I May Be A Villainess, But I Won't Live My Life That Way - Chapter 83

Chapter 83

“Bianca.”

After laughing for quite a while, Asel finally stopped and called my name.

I had been quietly watching him laugh, but when it went on too long, I began drinking tea by myself. Only then did I look up at Asel.

He looked relieved.

I’m not sure if I should say this, but he looked like someone who had finally confessed his feelings to a long-time crush, only to be soundly rejected.

It was as if he had given up on a hopeless love, realizing he couldn’t go on any longer, and had decided to make a fresh start after ending a long unrequited love.

“Yes, you’re right. I will find a good woman. You said it would be hard to find someone as good as you, but it wouldn’t make sense for Aselbrant Cardisento to settle for anyone less. I’ll find a woman just as perfect as Bianca Croft.”

“If you keep looking for such a woman, you might die old and alone.”

I gave him sincere advice in response to his words.

“You seem confident there’s no one better than you, but I’m just as confident.”

“Do as you please. It’s not my responsibility if you grow old alone.”

Asel’s life was his own. If he chose a life of solitude, it was only right that I should support him in it.

“Alright, then. I’ll end my visit here. My secretary is outside waiting, checking the time. I need to leave here precisely at 3:24 to return to the palace. I have a meeting with the Minister of Finance at 4:12 to discuss the budget for the royal hunting tournament.”

Asel stood up lightly.

“Take care on your way back.”

I stood up as well, to see off Asel, who was still keeping up with his busy schedule.

“Of course, I’m the esteemed Crown Prince, so I must take care. Oh, by the way, you’ll be attending the hunting tournament, right?”

“Probably.”

I had thought about declining the invitation. I wondered if avoiding the place where I was destined to die might change the course of events in the book.

But I knew that simply avoiding it wasn’t the answer. Avoidance was merely delaying the inevitable.

If it wasn’t the royal hunting tournament, it would be a ball hosted by someone else, or a tea party, or an exhibition—the location would just change.

To truly change the content of the book, I needed to uncover its hidden secrets and influence the characters within it.

Expose Wensbury’s misdeeds, persuade Maria, … and make Ricardo look at me, just like I did.

“Your knight will be Ricardo, of course?”

Asel asked with a mischievous smile.

“Unfortunately, your knight won’t win the hunting tournament. I’m going to use every dirty and underhanded trick in the book to make sure Ricardo doesn’t win.”

“Why would you do that?”

“Because I don’t want to see the successor of the First Ducal House, who’s also the youngest and most handsome knight commander, win the hunting tournament as well. To be honest, Bianca, your fiancé is kind of annoying.”

As I walked behind Asel, who was rambling on without stopping as he headed toward the door, I found myself smiling faintly.

The Asel who had once felt unfamiliar had now turned into the Asel I knew well.

Playful, sly, with a manner of speaking that lacked dignity, and yet suited him perfectly.

“Oh, right.”

Just before leaving the drawing room, Asel turned around with a smile. He looked directly at me.

“Did you forget something?”

“Do you remember what I told you before?”

“Which thing?”

Asel had said many things to me over the years, most of which were just nonsense.

“I told you, if you ever need me, just call my name. I said it would be like a magic spell.”

He was referring to something he had said when I had approached him about the orphanage’s relocation issue. Back then, he had playfully but sincerely told me that if I called his name, he would make whatever I wished come true.

“For the sake of my childhood sweetheart, that spell will be valid as long as I’m alive and as long as you’re alive.”

A light smile.

And a promise that was anything but light.

“Call my name when you need me, Bianca.”

All I had to do was nod. If I did, I would wield immense power.

If Asel supported me, even someone like me who couldn’t bear an heir would be accepted by the Winkiaser family. Even if I couldn’t have children, I would still have the protection of the future emperor.

Ricardo could safely become the Duke of Winkaiser, and I could achieve my long-held dream of becoming the Duchess of Winkaiser.

All I had to do was nod, close my eyes, and shamelessly accept Asel’s offer.

“No.”

But I shook my head.

“I won’t call your name that way.”

“I figured as much. You’re too proud, Bianca. You wouldn’t let yourself be dependent on me…”

“No, that’s not it.”

Although Asel and I were very similar, this time he didn’t guess what I was thinking. Cutting off his words, I looked at him.

“My friend, Asel.”

“What?”

“I won’t just call your name when I need something. You’re my childhood friend, Asel, someone I’ve known since we were very young. You’re my long-time friend, Asel, with whom I’ll continue to share this deep connection.”

“Bianca…!”

“Asel, that’s how I’ll call you.”

Asel was silent for a while. He just blinked and stared at me.

At first, he seemed surprised, then confused, then bewildered, and finally, he laughed.

A very cheerful laugh.

“Are you finally admitting that we’ve been childhood friends for a long time?”

“I’m not foolish enough to ignore the truth.”

“Well, that’s not bad. Love may be shattered, but I’ve gained a friendship. Plus, minus. Arithmetically perfect.”

“I’m always perfect.”

“The fact that you’re finally calling me Asel feels like I’m the one who’s gaining something here.”

Asel nodded slightly as he spoke, with an expression like a merchant carefully calculating his gains. Then, when our eyes met, Asel smiled warmly.

I smiled back at Asel.

It was probably the most relaxed smile I had ever seen from him.

And perhaps, seeing my smile now, Asel was thinking the same thing.

***

“Over here.”

I raised my hand to call out to Maria as she entered the shop.

I knew she was Maria because I had been looking at the door and carefully watching the person entering, otherwise no one would have recognized her.

Maria had pulled the hood of her robe down so low it nearly touched her nose, and she walked into the shop with her head down.

I was doing the same, waiting for her. Although I wasn’t wearing a hood like Maria, I had tilted a wide-brimmed hat forward, half-covering my face.

“How have you been?”

“I’ve been well. How about you?”

“Nothing much happened, so I guess you could say I’ve been fine.”

Even as we exchanged pleasantries, we didn’t mention names. That was a forbidden topic between us now.

No one could recognize Maria or me. Especially, no one could witness the two of us together.

On the surface, Maria and I were still supposed to be adversaries.

No one could know that we had already reconciled. Especially not the Viscount of Wensbury—he must never find out.

That’s why we met like this, with our faces hidden, in secret, nameless meetings.

We had agreed beforehand not to mention each other’s names or the names of others that might give away our identities.

“You’re attending the hunting tournament, right?”

“Yes.”

Maria nodded, and for a moment, I almost asked if she would be attending as Lady of her brother, Raintar, but I swallowed the question.

There was no need to confirm something I had already read in the book. Besides, if Maria asked how I knew, I wouldn’t have a good answer.

Whether it was orchestrated by the Viscount of Wensbury or just a coincidence, when I was poisoned, Maria was sitting at the same table as me.

I suspected it was the Viscount’s doing.

It seemed like he wanted to make Maria fear him, ensuring she wouldn’t defy his will by having her witness my death after I had opposed him.

Moreover, the Viscount, unaware that Maria and I had fallen out, probably wanted to show that he was willing to commit murder for her.

But in the book, my death became the catalyst for Maria’s burning desire for revenge.

Seeing me suffer, vomiting blood from the same poison that killed Megi, only made her more acutely aware of the painful death her beloved mother had endured.

“How is he doing?”

The “he” I was asking about, of course, was the Viscount of Wensbury.

“He’s the same as always. Except that he’s been away from the estate more often, saying he’s practicing for the hunt.”

“Do you think he’s noticed anything? Our relationship or that you’ve broken free from his control?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Be careful. He’s good at acting.”

“Yes, I know. But for now, it seems okay.”

When I expressed concern for Maria, living under the same roof as the Viscount, she responded with a faint smile.

The Viscount of Wensbury was the man who had killed the woman he had been involved with and had attacked me, the person he intended to marry off to his son.

Even if Maria was his daughter, if he found out she had betrayed him, he would have no qualms about harming her too. Maria, the protagonist, might be safe, but there was always a chance.

That cursed book could decide to cast another female lead at any time. After all, it was a cruel and wicked book that treated human lives as insignificant.

Of course, that didn’t mean I would just stand by and watch it happen.