果して
はたして · hatashite · JLPT N2 · adverb
really
🍎 果 = fruit (result); 果たす = fulfill. The fruit came out as expected: 果して
Etymology: 果たす (hatasu) means to carry out or fulfill a plan. 果して adds the sense that the outcome matched what was expected.
果 — fruit shape 田-like top + tree 木
果 is a pictograph: early forms show a tree (木) with round fruit hanging on its branches, later stylized into the 田-like top. Its original meaning was 'fruit', which extended to 'result, outcome' — the fruit of an action — and to 'resolute, decisive'.