A Guide to Raising a Villainess Chapter 56: Grace’s thought

Despite the fact that I sincerely believed that the situation with the attempt on my life was finally over and I could simply erase it from my mory, the very next day a new, truly shocking event occurred that turned everything upside down and made doubt that it was ever possible to truly leave the past behind.

To be more precise, the two people who organized the assassination attempt — Walter Creek and Hayley Rothberg — were suddenly dead. Their deaths ca as a shock to , like a bolt from the blue. I couldn’t believe that everything had turned into tragedy so quickly and unexpectedly.

This morning, their bodies were found on the outskirts of town, in an abandoned area where few people dared to go alone. And to top it all off, I found out about it before I even had my morning coffee.

Edison told the news in a cool, almost emotionless tone, but I noticed that even he looked slightly embarrassed, as if he didn’t know how best to break the news. His voice, usually even and calm, faltered for a mont.

Yeah... I really was speechless. I just sat there, staring at my cup of cooling coffee, repeating the sa phrase over and over in my head: "How could this have happened?!"

Hadn’t I made it perfectly clear to Serpens that, despite their transgression, I had decided to let these people live? I did so consciously, with full understanding of the consequences.

I even explained to him that I wanted them to pay for what they had done, not with their lives, but with years of imprisonnt. I wanted justice, but not bloody revenge. So why were they found dead now? Who dared to disobey my order?

Unsurprisingly, the first person I had the most questions for was Serpens.

Even though I knew his character too well and understood that he wouldn’t have had the determination to pull sothing like this behind my back, I was still tornted by doubts. He had been my loyal companion all this ti, a man I could rely on, but now a shadow of suspicion had crept into my heart.

Despite the early morning and my fatigue, I didn’t have the patience to wait. I imdiately headed to the armory. One thought ran through my head: I would give this man a real interrogation. If he really dared to disobey , the consequences for him would be extrely unpleasant!

But to my surprise, as soon as I crossed the threshold of the shop and spoke to him about it, Serpens, as if anticipating my thoughts, imdiately objected.

"Madam!" His voice sounded even a little offended. "Who do you take for? Do you really think I would dare to act without your orders?!"

I frowned and crossed my arms over my chest, trying to hide my inner turmoil.

"What are you talking about?" I asked coldly.

"Madam, if it were up to , I would have killed those two bastards with my own hands. But I understand clearly that without your direct order, I would never have acted. Under no circumstances."

I narrowed my eyes, trying to read his true thoughts.

"So you’re saying you didn’t do it?"

"Exactly," he muttered grimly.

To be honest, it wasn’t easy to believe his words.

I rembered how enthusiastically he had suggested killing them. His tone and the bloodthirsty gleam in his eyes... all of this made doubt him.

But on the other hand, I had known Serpens for three years. During that ti, he had proven himself to be a devoted, fanatically loyal person. He could be cruel and bloodthirsty, but he had never acted behind my back before.

This thought was confusing and forced to look for other explanations.If he didn’t do it, then who did? After all, no one except the mbers of our organization should have known the truth about who was behind the assassination attempt. And my people were loyal to to the core. So... was it soone from outside? But how did he find out their identities? And how did they manage to infiltrate our circle?

The questions only multiplied, and with each new thought, the situation seed more and more confusing and dangerous.

I had to admit that the situation was incredibly complicated and confusing. The woman from the bakery and the notorious Count Creek were both dead. They had been killed by soone whose existence I had never even suspected. This ant that an unknown enemy had appeared in my circle, one who acted secretly and decisively.

But at that mont, another voice awoke in — cold, detached, as if coming not from , but from an outside observer.

"Should I even care about this?"

After all, what difference did it make? These people were no longer a threat to . Whether they were dead or not, what did I care? I had already made my choice, and now the consequences were beyond my control.

I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself.

"All right," I said in an even voice, trying to sound confident. "If you really have nothing to do with this, then I suppose there’s nothing we can do about it."

"Hmm... Mistress," Serpens raised an eyebrow, as if trying to understand my thoughts. "What do you intend to do now?"

"Nothing." I shrugged. "The deaths of these people are none of our concern. We have enough of our own business to spend ti on."

"Yes, ma’am," he agreed obediently.

The conversation was over. I turned around and soon left the armory, feeling the weight of responsibility lift slightly from my shoulders.

Yes, on the way ho, I still thought about their deaths. These thoughts kept spinning around in my head, but gradually lost their weight. An hour later, I felt calr.

After all, ti can dull even the most acute experiences, and I tried to focus primarily on the present and the future.

***

When I returned to the estate, I was greeted by Ruby, my niece, a little ray of light in this difficult and dark world.

"Auntie!" she exclaid happily, running out to et with open arms.

I smiled involuntarily, bent down, and gently ran my hand through her soft chestnut hair.

"Oh, were you waiting for ? I’m sorry, dear, I had things to do today, so we couldn’t have breakfast together."

"It’s okay," Ruby said seriously. "I understand that my aunt is often busy."

Wow... how lucky I am to have such an understanding niece! Unlike many other children her age, Ruby never threw tantrums or complained that I didn’t pay enough attention to her. She grew up calm and sensible, as if she were older than her years.

Sotis it amazed . But at the sa ti, I wanted Ruby to allow herself to be a child — to be mischievous, capricious, and demand more attention. All of this is natural and normal for her age, and I dread of seeing more carefree joy in her.

"Auntie, look! I drew a picture especially for you!" she said proudly, handing a piece of paper.

"Oh? Let see, sweetie."

I looked closely at her work and couldn’t help but smile: the picture showed the two of us — Ruby and , hand in hand, as if symbolizing our strong bond.

Even though she had never had a real teacher, the drawing looked surprisingly good. She had clearly put a lot of effort into it, putting a piece of her soul into it.

"Do you like it?" the girl asked, looking down slightly, a little embarrassed.

"Of course!" I smiled. "You did a very good job."

Ruby’s cheeks flushed slightly. I could see how important my approval was to her, and it touched deeply.

And at that mont, as I looked at her work, a thought flashed through my mind. It wasn’t a sudden thought — I had thought about it many tis before. But now the feeling was particularly strong.

"Ahem... Ruby," I began cautiously, trying to find the right words.

"Yes, Auntie?" my niece responded imdiately, looking at intently.

"What do you think about hiring a governess for you?"

The girl blinked in surprise, as if she hadn’t expected such a suggestion.

"A governess? But... Auntie, why? Aren’t you happy with ?"

I quickly touched her shoulder to dispel her doubts.

"Darling, that’s not the point. You’re smart, and I’m proud of you. But you need a ntor who can teach you many things that I don’t have ti for. Painting, music, languages... everything that will help you develop your talents and prepare for adult life."

She frowned like a little adult and said:

"But I want my aunt to teach ."

These words pierced my heart with unexpected warmth. I smiled and sighed quietly, feeling tenderness and care welling up inside .

"I will always be there for you. But believe , a governess cannot replace . She will only help you discover your talents and give you knowledge that I cannot always give you myself."

Ruby looked thoughtfully at her drawing, then back at .

"Okay... if that’s what you want, Auntie. But you promise you’ll still spend ti with ?"

"Of course I promise," I smiled and hugged her tightly, feeling that despite all the difficulties and trials, I definitely had sothing worth living and fighting for.