The Villain’s Ending

Chapter 54

Escape (12)

Lineta and I were moved to the main mansion. Quite some time had passed since we started living there.

Today, Lineta's face particularly came to mind.

That face, distorted in pain, vomiting dark red blood.

Levina said she was alive.

Only barely alive.

I hadn't been able to go and see her directly.

I couldn't fathom what kind of expression I should make, or what words I should utter if I were to meet her again.

I returned to the room Levina had prepared for me, located right next to her own.

The book in my hand was open, but the words didn't register.The letters merely floated meaninglessly on the page.

A translucent window appeared in the air.

At this point, I even wondered if it was a hallucination.

Unfortunately, there didn't seem to be any psychiatry for humans who had been burned to death.

[Collect the Ending. 3/?]

[Current Collected Reward: Lingering Trace]

[Reward: Return to Original World, ??]

I stared blankly at the system window.

Something had changed, but I didn't know exactly what it was.

Because I knew nothing, I hesitated at the thought that Seraphina would still trust me, even though she had changed.

The moment I had first returned came to mind.

That moment when my head had been blown off in front of Levina.

I didn't particularly want to re-ask how things had ended up like this.

Because if I asked myself, I'd only get an idiotic answer back.

Not everyone who ends up on the streets is like that, but most of them have understandable reasons for being there.

I wasn't much different.

Considering how idiotically I was living, it was probably because I was an idiot.

At first, all I wanted was to go back.

The room felt suffocatingly stuffy.

This space, filled with neat wallpaper and expensive furniture, seemed to overlap with the underground prison I had been confined in before.

Eventually, I closed the book and rose from my seat.

I opened the door and stepped out into the corridor.

It was a long, silent corridor.

Though it was a corridor that only remained in 'Lavin's' memories, it felt familiar nonetheless.

On both walls, portraits of those who belonged to Edelgard stared down at me with indifferent eyes.

My own childhood portrait was probably tucked away somewhere at the far end.

After all, my father had insisted on having it painted and hung when everyone else opposed it.

Leaving their gazes behind, I walked aimlessly.

Then, I encountered someone at a corner of the corridor.

It was a middle-aged woman in an elegant dress.

The Duchess.

Levina's mother.

And the one who had poisoned Lineta and me.

Upon seeing me, she seemed slightly flustered, narrowing her eyes.

"You... why on earth are you here?"

Her voice was a mix of surprise and wariness.

I wondered if she hadn't known I was here.

Come to think of it, I hadn't left my room once since arriving at the main mansion.

Even my meals had consisted of the moderately soft bread Levina had piled up in my room.

"The Young Mistress brought me.

She said she couldn't stand to see someone who once belonged to Edelgard wandering the streets."

At my reply, the Duchess seemed to fall into thought for a moment.

Soon, she gave me a gentle smile and spoke.

"By the way, it's been a long time since I've seen your face. Since you're here, why don't we have a private chat?"

It wasn't an atmosphere where I could refuse.

We headed towards the greenhouse garden behind the mansion.

The afternoon sun poured in through the glass ceiling.

The greenhouse was filled with warm, humid air and the fragrance of unknown flowers.

The Duchess didn't speak immediately.

She slowly strolled through the garden, gently touching the colorful plants.

Each time her hand made contact, the leaves seemed to faintly tremble.

Then, she stopped in front of a blue flower with a purple hue.

And without hesitation, she plucked the flower.

The sound of the slender stem breaking was unusually clear.

Perhaps I just imagined hearing it.

"It seems you've quite taken up a corner of Levina's heart."

She spoke softly.

Just then, servants entered, carrying refreshments and tea on a silver tray.

Two white teacups and a plate of cookies were placed on the table.

A fragrant aroma wafted from the steaming teapot.

A teacup was placed before me, but I didn't touch it.

The memory of collapsing and vomiting blood just a few days ago was still vivid.

Whether the Duchess noticed my state or not, she picked up a cookie and elegantly took a bite.

"You were always like that, even when you were little. You were a child beloved by people. I love you too. After all, you were a child of Edelgard."

She spoke dispassionately.

Her voice was so excessively calm that I could have mistaken her for a mother meeting her son after a long time.

"So, I wonder how you ever grew so close to Levina. That child wasn't raised to easily open her heart. Because she is the Young Mistress of Edelgard."

To that, I replied.

"I don't know, as I wasn't aware of anything; she must have simply thought well of me."

However, the Duchess made a "hmm" sound, seeming not to believe my words.

"Oh, speaking of which, I heard her name was Lineta. There's a child who came in around the same time as you. I heard she was gravely injured at the annex and is receiving treatment here at the mansion, do you happen to know anything about it?"

She asked me, feigning ignorance.

"Lately, Levina has been frequently going to the annex, and then she suddenly brought a child who was staying there, claiming she was sick, and gave her a small room in the mansion for her to stay in. She's been so overprotective that she won't even let her own mother approach her."

"I don't know who you're suddenly talking about."

I lightly pushed the teacup in front of me with my finger.

The teacup slid silently across the table.

The Duchess frowned slightly at the sight, but soon regained her usual smile.

"You're still as ill-mannered as ever. So, do you intend to keep living here from now on?"

"I don't know."

"Somehow, you've changed a lot. Unlike before, you seem to know many fewer things. Why, your mother..."

I interrupted the Duchess in mid-sentence and replied.

"I've certainly been through quite a bit, haven't I?"

The conversation went on like that a few more times.

Meaningless greetings and trivial chatter.

Then, the Duchess very naturally spoke.

"You are beautiful, just like your mother. And your end will be similar."

I didn't reply.

The Duchess picked up the teapot

.

And began to pour tea into my teacup.

The teacup filled, but she didn't stop.

The hot tea overflowed the cup onto the saucer.

And from the saucer, it spilled onto the table, spreading out.

The colored tea soaked the white tablecloth, creating a strange pattern.

"Live comfortably for a while."

Leaving those words, the Duchess rose from her seat.

She left the greenhouse, leaving behind the tea I hadn't drunk and the overflowing table.

Her footsteps faded, and silence returned to the greenhouse.

Only I and the wet tablecloth remained.

Not long after returning to my room, a knock sounded at the door.

Knock, knock.

Levina knocked, then opened the door and entered.

"At least you knock now."

I said.

For the first few days, she would enter the room without knocking, rummaging through things or bringing in new items.

She paid no mind whether I was asleep or awake.

Levina ignored my words and got straight to the point.

"You left your room during the day, didn't you?"

Her voice was low and calm, but somehow sharp.

"You wandered the corridor without my permission and even had a private conversation with Mother. Are you out of your mind?"

Levina approached me, speaking in a low voice.

"What did you think that woman would do, staying alone with her?

I told you to stay in your room."

She grabbed my shoulders, forcing my body to turn and face her.

Her eyes were trembling uneasily.

"Are you hurt anywhere? You didn't drink or eat anything strange, did you?"

She meticulously examined my face and body.

I didn't say anything.

I merely silently endured her touch.

"Nothing happened."

"Aren't you even afraid?"

"Of what?"

"You could have died."

"Then I'd just die, I guess."

Levina seemed displeased with my lack of reaction.

"You, when you were at the annex.

When you were with that maid, you still sometimes smiled... yes, you seemed alive.

But now..."

"..."

"Lavin, if you die, that maid dies too.

Because, as a result, that insignificant maid would have been the one to kill you."

Levina gripped my face with both hands, making me look at her.

Her cold fingers touched my cheeks.

"If you die, I'll kill that maid."

Every time our eyes met, I was always afraid of those emotionless eyes.

She acted as if nothing fazed her now, but even now, even as a child, always.

She looked as if she wouldn't bat an eye even after killing someone.

Hearing those words, I suddenly thought.

It would be really great if Kyle could be killed, at least.

But it wasn't the right atmosphere for a reply, so I didn't say anything.

As I was pondering such trivial thoughts, Levina's words suddenly seemed to pierce my mind.

"...Wait, who did you kill?"

"I removed the reason for that child to do anything foolish."

I was about to reply, but seeing Levina's face, I didn't want to continue speaking.

Somehow, I wanted to light a cigarette, but I was still afraid of fire.

A hollow laugh escaped me.