A Third-Rate Villain Tries Her Best Today 41

Chapter 41

“Alright, I’ll call a maid from the Byron family. That’s what you want, right?”

Why is she making things so difficult? If she wasn’t feeling well, he could call a doctor for her.

Despite his bewilderment, Acrea quickly summoned a maid from the Byron family.

“M-Miss Sue?!”

The maid, who had reluctantly followed Acrea, gasped in horror at the sight of her mistress, barely able to breathe, and rushed to her side.

It was Laura, the maid she had met at the main residence the other day. Sue needed Ten or Nine, but Acrea wouldn’t have known the difference.

Laura hurriedly helped Sue up. Sue slumped against her, her body limp. Laura, who had been told that her “mistress was in danger”, had never experienced anything like this and didn’t know what to do.

“…Laura, don’t make a fuss… Take me to the lounge.”

“Y-yes, yes!”

Sue gritted her teeth after forcing out those words. She took a step at a time, supported by Laura. Outwardly, she acted like a young lady who simply needed a break, but she didn’t know how it looked to others.

Fortunately, the lounge was empty. It was only natural, considering no one would come here to rest during such an important ball.

Laura helped Sue onto a sofa. Sue was struggling to breathe. She was enduring the pain, but she wanted to beg Enzhe to just punch her instead.

“Should I call a doctor?”

Acrea, who had followed them, asked Laura from a distance. But Laura didn’t know anything either. As she hesitated, Sue forced herself to speak.

“I’m fine.”

The words came out in a strained whisper.

He followed me even though I said I was fine. Damn it.

Honestly, she wanted to curse him out. And she already had, inwardly. But she couldn’t blame him.

Anyone would be concerned about someone who suddenly collapsed in front of them. And for Acrea, it was simply the right thing to do as a noble gentleman.

But she couldn’t afford to be considerate of his feelings right now.

With a feeling of desperation, Sue forced a smile. She didn’t realize how strained it looked.

“I’m really fine. I’ll be better after some rest. I have a… chronic illness, you see, from when I was young. So, Master Acrea, would you please leave me alone for a while? I apologize for not being able to properly thank you.”

“….”

The curse, and the circumstances surrounding Enzhe and Michaela’s births, were a secret shared only by the Lopetrefer, Byron, and Vava families. She didn’t know how much Acrea and Fritz knew or suspected about their political relationship, but she had to keep the secret. Otherwise, she might be dragged to the guillotine.

“Alright, I’ll be going then.”

“Please be careful, Master Woo Acrea!”

Acrea disappeared from the lounge, leaving Laura’s stiff farewell behind.

“Laura, lock the door.”

“Y-yes!”

The moment Laura locked the door, Sue’s consciousness shut down completely.

The pain continued for several minutes.

Sue writhed on the sofa, praying for Enzhe’s tantrum to end. She felt a sense of injustice. Why is she taking out her anger on me because Fritz was cold to her? But Sue was born to endure this. She couldn’t complain to anyone.

“Are you alright, Miss?”

“…Ten?”

As the pain subsided and her consciousness returned, she heard Ten’s voice beside her.

“…Is that really you, Ten?”

“Yes, it’s really me.”

She thought she was hallucinating, but when she turned her head, Ten was really there.

“Then what about Laura…”

Sue asked weakly, her body limp. Ten wiped the sweat from her forehead with a wet handkerchief and replied,

“Laura came to find me. She was in tears. Don’t worry, no one else entered the lounge. I asked one of the maids nearby. The ball is still going on, but I left a message with Laura, so the master should know what happened. Oh, and you didn’t throw up this time.”

Ten answered all of Sue’s questions before she could even ask them.

“…Sigh, that’s good.”

Sue took a deep, shaky breath, relieved. She closed her eyes, her arm resting on her forehead. The world, which had been swirling like a vortex, slowly came back into focus.

Ten massaged Sue’s numb hands and feet. Sue stared blankly at the sparkling crystals of the chandelier. The image of Enzhe’s frustrated face, which had been the loveliest sight under the chandelier, came to mind.

‘Lovely? I wonder if I can even break this curse.’

She asked herself the question, but the only answer that came back was a resounding “no”.

Was Enzhe lying in bed, laughing at her right now? Wondering how much Sue Byron had ruined the ball, or how much pain she had endured to save her family’s face. Enzhe had done this knowing everything.

After a while, the pain completely subsided. Sue clenched her fists weakly. Her nails no longer dug into her skin. The crumpled hem of her dress was no longer flamboyant or beautiful.

“Ten.”

Sue softly called out her first maid’s name. “Yes, Miss,” came the immediate reply.

Sue lowered her arm from her forehead. The light of the chandelier, which had been obscured by her arm, flooded her red eyes.

“I’m going to break this curse.”

For the first time, she revealed her true feelings to someone else. Without any vagueness or lies. Just a short, simple statement. She expressed the only truth she could speak of right now to the stoic woman who had always taken care of ‘Sue’.

Ten was surprised.

Sue Byron was serious.

She had been different ever since they had searched the underground workshop. Ten had sensed it too. But she had thought it was just a whim. She had dismissed Sue’s noticeably gentler treatment of the servants as part of her ‘playing nice’ act.

“….”

But Ten didn’t answer her mistress’s bold declaration. Because no matter what she said, it wouldn’t be her true feelings.

Ten had countless memories of being tormented by Sue since she was a child. The torn earlobe on her right ear was a permanent reminder of those wounds. She had never truly felt any loyalty towards her mistress.

Our vicious, flawed, and pitiful young mistress.

Sue Byron will always be Sue Byron. That fact would never change.

And yet, she felt a faint glimmer of agreement with her words.

‘I do want to see it. I want to see her break free from the curse.’

Yes, it’s the perspective of a spectator.

***

“Miss, we have arrived.”

The coachman’s gruff voice announced their arrival from outside the carriage. Sue opened her eyes blearily at the loud voice.

“Yes, thank you. I’ll open the door when the Miss wakes up, so you don’t have to wait outside.”

Nine answered, watching Sue yawn as she woke up. Sue, understanding the situation, asked in a groggy voice,

“…We’re here?”

“Yes, Miss. It’s Emnon.”

Sue rubbed her sleepy eyes, her mind still hazy. Her whole body felt stiff from sitting in the carriage for hours since dawn.

After regaining her senses, she had Nine help her re-braid her tangled hair. Then, she put on a brown robe over her clothes.

As Nine opened the carriage door, the blue morning light shone on Sue. She squinted slightly at the bright scenery. The salty scent of the sea mingled with the warm breeze, tickling her nose.

“Miss, are you sure about this? Without any guards…?”

Nine expressed her concern, watching Sue stretch as she got out of the carriage. Sue put on the hood of her robe and nodded lightly.

“Yes. You can go wherever you want until it’s time to leave, Nine.”

“Ah, no, I’ll wait in the carriage. Please be careful, Miss.”

“Okay.”

Emnon, the seaside town. Sue took a brisk step forward, unable to hide her curiosity.

***

Emnon was a small town located on the eastern edge of the empire. It would normally take several days to travel there by carriage, but Sue had used a high-speed magic carriage, which had recently become commercially available, to reach Emnon in a few hours. There were no trains that went to Emnon, and even the high-speed magic carriages didn’t usually operate in such a rural town, but she had paid extra to have exclusive use of the carriage for a day.

There were several reasons why Sue had come to this small, rural town.

After the not-so-enjoyable ball at the Lopetrefer residence, Sue had spent some time recuperating at her townhouse, avoiding contact with anyone. But it wasn’t really recuperating, it was more like slacking off. She would get out of bed, wash up, eat, then lie back down in bed and roll around until she fell asleep.

After repeating this for several days, she suddenly felt a jolt of alarm.

It had only been a few days since she had boasted to Ten that she would break the curse, but she had been doing nothing but sleeping, let alone finding a way to break it.

She tried to get back on track by opening a magic theory textbook she hadn’t looked at in a while, but she couldn’t concentrate. Then, she remembered Emnon, a town she had always wanted to visit, and decided that it would be better to go there than to do nothing.

The reason why she had always wanted to visit Emnon was simple. It was the hometown of the protagonist, Halo. Or more precisely, it was a town near her hometown.

Emnon was also where Halo and Fritz had their sweet dates. Fritz, who dated Halo in the novel, was quite adorable. Now, he was just a strange person with a handsome face and outstanding abilities.