73: The Predetermined Path
An invitation from Konrad.
If my sister accepted, she would undoubtedly become closer to him. Though I wasn’t sure if it was part of the [Official Scenario].
I couldn’t help but gulp.
I tried to be discreet, but I wondered if they noticed.
Leticia smiled.
“We’re here on inspection… and Your Highness is here for an investigation, right? Please, focus on your work.”
And with that smile, she flatly rejected Konrad’s invitation.
――Well, I could make time for him if he asked.
Or rather, I was here partly for the [Event].
Was this the protagonist? Was this a true noble?
I was stunned by my sister, who prioritized her duties over a spontaneous invitation from the First Prince, the future king.
While it was possible she wasn’t interested in Konrad, considering the pleasant atmosphere between them earlier, she could have at least consulted me.
…No, this might be proof that my plan to be disliked by my sister, as the villainous sister, was proceeding smoothly. If that were the case, she wouldn’t casually consult me.
I decided to think positively.
While his invitation wasn’t accepted, Konrad, having also received encouragement, smiled and thanked her.
“…Yes, thank you.”
I could tell. While he was smiling, he was clearly dejected.
Prince Konrad, whose carefully planned invitation, squeezed into his limited free time, had been unceremoniously rejected, was pitiful.
I felt a twinge of sympathy for him.
――My sister turned to me, her entire body facing me, and smiled. While it was my subjective opinion, it was a brighter smile than the one she had given Prince Konrad.
“Elder Sister, thank you in advance for your guidance on the inspection starting tomorrow.”
Konrad glared at me, a resentful look that was as intense as his position as First Prince allowed, as if to say, I’ll be joining you on the inspection. Don’t look at me.
And while I had been thinking positively just now, She’s starting to dislike me, just like in the scenario, I was now thinking negatively.
…It would be easier if she hated me.
My sister wouldn’t choose me.
And I couldn’t be the ideal older sister she wanted.
I would walk the path of the head of the “Coldhearted Vanderwaals.”
Even for my beloved sister, that was one thing I couldn’t change.
“…Yes. You would do well to learn from Elder Sister. She’s a capable lord.”
Despite the slight barb, it was rare praise.
However…
“…I simply inherited it.”
“Lady Adelheid?”
Perhaps noticing the dejection in my voice, Konrad spoke.
His continued use of my former title, despite me being the head of the family now, showed his pettiness.
I wasn’t a ‘lady’ anymore.
Not just because of my age, but, more importantly, because I was the ‘head of the family.’
…But perhaps, as the title ‘villainous sister’ suggested, I was still just a child.
“The territory, and the way of managing it, cultivated by the previous generations of the Vanderwaals…”
――I only knew this way.
Was I wrong?
Had my predecessors, including my father, been wrong?
Had the previous heads of the family struggled with such thoughts?
I couldn’t ask them anymore.
My father had passed away before I was ready.
…Why was I… confiding in this man, of all people?
“…Can you really manage it just by inheriting it?”
I thought Konrad would take advantage of my vulnerability and make a sarcastic remark, but, surprisingly, he didn’t.
“If an amateur gardener with no knowledge inherited a beautiful garden, could they maintain its beauty? —I believe I told you excessive modesty is a form of arrogance, Adelheid von Vanderwaals.”
…Ah, I see.
“You are the head of the Vanderwaals family. You are admirably… yes, admirably… maintaining everything you inherited from the previous generation.”
The reason Konrad was being unusually kind to me…
“I don’t approve of your methods. But I cannot deny the results.”
…was because he was the same.
We couldn’t create something from nothing.
We were ‘blessed by birth.’ We hadn’t chosen it.
I was the eldest child of a ducal family, and he was the eldest child of the royal family.
The right to inherit a title, or the throne, followed birth order, unless there were serious doubts about one’s qualifications.
That was how our futures had been decided.
Our paths were determined by the blood flowing through our veins, even before we were born.
We were only allowed to deviate from that path if we were deemed incompetent—if we were told, “We don’t need someone like you, a failure.”
And we… were competent. Competent enough to stay on the path.
I disliked him, and he likely disliked me.
Perhaps we were… too similar.
“…It’s an honor to receive such praise from the future king, Your Highness.”
We weren’t allowed to wallow in self-pity.
That wasn’t the role we were given.
Even so…
“When you become king, you will rule the country in your own way. And I will serve you as your vassal, in my own way.”
I could at least offer him that small courtesy.
Of course, I had no intention of keeping that promise, since I was scheduled for the guillotine.
Let him suffer.
I would pave the way for my adorable sister Leticia, but beyond that… I didn’t know.
“Duty and loyalty, Your Highness.”
“Yes, duty and loyalty, Lady Adelheid.”
Leticia, seeing Konrad and me exchange a rare, genuine smile, murmured,
“You two get along well…”
“We don’t.”
“We don’t.”
There was no truth to that.
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