却って
かえって · kaette · JLPT N2 · adverb
on the contrary
却 = turn back, as in 退却 retreat; 却って = the reverse of what you'd expect
Kanji 却 carries the sense of reversing or turning back. 却って marks a result that runs against expectation, like trying harder and ending up with less.
却 — 去 (go) + 卩 (kneeling person)
Originally a phono-semantic compound with 卩 (a kneeling figure) suggesting retreat or yielding, and 去 providing the sound. The early sense was 'to step back' or 'reject,' which broadened into the modern meanings 'however' and 'but.' The seal-script form shows a person turning away.