Chapter 4

Raw provider: Tsalispark

Translator: Rhyme

Editor: SilverAndGold

“Miss, do you remember the words I had said before I left yesterday?”

“‘One should not believe in the sweet words of men!’”

“Yes, that’s right! My miss is really smart.”

Beth showed a gratifying smile as she washed Claire’s hair with lukewarm water. It was a Herculean job to carry water to the top of the tower, but after she saw the dirt and grime wash away to reveal beautiful, blonde hair, Beth felt all the stuffiness from the hard work wash away.

Beth struggled very hard to completely unroot the death flag from her young miss, Claire.

According to Beth, the male protagonist of the novel The Villainess Changes her Destiny, Arthur Brick Inomore was even more of a scumbag than Earl Gordon.  If she ever had the chance to meet him in the future, Beth really wanted to hit his head with a stone.

He is a dark hearted bastard, who seduced young Claire and made her crazy in love with him. But when he saw Cecil, he flirted with her in front of Claire and left Claire without any hesitation. 

If Beth were to say aloud what was in her head at the moment, then without a doubt, she would be beheaded for blasphemy against the royal family.  But fortunately, she was someone who was very adept at hiding her thoughts. In front of others, she always had an expressionless face.

According to the original plot of the story, after 2 years, Claire would sneak out of Earl Mansion to take part in ‘Dior’s Festival’ which took place in the Fall of every year. There she would meet Arthur and fall in love with him.

This was not the problem. The problem came after she fell in love.  Arthur fell for her at first sight and promised to make her his bride. For Claire who grew up being ignored, Arthur was a godsend and would anything to be beside him.

At that time, Claire realized that if she were to return to Earl Mansion, then it would be impossible for her to be with him and would not do justice to the relationship. She abandoned all sorts of lingering feelings towards her ‘Home’ and set it ablaze.

Seeing her home raging in fire, she felt joy inside. Seeing those from the mansion howling of agony because of what she had done, Claire felt the addictiveness of power for the first time.  Earl Gordon escaped from that fire within an inch of his life and after he saw the fake tears that Claire had shed, he realized that Claire was his only remaining kin. He promised her that he would try to at least act as a good father to her from then on.

Damn that Father. He is not even my real dad.

In the novel after that fire incident, she became a protagonist with a good father-daughter relationship with the Earl. In the meantime, Cecil collected more information about Claire in order to counterattack her which gave the novel a disastrous twist.

In truth, it would be cheap to kill them.

The death of those bastards was not enough. The employees who got caught up in the fire should be pitied, because they became pawns in a game that Claire started – even if they didn’t want to be in one.

In the novel, Claire was meant to be a demon who would smile at the screams she heard from people in the mansion. But weren’t the people of the mansion who made this small child turn into a demon? Each and every one of them ignored Claire and treated her as scum.

Beth delightedly looked at the shiny blonde hair that she had trimmed.

That fire incident should not happen through Claire’s hands. In truth, if things were not related to Claire, Beth was not concerned about it.

Whatever happens…..

Beth gently bit her lips as she dried Claire’s hair with a dry but rough towel.

“Even if the guy is a charming prince that you are attracted to at first sight, you should meet him at least three times before you solidify his personality.”

“Mm, I got it.” Claire said absentmindedly.

“If your heart beats faster, you have to confirm whether it’s because of attraction or fear. “

“Mm!”

Claire answered Beth with more strength than usual. Beth thought it must be because Claire was given more food and no longer felt weak.

What should be the next step?

Right now she would have to make sure that the people in the Earl mansion wouldn’t be abusive towards Claire as this was an important factor in order to uproot the death flag from Claire.

Beth never cared about the survival of Earl mansion, but if Claire started to do evil deeds, it would be a one-way ticket towards the death flag.

It was a fact that no one would listen to the words of a maid. Fortunately, Beth was a reader who transmigrated with only the extras left to read, thus she was aware of how things would happen in the future.

Beth suddenly thought of the newspaper that the head maid was reading when Beth went to ask for a half day. Beth’s eyes glistened with a flash.

“Beth?”

“Miss, do you like sweet treats?”

“Hmm…”

Claire had never tasted sweet food so she wasn’t sure if she would like them or not.

As if she had expected her answer, Beth took out a small bottle that was hidden at the bottom of the basket. She handed it to Claire.

“What is it?”

“Candies, Miss.”

It was not the expensive candy that was favored by aristocrats. Even though the sour, fruit flavored candy was not expensive, the sugar used to make was of good quality.  Not expensive didn’t mean that the candies were cheap for Beth –  she had to pay a hefty price for them.

Sugar was still very expensive.

This was also the reason why she couldn’t buy many sweets for Claire. She had to set aside money little by little, to buy this candy.

Beth was unable to be with Claire all day long, so she wanted to buy a doll for Claire. But a doll would be easily found by others.

She bought candies because it was easier to preserve than other sugary foods which go bad in a short time.

Beth said to Claire with a soft smile.

“I may not come to you for a  long time because I would be busy from work. Whenever you miss me, eat a piece of candy. Understand?”

“Mm…..”

Beth hugged Claire who looked at her with anxious eyes.

“Don’t worry, I’ll return for sure.”

*     *     *

In order to stay out at night one had to submit an application for it, but still they were not allowed out till sunrise. It was a little inconvenient, but Beth was accustomed to sleepless nights.

Whenever she thought about leaving behind this fucked up Earl mansion, she unknowingly became excited. Although they were her employers, she was devoid of even 1% of good will towards them. It was more true to say that she was loyal to her earnings.

There was no streetlight on the street. Other than lit up bars and inns, the street was covered in silence. Holding the mechanical light she borrowed from the head maid, she walked through the streets.

Why did the Head Maid’s eyes become moist when she gave me the light?

She never really understood the inner thoughts of the head maid. Beth shook her head.

The small light lit up the path for Beth. Beth didn’t want the people of Earl mansion to know her whereabouts, so she only lit the light when she was further away from the Mansion.

There was no light around her. She liked the silence of the shadows of the night. She silently arrived at the post box.

Beth gave a soft smile when she dropped a letter into the box.

“What a coincidence!”

Her smile instantly faded.

Beth had not forgotten that handsome and attractive voice she was familiar with.

Beth turned around and saw a familiar man as he stood behind Beth and watched her with a gentle smile.

“How long have you been standing here?” Beth asked.

“How long do you wish that I was standing here?”

“Please don’t joke around.”

“Not been long. Just… I might be fascinated by a woman who stands alone in a dark place without any light, even though she was holding a mechanical light.”

“The light was put out by the wind.”

It was a nonsensical lie but she still had a very confident expression when she said it. This was a mechanical lamp which wouldn’t be affected by the wind.

The man ignored the blatant lie and peered at the letter but couldn’t find to whom she was sending the letter to.

“Letter?”

“Yes, my friend asked me to send a secret, love letter in lieu of her.”

“Hmmm~”

It didn’t seem as if he believed her words. But this was none of her concern. She only wished to get rid of the flamboyant swindler that stood in front of her.

“Miss do you have anyone you adore?”

“I hate people.”

“Isn’t Miss also a person?”

“I hate myself too.”

As he heard this, he threw back his head and laughed loudly. Beth paid no attention to him and headed towards the inn. When he saw her walk away, he quickly followed her with hurried steps.

“Miss… Miss… This time at night is quite dangerous – why did you come out?  Do you intend to meet someone?”

“It shouldn’t matter to you who I meet and when I meet them. And also, why are you calling me Miss? It sounds awful.”

“It’s because you didn’t disclose your name when we had first met. I have no other way to address you than Miss.”

“Hmph…Since you don’t know my name, don’t bother to call me.”

Since Beth showed no signs of stopping, he walked ahead of her a few steps and blocked her path. Beth looked up towards the man who was in her way and smirked.

“Isn’t it reasonable to disclose your own name before asking another their name?”

“Is that so? Then I will give you my name. My name is…. Kedrick.”

“You hesitated there.”

“I forgot my name in the morning and I have only managed to remember it now~.”

It was obvious that he was lying. He brilliantly repeated the words Beth said when they met earlier and satirized her.

It’s highly probable that the name he gave is fake.

“What is Miss called?”

“Julia.”

Beth said her friend’s name without hesitation.

“Julia, it’s destiny to meet again like this. Do you mind having a glass with me? I’ll buy.”

“I wish to end this coincidental meeting and head my own way.”

She drew an invisible barrier between them with an innocent face and walked around the swindler towards her destination.

Beth was quite rude with her words. She understood it herself but it still was none of her business. He was a swindler.  A very obnoxious and persistent one at that. He was a swindler who deceived men and women alike with his handsome face and fake, charming personality.

Other than to swindle her, there was no other reason for him to approach her. After she confirmed that he had not followed her, she walked towards the noisy inn.

Beth never noticed a man, enveloped in the darkness of the night,  who stared at her without blinking.

In next week’s edition of Pisca Weekly Magazine, appeared an article which broke down the seemingly calm Earl Mansion and set it on fire.