I Was Reincarnated as a Villainous Noble and I Want to Be Expelled, but the Yandere Princess Won’t Let It! - Chapter 26-28

Chapter 26: Discharge

The cold atmosphere from just a moment ago had disappeared.

“You’re okay now, right? I still can’t feel my legs, though.”

“That’s good to hear!”

Rino appeared in front of me and Seno with an incredibly bright attitude.

“No, who are you?”

Seno, my aunt, couldn’t help but comment on the drastic change. It’s hard to believe that the person who had been sternly confronting me with formal language is the same person now smiling so brightly.

“I’m still me… But more importantly, Reno, if you’re okay now, it seems fine to leave the infirmary, right?”

“I’m fine. I can even use healing magic myself.”

Even though I ended up in the infirmary after the fierce battle with Rino, I can use healing magic on my own. I could have healed my legs, which were cursed, even if I had been left lying there for a while.

“Well, I still can’t use my legs, so I’ll be relying on that wheelchair for a while.”

I activated levitation magic and sat down in the wheelchair that Rino had brought.

“No, no!? That’s not allowed!”

Seno, who had been watching the exchange between Rino and me, intervened.

“You still need to stay at rest!”

“I’m fine, really.”

I responded to her concern.

“I’m not so weak that I’d be defeated by these wounds. I have confidence in my healing magic, even more than Seno. So, there’s no need to worry.”

“Well…?”

Seno looked confused and murmured in response to my words.

“Since Reno says it’s fine, it’s okay, right? Aunt Seno?”

“…Alright. Well, if Reno-kun, who could fight properly with Rino, says so, I suppose I’ll acknowledge it. Still, stay at rest, okay?”

“I understand. I’ll be calm for a while.”

I nodded in agreement with Seno’s words. For now, I need to heal my legs; I’m not at the stage where I could be reckless.

“Well then, excuse us.”

“Alright! Let’s go, Reno!”

“Yes, please drive the wheelchair.”

“Got it! Leave it to me!”

I nodded to Rino’s words and entrusted the operation of the wheelchair to her.

“…Rino, take good care of that person who’s standing by you for now.”

Seno, who was watching us, finally spoke to Rino.

“Of course! I’m Reno’s fiancée, so Reno comes first, always… I understand.”

Then, Rino answered with a smile and pushed the wheelchair carrying me out of the infirmary.

—

Chapter 27: On the Way

In the building with its elegant design, luxurious carpet on the floor, large mirrors lined up on the walls to provide light in the hallway, and artistic items like paintings and vases adding color to the scene, I advanced in the wheelchair, pushed forward by Rino.

“Hehe, Reno.”

Amid this, Rino, who was pushing the wheelchair, called out my name.

“What is it?”

“Nothing, just calling you.”

“Oh, I see.”

I continued forward, exchanging a conversation that felt like one we had before.

“Reno, I love you.”

Next came a declaration of love. Rino’s voice remained cheerful, but it felt like there was an unmeasurable, sticky affection and pressure in her tone.

“Well, I love you too.”

I responded with a light tone, in contrast to her.

“Is it as a romantic interest? Or as family?”

“We’re fiancés. We’re already like family, aren’t we?”

No matter how I thought about it, or how I tried to deceive myself, what I felt for Rino was not romantic. It was familial affection, like towards a younger sister.

In terms of mental age, Rino, who was three years old and now ten, could not be loved romantically by me, someone over twenty. It was clearly outside my range.

“…”

Even so, I couldn’t avoid talking about love here. However, I also couldn’t lie.

“…I see.”

I wasn’t lying at all. Still, I prepared an answer that would make Rino happy.

“Yeah, we are close fiancés, after all. Hehe, that’s right. Well, it’s good… for now, right?”

Rino’s response was quite loaded with meaning.

Ah, as expected… Rino understands. She pretends to be crazy but is actually quite sane.

Even though her love might be a bit out of control, her calm side must have known in the throne room that I wasn’t brainwashed, and she probably still understands the true meaning behind my answer now.

However, Rino likely wouldn’t talk about that… Hmm, as a fiancé, can I love her? No, the question is when that will happen.

“So? Where are we heading now?”

I opened my mouth to change the subject while thinking about this.

“Well, it’s better if you see it yourself. We’ve already arrived.”

Instead of answering my question, Rino stopped and stood in front of a door.

—

Chapter 28: Nonsense

The door that Rino pushed me to.

When it opened, inside were a large number of people, all clad in armor.

“Wh… Why are you all here?”

I was shocked, with a strong sense of déjà vu. The people in front of me were knights serving my family, who were still supposed to be stationed at the Lastella Marquisate. These were the knights who had taken care of us when Rino and I were kidnapped at the age of three.

“Lord Reno! We, your loyal subjects, have been waiting… Lord Reno!? What has happened to you!? What is this appearance!?”

Mediom, the leader of the knights who had been instilled with loyalty not to my father but to me, screamed every time he saw me in the wheelchair.

“W-what does this mean!? We heard that a special punishment would be given to Lord Reno by His Majesty the King…!”

“Hold on, my appearance is fine. It’s not a big deal… More importantly, what is this special punishment? I haven’t been informed of anything.”

Calming the panicked commander, I delved into the concerning words he had just spoken.

“According to the royal messenger, Lord Reno’s prodigious talents have been remarkable. It is considered that, during the long absence of the previous lord, you were effectively the head of the family. Therefore, the previous lord was no longer the head of the family seven years ago. Thus, this incident is not a betrayal by the head of a noble family but just a betrayal by the head’s own relatives. We understand it as such.”

“What?”

I asked Mediom to repeat what he had said.

“Well… I see?”

Before hearing the answer again, I arrived at my own conclusion. Essentially, instead of saying that my father, the head of the Lastella Marquisate, had defected to the enemy, the story was that my father, who was ousted from his position by three-year-old me, had defected to the enemy.

If the head of a noble family defects, it would mean guilt by association for the entire family. However, if only the relatives defected, it would not necessarily involve the whole family.

“What is this trick…”

Logically, it doesn’t seem entirely impossible, but… the notion that three-year-old me was the true head of the family and that my father was no longer the head is just absurd.

But if there is a chance to push through such absurdity, it would be due to…

“…Rino.”

The only one who could be standing here calmly after causing a huge commotion with a sword in the throne room, which should have been the place for my judgment, is Rino.

“That’s right!”

Rino smiled and nodded at my partially confident murmur.