The Villainess Who Accidentally Stole Their Hearts - Chapter 32

Chapter 16.2

Knock, knock.

The sound of knocking was followed by the butler’s voice.

“You have visitors.”

As the door swung open, Leonard’s eyes widened slightly.

‘The Refund Brigade!’

The infamous stars of the hectopascal slap were all gathered in one room.

“Well… no need for formalities, right? We’re past that stage now, aren’t we?”

Selena said, acting coy.

It wasn’t meant as a cold dismissal, like “Now that the job’s done, there’s no reason for us to meet again.” Although her face remained indifferent, the faint blush on her cheeks and ears betrayed her.

‘We’re friends now, after all!’

April and Belinda giggled while Selena huffed and cleared her throat before handing over a small bag.

“Here. This is what you asked for.”

Nikaearsha’s eyes gleamed as she took the box in her hands.

‘This is it.’

Excited, she reached to open it right away, but then suddenly shouted, “Wait—!” and grabbed both of Nikaearsha’s hands.

“What are you doing, opening that like that—?!”

She had shouted without thinking, then instantly froze, her eyes darting around the room. Quickly, she hushed her tone.

“…Don’t.”

“Why?”

Nikaearsha looked completely confused.

‘What’s the problem?’

Selena kept casting nervous side glances at Leonard.

“For murder… wait, no, for blackmail… ugh, it’s basically evidence of a crime.”

“…It’s not.”

“It’s not?”

“I said it’s not.”

“Are you absolutely sure it’s not?!”

“No… forget it.”

Nikaearsha looked at Selena with a puzzled expression.

‘What kind of person does she think I am?’

No, more importantly, if she actually believed I’d do something like that, then why did she bring it in the first place? If this got exposed, she’d be charged as an accomplice for distributing it as well.

“Leonard’s fine.”

Saying that, Nikaearsha opened the box.

There were several layers of security mechanisms in place. That was to be expected. After all, this was an exceptionally rare and lethal poison, even among the most venomous.

“The item is genuine.”

“Hmph. Obviously.”

“So?”

“What?”

“Aren’t you going to name your price?”

“Is that really necessary between us?”

Selena froze the moment those words left her mouth.

“D-Don’t misunderstand! It’s not like I’m just handing it over for free! You gave me valuable intel, so this is just me paying you back!”

Still, this poison was far too valuable to be written off as mere payment for information. It was a deal that didn’t make sense at all.

Nikaearsha opened her mouth.

“That—”

“This isn’t me trying to express gratitude or anything!”

“No, what I mean is—”

“It’s not like I’m giving this to you for free because I like you or anything!”

“That’s not—”

“And it’s certainly not because I think of you as a friend and just want to help!”

‘…Is she even listening to me?’

Nikaearsha gave Selena a weary look as she rambled on non-stop. Selena huffed, h-hmph!, but even her scoff sounded forced.

“I-It’s only because you gave me something first, so I’m just returning the favor.”

Nikaearsha hummed in acknowledgment.

‘Well, if she’s going to insist so much…’

Selena was the only daughter of the Marquis of Bethril. If this was about the pride of being a marquis’s successor, then the trade seemed somewhat fair.

“I’ll take it. But what brings you two here?”

Belinda and April exchanged glances at Nikaearsha’s question. Then, as if reaching a silent agreement, they both stepped forward and handed something over.

“We got something from you, too, so we’re here to return the favor.”

“M-Me too!”

It was a thick stack of documents.

‘Is this a contract?’

Right before Nikaearsha could reach for it, Leonard stepped in.

“I’ll handle this. Checking these is part of my job as an aide, after all.”

Leonard was an expert when it came to reviewing contracts.

Nikaearsha nodded.

Leonard’s gaze sharpened like a hawk closing in on its prey as he quickly examined the contract. His focus was so intense it was almost palpable.

Once he had thoroughly reviewed both contracts, he declared firmly,

“The contract is perfect. There’s no problem at all.”

“Really?”

“You can sign it right away.”

If Leonard had examined it, there was no doubt it was airtight.

Before her regression, he’d even earned the nickname ‘the prince of contracts.’ And it had already been confirmed that his loyalty to her was genuine.

‘Having him handle contract reviews is definitely convenient.’

He was more than qualified to be an aide.

With April and Belinda watching her expectantly, Nikaearsha signed both contracts.

…Completely unaware of the trap concealed within the fine print.

̊ · : * ✧* : · ̊

“Well then, get some rest, my lady.”

“See you next time!”

“Don’t drop by just because you’re bored… though a message is fine.”

“Alright.”

With that, the Refund Brigade and Leonard left Nikaearsha’s room.

All of them wore smug, satisfied smiles as they continued down the hallway. As soon as they turned the corner and reached a distance where Nikaearsha couldn’t possibly overhear, their expressions changed in unison.

“Thank you for reviewing the contract earlier.”

Belinda shot Leonard a brief, expressionless glance.

Leonard replied without missing a beat, his gaze fixed straight ahead.

“It was a flawless slave contract, for both of you.”

April and Belinda closed their eyes and gave solemn nods. In an instant, their expressions shifted once more.

“You wouldn’t believe how many lawyers we cycled through just to make sure she wouldn’t reject it~!”

“But the lady is way too smart! We were stressing over how to convince her, knowing she’d catch any loopholes!”

Ufufufu.

Hehehehe.

April and Belinda laughed with delight, and Leonard joined in with a hearty chuckle.

“You’re both locked into supplying the lady with free outfits for life, handling party preparations indefinitely, and taking full responsibility if anything goes wrong! This is the ultimate slave contract!”

“Right? Right?”

“Aah, we racked our brains trying to find a way to stay involved in the lady’s life!”

Leonard chuckled as he watched Belinda and April cling to each other, squealing with excitement.

“The lady helped you both, but I’m guessing she turned you down when you tried to return the favor.”

“…How did you know that?”

The Refund Brigade’s eyes widened in shock, but Leonard simply shrugged.

“I experienced the exact same thing.”

“What do you mean…?”

“The lady was the one who told me my lover was already married.”

“YES?!“

The Refund Brigade wore expressions as if they were on the verge of passing out. Still, their reddened cheeks made it obvious they were intrigued.

“We caught our lover cheating with three people! And we made sure to do it in front of everyone!”

“WHAT?!“

Unbelievable.

As expected, the queen of drama.

How bold!

The Refund Brigade and Leonard exchanged knowing glances.

“Nikaearsha always steps in first but then bolts, acting like it wasn’t for our sake. Seriously… how cute.”

“If you insist on paying her back because we received something first, she’ll reluctantly give in… adorable.”

“From now on, our ultimate tactic will always be, ‘we’re just giving back what we received.’”

“No doubt about it.”

And so, on that day, an alliance dedicated to Nikaearsha, created for Nikaearsha, and driven by Nikaearsha was secretly established…. unbeknownst to her.

From around the corner, Alice’s voice rang out.

“I could’ve sworn I heard someone mentioning my lady…?”

One by one, Nikaearsha’s loyal followers began to assemble.

̊ · : * ✧* : · ̊

Alone in the room, I fixed my gaze on the box.

‘This is incredible.’

The deadly poison Selena had given me.

The box itself was secured with several layers of protective mechanisms.

‘Well, I suppose that’s only natural.’

This poison was called 〈 Petra. 〉 It was so lethal that it could dissolve anything in the world. It was even said to be strong enough to break down curses themselves.

Naturally, this was a secret no one else had discovered until now.

‘Of course, that’s just my own speculation.’

I had learned of this in my previous life before regressing. More specifically, it was just days before the five adulterers killed me.

‘The day Grand Duke Akelos came to see me.’

The five adulterers didn’t kill me in a single blow. Instead, I had been locked away in a filthy underground prison for months—left to rot, surrounded by rats and crawling insects.

I was driven to madness during those days and eventually ended up pleading for a swift death.

‘And then, one day, Grand Duke Akelos secretly visited me in that underground prison where I was imprisoned.’

My mind drifted back to that night I could never forget.