I May Be A Villainess, But I Won't Live My Life That Way - Chapter 59

Chapter 59

“Ricardo.”

As I called out the name of the person who boarded the carriage, he looked at me. No, he had been staring at me from the beginning.

With a rather displeased expression.

“Did you really have to make such a dramatic entrance? It’s dangerous.”

“Are you worried about me?”

Ricardo said, squinting slightly. That response puzzled me once again.

Wouldn’t anyone think that way seeing someone suddenly jump onto a moving carriage? It was fortunate he climbed on safely, but if he had fallen off, he would have undoubtedly been seriously injured.

“Yes. The carriage door suddenly opened, which startled me, and then someone jumped onto the carriage unexpectedly, and I was even more surprised when I realized it was you. Why would you engage in such risky behavior?”

“I was in a hurry.”

“What could be so urgent?”

“My heart.”

Now, this was another enigma. I was too tired from a day of stress to participate in Ricardo’s game of riddles.

So instead of asking further questions, I demanded an explanation by simply staring at him intently.

And Ricardo, in turn, was staring back at me as if he needed an explanation himself.

“Panya, stop the carriage for a moment and get in the coachman’s seat.”

It seemed like the conversation might be prolonged. After Panya got off and the carriage started again, Ricardo still remained silent.

He looked at me suspiciously, his fat face still disgruntled. His attitude seemed to demand an explanation from me.

“What was so urgent?”

“Why did you go to the tea party?”

Both Ricardo and I blurted out our questions simultaneously.

“… … .”

“… … .”

After our simultaneous questions, there was a simultaneous silence. It was both a generous allowance of time to answer one’s own question and, at the same time, an uncompromising insistence to answer one’s question first.

“You went to the tea party, so I was in a hurry. So, tell me. Why did you go to the royal tea party?”

It was an inexplicable cause-and-effect relationship Ricardo was trying to explain as he threw his question again.

“I was invited.”

Still, since Ricardo had answered my question first, I responded to his question.

“You could have declined.”

“It’s an invitation from the palace.”

“If you’re unwell or have prior engagements, you could decline, right? I don’t think the Croft family is such a powerless family.”

“His Royal Highness himself extended the invitation, and for our family to decline it… we couldn’t possibly…”

“What? Asel himself?”

Before I could finish my sentence, Ricardo burst out.

And the next words to come out of my mouth were ‘It’s not a big deal.’ And my mouth was slightly open to pronounce them. I froze in that state.

Why is this man acting like this?

“Ricardo?”

I called Ricardo’s name strangely today.

As if calling out a familiar voice to calm down a rampaging dog or horse.

“Really, I don’t understand.”
He was saying what I was going to say.

“You know what the royal tea party is, right? I know enough about it, so don’t tell me you didn’t know.”

Ricardo said with a stern expression.

“When Carlos mentioned the names of those invited, I naturally assumed you wouldn’t be attending.”

“Why?”

“Because you’re my fiancée!”

As if he couldn’t contain his frustration at having to explain even that, Ricardo shouted out.

“Why is my fiancée attending a place akin to being chosen as the princess consort? And why is Asel sending invitations to my fiancée?”

“If you’re going to address His Highness like that…”

“Why? Are you going to report me for blasphemy, Bianca?”

“No. I just thought His Highness would like it.”

“You know.”

It wasn’t just me who had seen Asel for a long time. Ricardo had too.

He knew that if I called him familiarly, not as a prince but as an old childhood friend, Asel would probably like it. Even with a bit of slang mixed in.

“Darn it!”

As if cursing to make himself feel better, Ricardo shouted again in an ironic situation where the other person liked it more.

“So, your urgent business is that I attended that royal tea party?”

“Yes.”

“So, you were waiting for me here?”

“Yes.”

“For how long?”

“A while.”

“… … .”

Listening to Ricardo’s curt replies, I found myself at a loss for words and quietly closed my mouth.

I didn’t dare to ask how long “a while” was. If he, with his strong patience, said “a while,” and moreover, when a man who didn’t know the meaning of modesty said “a while,” then it was indeed a long time.

“First off.”

I opened my mouth slowly. Ricardo, sitting in front of me, still had a frowning expression as he looked at me.

“I know what that royal tea party means.”

As I began to speak softly, I could see anger flashing across Ricardo’s face.

Gosh! Where did the indifferent Ricardo I knew go?

“However, I judged that my role was the same as Carlos’s.”

Ricardo, who seemed like he might jump up from his seat at any moment, paused.

“The same role as Carlos?”

“Yes.”

I shrugged slightly.

“Although the purpose of inviting the potential princesses is to select the future queen, do you think the atmosphere would be harmonious if only the potential princesses were invited? They would be watching each other, being cautious, and trying to outdo each other.”

Today’s event was entirely different from that.

“So, that’s why there are additional invitees. For example, those with a close relationship with the prince or similar-aged men who may not be potential princesses but are worthy of an invitation and won’t make the event too obvious.”

“Is that your role, Bianca?”

“I thought so and accepted the invitation. In fact, I’ve been invited to royal tea party before and attended.”

“What? You’ve been invited before?”

There was no need to say you didn’t know because you weren’t interested in me. It was already a well-known fact.

“Even if you think so, Asel…!”

Ricardo stopped himself from saying something. Even with his mouth closed, his lips were trembling.

I stared quietly at those lips. He was debating whether to say something or not.

“Asel likes me.”

And to relieve Ricardo’s hesitation, I spoke instead of what he wanted to say.

His lips, which had been trembling, slowly parted. And the man who was always sharp was dumbfoundedly looking at me with his mouth open.

“I know.”

“You do?”

“I’m not stupid, you know. I know who likes me and who doesn’t, at least to some extent.”

The only one I didn’t know about was just one person. I still looked straight at Ricardo, who was clearly surprised.

The old Ricardo didn’t like me. That was clear.

And the current Ricardo…

“Yeah. You’re a smart woman.”

The surprise on his face disappeared, and Ricardo was looking at me directly too.

“So, you might even know better than me why I’m acting like this.”

“What do you mean?”

I knew. Well, roughly.

But annoyingly, I kept silent.

“Carlos said you were among the guests, and I couldn’t believe it. Either my ears were wrong, or Carlos’s mouth was wrong, I thought.”

“Both are probably normal.”

“Yeah. After confirming that both were normal, I was furious. But soon it subsided. I thought you wouldn’t come.”

“But I didn’t refuse.”

“Yeah. When I sent someone to the Croft this morning and said you were at the royal tea party, I lost it!”

“Did you doubt your ears again?”

“No. This time, I was just angry.”

As if he were chewing on his anger, Ricardo gritted his teeth and closed his eyes slowly, then opened them again.

“So, I came straight here. But I wasn’t on the list of guests at the palace today, and even that damn Asel, who has some friendship with me, refused entry, so I waited for you here because I couldn’t just enter the palace.”

His “A while” was indeed long.

“So, smart Bianca Croft understands, right?”

His eyelids lifted, and his black pupils stared at me. There was only one emotion in them.

His monopolistic desire towards me.

“Well…”

Though I knew it all, or at least suspected it, I pretended not to know again.

I wanted to hear my suspicions directly from his mouth, not from my own speculation.

“I’m not sure, Duke Winkaiser. So please tell me directly.”

With a slight smile, I stared into Ricardo’s black eyes.

Truly Ricardo’s eyes. His eyes were of one color, containing only one emotion.

“Bianca, I…”

Eeeek!

Aaargh!

Who is it!

Just as Ricardo was about to open his mouth and finally speak, there was suddenly a commotion outside.

Whether it was startled by the noise or not, the carriage abruptly stopped with a loud cry, almost causing me to fall, but Ricardo quickly caught me with his hand.

Almost embracing me in his arms, I looked up in surprise. When I did, for the second time today, the carriage door opened abruptly.

“Smile Love”