I Reincarnated as a Villainous Noble, Nothing More Than the Hero’s Foil: Since the Hero Can Only Bring Misery to My Favorite Heroine, I’ll Use My Game Knowledge and Over-the-Top Effort to Rewrite the Scenario and Make Her Happy. - Chapter 45

“You… you are truly the Saint of the World Tree!?”

Celine, the elven chieftain, dropped to her knees in shock.

“W-What is the meaning of this!? The Saint herself has brought Angela back to us!?”

“No, that is not the case,” Selvia answered firmly. “This reunion was guided by my brother, Cain. Please lower your weapons and listen to our story.”

There was a newfound authority in Selvia’s voice, fitting of a saint.

“…I understand. I apologize for my rudeness, Lord Cain. Since the Atlas Empire’s invasion fifteen years ago, we have forbidden any humans from entering this forest.”

Celine bowed her head in apology.

The elves worshiped the World Tree, believing it to be the source of all life. To them, the Saint of the World Tree was not merely a human but a divine messenger of the tree itself.

“Fifteen years ago, you saved Crown Prince Siegfried, fell in love, and bore Angela, did you not? As I mentioned, my purpose here is to reunite Angela with you.”

“…Is this true?”

Angela, standing behind my Death Knights, hesitated as she spoke.

The presence of the terrifying undead warriors made the elves visibly uneasy.

“To summon this many undead at once!? …You possess the Princess of Death’s unique skill, don’t you!?”

Angela ignored the murmurs and stared directly at Celine.

“If you really are my mother… there’s something I need to ask first. Why did you abandon me?”

“Abandon you? I never abandoned you! That man, Siegfried, stole you from me!”

Celine’s anguished cry echoed through the forest.

“W-What…?”

Angela looked completely lost.

“Celine, Angela was raised believing she had been abandoned. Siegfried never told her who her mother was and convinced her that it was because of the elves’ isolationist ways. Then, he used her as a pawn—a necromancer working in the shadows for the empire. Please, tell her the truth.”

“Such outrageous lies…! Fine. Angela, listen carefully!”

Celine took a deep breath before she began.

“Fifteen years ago, Siegfried and I fell in love, and our union ended the war between the elves and the empire. Then you were born. You were meant to grow up here as the daughter of the elven chieftain. But Siegfried said, ‘The unique skill of the Princess of Death will aid my ambitions,’ and he took you from me!”

“That can’t be true! Father told me… he told me you abandoned me! He said the elven laws wouldn’t allow a half-human child to stay!”

Angela glared at Celine, her voice filled with doubt.

“It is true that many elves were opposed to raising the crown prince’s daughter. My father had been killed by the imperial army, and the elves hated humans. But I never intended to abandon you. I wanted to work with Siegfried toward peaceful coexistence between our peoples. But he—!”

Celine’s voice broke as emotions overwhelmed her.

The Princess of Death’s unique skill allowed her to turn anyone she killed into an undead servant automatically. The same applied to any creatures her undead servants killed.

With such an ability, Siegfried saw Angela as the ultimate tool for conquest.

“So why did you hide in this forest all these years instead of coming to find me, Mother?!”

“Because Siegfried threatened war if the elves violated the truce! He said that if we broke our neutrality, he would slaughter every elf in this forest! That is why I could not go to you!”

“That’s… horrible…”

Even Selvia looked horrified.

“Siegfried never loved Celine. He was a prisoner of war and pretended to fall in love to escape.”

“Exactly! His love was nothing but a lie!”

“…My father’s love was a lie…?”

Angela’s voice trembled.

“But I never stopped thinking about you for even a single day, Angela! I wanted to be with you!”

“O-Oh… Mother!”

Celine rushed forward, and the two embraced, tears streaming down their faces.

“If I hadn’t met you today, I would have spent my whole life hating you…”

“Angela… I can feel immense magic power from you. To have gained this much strength at your age… You must have endured so much suffering.”

“Yes… Father said that if I proved useful in conquering Albion, he would finally acknowledge me as his daughter, despite my elven bl00d… So I worked tirelessly, every single day…”

“You don’t have to endure that anymore. Come live with me. You are an elf, the descendant of the World Tree. You were never meant to be a weapon for war.”

“Aaah…! Yes, Mother!”

It seemed their broken bond had finally mended.

I was relieved.

Now, I might even be able to obtain the rare skills known only to the elven chieftain.

These would be crucial in defeating Hero Abel.

The hero’s trump card was his unique skill, Unbreakable Courage. To overcome it, I needed every advantage I could get.

“Brother Cain… You did all this just to see this moment, didn’t you?”

“Well… that’s part of it.”

“You don’t have to act shy. I know better than anyone that you have a kind heart.”

Selvia leaned against me, smiling warmly.

“But why is Angela here with the Saint of the World Tree?”

“Because… I lost to Cain and became his slave.”

“What!?”

Celine’s expression turned cold as she looked at me like I was filth.

“Wait, it’s not like that! Angela led an attack on Albion, so I had no choice!”

“That’s correct.”

Selvia nodded in agreement.

“Mother! It’s not what you think…!”

Angela whispered something to Celine, her face turning red.

“I-I see… Lord Cain, please forgive my rudeness. I only ask that you take good care of Angela.”

“What!?”

“Cain, from now on, I’ll be your personal bodyguard. I’ll stay by your side day and night. Our next opponent is Prince Leon, isn’t it? Then we need to be wary of assassins.”

“Well… that does make sense, but…”

“Brother Cain! Please make Angela promise not to lay a finger on you!”

“Huh!?”

Selvia suddenly made a drastic request.

Angela also sounded suspicious. This was an extreme level of caution… but perhaps it wasn’t entirely unwarranted.

“Ahem… Forbidding me from touching him might put his safety at risk, don’t you think?”

“Angela is right, Lady Saint.”

“Hmph… I suppose that is true. Brother’s safety comes first…”

Selvia reluctantly backed down.

“Also, Lord Cain… If I may make a request, would you allow the 3,000 elves living in this forest to relocate to your territory?”

“You want to abandon this land?”

Celine’s proposal caught me off guard.

“Under the protection of the Saint of the World Tree, we could truly flourish. But more than anything… I do not wish to be separated from Angela again.”

I see.

If they moved to my territory in Schwarz, even the emperor wouldn’t be able to touch them. It made sense.

“I would gladly accept, but… I plan to fight Prince Leon and Hero Abel. If you join me, you will be drawn into a war against the royal army. Are you prepared for that?”

The elves murmured anxiously.

With them, I would gain 3,000 warriors and 5,000 Wood Golems—an incredible force.

But dragging the elves into war was something I didn’t take lightly.

“Hero Abel? Why must you fight the hero?”

“Because he believes that only he can defeat the Demon King and uses that as an excuse for his tyranny. And worse—he wants to claim my fiancée, Selvia, for his harem.”

“He dares to target the Saint!?”

Celine looked outraged.

“But if you kill the hero, who will fight the Demon King?”

Selvia stepped forward confidently.

“Don’t worry, Mother. Cain has already made a plan to prevent the Demon King’s resurrection.”

“What!?”

“Yes, Lady Celine. Brother Cain has spies spreading the truth across the empire—that Siegfried is trying to revive the Demon King. Soon, the emperor will be destroyed by his own ambitions.”

“…T-That’s impossible!”

Celine’s eyes widened in shock.