I May Be A Villainess, But I Won't Live My Life That Way - Chapter 41

Chapter 41

“Miss, I have urgent news to deliver.”

Urgency was evident not only in the butler’s words but also in his hurried expression.

“What’s the matter?”

I quickly inquired about the reason as it seemed more than just words from his anxious demeanor.

“The soldier who was sent as an escort to the hospital has returned.”

His words made me furrow my brows slightly.

Yesterday, I had instructed the butler to select suitable individuals among the soldiers to provide security for Megi and arranged for them to take turns in shifts for 24 hours.

And today was the first day of that arrangement.

However, the soldier had already returned on the first day?

“Why? Did he face difficulties at the hospital? Or did the lady find it uncomfortable and refuse?”

“It’s not that…”

The butler hesitated for a moment, seemingly reluctant to convey what seemed to be difficult words.

Knowing that he was not someone who hesitated easily, his demeanor actually heightened my anxiety.

“It’s about the person you instructed to be escorted, Miss. It seems she passed away.”

“What?”

“This morning, when the soldier arrived at the hospital, the person had already passed away.”

“It can’t be….”

The words were so unbelievable that it made my head spin.

I spoke with Megi just yesterday. It hadn’t even been a day since I saw her smiling.

And now she is dead?

“How did she die?”

“We don’t know yet. However, when we went to find the patient, we were told that she had passed away suddenly last night. The news shocked us, and we hurried back to the mansion to inform you.”

“Prepare a carriage immediately.”

I stood up abruptly, announcing the order.

“Are you planning to go to the hospital?”

“Yes, to the hospital… No, to the Marquess of Wensbury’s… No… Anyway, prepare the carriage.”

My thoughts were in disarray, and I struggled to determine the destination.

But one clear fact remained – now was not the time for this.

Events were unfolding rapidly.

“Wait, is that…”

As the carriage arrived at the hospital and I was about to step down, something caught my eye. It was a carriage adorned with the crest of the Wensbury Viscountcy.

It wasn’t the finest carriage that the Viscount usually rode in; I had seen Lady Wensbury or Raintar using it occasionally. Perhaps Maria had received the message and already arrived. That made sense. When a patient passes away, the first contact is usually made with the guardian.

“Aren’t you getting off, Miss?” Panya, who had already extended her hand to help me down, looked at me with a puzzled expression when I suddenly stopped. Despite her question, I hesitated on whether I should disembark or not.

What would I say if I bumped into Maria? How could I explain the reason for choosing to accompany a middle-aged, ailing lady from the countryside to the hospital?

Without an explanation, how could I justify my quick arrival at the hospital?

“I think I’ll stay in the carriage for now.”

“What?”

In the end, I chose not to disembark from the carriage. “Panya, go to the director’s office for me.”

“The director’s office? Do you have a message for the hospital director?”

“Yes.”

“Do you have something to tell him?”

“Go to the director and ask him to erase any traces that indicate I visited this place yesterday.”

“What?”

It’s not that Panya doesn’t know what I’m talking about. She just didn’t know why she should.

Somehow I didn’t want the Megi to die, but it had, just as the book said.

What was left, then, was Maria’s misunderstanding.

In order to avoid her misunderstanding as much as possible, I had to be someone who had nothing to do with Megi.

Besides, it was better that no one knew that I had met her in the daytime on the day she died.

Especially not Maria, who would never know.

***

It took two anxious days for a few facts to reach me.

The first was the funeral invitation for Megi.

It had been brought by a servant of the Marquess of Wensbury’s, but it did not bear the Marquess of Wensbury’s seal.

The sender was undoubtedly Maria.

The second was the cause of Megi’s death, obtained secretly by requesting the hospital director.

“Poisoning?”

As I read the word for the first time, I doubted my eyes.

What kind of person is the author of this book who seems to enjoy poisoning?

No, are they even human? Could they be a demon?

Human or demon, anyway, Megi’s cause of death was poisoning.

The exact time of death was uncertain, but it was presumed to be the night I visited.

It was only natural, or perhaps it should be expected.

When I left her hospital room, Meggie was undoubtedly alive, and the next morning, she was found dead.

“I need to find out more details.”

I instructed Panya to bring paper and a pen.

I wrote a letter to the hospital director, asking for more details about the cause of death, and a reply to Maria, offering words of comfort and confirming my attendance at the funeral.

While writing a letter to Maria, Megis face came to mind, and my hands trembled slightly.

Her bright laughter, the rough and wrinkled hands that held mine, the red knitted fabric that she worked on for me—those sensations lingered in my memory.

At that moment, thoughts about the book and worries about my own fate disappeared from my mind.

All that remained was the hope that Meggie had not suffered, and the wish that she was in a better place now.

***

The funeral was humble.

It was held in a cemetery that, unsurprisingly, had nothing to do with the Marquess of Wensbury, and few people attended.

All the people who would have come to Megi’s funeral would have been in Ancini, and the only people who could have traveled from there in time for the funeral were the archmages.

The few people present seemed to be related to the hospital where Megi had been, or perhaps individuals from the monastery.

And there was one person who seemed sadder than anyone else.

“Maria….”

She wore a black dress with a black veil, making her recognizable even from a distance.

It wasn’t because she was the only young woman there or the most elegantly dressed among them.

The atmosphere saturated with grief around Maria conveyed that she was Megi’s only daughter and the sole family member.

Having never experienced losing a loved one, I couldn’t fathom the extent of her sorrow.

“Oh my….”

Panya, who stood beside me, noticed Maria and let out a pitiful voice, as if sympathizing with her.

As everyone observing Maria could feel, she was immersed in deep sorrow.

“Wait for me in the carriage.”

“How long will you be?”

“Well….”

Usually, I would return immediately after a funeral. However, this time, it was uncertain.

A commoner’s funeral might be different from that of a nobility, and I wasn’t sure if Maria would need me or not.

However, the only thought in my mind was that I needed to comfort Maria. No matter how long it took.

“Miss Maria.”

Approaching quietly, when I gently placed my hand on Maria’s shoulder, I felt a slight shiver.

“How heartbroken you must be.”

Maria turned around to look at me, tears streaming down her face.

If she looked at me with a pitiful expression, I thought I would willingly offer my handkerchief and console her with words of comfort. If Maria wanted, I even considered offering her my embrace.

But that was purely my imagination.

When Maria turned away, she wasn’t crying. No, precisely, her eyes, which had been red just a moment ago, showed signs of tears. However, Maria looking at me now wasn’t crying.

“Ms. Bianca.”

Her voice, too, had a trace of tears in it, but she wasn’t crying.

The grief that had enveloped Maria like thick fog until a while ago had vanished somewhere.

Now, what remained by Maria’s side was a chill.

In her green eyes, there was coldness; in the expression she directed at me, there was severity; in the voice calling my name, there was indifference.

“You’ve come.”

Something felt odd.

It wasn’t exactly the Maria I had imagined.

“I thought you wouldn’t come.”

“I wrote back that I was coming, but I guess you didn’t see it because you were in a hurry.”

“No. I didn’t expect to receive a response.”

I realized from Maria’s gaze that something was off.

Why Maria’s appearance seemed strangely different.

The gaze Maria directed at me was distinctly different from before.

It wasn’t a gaze of admiration and respect. Now, in Maria’s eyes, there was burning anger and icy coldness.

“Miss Bianca dared to come here. I never thought that would happen.”

“Dared… you say?”

Something was wrong.

No, it was progressing as described in the book.

I sensed it.

“After the funeral, let’s talk again.”

Maria turned her head abruptly.

“Maria?”

Did my voice tremble as I called Maria, or was it my imagination?

“And leave.”

Without turning her head in my direction, Maria said, “Leave.”

“It was Miss Maria who sent the condolences, wasn’t it?”

“Did you really think that was a condolence?”

As if she couldn’t take it anymore, Maria turned her head.

And this time, the emotion I read in Maria’s eyes was.

“Contempt.

“It was a warning letter.”

“A warning letter?”

“Yes. A warning that I know the truth.”

“…….”

“Murderer.”

There was a moment when I just stared at her, not knowing what to say.

Maria’s icy voice spoke terrifying words like chewing gum.

“Why did you kill my mom?”

Finally, the words were out of Maria’s mouth.

The book was coming true.

“Smile Love”