Cursed Villainess' Obsession-Chapter 41

“Ah! Yes! It’s a gathering to celebrate Raphne’s return!”

Emily’s words were followed by Mary adding her explanation, but she averted her gaze shyly.

Wait a minute.

A celebration for Raphne…?

Raphne, staring blankly back and forth at the two of them, glanced at the slices of cake and drinks laid out on the table.

“Then… it’s to help Raphne adjust after being away from the academy for a year…?”

“Y-yes! Exactly! We’ve become really close today! Right, Raphne?”

“Uh-huh? …You two are both kind. Ken.”

With her sparkling eyes, Emily eagerly grabbed Raphne’s hand, and Raphne awkwardly nodded in agreement.

I see.

This is for Raphne, who hasn’t interacted with anyone for a year…

“Ugh…!”

“Ken…?”

“W-why are you crying?!”

“No… I’m just… thankful for everyone.”

In a way, both of them might have a difficult relationship with Raphne.

Yet they recognized her struggles and were helping her adjust to life at the academy.

Holding hands so intimately like that.

Honestly, I was a bit anxious that a fight might break out, but it was such a touching scene.

I hastily wiped my teary eyes and smiled at the three of them.

“Well, today is a special day when flowers bloom. How about we all go flower-viewing together?”

Originally, I was planning to suggest this to Raphne.

But today marks Raphne’s first day back at the academy in a year and her first time making friends.

I should make an effort.

And the first to respond to my suggestion was Mary.

“I want to go! Let’s go!”

With sparkling eyes, she raised her hand. It seemed Mary really liked flowers.

Then, hurriedly tidying up her cup and dessert, Mary dashed over to me, linking her arm through mine to pull me along.

“Let’s hurry! How about we eat some tea and dessert in a picnic style?”

“Uh? But what about the others…?”

“Ahh━! W-wait━!”

“Hey, wait a minute, Mary! What are you doing going ahead without asking!”

As Mary took the lead for flower-viewing, Raphne and Emily immediately followed suit, hastily clearing the table.

Afterward, we laid out a mat at the designated picnic area in the city, enjoying tea and cookies while admiring the flowers.

Unlike the crowded walking paths full of flowers, this area had a field layout with beautiful flowers blooming here and there, where other city folk were also spreading out to enjoy the flowers.

“Wow…! That’s so uniquely shaped. Ken, you should smell it too! The scent is fascinating!”

“By the way, Emily’s pocket seems to have a variety of food. Do you carry that much around all the time?”

“That’s just a hobby…! I never know when someone might need something to eat…”

Each of us enjoyed our cookies and tea while taking in the flowers.

And in the distance, I could see Alice and Ziegfried having their own time together, happily laughing.

“Zig really loves flowers, huh?”

While admiring a field covered in white flowers, Alice asked Ziegfried.

Since childhood, Ziegfried had trained in swordsmanship to become strong, but he also enjoyed taking care of flowers.

Of course, I could understand that it was his only ability.

But when he looked at flowers, a different smile appeared on Ziegfried's face.

Alice liked that smile.

While it was impressive to see him train hard in swordsmanship despite lacking talent, it was when he smiled gently at the flowers that her heart raced unexpectedly.

Then, in response to Alice’s question, Ziegfried picked a white flower and took a sniff.

“Flowers struggle to sprout from tiny seeds and ultimately yield beautiful results. I’ve liked that determined look since childhood.”

Then he brought the picked flower to Alice and tucked it behind her ear.

A beautiful white flower contrasting with her pink hair.

Thump.

Thump, thump.

At his sudden touch, Alice felt her heart race, and warmth flooded her face.

“And above all, you loved pretty flowers the most. When I take care of them, I can’t help but think of you, and it makes me feel good.”

“Ugh…”

It had always been like this since they were young.

She felt embarrassed and fluttered by his innocent actions.

And when she saw him acting like that, she couldn’t help but wonder if he did the same with other girls, which made her worry for no reason.

She had a desire that he would only do that for her.

“…Fool. Silly.”

“…I do seem foolish.”

She didn’t genuinely think he was foolish, but when those complicated feelings mixed together, harsh words slipped out without her realizing it.

She hated being like this.

That’s why Alice turned her body and began walking ahead.

She thought that if her flushed face were discovered, it would only cause her more embarrassment.

‘…Did the effects wear off?’

Gently caressing her cheeks with both hands, Alice thought.

Just moments ago, thanks to the medicine Ken had given her, she was able to converse comfortably with Ziegfried.

‘I should have taken one more dose.’

But with just a single touch, her heart raced again, and her cheeks flushed.

The foolish one was not him, but herself.

“…Wait a moment, Alice.”

“W-what?”

At that moment, Ziegfried grabbed Alice, who had been walking ahead.

“Are you worried about becoming lost or something?”

“No, that’s not it…”

Then Ziegfried pulled something out of his pocket.

“…What is this?”

A small pouch wrapped with a ribbon.

“It’s a gift.”

“…A g-gift? Suddenly? Why?”

“Why, you ask? It’s your birthday today.”

Ziegfried answered, tilting his head in response to her surprised question.

“Oh!”

Suddenly, the date came to her mind.

Thinking back, she remembered that these flowers always bloomed around her birthday.

Having never been particularly concerned about her own birthday, Alice had forgotten.

As she rummaged through the gift that Ziegfried had given her, she found a necklace adorned with a small clover decoration.

Seeing the necklace, Alice tried to hide her teary expression of joy.

Instead, she put on her usual playful smile and teased Ziegfried.

“What’s this~? If you give something like this to a girl without thought, it’ll be misunderstood. Silly!”

“…Misunderstood?”

“Yeah, like Zieg might have feelings for me. Ahaha.”

“If that were the case, I wouldn’t mind.”

Ziegfried responded to her teasing remark with a smile and took the necklace from Alice's hands.

He then placed it around her neck himself.

“I only give gifts like this to you.”

“……”

As she gazed at the necklace hanging around her neck, he smiled softly.

“It suits you well. I’m glad.”

Alice stared at him, dazed, unable to think about hiding her flushed cheeks.

“Shall we head back then?”

“W-wait?”

“I think we’ve seen enough, and I’ve given you the gift I wanted.”

As Ziegfried turned to walk in the opposite direction, Alice quickly grabbed his hand.

“L-let’s look around a little longer… just a bit more.”

“But we’ve seen enough flowers already, right?”

“Then how about the stalls? There are lots of stalls over there! I’m hungry!”

Alice wanted to spend a little more time on their date.

If she were still the person from earlier, she would have followed Ziegfried back without a second thought.

But now, after receiving a gift…

She wanted to cherish this precious feeling for as long as possible.

“…You really can’t be helped.”

“Ugh.”

Seeing Alice's eager face, Ziegfried chuckled and ruffled her hair.

So, they spent a little more time together, creating warm and precious memories.

“Hmmm~.”

After finishing her date with Ziegfried and returning to her dorm, Alice felt a lightness in her step.

She was feeling good about the gift around her neck.

‘It’s because I give gifts like this to you.’

Remembering his words made her feel happy all over again.

“Hehe…”

What had initially felt like a potential disaster of a date ended up going smoothly.

Most importantly, the time they shared at the end felt sweet and romantic, leaving her even more satisfied.

‘Zig doesn’t seem to know about that kind of atmosphere, though.’

Still, as long as she felt excited and happy, that was enough.

Walking lightly down the dimming path, Alice suddenly noticed something ahead.

“…A ring?”

She spotted a strangely sparkling ring lying on the ground.

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“Wow… it’s beautiful.”

She picked up the ring.

Had someone lost it?

But looking around, she was the only one on the street.

‘…If someone is looking for it, I should return it.’

Enchanted by the ring’s beauty, Alice absentmindedly slipped it onto her left ring finger.

“Wow! It fits perfectly!”

Seeing the beautiful ring on her finger made Alice smile brightly.

After receiving the necklace from Ziegfried and finding this beautiful ring, today felt like a happy birthday.

With that, Alice returned to her dorm with light steps.

About a week had passed since Raphne returned to the academy after Alice’s date.

“How is it? Isn’t that novel interesting?”

“Oh! Right, I read it and was really moved! Especially the scene where the protagonist sacrifices himself for the lady…”

“Ah! That part is great! Then the protagonist loses his arm, and…”

“Wait, wait! I haven’t gotten that far yet!”

Raphne and Emily had grown close enough to exchange novels they were reading.

When Raphne had first come to the academy, I worried she might struggle to fit in or that the Demon Lord's army might attack.

But thankfully, in contrast to my worries, Raphne had adapted well to life at the academy.

It seemed she got along well not only with Emily but also with Mary.

Most importantly, the Demon Lord’s army hadn’t shown any signs of activity yet.

‘It’s peaceful…’

Until now, I had been preoccupied with Raphne, who was trapped in the tower, struggling to lift her curse while facing various incidents.

These days, training with Ziegfried was going smoothly, and Raphne’s condition had improved significantly.

Thus, I was enjoying the peaceful youth at the academy.

“How about it? Ken, do you want to read this? It’s super fun!”

“Oh, yes, yes. Give it a read. It’s a novel I recommend too.”

While happily discussing novels, Raphne and Emily urged me to take the book they were holding.

“A novel, huh… Is it really that interesting?”

As I accepted the novel Raphne offered, I joined in on their conversation at that moment.

[ System: You are cursed. ]

“……Huh?”

[ System: Due to the curse, you will die in three days. ]

I had received a death sentence.