硝子の破片が、一つも降ることなく、宙で止まっている。
その間をすり抜けて、二つの影が降り立った。
一つは漆黒の翼を広げた魔物。だが金の飾り紐がついた軍服で主の斜め後ろに立つ姿は、騎士のお手本のように整っていた。
その前にいるのは、一度その姿を見たら忘れられぬ美貌の持ち主。
深紅の瞳が煌めく魔性の王だ。
指が鳴る音と同時に、硝子の破片が一斉に動き、天井へと戻る。静まり返った会場に、セドリックの掠れた声が響いた。
「あ、にうえ......どうして、ここに......」
「――森に兵を差し向けたのは、お前の指示か?」
魔王の登場に凍りついていた周囲がざわめいた。
特に顕著に反応したのは、壇上にいる貴族達だ。ルドルフを含む宰相、大臣達が目配せし合い、何か指示を出す。
「皇太子なら軽率な真似はするな。私に国を滅ぼす口実を与える気か」
セドリックの顔が青ざめる。
だがクロードはそれ以上咎める気はないのか、アイリーンをまっすぐに見つめた。
「待たせた。すまない」
「......いいえ。それほど待っておりませんわ」
「そのドレス、よく似合っている」
不意打ちで優しく微笑まれ、かあっと頬が赤く染まる。その熱を誤魔化すようにまばたいてみたが、うまく返事ができなかった。その仕草を見て、スカートの裾をつかんだままのセドリックが瞠目する。
「......アイリーン......まさか、お前......」
「署名は終わったのか?」
「ま、まだですわ」
「早くすませてくるといい。それで正式に、君はセドリックの婚約者でなくなる。僕は、他人の――まして異母弟の婚約者をエスコートする趣味はない」
睦言のように甘く囁かれて、照れ隠しに少しつんと顔をそむけた。
「わ、わかっていましてよ。少々お待ちになって」
「待て......待ってくれ、アイリーン。お前は、本当に、リリアを誘拐していないのか」
アイリーンは足下のセドリックを見た。
不安げな面差しが思い出と重なる。――ほんとうは、あにうえの方が優秀なのにってみんな思ってるんだよ。裏でぼくを笑ってるんだ。その横顔が、寂しそうだった。
負けないで、あなただってできる。わたくしはあなたの味方だから。――そう、ちゃんと伝えられればよかった。
「......アイザック」
名前を呼ばれ、少し遠くからこちらを窺っていたアイザックはほんの少し、嫌そうな顔をした。けれどすぐに諦めたのか、近寄ってくる。
「こういう時に限って甘いんだよ。切り札になったかもしれねぇのに」
「いいのよ。わたくしの切り札はあなた達だもの」
「お前......ロンバール伯爵家の」
アイザックは乱暴にアイリーンの掌に紙の束を渡し、セドリックを一瞥して踵を返す。その姿を目で追うセドリックに、アイリーンは受け取った紙束を差し出した。
「リリア様に届いた脅迫文です。ゴミ捨て場に捨てられたものを集めました」
「――そ、それがどうした」
「これが問題にされているわたくしの名前が入っている脅迫文。これは、ロンバール社が作っている便せんです。一番上が糊付けされていて、一枚ずつめくれるようになっています。二十枚でワンセット。そしてデザインの一環として、図案が型通りに打ち抜かれて、香りを出すためにその周囲に香水を染み込ませている」
そう言って、しわになった脅迫文をアイリーンは広げて見せた。
右下の隅には、薔薇の図案がくりぬかれている。そしてその周辺は香水の染みで変色していた。それを含めてのデザインだ。
「このデザインは、糊付けされ重なった状態のまま打ち抜きも香水に浸す作業も全て手作業で行われます。だからこうして重ねると――同じセットで作られたものはぴったり重なる。図案も、香水の染みの位置も。でも違うセットであれば、同じデザインでも重なりません」
まったく重なるものと、同じデザインなのに重ならないもの。それをきちんとセドリックに見せて、アイリーンは最後に、セドリックからもらった夜会の招待状を出す。
「この夜会に招待して下さる際、リリア様から親切にお手紙を頂きました」
その手紙を開いてみせる。そして、脅迫文の一つと重ねて見せた。
大事なのは筆跡でも文面でもない。その二つの便せんが、ぴったりと重なるということだ。
セドリックが大きく目を見開く。
「リリア様の手紙はこのままわたくしが持っておきます。――ですが、こちらの脅迫文はあなたに差し上げますわ、セドリック様。好きになさってください」
「......ど、どういうことだ」
「それはご自分でお考えくださいませ。わたくしはもう、あなたの婚約者ではなくなるのだから」
横っ面をはたかれたような顔で、セドリックがアイリーンを見つめる。
アイリーンは静かに微笑み返した。
「セドリック様。――お慕いしておりました」
「どうか、リリア様とお幸せに。さようなら」
すっと身を引くと、セドリックの手がそのまま床に落ちた。
振り向かず、アイリーンは壇上へ向かう。誰もそれを止めなかった。
壇上には、きちんと書面が二枚、用意されていた。一つは事業譲渡の書面。ざっと項目を確認して、アイリーンは素早くサインをする。
そしてもう一つは、大して確認する項目もない、婚約破棄の書面。
(これで、おしまい)
セドリックの名前の横に、自分の名前を書いて、羽ペンを置く。
――これで、アイリーン・ローレン・ドートリシュは自由だ。
じっと見守っている壇上横の大物貴族達に、優雅に一礼する。
壇上から降りる階段の手すりに手をかけると、クロードが下から手を差し出した。
「アイリーン・ローレン・ドートリシュ公爵令嬢。自由になった君と一番最初に踊る権利を、どうか私にいただきたい」
令嬢に一番最初に踊りを申し込むのは、予定調和の恋の駆け引きだ。
なのに初めて社交界に出た時のように初々しい恥じらいがこみ上げる。
小さく頷き、その手を重ねる。セドリックの姿は、もうクロードに隠れて見えない。
だから、気づかなかった。
「......だまされないぞ、俺は」
ぐしゃりと握りつぶされた手紙にも。
「思い知らせてやる。間違っているのはお前なんだ......!」
昏いつぶやきにも、歪んだ笑みにも。
Not even one fragment of the gla.s.s fell down; the shards were suspended midair.
Two shadows slipped through in between those fragments and came down to the a.s.sembly hall.
The first one was a monster whose jet black wings were spread wide. However, the figure who stood behind the King while wearing a military uniform decorated with golden strap was as refined as the Knight's role model.
In front of him was the owner of a beauty that wouldn't be forgotten once he was seen.
It was the devilish King whose deep crimson eyes were sparkling.
At the sound of his fingers snapping, the fragments of the gla.s.s moved all at once to restore the ceiling to its normal form. The sound of Cedric's hoa.r.s.e voice reverberated in the a.s.sembly hall that had fallen completely silent.
[Br, other......Why are you here?......] (Cedric)
[----Is it under your order that the troops were sent to the forest?] (Claude)
The surrounding people who were frozen in place since the Demon King's entrance started to become noisy.
Especially, the n.o.blemen on the platform; they had an obvious response. The Ministers including Prime Minister Rudolph were exchanging looks with each other; and then, they were sending out some sort of instructions.
[If you're a Crown Prince, don't do such thoughtless conduct. Are you giving me an excuse to destroy the country?] (Claude)
Cedric's face paled.
However, perhaps Claude didn't feel like rebuking him any more than that, so he directly fixed his gaze on Aileen.
[I kept you waiting. Sorry] (Claude)
[......No. You didn't make me wait that long] (Aileen)
[That dress, it suits you] (Claude)
Her cheeks immediately reddened due to his surprise attack of gently smiling at her. As if trying to gloss over the heat on her cheeks, she tried to wink at him, but she wasn't able to respond well. When he saw her action, Cedric who was still clutching on Aileen's hem was gazing at her in wonderment.
[......Aileen......Don't tell me, you......]  (Cedric)
[Have you finished putting on your signature?] (Claude)
[N, not yet] (Aileen)
[It's better if you get it done immediately. So officially, you're not Cedric's fiancee anymore. I don't have the preference of escorting other people's----let alone my half-brother's fiancee] (Claude)
Those words were sweetly whispered to her as if he was whispering intimacies; she standoffishly turned her face away from him a little to hide her embarra.s.sment.
[I, I know. Wait for a little while] (Aileen)
[Wait......Wait, Aileen. You, truly, haven't abducted Lilia?] (Cedric)
Aileen looked at Cedric underneath her feet.
His uneasy appearance overlapped with the one in her memories. ----The truth is, everyone thinks that Brother is way more excellent that I do. They were laughing behind my back. (Smol Cedric). That side profile of his looked lonely.
Don't lose, even you can do it. Because I'm your ally after all. (Smol Aileen)---- She wished she could properly convey it to him like that.
[......Isaac] (Aileen)
When she called out his name, Isaac was grumbling a little from a distance and made a slightly unpleasant face. But perhaps he immediately resigned to himself, so he then approached the location where Aileen and Claude stood.
[During this kind of time, the best plan is to go soft on him. Since you can probably use this as the trump card] (Isaac)
[That's alright. My trump card is all of you, after all] (Aileen)
[You......Lombard Earl House's] (Cedric)
Isaac roughly delivered the bundle of papers on top of Aileen's hand, took a glance at Cedric and turned his heel away. Aileen submitted the stack of papers that she had received to Cedric whose eyes were chasing Isaac's figure.
[These are the threatening letters that had been delivered to Lilisama. We collected what had been thrown away at the dump site] 
[----So, so what?] 
[This is the problematic threatening letters containing my name. This is the stationery that was made by Lombard's Company. The most top has been glued, so you can flip it one by one. There are 20 sheets of papers for one set. And as a part of the design, the design will be stamped out as it is, and the area around that stamp will be soaked in a perfume to give off a scent] 
As she said that, Aileen spread open the crumpled threatening letter and showed it to Cedric.
At the lower right corner, a rose design was hollowed out. And then, around that area, there was a discoloration due to the stain left by the perfume. That was included in the design.
[Everything on this design was manually done, including gluing them together while they were in an overlapping condition down to the work of soaking them with perfume. So, when you stack them up together----you can perfectly pile them up to make the same set. Even the design and the location of the stain left by the perfume. But, if there's a different set, you can't pile them up even if they have the same design] 
There's a perfect overlap when it had the same design and there's that couldn't even overlap with each other even when it had the same design. Aileen properly showed them to Cedric and finally showed the written invitation to the evening party she received from Cedric.
[Under the circ.u.mstances of inviting me to this evening party, Lilisama had kindly sent me a letter] 
She opened up that letter to show it to him. And then, she overlapped it with one of the threatening letters to show it to him.
What's important was neither the handwriting nor the content of the letter. Both of that stationery exactly overlapped with each other.
Cedric's eyes widened.
[I'm going to keep Lilisama's letter as it is. ----However, I'm going to give you these threatening letters, Cedric-sama. Do as you please with it] (Aileen)
[......Wh, what does this mean?] 
[Think about that yourself. Because I am no longer your fiancee after all] 
Cedric stared at Aileen as if she had slapped one side of his face.
Aileen silently smiled back at him.
[Cedric-sama. ----I did love you dearly] (Aileen)
[Please be happy with Lilisama. Good bye] (Aileen)
When she backed off, Cedric's hand fell on the floor just like that.
Aileen turned around and headed towards the platform. No one could stop the inevitable.
There were two sheets of doc.u.ments that had been properly prepared on the platform. The first sheet was the doc.u.ment for business transfer. After cursorily checking the clauses, Aileen quickly signed it.
And then, the other sheet was the doc.u.ment of the engagement annulment; there were not many clauses that she needed to check.
(With this, everything will be over)
She wrote her own name across Cedric's name and placed back the quill pen to where it originally was.
----With this, Aileen Lauren D'Autriche is free.
Those who watched her attentively were the great aristocrats at the side of the platform; she gracefully bowed to them.
Aileen put her hand on the handrail of the stairs when she came down; Claude held out his hand from below.
[Aileen Lauren D'Autriche; Daughter of the Duke. May I have the honor of dancing the very first dance with you who are finally free] 
To request the very first dance with a lady was a strategy for a pre-established love harmony.
And yet, like the time of her first social debut, she felt innocently shy.
She slightly nodded and overlapped her hand with his. Cedric's figure was no longer can be seen as he was concealed by Claude's figure.
That's why she didn't even realize...
[......I will not be fooled] 
That the letters were crushed by Cedric's hand.
[I'll make you realize. The one who made a mistake is you......!] 
Not even his dark murmurs and his distorted laugh.
Villainous Daughter Aims for the Last Boss
悪役令嬢なのでラスボスを飼ってみました
https://www.novelupdates.com/series/villainous-daughter-aims-for-the-last-boss/
Drama Fantasy Romance School Life Shoujo
Adapted to Anime Adapted to Manga Aristocracy Beautiful Female Lead Bloodlines Broken Engagement Business Management Businessmen Calm Protagonist Demon Lord Demons Female Protagonist Handsome Male Lead Hated Protagonist Kuudere Multiple Reincarnated Individuals Nobles Otome Game Politics Reincarnated in a Game World Royalty Saints Sword And Magic Villainess Noble Girls
https://ncode.syosetu.com/n2766dz/
永瀬さらさ