This Heroine's Friend Has the Power of Botany

Chapter 282

The Helper

The young woman jolted, feeling extremely startled when Professor Regan called her name. He was the professor she least wanted to deal with, and he also knew the secret about her being poisoned by the demonic toxin. Thus, Nara often tried to avoid him. She had been happy knowing she didn’t have to do the mission with Professor Regan. Who would have thought he’d suddenly show up like this?

“Y-Yes, Professor,” Nara responded, her voice much softer.

The other students were quite pleased to see Professor Regan focusing on Nara. They harbored the most resentment toward her. After this, Ellie didn’t even have to do anything, as long as Nara was meddling around, they would assume from the same perspective that she was stirring up trouble for everyone. But it wasn’t just Ellie...Nara’s nature meant that anyone who got close to her inevitably faced chaos.

“It seems you’ve been speaking well earlier, despite being a student who has received correct knowledge and understanding. Instead, you led the villagers to misunderstand all the principles. Those who lack proper knowledge aren’t to blame for their thoughts.”

“But you, who learned so much from the institute, should know better. I remember teaching general rules in the first year, just in case you ever had to go on a mission and needed to mediate conflicts.”

“It turned out that instead of promoting harmony, you exacerbated the situation, causing conflicts that led to misunderstandings among the villagers. Do you realize who would suffer the most if everyone here started fighting?”

“Yes! The ones who would receive the most severe punishment are the villagers. They could face execution or lifelong imprisonment just because you incited them and used them as tools. Do you still think this is fun?!!” Professor Regan roared, clearly displeased with Nara’s actions.

Previously, inciting students to argue among themselves was one thing; students were educated individuals and could handle themselves better even though they were displeased. At least, they wouldn’t foolishly walk into death. But when Nara’s words provoked conflict and incited the villagers to blame the nobles unjustly, they could unknowingly walk into their deaths!

After Professor Regan spoke, his face was very serious. The uninformed villagers were stunned. They had spoken out of anger, thinking they had lost because of the students’ work. They had based their thoughts on their initial dislike and bias. But who knew that such actions could lead to death!?

Naturally, they knew the consequences of quarreling with nobles. However, the students’ missions were part of their training. Often, students had to go on various missions and wouldn’t seek revenge afterward. The villagers knew that their one chance to feel superior to the nobles was now. Eventually, the professors would either convince them or teach them a lesson. Hence, it wasn’t strange that they put on airs like this.

But that didn’t mean falsely accusing them was acceptable...

“W-We, we didn’t mean to. It was that student who said she was at fault.”

“Yes, yes, that student said it herself that the students were to blame. How were we to know whose orders they were following?”

“Exactly. We just spoke based on the truth as we understood it. That student told us the students were wrong, so we believed it. We’ve suffered losses, so of course, we’d demand compensation.”

“That’s right. It’s all because of your student. How can you blame us?!!” The villagers protested, trying to defend themselves and shift the blame entirely onto Nara.

Nara’s eyes widened. She had never expected to be thrown under the bus like this. She looked around frantically, waving her hands to indicate she wasn’t the one at fault. However, the villagers were relentless. This marked the first time Nara faced the consequences of her actions. Having caused others to be labeled and blamed in the past, now it was her turn.

“Ellie...Ellie, help me! You understand, don’t you, that I...”

“About you slandering a “duchess” like me, I haven’t even asked the Setter family to investigate how you should be compensated yet. My status as a “duchess” didn’t come from me alone. It’s lucky I “lured” the eldest young lord of the Setter family, so I’ll let him handle this for me.”

“As for what happened here, you’ll have to wait and see what the other families decide to do. They’ve been made villains in the eyes of the villagers, turned into destroyers of the village. Protecting their reputation means protecting their family’s honor. Perhaps, this matter...they might even need to report to their family heads to seek punishment for you as well.”

“So, Nara...you can stay calm now. Don’t be afraid. Well...All I can do, all you asked for and I can do for you, is to comfort you. Oh...and don’t worry. If you end up imprisoned, I’ll help you. Every day, I’ll have someone send you “boiled water with one leaf” so you won’t go hungry. It’s to repay the kindness you’ve shown me before.”

Ellie didn’t let Nara continue bothering her. She brushed Nara’s hand off her leg and gave a wicked smile. Every word Nara had ever spoken or action she had taken against Ellie was now returned to her.

Nara nearly fell backward. She knew she had declared herself Ellie’s enemy countless times, but for some reason...when faced with immediate danger, she had mistakenly believed that Ellie would ultimately help her. After all, Ellie was naive, easily manipulated, and very kind-hearted. If she cried or pleaded for help, shouldn’t Ellie step up to help her?

Nara looked at the person she had thought she could bully easily, only to realize that after all this time, the old Ellie was long gone! This realization brought her the most painful confirmation.

“Hah! Serves you right. Even if we don’t report this to our families, you’ll probably be beheaded by the Setter family’s sword!”

“Exactly. I never understood why Duchess Ellie always intentionally ignored you, even though you were from the same village. Just a few gold coins could’ve been given, right? But that was before I knew you. But after I encountered it myself, I came to know...So, I wondered again why Duchess Ellie was ever so kind to you. Just because she’s kind doesn’t mean the Setter family will be too.”

“A woman like this, I won’t let her get to the eldest young lord of the Setter family. When I get back, I’ll report this to my father. She made me a laughingstock among the villagers, making me look guilty since I arrived. You newcomers don’t know anything. My friends and I didn’t even get food because she enjoyed manipulating the villagers.”

Everyone, even the kind-hearted ones, appreciated Ellie’s actions after seeing Ellie did this. Normally, women liked to show their sympathy, which was why in the original novel, everyone sided with Nara, the just heroine in an unjust world, and disliked Duchess Vida, who followed every rule and custom meticulously. They even disliked Lady Aria, who spoke bluntly. They preferred the fantasy of Nara’s story.

And as someone mentioned earlier, even if Ellie stayed quiet and uninterested, she was still seen as narrow-minded. Some students even thought that Duchess Ellie was very selfish. Many times, Nara tried to reconcile, and given their shared village history and had helped each other before, she should have been forgiven for a single mistake, right?

Ellie had let go of Nara’s issue, not wanting to care anymore. Only encountering in person could they know what the truth was. They were the ones who felt like killing Nara the moment she opened her mouth!

“W-What, what are you saying? I...I don’t know anything about that. I didn’t do anything you said. I didn’t mean to. I just...I just felt sorry for them. I thought a few gold coins wouldn’t be a problem for you to give. I only wanted the villagers to like you. I wanted the mission to go smoothly, really. I...”

“Stop twisting your words, Nara. No one believes a wretch like you anymore!”

“Even as a man, I find you disgusting. If it weren’t for the professors here, I’d have used my sword to cut your mouth off already!” An enraged student threatened, his voice frightening. Nara, at a loss for what to do, couldn’t help but burst into tears.

The current situation had everyone ganging up on the young woman, which was exactly what Nara hated most. She couldn’t stand being despised by everyone. Nara’s desires were simple: she just wanted to be the center of attention and have everyone look up to her.

Since she was born, she had only lived in a small, poor village. Many times, her father took her to the city market, where she saw the lively and joyous life of the city. There were ladies, young ladies, and young lords dressed beautifully, eating whatever they wanted. The poor villagers looked at them with envy. Merchants and traders fawned over them. Such a life seemed so happy to her, and it became her dream.

Her mother told her that she could become like that if she could attract a good man. With a good husband, she wouldn’t have to do anything ever again. So, Nara tried to make everyone see her as beautiful. Besides, she had learned from her mother how to please men. But why...even though it was supposed to go well, everything fell apart!

At first, it was still okay. Everyone was interested in her as a scholarship student, weren’t they? Even the handsome and strong young lord from the Femon family had stood up for her. But why...why was everyone now siding with Ellie instead?!!

“Screech!! Shut up, all of you!! I told you I didn’t do anything wrong! You should know that the real culprit is this vile woman. If it weren’t for her, by now, the person who would be...”

“That’s enough, Miss Nara. You must be very tired.” While Nara’s frantic screams, echoing through the village, were making people despise her even more, and as she was in a frenzied and about to lunge at Ellie to strangle her, removing her from this world, she was abruptly stopped by the strong body of a man.

His eyes remained stern yet so comforting to Nara. Seeing him, Nara sobbed and collapsed into his strong chest. The young man sighed and looked around.

“Miss Nara must be very stressed, unable to please everyone. So, I think we should discuss this later. She is still very young and doesn’t always act appropriately. I hope the two professors will teach her more in the future,” the young man said before lifting the small woman into his arms.

His eyes briefly met the professors’ before shifting to Ellie. Ellie raised an eyebrow at his gaze, which seemed to be searching for something. Finding nothing, he just smiled politely and left. Ellie scoffed once, but when no one was looking, she glanced at his pants, where burn marks from the “poisonous acid” were on!

Initially, Ellie was somewhat suspicious about the man’s identity. His demeanor and personality seemed familiar. However, she had her spores follow him everywhere and discovered that he did nothing more than what any huntsman would do, foraging in the forest. This continued until the appearance of the poisonous stream.

As soon as the students from other village arrived and mentioned the poisonous stream and the magical device, the man moved faster than either of the professors or Ellie could follow.

It turned out that he was interested in the magical device! When Ellie sent her spores around and they were attacked, she already knew that any living creature meddling with it would face such a fate. This was because the man had already tested it himself. However, he couldn’t get close to the dangerous device, so he waited nearby, hoping to seize any opportunity that arose.

After the “Demon Frog” appeared, he hid nearby to see who its master was. However, he couldn’t identify them. So, when the professors and Ellie left, he tried to control the Demon Frog, thinking it was like any other beast.

What he used to control it turned out to be a magical device emitting “demonic toxin”!!

Ellie was initially alarmed, fearing her little Apple might fall victim. But before she could call it back into her spirit, the little Apple communicated that it saw the black poison merely as food. Since it wasn’t an animal as the man assumed, but a poisonous plant, absorbing the poison only increased its power.

In the end, no matter what happened, it was the little Apple that always benefitted. This also revealed the man’s identity to Ellie, although it might have made him suspicious of the “Demon Frog” as well.

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