The Reincarnated Villainess Whose Romantic Trauma From Her Past Life Is Too Strong Is Sweetly and Painfully Doted On by the Prince of the Neighboring Country - Chapter 27

“Honestly, Cherie, you are far too much of a softie. Why not just leave her be? That piece of trash doesn’t deserve your concern.”

Sitting beside Cherie in the carriage on the way home, Salute spoke with a huff, making no effort to hide his dissatisfaction. It seemed that, in his mind, Lily was firmly classified as “trash” no matter what. Cherie gave him a wry smile as she replied.

“…Perhaps it’s less about being a softie and more about my nature. I can’t seem to leave things be when I see something that needs correcting. So, in the end, it’s probably just self-satisfaction.”

Correcting Lily’s flower offerings.

Properly purifying the Purification Flowers.

She simply couldn’t stand by when she saw something that should be right. To be honest, she would feel much safer if Lily would just fulfill her role properly as the Maiden. But one cannot force another to change their actions. Understanding this, and being someone who struggled with imposing her will on others, Cherie had ended up quietly following behind Lily to fix her blunders.

“And the truth is, I don’t want anyone to be unhappy.”

“…What do you mean by that?”

When Cherie murmured those words, she noticed Salute shift his posture, giving her his full, undivided attention. Feeling his gaze, she began to speak her heart to him, one word at a time.

“Everyone has their own motives and their own wishes that drive them, don’t they? But I believe that in the end, the place everyone is trying to reach is the same. They simply want to be happy. Everyone lives their lives just wishing for that.”

“…I see.”

Salute nodded quietly at her words.

“To be honest, I don’t particularly like Miss Lily. But that doesn’t mean I want her to be miserable. Everyone has the right to be happy. I want to treasure that belief.”

Lily had done many things to make her angry. But Cherie didn’t want to clash with her head-on.

“I’ve always been bad at confrontation. I don’t want to be the reason someone else feels bad. I don’t want to deny anyone. That’s why I do these things secretly in the shadows. I suppose some people might call that cowardly or underhanded.”

Perhaps it would be better if she were the type of person who could be firm and stern, someone who could correct those around her with a sharp word. She thought that often, but a person’s innate nature isn’t so easily changed. As Cherie looked down, clenching her fists on her lap in frustration at her own perceived weakness, Salute’s hand gently enveloped hers.

Startled, Cherie looked up and met his tender gaze. Salute lowered his eyes slightly, holding her hand with a warm, steady pressure.

“…Even so. I like that gentle side of you.”

He said it softly.

It didn’t sound like a platitude meant to comfort her; it sounded like a private thought he had simply allowed to slip out. Because of that, his words seemed to soak into Cherie’s heart all the more deeply.

Suppressing the emotions that suddenly welled up within her, feelings that moved independently of her will, Cherie spoke her next thought.

“…I’m worried about Miss Lily.”

She felt like a hypocrite even as the words left her mouth. And yet, it was the honest truth.

Cherie knew the truth that would be revealed at the climax of the original game, The Flower-Sowing Maiden.

The truth was the Flower-Sowing Maiden was a human chosen to become a living pillar for the World Tree.

Now.

Let us take a moment to review the details of the otome game The Flower-Sowing Maiden, the foundation of this world.

The protagonist, a commoner girl named Lily, is chosen as the Maiden shortly before her sixteenth birthday when her name appears on the Stone Tablet of Flower-Sowing.

She is then summoned to St. Glosis Academy, the very school Cherie and the others attend.

Although the academy is located within the borders of Dortmund, it is managed by the “Flower-Sowing Church,” a religious organization that worships the World Tree as its primary deity. According to the lore, the land surrounding the academy is a special district under the Church’s jurisdiction.

The Flower-Sowing Maiden is chosen by the tablet once every few decades, always a sixteen-year-old girl. Once chosen, she attends St. Glosis Academy for two years to fulfill her duties as the Maiden.

At the start of the game, the protagonist is told: “Once your two years of service are complete, you shall become ‘One Blessed by the World Tree.’ Your duties will end, and you may live as you please with the support of the Church.”

However, as the game progresses, it is revealed that those words were a lie.

The truth hidden behind the deception was that the girl who finished her service as the Flower-Sowing Maiden would be turned into a “living pillar”—a human sacrifice for the World Tree.

(If you play through the game properly, you can eventually avoid the Sacrifice Ending by borrowing the strength of the capture targets and the flowers you helped throughout the story.)

But from Cherie’s perspective, Lily’s current situation looked incredibly perilous.

(With such sloppy work, she won’t receive the blessings and gratitude of the flowers. Her affection levels with the capture targets aren’t bad, but even so…)

Because Lily had been so insincere in her duties, the training of the capture targets as “Knights of the Flower Basket” was likely lagging as well.

Thinking about it…

Wasn’t the situation extremely dire? Cherie wondered.

(Salute might say I should just ignore someone who tried to ruin me.)

But even so, surely she didn’t deserve to have her life taken.

It was that thought that drove Cherie to say, “I’m worried about Lily.”