I Favor the Villainess Chapter 110
Because of Claire-samaâs rejection I became a living corpse.
I didnât even understand how Iâd lived until that day, before I noticed I found myself in an unknown room.
âIt seems youâve regained consciousnessâ
It was Manaria-sama who said that with a strict face.
âManaria-samaâŠ? Why are you here?â
âI heard a revolution occurred in Bauer and rushed here. Whatâs the matter with Claire-sama?â
â⊠Claire-samaâââ
I timidly explained the whole story.
That I tried to sever Claire-sama from aristocratic forces.
That it was mostly a success.
That, however, Claire-sama herself didnât accept it.
That my persuasion was in vain and Claire-sama herself chose the path of perishing as a noble.
âI see. And thatâs why you had such a cowardly faceâ
I donât feel anything towards Manaria-samaâs provocation.
I donât care about anything.
With a face that seemed disappointed by no response, Manaria-sama continued.
âWill you give up? While telling Claire to not give up, you will fall to despair so quickly?â
âBecause⊠thereâs nothing I can do anymoreâ
Claire-sama doesnât care about her own survival.
Whether itâs her obstinacy or pride, thatâs just the way she is.
Thatâs Claire-samaâs way of life.
It doesnât seem anybody can do anything to it.
âGood grief⊠If itâs like this, I shouldnât have left Claire to you. I couldâve done betterâ
âI guess so, certainlyâ
This is also an obvious provocation.
Seeing me like this, Manaria-sama let out a big sigh.
â⊠I also asked this before, but should I ask once again. Are your feelings like that?â
This time her tone wasnât provocative.
Rather, it was a tone of sympathy.
I was a little perplexed, but it really was just a little.
âNo matter how much I desire, these feelings cannot reach, surelyâ
âI see, then youâll forget about Claire, right? Thenâââ
Manaria-sama embraced me and brought her face near.
Her boyish yet flawless beautiful face slowly approached.
I was faintly aware that I was about to be kissed.
(⊠Come to think of it, Claire-sama also did this)
There was no deep emotion, it was a nightmarish kiss.
Suchââ Such a kiss isââ.
(My last memory with Claire-samaâŠ)
The moment I thought so, before I noticed I thrust Manaria-sama away.
â⊠Now weâre talkingâ
Manaria-sama laughed with a Cheshire Cat smile.
âIâm sorry, Manaria-samaâ
âDonât mind. Iâm the one who did it out of nowhereâ
Thinking it over, certainly she was joking.
âIf it was about somebody else, Iâd probably immediately tell them to give up. But I believe if itâs Claire and you, if you talk enough, youâll come to an understandingâ
âBecause youâre the two I lost toâ
Manaria-sama said so playfully with a smile.
âThere are no obstacles you two whom Iâve approved canât overcome. The current difficult situation doesnât change thatâ
âBut, actually Claire-sama and IâŠâ
âHave you conveyed your feelings to Claire? Have you conveyed everything thatâs in your heart?â
âTruly? I guess youâve told Claire you were thinking of her while doing that, but have you put your wishes into words?â
I was delirious at that time, so I canât remember well.
âAs you know as well, Claire-sama canât be stopped by theory anymore. If itâs to stop her, thereâs nothing other than your selfishnessâ
I donât quite understand.
I wonder if something like this can move Claire-samaâs heart.
âRei, youâre a big deal. Even if I thoroughly prepared, I donât believe I could think of and execute a plan to save Claire. But, you seeâââ
Listen carefully , Manaria-sama said.
âYou should express your feelings to Claire at least onceâ
Itâs too early to give up on everything , said Manaria-sama.
âYou may be joking all the time, but youâre a rational person. Claire is prone to being emotional, but until now youâve been behaving calmly as much as possible. But you see, without regard to your appearances, without sugarcoating, why donât you try exposing your raw feelings once?â
âExpose⊠feelingsâŠâ
I wonder if Claire-sama will come back with that.
But, if thereâs even one in a million chance.
âNow, what will you do? Iâm going to rescue Claire, will you cooperate?â
My paralyzed heart began moving.
âI⊠want to save Claire-samaâ
If thereâs a possibility left, I want to try betting on it.
Manaria-sama smiled with satisfaction at my answer.
âI was waiting for those words. Just what I expected of my Reiâ
Manaria-sama stroked my hair.
âIâm not Manaria-samaâs. My everything is Claire-samaâsâ
âFufu, if you can hit me with at least that much abuse, youâre okay alreadyâ
After finishing up with a tight hug, Manaria-sama said.
âThen, letâs get started at once. Letâs work out how to take back princessâ
As Manaria-sama said that with a Cheshire Cat smile, I thought after all Iâm no match for this person .
Claire-sama will be put to a public trial together with Dor-sama , reported newspapers.
Itâs a trial in name only, itâs just a public execution.
The security around Claire-sama was strict, there was no opportunity other than that day.
The public trial seemed to be done as a summary court in a fenced-off area on a plaza in front of the parliament building.
I was in the front row of the people crowding around it.
âTheyâre coming out!â
Somebody in the crowd said so.
I looked to see two nobles connected by rope being brought in on the other side of the fence.
The nobles were Claire-sama and Dor-sama.
Theyâre wearing formal attires.
It seems they arenât wearing rags to show the crowd the two of them are nobles.
Both Claire-sama and Dor-sama are resolute.
That attitude seemed to further provoke the crowdâs animosity.
âHis Majesty the King in attendance!â
With those words appeared Sein-sama, who was officially crowned just the other day.
The Royal Family more or less regained their power.
However, they lost sovereignty over the Bauer Kingdom.
The king reigns without ruling, itâs similar to some government systems on Earth.
Sein-sama has a sour look.
In his case itâs the usual, so I canât tell what heâs thinking at all from his expression.
âNow begins the peopleâs trial!â
It was Salas who loudly declared that.
Inside the fencing the figures of Arla and Irvine can also be seen.
Salas surveyed the crowd and continued.
âDor François as well as Claire François here abused their status as nobles to exploit the people!â
Way to impudently say it while playing innocent , I thought.
âBesides, they disrespected the Royal Family and tried managing this country for their selfish desires! This is an intolerable criminal act!â
Salasâs incitement easily roused the crowd.
Dor-sama aside, I couldnât conceal my resentment towards the masses that briskly tried to judge Claire-sama who just the other day had been extolled as the countryâs hero.
Salas read all the charges against Dor-sama and Claire-sama aloud, and judged them guilty of every one of them.
Then, he asked Dor-sama if he has any objections.
âI have none. I dedicated this body to the kingdom. If the kingdom is to perish, it is the fate for my life to disappear together with itâ
Saying only this much, Dor-sama closed his eyes.
âThe criminals acknowledged their crimes! Consequently, they will now be executed!â
At Salasâs signal, soldiers came in.
In their hands are swords.
Dor-sama and Claire-sama were brought to their knees and their heads presented to the crowd.
A soldier standing nearby raised his sword overhead.
âI object to that trial!â
The voice that went against the flow resounded across the court.