The Villainess Is Too Difficult

Reinhardt walked down the corridor, thinking about what had just happened.

Ariel Walpurgis. Until now, he had thought of her as an incredibly annoying woman. Although they were engaged, he thought that was merely a pretext to connect the imperial family and the Walpurgis house, and that later on, he would treat her as if she didn’t exist. That’s what he had thought.

But the Ariel he met again had changed far too much.

[Saying I hit my head… how rude to a lady… ugh?!]

Words so demure that they were hard to believe coming from the Ariel he knew until now. Moreover, she covered her mouth with a fan while speaking, but did she realize that her ears had turned red? And as the final blow, the pronunciation that slipped out when she bit her tongue.

“Pfft…”

Reinhardt couldn’t hold back and let out a laugh. If it was an act, it was impressive. Even famous theater troupes wouldn’t be able to put on such a performance. But Reinhardt, despite being only 17 years old, had grown up in the imperial family. He could easily see through most human acts. Especially someone as simple as Ariel.

Yes. That point hadn’t changed. Ariel seemed to have no intention of hiding her feelings, both in the past and now. Whether it was because she didn’t think about it or was deliberately showing it, in any case, Ariel’s inner thoughts were so transparent that they were easy to read.

‘She was embarrassed and trying to hide something.’

There was something Ariel wasn’t telling him. He didn’t feel particularly moved by this fact. They were engaged, but there was no particular affection between them, so as long as whatever secret she had didn’t harm him personally, there was no reason for him to care.

But why? Reinhardt was quite curious about that something Ariel wasn’t saying. Her appearance so different from usual. The way she clumsily evaded when asked for a reason, saying she was just in a good mood today. The way she subtly tried to send him away, saying if he was done with his business, he should leave soon.

The last part could be seen as the rudeness he always felt from her, but even that rudeness was different in its direction. Originally, he felt rudeness from her excessive clinginess, but now he felt rudeness because she was pushing him away. This was quite a fresh feeling.

Above all… it was obvious that she was in pain from biting her tongue, and she was clearly showing it. There was no way he couldn’t have noticed that.

“Interesting.”

Reinhardt muttered without realizing it. Ariel’s changed appearance was quite fresh to him. Whether it was a momentary whim or if there was some reason behind it. He became curious.

“Just a moment, if you will.”

Therefore, Reinhardt stopped the maid who was walking ahead.

“Yes, Your Highness. Do you have any orders…”

“Has anything happened to Ariel Walpurgis recently?”

At Reinhardt’s question, Muriel closed her mouth for a moment. She seemed to be considering whether to properly speak about her mistress’s condition or not. From this, Reinhardt sensed that there was something.

Reinhardt already knew about the fact that she had collapsed and woken up. That was the reason he came here today. But that couldn’t be all. There needs to be some trigger for a person to change.

“Well…”

Muriel hesitated to answer. Ariel’s current condition wasn’t a big secret even within the mansion. People who needed to know already knew, and the report would have already been made to the Duke, the master of the house.

In other words, it wasn’t particularly leaking confidential information even if she told Reinhardt. But it’s also not right to freely talk about the mistress’s physical condition.

Although they’re engaged, the relationship between Reinhardt and Ariel isn’t very good. It’s essentially a relationship in name only, with Ariel unilaterally pursuing and Reinhardt busy avoiding it. Is it okay to talk about this?

“Answer properly.”

“Ugh…!”

But that thought disappeared completely the moment she met Reinhardt’s red eyes.

“A-actually, the Young Lady has lost her memories.”

“What?”

Reinhardt paused at this unexpected information.

“Since she woke up, she doesn’t remember anything. She seems to have somehow recalled etiquette and magic, but she didn’t know anything about her family or herself.”

“I see.”

Only then could Reinhardt understand Ariel’s change. Memory loss… Then everything makes sense.

“How many people know about this?”

“Everyone in the mansion… but it hasn’t been made known outside.”

“I see. Then make sure the rumor doesn’t spread as much as possible. I’ll tell the Duke about this separately.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

After all, Ariel is a duke’s daughter. Although it’s not her fault, it’s not good for her to become a topic of gossip in high society due to memory loss.

“Memory loss…”

After grasping Ariel’s condition, Reinhardt recalled her appearance from earlier. The way she tried to be polite but distance herself from him, the way she became embarrassed by her own words, and finally, the way she hurriedly tried to send him away as if she didn’t want to get close.

A very small interest was planted in Reinhardt’s heart.

“It’s been a long time, Your Highness.”

“It has indeed, Duke Walpurgis.”

Duke Walpurgis’s study resembled Ariel’s room in a not-so-good way. It was a practical space with only necessary furniture and tools, and nothing else, to the point where it could be called bleak.

Seated, Reinhardt stared at the Duke sitting across from him. Outside, he was called the Iron-Blooded Duke, the Empire’s Greatest Magician, the Hero of the Human-Demon War, and so on, but once you knew his true nature, there was no one more frustrating. For example…

“Did you know about your daughter’s condition?”

“Yes.”

Duke Walpurgis, Heinrich, had known about his daughter’s condition for a while. Because even before the rumor of her memory loss spread, Matilda had noticed and reported it first. But he never faced his daughter in person.

“She’s changed more than I expected.”

“Is that so…?”

Heinrich felt doubtful at the faint smile remaining on Reinhardt’s face. He already knew about Ariel’s condition from the numerous reports he had received.

Since opening her eyes, his daughter had been acting like a completely different person. She was always kind to people, resumed her self-training which she had stopped at some point, and even showed occasional quirkiness.

The reported contents made him doubt his ears, as if wondering if this was really the Ariel he knew. Moreover, Reinhardt, who always showed clear dislike, was now speaking about Ariel with a somewhat joyful air. How much can a person change to elicit such a reaction?

Along with a desire to see his daughter, curiosity also welled up. Just how much had she changed for everyone to unanimously say she had become a different person, for Reinhardt who disliked her so much to show such a reaction?

“Are you going to meet her?”

“I…”

“Who would say anything about a father meeting his daughter?”

Reinhardt cut in sharply at the behavior that seemed to be considering others’ opinions. Heinrich could easily meet her, both in the name of a father and a duke. Why was he avoiding it to such an extent?

Until now, Reinhardt hadn’t paid much attention to Heinrich and Ariel’s father-daughter relationship. But now, his mind had changed a little.

“I plan to visit again soon.”

“May I ask the reason?”

“On the surface, it’s to consult with you, Duke, about the upcoming academy exam. Well, it might change when the time comes.”

“Then, your true intention is…”

“I want to meet Lady Walpurgis once more.”

Heinrich involuntarily showed a surprised expression at Reinhardt’s words about wanting to meet Ariel again. He never thought such words would come out of Reinhardt’s mouth of all people.

“Are you surprised?”

“Yes.”

“It’s not unreasonable to think so. But the current Lady is different from before. Somehow, she catches my eye.”

Heinrich felt even more doubtful at the sight of Reinhardt trying to suppress a smile as if he had thought of something interesting. Just how much had she changed to elicit such a reaction?

“Well, there’s no use in me continuing to talk like this. If you’re really curious, meet her yourself. You won’t regret it.”

The Duke said nothing to Reinhardt’s meaningful words. But that was enough of an answer.

“I see. If that’s what you think, Duke, there’s nothing I can do.”

Reinhardt sincerely thought that the Duke was doing something regrettable.