“The Villainess Draws Pictures” Episode 20
It seemed Violet was not the only one thinking this, as the servants’ gazes toward Roen were subtly strange.
Clack.
Maria set down a plate.
The little girl’s expression clearly showed what she was thinking, and Violet let out a quiet sigh inwardly.
The young maid was sometimes far too naive.
It was a grateful trait, but also dangerously so. Violet decided she would need to teach her later which actions were acceptable and which were not.
“So, what brings you here?”
Sipping tea that was, as always, barely palatable, Violet asked. Roen took a sip as well, then immediately set his cup down.
“You’ve changed quite a bit.”
“…Is that all you came to say?”
“No, that was just the preface.”
“…”
A soft smile rested on Roen’s face, carrying an unreadable air.
Violet disliked the way he spoke.
“Did you change after you were confined? Or did you choose confinement because you had already changed?”
“…Get to the point.”
“You see, we haven’t spoken properly in quite a long time. It would be a shame to only speak of the main topic, wouldn’t it?”
Violet briefly considered whether she could pour the tea over Roen’s face.
Ruining her recently improved reputation would not be a good idea. She quietly set her teacup down.
“There are rumors that you’ve changed. That Violet has finally come to her senses.”
“…”
“But fundamentally, you haven’t changed. You still dislike Aileen, you don’t favor me, and you look down on my brother. As always.”
“…What are you trying to say?”
“It’s simple.”
Roen took another sip of tea. The current Violet would likely have been furious, accusing him of serving something as filthy as dishwater to a noble lady.
“…What changed you?”
Roen’s green eyes turned toward Violet. In that probing gaze, thick with scrutiny, Violet let out a faint laugh.
“You’re the one who said I haven’t changed, aren’t you? What exactly do you think has changed about me?”
“…I chose my words poorly.”
“If that’s what you came to say, then please leave—”
“What… about us made you push yourself so far?”
Clink.
Violet’s movements froze for a moment.
Only Maria, who hadn’t understood what Roen meant, blinked with wide eyes.
“….”
“You haven’t changed at all. Not when you were very young, not when you cruelly tormented Aileen, and not even now.”
The trembling in her fingertips began to subside.
Violet realized why Roen had come to see her. The question she had been unable to voice lingered on her lips.
But alongside that realization, her emotions began to stir.
“Then perhaps it’s not you who changed, but us.”
“….”
“I came here to talk. But the one who should be speaking isn’t me—it’s you, Violet.”
“…Are you saying that now—”
“Tell me your story.”
“What are you talking ab—”
“…Sorry I’m late.”
Clatter.
The teacup trembled endlessly in her hand as the strength drained from her grip.
The words she had repeated to herself—telling herself she was fine—had long since lost their effect.
Roen smiled. Not a fabricated smile, but one that seemed to come from genuine sincerity.
“I came to apologize.”
As one might expect, Roen was sent away.
With a simple, “I have nothing to discuss,” Violet dismissed her brother and returned to her room.
Even speaking with Maria had taken her a long time.
Reopening wounds that had been carved so deeply, digging up memories she had buried—it still hurt too much.
She knew that someday she would have to face those wounds properly. But now was not the time.
So she turned away from her pain. She refused her brother’s apology.
However, now that Roen had taken the initiative to apologize, Violet could no longer ignore him forever.
Even if it meant reopening old wounds.
“Maria.”
“Yes?”
“What should I do in a situation like this?”
“…Hmm. I’m not sure.”
Maria had no real answer either. Violet looked at the silently standing knight, then turned her gaze away again.
Zylo was unlikely to give a normal answer.
The question she asked came from within herself.
Why not just hear him out? said Violet as she was now.
I don’t want to, replied the Violet of her wounded childhood.
She didn’t necessarily have to accept the apology. In fact, was it even truly an apology?
Wasn’t he one of the people who had torn her apart with words countless times? Violet briefly considered the possibility that Roen’s actions might have been calculated.
With Roen, that was entirely possible.
If it was calculated, then for what purpose?
To find a proper answer, Violet first had to understand what she herself wanted.
What did she want from Roen? And what did she want their relationship to become?
Forgiveness? That was easy to say.
It would be nice to simply never see his face again for the rest of her life. Long-standing emotions wouldn’t disappear so easily.
I want them to taste the same despair as I did. Crying at the bottom, suffering, living miserably.
Yet she had no intention of exacting revenge herself. What a contradiction.
She couldn’t exactly tell someone who had come to apologize, “Go drown in a plate of water and die.” And above all—
“…Still feels unfair.”
The desire to be recognized, one she had held for so long, had already faded into indistinct ashes.
Yet that hollow longing had not completely disappeared.
Would telling her story change anything? Violet pondered as she ate a cookie.
“…If it were me.”
The knight who had been standing silently finally spoke. Both pairs of eyes turned toward him.
Zylo cleared his throat quietly.
“I’d start by hitting them once.”
“I’m not very strong.”
“Shall I hit them for you instead?”
“No, no… that’s alright.”
It would be improper for a knight to strike a noble. Violet stopped Zylo, who spoke of impropriety as if it were obvious.
Still, she found herself agreeing inwardly. Starting with a hit… wasn’t a bad idea. Maybe she should just hit him in the mouth.
Imagining it, something she had done countless times before, Violet chuckled.
Even if she thought hard about it, she couldn’t reach a conclusion immediately.
The emotions she had suppressed for so long were still screaming within her.
If she made a decision while overwhelmed, it would likely backfire.
“Give me more cookies.”
“You’ve already finished an entire plate.”
“Still…”
“You haven’t exercised today, have you?”
“….”
With a sigh, Violet stood up. When there’s too much to think about, moving the body was the best option.
One week after Roen’s apology.
During that week, the second prince sent various gifts to the annex. Flowers, food, clothing, paints, even a light rapier. The variety was impressive.
Watching a new gift arrive each day, Violet rubbed her forehead.
The clothes were mostly simple, as if he had realized she didn’t need overly extravagant outfits. Instead, the fabrics were remarkably soft.
“Such effort…”
A very expensive display of effort.
“What came today?”
“He just asked if you’re having a good day.”
“The young lord is quite different from what I imagined.”
“Don’t associate with him. People like that are the most dangerous.”
Along with the gifts, Roen also sent a card each day.
Most were simple greetings checking in on her.
“Um, my lady…”
“What is it?”
“Lately, strange rumors have been going around. I’m not entirely sure, but… people are saying the young lord might not be such a bad person.”
“….”
Hearing Maria’s hesitant words, Violet let out a sigh.
She hated situations like this.
Situations that pushed people into a corner, forcing them along until they could no longer resist. If she continued avoiding Roen, she would eventually be seen as the villain.
Was this what Roen had been aiming for from the start?
Suppressing the urge to shout, Violet gestured to Maria, who quickly fell silent.
Now that she thought about it, Mikhail had also been unusually quiet despite Roen’s noticeable actions. By now, Mikhail should have come to confront her in anger.
Thinking of the unpleasant man, Violet frowned and set down her brush.
“Sir.”
“Ah, have you finished your work?”
“No. I just felt a bit stiff.”
“Did you come to exercise?”
“No, just to watch.”
Zylo, who had brightened up, quickly deflated. A new knight nearby rolled on the ground and screamed, “Please save me, my lady!”
“Do you know what that person has been up to lately?”
“That person?”
“Prince Mikhail.”
“…Aren’t you family?”
“I wouldn’t say I’d like to call him my brother.”
“Ah.”
After a moment of thought, Zylo decided to give a simple answer.
“Well, I don’t know the details, but there are rumors that Second Prince Mikhail may be stripped of his ducal succession rights. It’s said to be due to his past arrogant behavior, though personally, I can’t say for sure.”
It was unexpected news.
“Additionally, there are reports that the estate’s servants are being replaced on a large scale… and that various matters are ongoing. There are also rumors spreading about you, my lady.”
Zylo summarized the situation:
First, Mikhail’s ducal succession rights were in jeopardy.
Second, the household servants were undergoing a major overhaul.
Third, favorable rumors about Violet were spreading.
Violet, who had been unaware of her own situation, held her head.
With no idea what was happening, her head began to ache.
The situation improving so positively felt strangely unfamiliar, and instead of relief, she felt fear.
