Page 342 of The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen

With the cold voice from the system echoing around me, the trial space began to tremble violently.

"Get lost. You stink..." "..." "Huh...? You want to be my servant? Know your place. How can a commoner with no status dare to approach someone of Desmond's name?" "..."

The space flickered, and the trial began to speed up, as though I were watching a video on fast-forward. My vision blurred as the scenes moved too quickly for me to process.

"Just leave me alone! Why do you keep following me around and bothering me?" "..." "Are you smiling? What’s there to smile about?" "..." "Stop smiling. It's making me uncomfortable."

I had no idea what was happening.

The situation shifted rapidly. I saw myself forcing a smile as I spoke to the lady, who had lost her memories.

"Why are you crying alone?" "..." "Oh... you want to be friends with me?" "..." "Sorry, but I already have plans."

I caught a glimpse of my pathetic back as I reached out to a memory-less Yuria.

The same happened with Mikhail.

"Who are you?" "..." "Huh...? You want to learn swordsmanship from me? Sorry, but I don’t teach strangers." "..." "Apologies, I don't meet people for coffee on a first encounter..." "..." "Who are you? How did you know I’m from the slums...?" "..." "Are you trying to blackmail me? You better {Novelight} leave before I report you. I’m starting to get uncomfortable."

And even with Shuen.

"What?" "..." "Hmm... I have no idea who you are."

And Shaltia too.

"Don’t you dare touch Her Highness!" "(Flinch...)"

Failed attempts to get closer quickly passed before me. The whole thing was overwhelming, and I breathed a sigh of relief, realizing that if I had watched the scene too closely, the flame would have surely gone out.

Fwoosh.

Looking at the small flame flickering like a candle, I exhaled in relief.

‘I barely held on...’

Finally, I could catch my breath.

The trial was relentless. If it had only been a hallucination, it wouldn't have been this difficult. But being in an illusion that was crafted to transmit emotions made it almost impossible not to be affected.

If the process had been any slower and more detailed, the flame would have definitely gone out.

‘Phew...’

Standing alone in the trial space, I stretched to release the tension that had built up in my body.

‘That was close.’

For now, my priority was to recover. I couldn’t be sure the trial was truly over. If the system’s interference ceased, the trial could start up again at any moment.

I needed to regain my composure and stabilize my mind—that was the only way to prepare for whatever came next.

‘Hmm...’

Sitting down with a thud, I stared at the flickering flame and quietly muttered my confusion. Why had the system helped me?

It had always maintained neutrality, or so I thought. I never expected it to intervene on my behalf like this.

[Caliburn warns the ‘Unknown Being’ not to interfere with the trial.] [The ‘Unknown Being’ threatens the core of Caliburn.] [Caliburn and the ‘Unknown Being’ are in conflict.] [Caliburn... is... chhk...]

[The trial will be temporarily suspended.]

‘Suspended, huh...’

What I needed now was to focus on how I would accept the trial. More important than the trial itself was my attitude toward it.

If I let the trial drag me into despair, that would be the real problem. I had to think beyond just passing the trial. I needed to stay calm and steady my mind.

‘Whew.’

However, I couldn’t take the trial too lightly either.

Dismissing it as something that could never happen would certainly ease my mind. After all, "denial" can be a very soothing balm.

But at the same time, the memories I saw in the trial could also serve as an opportunity to avoid the worst possible outcome. If I overcame this trial, I could still hope for a happy ending.

Honestly, I wanted to avoid a tragic end.

In the trial, I looked so sad.

Like a clown hiding his sorrow behind a smile, I appeared bleak and miserable.

I asked myself: ‘If it were me now, would I avoid choosing dark magic to protect everyone?’

I couldn’t answer that question easily. If I could protect everyone by sacrificing myself, I might gladly make that choice.

So, the point was...

‘I’m still too weak.’

What I had thought of as strength clearly wasn’t enough for the trials ahead.

‘...Then I need to obtain the demonic sword.’

In the trial, I had wielded Tyrfing. I felt a strong desire to overcome this trial to gain greater strength.

‘Let’s do this.’

My breathing calmed down. The flame, which had been flickering, also stabilized, and the fire of hope began to burn brighter.

I slowly nodded to myself, gathering my resolve. I couldn’t afford to appear weak—I had to grow stronger.

That was the key to avoiding the worst outcome, I thought, as I slowly regained my composure.

The noise began to fade.

The static caused by the system’s intervention was gradually dying down, signaling that the trial was about to resume.

‘Whew...’

Crackle...

‘Let’s overcome this.’

[The trial is changing.] [The ‘Unknown Being’ interferes with the trial.]

‘Huh...?’

With those words from the demonic sword, my vision changed again.

A cold wind blew in.

And once more, a familiar white door appeared before me.

I slowly stood up from where I had been sitting and approached the door, gripping the flame tightly in my hand and steadying my resolve.

‘Here we go.’

Creak.

The door opened, and a warm breeze, in contrast to the previous cold, brushed past my hair and softly touched my face.

Flash.

‘Where...’

I woke up in a familiar place.

A familiar ceiling.

A familiar smell.

And a familiar bed.

‘A bed...?’

When I opened my eyes, I realized I was lying in a bed—the same bed I had seen for 13 years.

As I tried to quickly sit up, a warm hand gently pressed me back down onto the bed, softly telling me, “Don’t move.”

"Just lie down for a bit."

I found myself resting my head on a soft lap.

I squinted my eyes open and looked up at the owner of the lap.

"...Hehe."

"Huh...?"

"Surprised?"

"My lady...?"

It was the lady.

Looking down at me, she smiled as she gently brushed my hair aside. She was dressed in a rather revealing outfit that left little to the imagination, smiling all the while.

"Yeah, it’s me."

"...Huh?"

"It’s been a while, hasn’t it? A really long while."

She stared at me intensely.

"What is this...?"

The trial had taken a strange turn.

‘What is this?’

The memory-less lady was gone, replaced by this alluring woman in white lingerie, gazing at me with a seductive look as she played with my hair.

"Did you sleep well?"

"Uh... not really? Didn’t sleep great."

"Really? That’s too bad. You should’ve slept a little longer."

"Uh, wait... What’s going on? This sultry version of you is kind of weird."

"What do you mean ‘what’s going on’? It’s a good thing."

"Huh?"

With a lazy expression, she placed her hand on my forehead, took a deep breath, and spoke softly, though I didn’t understand her words.

"I’ll say this quickly before the others arrive."

"What...?"

"I’m excited too since we haven’t talked in so long, but there’s not much time."

"What do you mean?"

"Just listen."

She grabbed my collar roughly and closed her eyes. In that moment, something soft and wet touched my lips, and I widened my eyes in shock as she gave me a light kiss, then licked her lips with a grin.

"I should have done this sooner."

"Wait... huh?"

"Just feels good, that’s all."

Bang! Bang!

"Crazy woman!!!"

"Open the door!"

"Open the door now, or I’ll slice through it with my sword."

The pounding on the door was so loud it felt like the door might break. The lady glanced at it with a smile, then put a finger to her lips, gesturing for silence.

"Sorry."

"Sorry for what? Also, thanks for the kiss."

"...I mean, I’m sorry."

She gazed at the door that was about to burst open and spoke with a hint of sadness.

"I’m really sorry."

Crash!

"Time to go."

She lightly pushed my chest, and as I stumbled backward, she waved her hand in farewell.

My vision dimmed.

Sinking deeper into the darkness.

No, it was more like I was returning to the original time.

In the fading vision, the lady wore a sad expression and whispered softly, though I couldn’t hear her words.

"My prince."

"..."

"This time, I hope you can claim your happy ending."

[Caliburn’s trial is concluded.]

Flash.

"Huaah!"

I came back to my senses, touching my lips where they had met hers in the trial, standing there in a daze.

It didn’t feel like a dream.

The kiss had been so vivid that I stood there for about three minutes, dumbstruck. Then, from the sky, familiar voices called out.

"Commoner!!!"

"Ricardo!!!"

"...I’m back."

I had returned.

Back to the real world.

I didn’t know exactly how things had resolved, but the sense of relief from being back overwhelmed me, and I let out a long sigh.

‘...Looks like things are okay.’

Physically, I felt perfectly fine.

There was no trace of dark magic, and even though I was holding the demonic sword, no ominous energy was coursing through my body. In fact, the flow of magic felt even purer than when I had wielded Tyrfing, and with a smile, I pushed aside the mixed feelings.

All in all, things turned out well.

I now felt confident that I could draw the demonic sword. Whether or not I had passed the trial was unclear, but at this moment, I felt qualified to wield it.

"..."

Firming my resolve, I slowly tightened my grip around the sword, and as I began to pull it from its sheath, a smile crept across my lips.

[The blessing of the demonic sword 'Caliburn' is bestowed upon you.]