Page 141 of The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen

A chilly current began to fill the ballroom.

The laughter-filled masquerade was being ruined by the tears of a girl and the foolish gaze of Lord Nokjo staring at me.

Ignoring Ruen, I kept stroking the girl’s head repeatedly.

[You are in a space where the Affection Meter cannot be used.]

– Find Yuria.

– You can only make one choice.

– After making the choice, you will be able to use the Affection Meter.

The Affection Meter, which had been useless since entering the ballroom, had become a dead end.

There was no guarantee in sight that Yuria would be real.

Expecting the absence of the Affection Meter, I had prepared the dress as insurance, but inside the ballroom, I couldn’t see anyone wearing the pristine dress I had bought, so.

In the novel, Yuria had worn an old dress.

I remembered the story where she wore a secondhand dress and received much scorn at the masquerade, not the dress Ruen had bought.

Just like now, Ruen didn’t recognize Yuria, and the episode was about Ruen realizing Yuria’s changed face when he found her crying on the veranda towards the end of the masquerade.

It was quite a moving story.

The illustration of grabbing Yuria’s crying wrist and apologizing for not recognizing her was so charming, but now... it’s a mess.

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

In the novel, Ruen had ignored Yuria, and there was no conversation.

It was like the touching scene where the voiceless Little Mermaid hides behind a rock and steals glances at the prince, creating a poignant picture as if her heart was aching.

Hmm.

Things have seriously gone awry.

I smiled as I looked at the crying girl before me.

“Don’t cry.”

“Sniff... I’m not crying.”

“Lie. You’re bawling your eyes out.”

“No, I’m not...”

“Hmm. I’d scold you for not wearing the dress I bought, but seeing you like this, I can’t bring myself to scold you.”

A quest with the privileges of a possessor being sealed.

I thought it would be a difficult quest. If you miss one chance, it immediately leads to failure.

I thought it would be as hard as finding Mr. Kim Chul-soo in Alaska, but this was too easy a quest.

Seeing this girl unable to write prayers and crying sadly before me, I couldn’t help but laugh.

Who wouldn’t know?

That this person is Yuria.

It’s undeniable that there were many hints given, making it easy to find her, but even if the hints weren’t provided, I thought I could easily find her.

Keeping quiet around others.

Having the habit of hiding in a corner to ponder alone and cry when something happens, there was only one person I could remember with that behavior, and that was Yuria.

Even in the novel.

Even when attending the academy.

I remembered and stored Yuria’s image.

I am Yuria’s friend.

I was a possessed possessor of the novel.

I wonder if it’s true that you can’t tell.

I looked at Yuria, who was nodding her head with a smile.

“No... I’m not the person you’re thinking of.”

Look. Who else could it be if not Yuria? When flustered, nodding the head is the same as sad, and covering the face with hands is also Yuria’s habit.

“Is that so?”

With a small sound of ‘tsk’, I knelt in front of Yuria.

Matching eye level with Yuria, I calmly gazed into her face, slightly lifting the corners of my mouth and taking Yuria’s hand.

Yuria’s hand, trembling slightly, was tender and cold. Holding her delicate wrist as if it could break at any moment, I slowly began to remove her hand from her face.

“Please don’t...”

Yuria, trying to resist and not show her face, once again vigorously shook her head.

“Why are you hiding so much?”

“I’m not hiding... I’m not the person you think I am. I’m incredibly ugly and grotesque. You have bad taste.”

“Is that so? I have an eye for recognizing beautiful people, so you don’t look like that to me, right?”

“No. Absolutely not.”

“Then maybe you have a beautiful heart.”

“Don’t say that. Please...”

Yuria murmured towards me with a creeping voice. Although her trembling voice spat out a strong denial, it also seemed to contain a desperate plea to be understood, making it sound pitiful.

I began to slowly lower Yuria’s wrist with a bit of force.

Seeing Yuria’s hand covered in band-aids, I smiled bitterly.

“It must hurt.”

“...”

“Don’t ask me to heal you, it might be better to take care of your own body.”

“...I...”

“Stop.”

I smiled at Yuria’s face.

“I understand now. Stop crying. It’s not good for your heart.”

Swollen eyes.

Seeing Yuria’s cheeks smeared with tears, laughter kept bubbling up.

“Now I see your face.”

“...”

“Why are you hiding? What’s lacking?”

“Because I’m ugly...”

“Is that so?”

“Lies.”

Yuria sniffled and shook her head. Biting her lower lip, she couldn’t control her trembling shoulders and seemed to be on the verge of tears.

“If there’s someone who called you ugly, tell me.”

“...There isn’t.”

“Lies.”

“It’s true.”

Roughly anticipated...

I began to look around the banquet hall with a gentle smile.

First, a female student next to Mikhail.

A female student lingering near Ruin.

Lastly, could it be the brown-haired person conversing next to the prince?

The female students I made eye contact with started to stiffen their ? Nоvеl??ght ? (Exclusive on Nоvеl??ght) faces.

They were people I remembered as those warned not to confront in the past. Individuals warned that crossing the line just once could lead to an unpleasant situation.

“I understand roughly.”

“Yes?”

“No. Just talking to myself.”

I wiped away the tears in Yuria’s eyes and gently stroked her hair.

As the soft pink hair spread in my hand, a faint scent of lavender lingered.

“You can probably tell just by smelling the shampoo.”

There seem to be many fools in the novel than I thought.

Especially that green-headed one looking at me with displeasure right now.

Yuria slowly removed my hand, rubbed her teary eyes, and hastily ran away.

“I’m sorry. You must be mistaken. I’m not the person you think I am...”

“I understand.”

“Please trust me.”

“I trust my eyes.”

“...”

Realizing Yuria wasn’t getting through, she dashed towards the veranda as if fleeing.

It must be complicated.

Thinking she noticed, yet not wanting to show a broken appearance.

Was I lacking consideration?

Perhaps it’s better to approach quietly when alone, but I was quite angry.

As I ran, I glanced back at Yuria and waved my hand, smiling softly.

“Don’t cry.”

Reading her pursed lips, Yuria shed more tears as she leaped towards the veranda.

As I caught a whiff of the lingering scent of shampoo, I placed my hand on my knee and slowly stood up.

I should start soon.

Before going to Yuria, I needed a place to vent my anger.

I can’t just let those who almost tarnished the heroine get away with it.

I am a reader as well.

Sensitive to the story of the novel, it’s only right to leave a suitable gift for those who disrupted my peaceful unemployed life.

To do that, it would be appropriate to first hold accountable the one who caused the most significant wound to Yuria.

I smiled at Ruin, who had his hand in his pocket.

“You’ve done something.”

Ruin sighed deeply and spoke.

“Mocking the losers.”

A sound of tongue-clicking echoed through the silent banquet hall.

“Ugly bastards causing a scene amongst themselves.”

It seemed like Ruin wasn’t pleased with the current situation. He still seemed oblivious to Yuriya’s presence.

Approaching me closely, Ruin looked up at me with a cold gaze.

“Who are you to come here?”

I smiled faintly and responded to Ruin. Let’s see how far this conversation can go for now.

“Just here to gossip about the fallen Olivia, perhaps, what made you miss the academy so much?”

“Not that I missed it.”

“Always with a comeback. How typical. Leave quickly if you don’t want to hear nonsense.”

I inquired towards Ruin, heading towards the veranda, in a gentle tone.

“Is it all over now?”

“What?”

Ruin raised an eyebrow, questioning me. I kindly clarified for him, as if he understood my question.

“I asked if you’re done talking.”

“What’s the point of conversing with you? Useless.”

“hahahaha. Is that so? Well, now it’s my turn to speak.”

I opened my mouth with a cruel smile.

“Mr. Ruin.”

There are various ways to torment Ruin.

Kill him through violence.

Make him feel inferior, kill with talent, or kill with words.

No matter how much I think about it, this method seems to be the most effective with Ruin.

“Do you know how to break a foundation?”

Ruin. You are eliminated as the sub male lead.