The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen

TLed by NolepGuy

Chapter 137

Ball D-3

Under the dark shadows.

The stories of girls harboring dark intent were carried by the wind.

-Yuria, isn’t she just so annoying?

-Yeah. Ever since Olivia left, she’s been acting all high and mighty. If I’d known this would happen, I wouldn’t have chased Olivia out back then.

-Exactly, we made up a story for no reason and buried her.

-Ha… She was unbearable when she was here, but now that she’s gone, it’s even more irritating.

The girls chatting under the dark shadows all disliked one particular girl.

A girl with a superior appearance, someone who received admiration just by being looked at.

They were women who hated a commoner who, despite her lowly status, received abundant love.

Each of them harbored a hero in their hearts.

Whether it was Mikhail, with his righteous heart, the prickly Fire Mage, or the man with the Empire’s most noble status, they all held these heroes in their hearts.

Seeing a girl who was close to these heroes, whom they couldn’t even speak to or approach, filled them with hatred.

That’s why the girls hated Yuria.

Even when Yuria tried her best to befriend them, the arrows of hatred were like nails that wouldn’t come out easily.

Even though she had done nothing wrong, the girls hated Yuria.

Even when she received letters that wounded her pride.

Even when she shared her true feelings, soaked in tears of sadness, they hated and resented Yuria.

Yuria’s smallest movements felt as unpleasant as a fishbone stuck in their throats, and her smiling face, full of joy, seemed arrogant to them.

Because the existence of Yuria, coated thickly in the colored glasses they wore, was something they envied.

-She’s going to act all high and mighty at the ball again, isn’t she?

-I hate her so much. Seriously.

-Exactly. What does that commoner think she has to act so cocky? Talking to the Crown Prince is honestly ridiculous. I bet the Crown Prince hates her too. She even smells weird; I could never deal with that.

-Puhaha. Agreed. That musty smell, you know? It’s enough to make me want to throw up.

-Right! I’m not the only one who noticed it, right?

The subject of the girls’ malicious conversation was solely focused on one person, and even the smallest speck of dust on Yuria became a massive cloud of dirt after passing through their mouths.

The time spent spewing malicious stories continued to pass.

As time went on, the words they gossiped about became laced with lies, growing into something bigger, and the dark malice they harbored in their hearts began to solidify into the emotion of ‘anger.’

-Isn’t there a way?

And gradually, their thoughts shifted to, ‘Should we give it a try?’ After all, they had always done so until now. Ignoring her, bullying her, and even when they wondered if they were going too far, Yuria never reacted and just endured it.

The weight of violence felt lighter.

As the girls’ conversation reached its climax.

-You’re having an interesting discussion, aren’t you?

A dark shadow began to loom over them.

-I have an amusing idea. Would you like to hear it?

*

Ball D-1

Back at the dormitory, Yuria stared endlessly at the dress hanging on the coat rack.

“Wow…”

It was a dress she had always wanted.

A dress she had only ever admired from afar, too expensive to even consider, now shimmered brilliantly before her eyes.

Its pure white color glowed softly.

It wasn’t a used dress that always carried a musty smell; instead, it exuded a gentle rose fragrance.

A new dress, one she didn’t need to mask with perfume to erase any odors, was a gift from someone she never expected.

Ricardo.

The boy who always appeared during her hardest moments had once again come to her as a great light.

Sitting in the chair, staring endlessly at the dress, Yuria recalled what had happened a few days ago.

-I can’t accept this.

-It’s fine. I don’t need clothes like this anyway. If it were a shirt, maybe, but dresses aren’t my style.

-Then you could give it to Olivia.

-Hmm… It wouldn’t fit her. She’s too… well-endowed.

-Even so…

-If you don’t take it, I’ll just put it back. I’d rather avoid unnecessary spending. Well, it’s just doing a good deed for someone else.

-Th-that’s…

She was a fool.

Yuria knew.

She knew this dress wasn’t secondhand.

Of course, it wasn’t.

-30,000 gold.

No one would sell a brand-new dress for that price as a secondhand item. It was obvious the merchant had inspected the product, and when she offered to pay for it herself, Ricardo’s flustered reaction had been impossible to miss.

-I’ll buy it.

-No, I absolutely must be the one to buy this dress.

-What kind of logic is that?

-This kind.

Ricardo had been genuinely flustered.

Truly.

Remembering the past, Yuria’s face flushed as if she had swallowed a hot sweet potato.

“Idiot.”

He couldn’t even lie properly.

“Why are you so kind to me?”

Ricardo had always appeared like a hero in her most troubling moments.

Life at the Academy over the past year without Ricardo had been incomparable to before.

Compared to when Ricardo was around, the bullying and incidents had certainly decreased, but overcoming the occasional hardships had been truly difficult.

There were fewer trials, but it felt like she couldn’t overcome them.

If her dress had been stained with wine, Ricardo would have conveniently appeared, saying, “Oh, what a coincidence, I happen to have a universal detergent,” and quietly removed the stain. But now, if something like that happened, she would panic and be unable to do anything.

The weight of enduring trials seemed to have grown heavier. With no one to rely on, no one to help…

“Sigh…”

Maybe that’s why she couldn’t bring herself to hate Ricardo.

The guilt from what happened in the dungeon erased her feelings of resentment, but more than that, Ricardo’s actions, done so effortlessly, made it clear why she couldn’t hate him.

What woman in the world could dislike receiving such a gift?

Who could hate someone who hid the dress she wanted most among a pile of clothes, telling her not to feel burdened?

At one point, she had thought Ricardo’s deep understanding of her was frightening, but now, that feeling had turned into affection, leaving her with no other thoughts. In fact, she liked it.

She didn’t know anymore.

If someone else had done it, she might have thought of them as a stalker, but she couldn’t think that way about Ricardo, who disguised his gifts as coincidences and left her enchanted.

Yuria continued to stare at the pure white dress.

The brand-new dress with its tags still intact.

This ball would surely be different from the previous ones.

No one would look down on her for wearing a worn-out dress, and wearing the dress Ricardo had given her seemed to fill her with newfound strength.

The mocking voices of others.

The sneers about a commoner wearing such extravagant clothes—she felt she could endure them all while wearing the dress Ricardo had gifted her.

Ricardo had always been her protector. She even thought that if something happened this time, he might appear again like a prince on a white horse.

“What am I even saying…”

Yuria slapped her flushed cheeks and shook her head vigorously.

About ten minutes passed like that.

-Ding-dong.

A stranger began calling for Yuria.

***

Under the dim light of the street lamps lining the Academy’s promenade.

Yuria was walking along the path with her friend Ruin, who had suddenly come to visit, chatting as they went.

Wearing only a cardigan, it was a bit chilly, but with the weather warming up, Yuria managed to hold her outfit together and endure it.

While walking hesitantly under the street lamp, Ruin finally opened his tightly shut mouth.

“It’s tomorrow.”

“Huh?”

“The ball, I mean.”

“Ah…”

The ball.

A place that never held a single good memory for her.

Balls were frequently held at the Academy, but the one celebrating the New Year was especially filled with bad memories for Yuria.

During her freshman year, it was because of Olivia.

During her second year, it was due to Ricardo’s absence.

Yuria was filled with worry about how this upcoming ball would turn out.

No matter how beautiful the dress, if the people she met caused trouble, it would turn into the worst experience.

Yuria nodded awkwardly with a faint smile at Ruin’s question.

“That’s right. Just one day left.”

“Uh… Yuria.”

Ruin exhaled white breath as he looked ahead. Glancing at the paper bag in his hand, he gave a hesitant smile that seemed awkward.

Yuria had no idea what Ruin, who had called her out through the dorm supervisor, wanted to say.

She thought he might want to talk about academics, but seeing his face, she felt there was another reason.

Yuria clasped her hands together as she walked.

Until Ruin decided to speak.

“So, Ruin, do you have something to say?”

“Uh… It’s nothing big. It’s just that we’ve been friends for three years now.”

“That’s true.”

“Your birthday is coming up, and I feel like I haven’t done much for you so far.”

“That’s not true. You’ve done so much for me—teaching me magic and even giving me a necklace as a gift.”

“Really… Haha!”

Ruin laughed awkwardly as he looked at Yuria.

Then, holding out the paper bag he’d been carrying, he smiled awkwardly again.

“This isn’t anything grand, but I thought it might suit you.”

“Huh? What’s this?”

“A dress.”

“What?”

Inside the paper bag was a light green dress, similar in color to Ruin’s hair.

At a glance, it looked expensive.

Maybe not as much as the one Ricardo had given her, but it seemed close.

Ruin, offering such a dress, blushed, while Yuria looked at the dress in the paper bag with a hesitant smile.

“Ah… Sorry, Ruin. I don’t think I can accept a dress as a gift.”

“What?”

Ruin looked at Yuria with a bewildered expression and asked.

“Who is it?”

“…”

“Who gave it to you?”

“A close friend.”

“Don’t tell me… Ricardo?”

Seeing Yuria remain silent, Ruin clenched his fist.

“Throw it away.”