She is the Daughter of the Villainess in a Ridiculous Novel - Chapter 66

“Are you referring to the conversation between the two of you?”

“Anything.”

“……”

Dante did not respond to Idel’s words. In the awkward silence that filled the room, Idel pressed her temples tightly.

‘……To be caught like this by none other than the male protagonist?’

She had nodded along to Melisa’s sweet talk, agreeing that it was good not to have to do bad things anymore.

‘……Isn’t this like a game over in a game?’

It was so absurd that it made her want to laugh. Just recently, she hadn’t even had the confidence to face the male protagonist and had kept her distance!

Feeling utterly troubled, Idel squeezed her eyes shut. Meanwhile, Dante, who had entered the room, cautiously spoke to Idel.

“……I didn’t realize that the reason your actions and words were different was because of the Countess.”

“That’s….”

“Is it perhaps because you want to be recognized by your mother?”

“Huh?”

Idel blinked rapidly at Dante’s question.

She had expected the intelligent and perceptive protagonist to uncover the truth entirely, but it felt like he was slightly off the mark.

‘Did he perhaps not hear my mutterings?’

If so, he might not have noticed that she was scheming to trick Melisa. Moreover, he probably didn’t know exactly what kind of person Melisa was.

‘If that’s the case… maybe I can somehow evade this?’

Seeing the conflict on Idel’s face, Dante immediately shook his head.

“It’s okay if you don’t answer. I didn’t bring up the question to put you in a difficult position.”

“……”

“I just found some parts relatable.”

After pausing for a moment, Dante lightly rubbed the back of his neck and moved a little closer to Idel.

“The words you said to me not long ago have stuck with me.”

“Perhaps…”

“Yes, you said, ‘Those who dislike you will ultimately find a reason to hate you.’”

As Dante cautiously spoke, a look of confusion crossed Idel’s face. She understood why those words had stayed with him.

‘Honestly, that’s a hurtful thing to say, isn’t it?’

But what part of it did he find relatable?

Reading her emotions from Idel’s gaze, Dante let out a slight smile. A relaxed laugh escaped him, as if the tension had been released.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to laugh, but your reaction today is quite different.”

“Ah.”

“I just wanted to say… that those words gave me freedom.”

“Freedom?”

“Yes. I wanted to be recognized so much. By my late mother.”

A bittersweet smile appeared at the corners of his mouth as he awkwardly clenched his fists. This was the first time Dante Knightley had shown a ‘negative’ emotion. It was also the first time he hesitated to express his feelings.

“I wanted to become an outstanding knight, just like my mother was. I wanted to appear as the ‘successor of the Knightleys’ that everyone expected and to be a person like a sword that wouldn’t bend no matter the difficulties.”

“……”

“But no matter how fast I ran, my mother’s shadow kept growing distant…”

Idel kept her mouth tightly shut at Dante’s heartfelt confession. Separately from feeling a human connection to his struggles, she found the situation somewhat bewildering.

‘Is he really sharing such important things with me?’

Feeling unusually flustered today, Idel pressed one hand against her chest.

‘No, isn’t this the kind of conversation you usually have with the female protagonist?’

Moreover, isn’t his awakening happening too quickly?

Such realizations are usually gained after becoming an adult, after going through various experiences, not during childhood.

‘Is it reasonable for the male protagonist’s long-held anguish to be resolved by a single word I threw out?’

It’s not even like I intended for him to take it that way.

As she watched Dante, who seemed to have overcome his problems alone, she recalled something her younger sibling from her past life once said.

‘Sister, the ultimate endpoint of all melodramas is a somewhat sudden happy ending with moral justice. Even if there’s bloodshed and revenge right up to the previous chapter, the ending is wholesome, bright, and beautiful enough for kindergarteners to watch.’

‘Just get to the point.’

‘The sudden resolution of conflict you pointed out isn’t really a problem worth criticizing.’

…Yes, she felt like she had said something like that. So, is this sudden growth due to that principle?

As Idel struggled to find the right words, Dante offered another awkward smile and looked at her.

“Thinking about it, I might have said something too incomprehensible since you’ve just started to come to your senses.”

“……”

“Today, you seemed similar to me, and I spoke without thinking… but you don’t need to worry too much. I’ll be the only one to remember what I saw today.”

At Dante’s additional words, Idel lifted her head and met his gaze.

His unwavering blue eyes shone, as if urging her to trust him.

“However, I have two requests.”

“Requests?”

“One is… if something comes up that you find difficult to handle alone, please come to me. I feel a bit uneasy about the Countess…”

“What about Mom?”

“……Never mind. I just wanted to say that I’d like to help if you need it.”

Idel instinctively sensed that Dante had picked up on something uncomfortable from Melisa.

‘Well, she did say that I should only listen to her and that she’s the only one on my side here.’

It wasn’t something a good mother would typically say. Yet, Dante Knightley didn’t directly mention this part. The reason was obvious.

‘Because it seems like I want my mother’s recognition.’

As she bit her lip in response to his thoughtful demeanor, he brought up his second request.

“The other one is… to go find Gianna.”

“What? Why suddenly Gianna?”

“Gianna hasn’t come out of her room since the day you collapsed.”

Idel frowned at the unexpected statement.

“What do you mean by that?”

“I mean exactly that. She hasn’t come out after seeing you receive treatment from Dr. Aiman. It seems the Duchess is taking care of her meals herself…”

“……”

“I think she might have been shocked by seeing you collapse, just like I was surprised when I saw your blood.”

Dante’s words caused Idel’s heart to race again.

‘I thought Gianna would be shocked, but I didn’t expect her to lock herself in her room…’

Perhaps she had been too complacent. Especially since Gianna had experienced something similar before.

‘She mentioned that incident when we fought.’

As the memory resurfaced, Idel quietly furrowed her brow.

‘I didn’t mean to hurt Gianna again.’

Seeing the troubled expression on Idel’s face, Dante quickly added, “If you’re worried about what the Countess said, I can help. Gianna’s room is adjacent to the old tree, so it’s easy to sneak in through the balcony.”

“……You didn’t sneak into Gianna’s room, did you?”

“Eh? No, I didn’t.”

Idel, who had lifted her eyes slightly at Dante’s calm denial, tilted her head for a moment.

‘It’s not a bad choice.’

Although the situation with Melisa had been somewhat smoothed over by her desire to be recognized by her parents, the fact that their conversation had been overheard was still a fact.

‘If I can’t deceive her perfectly, there’s no harm in getting help.’’

After all, once she saved the Duke and gained freedom from Melisa, what would happen afterward wouldn’t matter much.

‘I won’t harm Dante or Gianna, and there’s a high chance I won’t even be here.’

With that thought, Idel looked at Dante and nodded firmly.

“Okay. Can we go now?”

“Right now? Idel has just opened her eyes…”

“No, I want to go now. Take me.”

With her resolute response, Idel got off the bed. Although her stomach felt a bit queasy and her head was spinning, it was bearable.

‘If I stay like this, I won’t be able to rest properly because I’ll be worried about Gianna.’

Even now, her heart was pounding anxiously.

The stronger emotions flooding in were unsettling her, but Idel eventually adapted to her condition.

‘People become more emotional when they’re sick.’

As Idel gestured as if asking what was taking so long, Dante hesitated for a moment before slowly nodding his head.