The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen

TLed by NolepGuy

Chapter 254

Another sunny day at the Young Lady’s Estate.

Having returned to the estate after a long time, I looked at Gomtangi playing with Hans near the doghouse and voiced my confusion.

“What is this?”

I had clearly provided a decent hideout on the mountain behind the estate, so why was he living in the doghouse?

Tilting my head, I glanced at Hans’ food bowl placed next to Gomtangi. Thankfully, he wasn’t eating dog food, but I still couldn’t understand why Hans chose to make life harder for himself.

He was supposed to be a significant antagonist in the novel, after all.

-Hahaha!!! Power…! I can feel the power!

Hans, showing a behavior that was difficult to comprehend, shoved his rear into the doghouse and looked up at me.

“You’ve arrived?”

“Ah… Yes.”

“It’s been a while, Master.”

“Why do you keep changing how you address me?”

“Apologies. If it’s inconvenient, I’ll switch to calling you Lord.”

“No, that’s even more uncomfortable.”

Hans laughed brightly, dusting himself off as he stood up.

“Have you been well?”

“Yes.”

“Has there been anyone you wanted to kill, or anyone who blasphemed… no, caused trouble for you?”

“No, there hasn’t. Ah… well, there was one person…”

Hans’ eyes burned with madness as he leaned in closer.

“Who is it?! Who dared to commit blasphemy?”

“Wolfgang… No, Mr. Hans, didn’t your title just change again?”

“Wolfgang… Wolfgang… Got it.”

Hans nodded with a bright smile, as if engraving the name Wolfgang into his heart, then looked at me again with excitement.

“Is there anyone else?!”

“No.”

“…What a pity.”

Offering an awkward smile, I spoke to Hans.

“Nothing unusual happened at the estate?”

“No intruders, and I took care of all the cleaning.”

“You could’ve taken a break.”

“It’s the joy of my life.”

Hans had truly taken a strange turn.

Removing Gomtangi, who was lightly nibbling on his head, Hans carefully entered the doghouse, claiming he had urgent matters to attend to.

Watching Hans disappear deep underground, likely into a tunnel he had dug beneath the doghouse, I bid him farewell and turned to Gomtangi, who was scratching her head with her hind leg.

“Gomtangi.”

-Gom.

“Do you like your roommate?”

-Gomgom.

Gomtangi nodded in affirmation.

Perhaps because she was a bear with a large head, she seemed to understand words well. Maybe she thought of Hans as emergency food, but for now, it was fine. I decided not to overthink it.

“Then take good care of the house. I’ll go fetch the Young Lady.”

-Gom.

“What?”

Gomtangi ambled over and grabbed my ankle.

Like a proper companion bear, she carefully bit my ankle and nudged her head toward me. Honestly, it was terrifying, as if she might eat me.

Gomtangi placed a letter she was holding in her mouth onto the ground and looked up at me.

-Gom.

She had brought a white letter envelope from somewhere, urging me to open it with her insistent gaze.

“You’re too scary. Step back a little.”

With an awkward smile, I picked up the letter and gently patted Gomtangi’s head.

“Did a letter arrive?”

-Gom.

“Who sent it?”

-Gomgom.

As expected, I couldn’t understand animal language.

I lightly patted Gomtangi’s head and carefully unfolded the letter.

A floral scent wafted out.

It was the same scent I had recently smelled in the capital city, faintly emanating from the letter envelope.

Was this flower called Edelweiss? It wasn’t flashy, but its refreshing fragrance was unmistakable. That must be it.

From the subtle aroma lingering in the envelope, I instantly knew who had sent the letter.

“Such impatience.”

With a curious expression, I cautiously unfolded the letter paper.

[Hello.]

This is Misa, who greeted you last time. I hope this sudden letter doesn’t startle you.

I apologize for showing you an unpleasant side of myself last time. Though I can’t explain in detail, I received significant help thanks to Mr. Ricardo.

-Omitted-

Would it be possible to receive the swordsmanship guidance you mentioned last time?

The letter included a lengthy greeting and the location for a reply. The handwriting was elegant. Unlike someone else’s, it was truly refined.

Nodding slightly, I looked at the letter.

“She does seem to be in a hurry.”

Was it because of this?

The Academy’s missing persons case.

The student council, having found a clue about the consecutive disappearances, was starting an adventure, which might explain the urgency of the letter.

Recently, there had even been an attack by the Archbishop at the Academy, so it seemed they needed reinforcements and sought my guidance. If that wasn’t the reason, Mikhail wouldn’t have come looking for me to learn.

Although Rowen was his master, he wasn’t someone with an abundance of time, and it must have been difficult for Mikhail to improve his skills on his own.

“Hmm…”

Understanding Mikhail’s situation, I nodded slightly. Then, crouching in front of Gomtangi, I asked her.

“Gomtangi, do you know how to write?”

-…

“Your older brother’s handwriting is terrible. I don’t think I can ask the Young Lady, so could you write on his behalf?”

-Gom?

Gomtangi gave me a pitiful look, as if observing a fellow bear, and yawned while scratching her head with her hind paw.

-Gooooom~

“I’ll give you meat.”

Gomtangi nodded and plopped onto the ground. Sitting heavily on the dirt, she raised her well-shaped front paw and gestured to me.

“What?”

-Gom.

“Ah, you’re asking for a pen?”

-Gomgom.

“Thanks. I’ll give you lots of snacks later.”

-Gomgom.

As expected, whether she was a pet dog… or a pet bear, she was a smart one.

Gomtangi gripped the pen between her massive paw and moved her wrist. The pen was too small to hold properly, so she used only two claws to write.

Watching Gomtangi focus, her brow furrowed, I clenched my fists and focused on her paw movements as well.

“Tomorrow at 2 PM.”

-Gom gomgom gomgom.

“Please come to the plains of the Hamel Mountain Range.”

-Gogogom.

Gomtangi wiped her snout with her front paw and showed me the letter paper.

“Oh…!”

[Gogogom. Gogogogom.]

“Oh….”

I must have made an unreasonable request.

I patted Gomtangi’s head, knocked on the kennel door, and called for Hans. It seemed like I had pushed too hard when I should have done this from the start.

“Ricardo, I’m hungry!”

Hearing the Young Lady’s voice from beyond the wall, I handed the letter paper to Hans and left the spot.

The Academy disappearance case.

‘…This won’t be easy.’

For the first time, Mikhail wondered if he could handle the episode of encountering an Apostle.

***

Under the warm sunlight on the plains of the Hamel Mountain Range.

Mikhail, who had arrived an hour earlier than the agreed time, swept back his long hair to calm his nerves.

He worried whether growing it out with magic might seem strange.

Whether his makeup looked odd.

Whether he might be disliked.

One thing was certain—he knew they disliked the name “Mikhail.”

Mikhail looked down at his sword and let out a deep sigh. It wasn’t the sword he usually carried, but a smaller one Ricardo had mentioned.

Mikhail repeatedly gripped and released the unfamiliar sword hilt.

Could he do well? Was deceiving that child truly the right thing to do? Lost in worry, Mikhail lowered his head under the blazing sunlight.

“…I hate this.”

Mikhail hated himself for lying.

The weather was nice, and his body felt light, but his heart was heavy. His chest pounded meaninglessly, and though he was happy to see that boy, he couldn’t feel at ease.

“Why am I like this… Get a grip.”

A wave of emotions he couldn’t understand washed over him. He couldn’t tell if it was excitement or fear.

He had cried countless times in the past days. Locked in his room, he spent sleepless nights recalling the words he had spoken and how he had ignored Ricardo’s advice, tears streaming down his face.

-Please, just listen to me.

-Why should I listen to you? You’re just trying to make me like you, aren’t you?

-So I won’t have to work as much. I hate working overtime.

His fist clenched tightly.

He realized how sharp and dagger-like his words to Ricardo had been over the years.

If only he had spoken a little more kindly.

If only he had listened to him just once.

Things wouldn’t have turned out this way, he thought.

Mikhail bowed his head and swallowed his sorrow.

From afar, he heard someone muttering. Though the voice was faint, it carried clearly to his ears on the wind from the forest.

“If I stand here, I should be able to see well.”

It was Ricardo.

To make his position clear, he was cutting down the grass around him as he walked closer.

There were still 40 minutes left until the appointed time.

Ricardo was approaching him with light steps.

His red hair, as always, stood out.

With a carefree smile, he walked toward him.

Mikhail’s fist clenched again.

Stronger than when he was standing alone. He gripped so hard it stung, worried he might injure his palm.

“With that expression….”

He tried not to cry.

“With that expression, what am I supposed to do…”

The boy’s bright smile tightened Mikhail’s chest painfully, making it hard to breathe.

“What do you expect me to do…”

His chest felt constricted.

Ricardo smiled brightly at him.

“Oh? Miss Misa!”

Waving lightly, he walked toward him, hurriedly sheathing the sword he held in his right hand. His steps were neither too fast nor too slow.

“How long have you been here? It’s hot out today.”

“…”

“You must have overheated. You can’t speak, can you?”

Raising his hand to shield Mikhail’s forehead from the sun, Ricardo’s gesture was so sweet that Mikhail, consumed by selfish thoughts, kept his mouth shut, overwhelmed by guilt.

Ricardo, shading Mikhail’s head, spoke in a gentle voice.

“Why don’t we sit in the shade and rest for a bit?”

Mikhail, who had kept his mouth firmly shut, cautiously opened it.

“Um…”

“Yes.”

“By any chance…”

“By any chance…?”

“The sword I brought.”

“Yes.”

Mikhail showed the sword to Ricardo and asked.

“Did I bring the right one? I brought a different one instead of the one I usually use.”

Ricardo nodded with a bright smile.

“It’s perfect.”

“…Is that so?”

“Yes.”

Ricardo, with the brightest smile he had ever shown, said to Mikhail.

“It’s a sword that fits Miss Misa’s build perfectly.”

Ricardo thought to himself.

‘Finally, he brought it.’

Ricardo felt as though the frustration that had weighed on him for so long had been lifted.

And he pondered.

With a bittersweet smile, he wondered how to talk about Mikhail’s mother.