The Villainous Older Sister Who Loves Her Younger Sister Aims for the Guillotine 16

16. “Duty and Loyalty”

Why, of all things, would this idiot prince say, “Your sister was once considered as my fiancée” in front of a young lady he had just created a good atmosphere with?

Was he completely lacking in tact?

Or was he trying to make it clear to my cute little sister that he wasn’t interested in her? Huh?

I felt more aggressive towards Prince Konrad than ever before, to the point of bewilderment.

“E-Elder Sister had a fiancé? W-what…?”

Leticia also seemed flustered by the unexpected revelation.

“…Calm down, Leticia. ‘Considered.’ And it didn’t go anywhere.”

“…Oh.”

“It seems my father didn’t consider me the primary candidate for the next head of the family. He had the idea of marrying me off to the royal family, and if a new child were born, making them the head… I heard about it later.”

In the end, my mother passed away without bearing a second child, and I became the head of the family after my father’s death, remaining the first in line of succession.

――My mother was frail, so perhaps the reason she didn’t have another child was out of consideration for her health.

Even so, as her daughter, it was complicated to have another woman bear my father’s child.

…Still.

Even if my future held the guillotine.

I was glad to have Leticia as my sister.

But I hadn’t forgiven the infidelity.

If there was an afterlife, I would get a proper explanation from my father and scold him for his unfaithfulness, regardless of the circumstances.

“…I am now the head of the Vanderwaals family. There’s absolutely no chance of me marrying into the royal family.”

“That’s the only good thing about you becoming the head.”

We both nodded in agreement.

For me to become his fiancée, there was the ‘problem’ of me being the only child of the Vanderwaals family at the time, and now the head.

That’s why I needed him to become king.

I could even say I was rooting for him.

If his right of succession were to change due to some mediocre evaluation like “unfit to be king, but capable as a noble,” and the position passed to the still-young First Princess or Second Prince, the prospect of an engagement with me would become a reality.

Surely he wasn’t that much of an idiot.

“…Have you two known each other for a long time?”

“”Sort of.””

We spoke in unison, and then both snorted at the same time.

“…You seem to get along well…”

“We don’t.”

“We don’t.”

We weren’t compatible.

Both of us were stubborn and competitive.

From an adult’s perspective, we might have seemed close… but even children had preferences and compatibilities.

I didn’t want them to think that all childhood quarrels were cute and harmless.

Perhaps his misfortune was that I was a year older, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t close that one-year gap.

Especially in childhood, girls developed faster.

And I became the head of the family first.

The gap between us was now unbridgeable, no matter what.

He and I were parallel lines.

…Come to think of it, I remembered being relieved to see his face at my father’s funeral.

I thought I had no family left.

Besides Ciel, I thought there was no one left to support me.

But even though we had a strained relationship, exchanging barbs whenever we met, and would probably never be ‘close,’ still…

I felt certain that someday, he would be the King of Eustasia, and I would be the head of the Vanderwaals.

It wasn’t that he would support me. It was just my own stubbornness.

But it was… comforting to have someone like that.

Even under torture, I would never admit it.

He hated the Vanderwaals, and while I couldn’t say I had no qualms about our family’s shady business… I was still proud of it.

He and I would probably never get along.

But we understood each other. Perhaps too well.

He and I were parallel lines.

We would never intersect. Never.

But as long as the distance between us didn’t widen too much, we would continue to move in the same direction. Because we were parallel lines.

My line would probably end in about a year, but I would simply be relieved of my burden a bit earlier.

With Leticia around, things would surely work out.

I would fulfill my duty.

Because I had sworn loyalty.

――’Duty and loyalty.’ The noble’s motto resonated within me.

My oath was more important than my life. That was all.

And if it also meant my sister’s happiness, I had no complaints.

“Well then, Your Highness. We’ll take our leave.”

“Yes. Safe travels.”

I chuckled.

“That’s the first sincere greeting I’ve heard from you in a while.”

“Same here.”

Had we ever exchanged such greetings before?

Whenever we met, we traded barbs and sarcasm. Almost like a greeting.

“…And I have to say, I’m slightly impressed. I didn’t think you’d defend my sister.”

“…I simply couldn’t tolerate the Vanderwaals name being tarnished.”

The prince smiled, a rare sight for me.

“Let’s leave it at that.”

What did he mean, “leave it at that”?

I wanted to wipe that smug, condescending look off his face, but I decided to let it slide, thinking Leticia must be tired.

He should remember that it was my cute little sister who saved him.

――On the carriage ride back, Leticia smoothly settled in next to me again.

I couldn’t object now, after failing to do so on the way there.

Leticia smiled at me.

“Thank you for today, Elder Sister.”

“…It was nothing to thank me for.”

“For me, it is something to be thankful for.”

She wrapped her arm around mine.

Ah… warm.

Leticia’s body temperature seemed to be higher than mine, and her warmth was comforting.

…Come to think of it, it had been a while since I felt someone’s warmth.

Besides my mother, only Ciel, perhaps.

And even with Ciel, it was only when I was a child.

Even now, as a maid, she washed and dried my hair, helped me dress, and there were times when our bodies touched.

But she had never… embraced me like this.

…I felt like I had truly won her over.

Even the maid across from us was looking at us with a warm smile.

No.

This wouldn’t do.

My sister was the protagonist.

I was the villainous sister.

We each had our respective roles to play.

I renewed my resolve.

I would be strict from tomorrow onwards.

――I would drill into her what it meant to be a noble.

However, I decided to commend my sister first.

Praise when praise is due—that was good pedagogy.

Due to my position, I couldn’t be too kind, but simply acknowledging the facts should be acceptable.

“…Well, you did reasonably well today. Now that you’ve been officially recognized as a noble, I’ll be strict with you from tomorrow onwards. ――Duty and loyalty.”

“Yes! ――Duty and loyalty!”

I had never heard such a cheerful “duty and loyalty.”

My sister managed to turn a solemn, weighty motto into this.

Even though I had just said I would be strict from tomorrow onwards.

Until today, I had only taught her the bare minimum of proper behavior for the ceremony, but from tomorrow, I would begin her noble education in earnest.

…From tomorrow.