The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen

A chilly air began to fill the ballroom.

The sight of the weeping girl and the dumbfounded stares from the pea-brained Ruin were ruining the laughter-filled ball.

I ignored Ruin and kept stroking the girl’s head.

[Affection window cannot be used in this space.]

-Look for Yuria.

-You can only choose once.

-Once you make a choice, the affection window will become available.

The affection window had been unresponsive since I stepped into the ballroom.

There was no guarantee that Yuria in front of me was real.

In the novel, Yuria came in an old dress.

Not the one Ruin gave her, but a second-hand dress, and she was ignored at the ball, as I remembered.

Just like now, Ruin did not recognize Yuria, and eventually, near the end of the ball, he found her crying on the balcony and realized her face had changed—a rather touching episode.

The illustration of Ruin apologizing for not recognizing her while holding her wrist was quite charming, but now… it’s all messed up.

The difference between reality and the novel was this moment. In the novel, there was no friction between Ruin and the transformed Yuria.

In the novel, Ruin ignored Yuria; there was no conversation.

It was supposed to be a heart-wrenching episode, like the Little Mermaid peeking at the prince from behind a rock, silently yearning.

Hmm.

It feels like everything’s tangled up.

I smiled at the weeping girl in front of me.

“Don’t cry.”

“Gulp… I’m not crying.”

“Lies. You’re sobbing.”

“I’m not…”

“Hmm. I wanted to scold you for not wearing the dress I gave, but seeing you cry like this, I can’t.”

A quest where the transmigrator’s privilege is sealed.

I thought it would be a difficult quest. Failing at once would lead straight to failure.

I imagined it would be as hard as finding Mr. Kim Cheolsu in Alaska, but this turned out to be too easy.

Seeing this girl unable to pray and just sorrowfully crying in front of me, I couldn’t help but laugh.

Who wouldn’t know?

That this person is Yuria.

The fact that it was easy to find her with so many hints is undeniable, but even without the hints, I thought I could easily find her.

People who couldn’t say anything to others,

Who hide in corners and weep alone at every issue are habits that, as far as I remember, only Yuria had.

In the novel too.

When attending the academy,

I remembered and stored Yuria’s mannerisms.

I am Yuria’s friend and the one who transmigrated into the novel.

It must be right that I couldn’t not know.

I looked at Yuria, who was shaking her head no-no with a small smile.

“No… I’m not the person you think.”

See? If this isn’t Yuria, who else could it be? The way she shakes her head when flustered and covers her face with her hands when sad are exactly Yuria’s habits.

“Is that so?”

I knelt in front of Yuria with a ‘tsk’ sound, matching our eye levels. I looked at her face calmly, slightly curling the corners of my lips, and took her hand.

Yuria’s hand, trembling slightly, felt frail and cold, fragile enough to break any moment. Holding her delicate wrist, I slowly began to remove her hand from her face.

“Don’t…”

Yuria shook her head vigorously, refusing to show her face.

“What are you hiding?”

“I’m no the wrong person.”

“Is that so? I have an eye for beauty, and I don’t see it that way.”

“No. It’s not.”

“Then it must be your heart that’s beautiful.”

“Please stop. Please…”

Yuria murmured in a retreating voice. Her trembling voice spat out a strong denial, yet it sounded so pitifully like pleading.

I gently pressed down Yuria’s wrist.

Seeing Yuria’s hand full of band-aids, I smiled painfully.

“It must hurt.”

“…”

“You tell me to get treated by you, but you should take better care of yourself.”

“…I…”

“Stop.”

I smiled at Yuria’s face.

“Alright, stop crying. It’s not good for the heart.”

Seeing her swollen eyes and the glistening tears on her cheeks made me involuntarily smile.

“Now I can see your face.”

“…”

“Why are you hiding it? What’s lacking?”

“Because I’m ugly…”

“That’s not true.”

“Lies.”

Yuria sniffling and shaking her head no. Biting her lower lip, she trembled uncontrollably.

“Tell me if someone says you’re ugly.”

“…There’s no one.”

“Lies.”

“Really.”

I can guess,

But…

I smiled kindly and scanned the ballroom.

For starters, one girl next to Michail.

One girl hesitating near Ruin.

Lastly, the girl talking to the prince with brown hair, perhaps?

The girls who caught my eye began to pale.

They were somewhat familiar.

I remembered warning one of them not to overstep. If they crossed the line again, they wouldn’t be laughing at the situation.

“I see.”

“Huh?”

“Nothing, just talking to myself.”

I wiped away the tears on Yuria’s cheeks and roughly tousled her hair.

The soft pink hair spread through my hands, leaving the faint scent of lavender lingering.

‘I could tell just by the smell of her shampoo.’

It seems there are more fools in the novel than I thought.

Especially the one glaring at me with dissatisfaction, Ruin, even more so.

Yuria slowly detached from my touch and hurriedly fled, wiping away her tears.

“I’m sorry. You’re mistaken. I’m not the person you’re thinking of…”

“I understand.”

“Please believe me.”

“I trust my eyes, though.”

“…”

Yuria realized that talking was futile and ran off towards the balcony as if escaping.

It must be complicated.

She probably realized I caught on, but didn’t want to show her ruined self.

Did I lack consideration?

Maybe it would’ve been better to find her quietly alone and talk, but I was too angry.

I waved lightly at Yuria, who glanced back as she ran, and smiled.

“Don’t cry.”

Reading my lips, Yuria cried even more and rushed towards the balcony.

Smelling the lingering scent of her shampoo, I placed my hands on my knees and slowly stood up.

It’s time to start.

Before going to Yuria, I needed to vent somewhere.

I couldn’t let those who almost turned the heroine evil go.

I’m also a reader,

Sensitive about the novel’s story, and it’s only right to leave a fitting ‘gift’ for those who disturbed my peaceful life as a jobless person.

To do that, it was proper to first question those who hurt Yuria the most.

I smiled at Ruin, who was pocketing his hands.

“You’ve done quite a deed.”

Ruin sighed deeply.

“They’re making fools of themselves.”

A ‘tsk’ noise echoed in the quiet ballroom.

“Ugly bastards making a fuss.”

Ruin seemed to dislike the current situation, still unaware of Yuria’s presence.

Ruin approached and looked up at me coldly.

“What are you doing here?”

I suppressed a smile and listened to Ruin’s words. Let’s see how far he can go.

“Just, cleaning up the mess Olivia left, wondering why you’d miss the academy so much.”

“I didn’t miss it.”

“Talking back again, huh? Get lost if you don’t want to hear nonsense.”

I asked Ruin in a gentle voice as he headed towards the balcony.

“Are you done?”

“What?”

Ruin raised his eyebrows, questioning me as if my words were trivial.

“You’re finished talking?”

“What’s the use of talking to you? It’s pointless.”

“Ha. Is that so? Then it’s my turn to talk.”

I opened my mouth with a cruel smile.

“Ruin.”

There are several ways to torment Ruin.

Kill with violence.

Kill with inferiority by talent, or by words.

No matter how I think about it, this must be the most effective way to hit Ruin.

“What can you do?”

Undermining the foundation.

Ruin, you’re disqualified from being the sub-male lead.