilation! Kyaaaaaaah! Struggle!”
“Silence, Hyde! Only the Crown Prince can give us a hint about Kiana’s whereabouts!”
Only then did Edmund understand why Scari had desperately restrained Hyde. His concern for Kiana took precedence over loyalty.
Edmund, equally worried, answered immediately.
“First, Riloni Academy… and she wanted to see the power plant in the Alpheus region. Oh, and the Natural History Museum in Entaube—she said she absolutely wanted to visit there again….”
“You heard him? All three of you, spread out!”
Following Scari’s command, the three men of House Prelai immediately dispersed.
Edmund also hastily interjected.
“I, I should go search for the Princess too!”
But Scari shook his head firmly.
“That won’t do! Your Highness must remain here where communications work best, and if it’s none of those three places, you must think of other possibilities! Didn’t you say you’ve been poisoned as well? Let’s head to the palace at once!”
And so Edmund had no choice but to return to the Imperial Palace with Scari.
* * *
I blinked blankly, my eyes darting around the unfamiliar surroundings.
“Where… am I…?”
Everything that had happened so far felt like nothing more than a dream.
Going north, using Hou to melt the snow, and rescuing my father—that part had gone well. But I never expected my father to know the entire truth.
Without any contact with Prelai Ducal Residence, he launched a surprise attack at dawn today. Melissa was captured immediately, and the moment Hyde’s stone shattered, a true summoning took place.
【Is this truly the place you wished to come to?】
Piyak, who had been transported along with me, was equally bewildered and fluttered about in confusion.
【Wow, it’s incredibly clean. Not a speck of dust anywhere—completely different from Kiana’s room, which was so cluttered you couldn’t find a place to step! Did you always long for a tidy room? You could have just cleaned it, you know?】
“Piyak.”
I looked at the Yellow Warbler and spoke.
“Were you always this talkative? And your manner of speech seems different somehow?”
【Huh? Piyak isn’t quite sure what you mean?】
“And how do you even know what my room looks like?”
【Well, that’s…!】
Piyak rolled his eyes and let out a long sigh, then gently perched on my head.
【Since Kiana is my true master, I’ll simply share my memories with you.】
At that moment, all of Piyak’s memories flooded into me.
Learning how Melissa had ordered Piyak into my room and how he’d torn up a note, I couldn’t help but let out an incredulous laugh.
“Melissa actually thought a note like that could drive a wedge between Ed and me? That’s ridiculous.”
【Rather than drive a wedge, she wanted to use it as an excuse to approach him. All the men who saw Melissa cry fell for her completely.】
“Unbelievable.”
【By the way, does the owner of this room have some kind of obsessive-compulsive disorder? There’s not a speck of dust anywhere. It’s completely different from Kiana’s chaotic, trash-filled room.】
“Hey, could you describe my room differently from now on? It’s your master’s room, after all.”
At my sulky protest, Piyak flinched and rolled his eyes, then asked carefully with a somewhat intimidated expression.
【Ah, then how should I describe it?】
“Call it a room governed by the law of entropy.” (Law of Entropy: All changes occurring in nature proceed in the direction of increasing disorder.)
【…I wish magical engineering had never existed.】
While Piyak muttered under his breath, I slowly rose and carefully examined the empty room.
Surprisingly sensitive, the owner didn’t even keep servants nearby, and as Piyak said, this was actually the room of someone with a touch of obsessive-compulsive disorder who absolutely couldn’t tolerate messiness.
It was Edmund’s room.
‘Hmm.’
I crossed my arms and pondered.
‘I’ve been thinking lately that I wanted to explore new dimensions with Ed beyond just the spiritual realm. Did that thought manifest itself like this?’
It seemed I absolutely had to conduct that exploration and experiment.
But since that exploration seemed like it should only happen when we were alone in a closed space, I decided to wait quietly for Edmund in this room. Given his usual nature, he would definitely come in alone and bathe first.
‘Ah, wouldn’t it be better if Piyak left too?’
I turned around sharply to look at Piyak.
Though he claimed to be my true summoned creature, he still felt somewhat awkward since we needed to grow closer. Of course, judging by his talkative nature, it seemed we’d become comfortable with each other soon enough.
“Piyak, you have somewhere to be right now.”
“What? Where?”
“The Prelai Ducal Territory. Actually, Julius has been so curious about how our affairs would unfold. I should deliver the results to him promptly. Since the distance is considerable, wouldn’t sending you be better than any ordinary messenger?”
【But, but Piyak doesn’t want to work! We’ve only just truly met, and we’re not even close yet!】
“You grow closer through working together.”
【And originally, I could only deliver a single small note, which took about a week!】
“But now that a true summoning has been established, let’s test just how much your abilities have improved.”
I retrieved two sheets of memo paper from my neatly organized desk.
“If a single small note was your original capacity, let’s try doubling it for now. I’ll have you deliver one sheet to Julius, and the other is for testing—if your strength fails, you can simply discard it along the way.”
With that, I wrote a detailed letter on one memo sheet and hastily scribbled on the other.
I had Piyak carry the memo for Julius in his beak and grasp the experimental memo in his talons before sending him off.
【Kiana, you’re too much! It’s so difficult to leave alone in this situation!】
“Once you actually depart, it won’t feel nearly as hard. Static friction is always greater than kinetic friction, after all.”
【…I wish magical engineering had never existed.】
And so I remained alone in Edmund’s room.
My face, as I waited for Edmund, grew resolute with the spirit of inquiry.
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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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