The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen

Chapter 283

On the way out of the drawing room.

"Eek?"

Rowen looked at the Desmond Young Lady, who was sitting on the living room floor. She was cradling a pet that was hard to tell whether it was a bear or a puppy, and while briefly glancing at him, she seemed uninterested and continued to play with the pet's paw pads.

"Hooong...! Bear trotters...!"

-A bear?!

"Eeeek! Ah... Hap! Ugh, it’s tasty."

-A bear.

"Eek! Don’t hit me!"

"..."

Is this mansion all about cold treatment?

No matter where he went, he had never been treated this coldly. Rowen decided not to think too deeply about the Desmond Young Lady's indifferent reaction.

After all, the Desmonds and his family had been on bad terms since the previous generation. Perhaps such neglect was to be expected.

-Click. Click.

As Rowen passed by the Desmond Young Lady, carrying complex thoughts, he heard her muttering faintly.

"What brings the Head of Histania, who only knows swords, here?"

"..."

"Does he have nothing better to do?"

Rowen stopped in his tracks and looked at the Young Lady. He could have ignored it, but the words of a mere Young Lady directed toward the head of a family grated on his ears.

Under Rowen's steady gaze, Olivia boldly met his eyes and pointed her finger at him.

"You’re a Count. I’m a Duke."

"…And what of it?"

"If you have an issue with titles, take it up with the Emperor. Then I’ll show you some respect."

Like father, like daughter, it seems.

Looking at the defiant Olivia, Rowen recalled memories of his time at the academy with the Head of Desmond.

-Why do you live your life so boringly? So rigid and old-fashioned.

-Mind your own business. Instead of meddling in others' lives, practice your magic more. Don’t lose to me like last time.

-It wasn’t losing; it was a draw. Is your brain so muscle-bound that you can’t even remember properly?

-...

Truly, they were a family he couldn’t stand. This Desmond household, that is. The Young Lady who used dark magic, and the one they couldn’t even kick out of the family.

"How arrogant."

To Rowen, the Desmonds, relying solely on their Duke title without contributing to the Empire, seemed like rebels.

"Hmph..."

And yet, those unyielding eyes must be the pride of Desmond.

Seeing the Young Lady staring straight at him, Rowen let out a deep sigh. He didn’t want to waste time arguing with a young girl.

But Olivia continued her insolent remarks toward Rowen.

"If I’m arrogant, then is Histania on the verge of ruin?"

"…What did you say, Young Lady?"

"Well, isn’t it true?"

"…What?"

"The Head of Histania came to my estate unannounced, yet acts so self-assured. Even if you’re the Sword of the Empire, isn’t this too much of a breach of etiquette?"

"Your tone is quite short, Desmond Young Lady."

"I told you. I’m a Duke. You’re a Count."

"I assume you’re well aware of why Histania doesn’t hold a title."

"I don’t care about such rigid traditions. Even if I knew, I wouldn’t bother mentioning something that puts me at a disadvantage."

"…Why do your lot enjoy nitpicking so much?"

"Because you’re annoying."

Rowen unconsciously clenched his fist. He felt as though he had lost control of the conversation.

Rowen believed it was natural for the weak to follow the strong, but the Young Lady, fully aware of her strengths, left him unable to refute her words easily.

Thus, he found himself being swayed by her.

To avoid being further entangled in her words, Rowen clenched his fist tightly and walked past her, saying,

"I’ll be going."

"Wait."

"I have nothing to say to you. Why should I listen to you?"

"Because I have something to say."

"..."

Olivia spoke calmly to Rowen, who had stopped in his tracks.

"You know, Head of Histania."

"..."

"How do you educate your children?"

"What did you just say...?"

Despite Rowen’s rising fury, Olivia continued unwaveringly.

"Histania Hanna came crying to our mansion."

"..."

"Histania Malik came to apologize."

"My children did that...?"

"What are you going to do if you didn’t know? Are you even their father?"

"Start from the beginning. Young Lady."

"What’s this about?"

Olivia sighed and let out a small laugh.

"I guess you weren’t much of a father. Histania Hanna and Malik seemed to have grown up well, though. Of course, it was awkward at first."

As if realizing something, Olivia’s eyes sparkled, and she clapped her hands, exclaiming,

"Ah...! Is it that you don’t want to become like your father?"

"…You’d better watch your words."

"What, am I wrong? How much must they have resented you to come to the Villainess’s House instead of staying with their own family? And to talk to our butler, of all people."

"..."

"Not that it’s a bad thing. Our butler is quite talented, after all."

"So, what’s your point?"

"Oh, nothing. I was just bored."

Olivia smiled slyly as she spoke to Rowen.

"You came here because of our butler too, didn’t you?"

"..."

"You’re looking for some kind of help, aren’t you?"

Rowen couldn’t respond to the Young Lady’s words. Her direct and sharp remarks, free of any pretense, left him at a loss for words.

"Raising children is really hard, isn’t it?"

"Don’t speak as you please, Desmond."

"They never do as they’re told. If they just listened to their father, they could succeed, but all they do is insist on their own way."

"…Enough."

"But, you know."

Olivia smiled with her eyes as she addressed the Sword of the Empire.

"That makes life so boring, doesn’t it?"

"..."

"You don’t even know why you’re living. It feels like you’re just a puppet, and it’s not like you’re handing out candy either. All you do is scold, never praise."

Rowen kept his mouth shut.

He had been drawn into the Young Lady’s words. If he resorted to force, he could silence her in less than a second, but her sharp words had already pierced his ears and lodged themselves in his mind.

As if it were nothing, Olivia whispered cruel words into Rowen’s ear.

"Just keep going like this."

"..."

"Someone might die, and then things will change. Isn’t that a decent option? If you set up just one solid pillar, the rest of the weak ones will collapse… You could clean things up and build a solid foundation. Wouldn’t that be nice?"

"Shut up."

"Pffft... Why? Isn’t this what the Head of Histania wanted? From what I’ve heard, it sounds like you’ve said things even harsher than I did."

By the time the murderous aura emanating from Rowen turned menacing.

-Click. Click.

At the sound of footsteps descending from the second floor of the estate, Olivia closed her mouth. She glanced up at the second floor once before uttering a brief farewell, "You should leave now," then nestled into the arms of her pet and closed her eyes.

"Moderation is always best. Don’t cross the line, like me."

"At least you know your place."

"Of course. I’ve come to realize a few things."

"How arrogant. Both you and your father."

"Don’t insult my dad. He’s a Duke, after all."

"...You never let anything go, do you? Your whole family is like that."

"What can I say… We were born this way. Anyway, think it over carefully. Apologizing is harder than you think."

"..."

"You might regret it for the rest of your life."

-Young Lady!

Olivia closed her eyes as Ricardo came down the stairs, pretending she had been asleep all along.

"Snore..."

She closed her eyes.

*

"Did something happen?"

"Huh?"

"It seemed like you were talking to the Head of Histania."

"Ah..."

Olivia looked indifferently at the door where Rowen had left and spoke.

"He seemed bored, so I entertained him."

I tugged at the Young Lady’s cheek and said.

"You teased him again, didn’t you?"

"Eeeek!!! No, I didn’t!"

"Judging by your face, it doesn’t seem that way."

"Eeeek!!! Maybe… just a little."

"I teased him too."

"Heeheehee!"

I smiled as I patted the Young Lady’s head.

"Should I write it on the fence? That the villainess who torments the Sword of the Empire lives here?"

"Eeeek..."

The Young Lady seemed to be in a good mood.

***

In the now-empty office.

The Head of Histania let out a long sigh under the dim moonlight.

He wondered if he had gone to that estate for no reason, but at the same time, he had learned something he hadn’t known before.

That he had been wrong.

Since when had things been so difficult?

Since when had his very existence become a burden? The persistent thoughts made it hard for Rowen to organize his mind.

Looking back at the compass, it seemed like many things had gone awry, and his heart ached.

Family.

Choices.

Standards.

He couldn’t grasp how the standards he had set had become such a heavy burden on his children. The thought that his decisions had weighed them down made Rowen feel as if his heart was being crushed.

The advice he had given for his daughter’s sake.

-You have no talent.

He realized now it had been the worst advice.

The burden he had placed on his eldest son.

-You are destined to become the Head of Histania. Focus solely on the sword.

It had instead created an environment where his children resented each other.

Where had it all gone wrong?

Rowen sat alone in the dark office, drinking. Not to get drunk, but simply to stave off the loneliness.

"...Damn it."

The moonlight was cold.

The countless swords hanging in the office were sharp, and the ones Hanna had once begged to touch remained spotless and in their place.

"...The worst."

Rowen lowered his head.

He needed to calm his increasingly tangled thoughts. But time was not on Rowen’s side.

-Creak.

The office door, which had been closed, opened, and a familiar face began to appear in the moonlight.

A familiar figure holding a sword.

"It’s been a while, Father."

It was the worst possible reunion.