The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen

**Chapter 208 – Northern Trip (1)**

**5 hours earlier.**

After a long journey by carriage, I stretched my stiff back and gazed up at the Northern sky.

“Ugh… It’s stupidly far.”

It probably took about a week to reach the Northern territories at the edge of the empire. The trip took as long as it did only because the roads were in good condition. If not, it would have easily taken fifteen days or more.

The expensive carriage had lessened the travel fatigue somewhat, but being tired was inevitable. As we’d practically camped out in the carriage for an entire week, it didn’t really matter how luxurious it was.

The most surprising thing was that the lady hadn’t complained. She had spent most of her life in a soft, comfy bed, so she should’ve been more exhausted than me.

-Camping…! It’s so… beggarly!

-My lady, you *are* a beggar. I’m the rich one.

Whenever we set up camp, excited and full of energy, the lady would hum as she looked forward to the Northern trip.

What exactly was she expecting to see in the North? I couldn’t understand how she could be so excited, considering that all I had read about the North in novels was about its extreme conditions and the terrible hardships the protagonists endured. But seeing her smile made my doubts fade.

Surely, the lady had some plan in mind.

I was firmly convinced that she hadn’t dragged us to the North without a reason, so I put my faith in her and this trip.

As I got off the carriage, I started unloading our luggage while glancing at the lady.

“Mmm…”

We had packed quite a lot, anticipating a long stay, but the lady simply sat atop her *Pexry No. 1* wheelchair, not lifting a finger.

“Haah…! Snow, snow…!”

As white steam drifted from her lips, the lady eagerly rubbed her chilled hands, not at all intending to help.

I sighed and turned towards her.

“You’ve seen snow recently, haven’t you?”

“That snow wasn’t good. This is properly aged snow.”

Snuggled up in her scarf, the lady sat smiling brightly in her wheelchair.

‘Well, somehow things will work out.’

Watching the departing carriage driver, I bowed slightly to express my gratitude. Though the carriage had cost us a fair bit, I was still thankful for his help during the long journey.

“Thank you for all your hard work. Here’s something for your return expenses.”

“Oh, no, no, you didn’t have to do this…! This is far too much…”

“It’s nothing. You worked hard because of us, and I should be sorry for not giving you more.”

I handed him a small tip, and the driver looked delighted beyond words, scratching his head in embarrassment as he spoke again.

“But are you sure you still want to stay up here? Things aren’t looking good in the North right now, and it’s mating season for the monsters… It’s too dangerous.”

Smiling lightly, I shook my head at his concern.

“We’ll be fine.”

“At the very least, let me carry your luggage to your lodgings.”

“Ah…”

I chuckled awkwardly, admitting that we hadn’t actually thought about any lodgings.

The driver stared at us, looking dumbfounded, as we assured him ten more times that everything was fine before he finally left.

“Well then, I hope you have a pleasant trip. Please visit again!”

“Thank you. My lady, don’t forget to bid farewell.”

“Goodbye.”

-Whooooosh.

Now, where should we go?

Standing in the middle of the Northern city with our luggage piled beside us, the lady and I were rooted to the spot.

It was nice to have arrived, but we had set off without any concrete plans. Sure, money would solve most problems, but we hadn’t even bothered to book somewhere to stay. So we stood there, watching the snow-covered mountains in silence.

“Wow, it’s beautiful…”

“It really is.”

The lady turned to look at me and asked:

“Ricardo, where do we go now?”

“That’s a good question.”

“…”

“Haven’t you thought of anywhere, my lady?”

“Me?”

“Yes.”

“Nope.”

The lady declared it confidently, with no shame whatsoever.

She told me to stop worrying about insignificant things like plans and look at the mountain we’d come all this way to see.

“You did say you wanted to come to the North.”

“Mhm.”

“Is there anything you want to see or eat?”

“It’s a secret.”

“And what about that romantic bikini trip you kept talking about?”

“It ran away.”

“…”

The lady beamed at me with a cheeky smile.

“I don’t know! It’s a secret!”

So, in the end, planning was left to me, the butler. I sighed in resignation, lamenting how foolish I had been to trust the lady with the trip logistics. Still, as long as we had enough money, there was nothing we couldn’t do.

Even though I wasn’t sure if the lady would enjoy the half-baked plans my brain would produce, I smiled softly and quickly started thinking.

‘For now…’

I decided to first handle the luggage, so I approached a nearby local to ask for directions to an inn.

“Excuse me, I’m a tourist, and I’m wondering if there’s an inn around here where we could stay for about ten days.”

“Sorry?”

“Yes.”

“Sorry, what?!”

“Yes.”

The Northern resident wearing a thick fur hat looked at us as if we were insane. He scratched his ear, as if questioning whether he had heard correctly, before turning to our pile of luggage with wide eyes.

“You’re here… on vacation?”

“Yes.”

“Now?”

“Yes.”

“This is during the mating season for frost wolves…”

“Ah, it seems the lady will get to see an interesting sight.”

“Breeding…!”

The Northern local stared at us, his bewildered gaze shouting, ‘These people are out of their minds.’ Shaking his head, he spoke in a calm, low voice.

“You’re likely to die.”

“We’ll be fine. We’re surprisingly good at surviving.”

“Haha… Well, it’s your problem, but there’s no place for you to stay right now.”

“Pardon?”

“There’s nowhere.”

“…”

“All the decent inns are closed. There was a hotel on the outskirts, but it got buried in an avalanche.”

Hearing that even our last-resort lodgings had collapsed, I frowned slightly and glanced toward the lady, who was nonchalantly building a snowman.

“My lady, there’s nowhere for us to stay.”

“…Why?”

“They’re on strike. Supposedly, they make more money by not operating than they do by staying open.”

“That’s smart.”

“Indeed.”

I dismissed the local and stood blankly on the windy street.

“Well, for now, how about we get something to eat?”

“What will we do with the luggage?”

“Most of it’s empty. All that’s inside are chocolates, a few knives, my butler uniform, and some warm clothes. Even if it gets stolen, it’s no big deal.”

“Then why did you bring it?”

“To pack souvenirs on the way back.”

“…”

The lady looked at me with an expression that said she didn’t understand but nodded anyway.

“Alright.”

And so, we ate at a restaurant and then climbed the Northern mountain range afterward—just to digest the food.

There wasn’t a grand reason behind it.

It just seemed like fun.

Since we were in snowy mountains, the first thing we decided to do was sledding. Without thinking about anything else, the lady and I ignored reason and let ourselves go down the steep slope.

*Pexry No. 1* had protective magic on it, so there was no need to worry about safety. This allowed us to fully enjoy the entertainment.

“Eeek!!!”

“My lady, don’t press the acceleration button! You’ll get buried in snow!”

“What? I can’t hear you over the wind! Hehe… whoooaaaaaa!!!”

And so, we continued sledding.

Luckily, we later ran into an innkeeper running an establishment.

*

James felt bitter.

The crazy people he assumed would never show up were now standing right in front of him.

“Sigh…”

Having just returned from a monster hunt, James found two travelers burdened with piles of luggage standing in his inn.

“Are you open?”

“Well, uh…”

“My lady!”

“Yaaah! Let’s go in!”

They rushed inside so quickly that James didn’t even have the chance to turn them away. In his ten years of running an inn, this was the biggest crisis he had ever faced.

Should he take them in?

Just before, he had witnessed them sledding like madmen. James’ shoulders still trembled from the sight of it.

“Heheh! That was so much fun! I want to go again!”

“Haha! If I had been a bit slower, you would have fallen off the cliff, my lady!”

“Eek! I’ll be more careful next time!”

“It’s alright! I’m always here, aren’t I?”

James had dealt with many guests, but never ones like these.

With a deep sigh, James looked at the guests before him.

A tall man with red hair.

A woman with injured legs.

‘Are they really…?’

The woman, seated in her wheelchair, had her lap piled high with baggage.

“Heeeak… So heavy…!”

“I’m fine, my lady.”

“Eiii…!”

At first glance, they didn’t seem like ordinary people. Between their appearance and behavior, something was clearly off.

While their well-groomed hair suggested they weren’t commoners, their actions made them seem more like barbarians.

James couldn’t shake the ominous feeling.

It felt instinctively dangerous to keep these people as guests—as though something would go terribly wrong if he did.

“Heeeak…!”

“Just hold on a little longer, my lady.”

“Ricardo! You already put your stuff down!”

“I’m fine.”

“But I’m not!”

James had a strong premonition. He just knew their stay wouldn’t be peaceful.

From where he stood deep in thought, the sound of a table being tapped reached his ears. The red-haired man was smiling faintly at James as he lightly rapped on the table.

-Tap, tap, tap.

“Do you have any rooms available?”

“Sorry?”

“We struggled to find an open place after hearing all the inns are closed around here. We’ll pay twice… no, thrice the cost if we have to.”

James studied the couple.

“Sniff…!”

“My lady, please don’t wipe your nose on your clothes.”

“I don’t have a handkerchief.”

“You only need to ask me.”

“Then give it now.”

Her legs made her seem pitiful, but her behavior gave James the impression that something disastrous would happen to the inn.

He fell into deep contemplation for about three minutes.

-Bang.

The man then placed a heavy pouch of gold coins on the table and spoke.

“So, do you have a room?”

The sum was far too large to turn down.

*

At the Royal Academy’s female dormitory.

Sitting at her desk once again, Yuria tapped her lips with the end of her quill, trying to decide what to write in her letter to her father.

“…”

‘Hello, Dad!

This is my first letter since spring began.

I’m sorry it’s been so long since I last wrote, but the academy has kept me really busy…. Now that I’m in my third year, there’s so much more to learn.’

·

“Sigh…”

Yuria couldn’t bring herself to write more. She wanted to pen something that would make her father smile, but nothing seemed right.

Studying at the academy was tough.

She quarreled with Ruin.

And the matter involving the cultists.

She had no idea what to put down. Normally, she would start with a proud statement about her high scores in the ranking competitions, but recent issues with the cult had made that impossible. Yuria let out a deep sigh as she pondered.

Then, a memory flashed across her mind—something her father would recognize. It was an old story, but one that made her chuckle as she picked up her quill again.

‘By the way, do you remember the friend I mentioned before?

The one who ate with me and helped me when I got lost at the academy.

I once wrote to you that we fought, remember? Well, this time, we managed to reconcile. It’s still a little awkward between us, but I’m sure we’ll be as close as we used to be if we take it slow…’

Smiling faintly, Yuria scribbled away, filling the page with her words.

Finally, she carefully penned a line expressing her concern.

‘I’ve heard news that monsters in the North are on the rise lately. Tell me you’re not doing anything dangerous, please…!

I miss you, Dad.

Love, your daughter.’

*

At that very moment.

“Don’t you think you should consider dating my daughter…?”

James was trying to set up the red-haired man with his daughter.

End of Chapter.