Reincarnated as the mother of an otome game's villainess?!

Chapter 17. Devil came to me.

Our Madame was obviously worried, but she noticed how frustrated the doctor was when confessing that, basically, they were no further to solve the case than they were the first day.

—I'm sure we'll find out the mastermind behind it, we need to just think outside of the box and find more evidence.

—Mmmm... perhaps you are right. In any case, I have contacted with someone who could work as your bodyguard, and I trust her to be able to keep you safe even if you were to visit the city. The problem is that she is... sort of a mess. She needs some time to take care of some business, so she'll arrive in two months.

—That's perfect, with any luck it will coincide with Violett's birthday's party! —our Madame said, drawing a big smile just by thinking about it—. You will have to come too, doctor.

—I wouldn't miss it for anything —the doctor replied, not sounding too enthusiastic, but only to tease her.

Our Madame was preparing her retort, when she yawned.

—Excuse me, doctor. I didn't get to sleep well yesterday.

—Are you sure it was just yesterday? —the Doctor said, and I saw our Madame's facade start to break.

—W-what might you mean by that? —our Madame said, trying to act as if nothing was wrong.

—I didn't study medicine for several years to be so easily fooled, have you been sleeping properly? —the Doctor asked, not only towards our Madame but also to me.

The appropriate answer in cases like this would be to back up the words of our employers, no matter what they said. Doing otherwise would probably put us on the risk of losing our jobs and our reliability, even if we did it with the best intentions. Yet, I didn't doubt for a moment to speak my mind.

—To be honest, Doctor, she has been having problems falling asleep almost since the accident.

—I-Iridia! —Our Madame said, panicking— I swear it's not because of that! I-It's because of the tremors! I'm a light sleeper, so even if they are small they tend to wake me up!

The Doctor looked at her in disbelief, but after a few seconds he let out a sigh and started to look up something in his bag. I could swear, for an instant I saw him smiling.

—Have your attendants make a tea with these leaves —he said, presenting a jar with dry leaves to her—, only half a spoon, right before you go to sleep.

—Thank you... —our Madame said, embarrassed.

After that day, and thanks to the tea, she was able to sleep all through the night, and was looking more rested every day. The preparations for the young lady's birthday continued, and I came to notice she was becoming a lot more verbal than before, making simple sounds to refer to things. Our Madame was trying to make her say "Mama" all the time, but the baby ignored her, even slapping her whenever she grow tired of her attempts.

—Ah, so this is the power of a villainess —our Madame said, almost crying but with a smile on her face. I didn't dare to ask her what she meant.

A few days later I received a dreadful letter from Father Elias. Our church has helped lots of people, and has as its goal to bring a bright future to everyone, but there has always been a power struggle at the top, with several factions trying to gain control over it. Recently, a group that was in direct ideological conflict with my own had convinced enough people to boss everyone around, and I wasn't the exception. I disagreed with what they asked me to do, but I had no other choice. I needed to talk with my Madame about it.

—Madame, I... I'm very sorry, but I have to go back to my hometown for some time, and I might not get back in time for the little lady's birthday.

—Oh? Is that so? —she said, sounding genuinely sad because of it—, that's really a shame, I would have loved if everyone was here for her special day, but we'll save a slice of cake for you.