I Got Reincarnated as a Villainous Noble, and When I Tried to Create an All-Male Academy to Avoid a Bad Ending, for Some Reason the Gender Ratio Reversed? - Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Side: Fran Chevalier

[Side: Fran Chevalier]

I was born as the second daughter of a count’s house.

Being a count means having the third highest rank among nobles, and there is no doubt it is a wealthy background.

But my life was hardly something I could call happy.

My older sister’s existence gradually twisted my life.

She was two years older than me.

At first, I remember her being kind. We had a relationship like ordinary sisters.

But after it became clear that I had more magical talent than her, her attitude slowly changed.

It went beyond the level of childish jealousy.

I got falsely accused of crimes I never committed, or when we were alone, she pulled my hair.

At a ball, she deliberately dirtied my dress.

She spilled stew on me, and as I stood there stained pure white, my sister mocked me.

Why did my sister bully me this much?

Back then, I truly did not understand.

Those with magical talent have their future guaranteed. For other women, the only future is marriage.

I probably did not know that common sense of this country.

My sister likely could not forgive me for grasping freedom.

And her jealousy did not stop as we grew older. It became even more extreme.

Gradually, even my parents began to shun me.

My sister probably whispered something to them.

I got falsely accused of stealing things or spreading bad rumors about my parents.

Before I knew it, I was treated as a nuisance, and conversations with my family almost disappeared.

As all that piled up, in the end—

It was decided that I would marry a noble with a bad reputation. That happened when I was ten.

I had heard that many nobles treat women like slaves. Once married, there is no choice but to live obediently.

Marrying a noble with a bad reputation and living a life no different from a slave.

That was my future. In other words, there was nothing ahead.

At ten years old, I despaired over my own life.

That was when it happened.

—When I met him.

Orufusen Starz Island. The eldest son of the marquis-ranked Island house.

At the ball, he acted arrogantly, kept women around him, and spoke in a commanding tone to everyone. He was truly the prime example of a noble with a bad reputation.

But when we actually met face to face, what do you think?

“…”

Surprisingly, the eyes he directed at me were kind.

Moreover, he even seemed somewhat nervous, and I felt a strong sense of discrepancy.

“P-Pleased to meet you.”

“Likewise.”

After that, I became his fiancée. Since my parents decided it on their own, I had no right to refuse.

But I did not mind it that much.

Because every time we met, he always looked me in the eyes.

“Fran likes books, right?”

“Likes… them?”

“You’re always reading some book, aren’t you?”

“I just read them to escape reality. As for liking them… I’m sorry. I don’t really understand that feeling.”

“I see.”

He spoke little, and our conversations never grew lively.

“Do you read books, Lord Ol?”

“Me? I read manga… Ahem, I don’t read many difficult books.”

“I see.”

We only continued one-question-one-answer exchanges.

He never changed his expression or reacted much. From the outside, it might look like a completely cold relationship.

But he always looked me in the eyes and listened seriously.

That earnest attitude was so different from the rumors circulating in society that I could not grasp his true character at all.

Still, it never felt unpleasant.

After several such interactions, a few months after becoming engaged.

He suddenly asked me.

“What do you want to do at the academy, Fran?”

“The academy?”

“Yeah. Everyone attends the academy at fifteen. With your talent, you should be able to do anything. Even save the world.”

“I’ve never thought about anything like that.”

I was surprised.

Let alone saving the world, I had never even considered doing something.

“Ahem… Saving the world might sound unrealistic. But lately, there are rumors that the witch’s seal is breaking, right?”

“Fufu… I’m sorry.”

A smile unintentionally spilled out.

He hurriedly explained about saving the world in a fast voice, but that was not what surprised me.

—What do you want to do?

The fact that he asked me that itself was shocking.

“Are you giving me a wish, Lord Ol?”

“A wish?”

“I will marry into the Island house. So supporting you by your side is my duty. Is it all right for someone like me to have a wish?”

He stared wide-eyed for a while and then murmured.

“Of course. Everyone strives to fulfill their wishes. Some aim for success and promotion, some want to spend their life with the one they love, some wish to become someone, and some strongly desire to survive.”

His eyes were serious.

They were the eyes of someone with a clear goal. Before I knew it, I was drawn into that strong light.

“Any wish is fine. No matter how trivial, if it becomes a reason to live for that person, it is a rightful wish.”

He murmured while gazing somewhere far away and then asked again.

“Let me ask. What do you wish for, Fran?”

“A wish…”

No matter how much I thought, nothing came to mind right away.

I had been oppressed, shunned, and lived as an outcast since I was young. I had never held hope.

Being wished for or wishing myself. I did not know because I had no experience.

Still…

I gazed into Lord Ol’s eyes.

His expression was dark, and his gaze could not be called friendly by any means. His posture was overbearing, exactly like a noble with a bad reputation.

Even so, deep in his eyes was kindness—

It was calm like a quiet sea—

It was a gaze as if he truly wished for my happiness from the bottom of his heart.

As I gazed at those kind eyes, tears overflowed before I realized it.

“No, I’m not threatening you or anything. I just don’t want you to give up because you’re my fiancée—”

Lord Ol scratched his cheek awkwardly, clearly flustered.

His anxious expression was so adorable that…

“Fufu… I’m sorry.”

I ended up laughing again.

Because Lord Ol had completely misunderstood.

“My wish has just been decided.”

“Oh?”

As I watched Lord Ol let out a relieved sigh, I said.

“My wish. It is to support you by your side… No, to support you from the front.”

Yes.

That is my desire.

Because my heart already belongs to Lord Ol. I do not know since when.

Still, the feeling I keep in this chest is certain.

His eyes are dear to me, his voice is endearing, his expressions, his words—everything fills my heart.

—If this is not called love, what else would it be?

“Lord Ol.”

I approached him.

And as I caught his eyes straight on, I declared with the resolve to devote my entire life.

“I am your fiancée, Lord Ol. As your fiancée—no, as your wife, I want to be with you.”

I smiled brightly and pressed both hands to my chest.

—Ah, this is.

The depths of my chest grew hot as if burning.

As if flowers bloomed around me, my vision suddenly brightened and spread out.

It was a completely new sensation—

On this day, Fran Chevalier was truly born.

※

—And time passed to the morning of the entrance ceremony.

“You look perfect today too.”

As I gazed at my reflection in the mirror, a small smile spilled out.

The academy uniform. It is proof that I walk together with Lord Ol. Proof that the future which should have been closed off has spread infinitely.

As I wore that precious uniform and felt satisfied with dressing up as much as possible, I vowed.

This body, this talent, these feelings, even this life.

—I will devote everything to Lord Ol.

That is the meaning of my life.

The reason for Fran Chevalier’s existence.