I Like Villains, so I Reincarnated as One
After hearing Angela’s story, I quickly prepared and headed towards the church in the Inklay territory. I couldn’t gauge the situation with Astesia—she might still be suffering from the curse. Time was of the essence.
“Hey, Rosalia, do I look convincing enough as an adventurer? Am I not exuding too much noble elegance?”
“Don’t worry, you look perfect! You give off the vibe of a seasoned adventurer. As expected of Lord Weiss—you look good in anything!”
When I asked nervously, Rosalia responded with her usual cheerful smile. Since I couldn’t visit as the lord, both Rosalia and I were in disguise. The plan was for Rosalia to pose as a traveling priestess and me as her adventurer escort, visiting the church where Astesia was staying. Apparently, there wouldn’t be any issues regarding our identities since we had Angela’s letter of recommendation.
As I let out a sigh of relief, the man sitting next to me chimed in.
“Yeah, your friend here has a pretty scary glare. It fits the rugged adventurer vibe.”
“Why are you even here in the first place…?”
“What do you mean? Of course, I came because I was worried about my dear friend.”
Nial gave me a sly grin. He just happened to drop by while we were leaving and insisted on tagging along. Honestly, I could have refused, but…
“Besides, it’s better if we say that I’m also acting as the guard for a noble alongside the traveling priestess and adventurer, right? Look, we breezed through the checkpoint easily. Unlike Weiss, I’ve got good relations with the other nobles. Right, Mireille?”
“I’ll admit, I’m grateful for that…”
Nial’s words made the creepy grass-like tendrils move around again. As annoying as it was, he wasn’t wrong. We were currently riding in his family’s carriage. His family had connections in the Inklay territory, supplying potions, so they were able to bypass the long checkpoint lines and enter through a back route, which was helpful. But still…
“What the hell are these plants?! Even White is freaking out!”
“Kyuu kyuu!!”
Yes, the inside of the carriage was filled with strange, tentacle-like plants that wriggled around and looked absolutely disgusting! White, completely terrified, was hiding in my clothes and whimpering.
“Hehe, these little guys are used to make antidotes and potion ingredients. Plus, they’re helping neutralize my motion sickness with their scent. And hey, the town where your church is located is one of our delivery spots. I’ll be staying in the city for a bit, so let me know when you’re done with your business. We can head back together.”
“I appreciate it, but… Nial, why do you go so far out of your way to help me? Back at the Spirit Spring, too—it was a dangerous place full of monsters, and there was a real risk of dying. Yet here you are again, helping without even asking for details. Why do all this for me?”
“Why, you ask…”
At my question, Nial’s expression grew slightly complicated before he smiled faintly.
“It’s because you’re my friend. I couldn’t do anything to help when you were suffering before. So now, I’ve decided to support you with everything I’ve got. Besides… I want to see the future you create as a lord. Is that such a bad reason?”
“No… thank you, Nial. If you ever need anything, just let me know. I’ll do whatever I can for you.”
“Heh, I’ll hold you to that. Someday, I know the time will come.”
Nial gave me another one of his suspicious grins. Despite his quirks, he truly felt like a close friend. His kindness warmed my heart more than I wanted to admit.
“Lord Weiss… we’re almost at the church. Let’s get ready.”
“Right. Hey, Nial, take care of White for me.”
“Kyuu…”
“Hehe, I’ll spoil him plenty!”
I patted White gently as he whimpered, reluctant to part ways. Bringing a divine beast along would draw too much attention. First, we needed to assess Astesia’s current condition.
“Well then… from here on, we’ll use aliases. Let’s go, Loys. Hm, somehow our names sound similar, like we’re family.”
Rosalia spoke up after Nial and I finished our conversation. She was the one who came up with the fake names.
“Yeah, leave the guarding to me, big sis.”
“Lord Weiss being my younger brother, huh? That works.”
“Um, shouldn’t we hurry and get out of the carriage? Standing still for too long might attract unwanted attention.”
With a somewhat mischievous smile from Rosalia, we stepped out of the carriage.
After walking for a while, we finally spotted the church we were looking for. At the same time, we heard the sound of a child crying. A boy, probably around five years old, was squatting down with tears in his eyes—he must have tripped and scraped his knee.
Before I could approach him to offer a potion, a girl rushed over. She had straight silver hair and an emotionless expression. Her translucent white skin made her look like a porcelain doll.
“Keith… are you alright? May the blessings of Zeus heal your wound.”
The girl placed her hand over the boy’s injury, and a warm light enveloped the scrape, healing it instantly. The boy should have thanked her, and that would have been the end of it—but instead…
“What did you do that for?! I didn’t ask for your help!”
The boy angrily slapped her hand away and ran into the church. The girl stood there silently, staring after him with an unchanged expression, then quietly followed behind.
“Hey, Rosalia… tell me honestly. What do you think of that silver-haired girl?”
“That’s…”
Rosalia furrowed her brow, unsure of what to say, and then replied apologetically.
“I don’t know why, but despite her actions being admirable, I felt a sense of revulsion toward her.”
“I see…”
I sighed deeply at her words. Even Rosalia, who rarely disliked anyone, felt this way… It seemed the curse affecting her was far stronger than I had anticipated.
