The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen

In a dark room,

Under the pitch darkness where not even a sliver of light penetrated, Yuria was crouched with her head down, weeping.

"No… This isn't me… I wasn't born like this…!"

The floor was littered with broken pieces of mirrors.

The bathroom mirror, the vanity mirror placed in front of the desk, and even the handheld mirror she carried in her bag were all shattered into sharp shards.

Yuria sat huddled in a corner of the bed, surrounded by the dangerously sharp pieces that seemed like they could cut deeply if stepped on wrongly, repeating her sobs.

"Why me…"

Yuria felt wronged.

Her face had changed overnight, and the betrayal by someone she had opened her heart to was painfully throbbing.

"I just wanted to get along with everyone."

She should have realized it was strange from the moment they suddenly started talking to her. People who had never spoken to her before suddenly approaching her should have been a red flag.

Talking behind her back,

Ignoring her in front,

Yuria thought she shouldn't have looked kindly upon people who had only caused her harm.

If only she had realized that, perhaps this would never have happened.

Yuria kept her head down in the darkness, voicing her sorrow.

Regrettably, time kept moving forward, and on the bed lay two dresses.

The white dress given by Ricardo.

The light green dress gifted by Ruin.

Now, they were of no use.

***

Under the bright chandelier, a bustling crowd was moving.

"Entrance tickets or invitations must be checked for admission."

The voices of the guards blocking unfamiliar guests mingled with the laughing and chatting of students who hadn't seen each other during the holidays, filling the grand ballroom.

This ball was primarily for the academy's students.

An exclusive event of the Royal Academy where only students or specially invited outsiders could enter, meant to foster enthusiasm for the upcoming academic year and strengthen friendships.

Chartia, the student council president.

"Disciplinary Committee! Straighten up the line. The formation is a mess!"

Michail, the second-best swordsman of the academy's swordsmanship department.

"I can't understand why we have to do this. I'd rather be practicing with my sword at this time."

Ruin, the disciple of the Tower Master.

"Shut up, you insect. You want to swing your sword on a day like this? Ugh."

The future stars of the empire were shining brightly, making the ball even more glamorous.

And a significant portion of the girls' conversations revolved around the boys.

After catching up on what they missed during the break, the girls' topics invariably turned to the boys.

A girl in a dress adorned with excessive frills peeked at Michail, who was talking with Chartia in the center of the ballroom, and said,

"Wow… Michail has gotten even more handsome."

"I know, right? As time passes, he somehow becomes more… what's the word? Enchanting, maybe? You know, that thing…?"

"The beautiful boy…!"

"Exactly! Despite being incredibly strong, Michail has this delicate, beautiful boy aura…!"

The girls blushed and giggled.

Talking and laughing about how handsome Michail, the top beau of the swordsmanship department, was and joking about how their eyesight had deteriorated from not seeing him during the break.

Michail, with his keen hearing, grimaced and forced a smile.

"Why do they do that?"

"Why? It's because you're so admirable, Michail. Though you're not my type."

"Don't tease, President."

"Heh, Michail, you're pleased, aren't you?"

Michail sipped his wine, watching Chartia playfully tease him and sighed.

"But Yuria still hasn't arrived? She's always early, but I don't see her today."

Michail scanned the ballroom for his friend, who usually arrived an hour early for every ball but was nowhere to be seen today.

Chartia also turned her head, echoing Michail's concern.

"She's not here, is she?"

"It's strange. She's not someone who'd be late."

"Hmm. Maybe she'll come later."

Michail sighed worriedly and took another sip of wine.

In another corner, girls were talking about a man with a sharp appearance.

Girls sneaking glances at the green mage, who glared back and responded gruffly, burst into joyful screams.

"Wow… Ruin has become even more handsome."

"Crazy. Look at that decadence. Even the dark circles under his eyes look sexy."

"I know, right…!"

"Sigh… I wonder if I'll be able to talk to Ruin this year."

"You dream big. Ruin is just an idol in our hearts."

"Sigh…"

Unperturbed by the girls' chatter, Ruin checked his watch while shifting his feet impatiently.

"Why isn't she here?"

Ruin longed to see Yuria.

What dress she would wear… or rather, he wanted to see the beautiful sight of Yuria dressed in the light green dress he had gifted her.

Ruin turned his head, searching for the absent Yuria.

40 minutes until the ball begins.

Despite ample time remaining, the bustling conversations and the warming atmosphere made it feel as though the ball had already started.

Those searching for someone,

Youths catching up on missed stories,

Whispers of love being shared—the Royal Academy's ballroom was racing towards a grand beginning.

About 30 minutes had passed,

Just as Yuria was about to fade from everyone's memory,

-Click. Click.

The sound of hesitant footsteps echoed from the entrance of the ballroom.

It was a mournful sound of footsteps. So lacking in confidence and filled with sorrow that it captured everyone's attention.

As the footsteps resonated from the entrance, a hush fell over the ballroom.

Those chatting fell silent,

Those drinking wine paused and turned their heads towards the entrance to look at the guest.

No more guests were expected.

The attention seemed even more focused.

-Click…

-Click…

-Click…

As the feeble sound of footsteps approached, and everyone's gaze converged on one point, the delicate silhouette of a woman slowly became visible.

Who is that?

The boys stared breathlessly at the silhouette of the woman appearing from afar.

The mere silhouette indicated that the person approaching was of stunning beauty.

The girl's hesitant steps received everyone's attention, and as she walked into the bright light of the chandeliers, the boys instinctively gulped.

The moment of the last guest's arrival spread a hush across the ballroom.

"…"

"What's that…"

"Pfft."

As the girl's appearance became clear, the boys let out sighs of disappointment and shook their heads. The girls, equally tense, covered their mouths with their hands and snickered in a mix of amusement and disdain.

It was a girl with an unsightly face.

The brief concentration on the sound of her steps, and the gradual reveal of the woman's face, led everyone to collectively start mocking her.

The girl, with her crumpled entrance ticket, bowed her head.

"Here… is my entrance ticket."

"Ah… verified."

"Thank you…"

The students didn't recognize the guest who had come to the ball.

With a face full of freckles,

Cloudy eyes,

And lips so dry, this student of the academy had never been seen before.

She had such an unattractive appearance that it was almost instinctive to say she was ugly. The dress she wore seemed wasted on her.

Surely a dress of high value, yet on her, it seemed like a borrowed garment from her mother, causing everyone to scoff.

-So outdated.

-No, it's just her that's odd.

-Krkkrk. I know.

The dress the girl wore was a light green dress. It was elegant, subtly adorned with light green gems, and designed to enhance the wearer's appearance.

It also triggered someone's irritation.

Ruin clenched his teeth at the sight of the girl wearing the familiar dress.

‘I bought it because it was one of a kind. What a waste.'

The girl, covered in freckles, bowed her head and made her way to a corner of the ballroom. Despite her familiar steps and hunched shoulders, Ruin was more bothered by the sight of a girl in the same dress as Yuria.

‘Soon Yuria will be here.'

‘Sigh. What a mess.'

-Damn, that's hilarious.

Laughter echoed from a corner of the ballroom.

The culprits recognized the girl at a glance and felt a sense of satisfaction at the sight of the cowering girl.

"Thanks to that wizard's potion, I finally relieved my stress. It feels like a decade-old congestion has cleared."

"Exactly, serves her right."

"Good thing we listened to that wizard. The effect lasts for 3 hours, right?"

"Yeah, 3 hours is enough for the ball to end. It'll be a good experience for her. Pfft."

"She should have behaved more modestly."

The ladies, sitting in a corner, sneered at the girl. With cruel smiles, they looked as if they might pounce on the girl in the green dress but dismissed her with a light laugh.

The ladies, bolstered by courage and deciding not to waste their time on an unworthy girl, started moving with the intention of finally making a move on the men they had been interested in.

Ruin was walking slowly towards the girl in the green dress.

-Thud. Thud.

His determined steps were unmistakable. When Ruin set his mind on something, he acted immediately.

Ruin approached the freckle-covered girl.

The girl's eyes began to water as she saw Ruin walking towards her. She was overwhelmed with emotion.

Wiping away the tears with her hands, she waited for Ruin to approach.

-Thud. Thud.

As Ruin's steps halted in front of the girl, she slowly lifted her bowed head, rubbed her eyes, and forced a strained smile.

"Ruin…"

Ruin responded coldly to the girl's tender call.

"Hey."

Hearing ‘hey' instead of her name, the girl's body tensed up.

Her eyes, filled with freckles, began to tremble. The tremors in her gaze as she looked at Ruin made him clench his fists and glance around.

"Sigh. There's no one nearby, so I'll just say it."

"…"

"Don't take it too hard."

Ruin stared blankly at the girl and whispered softly.

"Can't you change your dress?"

"What?"

"I mean… that."

Ruin ruffled his hair roughly and sighed deeply once more.

"It doesn't suit you at all."

"What do you mean…?"

"You and this dress. It's a horrible match. I've worn expensive clothes enough to have some confidence in my taste, but not for you…"

The girl asked Ruin in a trembling voice, her chest heaving with frustration as she coughed.

‘Soon Yuria will be here…'

Ruin was sure Yuria would wear the dress he had prepared.

That's why he decided to personally intervene for Yuria's sake, even if it meant being rude to someone he was meeting for the first time.

His gift was meant to be special.

He didn't want to see Yuria in the same dress as an unattractive girl.

Thus, Ruin growled at the freckle-covered girl.

"I'll give you money, so go change into another dress."

His tone was forceful.

Not a request, but a coercive demand, Ruin's voice rang in the girl's ears.

"…"

Tears threatened to spill from the girl's eyes. Just a touch, and they seemed ready to flow.

Ruin, unmoved by the girl's tearful eyes, clicked his tongue.

"I know it's rude, but I have my reasons. Please understand. I'll pay twice the original price, so just change and come back. It's a win for you."

"…Ruin."

"Don't call me by name. It annoys me."

"…"

The girl spoke in a trembling voice.

Ruin clenched his bandaged hand into a fist and shouted with difficulty.

"I… am Yuria."

"What?"

Ruin looked at the girl in shock. His eyes, trembling with dynamic emotion, were unreadable.

Was it shock? Anger? Or anger at the person who had done this to her? It was unclear, but one thing was certain: Ruin's expression reflected shock.

"Hey…"

Ruin ruffled his hair again.

And then,

"Say that again."

"What?"

"Say it again."

"How did this happen…?"

"Why has it been like this since yesterday…"

Ruin spoke with blazing eyes.

"Yuria wasn't ugly like you."

"Gulp… Sob…"

"How dare you speak so insolently."

Ruin began to reach out his hand.

"This won't do. I'll just lightly burn the hem of your dress."

"…"

"It's hard to watch you struggling to look pretty."

Emptiness started to fill the girl's eyes.

Despite her tears falling to the floor, Ruin, annoyed, reached out with a disgusted gesture.

At the moment he was about to ignite the girl's dress hem with a blazing orb,

-Bang!

The sound of the ballroom door breaking and the approach of footsteps began.

Through the dust cloud, the silhouette of a man walking in caught the attention of all the students, who watched in silence.

The man, receiving everyone's attention, waved his hand lightly in greeting.

"Um. Hello."

The red-haired man greeted everyone with his usual light tone.

Tall and well-built.

The handsome man, overwhelmed by the excessive attention, bowed slightly.

"I am Ricardo, serving Lady Olivia Desmond."

The man smiled brightly as he entered the ballroom.

"I'm attending as a dropout. But I brought my invitation, so if you have complaints, feel free to challenge me to a duel."

He then turned his gaze towards the freckle-covered girl and slowly walked over. The girl's eyes began to tremble intensely as the man, who looked straight ahead at only one person, approached.

The girl had wanted to hide.

Tears streaming down her face, she covered her face with her hands and hid.

At this moment, with everyone's attention, the man's steps were directed towards the crying, unattractive girl.

Ruin, annoyed by Ricardo's sudden appearance, grabbed his shoulder roughly, but

-Snap.

Unable to match Ricardo's strength, as if holding onto a massive rock, Ruin was pulled along by the firmness of Ricardo's grip. Annoyed, Ruin spoke harshly.

"The hell are you doing here?"

"Um… Could you please shut your mouth?"

Ricardo lightly dismissed Ruin and stood in front of the girl with freckles, smiling gently.

He reached out slowly and calmly stroked the girl's head.

"You're beautiful today as well."

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