The Childhood Friend of the Villainess in a Romance Fantasy

Translator: Elisia

Editor/Proofreader: TempWane

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With Father’s permission, who, like me, was holding back laughter, I returned to the room with Elsie and had breakfast.

Everyone present had seen Prince Allen’s expression. And they probably agreed that it was enough to say everything. His face must have been a picture of utter shock.

Well, even if it were me, I’d lose my composure if a girl 10 cm shorter than me split a long, thick wooden plank with her forehead.

Even those who hadn’t tried such a feat themselves would be overwhelmed, let alone a prince who, after training in swordsmanship and exercises involving cutting and breaking things with strength, could likely estimate just how much power that required.

However, Elsie, at that time, seemed to have been too preoccupied with checking her clothes to properly see Prince Allen’s face.

From that point on, Elsie’s efforts continued.

“Ah, I’m sorry! I meant to bring the brick over, but I ended up breaking it instead!”

“Ah… It’s fine, my lady. We always prepare extras for bricks anyway…”

The supervisor, who was about two heads taller than Elsie, turned pale as he watched her.

Even if Elsie had given advance notice, anyone who saw someone break a brick with their bare hands right in front of them would be taken aback.

Incidentally, this supervisor was one of the people who had vehemently opposed allowing Elsie’s wolf into the castle.

Naturally, Prince Allen, who had been watching, was also stunned.

“Ah, I’m sorry! I meant to add some strength, but I ended up applying too much…”

“Ah, no, my lady. It’s alright; we have spare bows.”

Longbows, designed to be large for greater tension, appear less curved compared to other bows, but the short bows used by hunters are a different story. Since longbows are too large for dense forests, hunters carry much smaller bows. Naturally, these smaller bows have their staves curved forward into a C-shape to ensure enough tension.

Stringing these bows is already difficult for most adults unless they are skilled, yet Elsie casually bent the bow backward and ended up snapping it.

And this wasn’t just any bow—it was made of imported ironwood.

Even for someone seeing a short bow for the first time, watching someone easily bend the curved stave with both hands and snap it would make anyone flinch in shock.

Especially if that person had been stringing their own bow right beside her.

Prince Allen experienced exactly that.

Incidentally, the hunter who had witnessed this was one of those who had strongly disapproved of letting Elsie’s wolf pack stay in the forest.

Throughout the tour introducing the public roads of the Grand Duchy of Grattanmount to the two princes, Elsie kept displaying similar feats.

For example, picking up a tall, heavy weather vane that had fallen due to the wind and planting it firmly in the ground by herself, or splitting logs in half with her bare hands at the woodpile.

Incidentally, Father, who had been with us the entire time, started with an amused expression but grew increasingly serious as he watched Elsie. After all, he had also been one of those who initially thought I had brought Elsie along simply because we were friends.

…Well, that was mostly true.

I already knew from the novel the extent of Elsie’s abilities. If Elsie had also read the novel to the end, she would probably understand why I had brought her along.

In the novel, Amelia exploited Elsie’s abilities…

“…”

The more I confirmed that Elsie understood her strength, the more I thought of the original story, and my mind became a tangled mess.

Did Elsie, unaware that I was a transmigrator, still think of me as a villain?

Or as someone destined to become one?

As Elsie continued to show off her Delkis-style strength to the visibly pale Second Prince, I found myself deep in thought.

*

“Your Highness, did you see the prince’s face? He was completely terrified, wasn’t he?”

“Probably. It only took one instance this morning to make it clear. But after seeing how ‘different’ you are several more times, I’d say he’s thoroughly intimidated.”

“Eek.”

Elsie’s eyes widened in surprise at my response.

“…By ‘this morning,’ do you mean when I murdered the dining table…?”

“Yes. Though it seems you didn’t get a proper look at the prince’s face back then.”

At my answer, Elsie’s shoulders slumped. She looked utterly deflated.

“At first, I thought it was just that you didn’t notice. But later, were you doing it on purpose?”

Startled, I asked, but Elsie looked at me and replied.

“…No, it’s embarrassing for me too.”

Pff.

Hearing Elsie’s dispirited voice, I had to clench my stomach muscles again.

I mustn’t laugh.

Elsie had worked so hard to show that she could be helpful, and if I laughed at that—

“Uh, your Highness.”

As if sensing my struggle, Elsie scratched her cheek and spoke.

“If it’s funny, you can laugh.”

“…What?”

“I mean, even I know I’ve been causing a bit of a scene. And, well… I did split the dining table in half right in front of the Grand Duke.”

“Father was probably considering filing a complaint with the royal capital anyway. If anything, it’s easier now that the prince has learned his place.”

“So… are you saying that everything would have been resolved even if I hadn’t done anything?”

“…That’s right.”

At my answer, Elsie drooped her shoulders as if she truly hadn’t known.

Since all the places where Elsie had shown off her strength were connected to people she’d previously clashed with, I had assumed she was letting off some steam while tackling tasks along the way.

But judging by her reaction, it seemed she hadn’t planned anything of the sort.

“I’m sorry.”

Realizing this, I quickly apologized.

Elsie blinked at me, looking puzzled.

“Why are you apologizing, your Highness?”

“If I had explained everything to you beforehand, you wouldn’t have felt the need to go through all that trouble.”

“Ah, well…”

Elsie paused, her expression contemplative for a moment, before shrugging and speaking with a carefree tone.

“Still, it was honestly satisfying. There were a few people I didn’t like among those we saw today. It felt nice to stretch out and act as freely as I did in Delkis. And did you see their faces? They turned pale every time I did anything! Don’t you think they’ll think twice before opposing me in the future? Now they know that even the stories they’ve heard about Delkis don’t fully capture what we’re capable of.”

I stared blankly at Elsie as she spoke, her expression truly refreshed.

And then—

“Heh.”

The laughter I had been holding back finally spilled out.

No, it wasn’t the laughter I had been holding back. That had ended back when I was apologizing.

This was different. It was as if everything had suddenly stopped mattering, and I couldn’t help but laugh.

I found myself thinking it might have been better to let Elsie roam free, even in the middle of a battlefield. The Elsie here, confined by her surroundings, seemed quieter than the one I remembered—a caged wolf.

How miserable must it have been for her to live this way, unable to do what she wanted, constantly worrying about how others saw her? Especially for Elsie, who used to run freely through the forest with her wolf friends.

While she was in the estate, Elsie had always been quiet and expressionless. The only time her face lit up was when she met Gray, Snow, or the wolf pack outside in the forest.

I had been wondering whether she might resent me for confining her to such a situation.

But judging by today, that didn’t seem to be entirely the case.

“Hahaha!”

I felt relieved, and the laughter came naturally.

“Hah… ha.”

Finally, I managed to stop laughing and straightened up.

Elsie was staring at me with a bewildered expression. She must have found it strange that I didn’t laugh earlier when she told me to, only to burst into laughter at this odd timing.

“Elsie.”

“Yes, your Highness?”

“Hmm, you know… we should probably do something about those titles too.”

At Elsie’s response, I added this casually.

“Uh, the title?”

“Yes, the title.”

I had been thinking a lot about why I had brought Elsie here.

And I realized it wasn’t just because “we were close.”

Elsie was someone irreplaceable to me.

While our closeness was one reason, as someone who had come from another world, Elsie was the only one who shared memories of that same world. No one else could fill that role—not Father, Mother, or my younger sibling, even though all three were precious to me. They were safe here, after all.

That was why I didn’t want to lose Elsie. I wanted to have fun conversations with her one day, talking about the novel I knew and loved so much.

Until now, I had worried endlessly about whether Elsie might hate me. But I didn’t care anymore.

Rather than staying anxious on my own, it might be better to confront things head-on, just like Elsie had done today.

“Elsie, would you like to stay with me tonight?”

“…What?”

“What do you think? Even though you’re supposed to be guarding me, we always sleep separately. If you think about it, wouldn’t it be easier to respond if something happened to me at night if you stayed by my side?”

“…What?”

Elsie repeated herself, tilting her head as though her brain had short-circuited.