A World Where You All Are The Villains - Chapter 42

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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42.

Perhaps my gravely serious expression had caused a misunderstanding.
Ethan pressed the box toward me again, his tone soothing.
“Don’t worry so much about it. I won’t tell Father.”
In his eyes, I appeared to be fretting like a child who had lost an expensive gift from the Duke.
‘If only that were the case….’
I reluctantly accepted the box he offered.
“…Thank you, brother.”
Though the stone was slightly smaller than the one the Duke had given me, the earrings Ethan had brought also featured a blue diamond.
It was remarkable that such a rare gemstone—found only within the Gate—could be procured so readily.
It was a fresh reminder of the Blake Family’s influence and Ethan’s standing.
“…Well then.”
Having handed over the earrings, he turned to leave as though his business was concluded.
I had been so preoccupied with idle talk that I’d forgotten to ask what I truly needed to know, so I hastily called him back.
“Brother.”
“…?”
“Did you happen to meet The Purifier on the night of the ball?”
Ethan’s expression turned cold instantly, as though Ruellin were some kind of trigger.
“…No. I went to see her before the ball began, but she wasn’t feeling well and had retired early.”
“I see….”
“But why are you asking about Ruellin?”
He regarded me with cautious eyes.
He seemed concerned that I, having regained my memories, might have another hysterical episode regarding her.
I swallowed my churning emotions and spoke the words I had prepared.
“I wanted to apologize.”
“…What?”
“I don’t quite remember why, but apparently I dragged Ruellin to Tollen?”
“….”
“In any case, I felt terrible knowing that she nearly came to harm because of me. I wanted to apologize and assure her that such a thing would never happen again.”
“You, thinking such things….”
As I spoke these words in a natural flow, Ethan’s expression shifted to one of genuine shock.
He had never expected Edith Blake—who had despised Ruellin—to say such things.
Like I had moments before, he narrowed his eyes and scrutinized my face carefully before finally speaking.
“…You don’t have some ulterior motive, do you?”
“What ulterior motive?”
“I gather well enough, but you and she were never on good terms.”
“I have no intention of becoming friends with her now. It’s just that I’ve grown tired of hearing about it.”
“What is?”
“Every time I did something, people said I was jealous of The Purifier, that I committed atrocities, that I attempted murder… I don’t even remember half of it clearly. Wouldn’t you feel wronged?”
“….”
“I was the one who nearly died.”
At my words, he flinched and turned to look at me.
His eyes still searched for my true intentions.
Yet I simply continued with an innocent expression.
“So I’m declaring that I’ll apologize and be different from now on. There’s no hidden agenda behind it.”
“…Reflecting on one’s mistakes is a good attitude, at least.”
Finally convinced by my words, he nodded.
“If I happen to meet her, I’ll give you a heads up.”
“What about you, brother?”
“Hmm?”
“Never mind, it’s nothing.”

71%

I withdrew my gaze from his barely elevated stat without hesitation.
It was fortunate. He had carried himself to the very end as though he bore no fault whatsoever.
Had he pretended to reflect after hearing my words, it would have been difficult to simply turn away.
“…Ah.”
At the sight of me shaking my head flatly, he—who had seemed puzzled—suddenly recalled something forgotten and fell silent.
“Come to think of it, Grand Duke Belnac was attacked by an assailant at the Guest Palace next to the Ballroom that day. Did you know about it?”
Of course, I knew better than anyone.
“No. I didn’t know.”
“The Grand Duke’s side requested our cooperation in the investigation… Did you perhaps witness anyone suspicious outside that day?”
I barely managed to control my facial muscles from slipping.
“No.”
“Good then. That settles it.”
“But… why did they request investigative cooperation from the Duke’s Household?”
“Don’t worry about it. It seems they sent it as a formality to all the families in attendance.”
With those words, Ethan left.
I waited until he was far from the Greenhouse, then sprang to my feet.
And I hurried back to my room, nearly running.
Bang!
“Nancy!”
As I burst through the door, Nancy, who had been tidying the room, startled in alarm.
“Oh, Miss! What’s the matter?”
“When I came back, was one of my earrings missing?”
“Ah… Yes, yes! How did you know that?”
“Why didn’t you tell me beforehand?”
“Master Ethan said that Miss might be disheartened, so he decided to speak with you about it separately…”
“Ha…”
My vision suddenly went dark.
I staggered over to the sofa and collapsed onto it.
“Miss, are you alright?”
“No…”
“Goodness, your complexion is so pale. Should I call Eston?”
“Never mind. Just leave.”
I waved Nancy away dismissively.
She left the room carefully, her face etched with worry.
Click.
The moment the door closed, I clutched my head and let out a silent scream.
“Damn it, that bastard’s useless to my life…”
Of course, I knew I was venting my frustration pointlessly.
Perhaps Ethan thought he was being considerate in his own way—preparing the earrings separately before telling me.
But it was consideration I never wanted.
If only I’d known yesterday.
Or if he’d told me the moment we met, before even asking who I’d fought with…
“But there’s nothing I could have done anyway…”
Even if I’d known immediately, I probably wouldn’t have found it.
I didn’t even know where I’d lost it, and I couldn’t just tear apart the Ballroom and its surroundings.
There was a greater chance that someone else had found it and stolen it.
“…Where did I drop it? When I collapsed?”
I held my head and desperately tried to piece together my memories.
The most likely place was when I collapsed in the Corridor.
There was hardly any other moment my body had sustained such impact.
“Ah.”
But there was one more possibility.
A chilling dread ran down my spine as the worst-case scenario came vividly to mind.
“Could it be… the Female Lead’s Room?”
When I’d brought the stool down on Serge Belnak’s head.
His skull was harder than I expected, so the recoil had been significant.
“No! That can’t be it!”
I shuddered and denied that horrifying possibility.
If I’d dropped the earring there, then I was truly screwed.
Not only had I trespassed in The Purifier’s room without permission, but I’d become a criminal who’d smashed the head of the Grand Duke—the only one in this nation—and an attempted regicide against the royal family!
“…That’s right!”
It was then.
The moment I’d caught sight of my reflection in the building’s outer window and been horrified flashed through my mind.
“I was definitely doing it back then!”
I desperately reconstructed that moment in my mind.
It had already been two days ago, and with the fainting spell on top of it, my memories were hazy.
But one thing was certain—when I caught sight of my reflection in the window, I had been pinning my hair up.
So if one of my earrings had been missing at that moment, I would have noticed it immediately.
“Phew….”
Having reasoned through the logic of it all, I exhaled a long breath of relief.
‘Anywhere—as long as it’s not the Female Lead’s Room.’
Then my alibi would be perfect.
Even if the Male Lead 4 found my earring somewhere near the Ballroom or the Corridor, what could he possibly do with it?
With that thought, my heart, which had been thrashing wildly with anxiety, began to settle.
“So that’s why people say you can’t live after committing a sin….”
It was something I couldn’t do twice, not with the heartache alone.
Rubbing my left chest, I soon sprang to my feet and headed toward the Dressing Room.
There, I retrieved the jewelry box the Duke had given me from the display case where I kept my accessories.
As I opened the lid, the necklaces and earrings that Nancy had arranged so neatly gleamed brilliantly.
I took out the single unpaired earring from inside, then inserted the pair of earrings Ethan had given me in its place.
Placing them next to the necklace, I found myself making comparisons anew, just as he had said.
The ones from the Duke were noticeably larger and appeared to have better color.
The way the diamond was cut and even the accessory pieces set around it were far more elaborate and delicate.
‘So this is what they mean by a difference in grade?’
But there was no helping it. I would simply insist they were the same set.
After returning the jewelry box to its original place, I then placed the single earring I had removed into the safe.
“From now on, that’s not my earring. It’s not my earring….”
Brainwashing myself with those words, I locked the safe door.
Even if I later found the lost earring, I could simply deny it was mine.
It was common enough for members of the Nobility to lose accessories at the Ballroom.
Besides, I hadn’t stayed long enough at the Ballroom for anyone to be certain it was mine, and my presence had been overshadowed early on thanks to the Male Lead 4’s spectacle with the monster corpse.
“…Even if someone did recognize it, I can just deny ever losing it.”
And conveniently, Ethan had given me a roughly similar pair of earrings anyway.
‘This makes it a perfect crime.’
Or so I thought.
“…Tsk, you careless thing. If it weren’t for the Grand Duke, you wouldn’t have even known you’d lost the earring!”
Not until the next day, when the Duke brought the Grand Duke.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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