The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen

TLed by NolepGuy

Chapter 207

The Young Lady, holding a handful of rising bubbles in her hands, blew on them with a “hoo” and smiled.

“Hehehehe…”

Perhaps the bath was relaxing her entire body, as the smiling Young Lady showed no intention of leaving the tub.

“The bubbles are so fluffy…”

“Are you having fun?”

“Yes. It feels like I’ve become ten years younger.”

As expected, the Young Lady loved baths.

After playing with the bubbles for quite some time, the Young Lady shaped them into two massive mountain ranges and looked at me.

Taut, bouncy bubbles.

The Young Lady poked the bubbles with her finger and said,

“Ricardo, doesn’t this look familiar to you?”

“No, it doesn’t.”

The Young Lady, wearing a sinister smile, made me uneasy. Her artistic creations always defied my expectations.

The biggest example would be the Menbosha disguised as a paper crane. Having experienced her insistence that a folded rectangle was a paper crane last time, I figured there must be some profound meaning behind this as well.

With a serious expression, the Young Lady continued piling bubbles on top of each other, making them larger.

“Think carefully…”

“No matter how much I look at it, I don’t know.”

“Fluffy and bouncy…”

“Yes.”

“Something incredibly big.”

Unable to find a clear answer to the Young Lady’s question, I leaned in closer to examine her artistic creation in more detail.

It looked like it would feel bouncy to the touch.

‘What is this?’

While I was pondering for a moment, my gaze wandered in an unintended direction. Perhaps it was instinct, but my eyes were drawn to it like a magnet.

Water droplets trickled down the Young Lady’s treasure pouch. The sight was so reverent that I quickly lowered my head and turned away.

‘No way…’

Looking at the Young Lady’s serious expression, I shook my head. It didn’t seem like something she would create with such a solemn face would be “that.”

‘…But I can’t think of anything else.’

I concluded that the Young Lady’s creations were too profound for a mere commoner like me to understand.

The Young Lady pouted her lips and, seeing my confusion, spoke in a serious tone.

“It looks like a chest.”

“…Sigh.”

“It’s incredibly soft and incredibly big.”

“Good grief…”

I splashed water vigorously onto the Young Lady’s face.

As her creation crumbled with a small gesture, the Young Lady, clutching her chest, looked devastated and cried out in despair.

“My chest!”

“What chest are you talking about?!”

“Eeeek! Ricardo ruined my chest!”

“No…!”

Perhaps because the mischievous villainess only learned the worst habits, she was exceptionally skilled at flirting.

The Young Lady, seeing my face flush red, laughed brightly.

“Kyaaa! Why?!”

“Why would you make a chest bigger than a watermelon?! And why make something like that in the first place?!”

“Hehehehe! Because it’s fun!”

As expected, the Young Lady’s energy soared when she took a bath.

After spending a long time creating various bubble masterpieces, the Young Lady lost interest and, poking at the yellow duck doll floating in the tub, spoke to me.

“Hey, Ricardo.”

“Yes.”

“I’ve been thinking about where to travel.”

“You’ve been thinking about it? I thought you’d just say, ‘Let’s go anywhere.’”

“Eeeek…”

The Young Lady gave me a small glare and pouted her lips. Then, lowering her head gloomily, she seemed to hide her true feelings, showing a dejected expression.

Seeing her like that, I smiled faintly.

“So, where did you decide to go?”

“…Well.”

“Yes?”

“You see, it’s like this…”

The Young Lady hesitated to speak.

Judging by her behavior, she must have chosen a destination that would cost a lot of money. Hugging her knees, she kept fidgeting with the duck doll floating in the tub, stealing glances at me.

What could she be so hesitant to say?

To be honest, if the Young Lady, who usually cared less about my opinion than a bowl of gomtang, was this hesitant, it must not be an easy destination.

I crouched down next to her, observing her grand chest while waiting for her answer. If I kept staring at her face, she might feel embarrassed. It wasn’t with improper intentions—I swear on my conscience.

-Softly…

“…”

“Ricardo, you pervert.”

“…”

It seemed even the villainess’s sharp eyes couldn’t be deceived.

The Young Lady sighed and cautiously began to share what was on her mind. She explained that she had thought about a certain travel destination and asked what I thought about it.

“I’ve thought a lot about where we could go to have fun.”

“You’ve worked hard.”

“Yes. If I left it to you, you’d probably pick a Dragon Appearance Area or a Place Where Barbarians Live.”

“…Weren’t those your favorites? I was roughly planning for that.”

“Eeeek…”

The Young Lady tilted her head, mumbling, “That does sound fun, though…”

Feeling like I had a good grasp of her preferences, I was pleased in many ways, but I focused on her words since she seemed serious.

The Young Lady looked genuinely concerned.

“So, you see…”

She glanced at me nervously and tightly gripped the duck doll floating in the tub.

-Squeaaak!

The duck doll let out a dying squeal at her grip. I almost laughed at the clueless toy’s cry, but seeing the Young Lady’s shy, contemplative face, the urge vanished. If I laughed now, she might throw the duck doll at my face.

“Promise you won’t say anything.”

“Of course.”

“I mean it.”

“Yes…”

The Young Lady cautiously opened her mouth to speak.

“You see, I…”

“Yes, you…”

“I’ve thought a lot about it. About the sea, the mountains, and the valleys…”

“How uncharacteristically wholesome of you to consider such destinations. I’m surprised.”

“Yes…”

“I was planning for the Dwarf Kingdom or even an unauthorized invasion of the Elf Kingdom.”

“Can you do that?”

“If you ask me to, I’ll give it a try.”

“Ugh… No, let’s save that for later.”

“Let me know if you change your mind.”

“Okay.”

The Young Lady shook her head and cautiously began to speak.

“Really, don’t get mad when you hear this.”

“Alright.”

“Really, really… Ricardo told me to choose.”

“Yes.”

The Young Lady lowered her head deeply and spoke in a shy voice.

“I want to go somewhere really cold.”

“Pardon?”

“The Northern Region…”

“Uh…”

“I want to visit the Northern Region.”

The Young Lady’s words were more shocking than expected. The Northern Region at this time of year was not a place fit for human habitation.

It was freezing cold.

Demonic beasts roamed freely.

Heretics were present.

And.

“…”

It was also Yuria’s hometown.

I gave a bitter smile as I ruffled the Young Lady’s wet hair.

“That sounds perfect. The weather is starting to get warmer, so it seems like an ideal travel destination.”

“You’re not mad?”

“Why would I be mad?”

“I chose a really cold place.”

“If the Young Lady wants to go, why would I be mad? It’s not like you suggested going to some strange place.”

“…Still.”

“Honestly, I thought you would suggest going to the beach. Last time, you mentioned wanting to wear a bikini.”

The Young Lady touched the belly fat hidden beneath the bubbles and shook her head. She said it didn’t seem like the right time yet.

“I’ll go to the beach after losing weight.”

“You already seem slim enough to me.”

“Hehe…”

It seemed that regardless of whether they were villainesses or fairies, women always liked the topic of weight. Nodding at the decided travel destination, I spoke in a cheerful voice.

I added that we might even save on lodging expenses.

“It works out perfectly. The Desmond Family’s Resort is in the Northern Region, so there’s no need to worry about money.”

“…”

The Young Lady pressed her lips together and couldn’t bring herself to speak.

Smiling faintly, I asked her.

“Is there none?”

“…My father sold it, saying we were out of money.”

Today, the Desmonds seemed particularly pitiful.

*

In a village in the Northern Region, where a cold breeze blew.

“…”

Yuria’s father, James, stretched while massaging his stiff shoulders.

“I wonder if Yuria is doing well.”

James’s concerns were always directed toward his daughter, Yuria. Having left the Northern Region for the capital, he worried about how she was faring, knowing better than anyone how tough life in a foreign place could be.

It was a common worry for a father.

Though life in the capital might be more comfortable than in the cold North, it still wasn’t home. As a father with a daughter, James couldn’t easily set his mind at ease, so he spent any spare time worrying about Yuria.

-Dad… Even if I’m not here, make sure to eat breakfast….

-Don’t cry, Yuria. Dad is doing just fine. Don’t worry and go.

-And stop working….

-I will.

James had broken his promise to his daughter and continued working.

It was to deal with the sudden increase in demonic beasts recently. Having retired from being an adventurer due to injuries, he had taken up the work again out of a small wish to send some allowance to his daughter living at the Academy.

Looking at the wound left by a demonic beast’s bite, James let out a hearty laugh.

“Yuria would scold me if she saw this.”

At times like this, James felt his daughter’s absence even more keenly.

James had two jobs.

One was being an adventurer.

The other, his main job, was being an innkeeper—a job that earned less than his side work.

The North was a region that attracted many tourists in the summer. The snowy mountains created a stunning landscape, and sometimes mirage-like patterns appeared in the sky.

While there were fewer guests in spring, summer usually brought enough profit for James to send Yuria a generous allowance. However, with the recent surge of demonic beasts in the North, his earnings had been cut in half.

James rotated his stiff shoulders and let out a sigh.

“Looks like there won’t be any guests for a while.”

James thought it strange for anyone to visit the North during this time of rampant demonic beasts.

No one would choose death just to see a pretty view.

As this bitter thought crossed James’s mind.

-Hehehehe…!

A wheelchair came speeding down the Northern Mountain Range, emitting an odd laugh.

It was a chair.

Not a sled, but a chair.

In disbelief, James rubbed his eyes and let out a dumbfounded sound. In over 30 years of living in the North, he had never seen such a crazy person.

“…”

-Hehehehe!!! Eeeek! So fast!

Before James’s stunned eyes, a woman with white hair flew past, her hair streaming in the wind. Moving at a speed too fast for the eye to follow, the woman’s figure left James unable to regain his composure.

Then, seeing a man with red hair chasing after her at the same speed, James nodded with a calm expression.

“Seeing strange things must mean it’s time to head inside.”

James couldn’t understand it.

And he hoped those two weren’t guests.