A Strange But Effective Villainess Life - Chapter 213

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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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Commemoration of Webtoon Adaptation
Side Story Episode 16
He had always possessed the habit of replaying every word Kiana spoke in his mind.
‘She said she kept her distance because I was too radiant, right? But now that my appearance has changed, I seem to shine even more? Though I really can’t change my eye color… Ah, should I dye my hair? That would be easy.’
He understood well that Kiana found the position of Empress quite burdensome. Therefore, he was thinking that he should accommodate everything else to her tastes in an extreme manner.
In the end, having spent the entire night awake, he resolved that very morning to dye his hair immediately.
‘Yes. She dislikes shining, so a combination of silver and gold… a human jewel, I suppose it’s not to her taste.’
Having decided to dye it the darkest color possible, he promptly asked Kiana a question.
“Princess, what do you think about me dyeing my hair?”
“It doesn’t matter to me. How you style your appearance is your own preference to decide.”
“Still, there’s no one who completely ignores others’ opinions.”
“Why not?”
Kiana casually pointed to the checkered pattern on the dress she was wearing.
Edmund nodded quietly. If it were his preference, he would do anything to avoid displeasing Kiana.
That afternoon, Edmund’s hair became jet black.
The Emperor, upon seeing this, praised him greatly.
“Yes, the fact that you’re changing your appearance means you’re absolutely tailoring it to the Princess’s tastes. The more public burden you place on the Princess like this, the more she’ll inevitably have to marry out of a sense of responsibility.”
In truth, Edmund knew well that Kiana was not the type to marry out of such responsibility, but he nodded anyway. After all, the entire Imperial Palace was doing its best to make this marriage happen.
“Mm.”
Kiana entered the Palace for a stroll and, upon seeing his changed appearance, spoke thus.
“It looks good.”
Meanwhile, Piyak, who had become perfectly close to Kiana, went even further.
【Ahahahahak! Kiana is so lucky! An unscratched lottery ticket succeeded! Ahahahahak!】
“Piyak, it was already a winning lottery ticket. He was the Crown Prince, after all.”
【But I never expected a bonus in appearance to come with it! Ahahahahak!】
“I didn’t know that either. Yes, I’ll admit that.”
【And he’s become a sinister-looking, unsettling handsome man according to Kiana’s tastes! Ahahahahak! If he just fixes that fidgety manner and expression in front of Kiana, I’d believe he was a truly dark mastermind! No, he’s completely a different person now!】
“Piyak. Don’t spread false information. His innate DNA composition remains the same.”
【…I wish magical engineering would collapse.】
When he was Melissa’s summoned creature, he had been a quiet and docile lark… but beside Kiana, he had strangely transformed into a noisy summoned creature who turned people’s insides out.
Piyak and Kiana bickered constantly, and between them, one could certainly feel tremendous affection and solidarity. Nevertheless, it was better not to join in their quarrels.
With a laugh, Edmund awkwardly turned his gaze away when—
‘Wait… a moment.’
The moment he saw his reflection dimly through the glass window, a scene came to mind.
Kiana’s wedding ceremony shown by the Gypsy!
There, that slender man’s eyes were definitely gold.
And now that he had lost weight, those refined and distinct features also seemed similar to his own now? And besides, hadn’t he just become dark-haired!
‘What… what is this?’
That blurry side profile was definitely the one he had seen in the crystal ball.
‘Wait? Then that ceremony the Gypsy showed me… that happy wedding ceremony….’
Edmund let out a hollow laugh. He found it amusing to discover himself wearing the appearance of that man.
Yet he harbored no resentment toward the Gypsy. After all, it was thanks to the vision she had shown him that he had gathered the courage to approach Kiana.
In the meantime, Kiana and Piyak continued to bicker with each other.
“Come on, Piyak. Let’s get to work.”
【I don’t want to! Piyak doesn’t want to work! I’m going to play and eat!】
“No, your abilities are quite decent for playing around. How about we try delivering 2,048 notes this time?”
【No, I can’t! I really can’t! I told you! When I first delivered notes to the Prelai Duchy Castle, I ended up dropping the second one somewhere!】
“But you did manage to carry them near the Prelai Duchy Castle! It’s probably stuck somewhere on the City Wall. Besides, we can just make 2,047 experimental notes that are okay to drop. Um, could you ask Alice to prepare 2,047 notes first?”
【Waaaah!】
Piyak eventually flipped over and wept, then fluttered away outside. After all, she had to obey her Owner’s commands.
In truth, despite her habitual whining, Piyak actually enjoyed testing her own abilities.
After sending Piyak away, Kiana walked briskly toward Edmund. She then pushed him onto the bed, pinned him down, and asked with determination.
“Well then, shall we conduct some research?”
“…By all means….”
Edmund gazed up at Kiana, who had climbed atop him with eyes gleaming with fervor, and smiled deeply. Though he felt oddly as though he were lying in a dissection chamber rather than a bedroom, it was still an exquisitely blissful moment.
They were adults mere days away from their wedding, and unlike before, they no longer harbored any shame or hesitation, and Kiana’s research always led him to paradise.
* * *
Prelai Duchy.
Hitten and Dolores had now been laboring in this cold and harsh land for a year.
For them, who had grown up never having done rough work, this life was truly agonizing.
Especially Hitten could not forgive Dolores, who in the final moment had mistaken the command to “speak the truth” as referring to the picnic incident and had even revealed his own name.
If only he had endured to the end and merely claimed that he had come to possess the poison that once worked on Tailizes, Hitten would have had a way out….
Of course, Dolores too had her justifications. Since only Hitten knew the details about the picnic incident, she had no choice but to beg for leniency.
In the end, the mother and son grew terribly distant, their work output plummeted, and they began to ignore each other.
‘At least I could have avoided being caught….’
Whenever he thought of this, he would suddenly recall that unsettling note. That note which had suddenly caught his eye—the one bearing the message that he would be caught anyway….
“Alright, today we’re cleaning the City Wall!”
As Hitten heaved a deep sigh, the Supervisor shouted.
“Everyone, get up! We’re removing the moss stuck in the City Wall!”
At those words, Hitten silently rejoiced. Removing moss stuck in the City Wall was quite difficult work, and they didn’t assign it to novice workers like Hitten.
But then it happened.
“Alright, you two come out as well! It’s been a year now, so you’ve shed your novice status!”
Hitten’s jaw dropped.
Did working for just one year mean he was no longer a novice worker?
Did that mean he would now be dragged into all sorts of labor like a skilled worker?
But he had no choice. In the end, he was dragged before the City Wall in the biting cold of a raging blizzard.
“Now, examine the stone crevices of the City Wall carefully and clean them thoroughly!”
Hitten thus had to obey the command, scrutinizing the cold stone gaps while moving his brush diligently with his cracked hands.
It was work so difficult, exhausting, and meticulous that one could understand why they didn’t assign it to novice workers.
Tears blurred his vision. Two hours into the labor, he sighed inwardly. The work he had done all this time had been grueling enough, but this was incomparably more agonizing.
‘Heavens above… I’m no longer a novice laborer, so just how much harder must I work than before?’
That was when it happened.
Something other than moss came away with the cleaning brush. It was an old slip of paper that appeared to have been wedged there for about a year.
‘Hm?’
Hitten furrowed his brow and unfolded the note.
“Aaaaaaahhhhh! Ahhhhhhhhhhh!”
Since the handwriting matched the note he had seen at the Imperial Palace before, Hitten let out a startled shriek, and the other worker beside him, who had been diligently wielding his brush while muttering that the noise was disruptive to work, struck him on the head.
【IF Side Story, End!】

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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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