Translator: Nox

The Baddest Villainess Is Back

Chapter 41

“The winner, Arma!”

“The winner, Hatan!”

The cheers grew louder as the consecutive victories continued.

Roselyn sat in her chair, blinking as she heard the news of Arma’s unexpected winning streak.

‘…Was he always that strong?’

Roselyn glanced at the Kaluta warriors sprawling on the ground, then looked back up at Arma, who was warming up.

The Kaluta were warriors among warriors, each said to be worth a hundred men. They were monsters in a sense, people who found fighting with their bare bodies more comfortable than using a sword.

Even if this wasn’t a duel to the death, it was hard to believe that Arma was taking them down one by one with his blade.

‘…No, if he possesses that level of skill, why did he die at the hands of assassins?’

Roselyn watched him rack up wins in silence.

‘Were the assassins really that strong?’

Roselyn searched her memories. They were certainly powerful and numerous, but they hadn’t possessed the monstrous strength of the Kaluta warriors she saw now.

“What’s with that bastard? When did he overcome his trauma?”

Roselyn turned her head at the small murmur beside her. Yuldian was glaring at Arma in the wide sparring arena, his brow furrowed.

“Trauma?”

At Roselyn’s question, Yuldian glanced at her and stiffened. His face was bright red.

“You, you! Put some proper clothes on! How dare you show such a disgraceful sight in front of a Prince of the Empire…!”

Roselyn scanned Yuldian from head to toe with a look of disbelief, as if to say, ‘Look who’s talking.’

“You have a lot to say for someone sitting on the lap of a person dressed even more provocatively than I am.”

As Roselyn spoke with a bright smile, Yuldian flinched. His face turned beet red with shame as he struggled to pull away from Naryan, who had her arms wrapped around his waist.

Naryan, who was watching the match while keeping him on her lap, patted Yuldian’s buttocks.

“Ow! Agh! That hurts! It hurts!”

“Honey, shh. You shouldn’t be noisy during a match!”

“Who’s your honey…!”

When Naryan pouted, Yuldian clamped his mouth shut. It seemed Yuldian—who used to harass and belittle any maid or young lady who made even a slight mistake—had finally met his match.

“How can someone be this handsome…?”

Naryan squeezed Yuldian’s waist and rubbed her face against his back.

“Mother said we might have a state marriage if the alliance goes well, so let’s do our best, honey.”

“What?! What kind of nonsense…!”

“Ha, how can you be so cute even when you’re being so fiercely angry? I think I’ve truly fallen for you at first sight….”

Yuldian looked horrified by Naryan’s relentless expressions of affection.

‘Khan is even considering a state marriage.’

However, a state marriage was one of the best ways to firmly bind two nations together. The Emperor cherished his children in his own way, and the Kaluta people had very deep family bonds.

“Just get lost…!”

Yuldian shouted, trying to push Naryan away.

“…Get lost? Oh my, you’re the first person to ever say that to me.”

“…Agh! This is driving me crazy, seriously!”

Yuldian let out a scream-like shout. Roselyn watched him; despite his obvious distaste, he wasn’t behaving violently.

‘Well, attacking her would probably only hurt him.’

Roselyn looked at Yuldian with a gaze devoid of any pity before turning her attention back to the arena.

“The winner, Hatan!”

The sound signaling the end of the semi-finals echoed.

‘The 2nd Prince has probably never met a woman stronger than himself until now.’

Despite his flippant attitude, his swordsmanship was quite excellent. In fact, when the war with Kaluta broke out, Yuldian and the 1st Prince had been at the forefront, leading the campaign.

“Did His Highness the 3rd Prince have a trauma…?”

“He did. Ever since he almost died at the hands of an assassin as a child, he’d shake at the mere sight of anything sharp.”

Yuldian snorted at Roselyn’s question.

“Funny, isn’t it? It’s not like that sort of thing only happens once or twice when you’re born a prince. After that, he couldn’t even hold a sword; he’d just tremble….”

Yuldian narrowed his eyes as he watched Arma.

‘But that… is the skill of someone who hasn’t touched a sword in nearly ten years?’

If he had truly put down the sword, those skills couldn’t possibly be displayed.

‘…Then has that guy been deceiving us all this time?’

Yuldian shook his head at his own absurd thought.

‘No way.’

As if sensing Yuldian’s gaze, Arma slowly turned his head. He looked at Yuldian wordlessly before his eyes shifted to Roselyn sitting beside him.

“Let the final match begin! The opponent for Khan Hatan is the one who has shown incredible hidden strength, the 3rd Prince of our prospective ally, Arma!”

The Kaluta announcer, jumping in place and speaking with a booming voice, gave a mischievous grin.

“Now, let the finals be-gin… before we do!”

The two men, who had been taking their stances, paused. The spectators, who were tense with anticipation, all broke into boos. Even amidst the jeering, the announcer only continued to grin.

Khan, who had returned to Roselyn’s side at some point, burst into a loud laugh. Khan looked at Roselyn and smiled.

“Hatan isn’t weak, Rin.”

“So it seems.”

Roselyn nodded, conceding readily. Khan stared into Roselyn’s eyes for a moment, then rested her chin on her hand and looked back at the stage.

“How about a word of resolution from the two finalists!”

The crowd went from booing to cheering in an instant.

Hatan looked at the announcer wordlessly before shifting his gaze to Khan.

“As always, I dedicate my victory to my one and only life. So, if I win, would it be alright if I visit you tonight?”

A sudden silence fell over the area. A beat later, cheers erupted, and two beats after that, Yuldian—having finally understood the meaning—turned as red as a tomato.

Roselyn looked at the beaming Khan with a slightly stunned expression.

“Very well. If you bring me victory, I shall dote on you all night long.”

Roselyn’s face, which had been maintaining some level of composure, crumbled at Khan’s loud response. Her head finally dropped. It was because she simply could not adapt to Kaluta culture. With her earlobes turning bright red, she lightly rubbed her face with her palms.

“Roselyn.”

At the low, unusually somber voice, she slowly raised her head.

“If I win, could you please reconsider after all?”

Roselyn frowned at Arma’s words, which lacked any context.

“…Reconsider what?”

“The broken engagement.”

Arma tightened his grip on his sword. Hatan was wordlessly swinging a greatsword with one hand.

“…That is.”

“I’ve been thinking about it deeply.”

Instead of looking at Hatan, Arma had turned his entire body toward Roselyn, his gaze fixed on her.

“I still don’t want it.”

“…….”

“If Roselyn says she dislikes me because I am weak, then I will change.”

“No….”

“So if I win here, please reconsider the broken engagement.”

Roselyn, lost for words in a mix of fluster and absurdity, could only gape before falling silent.

“Please allow me to like Roselyn.”

“…Pardon?”

What was this sudden nonsense? Roselyn’s earlobes began to burn red with embarrassment.

“I like you, Roselyn.”

“…….”

“I love you.”

Roselyn couldn’t say a word. She felt quite bashful.

‘…How does he plan to handle the aftermath?’

Roselyn looked at Arma with a worried gaze.

“Wooooo! So cool!!”

Whistles blew and cheers erupted.

“I’m rooting for the outsider! Win!”

“Khan! Please take it easy on him!!”

“Ugh! I feel like I just drank a gallon of sugar!”

“I want to marry an outsider too!!”

At the voices coming from all directions, Roselyn buried her face in her hands.

‘This is crazy.’

Roselyn let out a sigh. If she shook her head now, the atmosphere would turn strange.

‘…I don’t know why he’s suddenly acting like this.’

After agonizing for a moment amidst the awkwardness, she gave a single nod.

At that, Hatan let out a low chuckle. There was almost zero chance of Arma beating Hatan. Because Hatan was….

“Now, let the match be-gin!”

Boom!

He was a powerhouse known as a ‘monster’ even among the Kaluta, who could punch holes in cliffs with their bare hands.

Roselyn stood on the ground that shook as if an earthquake had hit, her eyes wide as she looked at Arma.

The match was decided in the ensuing silence.