That’s How I Became a Villainess - Chapter 32

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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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Episode 32

“What is this?”
Penelope gazed at the Second Floor Guest Room she’d returned to, her expression hollow with disbelief.
The moment Bridget had come back, she’d reclaimed her original room, and Penelope had been cast out without recourse.
She’d tried to find Isaac after watching the servants move her things, but he was away on business—or so the butler had claimed.
No amount of coaxing had swayed him.
The Divorce proceedings hadn’t even begun, and Bridget remained the Countess of Winston Earldom, so there was nothing to be done about it.
“What is this? What is this supposed to mean?”
Penelope kicked at the boxes scattered haphazardly across the floor, her frustration boiling over.
When she’d thought Bridget dead, she’d even wept with sorrow—but now that the woman had returned, Penelope burned with a fury she couldn’t contain.
“That room was mine, those things were mine, the title of Countess was mine!”
She’d thought herself secure in her grip, yet somehow it had all slipped through her fingers.
And now Bridget was the one clutching what had fallen from her hands.
The pain of having something taken away was far sharper than never having possessed it at all.
Hands that had known satisfaction now ached with a hollowness she couldn’t bear.
It had been stolen. By Bridget.
Blinded by her desperation, it never occurred to her that these things had been Bridget’s to begin with.
Penelope’s fingers moved anxiously to her nails, gnawing at them.
‘What about the remarriage? Surely he hasn’t changed his mind? No, he couldn’t have.’
She needed to speak with Isaac.
Unable to bear the sight of Bridget playing the lady of the house, Penelope locked herself in her room and waited for him until nightfall.
Ever since they’d become lovers, Isaac had spent every evening without exception in Penelope’s bedroom.
But tonight, when he returned home, he didn’t come to find her.
Penelope sent a maid to him.
When the servant returned a moment later, she brought Isaac’s message.
“He said to rest first.”
It meant he wouldn’t be coming to her bedroom tonight.
“Could he have gone to Bridget instead?”
“No, my lady. It appears he’s sleeping in his own chambers.”
Penelope exhaled with some relief at the news that he hadn’t gone to Bridget.
‘We’ve already exchanged marriage negotiations with our parents. There’s no way he’d back out now. Of course he won’t…’
Yet why did she feel so anxious?
Penelope sat listlessly, her hand drifting to her slightly rounded lower belly.

* * *

At that same moment, Bridget was in her room, gazing into her mirror.
‘My eyes will be swollen by tomorrow.’
Though others hadn’t noticed in their surprise at her return, Bridget’s eyes were in fact rimmed with red.
She’d wept desperately throughout the carriage ride.
After her quarrel with Josh and hours of crying, followed by that encounter with Isaac, Bridget was utterly exhausted.
Scarcely had she laid her weary body upon the bed when came a soft knock. It was Anna.
“My lady, I’m sorry to disturb your rest.”
“What is it, Anna?”
“I’ve brought some ice. I thought a cold compress might help your face recover a bit.”
Bridget accepted the Ice Pack from Anna’s outstretched hands, taken aback.
“It seemed like you’d been crying…”
“You noticed?”
“Don’t worry. I think only I’ve caught on. Everyone else just keeps saying how glad they are that you’ve returned safely.”
Anna had perceived Bridget’s condition with keen observation and brought ice not only to help but to put her mind at ease.
Though Anna was sometimes tactless with those she disliked, making her feelings plain and acting without restraint—often causing friction—she was fundamentally loyal and affectionate by nature.
Bridget found solace in Anna’s warmth.
“Thank you so much, Anna.”
“Oh, don’t mention it. If anything, I’m the grateful one for your safe return. You weren’t hurt anywhere, were you? Have you been eating properly? You haven’t gone hungry?”
“There’s no need to worry. I was well. Has anything happened at the house?”
Bridget offered a faint smile.
“Nothing in particular. Though Mrs. Bellingham has been carrying on as if you’d passed away! Wearing that black ribbon every day. She seemed to think nobody would notice, but honestly—the audacity of it. As if we servants were complete fools.”
Anna’s hands clenched into fists as she vented her frustration.
“I was so worried they’d conspired to do something terrible to you. You can’t imagine how terrified I was.”
Anna’s expression shifted from anger to tears, then suddenly brightened, her clasped hands trembling with relief.
“When you appeared so suddenly earlier, it was like—like light itself was shining down on you. I was so grateful to God!”
Bridget’s throat tightened at the genuine concern of this servant—not her brother, not her husband, but someone who truly cared.
Today, more than any other day, she’d needed this small warmth.
“Are you crying, madam? Did I—did I do something wrong?”
“No, Anna. It’s just been a difficult day, that’s all.”
“Madam…”
Anna shifted nervously, then gently took Bridget’s hand.
‘My eyes will be swollen by tomorrow, that’s for certain.’

* * *

The next morning, Isaac learned that Bridget had come down to the Dining Room for breakfast and rushed to find her.
“So it’s true? You really did receive an invitation to the Spencer Earldom? When are you going?”
He was so consumed by this fact that he didn’t even notice her swollen eyes.
Bridget finished her meal in silence and turned away from him.
“Reverse your divorce decision. I won’t say another word until you do.”
“Are you really going to keep speaking informally to me?”
“…”
“Fine, fine. Give me time to make amends, Bridget. You’re certain about the invitation from the Spencer Earldom, aren’t you?”
“…”
Bridget didn’t even spare him a glance.
Isaac shouted after her retreating figure in exasperation.
“I need to know these things if I’m going to reverse anything!”
He continued to appear before her unexpectedly, pestering her relentlessly.
Eventually, Bridget escaped him by slipping quietly into the Rear Garden.
There, a current of Magi caught her eye—rising in wisps much like smoke from a campfire.
Smoke rises into the air and dissipates, but Magi flowed in the opposite direction, gathering toward the source that called it.
‘What is that?’
Following the Magi to its source, she found a Stone Statue overturned in a corner of the Flower Bed.
Carved into it were the words: “I shall be with you forever.”
The Magi was pooling deeper into the soil.
Suspicious, Bridget picked up a nearby twig and carefully excavated the earth, uncovering a warped, moisture-soaked box.
Inside lay her Shoes and Bracelet—distinctive pieces she recognized at once.
The servants couldn’t have stolen her belongings, buried them, and then planted a Stone Statue as a marker.
Bridget recalled what Anna had said.
“She wore that black ribbon every day.”
Penelope. It had to be.
‘She made a grave for me?’
Magi is an aura born from emotions that bring harm to life. Wicked, ill-omened.
Penelope had buried such emotions here in this grave, whether she’d understood what she was doing or not.
Bridget considered simply clearing it away, then decided instead to restore the earth to its original state.
She even set the fallen Stone Statue upright where it could be clearly seen, then brushed the dirt from her hands.
She returned to the manor calmly and summoned Cedric and the Gardener.
“There’s a shaded corner in the Rear Garden. Do you think it could be improved?”
The Gardener understood immediately which spot she meant.
“Ah yes, of course, madam! I’ve been wanting to do something with that area for the longest time—what an excellent decision!”
“I’d like to extend the Flower Bed. Cedric, we’ll have enough in the budget for that, won’t we?”
Planning garden improvements before spring arrived was something Bridget did routinely.
Cedric assumed she was resuming her usual household management duties.
“Expanding the Flower Bed isn’t a major undertaking, so the budget should be more than sufficient.”
“Good. Get me an estimate and let me know how long it’ll take.”
The Gardener headed toward the Rear Garden to survey the site at once.
By the day after tomorrow at the latest, the Gardener would unearth the grave while excavating the Flower Bed.
Bridget watched the Gardener depart, then gently called out to Cedric, who was about to follow.
There was a conversation with Cedric that she’d postponed yesterday while arguing with Isaac.
“Cedric.”
“Yes, madam. Is there anything else you require?”
“You’ve endured so much in my absence. I wanted to say this to you. Thank you for holding steady, for not leaving until I returned.”
“……Please, there’s no need for such words.”
Cedric hesitated, then gathered his courage and spoke softly.
“I’m relieved you’ve come back safely. I was worried you might have run away.”
“You’re right. As you likely suspected, it was Isaac who orchestrated everything. That I made it through unscathed was…… pure fortune.”
As Bridget spoke of fortune, Julian came to mind.
Cedric regarded her with something like regret in his eyes.
“Whatever happened, I wonder—would you be willing to stay here still?”
“There is something I need to tell you about that matter, Cedric.”

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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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