A World Where You All Are The Villains - Chapter 9.2
Just from his expression, I couldn’t tell at all what he was thinking.
Feeling awkward, I opened my mouth.
“…No. I was pretty surprised.”
“Then why do you look like that?”
“Well. Why don’t we sit down and talk?”
Passing by him, who was staring intently at me, I walked toward the table first.
Every step I took rustled countless flower petals, which felt cumbersome underfoot.
If it were the real Edith, she might have jumped for joy at this surprise event—something more suited for Llewellyn. But…
I just felt uneasy.
‘Damn it. I should have just gone straight to formal speech with him like I did with Ethan.’
I didn’t expect him to pull something like this, so I missed the timing.
As I sat down and wondered when would be a good time to bring up the memory loss…
“……?”
For some reason, Vincent didn’t immediately follow and just stood there, frozen in place.
When I looked at him questioningly, he finally moved and sat down across from me.
He lowered his gaze and said quietly,
“You look good, Edith.”
“I’m glad I look that way. Thanks for coming to see me whi—”
“I thought you’d really just die this time, but you somehow managed to come back.”
“…Huh?”
His tone was so casual that I didn’t immediately understand what he meant.
As if complaining to an old friend about how hard it is to see them these days.
With a playful smile, Vincent began to say things that were poison-laced.
“I was surprised you seemed so fine. I actually thought you might’ve gotten pretty badly hurt…”
“……”
“But the funeral was really something, Edith. You almost had me fooled into thinking it was real this time.”
“……”
“I heard you couldn’t stand it in the coffin and burst out in the middle because you couldn’t breathe? Ah, such a shame. If I’d been there, I could have seen something interesting. Too bad I couldn’t go, since Llewellyn got sick because of a certain someone…”
I stared in disbelief at him, as he clicked his tongue as if he was truly disappointed he’d missed Edith’s funeral.
‘What the hell is this bastard saying right now?’
He was surprised I wasn’t badly hurt? The funeral was ‘interesting’?
I was so dumbfounded I couldn’t help but let out a hollow laugh.
‘Nobody told me he was this much of a lunatic!’
Of course, Vincent saying things to Edith with a smile that stabbed like a knife was something that often appeared in the novel.
— Edith, do you see me as a man after all those years we treated each other as siblings? Ah, just don’t say anything. That’s disgusting.
— Why do you act so stupid, Edith? The more you do this, the more you embarrass the Duke. I guess that’s why he made Ethan the heir.
Every time the person she secretly loved insulted her, Edith would writhe in agony, and she would take out all that anger on Llewellyn.
‘Really, what’s so great about a guy who’s after another woman?’
Honestly, I found Edith pitiful and frustrating for willingly choosing to be the villain because of this.
So, at times, Vincent’s lines felt refreshing.
Sure, his words were harsh, but maybe it was the only way for Edith, who was so oblivious, to get the message.
I’d thought Vincent was giving her sincere advice out of pity as a friend…
‘As if. That’s just bullshit.’
If I’d known he was the kind of trash who’d mock her, asking if the funeral was just a show for attention, I would never have mistaken it that way.
‘I was too naive.’
He was always playful and someone the female lead could lean on, but to Edith, he was nothing but a bastard who ignored her whether she lived or died.
It was ridiculous that I’d actually believed the butler’s words that he’d come to visit out of concern.
Crumple—
I squeezed the flower bud in my hand so hard it was crushed out of shape.
“Why aren’t you answering, Edith? Are you mad?”
Like a child who’s excited to see what kind of reaction he’ll get, he asked me again, looking innocent.
‘Ah.’
Maybe it was thanks to that question.
All the anger that had been boiling up inside me cooled instantly, as if it were a lie.
Come to think of it, I had no reason to be angry about something I hadn’t even experienced myself.
Besides.
‘…This guy genuinely enjoyed Edith throwing a tantrum and getting mad at him, didn’t he?’
It wasn’t about protecting the woman he loved or giving advice as a friend, none of that.
He just enjoyed it. If he stepped on her, she’d react. If he stabbed her, she’d flinch.
After treating her kindly for a moment, he’d push her off a cliff and watch her writhe like a salted worm. That was what he found so entertaining.
Otherwise, there’s no way to explain that face, those golden eyes full of anticipation.
‘What an immature prick. Did he go to all this trouble, even using his ability, just for this?’
I looked around at the petals strewn all over the table with a cold gaze.
‘Here I was, bracing myself thinking he’d come to take revenge for Llewellyn or something!’
Feeling a little disappointed, I lifted my head and met his eyes, full of malice.
“Is that all you came to say?”
“…Huh?”
“You came all this way just to say that?”
At my uninterested tone, the smile faded from his face.
Maybe it seemed like I was being mean, but dealing with this kind of crazy person was actually really simple.
“Am I mad? Hm, I don’t really know what to say to that. Sorry I couldn’t meet your expectations…”
“……”
“I’m not really angry, since I don’t remember who you are or how we knew each other before.”
I put on an appropriately regretful expression.
He seemed not to understand, asking with a beat’s delay.
“…What?”
“Oh, did you not hear? I’m suffering from memory loss right now.”
“What do you mean…?”
“If you’re done saying what you wanted, shall we end it here? Honestly, I don’t have anything in particular to say to you.”
When you’re dealing with a hungry dog, the best thing is not to give it any food.
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