Page 242 of The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen

242 – Back to True Form -6-

Drip.Crimson blood dripped onto the floor.

The pain in his abdomen, which should have been searing, dissipated into the night air, along with the overwhelming sense of injustice. Mikhail slowly lifted his heavy eyelids.

Red hair. A black butler's uniform. Broad shoulders that filled his entire vision.

The distinct scent of Ricardo's cologne tickled Mikhail's nose, greeting him.

"I was worried."

Ricardo's deep, short voice resonated with concern. Without asking a single question, Ricardo had grabbed the blade, standing tall like an unyielding rock.

Mikhail spoke with a trembling voice. He hadn’t even had a chance to react to the news that the quest had been completed. He looked at Ricardo, who had caught the blade with his bare hand, and asked,

"How..." "How, you ask? The 'Secret Girl' sent a N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t telepathic message asking for help."

Ricardo, ignoring Mikhail's bewilderment, looked at the man before them with a dark expression.

"We still have things to discuss, don’t we?" "..." "It feels like we could talk all night and it still wouldn’t be enough."

Ricardo's cold tone made Yung laugh. Even though his voice lacked inflection, it was enough to set all of Yung's nerves on edge.

With each syllable that Ricardo uttered, it was as if a needle was piercing Yung's skin, making him shake his head and burst into laughter.

"Pfft... Pfft! Haha! I really picked the wrong day, didn’t I? I didn’t expect there to be a bodyguard." "I think I picked the right day."

"Sigh..."

Yung cut off his laughter, lifting his head. His sharp gaze clashed with Ricardo’s, meeting in the air.

"Today, I just stopped by to say hello. I wondered if you had forgotten about me. After all, your friend here is quite the celebrity. I just wanted to remind you that people like me exist."

"Do you always greet people with a knife?"

"Hehehe... I suppose so."

Hearing Ricardo's icy voice, colder than he had ever heard before, Mikhail’s hands turned as cold as ice.

"..."

Yung awkwardly smiled and began to step back slowly.

"I wanted to turn that kid into a mindless fool... Make him keep crying for 'Daddy' without knowing anything..."

"You’ve got quite a twisted hobby. It makes me want to kill you."

"...Should I just do it right now?"

Yung's eyes were icy as he looked at Mikhail, who was hiding behind Ricardo. He smiled regretfully, as if he really wanted to follow through on his threat. Ricardo, however, merely smiled faintly.

"Are you even capable of it?"

"..."

A red aura started to coil around Yung’s throat, tightening like a noose. Despite the sinister red aura, reminiscent of a doorway to the underworld, Yung didn’t loosen his grip on the dagger in his hand.

"Everyone lets their guard down sometimes. You, me, we all do."

"..."

"This old man here has some decent skills."

Ricardo, with an awkward smile, finally released his grip on the dagger.

"It’s just a joke."

He could easily kill him. He could neutralize his dark magic....

[Restrictions have been applied.] └ Mikhail's mental state is highly unstable. └ The longer you stay with 'Yung', the more the restrictions will waver. └ If you kill 'Yung', 'Mikhail's' awakening will be delayed.

But the gods didn’t want that.

After all, they had arranged for him to meet Mikhail. Ricardo muttered a few irreverent words to the gods who were surely watching from somewhere, then withdrew the aura aimed at Yung, who was licking his dry lips.

"It seems today isn’t the day."

"I almost died."

"Leave before I change my mind."

"I suppose I should...."

As Yung disappeared into the darkness, he gave Mikhail a deadly glare and said his farewell.

"See you next time, kid."

Ricardo also gave Yung a parting word.

"I won’t let you off so easily next time."

"I don’t want to see you again either."

And with that, Yung was gone.

The alley was silent.

Mikhail bowed his head, staring at Ricardo’s bleeding hand. He didn’t know what to say. Thanking him was the obvious thing to do, but the words wouldn’t come out.

Ricardo silently wiped the blood off his hand. He pressed a handkerchief from his inner jacket pocket against his palm, then nodded and walked slowly toward Mikhail.

"Are you okay?"

"..."

"You’re not hurt, are you?"

"..."

Mikhail swallowed the questions rising within him along with the night air. He had so many things he wanted to say.

Starting with why Ricardo had helped him, and ending with whether Ricardo himself was okay. He tried to suppress the rising tide of questions in his chest, but he was overwhelmed by one particular question, which blocked his throat and made him swallow dryly.

'Why?' Why are you doing this?

Ricardo had no real connection with him. He was practically a stranger, so why was he doing this? Mikhail clenched his fists, trying to swallow his mounting questions.

'This isn’t you.'

The man Ricardo saw now was the same one who had been a burden on a first meeting—a woman with no deep ties, no friendship, just a stranger. That’s all Mikhail was to Ricardo, nothing more, nothing less.

So why step in?

All he had to do was close his eyes and turn away, and no one would have known or blamed him.

But...

'Why are you helping me?'

The Ricardo Mikhail remembered wouldn’t have done this. The Ricardo who sought to gain without taking a loss. The Ricardo who only ever showed a brash, unfeeling side at the Academy. The one who would have dismissed him coldly, as was natural.

So why... 'Why try to be a hero?'

Mikhail voiced his question, unable to hold it back. He couldn’t move on without an answer.

"Why...."

The doubts he had harbored began to surface, stirring with each heartbeat.

"Why did you save me...."

"Ah."

"You’re not the kind of person who would save someone without a reason. So why did you do it?"

Ricardo, who had always been perceived as such, was disliked and hated by the other students because of it. Mikhail, with his fists clenched, questioned the misunderstanding he had held.

"You’re not that kind of person."

"..."

"You’re not someone who helps strangers and asks if they’re okay."

"..."

"So why are you acting like a good person?"

"Why... Why...?"

Ricardo let out a faint laugh and answered Mikhail.

"Because you’re beautiful."

"..."

"I’ve always been biased toward women."

Mikhail clenched his fists and retorted.

"What’s beautiful about me?"

"..."

"I’m dull, I can’t even dress properly. What do you find beautiful?"

"..."

"I’m not beautiful at all. I know when I look in the mirror. I’m not attractive, I’m ugly. You think so too, don’t you? That I’m dull, harsh, and manly."

Mikhail shouted at Ricardo, fists clenched tightly.

"Don’t lie."

Ricardo chuckled softly, shaking his head.

"What can I do? My eyes see beauty."

Mikhail, taken aback, looked at Ricardo with disbelief, calling him strange.

"Are you really the infamous rogue?"

"..."

"Are you really the rogue who wreaked havoc at the Academy? You seem like a completely different person."

Ricardo smiled again, faintly, and said to Mikhail.

"I was just immature."

"..."

"Back then, I thought that was the best way. I thought if I acted badly, people would like me more."

"And I wasn’t entirely wrong."

Ricardo crouched in front of Mikhail and tied the laces of Mikhail's sneakers, speaking in a low voice.

"It worked too."

Mikhail closed his eyes tightly and said to Ricardo.

"I still don’t like you."

"That’s quite rude, considering I’m your teacher."

"Even so, I don’t like you."

"..."

Mikhail clenched his fists and spoke to Ricardo, who was standing up.

Sigh...

"Misa."

"Huh...?"

"My name."

"..."

"My name is Misa."

Ricardo nodded, smiling faintly.

"It’s a beautiful name."

Back at the dormitory.

Mikhail lay on his bed, covering his tired eyes. His mind was in turmoil, and his body was exhausted. He avoided saying goodbye to the dazzling moonlight.

So many thoughts crowded his mind. Why had he told him his name? Why had he chosen to reveal the name 'Misa'?

As his thoughts tangled in a web of emotions, Mikhail let out a deep sigh.

"Sigh..."

"I was worried."

Why did he say that if he didn’t like him? What did it mean that he sounded sincere?

Covering his eyes with his hand, Mikhail whispered the feelings he had experienced that day.

"I don’t understand."

He couldn’t figure out what kind of person Ricardo was.

A good person. A nice person. A bad person.

The difference between the Ricardo he had seen at the Academy and the one today was too stark. Mikhail ran his hand over his face, letting out a deep sigh.

He couldn’t tell which version was the real one. The only thing that was clear was that his view of Ricardo had changed.

From the worst to slightly less than the worst.

Mikhail pounded his bed with his fist, frustrated by his thoughts about Ricardo.

"This is annoying."

As the complicated thoughts and questions kept him awake, a chime echoed softly in the weary silence.

[Would you like to receive your quest reward?]

Mikhail nodded, responding to the prompt.

And then...

He finally heard the truth he had been longing for.

[Extra Chapter: In Your True Form.] If you... If the events caused by you... If that day ends with the responsibility falling on one person, You couldn’t bear it.

A cold wind blew.