The Villainous Noble Who Kept Rewinding After Death: The Story Somehow Changed When I Committed Suicide

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The Villainous Noble Who Kept Rewinding After Death: The Story Somehow Changed When I Committed Suicide

Episode 102: Family Home

I had been dozing off for a while when I was awakened by a gentle shaking of my shoulder.

“Are you awake?”

“…Oh, you came back?”

“Yeah. I just got back.”

I sat up and looked toward the gate, where I saw Jill from earlier, along with a strange male elf and several other elves who seemed to be his guards.

“What’s that?”

“That’s the king of this country.”

The man referred to as the king was a slightly slender elf with long ears, greenish-golden hair, and a handsome face. His clothes indeed looked more luxurious compared to the others.

After glancing at Fiera and me for a moment, the king first spoke to Shuvina.

“It’s been a while, Shuvina.”

“Long time no see, Your Majesty.”

“Hmm. You seem a bit different, have you changed?”

“Is that so? I can’t really tell myself…”

“Yes. Before you set off on your journey, you seemed a bit absent-minded, but now you look much more composed. Young people grow up so fast.”

With that, the king chuckled nostalgically at the past Shuvina.

“N-no, that’s not true!”

“Hahaha. Let’s keep it that way. By the way, I hear you’ve brought some interesting companions, are those two over there?”

“Nice to meet you. I’m the adventurer, Eir.”

“Fiera.”

As the king turned his attention back to us, I bowed my head a bit while introducing myself.

“Eir and Fiera, huh? I am Kaylee, the king of this country. Now, let me ask you once more, I hear you talked to Jill about something interesting?”

“Well, to put it simply, I know the cause of the disturbances happening in this country right now. I’m not sure if I can eliminate it, but I can take action to do so.”

“Hmm. So, that’s the World Tree matter you mentioned to Jill earlier. However, I must consider the possibility that you might be the ones causing this disturbance. What do you have to say about that?”

As Kaylee said this, the kind demeanor he had shown Shuvina moments ago vanished, replaced by the presence fitting for a ruler.

“Well, you’re right. There’s a good chance that’s the case. And if you were to ask if I have anything to refute that, to be honest, I have nothing.”

“If that’s the case, allowing you into this country is…”

“Poison Dragon.”

“…What? What did you just say?”

“Poison Dragon Hydra. It’s sealed somewhere in this forest, isn’t it? It might soon be revived, you know?”

The other elves looked confused, but the king’s expression changed to one of disbelief, cold sweat running down his cheek.

“I have one question. How do you know that?”

“Before we continue, how about we talk about it inside? This isn’t really something to discuss here, is it?”

Kaylee looked around once, spotting the other elves listening with puzzled looks.

“Alright. Let’s talk inside. How about we go to Cecil’s house since it’s nearby?”

“Isn’t that my house?”

“Hah! Since you’ve just returned, let them see your faces. I’m sure they’ll be pleased.”

“Well, I was planning to go back anyway, so that’s fine…”

Apparently, Cecil is Shuvina’s mother, and it looks like we’re heading to her house.

“So, Jill. Open the gate.”

“Understood. Opening the gate!”

With Jill’s words, the once tightly closed gate opened with a loud sound.

“Come on, step inside.”

As Kaylee said this and entered first, we followed him through the gate, finally entering the elven country, the Kingdom of God Tree, Otinia.

“What a uniquely styled town.”

“There are houses on the trees too.”

“Hahaha. Surprised, huh? The construction here is quite different from human or beastmen countries, so it’s only natural to be astonished.”

Once inside through the gigantic gate, I noticed houses on the trees and others carved into the trees, creating a town I had never seen before.

“I was also surprised when I first saw other countries. The construction was so different that it took me a while to get used to it.”

As Shuvina said that, she seemed to reminisce about her first sighting of the outside world with a nostalgic expression.

“Shuvina, why don’t you guide us to your home since it’s such a nice opportunity? We’ll follow behind.”

“Got it. This way, both of you!”

Seemingly delighted to show us her hometown, Shuvina walked ahead of us a bit more cheerfully than usual, leading the way to her house.

Everyone we passed by seemed to know Shuvina, calling out to her whenever they saw her.

Shuvina beamed back at them in joy, her smile unwavering as she met familiar faces again.

“You seem happy.”

“Yeah, she’s like the Shuvina from when we first met.”

Now that I think about it, she’s shown more calmness lately, but when we first met, she was more emotional, often crying or laughing.

“Well, she still looks just as happy when she’s enjoying food.”

“Fufu. That’s true.”

“Alright, we’ve arrived.”

While chatting with Fiera, we unknowingly arrived at Shuvina’s family home and stopped to look at the impressive house in front of us.

“What a splendid house.”

“Yeah. Such a magnificent tree.”

Just as Fiera mentioned, Shuvina’s house was thicker and taller than any tree I had seen in the area. Even without much knowledge of trees, I could tell it was quite a grand one.

The house was built by making a hole in the thick tree, and there were windows up high, which indicated it had two stories.

“Hehe. This house was built by my ancestors. Apparently, they had a contract with a dryad similar to Dōna at that time.

That’s why I was so happy to form a contract with Dōna.”

“That’s great.”

“Yeah! I want to become a powerful spirit magic user like my ancestors someday!”

Shuvina said this with a smile, then she eagerly opened the door and shot inside with energy.

“Dad, Mom, I’m home!”

We followed her inside, and from the back of the house, a beautiful woman who looked strikingly like Shuvina appeared, slightly surprised.

“Oh? Shuva, you’re back already?”

“My friends have business in this country, so I came home for a bit.”

“Hello. I’m Eir, adventurer and party member of Shuvina.”

“And I’m Fiera, Shuvina’s friend.”

“Oh my, how polite. I’m Cecil, Shuvina’s mother. My husband is out, so please make yourselves comfortable inside for now.”

“Thank you very much.”

“Oh, Kaylee, you’re with them too. Feel free to sit.”

“I shall do so. You kids can just hang around.”

“Understood.”

Before entering, Kaylee instructed his guards to wait outside and entered the house by himself.

Then, settling into a chair he seemed familiar with, he leaned back and began to visibly relax.

“Sigh, I’m tired. Being a king is no easy feat; having guards around all the time is exhausting.”

“Well, you are a king, so what do you expect? Here’s your tea.”

“Ah, thanks.”

“Eir and Fiera, please help yourselves too. I’m not sure if it’ll suit your tastes, though.”

“Thank you.”

I inspected the tea to ensure it was safe before bringing the cup to my lips and taking a sip.

“…It’s delicious.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

The tea served was refreshing, with a crisp taste that flowed smoothly through my nose—exactly to my liking.

“By the way, Your Majesty, your atmosphere is quite different from earlier. Also, were you really okay with dismissing your guards? Wouldn’t it have been better to keep a few around?”

“Haha. I am still the king of a nation, you know. There’s a reputation to uphold. Plus, even though I acted like that earlier, I never doubted you since you’re Shuvina’s companions.”

It seems that no matter the country, maintaining appearances is crucial for a king, which is rather annoying.

Moreover, it appeared that Shuvina was trusted quite a lot by Kaylee, and we were similarly regarded as trustworthy since we were introduced as her companions.

“Now then, it’s time for me to ask—could you tell me more about what you mentioned earlier?”

Kaylee said this, shifting from his slack demeanor to a serious one, gazing at me earnestly.

“Alright. Then let me explain.”

I returned the cup to the table, mixing in the knowledge and lies I had acquired up until my past life, and began to narrate the events that were to come.