She is the Daughter of the Villainess in a Ridiculous Novel - Chapter 67
“Understood. However… If the Countess has informed anyone that Idel has awakened, it will be difficult to leave like this. Someone might come to see her.”
“Ah.”
That’s true. After pondering Dante’s words for a moment, Idel narrowed her eyes and spoke to him.
“Send a message to Diane.”
“The maid who has always been by your side?”
“Yes. If it’s Diane, she’ll handle it.”
After all, Melisa must have gone to the Duke and Duchess to say, “Idel doesn’t want to see you.”
‘Melisa is the kind of crazy person who enjoys it whether the Duchess cries or laughs, so she probably went to meet them under my pretense.’
Neither the Duchess nor the Duke would be the type to ignore that and come to the room, especially not for a child who had just awakened.
This meant that as long as they passed through the maids or servants, there was little risk of being caught.
‘In that sense, Diane is the most suitable person. She wouldn’t oppose the idea of sneaking out to meet Gianna.’
After hearing Idel’s words, Dante nodded with a determined expression and spoke.
“I will send a signal to the balcony shortly. Then.”
“Wait, what signal…?”
Before she could finish her sentence, Dante disappeared beyond the door, causing Idel to lightly shake her head.
‘Well, I guess I have no choice but to wait.’
Sitting back down on the bed, Idel slowly surveyed the suddenly quiet room.
‘I’ve realized this isn’t my room.’
It seemed that her own room had many things to check due to the incident investigation.
‘Speaking of the investigation, where did that forgiveness come from? The most likely suspect is still Diane… Well, I guess it’s fine since I got through it well in the end.’
Idel blinked slowly, unable to imagine that Diane had praised her with a fanatical demeanor.
‘I succeeded in deceiving Melisa. Using Veronica to give Sylvia some leeway has also progressed smoothly.’
What remained was finding a way to keep Sylvia by the Duchess’s side and going to the orphanage.
‘When considering the weight of responsibility, it’s not difficult to leave Sylvia behind. After all, Sylvia didn’t tell the Duchess the truth because of me, and ultimately, I not only ensured that I wouldn’t ingest poison but also gathered evidence.’
While it could be argued that she lacked management skills as the head maid, that could be somewhat offset by the fact that she was deceived by Veronica and Demaric.
From what I’ve learned, Demaric has a relatively good reputation in the Duke’s household.
‘If she says she believes the words of her fiancé, who could argue against it? If there’s going to be a problem, it would be Sylvia herself.’
Given her strict nature and emphasis on procedure, she might voluntarily resign from her position as head maid, even if the Duke or Duchess were to forgive her.
‘That cannot happen.’
Then Melisa would be delighted again, finally rid of a pesky fly by the side of the person she loves.
Of course, that wasn’t the only reason. Sylvia was a highly loyal assistant, mentioned several times in her sister’s book report.
‘If Melisa is to continue maneuvering within Clementine, she needs Sylvia. After all, Sylvia is the one who is most wary of Melisa.’
Honestly, I would love to sit down for tea and gossip about Melisa.
‘And the orphanage…’
It was time to erase unnecessary thoughts and focus on the next objective.
—Tap! Tap!
A small stone hit the window from the direction of the balcony.
‘Is this the signal?’
Recalling Dante’s words, I stepped out onto the balcony and glanced down.
“Idel, I’ve come to get you.”
Below the balcony stood Dante, who had come to keep his promise, and…
“Oh? Miss Idel, you really have opened your eyes!”
Patrick was there.
Seeing him waving with a lazy expression, Idel instinctively turned her head to glare at Dante.
‘He said to avoid Melisa and go see Gianna, but he brought along Melisa’s accomplice?’
Of course, it was a look that wouldn’t get through. Dante Knightley didn’t know what kind of person Patrick was to her.
Receiving Idel’s intense gaze, Dante tilted his head slightly and blinked.
“Miss Idel?”
“Don’t call me.”
“Hahaha! Even after just getting out of bed, you’re still so prickly, young lady!”
“……”
As he teased, he stretched out his arm toward Idel.
“You said you were going for a nice evening walk with the young master, right? I’ll help you down, so jump!”
“……”
“Well, maybe in about seven years it won’t be a problem, but for now, it’s dangerous. Cling to the safe me! Or are you scared?”
His subtly provoking tone made Idel scrunch her face.
“……Who says I can’t?”
It was very displeasing to have to jump into the arms of someone who was in league with her enemy, but there was no choice. For now, she had to go along with it.
Taking a deep breath, Idel tightly closed her eyes and jumped off the balcony.
For a moment, she felt her body drop quickly toward the ground, but strong arms caught her securely.
“Oh, you’re bolder than I expected! I thought you’d hesitate at least two more times.”
“Idel, are you okay? Do you feel dizzy or like you’re going to throw up?”
“Really, young master. How high do you think the balcony is?”
Seeing the two men chatting quietly with her in between, Idel cleared her throat lightly.
“Stop being noisy and put me down.”
“As you wish, young lady. But before that, may I take the liberty of doing something?”
“What?”
Before Idel could respond, he smoothly adjusted his hold on her and lifted one hand to touch her forehead.
“Hm, you don’t seem to have any issues.”
“What are you….”
“No, you collapsed so dramatically at the dinner table that I wanted to check on you. You didn’t seem well.”
Whether or not his statement about feeling unwell was true, Patrick’s eyes were subtly clouded.
Idel, who was watching him with a cold gaze, blinked her icy eyes.
‘What does it matter to me if he feels bad or not? Besides, why should he feel bad about me?’
Could he possibly be a pervert?
Her previous feelings of fondness had sunk even deeper into the ground since it was revealed that he was allied with Melisa.
Reading a hint of suspicion in her eyes, Patrick burst into a big laugh and set Idel down.
“Don’t glare at me like I’m some weird guy! I would have a child about your age and Young Master Dante’s. My daughter-like Miss collapsed, so I felt bad.”
“Who’s your daughter?”
Idel scoffed as if she had heard something ridiculous and lightly adjusted her clothes. Patrick, glancing at her, still wore a somewhat puzzled smile.
“Hmm? Do you have something to say?”
“No. Dante, when are we leaving?”
“Wah wah, no matter how much you two are enjoying a cozy evening walk, to think you’d dismiss me so coldly after I took the time to help….”
Dante lightly shook his head at his exaggerated display of faux crying.
“Enough, let’s go quickly.”
“Cough, cough, got it, understood.”
As if he had teased enough, Patrick raised both hands and lightly waved them.
Then, after taking a moment to gaze at Idel, he greeted the two as if he had finished his business.
“Well then, I’ll head back to my lodging~ Just don’t stay out too late.”
“Okay.”
That was truly the end. Watching Patrick’s figure disappear without a trace, Idel quietly frowned.
‘Why did he even come?’
Dante had asked for help, so he must have come for that, but it certainly wasn’t the only reason.
‘And that strange riddle he threw out not long ago.’
No matter how much she tried to analyze it, she felt that understanding Patrick was inherently difficult.
What exactly does that person do? Was he a knight of the Knightley Order from the beginning?
“Idel, this way.”
“…Oh, right.”
At Dante’s voice, she set aside her swirling thoughts and followed him.
She thought she should first sort out the immediate situation and then gradually learn more about him.
☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓
– Knock, knock, knock!
“Miss Gianna, could you please open the door? Just for a moment for a meal…?”
“I don’t really want to eat. Don’t come in.”
“Miss…”
Even at the sound of the maid pacing outside, Gianna remained unmoved.
Curled up under the blanket, Gianna bit her lip tightly and squeezed her eyes shut.
