A World Where You All Are The Villains - Chapter 86

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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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86.

“…Eston, let’s go inside.”
Nancy coaxed her, tugging at her arm.
At that, Eston huffed and glared at me.
“…I don’t care. If I get fired for dereliction of duty because of the Young Lady, I’m seriously going to sue!”
With that shrill cry, she dashed off like a petulant child.
Nancy turned to me with an awkward expression.
“…Miss, you really must return quickly.”
“Don’t worry. I’m not foolish enough to throw away my own life.”
I answered firmly.
Only then did Nancy relax, following Eston inside.
Contrary to their concerns, my intention to assess the situation was precisely what I meant.
‘I’m no fool. I’ve already experienced that horror once and died for it—I won’t repeat that mistake.’
I needed to verify whether my suspicion about the Gate’s imminent opening was correct.
Only then could I devise a solution.
In truth, entering the building was merely a temporary measure.
Just before a Gate opens, it sucks in everything around it like a black hole.
However, since the damage scale varies dramatically from Gate to Gate, I needed to know at least the approximate magnitude.
That way, I could decide whether to flee to the opposite side of the island or escape entirely.
‘If I cry out now that this might be a Gate warning, everyone will think I’ve lost my mind.’
Persuading people to summon a Space Ability User would be futile and waste precious time.
It might be better to board a ship and sail to the far side of the island before the Gate fully opens.
Fortunately, the orphans had arrived on a sailing vessel.
‘Well, with four S-rank Awakeners gathered together, they should buy us some time.’
Whether by weakening the suction force.
Or by using telekinesis to hold people back from being pulled in.
Though I doubt they’d go that far for anyone except the heroine.
Which is precisely why I must carve out my own path to survival.
Having settled my thoughts, I quickened my pace toward the Courtyard.
As I passed through the entrance into the Ballroom, I felt an unsettling atmosphere.
The music that had been playing continuously had stopped abruptly.
Everyone seemed startled by the sudden thunder and lightning.
But after that single bolt, the sky quickly calmed.
“Haha! It seems the heavens are angered that an impious soul walks upon this island!”
At that moment, the Crown Prince joked, targeting someone with his remark and chuckled.
His face had turned crimson.
‘The brat’s had a few glasses of champagne and is already drunk.’
Thanks to that, the frozen atmosphere loosened considerably.
The anxious guests gradually regained their composure and resumed eating, drinking, and chattering.
Music flowed once more.
Only I remained rigidly tense.
Gate omens were always like this.
They resembled mere anomalous weather patterns—one grew careless, and then suddenly earthquakes began, and everything went to hell.
‘The moment I sense those signs, I bolt.’
I crossed the Ballroom with a rigid expression.
By the time I reached the Duke’s Table at the front.
I came to an abrupt halt.
A massive frame occupied my seat without ceremony.
“You’ve arrived, Young Lady?”
The man, who had sensed my presence with uncanny precision, spun around.
Then he grinned widely and began waving one hand in an exaggerated manner.
‘And here you are, greeting me so cheerfully, you traitor?!’
The memory of my recent quarrel with the second male lead surged forth, igniting my fury anew.
I approached him, grinding my teeth.
“Would you move, please?”
“Did your conversation go well?”
“No.”
“Why? Didn’t I give you plenty of time?”
He tilted his head as if genuinely perplexed.
In truth, his words held some merit.
Though Vincent and the other male leads had burst in midway, it hadn’t been particularly rushed.
If only the female lead had remained normal.
‘How on earth am I supposed to explain this?’
I stood before Serge in silence for a moment, deliberating.
Earlier, I had resolved to tell him everything, but now that the moment arrived, my lips refused to move.
What was I even supposed to say?
‘That the female lead has gone mad? That she just kept repeating lines from the past like a broken recording?’
Whatever it was, it sounded unbelievable unless one had witnessed that bizarre spectacle firsthand.
I finally muttered dejectedly.
“…An intruder appeared during our conversation.”
“Ah. So you couldn’t apologize.”
He clicked his tongue and immediately grasped the situation.
But that trivial apology was hardly the issue.
‘The female lead has lost her mind, I’m telling you?’
What was this about her being in a comatose state, and where had she been all this time?
I needed to ask what her connection to the Sephiroth Sect was, but she wouldn’t respond to reason!
Frustrated, I gnawed at my lip as Serge shrugged his shoulders.
“It’s not my fault.”
“Then whose fault is it?”
“Yours, for being too slow.”
I gave up arguing.
Too exhausted to retort further, I shuffled across the floor and collapsed into his vacated seat.
I couldn’t bear to touch the chair where Ethan had sat.
Watching me, he snickered.
“I’m joking. Some lunatic wearing a deer mask showed up and dragged me away.”
“A deer… mask?”
It was Ruellin’s lady-in-waiting who spoke.
‘So that’s why she yielded her seat so readily… She was scheming behind the scenes all along!’
I was astounded by the maid’s audacious behavior.
As I let out hollow laughter, Serge continued.
“Yeah. The Purifier said she was meeting with you alone, so the Sub-Duke suddenly bolted mid-conversation. I didn’t even have time to stop him.”
His tone was light, but his brow furrowed sharply—clearly displeased by Vincent’s discourteous conduct.
Hearing his words, a question suddenly occurred to me.
“…So the deer mask told the other two as well?”
In such a short span?
All three male leads had arrived together and simultaneously.
If the deer mask had informed them individually, the timeline made no sense.
Besides, they weren’t foolish enough to bring their rivals along…
“The other two? There was only one intruder, wasn’t there?”
Serge seemed completely unaware of Ethan and Dylan.
I was left puzzled, unable to comprehend what had transpired.
Then—
Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom…
A massive, ominous sound echoed from afar, drawing steadily closer, and suddenly the ground trembled.
Crash, clang—!
Several water glasses tumbled from the table to the floor.
The sharp shattering was drowned out by the screams of the crowd.
An earthquake had begun.
Rummmmmble…
The tremor ceased quickly.
Though a few dishes broke, there were no major casualties—no cracks in the earth, no one trampled.
Yet this was hardly a relief.
“W-what on earth is happening?!”
“Shouldn’t we evacuate immediately?!”
“Is Equinox Island a volcanic island?!”
The Ballroom erupted into chaos.
People scattered in panic, drenched in terror.
“The lunar eclipse hasn’t even begun, yet monsters are already escaping? Go check immediately!”
Even the Crown Prince’s eyes snapped wide awake, his voice sharp as he urged his attendants forward.
Yet none of them could discern the reason behind this sudden anomaly.
‘…It’s all falling apart.’
I gazed at the ballroom descending into chaos with clouded eyes.
My suspicions had proven correct after all.
Following the lightning strike came an earthquake from nowhere.
At first it would be brief, almost like a warning, but the intensity and amplitude would only grow.
And then, at some point, a tremendous gale would sweep through as the Gate opened….
‘I need to escape.’
My confirmation was complete.
I made an excuse to Serge about needing to use the restroom, then moved to slip away from the ballroom.
But before I could even open my mouth, he beat me to it.
“A Gate will open soon, Princess.”

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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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