Otome Game Mob Villain

Chapter 596

"No matter what position the other person holds, it's possible for anyone to develop feelings for them. What's important is how you handle those feelings. But I suppose you're not quite at the point where you understand that yet."

"...I think I kind of get it. But still, it's no good, Sister Rafa."

"Oh my, it seems you've really grown in many ways."

As Rafa and Citri exchanged glances, Amon cleared his throat.

"Um, you two. This is supposed to be a meeting between me and Lady Tis. I'm sorry, but could you save your conversation for later? Is that alright?"

"Yes, my apologies, Brother Amon."

"Hehe, understood."

Citri bowed to everyone present, saying, "I apologize for the disturbance," and then moved to the seat next to Amon.

Looking over, it seemed that Pianie, one of Rafa's subordinates, was gazing at Citri with a moved expression.

Rosen and Lillie, on the other hand, didn't seem very interested.

Shortly after she took her seat, the door was knocked on again politely.

"Lord Rid, Lord Amon. It's Tink. I've brought Tis, as she is now ready. May I come in?"

When I gave another glance, Amon stiffened slightly and replied, "Ah, yes. That's fine."

The door slowly opened, and the first to enter the room was Tink, dressed in an imperial-style dress.

Since she was also acting as a representative  for my mother at this meeting, the dress was likely a one-of-a-kind piece she had chosen herself along with my mother and Chris.

Tink was already beautiful, but the way she carried herself in the dress added a different kind of charm.

Some of the older nobles even let out a low "Oh..." as they admired her.

As I sighed in exasperation, another figure appeared behind Tink.

A short girl, also dressed in an imperial-style dress, entered.

She stood gracefully before Amon and the nobles, smiling softly and bowing.

"Lord Amon Grandork, esteemed nobles, it is a pleasure to meet you. I am Tis Baldia, daughter of Lord Rainer Baldia, Margrave of the Baldia family. I look forward to your kind regards."

As Tis delivered her flawless and elegant greeting, the nobles once again let out murmurs of admiration.

This time, no one seemed to be ogling her.

When I glanced at Amon, his cheeks were flushed, and he seemed completely captivated.

"...Amon, go on."

"Ah, s-sorry."

At my prompting, he snapped out of it and stood up.

"Welcome, Lady Tis Baldia, . I am Amon Grandork, chief of the Fox Tribe. I am very pleased with this auspicious match. Please, take a seat over there."

"Thank you very much."

As Tis bowed and sat down next to me, Tink also bowed respectfully.

"Lord Rid, Lord Amon. If I may, could I also introduce myself?"

"Sure. That's fine, right?"

I glanced at Amon, and he nodded, saying, "Of course."

With our permission, Tink raised her head and scanned the room.

"My name is Tink, and I have come as a representative of Lady Nanari Baldia, the legal wife of the Baldia family. It is a pleasure to meet you all."

Her voice was clear and dignified, and she performed a flawless curtsy.

Her movements were refined, giving off a different impression from Tis.

When Tink raised her head and smiled, Amon tilted his head and said, "Huh..."

"You two seem quite similar in demeanor. Could it be that..."

"You're sharp, Amon. As you guessed, Tink is the wife of the hero Cross."

When I revealed this, the nobles erupted in murmurs.

"So you are the wife of Lord Cross, who created the opportunity to defeat Elba?"

"I never expected that Lady Nanaly would send her as a representative."

"Indeed. Not only did Lord Rid come as the family representative, but even the legal wife sent her own representative. This shows how seriously the Baldia family takes this alliance with our Fox Tribe."

The nobles who had been ogling Tink just moments ago now looked at her with a completely different expression.

For the wives of beastmen, who value strength above noble lineage, being the wife of Cross, who created the opportunity to defeat Elba—a figure of absolute power among the Fox Tribe—made her someone worthy of reverence.

And as a representative of my mother, she was no longer someone they could leer at.

When I looked at Amon, his cheeks were slightly flushed as he gazed at Tis and Tink.

"The dream... the dream's prophecy was true. Lady Tis is a peerless beauty, promised to the future..."

"Eh? What about a dream...?"

Hearing this strange remark, I frowned in confusion, and he quickly shook his head.

"Ah, no, it's nothing. I was just moved by how Lady Tis is indeed a peerless beauty, as the rumors said."

"W-wait, I'm a peerless beauty?"

"Ah, I heard about it from Rid beforehand. Actually, I secretly asked my sister to prepare a portrait of you. Here, take a look."

As he answered Tis's question, Amon pulled out a pocket watch from his coat and opened it.

Inside was a small portrait of Tis.

When I glanced at Rafa sitting next to him, she was trembling with suppressed laughter.

"I heard that among imperial nobles, it's becoming a trend to hide a portrait of a woman you're interested in inside a pocket watch. I prepared this in time for Lady Tis's arrival."

"O-oh, I see..."

Ah, Tis's expression looked a bit strained.

By the way, the pocket watch he was holding was one I had given him.

Still, something similar had happened just the other day.

Who on earth started this trend of hiding portraits in pocket watches?

Seeing my and Tis's reactions, Amon tilted his head in confusion.

"Ah, huh? Was it not actually a trend?"

"I'm not sure if it's a trend in the imperial capital, but I haven't really heard about it. By the way, Amon, where did you hear about this?"

"Eh, ah, well, from my sister..."

As Amon floundered, Rafa wiped her eyes, saying, "Ah, how amusing."

"I didn't lie. Apparently, it's becoming a trend among 'some' imperial nobles after the second prince of the empire started hiding a portrait of the woman he's interested in inside his pocket watch. It might become more widespread soon."

"Wha...?!"

Amon's eyes widened, and his face turned red.

'So it was you who started this, Kiel,' I silently screamed in my heart.

After that, Amon apologized for unintentionally startling Tis.

Tis also responded, saying it was fine since he meant well.

The meeting between the two families proceeded smoothly.

The Fox Tribe nobles were all positive about the marriage alliance, and both Amon and Tis seemed to have a good impression of each other.

Although Amon had initially messed up with the pocket watch, he sincerely conveyed how much he had been looking forward to meeting Tis.

Towards the end of the meeting, Amon asked us and the nobles to leave, giving him some time to speak with Tis and Tink alone.

I don't know what they talked about during that time.

But when they finished, all three of them had very happy expressions.

Just to be sure, I asked Tink if everything was alright, and she smiled happily, saying, "It was just a personal matter regarding our family. Lord Amon—no, Amon—is a very sincere young man."

I didn't press further, thinking it would be rude, and that if anything important came up, I would hear about it later.

And so, the meeting between Amon and Tis concluded successfully, solidifying the strong bond between the Baldia and Grandork families both in name and reality.

But even after the meeting, there was no time to rest.

The Tanuki Tribe chieftain, Gyobu Yatanuki, was coming to visit the Fox Tribe territory to meet with us.

I wonder what kind of person he is.

◇

A few days after the meeting between Tis and Amon.

When I was alone with Amon, I decided to ask him about the "prophecy" that had been on my mind.

"Ah, so you heard about that after all. Well, the truth is..."

He began to explain, looking somewhat embarrassed.

Apparently, around the time his engagement to Tis was decided, he started having regular dreams about "Tis."

In the dreams, Tis was incredibly cute, and for some reason, he also saw her as an adult.

"Embarrassingly enough, I fell for her in the dream. And when I met her in person, she looked exactly like the girl in my dream. On top of that, the adult Tis in my dream looked a lot like Lady Tink."

"Wow, really? But maybe it's better not to tell them that."

"Haha, there's no way I could tell them that. I know better than that."

He scratched his cheek awkwardly, and I decided to ask, "By the way..."

"Do you still have those dreams?"

"No, not since the meeting. Thinking about it, it really was a strange dream. But the prophecy was true—'Tis is a peerless beauty.' I feel like this is a truly blessed match, almost too good for me."

"O-oh, I see..."

It was something to be happy about, but I couldn't help feeling a chill run down my spine.

'Hey, Lord Rid. Everyone agrees that Tis is a peerless beauty.'

"Eh...?!"

I thought I heard something and covered my ears, looking around, but the room only had Amon and me.

"What's wrong, Rid?"

"N-nothing, it's just..."

I felt like something similar had happened before.

As I thought about this, I glanced at Amon and thought I saw Cross smiling faintly behind him.

"...?!"

I rubbed my eyes and looked again, but there was no one behind Amon.

"Are you sure you're okay, Rid?"

"Y-yeah, I'm fine, really."

"Alright, but don't push yourself too hard. If something's wrong, make sure to rest."

Amon said this and then reached for the door, saying, "I'll go get some documents."

At that moment, I thought I saw Cross's faint figure behind him again.

A ghost?! As Amon left the room, I was so shocked that I slumped to the floor.

But no, it must have been my imagination.

I shook my head and decided not to dwell on it any further.