Afterword
Hello everyone. This is the author, MIZUNA. First of all, I’d like to sincerely thank you for picking up “I Reincarnated As A Mob Villain In An Otome Game I Was Bashing Away At, But I’m Gonna Live Straight Because I Don’t Wanna Be Condemned ” I’d like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to everyone involved in publishing this work. To TO Books, my editor H-san, the illustrator Ruki-san who drew such wonderful pictures, all the people who supported me online, and everyone who picked up this book – thank you so much.
Recently, my days have been a whirlwind of book work, daily updates, and my job, but I’m somehow managing to hang in there thanks to my family’s support. When I’m caught up in the aforementioned tasks, I can hardly do anything around the house. It feels like there’s never enough time no matter how much I have. In the midst of this, having my family’s support has been incredibly reassuring and I’m truly grateful. I can’t thank my family enough.
Speaking of family, it seems that Reed-kun might be getting a wife as a new family member in the story. When the two of them are finally united, I hope they’ll support each other and do their best, but since I don’t know what’s going to happen yet, I’m excited as I write. While I have an overall outline and main plot for the story, as I write, I often think, “Considering this character’s personality, psychology, and position, they would act like this.” When I adopt that sense, the story becomes more interesting and expands. There have been several “unexpected” events that occurred as a result of adopting this sense while writing. The character I feel this most strongly about is “Diana.” Initially, I never thought she would have such a strong presence. There are many characters on the web version who gained presence as a result of adopting this sense. It might be fun for you to see which characters turned out this way.
Now, since we still have some space in the afterword, I’d like to touch on the side stories a bit. The content that became a series in the side stories of volumes 1 and 2, which could be called “Reiner and Nunnaly’s Past Arc,” was originally something I planned to write much later on the web version. I hastily wrote it to make the book more enjoyable for readers. As a result of having too much I wanted to write, I’ve cut out many parts on the web version that don’t feature Reed due to pacing issues. I’m writing these cut parts one after another in the side stories. By the way, when I submitted over 40,000 characters worth of side stories, editor H-san’s reaction was, “This won’t fit in volume 1. Can we split it into two parts…?” They seemed a bit perplexed. The number of pages in a book is, of course, fixed. With about 150,000 characters in the main story, adding 40,000 characters of side stories would obviously exceed the page limit. Of course, it’s not impossible to force it in, but methods like shrinking the font size would affect the overall readability of the book. As a result, it was split into two parts for volumes 1 and 2. However, I want to write many more side stories about things I couldn’t depict in the web version, so this might become one of the highlights of the book version. Also, you can enjoy the latest chapters of this work on the web, so please check that out as well. If you could bookmark, follow, and give the highest rating with a “click” there, it would really boost my motivation (laughs).
Lastly, I’m overwhelmed with emotion to announce that thanks to all of you, the release of volume 3 has already been decided. I’m looking forward to meeting you all again in volume 3. Thank you for reading to the end.
Sincerely, Author
Digital Edition Bonus Side Story
Diana Becomes a Maid
That day, Diana, a knight belonging to the knight order, was called out by Reubens to a nostalgic place. The place she was summoned to was under the big tree where she often played as a child and where a certain promise was made. Why was she called here? Although Diana had some idea, she also felt anxious. She sighed wistfully and fragilely.
“Ah… It’s been quite a while since Reubens promised to become a knight to protect me here.”
Diana closed her eyes while placing one hand on the big tree, reminiscing about past events.
She and Reubens were childhood friends born and raised in the Baldia territory. Their houses were close, and their parents were on good terms. As a result, it was inevitable that they would become good playmates for each other.
In his childhood, Reubens gave a strong impression of being weak-willed and unreliable. Well, in a sense, he’s still unreliable… At that time, he didn’t seem like someone who would join the knight order and be seen as having a promising future.
It seems he changed after he protected Diana from a fight between children. Suddenly, Reubens begged to be taught swordsmanship by a certain knight through his own father. After that, she heard he started learning swordsmanship. Diana only found out about this after Reubens had been learning swordsmanship for a while.
At first, she was angry about why he didn’t tell her right away, and Diana decided to receive lessons from “a certain knight” along with her friend Nels. By the way, this certain knight is “Dinas,” who later became the captain of the Baldia Knight Order.
Surprisingly, Reubens had a talent for the sword, to the extent that even Dinas was amazed. And unexpectedly, Nels also had a fair amount of talent for swordsmanship. Reubens and Nels continued to improve their skills under Dinas’s guidance. However, Diana didn’t have as much talent for swordsmanship as the two of them.
Even so, Diana persevered with her inherent competitiveness. Then one day, she was called to the same place as today.
At that time too, she had somewhat guessed the reason and her heart was fluttering with expectation. And then, Reubens said he would “become Diana’s knight.”
As Diana recalled this much of the past, her hand on the big tree tensed, making a “crack!” sound. With her eyes still closed and her brow furrowed, Diana began to tremble with anger and eventually muttered:
“Stupid Reubens. You promised me back then, so why aren’t you saying anything now? I’ve tried my best too, you know…”
After saying this, Diana let out a weak sigh. Despite making a statement that could be taken as a confession, Reubens had taken no action afterward. Of course, they were young at the time, so it was fine. Diana thought he would eventually take action, but he turned out to be very shy.
Diana thought she had accepted Reubens’s confession, but as the years went by, she began to wonder if perhaps it hadn’t gotten through to him. So she started to take various actions.
First, she tried going to wake up Reubens, who was bad with mornings, every day. However, this turned out to be more embarrassing than she expected, and to hide her embarrassment, she always ended up blurting out, “Don’t think I’ll always wake you up. I’ll get married someday too, you know.” Reubens seemed to look a bit sad whenever he heard those words.
Another time, she tried making “bento” for him to eat during breaks at work. At that time too, to hide her embarrassment, she ended up saying, “This is just practice for when I have a husband someday, it’s not… for you.” The final straw was when Diana’s parents teased them saying “You should get married soon,” while inviting Reubens over for dinner. Of course, at that time too, Diana ended up raising her voice to hide her embarrassment, saying “Reubens is just a friend!!”
However, thinking back, Reubens always seemed to have a somewhat downcast expression when hearing Diana’s shy words.
“If you’re going to make such a face… you could just tell me your feelings with one word…”
Diana shook her head weakly, hanging it low with her hand on her forehead.
It wasn’t that she was unpopular. She had received confessions and marriage proposals several times from childhood friends, senior knights, and colleagues. However, she had politely declined them all.
As a result, there was an unspoken understanding within the knights’ order that they were [treated as a married couple]… but in reality, they weren’t particularly dating, stuck in an ambiguous state. What you’d call [more than friends, less than lovers].
Still, because Reubens had said he would [become Diana’s knight] when they were little, she was waiting for him to say those words again… Just as she thought this, Diana sensed someone approaching and looked up. There was Reubens, with a somewhat nervous expression.
She switched her mood, returning to her usual dignified expression, and gazed at him kindly as he approached.
“Fufu. You managed to wake up without oversleeping today, didn’t you?”
“Ah, yeah. Sorry for always… having you wake me up.”
Reubens answered Diana but still looked tense. Diana couldn’t help but feel a bit hopeful at his unusual behavior. But just as she thought nothing would change today either… Reubens spoke up as if he had made up his mind.
“Um… What I said here long ago about [becoming Diana’s knight] wasn’t a lie. And I still feel that way now. B-but, it’s not just that, I…”
Diana was shocked by his sudden words. Just a moment ago, she thought nothing would change, but what had caused this shift in his attitude? No, more than that, she wanted to hear the rest of what he had to say. After all, these were the words she had been waiting for all this time. Diana smiled gently and asked:
“I’ve been… waiting for your words all this time. Please, do continue.”
Reubens, startled by her words, continued strongly and directly.
“…!? I… Diana, I want you. I don’t want to give you to anyone else. So, please go out with me.”
After hearing his words, Diana’s face lit up with joy, but then she looked down as if lost in thought. After a brief pause, she looked up with a mischievous smile and whispered:
“…No.”
“Wha…!?”
Reubens’ face filled with confusion and despair at Diana’s words. Seeing his expression, Diana smiled sweetly.
“I’ve been… waiting all this time. And yet, just ‘going out’ isn’t enough, is it? Please, take it one step further.”
Realizing the intent behind her words, even Reubens seemed to understand. With a determined expression, he spoke again.
“…!? I, I got it. Um, let me rephrase… I want to date you with [marriage] in mind.”
“Fufu, that’s a passing grade. If marriage is the premise, then I’ll go out with you. Reubens, I’ve also… admired you for a long time.”
Diana smiled like a little devil but blushed shyly as she conveyed her feelings to Reubens in the end. He showed surprise and confusion at her words but answered happily.
“I’m sorry for being so incompetent and making you wait.”
“You really are. But… you’ll take responsibility for making me wait, won’t you?”
“Yes, I promise.”
Reubens no longer hesitated as he answered her question. And so, Reubens and Diana happily began dating.
Later, when Diana asked about the change in Reubens’ heart that led to his confession, he explained with a wry smile. Apparently, Reed, the eldest son of the Baldia family whom Reubens was currently teaching swordsmanship to, had advised him about his relationship with Diana due to a certain incident.
Hearing Reubens’ story, Diana tilted her head in confusion. The last time she met Reed during a guard duty, he was still just a child. Why was he so sensitive to matters of the heart? Regardless of the circumstances, she should be grateful to Reed for giving Reubens that push. Diana whispered to herself, (I must thank him directly someday).
However, at that moment, she realized something with a start. It was anger towards Reubens for needing to be advised by a child, even if he was the son of the lord they served, before he could confess. Needless to say, Reubens received a stern lecture from Diana afterward.
Some time had passed since Diana and Reubens started dating. One day, Diana was summoned to the office by Margrave Reiner, the head of the family.
“…You want me to be Lord Reed’s guard and maid?”
Hearing the sudden summons and Reiner’s instructions, she couldn’t help but look puzzled. Reiner calmly responded to Diana’s reaction.
“That’s right. Though it’s confidential, the marriage between Reed and the princess of our neighboring country, Renalute, has been virtually confirmed.”
“That’s… congratulations.”
Diana bowed her head politely on the spot, immediately understanding the implications of Reiner’s words. Given Reed’s age, for it to be a [marriage] rather than an engagement, it was probably a political marriage of sorts. Reiner nodded at Diana’s gesture and continued.
“Yes, you may raise your head. Along with this, at Reed’s own request, he will be visiting Renalute. During that time, there will likely be occasions when Reed and the princess need to have private conversations. In such situations, having a male knight as a guard would be awkward and might make the other party uncomfortable. That’s why I’d like you, Diana, to become Reed’s guard and maid.”
Indeed, depending on the location of the meetings with the princess, there might be places where a male knight couldn’t enter. However, Diana had one concern and asked Reiner while nodding.
“I understand. However, as I am of commoner birth, I have not received formal lady-in-waiting education. I have learned the etiquette required to become a knight, but how should I address this issue?”
Reiner grinned at Diana’s response.
“Don’t worry. We still have time before going to Renalute. During that time, I intend to have you receive lady-in-waiting education from morning till night. Well, such education should prove useful for your [future] as well. I know it will be challenging alongside your knight duties, but I’m counting on you.”
“Thank you very much. I will do my utmost to meet your expectations.”
Diana bowed deeply and respectfully to Reiner once again.
After that, until their departure for Renalute, Diana underwent intense lady-in-waiting training under the butler Galun, head maid Marietta, and deputy head maid Frau.
Although it was challenging, thanks to the basic etiquette she had learned as a knight, along with her physical strength and good posture, Diana acquired the skills necessary to serve as a guard and maid for the Baldia family without issue anywhere they might go.
Moreover, the lady-in-waiting education enhanced Diana’s dignified charm, causing Reubens to secretly fall in love with her all over again, though she remains unaware of this fact.
And so, Diana took on her duties as a knight serving as both guard and maid. Amidst all this, she resolved to serve Reed wholeheartedly as a way to repay him for pushing Reubens to confess.
TLNOTE : I Reincarnated As A Mob Villain In An Otome Game I Was Bashing Away At, But I’m Gonna Live Straight Because I Don’t Wanna Be Condemned Light Novel Volume 3 English Translation will start when the bar above reached 100 %
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