2 The Letter the Villainess is Waiting For
The main entrance, located on the first floor, was immediately before me.
In a hurried attempt to reach there, I swiftly ran my fingers through my disheveled hair and straightened my ensemble before positioning myself in front of the young lady's chamber door.
Today was a day off for the sole housemaid in the mansion. It meant the mansion was currently occupied only by the young lady and myself.
Being the only one present to attend to the young lady if required, my plate was exceedingly full.
'This ought to do.'
Knock knock.
I alerted the young lady, "I'm about to enter."
An unruffled voice emanated from beyond the door, as if bracing itself for any impending uproar.
"Please, come in."
Creak.
As I pushed the door open, a sight of a teddy bear, torn limb from limb, greeted me.
"Oh, dear Lord."
I wondered how the teddy bear, which I had procured only yesterday to comfort her, had ended up in such a dire state. Bowing my head, I mourned the pitiful teddy.
Additionally,
The vase was in pieces.
And the bedsheet… disarrayed.
'What a rampage…'
Why had she opted to wreak such havoc in the room? Picturing the tumultuous emotional state of the room's owner wasn't a tough guess.
As I stood there, dumbstruck, taking in the spectacle of chaos, I was snapped out of it by the icy voice of the room's owner.
"Ricardo."
"Yes."
The intense gaze from the floor below me snapped me back. There laid the room's owner: glaring at me intensely.
[Desmond Olivia Lv. 0.5]
[Occupation: Unemployed]
[Favorability: 20]
[Preferred Conversation Topics: Michail]
Her unruly hair, white as snow.
Her wizened face.
And my unkempt master, preoccupied with her uneven bangs.
Desmond Olivia.
Her high societal stature was long past, and sprawled next to the bed was my Mistress, her mind a riotous flower bed.
Olivia extended her hand to me.
"Help me up."
The white hand of the young lady reached out, beckoning.
Unceremoniously, I bypassed her outstretched hand and hoisted her up.
"Good heavens! How dare a commoner audaciously manhandle a noble?"
The young lady flailed her arms up and down. She was curiously silent, though from her body language, it was clear she was seething. The lack of any blush or visible expression on her face left me slightly perturbed.
"You've sustained a minor wound. I'll apply some ointment."
"A wound?"
"Yes, you've slightly grazed your knee."
"I had not noticed."
The room fell into a moment of silence.
Despite a year having passed, I still struggled to comprehend such stoic reactions.
Considering she once had a meltdown over a tiny scrape, her emotionless "Oh, I see" response was unsettling.
Even though the young lady professed that she often spoke without thinking, it was honestly quite challenging to take her word for it.
Changing gears, Olivia let out a faint sigh and broached a new subject.
"Anyway, what were you up to today?"
"I was quite occupied."
"And how exactly does a useless wretch occupy himself?"
"…Well, those words do sting a bit."
My Mistress' harsh words were directed towards a servant who had loyally served her, without demand for compensation. I secretly decided to exact revenge by applying just a tad bit more ointment than necessary.
-Squirt.
Unsurprisingly, the young lady's knee that was numb to pain remained oblivious to my intentions. But nonetheless, I did make clear that I too was capable of sweet revenge.
"Today, I was tending to the garden fence."
"Tending?"
"Yes, a great deal of vines had grown, therefore, it needed some tidying."
"Ahhh… good job."
"Yes, good job. And what were you doing, Young Lady?"
The young lady furrowed her brow, indicating that something significant had occurred. I paused, cotton swab in hand, to lend my full attention to her narration.
"Cockroaches appeared…!"
"Puh!"
"You're frightened too."
"Well, yes…"
"Why are you examining me like that!"
Our conversation flowed as we spoke about various minor matters.
Starting with the distasteful comment, 'Could you imagine the size of the cockroaches?', then moving on to what the most recent gossip was.
In order to quench the young lady's curiosity, since she was confined indoors, I composed a mix of truthful and embellished tales of the outside world.
Among them, she was particularly captivated by stories about the Academy. Whenever I narrated those, the young lady feigned indifference while attentively listening to every word I spoke.
"Apparently, the martial arts department won the class competition this year. Last year, it was the magic department, wasn't it?"
"Well, I wasn't there."
"You've got a point."
"Don't just agree with me…"
"In any case, Ricardo, has it arrived?"
While I was enthusiastically regaling her with tales I had heard while tending the fence, the young lady abruptly interrupted me.
If the certain Greek God who regarded amusement as life itself witnessed this, he would likely hurl a harp at the young lady's head, but considering I did not consider amusement as life's sole purpose, I decided to quietly satiate the young lady's curiosity.
"What are you referring to?"
"A letter."
In a single sentence, Olivia encapsulated her thoughts.
"Isn't it a bit premature for the debt collection notice to arrive?"
"…Be quiet."
With that, Olivia shot me a malicious glare I hadn't seen in quite some time.
I silently acknowledged her cuteness despite her glare, thinking, 'What harm can a glare do?'
But a letter, indeed.
There were merely two types of letters that would reach our mansion.
Threatening letters from students who had been victims of the young lady's bullying at the Academy, and the dreaded debt collection notice for the outstanding debt of 100,000 gold.
If it wasn't a letter of welcome…
I glanced up at the young lady, a foreboding sense of dread creeping over me.
"Young lady, you aren't thinking of selling me into slavery, are you?"
"What nonsense!"
The young lady clenched onto her blanket.
"I was wondering if there was a letter from the Academy, specifically for Michail."
My brow creased, furrowing deeply.
"What did you just utter?"
A disquieting silence filled the room.
"My apologies."
I bustlingly apologized.
As a mere servant, I found it difficult to conceal my expressions.
Clearly, I had a long way to go.
The young lady, visibly unsettled by my response, moistened her lips. She appeared deep in thought, contemplating her next words.
"Well, be more cautious in the future."
The young lady nodded, seemingly placated. Evidently, the anticipation of the letter was far more important than my oversight.
The young lady cast her gaze towards the window.
Unable to express herself directly due to embarrassment, she elected for silence. I chose to respect her wish and attentively listened to her words.
"I sent him a letter just last week too. But I've yet to receive a reply."
I responded with a nonchalant nod.
"Do you think I've made a terrible mistake? Even after a year, he never replies to my letters; he must be truly upset."
"Indeed."
"Do you agree, Ricardo? This week I even wrote in my letter apologizing for past transgressions."
"Hmm."
A sudden revelation had me clapping my hands, exclaiming, "Then you should stop writing."
[Olivia's favorability has decreased by 5.]
Quicker than the ding of the notification of favorability loss, the young lady's icy rebuke was flung my way.
"Enough already."
The young lady curtly dismissed my words.
Her stinging words felt like they bore holes into me, penetrating deeply.
At that moment, the magnitude of the young lady's forthrightness hit me, cutting right to the bone.
She glared at me, as if daring me to utter another word, her fists clenched tightly. I found myself growing increasingly annoyed.
But I wasn't particularly irked.
Who was I?
A loyal servant to a stern lady.
For a whole 13 years at that!
Even such a sight seemed favorable to me, merely because she appeared healthy. Compared to her state a year ago, I was prepared to handle her current demeanor anytime I saw it.
No matter how terrible her disposition was, she was a friend I had associated with for 13 long years. We hadn't clashed badly enough to warrant abandoning her. One could even argue our occasional fights were rather composed.
Last time, she had even hurled a vase at my head.
"I apologize. I'll double-check."
Our disagreements always culminated in my surrender.
Most of our daily interactions involved me losing favorability and causing emotional injury.
I stole a brief glance at the young lady perched on the bed, glaring sharply at me.
She appeared to be rather livid.
I should quickly prepare dinner.
Feigning an excuse to escape, I murmured to the young lady, "I will proceed to prepare dinner."
"I won't be eating so just leave."
The young lady's anger was palpable.
I bowed respectfully.
Before exiting, I couldn't resist muttering my frustration.
"Michail, that idiot! Such a lolicon."
With the 'ding' of the decreasing favorability notification, I was out the door.
***
Olivia sat alone in the room Ricardo had left with a frown on his face.
In a barely audible whisper, she murmured, "So infuriating. So infuriating. So infuriating."
Today had been a truly futile day.
She had encountered cockroaches that had scurried onto her bed.
Her beautiful knee had acquired a scratch.
There was still no letter from Michail.
And to top it all off,
She'd had a tiff with Ricardo.
Over an idiotic reason.
All because of a letter which was yet to arrive.
This was definitely not an episode from a preschool rhyme.
Olivia shrouded herself in her blanket up to her hair, whispering in a voice so hushed that even an ant scurrying by wouldn't detect it, she softly muttered,
"Frightening."
She clenched her fist.
"Cockroaches are terrifying."
The cockroach she encountered in her room today was of an unusually large size. She wished to summon Ricardo instantly, but her pride held her back.
"Ah."
Sleep seemed elusive, and the events of the day replayed in Olivia's mind.
Nothing extraordinary had transpired.
Merely blankly gazing at the ceiling.
An argument with her servant.
And that was it.
The image of her red-haired servant, his shoulders drooped in defeat, exiting the room still played vividly in her mind.
"Why must he meddle."
Ricardo was indeed correct.
Eagerly awaiting a letter from the man who had brought ruin to her family was lunacy, a downright foolish proposition. She was keenly aware of her pathetic predicament, spending her nights tossing and turning, lashing out on her innocent blanket.
"But what can be done when I harbor feelings for him."
This was a testament to her stubbornness.
Having set out on this path, she was resolute to see it through to the end. Her life was already a tragic disaster; there was nothing more to lose. This unrequited love story was all that remained as her lonely solace.
'Isn't it the duty of a servant to bolster my spirit?'
A servant should at least feign support, subtly rooting for their master. Rumors were rife about household servants of young noble ladies covertly stashing love letters beneath the shoe rack.
Ricardo had never undertaken any such task for her.
On the contrary, he had relentlessly thwarted her pursuits of love.
[Olivia's favorability has decreased by 2.]
Reflecting on this further riled up Olivia.
Each time she sought to meet Michail, Ricardo presented an array of excuses to dissuade her, and whenever she attempted to present Michail with gifts, Ricardo intervened, overstepping his bounds as a servant with intrusive advice, much like the day's occurrence.
Possibly, had Ricardo not been present, she might have established a promising relationship with Michail?
Her mood soured considerably with these train of thoughts.
[Olivia's favorability decreased by 1.]
Contrary to her embarrassment, these thoughts incessantly lingered.
Contemplating the possibility that had Ricardo not interfered with her black magic back then, Michail might be involved with her now.
Unexpectedly,
[You have attained 0 favorability.]
[Quest 'Ungrateful Wretch' completed.]
[◎You have unlocked access to the hidden side stories.
◎You can now read
What if Ricardo had not obstructed Olivia from using black magic?]
"What?"
Had she lost her sanity?
Having lain in bed the entire day, Olivia was convinced she was succumbing to lunacy, considering how blue letters seemed to materialize in the sky. It was improbable she was seeing blue letters floating in the sky unless she was descending into madness.
[Do you wish to proceed?]
The blue letters remained, seemingly untouched by her futile attempts to wave them away.
'I must have lost my mind.'
Olivia succumbed to melancholy.
Somehow, however, she found her attention pulled towards the persistent blue characters. It felt akin to observing a solitary poisonous mushroom sprouting on a hillside.
A magnetic pull held her gaze, for some inexplicable attraction.
It seemed to suggest that she could bear witness to the scene she had often daydreamed.
A dream she had ardently desired.
The possibility of seeing herself blissfully laughing in Michail's company, appeared highly likely.
'It seems I've finally crossed the threshold into insanity.'
Frustrated by the tenacious blue letters which refused to vanish even after an hour, Olivia resolved,
'If I've already slipped into madness, a bit more wouldn't make much of a difference.'
She was utterly convinced that the vision presented by the blue window would undoubtedly be one of happiness.
"Very well."
Olivia nodded her head in agreement.
"I shall read it."
With a mild headache, Olivia's eyes closed.
[10 minutes until reading starts.]
She gently opened her tightly shut eyes.
A familiar ceiling greeted her.
Sighing, she let out a meaningless laugh.
Checking to see if she had indeed lost her sanity.
A room, all too familiar, adorned with adorable stuffed animals on the bed and pink curtains fluttered, reminiscent of a young noble lady's room.
This was her room from the past.
Everything was the same.
Even the photos of Michail covering the ceiling matched her memory.
The teddy bear with a photograph of Michail stuck on its head was identical to the one she had a year ago.
A befuddled whisper naturally flowed from her lips.
"Is this real…?"
She carefully reached out, picking up the teddy bear lying next to her.
It was the bear she was fond of, the one Ricardo had discarded. Its familiar soft, fluffy scent filled her senses. Finding her hallucination to be this realistic, she thought her mental disorder must be severe. Meaningless laughter slipped out, yet she couldn't mask the strange excitement swelling within her heart.
She was already enthralled by the future she was about to witness.
So what if she was mentally ill?
She was already deemed mad.
Even if diagnosed as crazy, it was a welcome diagnosis if it meant she could experience the sensation of walking again, even for a fleeting moment.
An inexplicable satisfaction seeped into her every fiber.
Olivia started to confirm her situation.
What lay ahead wasn't a nightmare. How overjoyed must her past self have been without her servant's intervention?
She convincing herself she wasn't wrong.
– Tick tock, tick tock.
The rhythmic movement of the clock sound filled the silent room.
Olivia shifted her gaze to confirm the time.
11:59 PM.
She was well acquainted with this date and time.
"It must have been at the stroke of midnight, right?"
The day she indulged in black magic.
The time she entered her room.
To be true, Olivia didn't perfectly recall the events of that day.
Her memory was clear up until the moment she entered the room.
The rest was a blur.
The only detail seared into her memory was that something hurt, hurt severely, and she passed out.
She clearly remembered that she entered her room at midnight, and Ricardo had interrupted her black magic ritual. Other than that, everything was hazy.
Perhaps she was overflowing with anticipation.
Or were these memory gaps a side effect of her failed black magic?
"I'll find out in a moment."
Time ticked away, upon the strike of 12.
[Reading will now start.]
After the blue letters appeared.
A familiar voice echoed from behind the door.
- All I need, is this.
An exhilarated voice.
The voice of a young girl on the verge of receiving a promised toy from her parents resonated in the room as the door opened.
"I was more attractive back then."
Her 20-year-old self, radiating confidence and grace, sporting black hair and a vibrant smile, was a stark contrast to her current disheveled white-haired self.
Such a time existed.
She wistfully revisited the past memory.
Time rapidly flowed forward.
Watching herself sprawled on the floor, following instructions from a black magic book bought from the black market, and inscribing magic circles on the floor and her body, she felt as though she was being infected by the incessant elation and chatter of her past self.
It was captivating.
She found herself involuntarily smiling throughout.
Only for precisely an hour.
An hour after completing the magic circle,
Olivia felt a shiver travel down her spine.
- With the blood of my beloved mixed with my own blood…
- It's almost over. It's nearly done.
- Hehehe…
"Was I wearing a look like that?"
She found it chilling.
Her past self, carving the magic circle, portrayed an evident face of madness, reminiscent of a religious zealot.
"Was that really me?"
She wished she could deny it.
She couldn't possibly believe that she wore such a grotesque expression; she was far from being obsessive.
She just considered herself an ordinary girl suffering from a one-sided love.
But the person she was watching was too extraordinary.
And yet, she couldn't deny it wasn't her.
Because the name she heard from that mouth was too familiar.
At 4:30 AM, before dawn.
The room was shrouded in darkness.
Her past self, having completed the magic circle, was illuminating the room with magic.
That was as much as Olivia could recollect about that day.
She remembered pouring magic into it while thinking of Michail, experiencing unbearable pain and seeing Ricardo burst through the door; beyond that, her memory failed her.
Olivia tightly grasped her hands.
Regardless of how everything transpired, the moment had arrived to confirm whether her actions that day were right.
"In the end, only the result matters."
It's not the image of her detested servant's interference she wanted to see.
But the scene after the fleeting pain had passed,
Where the black magic had worked and she had a blissful future with Michail.
A scene where they affectionately call each other's names, share hugs, and go on dates. She found her heart fluttering in anticipation of this upcoming scene.
"Indeed, only the result matters."
Olivia tightened her grip.
She witnessed her past self standing in the center of the completed magic circle.
-Alright, perfect.
The flowing magical energy.
The magic circle rapidly started absorbing her past self's magic.
– Kikik…. Kikikikik.
A spine-chilling sound echoed.
The sound of the floor cracking.
The magic circle on the floor began to radiate a black glow, and the inscriptions on her body started turning red, tracing her blood vessels.
"What's happening?"
In that instant, she sensed something wasn't right.
– What's this? Why is it so?
It seemed her past self also had an intuition that something was amiss.
Within the unexpected situation, with widened eyes and incapable of taking action, Olivia screamed out.
However, her scream was futile, unable to reach her past self.
Olivia was left to merely observe.
– What's this? Why is it so? The book clearly said it would glow pink!
Her past self frantically rifled through the pages.
She was scanning the magic book containing methods of mind manipulation, desperately seeking answers.
– I didn't do anything wrong. Nothing! I followed the instructions perfectly…. I even prepared both Michail's blood and my blood!
Her voice quickened.
The confident expression was long gone, replaced by complete confusion.
– The magic circle was drawn perfectly…!
– I even collected the blood Michail shed at the training ground! What went wrong?!
– Argh… Argh…
Her frantic page-flipping sped up.
– Argh…
– Argh…!
As the illusion of Olivia flipped to the last page, her voice gradually grew fainter.
– Huh?
The words on those pages made even the real Olivia, standing behind the illusory version of herself, hold her breath.
– That can't be true…?
(The magic will only work if there is at least some mutual affection.)
– There's no way Michail would feel that way about me. I'm Olivia, society's belle.
However, contrary to her brave words, her head slowly lowered.
Olivia's voice grew weaker.
Eventually, her past self buried her face in the black magic manual, clutching her fist until her knuckles turned white, denying the words she just read while crying.
-Sob… No, no!
– There's no way! No way!
An exasperated Olivia was at a loss.
Everything was strange, from her failed magic to the inability to fulfill the activation conditions.
Everything was beyond comprehension.
'Was that really me?'
Her body wouldn't stop shaking.
Her mind was filled with denial, repeated "no".
Gradually, dark energy began to envelop her past self. Her pale skin darkened, and blood started trickling from her nose.
These were signs of failed black magic.
– Kyaa─!
A shriek tore through the silent room.
Olivia's hair stood on end as she remembered the excruciating pain from that day.
'Stop.'
Quivering, Olivia made an attempt to move.
Desperate to drag her past self out of the magic circle, she frantically reached out.
But she couldn't touch her.
[You're just an observer. You cannot interfere with the subject.]
After receiving the chilling reminder, her hand no more than a shadow, passed through her body.
"Wake up, you fool. Get up! Get out of there! Are you suicidal?!"
Contrary to Olivia's wish,
her past self remained motionless.
– No, my magic couldn't have failed. It must have worked!
– It is flawless.
– Perfect! There's no way I, the top student at the Academy, could have messed up.
She bit down on her teeth, persistent.
– It must be because there wasn't enough activation time. If I bear it a little longer, it'll activate.
Olivia was terrified.
Her past self, like a moth to a flame, was a frightful sight.
"Please, just come out."
The sight of her past self, tenaciously enduring while her flesh decomposed under the effects of black magic, was horribly agonizing and frightening.
She covered her ears and eyes.
*
Time seemed to have lapsed.
A hoarse voice pried her hands away from her ears.
– Kyaa─! It's painful… so painful… Mom.. Mom!
Her past self was writhing in agony.
The pain seemed unbearable.
The sight was so dreadful; it shot a wave of pain through Olivia herself.
Olivia clutched her chest tightly and uttered.
"Someone help her."
But none would hear her plea.
Because her past self had cast a silence spell outside the room, desiring total concentration on her black magic.
With her voice gradually fading, her past self expressed her pain.
– Kyaa─! It's hurting.. It's too painful..! Mom..!
"She's in so much pain… can't someone save her…"
Observing her past self crying whilst clawing her own head was too agonizing for the current Olivia.
"No, this can't be happening."
The decaying flesh.
Blackening skin.
Her past self's harrowing state was unbearable.
What was she thinking, fully believing her black magic would succeed?
She couldn't fathom where she had gone wrong to begin with.
At that moment, her only wish was for someone to save her past self.
Olivia called out.
"Isn't there anyone who can hear her? She's in unbearable pain! She feels like she's going to die! Can't anyone rush to her aid!"
And so did her past self.
– Save me! Please save me!
Screaming, scratching at the floor.
She looked pitiful.
The room filled with smoke from the burning flesh.
Covering her nose with her sleeve, Olivia coughed.
"Cough, cough…"
– Please save me…!
The fading pleas.
Until the very end, her past self implored.
– Michail.. help me…
– Michail, please save me. I made a mistake, so please help me.
Almost out of instinct, Olivia rebuked her past self.
"Pull yourself together, you madwoman!"
Yet, the pleas continued.
– Help me, Michail.
As her past self was at death's door.
A familiar name was called out.
– Ricardo. Save me.
[Changing perspective.]
She was once again facing the familiar ceiling.
Time seemed to have lapsed, the once neat room and walls covered with photos of Michail were no more.
Half unconscious, Olivia strained to lift her head.
A single framed photo lay on the bed.
A wry smile crept up on Olivia's face.
"Ricardo was right."
The smile in the familiar picture,
It belonged to her.
Seems like she didn't make it.
The foolish girl who thought she would have been happier if Ricardo hadn't intervened was no more.
'…'
A man sat on the bed, dusting off a picture frame.
A humble chrysanthemum was placed beside it.
This back view was familiar to Olivia.
The man with red hair, the one she teased daily for being shabby, possessed rather fairer skin than her own.
He was her servant.
Ricardo, in a white shirt, revealing his arms, kept his head lowered, diligently hiding his face.
His voice was barely audible.
"Why did you do exactly what I asked you not to?"
Ricardo's voice trembled slightly.
"Do you know how hard I tried?"
Ricardo anticipated a sudden break of tears any moment.
Like a child struggling to hold back their sobs.
The slightest nudge and it felt like he would succumb to his tears.
Olivia firmly sealed her lips and stood behind Ricardo.
Ricardo stayed by the bedside.
Until the break of dawn.
[Reading is now over.]
***
Her forehead felt cold.
"Young Lady, what are you doing?"
An all too familiar voice sounded.
The red-haired servant was pressing a wet towel to her forehead.
He looked clueless, as though he wasn't the one her frantic past self had been fervently calling out to in her dreams.
"Did you have a nightmare?"
"…"
"Why aren't you speaking? You're making me worry."
"A dream?"
"Yes, you've been asleep all day, haven't you?"
He moved to feel her temperature, bringing the back of his hand to her forehead.
Olivia tried to move her legs.
The legs that refused to cooperate.
She had returned to reality.
Relief washed over her.
Whether it was her mental disorder or it was real, it had been the worst dream ever.
One she never ever wanted to experience again.
Olivia looked towards Ricardo.
Ricardo, as always, dressed in full sleeves and pants, was donning his usual kind smile.
"Are you hungry?"
"Shut up."
Her servant.
He was her Ricardo.
**
[Olivia's favorability has increased by +50]
'What?'
In my peaceful photosynthesizing morning, I suddenly bolted to the young lady's room upon seeing the surge in favorability.
Even Bitcoin hadn't skyrocketed this abruptly before.
Did she have a pleasant dream or something?
As I pondered over the actions of the young lady that I somewhat understood and somewhat didn't, I reached her room to find her seemingly boiling with rage.
[Desmond Olivia Lv. 0.5]
[Occupation: NEET]
[Favorability: 50]
[Favorite Conversation Topic: Michail]
New!
[Least Favorite Conversation Topic: Michail]
Hmm.
A fresh entry has suddenly appeared in her favorability list.
Something happened while she was asleep.
But why the overlap in favorite and least favorite categories? My head ached first thing in the morning.
***
The towel heated up in no time.
As I watched Olivia fuming, I thought to myself,
'She clearly didn't cover herself with a blanket while sleeping.'
Despite my incessant pleas to use a blanket, Olivia had managed to catch a summer cold despite the searing temperatures. It was truly vexing.
"Cough cough! Achoo!"
Olivia's intense coughing fitted continued.
It didn't seem like they would be gone within a day or two.
Should I take her to the hospital?
That was out of the question knowing her aversion to stepping outside. And given our financial state, it was impossible to afford a doctor's home visit.
"Cough…cough…I need water."
"Yes."
Considering the reality of our situation, I decided to stay by her side.
Since the maid had a day off to return to her mundanity, I better asked her to clean the mansion. It wouldn't be good if the maid caught a cold too.
If she too ended up sick and taking a day off, caring for Olivia and cleaning the house would solely fall on me. I could probably manage for a day, but two days would be out of my depth.
Especially with Olivia's baths.
It was unfeasible to hire a new maid. No one was willing to work at a social outcast's home.
Everyone was hesitant to opt for employment at our mansion.
Offering them a higher pay rate in comparison to other households, didn't sway them either.
They would rather avoid having worked at a villainess's home on their resume. Oh, please. If anything, I deserve their praise for providing for our ill-treated Olivia. Such a pity.
Clank.
Having quenched her thirst, Olivia gently placed the glass back on the bedside table.
It seemed like she wanted to say something.
Collecting a deep breath, she slowly opened her mouth.
"Ricardo."
"Yes. I will prepare porridge for your dinner."
"I don't want porridge…"
At the inhumane prospect of having porridge for dinner, Olivia instinctively complained. Then, remembering something important, she progressed onto the main discussion.
"Do you remember when I was sick before?"
"When you were sick before? Hmm…"
I rubbed my chin contemplatively.
Recalling the time when she was sick.
That particular day…
A lady's special day.
'Ah!'
I recalled the day of a woman's magic.
"Isn't it still some time away?"
Olivia's face instantly turned beet red.
"Cough…! What are you talking about, you pervert! And how do you know about that."
Proudly, I declared,
"It's a butler's job to know. This is basic knowledge."
"Shut your mouth!"
Her face, already flushed from the fever, glowed even brighter now.
Olivia flung the towel from her forehead at me.
"Ugh!"
With a soft thud, the towel slid down my face and landed inside the bucket of ice-cold water. Unfazed, I wrung it out and put it back on her forehead.
Muttering under her breath, Olivia grumbled,
"Dismal pervert, your mind is full of…"
"Such thoughts are normal for a healthy 23-year-old man. And what's so indecent about it? It's a natural biological process!"
"Shut up!"
"Hmph…"
She was fuming.
Predictably, I heard the unmistakable notification sound inside my head.
[Olivia's favorability has decreased by 10]
I should have known better than to push my luck.
Even taking a step back can be an art.
I hereby christen you Lady Downeria.
Clearing her throat, Olivia began,
Apparently taken aback by my unexpected jest. However, I was quite serious. Her muttering and telling me to stop were award-worthy performances.
I wish I had recorded it to show to the academy students for reputation recovery. What a missed opportunity.
"I'm talking about the day I attempted black magic."
"Ah, that day wasn't 'that' day."
"You bas…"
"Apologies. Sometimes, I can't help poking fun."
This was the first time Olivia herself brought up 'that' day.
What prompted this change?
Whenever I tried to bring it up, she would avoid the subject and lash out. Now, she was the one initiating the conversation.
Did she dream about it?
Usually, I would assume she had a dream about Michail. This, however, was a pleasant surprise.
There was a certain intensity in Olivia's gaze.
Breathing heavily, seeming eager to hear my response.
As I briefly revisited the memory from that day, I absent-mindedly ran my fingers over my arm, hidden beneath my sleeve.
The memory from a year ago was still as vivid.
That was the last favorability quest at that time.
[Main Quest 'Two Strings of Fate']
[ Olivia will attempt black magic due to unrequited love.
1. Ascend the stairs and save Olivia.
Rewards
1. Olivia survives
2. +1 to Olivia's favorability
3. Ability [Resistance to Black Magic Lv. 3]
Penalty: 50% chance of death
2. Ignore her.
Rewards
1. +10 to all characters' favorability
2. +30 to magical power
3. Ability [White Magic Lv. 3]
Penalty: Olivia dies]
That day, Olivia was screaming at the top lungs.
And, needless to say, I chose Olivia.
That's all that happened.
While I could vividly recall the details, Olivia didn't need to know all of them. It was enough that only I knew about the events of that day.
"Why suddenly ask about that day?"
"No particular reason, just curious."
Olivia turned her gaze towards the window.
She often did that when lying or discussing something discomforting.
I was sure of it.
Olivia must have had a nightmare about the events of that day.
"Why suddenly bring up that incident, Young Lady?"
The question wasn't easy for either of us.
For me to ask, and for Olivia to answer.
Because that was why we were in this predicament.
Olivia had lost her leg.
And I, my master.
Despite this, Olivia persisted.
"How did you manage to save me?"
The intensity in her gaze was undeniable. As if she was still haunted by something, or still harbored the resentment I interrupted her black magic ritual that day.
Knowing Olivia often held grudges about that day, I had to choose my words carefully.
"I simply rushed in."
"At 4am? When you should've been asleep?"
"How do you know when I sleep?"
"People typically sleep at 4am."
"Maybe I'm not human."
"Stop joking."
She removed the towel from her forehead.
With visible effort, Olivia sat up on the bed. Looking directly at me, she conveyed each word with emphasis.
"I clearly remember erecting a perfect silence spell around the room."
"Perhaps you made an error?"
"No. There's no way I could make a mistake in basic magic."
It was hard to decipher Olivia's intentions.
Whether hers was an act of reprimanding,
Or genuine curiosity.
Regardless, she was querying me, and I had no intention of revealing the truth.
Why dredge up unpleasant memories without cause?
Isn't it always better to focus on the positives?
With a firm hand, I pressed against Olivia's forehead.
The weakened villainess flopped back onto the bed. She seemed to be overexerting herself given her febrile state.
"I used telepathy."
"Stop being elusive and explain properly."
"Haven't I served you for 13 years? Through camaraderie, affection, and salary! It all meshed up together wonderfully. Could it not be that I developed superhuman powers?"
"No…!"
With a soft thwack,
I placed the towel over Olivia's face.
I had to seal her lips. Agitation wasn't advisable for a sick person.
"Mmmph mmmph mmm", muffled noises came from Olivia as she tried to wriggle and scream beneath the towel.
I cast a Silence spell and rose from the bed.
"I'll disclose the details at a later time."
***
Meanwhile, at Olivia's mansion.
The gardener seemed to be on strike. Wild vegetation was rampant in the garden. The unkempt gate stood amidst the overgrown foliage.
Two uniformed students stood there, a boy and a girl.
"It's more like a haunted house."
"Please quiet down, senior."
The girl found herself unable to challenge the boy's statement, as the surroundings hardly resembled an inhabited property.
The boy next to her squirmed and provided his perspective.
"At this point, we need adventurers, not students. It's clearly a dungeon, right? Furthermore, the owner is a monster."
His derisive statements were quintessential of a delinquent. Anyone who witnessed this would have a hard time believing he was a part of the student council.
Her opinion of him was bordering on pathetic.
"I asked you to be quiet."
The boy, with light green hair, hands stuck in his pockets while ridiculing the mansion, was Ruin, a student of the Royal Academy and an apprentice of the Magic Tower.
"Excuse me, Senior Ruin."
She retorted crisply.
She too was a student at the Royal Academy.
Holding the top position as a swordswoman among first-years, and the secretary of the student council, Hanna.
The reason for these two students visiting an expelled student's residence was straightforward.
They were dispatched by the student council president to ascertain whether Ricardo, who was currently on a leave of absence, had any plans to rejoin the academy.
Hanna, standing at the gate, surveyed the mansion walls.
[Banish the wicked villainess to a monastery.]
A distasteful message.
The place indeed seemed like the dwelling of a notorious villainess. Rumors about the resident had reached her ears numerous times.
The most grievous villainess ever to attend their school.
She would slap anyone she met.
Discriminate and disregard others based on whether they were commoners or nobility. A vile woman indeed.
She was notorious for her relentless harassment and stalking of Senior Michail… Considering Hanna's crush on Michail, this knowledge was particularly discomforting.
Honestly, she hadn't wanted to come either.
Given the unpredictability of the woman often described as the 'worst', even by the saintly Senior Michail whom Hanna admired, she didn't know how this visit might end.
The villainess might suddenly spew insults at her.
Or perhaps have a servant douse Hanna in a bucket full of manure. Setting foot inside felt heavy.
But she had no choice.
As the youngest member of the council, and a first-year student, she was compelled to comply with the directives of busy senior members.
'Ugh…I don't want to go.'
Hanna tightly grasped the letter in her hand.
'I wish I could have come with Senior Michail and displayed my courage by standing up to that woman…'
However, Senior Michail had declined to accompany her.
Consequently, she had arrived with Senior Ruin.
Though he had a bad reputation in the council due to his complicated nature, his skills as the top magician were unquestionable.
The president had added him to the party as a precaution, but…
"Hehe, let's get in quickly. I can't wait to stir things up."
But he wasn't exactly reliable.
Hanna was determined.
She was determined to depart from this mansion as swiftly as possible, and to give that villainess a piece of her mind.
With a sense of apprehension, she knocked on the mansion door.
