Even Though the Gender Ratio Has Changed, My Attempts at Flirting With Women Are Unsuccessful - Chapter 3: I’ve Been Reincarnated as a Villain, but It Seems I Have a Childhood Friend

Chapter 3: I’ve Been Reincarnated as a Villain, but It Seems I Have a Childhood Friend

I finished getting ready and left the mansion in a carriage.

Looking back through the window, I saw my home getting farther away… though I couldn’t actually see the mansion itself.

There was a large gate at the entrance, surrounded by high stone walls.

My home was inside those walls.

It blocked not only attacks from outside but also any prying eyes.

As expected, a duke’s family was on a different level.

The security was reassuring.

Even though I reincarnated as a villain, being born into a duke’s family was a good thing.

Looking closely, I noticed a few people by the gate… female soldiers in armor, probably gatekeepers.

I always thought gatekeepers were men, but it seemed that wasn’t the case in this world.

With a gender ratio of 1:9, maybe there was a shortage of men?

But men were stronger, so they should be better suited for guarding…

Well, it probably wasn’t that important, so whatever.

“Ar-kun, what kind of present are you going to give Mama?~♪”

My mom, sitting next to me, asked with a big smile.

The real goal was to go outside, and getting a present for Mom was just an excuse.

But she never gave up on the selfish, arrogant, and lazy Ark, raising him properly.

Even though I wouldn’t act like that anymore, I needed to choose a gift thoughtfully to show my gratitude!

Jewels or expensive things were probably normal for her, given her status…

“Maybe flowers… I want to give you flowers.”

“Oh, flowers?”

Mom blinked in surprise.

The original Ark probably spent money recklessly, so choosing flowers must have been unexpected.

“Yeah. Flowers seem nice. Besides, I want to give you jewels or expensive things with money I earn myself when I grow up.”

“Ar-kun!~”

Mom’s eyes teared up slightly, and she looked happy.

To think she’d be this happy just over a present… the original Ark must have been really ungrateful.

Soon, the carriage stopped in front of a building that screamed “for nobles only.”

I expected this, but yeah, it turned out like that.

I wanted to observe the town and people closely, but as a duke’s son, I couldn’t just wander into crowded places.

I hadn’t mastered handling magic perfectly yet.

Plus, I was only 10 years old.

Even though I trained, my body was still that of a kid…

If I got attacked, I wasn’t confident I could handle it, and in the worst case, I might die…

Yeah, this was probably fine for now.

No need to rush.

Safety first.

Stepping into the shop, I saw a dazzling chandelier on the ceiling and a spacious interior.

The staff bowed politely as soon as they saw us.

It was a completely different world from the flower shops in my past life.

But deeper inside, there were actual flowers.

“Ar-kun, which flowers are you going to give Mama?~ This one? Or maybe this one?~”

Mom pointed at a few flowers, asking happily.

I smiled at her while thinking.

In my past life, carnations were the obvious choice for Mother’s Day, but I didn’t know the culture of this world yet.

There were many flowers I’d never seen before, probably unique to this world.

Among them, I could tell roses were roses just by looking.

As a gift, roses were simple but safer than picking an unknown flower.

“I think roses would be good. What do you think, Mom?”

“As expected of Ar-kun!~ Mama thinks so too!~”

It seemed like Mom would be happy no matter what I chose.

And so, picking flowers for Mom’s present was done.

…Wait, if this ended too quickly, we’d just go back to the mansion!

Even if wrapping took some time, we’d be heading home soon…

I came outside today, so I wanted to enjoy it more and learn about this world!

I wanted to know what kind of world I was in!!

I was thinking of ways to keep Mom from leaving when…

“Oh? How rare to meet here.”

Someone came out from the back room and called out to us.

At the end of their gaze was a strikingly beautiful woman.

She wore simple but clearly expensive fabric.

From her appearance, she was probably a high-ranking noble too.

“Oh my! Ellie-chan, it’s been so long!~ We haven’t seen each other in forever, right?~”

“Yes, it’s really been a while, Ria.”

Mom and the beautiful woman talked like close friends.

So they knew each other.

Then, had I met this beautiful woman before too?

“Hm?”

I suddenly noticed another presence.

“…”

A girl was peeking at me from behind the beautiful woman.

Her soft, wavy white hair and big, round eyes were absolutely adorable.

“Tiana-chan, it’s been a while!~ Do you remember me?~”

Mom crouched down, speaking gently at eye level.

Oh, so her name was Tiana. Even her name was cute.

The girl called Tiana bowed slightly and quickly hid behind the beautiful woman… her mother.

She seemed shy around strangers.

“By the way… is the boy next to you perhaps Ark-kun?”

“Yes, that’s my son, Ar-kun!~”

“That Ark-kun?”

I thought I saw the beautiful woman’s eyes widen for a moment.

“He’s changed a lot since the last time we met.”

“Yes, my Ar-kun has changed recently!~”

Mom sounded excited.

I didn’t know how the original Ark spoke or acted, so I worried about changing too much…

But Mom didn’t seem to mind as long as it was a good change, which was a relief.

“Even today, he said he’d pick out a present for me!~”

“My, that’s wonderful. And… it’s rare for a boy to do that.”

“Ar-kun is just different from other kids!~”

Mom and the beautiful woman’s conversation kept getting livelier.

But this was a chance.

Normally, we’d buy the flowers and go straight back to the mansion…

I tugged at Mom’s arm.

“Mom, since we’re here, let’s stop somewhere and talk more.”

“You’re right. It’d be sad to part with Ellie-chan and Tiana-chan so soon!~”

“I know a nice place nearby. Shall we go there?”

Mom and the beautiful woman nodded enthusiastically.

Yes, this meant I could stay outside longer!

But still…

“…”

I glanced over and saw that girl still looking at me.

Mom’s friend’s daughter… so she probably had some connection to Ark.

Maybe in the original story, she was Ark’s childhood friend.

A villain with a childhood friend, huh.