Please Bully Me, Miss Villainess!

Chapter 107 : And So She Closed Her Eyes

—Crash!!

The porcelain plate shattered as it hit the ground.

"...I'm sorry, I'll clean it up right away!"

Elsa hurriedly crouched down to pick up the pieces, but cut her finger on the sharp edge of a shard.

Crimson blood droplets welled up from her fingertip, falling onto the floor and blooming into a red stain.

"Ellie! Don't move—I'll take care of it!!"

Niva, the maid on duty with her, quickly brought over the first aid kit.

Since returning from summer vacation, this child's condition seemed off. She had even served the wrong dish to a customer just now.

The usually capable Elsa now looked so dispirited, it was truly concerning.

What on earth happened?

"Is your hand alright? Is the wound deep?"

"I'm sorry..."

Elsa lowered her head guiltily.

This was probably what they called 'more hindrance than help'.

After applying medicine to her wound, Niva patted Elsa's shoulder reassuringly.

"I think you should go rest for a bit, Ellie. Leave this to big sister~"

Bringing over a dustpan and broom, the senior maid skillfully swept up all the small scattered pieces, then wiped the floor clean with a cloth.

"Thank you..."

Elsa felt a bit dejected. Compared to her capable senior, she seemed increasingly useless.

"Don't think too much about it, Ellie. It's just a small matter. Everyone makes mistakes~ As long as you learn from them, you're still a good child!"

"...Mm."

Comforted by her gentle senior, Elsa's nose stung, and she almost cried pathetically.

If only there was really a chance to make up for mistakes...

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After finishing her shift at the "Sea Breeze Inn", Elsa picked up her belongings stored at the shop and now wandered aimlessly along the sea wall.

The humming sound of a ship's horn came from not far away. A grand ship's hull bore a lion-shaped shield emblem—the insignia of the Leinster Guild.

...It seems Uncle's ventures are going quite smoothly.

Due to the North Kalos potato cuisine, the Leinster Guild had successfully partnered with 'Gourmet', the leader in the catering industry. The influx of new capital had also led to the guild's rapid development.

That's wonderful. At this rate, Evie will surely...

—No, no!

Elsa shook her head vigorously.

Today, no matter what she saw, she would unconsciously connect it to Yvonne.

Now... she no longer had the right to feel happy for her.

This was probably what they called 'reaping what you sow'.

The bandaged finger throbbed with pain, but compared to this small injury, the rift in her heart was far deeper.

Elsa was filled with regret.

Why had she become so impulsive?

If she had properly expressed her inner thoughts at that time... Yvonne would have understood her to some extent, right?

But in that situation, she just couldn't stay calm.

......

In any case, there were still many things to deal with...

She needed to quickly decide on a place to stay...

She hadn't yet decided where to spend the night.

If it was just about finding a place to sleep, Elsa felt anywhere would do.

But if it wasn't by her side, it wouldn't do.

To still have such thoughts at this point, she really was a fool.

If she wanted to stay by her side so badly, why didn't she just not leave?

Damn it... damn it, damn it, damn it...

If there was a pillow in front of her, she would probably pound it until she was exhausted—that's how depressed Elsa felt right now.

I hate this...

I hate it, I hate it, I hate it—

Who is she... that old woman who looks just like me!!

Just thinking that those two might be alone together now that she had left made the unpleasant, fidgety feeling in her chest grow even more chaotic.

And Evie too... saying things like 'wanting to lend a helping hand to a friend'—!! Couldn't she consider my feelings a bit more?!

If her kindness was something she could offer to anyone, then what did the gentleness Elsa received from her mean—!!

What she wanted wasn't something like that—!!

What Elsa hoped for was something more special... something more unique—

She wanted to become Evie's 'first'

The first in every aspect.

Second place wouldn't do, it had to be first.

It was this kind of stubborn and unreasonable wish.

So, she hated that there were things about Yvonne she didn't know.

She hated even more that others knew while she was kept in the dark.

She didn't like, didn't hope for, and wasn't willing to see anyone else exist by her lover's side.

More extremely, Elsa even felt that having just herself by Yvonne's side was enough.

Although she knew harboring such thoughts was too heavy, this terrible desire for monopoly just couldn't be stopped.

It was truly awful...

Yes, she was jealous, she was envious, and she had recklessly vented these insecure feelings onto the other person.

She messed up—

She messed up, messed up, messed up!!

In Evie's eyes, this version of herself must seem utterly incomprehensible...

To have said such things, even talking about living separately... and in the end, she even agreed!

Such a selfish, unreasonable, and troublesome woman like herself... she must hate her now, right?

No...

She didn't want that...

Above all, she didn't want to be hated by Evie…

Her heart cried out.

In the blink of an eye, night had fallen.

The surroundings grew dark.

Elsa didn't know where she had wandered to.

The unfamiliar, dim, and blurry street corner looked like the end of the world.

There were hardly any people left on the nearby streets.

That's right... at this hour, everyone should have gone home.

However, she had nowhere to return to now.

She had lost her place of belonging.

Realizing this, her body seemed to lose all strength, unable to lift her heavy feet any further.

She couldn't move anymore...

She didn't want to move...

It didn't matter anymore...

Somehow, everything felt indifferent now.

Even if the world were to end right now, Elsa felt it wouldn't matter.

Putting down the bag she had hastily stuffed with a few clothes before leaving, she crouched down, simply sitting on the sea wall, burying her face between her knees.

Then, like an ostrich, she chose to escape, closing her eyes.

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—If only there were telephones.

After being reincarnated into another world, this was the first time Yvonne felt such a strong desire for that convenient modern device she used to use every day.

The staff at the "Sea Breeze Inn" said she had already finished her shift, and they didn't know where she had gone.

If there were convenient communication devices like telephones, finding someone wouldn't be so troublesome.

She had checked all the places Elsa might have gone, but still couldn't find any trace of her.

Damn it—!!

Emerald Port was such a small town, where could she have gone all alone?

Not being able to find her made Yvonne extremely anxious.

She felt her mind wasn't calm at all.

There should be more efficient ways to search for someone, but she was just rushing around like a headless fly.

Disregarding the 'lady's etiquette' she had been taught many times, abandoning the former duke's daughter's dignity and the villainous young lady's pride, she ran at full speed through the streets.

The soles of her feet were reaching their limit of soreness, but she couldn't stop.

What should she do... what should she do, what should she do?!

She had witnessed Elsa's terrifying drive as the protagonist.

She would never give up halfway on something she wanted to do.

As the number of places eliminated increased, Yvonne's heart grew more anxious.

If she had decided to leave this city out of anger, she might have already boarded a ship by now.

Perhaps she should first go find Uncle and have him contact the shipping guild to see if there was any news of Elsa—

Ahhh—!!

Yvonne felt like pounding herself.

If she had decided to go out and search, she should have done it earlier!!

Why did she have to be so awkward—and say such excessive things?!

Worry, anxiety—her mind was filled with nothing but regret upon regret.

The fleeting street scenes were full of memories of the two of them.

Although she had encountered many troublesome things since coming to this world, after meeting her, almost all she could remember were honey-sweet memories.

She wanted to make up.

Wanted to return to their previous relationship.

Wanted to continue holding hands with her, embracing her.

To do the things on her life list that they hadn't had a chance to do yet.

And so much more—

...She didn't want to lose her.

—Love.

Somewhat abruptly, such a clear and definite definition suddenly emerged in her heart.

The previous Yvonne didn't dare to be certain, only vaguely and hesitantly defining this confused yet precious feeling in her heart as simple 'like'.

But now it seemed, she truly did love her deeply.

The current possibility of losing her made her experience a pain as if being torn apart.

Just imagining the scenario of being separated from her like this felt as if the world was collapsing.

So Yvonne thought, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to formally define this feeling as love now.

Because apart from love, this feeling couldn't possibly be anything else.

She was in love with her.

Ah...

Why did she only realize this now?

Would it be too late?

Could she still make it in time?

Would she still be able to make it?

......

Could she forgive someone as utterly clumsy as herself?

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"Please help me, Miss Dorothea!!"

Before setting out to search, Yvonne had begged Dorothea to tell her where Elsa might go, or to help with magic, but was refused.

"No—way. This is a good opportunity."

Her future self seemed to know everything but refused to reveal any useful information.

Keeping her in suspense, her attitude as an bystander made Yvonne anxious.

"Take this chance to directly complete the final conquest of 'me', and win over the protagonist in one go."

The Witch Lady grinned, saying half-jokingly.

"This is no time for jokes!!"

However, Dorothea put away her smile.

"You think I'm joking? I'm serious."

"But... what should I do..."

"It's simple, just be honest with her about everything."

"Honest about... what?"

"About the truth of this world, of course—How about it, tell her everything you know... That shouldn't be difficult, right? Don't make that face, I know what you're worried about... Ahem, I've talked too much, my throat hurts. Let me have a sip of tea before continuing."

Dorothea seemed to quite like the taste of lemon leaf tea and poured herself another cup. Taking a small sip to moisten her throat, she continued:

"The past you might have been bound by rules—but times have changed. Now I've transferred the relatively safe 'conquest system' to you. Even if you reveal the truth, you won't be punished like before."

Only then did Yvonne learn that the 'conquest system' was given to her by Dorothea.

Recalling, in a sub-dimensional space unnoticed by the world system, she had modified the host permissions for herself. The purpose was to suppress the influence of the 'villain system'.

"But..."

Even with her saying so, Yvonne still hesitated.

Apart from worrying about punishment for violating system rules, she also had psychological barriers.

In some creative games she had played before, there were game characters who, because the fourth wall was broken and they couldn't accept being characters in a game, actively sought suicide endings.

Revealing the truth would undoubtedly have a huge impact on that child's worldview so far.

Moreover... how would she view herself, a reincarnator from another world?

Simply put, she still lacked confidence.

If knowing the truth caused a rift between them, or if it added unnecessary psychological trauma to Elsa, Yvonne felt she would definitely regret it.

Rather than face such unknown risks, it was better to conceal the matters of her previous world from her, try to blend into this false world, and choose to continue living with her like this.

For Yvonne, this was enough.

However, this naive idea was negated by Dorothea.

"...You think you've hidden it well??"

One could hear that the Witch Lady's tone was somewhat angry.

It seemed similar situations had occurred before.

"She has definitely noticed long ago—Continuing to hide will only make things worse—Or are you saying, your feelings for her only amount to this level of resolve?"

"No... it's not like that—!!"

Yvonne desperately denied, but couldn't find a suitable reason.

She had long realized that she was just afraid.

She was afraid of 'change'.

This was a bad habit that had existed in her since her previous life.

In her previous life, she had tried to change, but it only made her situation worse.

She didn't want to repeat the same mistake.

If at this explosive juncture, she were to reveal her situation completely, the relationship between them would undoubtedly undergo a huge change.

So Yvonne felt that even if she were to be honest, now was definitely not the best time. She should tell her in a more gentle way.

"Then when exactly do you intend to drag it out to? Hiding it from her like this, do you plan to drag it on for a lifetime?"

Dorothea's merciless words stung like needles.

"I..."

Actually, Yvonne knew clearly that her so-called 'better way' was just an excuse. After all this time, she still hadn't figured out exactly how to tell Elsa.

The root cause was that she was an incompetent, cowardly, and timid person.

She wasn't prepared to face 'change'.

She was too afraid of loss, so afraid that just thinking about the consequences made her unable to move.

"Sigh..."

Dorothea, who saw through everything, let out a long sigh.

Actually, it was precisely because they cared too much about each other that they were being so cautious.

It was the same for both of them.

"You're always like this... easily overthinking things."

Unconsciously, her figure overlapped with the familiar person Yvonne knew. Suppressing the hidden emotions surging in her chest, the Witch Lady reorganized her words, striving to instruct her from the standpoint of an observer.

She could no longer do anything to influence the current situation.

"Miss Dorothea... did 'I' ever confess to you?"

Yvonne tried to gain some useful information from her future self.

"My situation was quite special, it doesn't have much reference value."

She turned her head and folded her arms, seemingly unwilling to look at Yvonne's side as if it was troublesome.

"Regarding the truth of the world, I actually realized it myself."

"...What?"

The unexpected answer shocked Yvonne greatly.

"Hehehe... Actually, you don't need to worry so much. This kind of thing isn't much of a shock to 'me',"

She smiled faintly.

After all, at that time, there were far worse things everywhere.

"So, just speak up,"

They were different now.

"'I'... no, Elsa, she definitely hopes you'll tell her yourself."

If it's the two of them now, they can surely reach a different ending.