Page 239 of The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen

Mikhail followed Ricardo around.

From the moment they left the café to now, Mikhail had been following Ricardo like a stalker.

He couldn’t explain why he was following, and he couldn’t come up with a plausible excuse, so he just silently followed Ricardo, making a nuisance of himself.

Even at the café.

-Then I’ll go.

At the store selling Mandrake candies.

-Why do you keep following me?

And here at the tteokbokki shop, Mikhail was still following Ricardo, making a nuisance of himself.

Ricardo, with a towel on his head, walked into the kitchen, bidding farewell.

“I’ll go do my job for now.”

“...”

“Think about why I came to find you when I come back next time.”

With that, Ricardo disappeared.

“...”

At the friend’s tteokbokki shop in the capital’s forest.

[We will repay you with flavor according to the amount you pay.]

Mikhail, sitting in front of the tteokbokki shop with an excellent entrepreneurial spirit, had an awkward expression.

“...”

Mikhail was frustrated. The longer he spent time with Ricardo, the more tired he became, just like himself.

‘I want to quickly finish the quest....’

Blaming his own inarticulateness, Mikhail looked at his rough hands.

“...”

-You’re lovely.

“‘You’re pretty...?’

The words ‘you’re pretty’ that Riccardo had said to himself, who had nothing to boast about, continued to linger in his ears.

Although he knew it was just a joke, and that it was just an empty shell without sincerity, Mikhail, who had heard the words ‘you’re pretty’ for the first time, couldn’t easily shake off the feeling.

‘No way.’

What’s so good about hearing that he’s pretty from Riccardo?

Mikhail shook his head and focused on the main issue. He wouldn’t be swayed and would complete the quest.

1. Show Riccardo your true self. (1/1)

2. Go on a date with Riccardo. (0/1)

3. Hear Riccardo’s true feelings. (0/1)

Since he could meet the truth he wanted just two steps away, Mikhail took a calm breath and lifted his head.

-‘Vice President, three sets of tteokbokki, please.’

-‘Is the vice president you?’

-‘Yes, the president told me to call you that.’

-‘Oh...’

Riccardo was busy moving around.

He was busy moving around, having shed his student occupation.

And...

-‘...You should come over here, Vice President.’

-‘What’s going on?’

-‘There’s a kid who can’t afford a meal.’

A noise started coming from one corner of the store.

Mikhail looked at the source of the noise. He gazed at a boy and girl, who looked around five years old, crying and rubbing their eyes.

The boy, who looked like an older brother, was holding out a coin with a trembling hand, and the girl was hiding behind his back and crying.

A familiar scene.

Mikhail, who was overlapping the past memories with the child, stiffened his expression and watched as Riccardo approached the young child.

Definitely.

-Clatter.

If it was the Riccardo he knew, he would chase the kid away. Mikhail held his breath and watched Riccardo’s misdeed.

He had no money to help, so he bit his lip.

‘Sorry.’

Riccardo, who had untied his hair, sat down in front of the child and showed a smile that Mikhail hadn’t seen before.

“Hey, kid.”

“I’m sorry...”

“What’s there to be sorry about?”

“...We don’t have money, so we came to eat...”

“Why don’t you have money?”

Riccardo received the coin the boy had offered and patted his head.

“This is enough.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. I used to beg for food when I was your age.”

“...That’s bad, isn’t it?”

“I know. That’s why I did it.”

Ricardo was chatting with the kid in a soft, gentle voice, making the kid smile with their conversation.

If it were the Ricardo he knew, he wouldn’t be like that. For a moment, Mikhail felt a strong sense of discomfort, wondering if that guy was really Ricardo.

“Lie.”

As Mikhail watched Ricardo approach him, he thought, “That face is full of lies.”

-Ugh.

Mikhail hated Ricardo.

He couldn’t trust Ricardo’s smile, which seemed to enjoy tormenting people.

But.

As he saw the smile of the young child, Mikhail felt something was off. It was as if something fundamental was wrong.

“You’ve been waiting for a long time.”

“...”

“This is the best tteokbokki in the capital.”

Ricardo held out a steaming red dish, which Mikhail had eaten with Luin and Yuri before. It was spicy, and the smell of the food made him even more reluctant to eat.

“...”

He didn’t want to eat it because Ricardo had made it.

“Do you like kids?”

“Kids?”

“Yes.”

“You don’t like them, though.”

“Why did you help them, then?”

“Uh...”

“Just because.”

It was strange that his food seemed to look delicious.

*

I smiled at the woman in front of me.

It was our first meeting, but she seemed extremely familiar.

And she knew me.

I smiled at the woman, who was full of secrets.

“You don’t like the taste, do you?”

“Yes...?”

“You’re not eating, are you?”

“Uh...”

The woman bowed her head and stared blankly at the cold tteokbokki, her hand holding the fork motionless as she took a deep breath.

I looked at the woman and asked a question, thinking I knew why she wasn’t eating.

Was it because the taste was bad?

Or was it because she disliked me?

I thought the reason was one of these two, so I carefully asked her.

“Is it because I’m too handsome, and the food won’t go down?”

“What?”

The woman replied in a rather harsh tone. I couldn’t help but feel a pang of hurt, despite her honest reaction, as a self-assured handsome man.

I smiled faintly and picked up a piece of tteokbokki with my fork, offering it to her.

“Ah...”

“Ah?”

“I’ll feed you.”

The woman glared at me with an intense gaze, as if she was about to hit me.

“It’s not spicy.”

“...”

“I’m the one who made this tteokbokki.”

“So?”

“Hunger is the most pitiful thing in the world.”

“You’ve never been hungry before.”

I smiled at the aggressive woman’s response, trying not to provoke her further.

“That’s right.”

“I’ve met many people who have experienced hunger.”

“Lie.”

“I’ve had a pretty comfortable upbringing.”

I smiled again, offering her the fork with tteokbokki. As the red sauce dripped, and the silence lingered, the woman let out a deep sigh.

“I didn’t add any seasoning.”

The woman struggled to open her mouth.

-Tsk.

She scrunched up her face, moved her jaw, and seemed like she was about to vomit, like a foreigner trying tteokbokki for the first time.

I didn’t take pleasure in tormenting her, but seeing the beautiful woman in front of me struggle made me feel like I was the culprit.

“Is it too spicy?”

“...No.”

“That’s a relief.”

As she chewed the tteokbokki, her expression gradually changed to one of peace. The mixture of emotions on her face, half-relieved and half-enjoying, was easy to read.

‘Still the same.’

Her expression, which couldn’t lie, also revealed her love for delicious food.

The memories of a certain someone matched hers.

My doubts gradually turned into conviction.

I smiled at her and asked, “How’s the taste?”

“...It’s delicious.”

“Right?”

The woman’s fork began to move slowly.

She ate the fish cake, the tteokbokki, and even the egg.

The one who buys me food is me, but I dislike the selfish behavior of the woman who doesn’t let me eat first, yet seeing her enjoy her meal improves my mood.

When the tteokbokki dish was almost empty.

I looked at her and decided to resolve the unfinished business I had put off before. Even if she pries into my affairs, she won’t tell me why she came to see me, and I don’t know how to treat her either.

There were still many unresolved issues.

My heart, which was accepting change, had not opened up yet.

I smiled slightly and said to her,

“Miss Secret.”

“Yes?”

“I don’t know your name, so it’s Miss Secret.”

“Ah... yes.”

I looked at the woman with a stiff expression and extended my hand slightly, like a polite gesture, and asked her,

“Can you tell me why you came to see me now?”

“...”

“You’ve eaten and done what you needed to, so it’s a waste of time for Miss Secret.”

I nodded towards her and said,

“If you have something to say, I’ll listen.”

“...”

“If you want to scold me, I’ll listen.”

“...”

“If you need an apology, I’ll give you one. From your expression, you don’t seem to have good feelings towards me, but that’s okay. Of course, I’m ? Nоvеl?g?т ? (Continue reading) happy to see a beautiful woman, but that’s not the case with you.”

The woman shook her head and didn’t respond.

“Is that so...”

I slowly got up, aware that time was precious. I decided to make a choice that would benefit both her and me.

“Then I’ll take my leave.”

“Wait a minute!”

The woman closed her eyes and revealed the reason she came to see me. Although it seemed forced, she gave me a convincing reason.

“It’s because...”

“Yes.”

“Actually... I heard from Senior Hanna that...”

“Ah... Hanna?”

“Yes...! I asked how to quickly improve my skills, and so... and so...!”

I touched the hilt of my sword at my waist and smiled playfully.

“Did Hanna say that?”

“Yes. Senior Hanna told me to keep it a secret... since I came on my own accord.”

I smiled slightly at the woman’s embarrassed expression, her face reddening as she spoke.

“Was that the reason...?”

I said to her,

“You’re a person with many secrets.”

“...”

“Even your name is a secret.”

“Sorry.”

“Hmm.”

I fell into thought, my arms crossed.

“I also have a schedule, being a popular person and all.”

“...Again.”

“Yes?”

“No.”

It was a decent proposal, meaning I could train her. But I wasn’t particularly enthusiastic about it.

‘Mihail’ will grow on their own anyway.

I spoke firmly and turned around.

“I’ll think about it for now.”

The woman grabbed my sleeve as I was about to leave, speaking in a timid voice.

“Today...!”

“Yes?”

“Please stay with me today.”

“What...?”

“I’ll convince you.”

So...

“Let’s go on a date.”