A small tear fell from the young lady's eye. It wasn't a tear filled with sorrow but one filled with worry, wetting the floor beneath her.
Squeezing her large eyes shut, she rubbed them with her small, delicate hands, trying to hide her tears, crying like a child.
"Hic..." "Ah... Miss, why are you crying?"
Even the playful jokes I usually made...
"It's nothing like that, please don't cry."
...were stuck in my throat, unable to co out due to the young lady's tears. I couldn't think of the right words, the best thing to say to get out of this situation.
At that mont, all I could think was...
"Please don't cry."
I didn't want to see the young lady crying.
"Hic... I'm not crying."
But she continued to shed tears. Even though she was biting her lip to hold back the tears, once they started, they showed no sign of stopping.
Like a child who, once they start crying, can't stop, the young lady trembled as she sobbed.
Ti seed to have stopped.
"..."
The helplessness of my hands and the young lady's sobbing seed to trap in this mont.
'What should I do...?'
I couldn't think of anything to say.
As I fumbled, trying to process the tears suddenly falling from her eyes, the young lady slowly began to speak. Her words were filled with sadness as she carefully articulated just what my presence ant to her.
"Without Ricardo, I can't manage." "..." "I'd be so sad and lonely."
Thumping her chest as if trying to make a hole, she continued,
"It feels like there's a hollow emptiness in my heart, and even eating chocolate won't fill it. If Ricardo were to disappear, it would be a disaster for ."
I kept my mouth shut and watched her. I was grateful, yet simultaneously sorry for her words.
I had thought that if it was for her, she would be happy, so I found it difficult to speak.
She’s a villainess, after all. I didn’t think that anyone would care about a slum rat like , but perhaps it was a wound that had festered deep inside.
I had been alone for so long. Even though I chose to sacrifice myself, what I received in return was cold criticism and scorn. Without realizing it, maybe I had been harboring such thoughts all along.
"Don’t go!" "..." "Don’t run away! Stay with !"
My heart ward. It felt foolish, but I was moved. It felt good to know I wasn’t alone, so I looked at the young lady gently and shook my head.
"Why would I disappear? I’m right here in front of you." "You're not!" "Am I a ghost if I'm standing right here?" "Hic... no."
The young lady shook her head in response.
"Ricardo is so foolish that I’m afraid you’ll disappear." "..." "I’m scared that if I go to sleep and wake up, you’ll be gone! Do you know how many dreams I've had where Ricardo disappears?" "Have you really?" "You get hurt and disappear." "..." "You do sothing bad and disappear." "Soone as kind as would never do such a thing." "And!"
She lowered her head and spoke in a small voice.
"You disappear because of ." "..." "You’re foolish! You get hurt like an idiot! You get insulted!"
The young lady squeezed her eyes shut and shouted.
"Idiot! Fool! Dumb dog!"
It was as if she was telling that she had seen behave that way, trembling in fear, worried that her dreams might co true, and her shoulders shook with the anxiety.
"I can't let anything bad happen to Ricardo." "You managed just fine without before." "I can’t manage!"
The young lady shook her head firmly.
"I can’t manage. If Ricardo is gone, I’d die. I used to think about marrying you off to a good family and not being a burden!"
"You used to think that?" "Now, I’ll stick to you like glue!"
I chuckled softly and added a joke to her words. Although her crying was cute, I always thought her smile was much prettier.
I tried to lighten the dark atmosphere with a bit of humor.
"Does that an you want to marry ? I might need to recalculate so things." "Uh..." "You don’t seem to like the idea very much." ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) "Uh... I’ll think about it."
I laughed quietly as I reached out to pat the young lady's head. As my fingers brushed through her soft, fluffy hair, a pleasant laugh escaped .
"We still have a long way to go." "Mhm...?" "I said you should listen to ."
The young lady nodded and promised that she would be a villainess who would listen to from now on.
I carefully knelt down and looked at her. Her cheeks, swollen from crying, were puffed up as she stared straight at with a defiant gaze.
"What are you looking at!" "Just admiring your cuteness." "Then keep looking." "I certainly will." "Mhm."
I gazed at her carefully.
Her small body. Her eyes. And her white hair.
She looked like the most beautiful and precious person in the world. A person so radiant and lovely that it wouldn’t be a waste to give her everything I had.
"Ricardo...?"
At first, our relationship had started as a bad one, but over ti it transford into friendship, and as ti passed, it had grown into sothing heavier than friendship.
As a result, I found that I enjoyed the ti I spent with the villainess, and just seeing her smile made smile too.
Yes, it was an unrequited love.
This was my unyielding resolve. Even if soone said otherwise, even if they told not to fall in love, my determination wouldn’t waver.
"Yes, Miss."
This was the weight of my emotions.
The young lady cautiously placed her hand on my cheek and stretched it out. Making a pouty face, she spoke in a lancholy voice.
"I don't need to be able to walk." "..." "I don’t mind if people call a fool." "..." "I don’t care if people point at and say I’m a defective villainess." "..." "I don’t care if people say I deserve it. Ah... but I won't tolerate that, because it would make angry." "Pfft..." "Don’t laugh! I’m being serious!" "Sorry, you're just too cute." "Eek... Huff... So, Ricardo."
The young lady pressed my stretched cheek, making look like a fish. Her comical face made her want to laugh, but she steadied herself and spoke calmly.
"Don’t get hurt." "..." "Don’t disappear from my sight, don’t die, and stay with for a long, long ti." "But what about my marriage?" "That..."
The young lady rolled her eyes, lost in thought.
"That... that..." "Are you planning to marry yourself, Miss?" "No...! I don’t want to, Ricardo, you’re too ugly!" "Pfft... I’m just joking."
I gently grabbed her shoulders and pulled her into an embrace. I could feel her warm breath against my ear as she breathed heavily on my chest.
Her small shoulders trembled, and her tiny hands, unsure of what to do, tried to push away, but the gesture was more endearing than forceful.
"...You know, Miss." "Mhm."
I whispered my wish into her ear.
"I want you to be the happiest person in the world."
It was a small wish that others might dismiss as trivial, but I spoke it with more sincerity than anything else.
"As you said before, I want to see you walk on your two feet."
Because I knew she would be happy.
"I want you to be soone you can be proud of, soone who stands equal with others." "I already am." "You’re so perfect that it’s almost a problem." "That’s true too." "Pfft..."
"And I want everyone to see you as the best. Even if the person standing next to you isn’t ...."
Thwack!
The young lady smacked my lips with her palm and glared at . She scolded with her eyes, asking how I could say such things.
"Stop!" "..." "If you’re not around, who’s going to run my errands for chocolate...!" "That’s true." "Don’t even joke about things like that. Got it?"
In the past, she would have told to get out of her sight, saying she couldn’t stand to look at . Now, she depended on , and I was grateful for it.
I held her tightly and said,
"Yes, I understand."
So please, forgive this once.
"What you’re worried about won’t happen." "Really?" "Yes, I’m soone who takes great care of my own body, so don’t worry."
I spent the night holding her close.
And Olivia...
"I want to beco soone great...."
...muttered quietly to herself in her room.
And so, the next day...
"Air raid alert!!!!"
The young lady rubbed her eyes as she woke up.
No longer the small Olivia.
"No..."
But as Olivia.
She shocked the Desmont family, who had brought a rattle, by returning to her original form.
In front of the quiet mansion in Hal...
Grr?
Gomtangi, who had been left to guard the house alone for a long ti, saw the silhouette of a woman beyond the mansion’s entrance and tilted his head in confusion.
Grr?
The woman with silver hair and a sword at her waist was hiding behind the mansion’s wall, peeking inside.
Holding a small envelope in her hand, she cautiously peeked over the wall.
Gomtangi’s eyes lit up with a mory, recalling sothing his master had once said.
If a thief cos, bite them. Got it?Grr.Did you understand? Look, if they try to climb over the wall like this....Grr.
Gomtangi lifted his head and looked at the woman in front of him.
And then.
Grr? "An intruder?"
Hans, who was hiding with Gomtangi in the doghouse, also looked at the intruder and tensed up.
Gomtangi was hungry.
Grr.
Not for dog food, but for at.
Grr grr grr.
But being a good pet, Gomtangi simply nodded, seeing that the woman wasn’t climbing over the wall.
Grr grr grr.
Gomtangi, who hated being bothered just like his master, decided to let it go.
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