The Villainess Who Accidentally Stole Their Hearts - Chapter 29
Chapter 15.1
“This is the hectopascal slap!”
As Duke Oruma’s voice rang out, gasps filled the crowd, and people clamped their hands over their mouths. Three days in a row, three consecutive slaps!
The impact was incredible!
And the biggest madman in town was none other than Ulysses.
̊ · : * ✧* : · ̊
〈 Ulysses Ruthdore: The Casanova of Our Time! 〉
〈 His Outfits, His Parties, Even His Family Business… Does His Girlfriend Do Everything for Him? 〉
〈 The Sweet-Talking Man’s Double Life—Meet ‘Playboy’ Ulysses! 〉
Every headline was about Ulysses.
It was honestly kind of strange since I was usually the one at the center of these articles. And yet, now it was the ‘Adultery Five’ making the news.
‘And there’s an extra benefit to this.’
Congratulations!
You’ve successfully crushed the filthy cheater!
As a reward, you receive a 〈 Random Box 〉!
After opening the random box, I got another free pass.
♥♡ Love Delivery ˚₊·-̳͟͞͞♡
You’ve received a ♥ from 〈 Witnesses of Slap #1 〉!
♥♡ Love Delivery ˚₊·-̳͟͞͞♡
You’ve received a ♥ from 〈 Witnesses of Slap #2 〉!
♥♡ Love Delivery ˚₊·-̳͟͞͞♡
You’ve received a ♥ from 〈 Witnesses of Slap #3 〉!
Every time the Refund Brigade landed a slap, this message appeared.
Even though I wasn’t the one doing the slapping, I still got ♥s.
‘So, as long as it’s something I planned and orchestrated, I can still reap the rewards without lifting a finger?’
That was good news.
‘And on top of that, I even got a separate ♥ from Duke Oruma.’
♥♡ Love Delivery ˚₊·-̳͟͞͞♡
You’ve received a ♥ from 〈 Duke Oruma 〉!
Before my regression, Duke Oruma used to spread all sorts of rumors about me. At the time, I had no idea why he was like that…
It turned out he was simply obsessed with gossip.
“Lady, if anything like this happens again, you absolutely have to come to me! I’ll always welcome you…!”
Duke Oruma had zero interest in politics, which was exactly why the Emperor favored him as his brother.
‘I’ve unintentionally formed a connection with the imperial family.’
And.
♥♡ Love Delivery ˚₊·-̳͟͞͞♡
You’ve received ♥♥♥ from 〈 Refund Brigade 〉!
‘I received a ♥ from each of them too.’
Right now, I was at the afterparty with the Refund Brigade.
Just then, Selena turned to me and asked.
“What are you doing, Nike?”
“Nothing. Just reading the articles… it’s kind of surreal.”
“Hehe, I already saved all of them and put them up in my room!”
“Now even that guy’s ex-girlfriends will realize the truth that you were falsely accused, Lady.”
Belinda scoffed with a sharp ‘Hmph!’ before fixing me with a serious gaze.
“Thank you very much. From now on, I, Belinda, will personally handle all your wardrobe needs!”
“Then I’ll take care of the parties! Just leave all your social events to me! I’ll make sure the entire social scene follows your lead!”
Selena clapped her hands with an enthusiastic snap! at Aipril’s suggestion, calling it a brilliant idea.
“Nikaearsha is about to set the trends for high society. I love it. No way I’m sitting this one out. Now, who should we invite first—”
“Forget it.”
The three of them, who had been enthusiastically chatting, suddenly fell silent at my words.
“There’s no need to thank me. I didn’t do this for you. I took that bastard down because I wanted to.”
A heavy silence settled over the room.
And then—
“Pfft!”
“Huhuhu!”
“Hehe, so this is what you’re really like, Lady.”
All three of them gazed at me, amusement still lingering on their faces.
Selena asked,
“Does that change the fact that Nike was the one who saved us?”
“….”
“If not for you, Lady, I’d probably still be making outfits for that jerk to wear on his dates with other women.”
“And I’d probably still be setting up romantic venues for his dates. But more importantly—”
“Nike, we’d probably still be misunderstanding you, resenting you, and cursing you.”
“….”
“Thank you for stopping us from becoming that kind of pathetic person.”
“….”
For some reason, it felt weird.
It felt like an itch I couldn’t quite scratch… a little ticklish, yet somewhat uncomfortable.
No one had ever said anything like this to me before.
Not even when I had given everything away.
I absentmindedly fiddled with my fingers before finally opening my mouth.
“To be honest, there’s something I want from you, Selena. But I’m not asking for a favor. It has nothing to do with Ulysses, and I’ll make sure to pay for it properly.”
Selena’s expression was reluctant, but she didn’t say anything more. She just asked, “What is it?”
I pulled out a folded piece of paper from my coat. The moment she unfolded it, her eyes went wide.
“T-This is poison!”
“Yeah.”
“Don’t tell me… are you actually going to kill someone?”
“No.”
“Or are you going to use it for blackmail?!”
“….”
Well, technically… she wasn’t entirely wrong.
Selena’s expression darkened when I remained silent.
“Who on earth are you trying to blackmail…?!”
I kept my mouth shut.
If I told her it was Grand Duke Akelos, there was no way she’d give it to me.
̊ · : * ✧* : · ̊
After saying goodbye to the Refund Brigade, I made my way to the gallery.
The doors were locked, but that didn’t matter.
‘Because it’s mine.’
As soon as a staff member spotted me, they quickly unlocked the door. I walked through the quiet, empty gallery. Every painting on display was either abstract, still life, or landscape; there wasn’t a single portrait.
That put my mind at ease.
I settled onto the sofa, facing a massive painting that stretched across the wall. As the afternoon sunlight faded into the evening, it cast an enchanting glow over the room.
Watching the changing light, a wave of dizziness washed over me.
‘…Why did he look at me like that?’
Even as the crowd mocked him from all sides, Ulysses didn’t react. He didn’t get angry, didn’t make excuses, and didn’t even try to defend himself.
He just looked at me.
With the expression of an abandoned child.
That look on his face was just like—
“Nike, you’re not going to leave me, right?”
—It overlapped with the face of young Ulysses, asking me that question.
‘…It’s all in the past.’
The warmth of our childhood had been overshadowed by betrayal after betrayal, losing its luster. It was strange how he had even looked at me that way at the imperial banquet.
‘Mikarin will be the one holding his hand now.’
Ulysses would want that too.
She was his only ‘more than a friend, but not quite a lover.’ So, she was the special person he would want to see the most when he was struggling.
Just as that thought crossed my mind, a shadow loomed above me.
“Nike.”
When I looked up, I found Ulysses gazing down at me.
‘How did he find me here… Why did he come to me instead of Mikarin?’
His eyes were serene yet filled with an unreadable complexity. Even though he was the one who called my name, he didn’t say anything.
Eventually, I was the one who broke the silence.
“Why are you here?”
“You always come here when your feelings are complicated.”
“…I didn’t think you would know that.”
“How could I not?”
Ulysses gave a small frown as he smiled.
“Nike, it’s about you.”
“….”
“I know you just as well as you know me.”
“….”
The shadow above me grew darker.
Ulysses leaned down, his hand cupping my cheek.
“But why did you do it?”
His voice was unbearably low.
“…You knew, didn’t you? That this would happen.”
“….”
“No. Rather than just saying you knew, I guess you were planning it together?”
“….”
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