Cursed Villainess' Obsession-Chapter 30

In the game, the Child of Prophecy was a key element tied to Emily's character, but strangely, the Demon King’s forces never seemed interested in her directly. This part of the lore was never explained in the game, leaving me curious.

“…Ken, here.”

After my morning training session with Siegfried, Emily approached me, handing me a lemon drink she had prepared.

“You don’t have to do this every time,” I said.

“…I want to,” she replied, a little shyly.

I couldn’t help but appreciate the gesture, though. I took the drink from her and downed it in one go. The refreshing liquid was a welcome relief after the intense workout.

Ever since the time loop event had been resolved, Emily had been joining me at my morning training sessions, quietly observing.

“At the Academy, Mary is always by my side…” Emily mumbled softly, almost as if she were talking to herself.

I felt a bit guilty. She didn’t need to go out of her way to do this every morning. I had a feeling she was doing it as a way of apologizing for the past.

“Here, a towel. You worked hard today,” Emily said, but instead of handing me the towel, she started wiping my face herself.

'Isn’t this something you usually hand to someone?' I thought, feeling a little awkward as her wiping felt more like a massage, especially when she pinched my cheeks slightly.

“Um, Ken…”

While wiping the sweat from my forehead, Emily hesitated before speaking again.

“This… all this training every day... is it because of me?” she asked, her voice soft and uncertain.

Her question made me recall the days when she used to torment me, stomping on my head. Back then, she would always yell something along the lines of, “Lose some weight, you pig!”

Remembering that now almost made me laugh, but Emily’s face was filled with regret, making it hard to joke about it.

“If it’s because of what I did to you back then… you really don’t need to! I was terrible, and... Ken, you don’t need to lose weight! You’re already... charming enough as you are…”

It seemed like she was misunderstanding things. She was even trying to console me with words she clearly didn’t mean, struggling to maintain eye contact.

“No, it’s not because of that,” I said, taking the towel from her hand and wiping my own forehead. “I just want to get stronger. Don’t worry about it.”

I hoped that would reassure her, but Emily’s expression turned even more troubled.

“You two seem to be getting along well,” Siegfried commented, breaking the tension.

“W-what? Siegfried! How long have you been standing there?” Emily stammered, her face turning red.

“I’ve been here the whole time,” he replied calmly.

“Well, you could’ve said something!” Emily snapped, clearly flustered.

“Hm, I’ll remember that for next time,” Siegfried said with a casual nod, leaving Emily flustered and struggling to keep her composure.

“And about your training! I’ve been watching, and it seems way too rough! You don’t need to hit Ken with a wooden sword that hard!” Emily exclaimed, turning her frustration toward Siegfried.

“Hmm, well…” Siegfried began.

“If it's just about getting stronger, there are other ways! You could focus on stamina training or perfecting his swordsmanship without resorting to so much violence!” Emily continued, clearly upset by the harsh training regimen.

Siegfried seemed taken aback by her sudden outburst. For the first time, he didn’t maintain his usual calm demeanor. I figured it was time to step in.

“It’s fine, Emily. I can handle it,” I said, stepping between them.

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“But Ken—”

“I’m used to this kind of training. I’ve got a high tolerance, so don’t worry about me.”

I had a skill called ‘Physical Resistance,’ so the hits from a wooden sword didn’t bother me as much as they might seem. For me, the pain was nothing compared to the experience points I was gaining.

“…I’m sorry. I’m really sorry,” Emily muttered, her head hanging low.

Wait, why was she apologizing? This wasn’t the reaction I expected.

Just then, Elise showed up, right on schedule.

“Sieg~! Breakfast is ready… Oh, wait, you’re here again?” Elise said, her expression shifting the moment she saw Emily.

Elise approached Siegfried and subtly positioned herself in front of him, blocking him from Emily’s view.

“You’ve been coming here a lot lately. Is there something you need?” Elise asked with a forced smile, clearly trying to assert herself.

“I, uh… no, not really…” Emily mumbled, her face turning red.

Elise narrowed her eyes, observing Emily and Siegfried with suspicion. It was obvious she was feeling threatened by Emily’s presence.

“Well, Siegfried, let’s head back before the food gets cold,” Elise said, tugging on his arm.

“Hmm, I suppose you’re right,” Siegfried replied.

“Why don’t you join us for breakfast, Emily?” Siegfried offered casually, as if it were no big deal. He often asked me the same, but I always declined due to my commitments with Raphne.

However, to Elise, this invitation clearly wasn’t as innocent as it seemed.

“Sieg… you can’t be serious…” Elise stammered, looking pale as she gripped his arm tighter.

Emily glanced at me, clearly uncomfortable with the situation. I had to intervene.

“Sorry, but I need to talk to Emily about something,” I said, gently pulling Emily away by the arm.

“Huh? Oh…” Emily seemed surprised, but she followed along without resisting.

“We’ll pass on breakfast today. Maybe next time,” I added.

“Hm, understood,” Siegfried replied nonchalantly, while Elise beamed at me like I was her hero.

As they walked off, I could hear Elise’s voice trailing behind.

“Sieg! What was that about? Do you like her or something?”

“Her? Who are you talking about?” Siegfried asked, genuinely confused.

“You know who I mean!” Elise snapped.

I smiled, feeling a strange sense of satisfaction as their playful bickering faded into the distance.

“…Ken?” Emily called softly.

“Huh? Oh! Sorry!” I quickly let go of her arm, realizing I had been holding onto it the whole time.

“It’s fine… But what did you need to talk about?” Emily asked curiously.

“Uh… well, actually… I lied,” I admitted sheepishly. “I didn’t have anything to talk about. I just wanted to give Elise and Siegfried some space.”

“Oh… I see,” Emily said, looking a bit disappointed.

Wait, was she upset that I interrupted her chance to have breakfast with Siegfried?

“Um, Emily… Do you have feelings for Siegfried or something?” I asked cautiously.

“What?! No way! Why would you even think that?!” she exclaimed, her face turning red once again.

Her reaction was so intense that I started to wonder if I had made a huge mistake.

“I swear, I’m not interested in Siegfried at all! Not even a little!” she continued, growing more flustered by the second.

“Oh… okay,” I replied, taking a step back as she practically yelled in my face.

“Just like with Adrian at the festival! You misunderstood that too! He’s just a friend!” Emily added.

“Is that so?”

“Yes! So stop getting the wrong idea! We’re just friends!” she shouted, her face now bright red.

She seemed even more worked up than when she had been yelling at Siegfried earlier. Her eyes were wide, and she looked utterly flustered.

Wait… If it’s not Siegfried or Adrian, then who…?

“Emily, do you have someone you like?” I asked.

“…Huh?” she froze at my question, her gaze shifting downward as she fidgeted nervously.

It seemed like there was someone. How had I missed this in all my playthroughs of the game?

“Who is it? Someone in our year? Or maybe a first-year? Or a fourth-year?”

“Huh? Wha— no, I mean—”

“Are they tall? Do they wear glasses? Or maybe they’re shorter?”

My questions flustered her even more, and she began stumbling over her words.

“Why do you even care, you idiot!” Emily finally yelled, squeezing her eyes shut and fleeing with her face burning red.

“…I’ll figure it out eventually,” I muttered, clenching my fist as I watched her run off.