Page 397 of The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen

I knew everything from the start.

Shartia’s lies.

The lie that a person could be brought back to life.

I knew it all.

Wouldn’t it be strange if I didn’t?

Knowing everything about this novel, how could I possibly be unaware of something so crucial?

The author had explicitly said it.

There was no way to revive the dead.

Q. My favorite character died. You’ll bring them back, right? If not, I’m kidnapping you, author!

A. That’s unfortunate. But in The Strongest at the Academy Like Me, there’s no way to bring back the dead. Starting over might be an option, though.

I had tried everything I could.

I researched black magic.

I investigated heretics.

I even dug through the empire’s ancient records, searching desperately for any possible way to bring her back.

—Nothing.

All that came back was the bitter pain of loss. And it was pathetic.

“...”

Joining hands with Shartia wasn’t because I wanted to save her.

It started with a feeling—guilt.

In the original story, Shartia hadn’t struggled this much.

She grew stronger by overcoming hardships and pressing forward.

But because I twisted the original story to save her, the trials she faced became heavier. In the end, she collapsed under their weight.

That’s why I helped her.

At the academy, and even when she tricked me with her lies.

It was selfish.

I offered her kindness just to ease my own conscience.

“...”

But—

Please, don’t betray me.

The moment I saw tears streaming down her face for the first time, my resolve faltered.

Responsibility, selfishness, guilt—those feelings vanished before the tears of a beautiful woman.

Pathetically so.

Emotions writhed inside me as I agreed to a promise I hadn’t fully thought through.

Even so—

It was fun.

Fun enough that I had no regrets.

—Hey, you idiot! How can you use documents as a pot holder?!

—Haha! My mistake...!

—You bastard!

The time I spent with Shartia was so enjoyable that I forgot about her lies. It made me happy.

It even eased the pain I felt inside.

—Creak.

The imperial priest holding a massive spear stared at me with a clean-cut smile.

“I’ve been curious about you from the start.”

“It’s an honor that a high-ranking official would take interest in someone as lowly as me.”

“Isn’t it obvious? You’ve been gnawing away at the heretics’ forces for a long time.”

“...You knew?”

“I was sure of it when you killed Restraint. Ah—this man has been a thorn in our side for ages, I thought.”

“...”

“Are you a spy sent by the empire?”

“...”

“Or are you someone with a deep grudge against us?”

“...”

“But to think you’re the princess’s dog... it’s laughable.”

I smiled faintly and gripped my sword.

“You’re right.”

And with a quiet breath of relief, I thought—this time, I’d protect her smile.

“I don’t really know either.”

I swung my sword.

Wagering my life on a fight I couldn’t win.

*

“Princess, we’ve found His Majesty!”

“His condition?!”

“He’s unconscious but not gravely injured.”

“...Good!”

I was uneasy.

Even after saving my father from the heretics and eliminating the remaining threats in the palace, the unease wouldn’t leave me.

Was it because of Mikhail’s words?

“Princess, none of the Apostle-level enemies are here.”

“Did they retreat?”

“No... something feels off. It’s like they’re after something else.”

Or was it because the Second Prince escaped?

—The priest... That bastard betrayed me?! I was so close to the throne...!

Even though everything seemed to be resolved, the ominous thoughts wouldn’t stop swirling in my head.

“Princess, your orders!”

Ricardo’s image kept appearing before my eyes.

His solitary back lingered like a shadow in my mind.

“Princess!!!”

I nodded as I saw the knights supporting my unconscious father.

“...Retreat.”

I had to focus on the task at hand for now.

Ricardo wouldn’t die.

Thinking that worrying about him was a luxury, I tried to calm my tangled emotions.

Ricardo was strong.

—You’re bleeding!

—Oh? So I am.

—You idiot!

—I got hurt just to receive a beautiful woman’s care.

I convinced myself that, as always, he’d have some ridiculous excuse prepared.

“Some knights will escort His Majesty and me out of the palace. The rest will clean up the remaining heretics and then join us!”

“Yes, Princess!”

“Mikhail, you—”

“I’ll accompany you, Princess. I need to guard His Majesty.”

“Understood.”

My hurried steps quickened.

Even though everything was supposedly going well, unease gnawed at me.

—I can’t handle this alone!

Ricardo’s angry shout echoed in my ears like a hallucination.

He’d never shown weakness before.

The sight of him finally breaking down replayed in my mind whenever I closed my eyes.

And then—

“Princess.”

Mikhail, running beside me, called out with a grim expression.

“If this is small talk, save it for later.”

“...It’s not small talk.”

“...Then what?”

After a long silence, Mikhail spoke.

And his words tore through my chest.

“...When we entered the palace, I sensed a massive presence outside.”

“...”

“It’s gone now, but... personally, I think we should take a detour.”

“A detour...?”

“Yes.”

Mikhail’s expression was unusually serious.

“There were two people as strong as me—or even that guy.”

“...Wait a second.”

My steps began to slow.

I couldn’t process what I’d just heard.

“You didn’t know...?”

“What are you talking about...?”

“I thought you knew. That’s why, when he volunteered to stay behind at the entrance, I thought you’d given up on Ricardo.”

“...No.”

“...”

“You said you had something to say to Ricardo, too.”

“...”

“Then why...?”

“I thought Ricardo was stronger than me. I believed he’d survive.”

“...What do you mean by that?”

“I was prepared to die too.”

“That’s not what I wanted to hear!!!”

I shouted at Mikhail.

Told him to stop spouting nonsense.

“Think logically. We put the main forces at the palace. Who would leave key forces stationed at the outer castle?”

“...”

“Isn’t that right?”

My voice began to tremble.

It quivered as my assumptions crumbled.

“Isn’t it?”

Mikhail shattered my illusion without hesitation.

“If the target...”

“...”

“...is me, the one chosen by the Holy Sword.”

“...”

“Then things would be different.”

Mikhail’s face darkened.

“What if... this whole commotion was orchestrated just to eliminate me?”

“...”

“What if they planned to strike while all the imperial knights were concentrated at the palace?”

“Wait... hold on.”

“Then... what about Ricardo, who’s still there?”

“Shut up!!!”

My anxious steps quickened.

No.

I can’t let this happen.

Absolutely not.

I haven’t even apologized yet.

“Princess!!!”

“Let go...!”

“It’s dangerous.”

“You said you had something to say to him too!”

“...”

“Then we need to go.”

That fool.

That damn fool.

Why...

I raced toward the castle gates where Ricardo was stationed.

I was terrified, just like Mikhail said—afraid something had already happened.

I swallowed down the tears threatening to spill as I ran like mad to find him.

Maybe they’d ask why I was so desperate to protect an ordinary knight.

But—

The memories I had with Ricardo—

—Become an idiot, zap!

—...What are you doing?

—Planning how to ruin the empire.

—...Seriously.

The blanket he’d placed over me when I fell asleep at my desk—

—I told you not to sleep here like this.

The thought of those moments burned so painfully in my chest that I felt like I was going insane.

I ran until my lungs felt ready to burst.

Stopping just before the castle gates, I let out a trembling breath.

I saw him.

“...”

His back.

Amidst the chaos, Ricardo stood alone.

He’s alive...!

Relief washed over me, and I smiled brightly as I called his name.

“Ricardo!”

“...”

“Ricardo...?”

Why is he acting like this?

Was he sulking because I left him behind?

The thought made me laugh softly.

It’s all over now.

The long, arduous journey—

The struggle to secure the throne—

Everything was finished.

I knew it would take time to earn his forgiveness.

But knowing we’d have more time together steadied my trembling voice as I called his name again.

“Ricardo!”

But—

“...”

Ricardo didn’t answer.

My breath caught in my throat.

“Why... aren’t you saying anything?”

My hand began to tremble.

“Why...?”

A terrible premonition struck, and my hands shook uncontrollably.

What should I say?

How am I supposed to face this?

The autumn wind carried a chill that gripped my heart, weighing it down with fear.

I wanted him to say something—anything.

Ask why I was so late.

Scold me for leaving him alone.

Even one word would be enough.

But—

“Ricardo...?”

Tears spilled before I could stop them.

“Ricardo...”

I took slow, trembling steps toward him.

And then—

“Don’t come any closer.”

His voice pierced the air, sharp and cold.

The metallic scent of blood filled my lungs.

I felt my face brighten with relief at the sound of his voice.

I was just about to rush toward him when—

“Princess, get down!”

A massive spear pierced through Ricardo’s body.

Laughter rang out.

“Kahahaha!!! What kind of monster is this?!”

“...Cough.”

“What have you done? You!

“...”

“To withstand two Apostles...! To even kill the Apostle of Mercy, who was nearly immortal! Even the Knight Commander couldn’t manage that, yet here you are, performing miracles!”

“...A miracle, huh.”

Ricardo’s trembling hands struggled to move.

“I suppose so.”

—Thud.

“A miracle indeed.”

And with that, Ricardo’s knees collapsed.

I couldn’t believe it.

No—I didn’t want to believe it.

I couldn’t understand why this was happening.

“...”

But—

The chill of his fading warmth left me gasping, my eyes wide in disbelief.

“Why.”

“Why...”

“Why!!!”

I hated it.

I clutched Ricardo’s fallen body and glared at the imperial priest.

Gathering every ounce of fury and resolve—I swore I would kill him.

“It seems a gift has arrived.”

“...I’ll kill you.”

“Your knight bought you time to escape, fulfilling his promise.”

“I said I’ll kill you!!!”

“How unfortunate.”

As the priest raised his hand to throw his spear, tears filled my eyes.

“Not yet...”

Ricardo, despite his broken body, forced himself up and drove his sword into the priest’s heart.

“It’s not over yet.”

A sharp sound echoed—

—Thud, thud, thud.

The priest screamed as Ricardo tore into his flesh.

“How... how can you still move?!”

“Because of the promise....”

“Aaaaaah!!!”

“I have to keep my promise....”

“How dare you...! How dare you!!!”

Ricardo let out a desperate roar.

“Misa...!!!”

“What did you just say?!”

“I promised to protect her once I became a proper knight... I have to keep it.”

“No way.”

“Just this once, help me.”

Mikhail’s trembling hands gripped his sword, and Ricardo plunged his aura deeper into the priest’s body.

In that brief moment, Mikhail spoke with a shaky voice.

“Is it... you?”

Ricardo smiled faintly and shook his head.

And then—

—Slash.

With a short, sharp sound, the long, terrible war came to an end.

*

“You’re here?”

At Ricardo’s voice, I looked up.

He was covered in blood.

His trembling hands looked like they could vanish if I touched them.

With trembling hands, I reached out to him.

“Why... Why are you like this?!”

“Haha... Just a scratch.”

“...”

He smiled faintly, as if to say there was nothing to worry about.

“Just... just a little scratch.”

“It’s not just a little!!!”

“Haha...”

I cried out.

“Open your eyes...! You have to live! You still need to save Olivia!”

“...”

“If you die now, I’ll use the national treasure to bring you back. But then your dream will be gone...! Hurry...!”

Ricardo smiled again.

“That’s a lie, isn’t it?”

“Huh...?”

“Haha... Princess, you’re terrible at lying.”

“...”

As my face froze, Ricardo wiped away my tears.

That same smile he always gave me.

“I told you not to cry....”

“...”

“You broke your promise again.”

And then—

He left me.

“Smile...”

“Ah... Ah... Haha... Ah...”

“You’re still ugly when you cry.”

Mikhail’s face twisted with despair as he watched.

—Part 2: The Broken Sword ends here.

—The perspective shifts.

—The Mad Tyrant requests an audience with the Viewer.