The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen

TLed by NolepGuy

Chapter 73

Another peaceful day in the Young Lady’s room.

After reading an article predicting record-breaking cold, I was preparing to go out for the first time in a while to ensure a warm winter.

I’ll buy some snacks for the Young Lady, order firewood, and purchase a cotton blanket and fur clothes.

Dressed in my black butler’s attire, I looked up at the Young Lady, who was sticking out her white feet.

The Young Lady wore a sullen expression.

She pouted her lips and glared at the socks in my hand.

“No.”

The Young Lady turned her head away primly, sulking like a teenage girl refusing to go to school unless she had a North Face jacket.

“I don’t like red socks. They’re tacky.”

“Fashion always comes full circle.”

“Ricardo, you have no sense of style.”

“What’s wrong with my fashion sense?”

The Young Lady glanced over me, who stubbornly wore butler’s attire 365 days a year, and let out a deep sigh.

“You always dress so drab.”

“I’m wearing something different today, though.”

“It looks the same….”

“How can you say that? The shirt pattern is different from usual. I put effort into choosing it, and you don’t even notice. That’s disappointing.”

“That’s exactly the same thing!”

What’s wrong with my butler’s attire?

When I first wore it, she praised me, saying it made me look competent. Now, she’s full of complaints.

Wasn’t that praise…?

Anyway, the Young Lady, who didn’t appreciate my efforts to keep her feet warm with cozy wool socks in this cold weather, didn’t seem willing to back down.

The Young Lady declared she wouldn’t go out unless they were black socks. Her stubbornness only fueled my competitive spirit.

‘Not going to wear them? Then I want to make you wear them even more.’ A contrarian urge bubbled up in me.

Red has always been a symbol of good fortune… In my previous life, it was customary to buy red thermal underwear with one’s first paycheck, so I had a favorable view of red.

The Young Lady shook her head.

“Aaaah! I hate red socks. Give me black socks.”

“Don’t throw a tantrum. You’re so cute it makes me want to switch them to black.”

“Waaah! Black socks!”

The Young Lady, unfairly trying to win with her cuteness. I wanted to show her that I could throw a tantrum too, but I held back, considering her stomach’s health after breakfast.

‘I’ll show her next time.’

Resolving to save my tantrum for another day, I spoke seriously while imagining myself lying on the floor in protest.

“It’s bothersome to take them out.”

“What’s so bothersome? Just take them out of the wardrobe.”

“That’s what’s bothersome.”

“Eeeek…!”

The Young Lady threw a pillow.

*

There was a brief clash of opinions.

Although it was a rather childish argument over socks, we reached a compromise with a piece of chocolate.

That level of expense was something I could tolerate.

Sitting on the bed, the Young Lady looked sullenly at her feet clad in red socks. Though we had reached an agreement, she wasn’t in a good mood.

Straightening my back, I stretched out the Young Lady’s cheeks, which were adorned with a sullen expression.

“Eeeek… They’re going to tear!”

The Young Lady’s cheeks were as soft and elastic as ever.

Maybe it’s because it’s winter, but they seemed dry.

‘I’ll have to buy moisturizer too.’

The change of seasons always makes my wallet suffer. Monsters hide away in the cold, and opportunities to earn money decrease.

Since I had the money pouch Malik gave me, I figured I could handle a certain level of spending and began organizing today’s shopping list in my head.

“Ugh… Ricardo, you’re like a rich parvenu.”

“I am a parvenu.”

“…You admit that quickly.”

Turning my back to the Young Lady, I spoke.

“Let’s go. It’s on me today.”

The Young Lady replied with a serious expression.

“Ricardo pays every day.”

“…”

The Young Lady stated the obvious.

***

Hamel’s Street was cold.

“Hoo…”

The Young Lady, perched on my back, blew out white breaths, her bright, shining eyes wide with curiosity.

When she had been struggling not to come out earlier, who would have thought she’d now be so curious, blowing out white breaths? I was glad we decided to come out.

The Young Lady was wrapped up tightly in a blanket.

Worried that she might feel cold, I had bundled her up like a swaddled baby before venturing out, drawing the attention of passersby. But the Young Lady, acknowledging the formidable enemy that was the cold, didn’t say much.

“It’s because of the red socks.”

Instead, she found another reason.

As she blew out white breaths, the Young Lady’s eyes widened at the sight of a street stall selling chicken skewers.

The sweet smell of grilled meat caught her attention. Struggling to free her hand from the tightly wrapped blanket, she pointed at the stall.

“Ricardo, skewers!”

“No. Impulse purchases hurt the wallet.”

“It’s okay if the wallet hurts.”

“Then our estate will become cold.”

“That can’t happen.”

Swallowing her saliva, the Young Lady gazed longingly at the street stall.

“Ske…wers.”

“Ugh… I want to eat them.”

Seeing her wistful gestures and muttered complaints about how we shouldn’t just pass by, I chuckled softly and walked toward the stall.

“One spicy and one mild, please.”

The Young Lady wriggled happily inside the blanket, her movements lively.

As I prepared to pay, the Young Lady urgently stopped me.

“Wait…! I’ll pay!”

She began rummaging through her chest pocket for gold coins.

Watching her treasure hunt take quite some time, I smiled faintly and placed a silver coin on the table.

“I’ll pay. You can pay next time.”

“But I found it…!”

Declaring she had found it, she pulled out a piece of chocolate instead. Tilting her head in confusion, she resumed her search.

“I’ll pay.”

“Next time, I’ll pay, so Ricardo, don’t interfere.”

Nodding, I agreed with her words. I’d continue paying. I didn’t want her gold coins going to others.

The woman selling the skewers looked at the Young Lady and me with curiosity. It must have been her first time seeing a noble lady using a blanket as a swaddle.

I hoped she wouldn’t ask any strange questions….

Although the Young Lady had grown less sensitive to people’s gazes compared to her first outing, she might still get flustered if asked something awkward, like, “Is the Young Lady heavy on your back?”

Glancing at the Young Lady, who was eagerly anticipating the skewers and puffing out breaths, I smiled awkwardly.

“Could you hurry, please? It’s cold outside.”

The woman smiled brightly and worked quickly.

“Sure~ By the way, how long have you two been together?”

“Pardon?”

“I mean, how long have you been dating?”

She seemed like a nice person.

I decided in my heart to become a regular.

“…We’re not a couple.”

A voice came from behind me, belonging to the Young Lady.

The Young Lady, who spoke informally despite it being our first meeting.

I lightly nudged the Young Lady on my back to point out her mistake. Speaking informally during a first meeting was impolite.

Realizing her mistake, the Young Lady shook her head vigorously and spoke to the Ajumoni with a hint of apology.

“We’re not a couple… yo.”

“Oh, really? Haha…”

The Ajumoni smiled warmly.

“I just thought a handsome student and a pretty girl looked good together. If you were a couple, I was going to give you a little extra.”

At the word “extra,” the Young Lady’s eyes lit up as she spoke.

“What kind of extra?”

“Why, if I give you the extra, are you planning to start dating from today?”

“No, that’s not it…”

The Young Lady looked at me with an expression of distress.

“Oh my, oh my, I must be acting silly again. Please forgive me; it’s just because I’m an Ajumoni.”

Laughing heartily, the Ajumoni handed over some chicken skewers. A set of three flavors: spicy, medium, and mild.

“This is the extra!”

“Hiiiik!”

The Young Lady’s eyes grew wide.

Receiving the skewers, the Young Lady smiled brightly and gave her thanks to the Ajumoni.

“Thank you.”

“Young Lady…”

“Thank you very much.”

She was a polite Young Lady.

Before leaving the street stall.

“Hey, student!”

The Ajumoni called out to me and tossed a silver coin onto the table with a clinking sound.

“Good luck.”

As expected, Ajumonis were quick to catch on. I gave a small bow to express my gratitude.

“I’ll do my best.”

My face felt hot.

*

My hands were full of receipts.

Since I had been shopping while carrying the Young Lady on my back, I had no free hands, so we paid a small fee to have the items delivered.

The Young Lady, looking at the crumpled receipts, had her eyes darting around.

“One zero… two… three… Eeeek!”

She feared money more than ghosts.

Back when her household’s support hadn’t been cut off, it was an amount she could spend lightly. Now, the weight of the money felt heavy, and her shoulders trembled.

“Ricardo, you’re rich.”

“Yes, I am rich.”

“Really?”

“No…”

The Young Lady sighed and hugged me tightly.

“I’m sorry…”

A soft and warm feeling.

I felt like I had become rich.

A natural smile spread across my lips.

“It’s fine.”

As we walked through the marketplace, we talked about various things. Buying more chocolate, getting insect repellent for the house, and Gomtangi suggesting we buy snacks.

While continuing our discussion about the rarely opened wallet, we passed by a jewelry shop. The Young Lady stopped talking.

“Wow… it’s beautiful.”

The Young Lady admired a diamond-studded bracelet.

It wasn’t the kind of bracelet a High Noble’s daughter would typically wear, but it was far too expensive for what we could afford.

The Young Lady, who had been holding the receipts in her pocket, clenched her fist tightly as she gazed at the dazzling bracelet through the glass wall.

Without saying a word, I lowered my head slightly and counted the number of zeros on the price tag in front of the bracelet.

“Three… four… five…”

An empty laugh escaped me at the outrageous price.

I glanced at the pocket holding the gold coins, but the pang of regret only grew stronger.

Since the payment for the recipe wouldn’t come until next year, my heart felt even heavier.

“The Young Lady’s birthday is approaching…”

I glanced at the Young Lady on my back and cautiously asked.

“Do you want it?”

“Ah… no…!”

The Young Lady was startled.

She shook her head and replied.

“Ahhh… no.”

She was terrible at lying.

Mumbling softly, the Young Lady tugged at the butler’s heartstrings.

“It’s… too expensive…”

I felt conflicted.

In many ways.

Moving my reluctant feet, I turned toward the estate.

Plod. Plod. As I trudged back to the estate, something cold and wet greeted my forehead and melted away.

“Ricardo, look at that.”

The Young Lady spoke while looking at the sky.

White snow was falling.

The first snow of the year was coming down.

“It’s winter.”

“Yes… it’s winter.”

The first snow was falling.