Please Fall in Love with Me! – A Villainess on Her Second Loop, using 'Seduction' to Avoid Ruin! - Chapter 4.11

“It would be an honor. I would love to.”

Adelaide smiled radiantly, nodding in agreement.

That smile alone was enough to tell him—this wasn’t flattery or mere social niceties. It was genuine.

How incredibly straightforward she was.

Among the nobility, one’s true thoughts were always hidden behind layers of words and actions, buried beneath deception and ulterior motives.

Yet with her, every emotion was plainly visible in her expressions and gestures. At times, it even made him worry.

—And yet, he found that part of her endearing as well.

“Then, I’ll send word again. For now, I bid you good night.”

Taking Adelaide’s hand, he gently kissed her slender fingers.

Just from that, her cheeks flushed a deeper shade of red.

A smile tugged at his lips.

Since when had he noticed? That she always reacted so shyly, even to a simple greeting.

“…It’s a promise.”

Without letting go of her hand, he lifted his gaze to meet hers and placed another kiss upon it.

The moment his lips touched her skin, her fingers trembled slightly.

“Y-yes…”

The hesitance in her deep blue eyes overlapped with a familiar image from his dreams.

—A pang of heat swelled in his chest.

The carriage rumbled along the dark night road.

Leaning back against the seat, Lord Siegvard stared at the ceiling in silence.

Lately, there was a dream he kept seeing over and over again.

The Holy Guard Knights had been newly established to serve the Saintess, and he had been honored with the position of commander.

But that honor came with its price.

It stirred resentment and jealousy among the other Holy Knights and soldiers, leading to countless instances of harassment.

The hostility gradually escalated—until it eventually turned into outright violence.

“Using the Grand Duke’s wealth and influence to worm your way into the Saintess’s favor, are you?”

“You’re nothing but a bastard of lowborn bl00d—where do you think you belong?”

They spat those words at him as they kicked him to the ground again and again.

“Lowborn bl00d.”

They weren’t wrong.

His mother had been a mere maid. Not only had she used her child to try and blackmail the emperor for wealth and power, but when that failed, she had attempted to dispose of the very child she had borne. She was a criminal.

As for his father—he was said to be the emperor, but only the emperor himself and Grand Duke Argento knew the truth. And even then, there was no way to verify if that claim was true.

Given his questionable lineage, it was understandable that the nobility, with their esteemed, pure bloodlines, would be outraged to see him standing beside the Saintess.

But that didn’t mean he would simply accept their mistreatment.

Nor did he have any intention of relinquishing his position or stepping away from the Saintess’s side.

And that only fueled their hostility further.

The torment became more and more brutal.

Holy power and magic were opposing forces.

Because of this, those who wielded holy power—priests and Holy Knights—could not rely on potions for healing.

Seeking aid from a priest would mean revealing his injuries—exposing the fact that he was being tormented.

And that was something he absolutely refused to do.

More than anything, he despised the idea of exposing his own weakness.

If he showed even the slightest vulnerability, they would exploit it. And one day, it would cost him his life.

For him, seeking help was the same as exposing his greatest weakness.

And so, on that day as well, he had kept his injuries hidden while standing guard over the Saintess.

“Um… Lord Argento, may I have a moment of your time?”

It was then that a voice called out to him—belonging to none other than the infamous Adelaide di Kishtaria.

He had been standing outside the powder room, waiting for the Saintess.

“What is it?”

“Could you hold this flower for a moment? Just while I fix my hair.”

Dressed in an elegant yet striking black and crimson gown—an attire befitting her reputation as a villainess—she extended a single pure white lily to him.

The contrast between the flower’s innocence and her provocative dress was jarring.

“I’m sorry, but as the Saintess’s guard, I cannot accept anything suspicious.”

“I-it’s just a flower! There’s nothing suspicious about it. Look.”

Adelaide pressed the lily gently against her cheek.

“See? There’s no poison or hidden substances. If I had tampered with it, the flower wouldn’t remain unharmed. It would wither or change color.”

“……”

“Please, just hold it for a little while. That’s all I ask.”

She pleaded again and again, her earnest gaze fixed on him.

He found himself questioning why she was so desperate.

It was suspicious. If she merely needed someone to hold the flower, she could have asked anyone else—so why insist on him?

Yet, her clear blue eyes held no trace of deceit.

And she was persistent.

In the end, he relented, reaching out to take the lily.

—!

The moment he touched it, the white lily dissolved into a soft, glowing light.

That light enveloped him.

Instantly, he regretted his decision.

Why had he accepted it?

His body tensed, his hand instinctively reaching for his sword—only to realize something.

The pain in his body was gone.

“…What…?”

“There’s no pain left now, is there?”

Adelaide confirmed softly before turning on her heel to leave.

“W-wait! What did you…?!”

But there was no need to ask.

The answer was obvious.

And that was precisely why it was impossible.

Adelaide was not a priestess.

He had never heard any mention of her possessing holy power.

Was the white lily some kind of magical potion?

No, that wasn’t possible either. Potions had no effect on Holy Knights.

Then… was it truly holy power?

But the light that had enveloped him—it was not the pale white glow of a priest’s holy magic.

It was the color of the Saintess’s power.