ICTV - Chapter 62
I changed The Villain
“...Accident?”
"Yes."
I sat down in the empty chair as the maid showed her.
“Thank you for inviting me today."
Carmen quickly adjusted her expression.
“Oh, no. There was an accident and you came. On the contrary, I am grateful. Are you hurt anywhere?”
"Yes. But, I'm fine. The other person is the problem.”
Mera stood in the back along with the other maids.
“He’s hurt rather badly. I’m really worried. I’m going to go see him as soon as tea time is over.”
"...Badly?"
I looked at Carmen with puzzled eyes.
“Is there any problem?”
“No, of course not. I’m really glad that Lady Pale wasn’t hurt.”
Mera took advantage of the crowd's attention on Carmen and Rose and quickly wiped the blood stains from her fingers off with the hem of her skirt.
I picked up the cake in front of me and started eating it mechanically. Carmen just clenched her fist and called out to me.
“Lady Pale.”
“Yes, Lady Del Cardo.”
“You became lovers with Duke Serenity. They say that, is it true?”
"Yes."
Carmen became more uncomfortable with that concise answer. Of course, it's annoying to make a fuss without knowing what you're doing, but this is just as annoying.
Rose was acting as if Duke Serenity was hers from the beginning. Carmen nodded.
"Ah. Okay. It's true."
The ladies looked at Carmen again. Carmen smiled so brightly that I couldn't see her eyes.
“I really congratulate you. We always wondered when he would meet a good match.”
“Thank you for your congratulations.”
“By the way, Young Lady. I’m sure you’ll have some trouble in the future.”
"What?"
“There are some differences between the Serenity family and the Pale family, right? I wonder if the Lady can handle Duke Serenity.”
Let's begin. The ladies followed Carmen and got ready to bite.
At that moment, I nodded.
"Yes. That’s why I can’t sleep at night these days.”
“Oh my, that’s pitiful.”
“Right now, I only slept eight hours yesterday. I usually sleep for ten hours.”
There was silence for a moment. A Young Lady spoke cautiously.
“...Isn’t eight hours enough sleep?”
“Everyone’s sleep time is different."
"Ah yes."
The ladies thought at the same time. What is this girl?
Another Young Lady, who was worse off, stepped up to provide support.
“Is the Duke kind to you?”
“Yes, he's nice.”
“Oh my. You are so romantic. Not only are you so beautiful, but you also have a kind side. It must be really difficult.”
“Why again this time?”
“Yes, the Young Lady is also a beauty, but what can I say?”
The Lady blatantly looked Rose up and down.
“You're a bit gloomy, aren’t you? It’s as if your presence is faint, as if you don’t exist. They say silence is golden, but the Lady is so quiet.”
The other Lady also agreed.
"That's right. What should I say about the dress you wore today? It’s pretty, but it looks like mourning clothes.”
“You’re already so gloomy, do you really need to wear a dress of that color? At least wear something brighter.”
"This was a gift from the Duke.”
"..."
There was silence again. The Young Lady was sweating coldly and spoke in an effortless tone.
“Well, I see. It was a gift from the Duke.”
I spoke as if comforting the person.
“It’s okay. I also thought it was like mourning clothes. After all, it’s about thinking about people. It’s all the same.”
Even if you want to get into the game in earnest, you can't because you're blocked at the beginning. It was when the ladies were just chewing their lips.
“Lady Pale.”
“Yes. Lady Del Cardo.”
Carmen's hands were shaking. It's disgusting. It's really disgusting. She's even more angry because Rose answers and reacts sincerely.
Carmen said, trying to suppress her anger.
“Let me be blunt. Do you think you are suitable for Duke Serenity?"
"Yes?"
“If you truly love him, shouldn’t you let him go?”
After that, Carmen spent a very long time listing dozens of reasons why Rose should break up with Duke Serenity. She was so direct and outspoken that the ladies sitting next to her were all hurt.
“What do you think? Do you know your topic now?”
As expected, Lady Del Cardo.
I thought there was a poisonous snake in her mouth instead of a tongue.
The ladies broke into a cold sweat. When Carmen, who had been speaking passionately for 20 minutes, was catching her breath, I opened my mouth.
"Sorry. As I said before, I didn’t sleep well last night, so I’m a bit dizzy.”
Probably not. Probably not.
Carmen couldn't believe it, but ominous premonitions always come true.
“It’s because I couldn’t listen properly from the middle.”
I spoke with my characteristic fierce face.
“Could you please repeat the part that says the Serenity family is too precious to stick to just a smooth face? This time, I will listen really intently.”
“Aaaah-!!”
“Hold it, Lady Del Cardo!!!”
Carmen couldn't hold back any longer and screamed.
“No, I made such a big mistake.”
Eventually, I had to leave the Del Cardo family mansion. No, it would be more accurate to say that I was kicked out rather than leaving.
I muttered as I left the mansion with a sullen expression.
“I ate less cake.”
“...Was that the problem?"
“It’s not as good as Mont Blanc, but that cherry cake was really delicious too.”
I should have had at least one more bite of that cake before I got kicked out.
I leaned against the wall and felt truly sad, while Mera looked at me with dumbfounded eyes.
I looked at her.
“By the way, not all nobles are dignified. The Lady might not be able to hear the conversation. Is that something to be so upset about? I really don’t know.”
“You were treated to delicious refreshments, but you weren’t paying attention. You did it wrong.”
I really regretted my actions. Instead of just being honest, I should have said, ‘Yes, I will be careful.’
I trembled in regret as I slammed my fist against the wall.
“Then I could have eaten tiramisu.”
"You can eat cake at home, so please focus on the present, Lady.”
Finally, we arrived in front of the carriage that was deliberately parked in a deserted place. Instead of entering the carriage, Mera stood at the back of the carriage.
The maids were chatting.
“The Lady will be back soon, but there is no income yet. What do we do?"
“Now that I think about it, Becky, you are illegal gamblers. You said you worked at a market. You say you harass people at illegal gambling establishments. Do you know anything?"
“...I’ve said this many times, but I’ve lived there since I was born and didn’t know it was illegal.”
Becky said this while holding the rope.
“If I had known it was illegal, I would have escaped there somehow.”
“Who said anything? Can you just tell me some of the ways they harassed people there?”
"Hmm. Just hang it upside down or put your finger on it..."
On the outside, they were ordinary maids, but in reality, they were not like that at all.
I deliberately pretended to be popular.
"I'm here."
“Ah, you came, Miss?!"
The maids were all happy and ran to me. In particular, Rika, who was in a corner holding her ears tightly with her palms, was the fastest.
“You came, Miss?! I was so scared I thought I was going to die!”
Rika clung to me.
“The other maids are so cruel, Miss. It’s so easy to say things like breaking something or cutting off a finger!”
Rika is definitely the most ordinary of these maids.
I made a knowing face.
“How many times have I told you to just do what I ask… !"
“What did you say?”
Rika said with tears still streaming down her face.
“When I was making spicy stew at home, I accidentally got powder in my eye. It was really painful at that time.”
“Why are you suddenly bringing that up?”
“Why? I want to actively utilize that experience. How about throwing spice in your eyes until you confess? Coincidentally, there is a spice store nearby that I often use… .”
I cut off Rika’s words mercilessly.
“You are cruel enough.”
"Yes?! I thought it was a peaceful way. Wasn’t it?!”
“Yeah, no.”
“Then what should we really do, Lady?! There is no proper way... !"
Rika stepped aside while shouting there was an assassin.
An assassin wearing a black half-mask was tied up with rope. He is an assassin hired by none other than Carmen, the precious daughter of Count Del Cardo. He could never be an ordinary assassin. However,
“What if I untie the rope and he runs away?”
“I can never solve it. It was tied using a special method used only at our gambling house.”
The people around me were also unusual. Becky, who is good at anything she does with her hands, lightly cracked her fingers and explained to me.
“The hand movements are deliberately strange and fast, so even people at other workplaces cannot imitate them.”
“… Because I taught you that it's wrong to be in the gambling house. I’m so glad.”
“Anyway, what are we really going to do now? Miss? Should I take him to Master Beryl?"
“You know my brother’s personality. He'll follow me around for days. I absolutely hate that.”
“Then, you can’t do it.”
Mera said spookily, twirling her wrist a few times.
“Just beat him until he blows.”
“Cruel! But I'm sure!"
" Miss! Just trust us!"
“Open the door!”
I stood in front of the assassin. The assassin looked up at me with red eyes full of caution. I asked, bending my knees.
“How can you move so fast while wearing a mask? Are you out of breath?”
"Miss!!!!"
“No, I’m just really curious.”
I get out of breath just by walking. I said, recalling the time when I had to wear a mask because of a cold, and Mera grabbed my head.
“In times like this, we have to ask who is behind it!!!”
“I’m not really curious.”
“Why aren’t you curious?! He tried to kill you!”
“He failed anyway.”
“So I have to ask more! This time, I was lucky enough to win by punching him before he threw his sword, but next time I might not be able to attack first! I have to make sure to nip it in the bud this time!”
When Mera raised her fist, the assassin, who had been unfazed, flinched and quickly turned his head.
Up to this point, I could feel his will that if he returned alive, he would never accept any requests related to me from next time.
The moment she thought about that, I suddenly became serious.
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