I Possessed the Villain’s Childhood Friend – Chapter 23

‘Reina. For me….’

‘Thank you, Miss.’

‘I won, Reina.’

‘I will do anything to support you….’

‘Reina!’

‘I’m sorry, Miss.’

“Ugh!”

I gasped awake, feeling as though I was suffocating.

I had been lying down and sleeping, yet my heart was racing wildly.

“Hah, hah, hah, hah.”

Catching my breath, I glanced around, but there was no one else in the dormitory room.

To steady my startled body, I drew back the curtains.

Starlight shimmered in the dark night sky.

“It’s chilly.”

Spring was definitely approaching, yet I felt no warmth at all.

It’s okay.

The three years I had endured had made me resilient to any cold.

But why was I dreaming like this?

Why did my heart ache so much?

‘Your action just now was definitely wrong.’

Memories from earlier today surfaced.

The face of the special admission student scolding me for covering up someone I didn’t even know was flushed with confusion.

What did that expression truly mean?

…Let’s not think about it. It doesn’t matter anyway.

In the end, they were all lies, so I shouldn’t believe them.

There was never a knight who protected me and stood by my side.

The sister who scolded me when I strayed had disappeared.

“Liars.”

Perhaps it was because I hadn’t seen him in a long time, but old, joyful memories began to float back.

I don’t want to remember.

Winter feels all the colder because of spring.

If only I had never known the warmth of spring.

If you were here, things would surely be different.

If you had been there to sternly advise me when I made a mistake.

If you had been there to always smile and understand me.

I know it’s a pointless assumption.

But the memories that had begun to flood in couldn’t be stopped.

“…Help me, Aike.”

The words slipped out of my mouth without thinking.

★

“Welcome, Reina.”

My greeting froze Reina’s awkward smile in place.

Reina was wearing a uniform adorned with various ornaments in white and gold, the attire of Arcana.

“What brings you to see me, Young Master Aike?”

“I wanted to talk to you, just the two of us.”

“I’m currently called by Dean Ender.”

“I asked for this. I want to speak to you alone, so please lend me a place.”

“What do you mean by that?”

Reina furrowed her brows at my cryptic words.

But what I had just said was the truth.

This meeting was arranged by Dean Ender, whom I met yesterday.

“Is there perhaps something troubling you?”

The one who spoke to me while I sat on the bench was Dean Ender.

With his shockingly white hair and beard, he regarded me with a gentle smile.

“Dean Ender?”

“Yes. You are Aike, the new student this year, right?”

“That’s correct.”

Dean Ender casually took a seat next to me.

“…Is there something you need from me?”

“Not particularly. However, it’s rare for a student to wear such an expression on their first day, you know. If I can be of assistance, I’d like to offer a consultation.”

It was an obvious statement, but I felt no ulterior motives behind his tone or expression.

Ender Arcana. The dean of Arcana Academy and the lord of Raynen, the empire’s only autonomous territory.

Ender was essentially the mentor figure for Sophia and the Crown Prince in the original story.

As a man of integrity who prioritized students above all else, he provided various help during their tribulations throughout the narrative.

“It might be inconvenient, but I have confidence in being able to counsel students.”

But could I really unburden everything to Dean Ender?

To be honest, if someone else heard me, I wouldn’t have much to say in defense.

Seriously contemplating that my demeanor had changed and thinking my personality was somehow different.

Normally, people would believe people change over a span of three years.

The Crown Prince was merely an exceptional case as her fiancé, so I could confide in him.

Yet, no matter how I thought about it, I had no conviction that he would truly believe all my words since we had just met today.

‘In the end, everyone is gone from my side.’

‘So you mean Young Master Aike was also a liar.’

But there was no time to dwell.

‘In the end, I had no one until the end.’

The last conversation I had with Reina felt eerily similar to her message in the original work.

If she truly felt despair and was trapped in that thought, I had to assure her.

That no matter what, I would be on her side.

“Are you saying that Lady Reina’s condition is strange, and you would like to request a meeting?”

“Is that not allowed?”

“Hmm.”

Dean Ender gazed at the floor for a moment before speaking.

“…I had thought that Lady Reina’s condition was indeed strange. However, it’s a matter that cannot simply be allowed. Depending on her position, it could lead to issues of abuse of authority.”

“I want to do whatever it takes.”

“Then may I ask just one question, Young Master Aike?”

“Of course.”

“I know that you and Lady Reina have been childhood friends, but I understand you have not seen each other for more than three years. To be frank, it could simply be a matter of growing older and changing as a person. Yet, why do you wish to speak with Lady Reina? What do you desire?”

Dean Ender’s question was, in fact, something I had been contemplating for a long time.

Why did I go to such lengths for her?

What did I gain by overcoming fear and enduring pain?

And the answer that always emerged was one.

“Do you know what Lady Reina’s nickname is?”

I had resolved to share the answer I had been seriously pondering with Dean Ender.

“I know she is called the Ice Princess.”

“The nickname came about due to her sparse emotional expressions and the cold atmosphere she always carries. Watching her be so strict with herself, honestly, I sometimes find it admirable.”

Reina and I were the same age.

When combined with the memories of my previous life, she would be considered much younger.

Yet she was far more mature than I was.

From our first meeting, she had always acted like a noble, never once showing discontent about the heavy burdens she bore.

Claiming it was the duty of one born into nobility.

“It’s just too sad to think that someone who works so hard cannot find happiness in this world.”

This was the conclusion I had reached after learning about Reina and studying this world.

“You requested to talk to me in private, and the dean approved.”

“Are you two deceiving me?”

Reina glared at me with a cold gaze.

In this room, it would naturally be just the two of us, yet the atmosphere was as frigid as her nickname.

“We had an argument and separated after not seeing each other for a long time. I just wanted to reconcile somehow.”

“Even if it’s presented in such a nice way, the reason we are meeting is mixed with political motives. I can’t truly consider you a friend.”

“It doesn’t matter what the circumstances are. The fact that we had a close relationship doesn’t change.”

“It has been three years. Relationships change over time.”

Reina stood firm in her stance.

Of course, I wasn’t willing to back down either.

“I’m not suggesting we have a difficult conversation. I want to hear how you’ve been doing.”

“Didn’t we talk enough yesterday?”

“We’ve met after a long time, and you expect me to finish our conversation in less than an hour?”

“That’s possible.”

The clock had pointed to 8 o’clock.

The class would start at 9. Dean Ender had said to wrap up by 8:50 at the latest.

However, even after an hour, the conversation had yet to progress.

Reina refused to fall into my leading questions, repeatedly bringing up the same topic.

As if she were trying to stall.

But I didn’t want to drag this out any longer.

“Alright. I give up. I’ll tell you the truth.”

“I don’t particularly want to hear anything, so just let me go…”

“Don’t lie.”

I cut off Reina’s words and stated firmly.

“If you truly wanted to leave, you wouldn’t need to sit in this room in the first place. You could have just opened the door, turned away when you saw me, and that would have been the end. The fact that you didn’t means there’s something you want to say or hear from me.”

“That’s what Dean Ender…”

“Don’t change the subject, Reina. I’ll cease my attempts to guide your responses as well.”

Taking a deep breath, I slowly brought the question to my lips.

“What happened to Anna, Reina?”

“What do you mean by that?”

Reina’s expression hardened at my question, and she was visibly flustered.

“I mean exactly what it says. Your personal maid, Anna Margret. What has happened to her now?”

“Of course, she is back at her family home. Arcana basically forbids servants inside.”

“Lies. I heard from His Highness. When I meet you last month, Anna wasn’t by your side.”

“That time….”

Reina couldn’t open her mouth.

And she had begun to clutch her trembling right arm with her left hand.

“What on earth happened?”

“A, Anna has quit. She left her role as maid and has left the Rozelia Duke House.”

“Lies.”

I knew better than anyone that there was no way Anna would do that.

She had quietly brushed aside what I had done at the market of Heros, all for Reina’s sake.

There was no way someone as devoted as Anna would leave Reina without reason.

Anna, who had promised to protect Reina at any cost, could not have done so.

“Really. Anna….”

“Lies.”

“Really…”

“Lies.”

“Really!!”

Reina’s scream, which I had never heard before, suddenly echoed through the room.

“She left suddenly, without a word! Three years ago, she just left a letter behind! And I haven’t heard from her since!”

“She just abandoned you with a letter?”

“Liars. She promised we would be together forever. I trusted her. I thought of her as an older sister. I thought of her as family.”

Tears were streaming down her cheeks now.

“You’re the same, Aike.”

What on earth happened?

“You said you would help me! You said you would come running whenever I was struggling! You promised not to leave me alone, you said it was a promise! Yet you haven’t even sent a letter, and you haven’t come to the ball I’m participating in! You didn’t keep any of your promises!”

“…What?”

“Liars. Liars. Liars…!”

Reina pressed her hands to her head, sobbing endlessly.

“Tell me, Aike. Why did Anna leave me? Why did you leave me alone? Why….”