The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen

Chapter 289

The cool valley water flowed by the riverside.

"Heehee...! It's cold."

The Young Lady, with her feet dipped in the valley water, looked at me with a bright smile.

"Heeheehee…! Ricardo, it's freezing!"

The Young Lady, seemingly excited about the rare outing, gently scooped up some water with her hands and smiled at me with sparkling eyes.

Personally, I prefer the sea, where there are more beautiful people than the valley, but this wasn’t so bad either. Though, it was a shame I couldn’t see the Young Lady in a bikini.

"Do you like it?"

"Yes! Ricardo, come and dip your feet too. It's so refreshing."

"I'll join you after unloading the luggage."

"Alright."

The Young Lady waited for me with a cheerful smile.

There wasn’t much luggage.

The Young Lady's clothes.

A table.

Just some alcohol and meat.

'Ah... I forgot to pack my clothes.'

As I rummaged through the bag, I let out a bitter smile, realizing I hadn’t brought a change of clothes. It seemed I had forgotten in my rush to pack.

Though the return trip might be damp, a Sword Master’s robust body doesn’t catch colds. It wasn’t a big problem.

'It should be fine.'

Carefully setting up the table on the rocky ground, I began unloading a small box from the cart.

After all, there was something essential for proper water play.

"Phew...!"

Hearing the faint sound of the wind, the Young Lady turned her head to look at me. Curious about what I was doing, she glanced over, her eyes widening at the sight of the yellow object inflating larger and larger in the breeze.

"Eeeek!!!"

The Young Lady screamed in surprise at the sight of the giant duck tube.

"It's such a huge frog!"

"It’s not a frog; it’s a duck."

"Hmm, same thing. If you’re too picky, girls won’t like you."

"They seem to like me, though."

"What?"

"That was a lie."

Pouting, the Young Lady reached out her hand to me.

"Let me ride the duck."

"Please wait a moment. It’s not fully inflated yet."

"Eeeek... Huff... Huff..."

"Blowing from there won’t inflate it."

"...It won’t?"

"No."

"Eeeeh..."

Even her impatient waiting was adorable.

Once I finished inflating the sturdy duck tube, I rolled up my pants and approached the Young Lady.

With a splash, the yellow duck created waves as it landed in the valley water, drenching the Young Lady and causing the tube to float gently on the water.

The Young Lady, her face wet from the splash, gave me a sulky look but soon broke into a radiant smile as the duck floated right up to her. She reached out her hand to me.

"Hurry! Hurry!"

"Just a moment."

It felt nice to experience peace after a long time.

Relaxing on the duck tube, the Young Lady absentmindedly enjoyed the leisure, making "floooat, floooat" sounds with her mouth and letting out a lazy yawn.

"Eek... I’m drifting away."

"Shall we head all the way to the North like this?"

"Can we?"

"No."

"..."

Watching the Young Lady’s unimpressed expression, I leaned against the back of the tube and started paddling with my legs.

"Young Lady."

"Yes."

"Are you bored?"

"Yes."

"Then let’s go at 100 km/h."

"What?"

-Whoosh.

"Eeeeeeeek!!!!"

The Young Lady, who had flown far away, smiled brightly and begged me to do it again.

"One more time!"

"Young Lady, your eyes are unfocused."

"Heehee! No, they’re not! Do it one more time!"

She truly loved playing more than anything.

After playing with the tube for a while, the Young Lady, having run out of things to do, gazed blankly at the sky and spoke.

"Ricardo."

"Yes."

"The sky is so clear."

"Indeed. It’s as clear as my heart."

"I don’t think so."

"...Do you want to fall in?"

"If I fall, I’ll die."

"Then, what color do you think the sky is?"

With a deep sigh, as if reluctantly answering, the Young Lady replied.

"Ricardo's heart color!"

"Exactly."

"Ugh... I feel thorns growing in my mouth."

Truly, she was a Young Lady who was stingy with compliments.

While we were exchanging silly banter and letting the current carry us, a loud roar echoed from above the waterfall.

-Gooooom!

"Eek?! That scared me!"

-Gooooooom!!

"Huh?"

The Young Lady, spotting Gomtangi with something in her mouth, had a question mark practically floating above her head.

"Ricardo."

"Yes."

"The bear brought food in its mouth."

"Gomtangi isn’t food."

"Didn’t we bring her to eat today?"

"No."

"Huh...?"

At her suspiciously food-obsessed remark, I let out a dry laugh and looked at Gomtangi.

-Chomp chomp.

"Well, she is a bear."

Watching Gomtangi hunt salmon like a wild bear, I nodded. She was undeniably a real bear now.

-Rumble.

"Huh?"

At the sudden sound of thunder, I looked up at the sky. I hadn’t noticed before, but the sky was now filled with dark clouds, giving me a foreboding feeling.

I looked up at the darkened sky and muttered quietly to myself.

"No way..."

-Plop.

"..."

-Plop, plop.

Oh no.

Raindrops began to fall from the sky. The tiny droplets landed on the forehead of the Young Lady lying on the duck tube, on Gomtangi's head as she hunted salmon, and on the bridge of my nose as I stared at the cloudy sky. It was as if the rain was announcing the end of our water play.

The Young Lady rubbed the raindrop off her forehead and spoke indifferently.

"Ricardo, stop splashing water. If I drink any more water, I won’t be able to eat."

"It’s not me."

"Huh?"

The sky had been clear just moments ago, so why was it raining now?

"What a shame."

It wasn’t a welcome moment for rain that had come after such a long time. If only we could have played a little longer, the Young Lady’s underwear... no, we could have had more fun.

Smiling regretfully, I gently pushed the duck tube toward the shallow water.

The Young Lady let out a disappointed "Hmm..." as if she regretted having to leave so soon, but there was no helping it if we wanted to avoid catching a cold.

"No, I can’t go yet. I haven’t caught the crayfish."

"You were trying to catch crayfish?"

"Yes. I was going to catch a really big one and ask Ricardo to cook it for me."

"A lobster?"

"Yes."

"Lobsters don’t live here."

"Then...?"

"They live in deeper waters."

"...Eek."

The Young Lady’s dream was shattered.

Climbing up onto the gravel shore, I cautiously looked around. I needed to move our belongings before the rain got heavier.

Thinking it wouldn’t rain, we hadn’t brought a parasol. I regretted not bringing one as I scanned the surroundings.

-Grrrr!

I heard Gomtangi’s growl from her spot.

Gomtangi was poking her face out of a small cave and calling us over. Her bright smile, as if telling us to come in and take shelter from the rain, made me smile faintly as I nodded.

"Young Lady."

"Yes."

"Shall we light a bonfire and play in the cave?"

"A bonfire?"

"Yes."

"I can’t use magic, though."

"I know how to use it."

"...Oh!"

The Young Lady smiled brightly and nodded.

"Yes! Let’s grill some meat."

"We can also grill the fish Gomtangi caught."

"Hehe, sounds good!"

Before the rain got heavier, I quickly moved the Young Lady and our belongings into the cave. The duck tube could stay by the water since it didn’t mind the rain. I focused on moving clothes, meat, and tree branches into the cave.

Sitting inside the cave, the Young Lady watched me and clapped her hands with an impressed "Wow."

"Ricardo, you’re so fast..."

"This is the strength of a butler."

"Amazing...!"

A pleased smile spread across my face.

-Swoosh.

"Oh dear."

As I entered the cave, I looked at the pouring rain and gave a bittersweet smile.

"It doesn’t look like it’ll stop anytime soon."

It didn’t seem like just a passing shower.

***

-Crackle.

The lit bonfire emitted a gentle warmth, glowing softly before us.

Wrapped in a blanket, the Young Lady poked her face out, trying to ward off the chill. Gomtangi lay behind her frail figure, sharing her warmth. Though they grumbled about not liking each other, their willingness to share warmth made me chuckle quietly.

"Ricardo."

Gazing blankly at the fire, the Young Lady cautiously called out to me as I added more firewood.

"Tell me a scary story."

"Pardon?"

"They say you’re supposed to hear scary stories in weather like this."

"Who says that?"

"'I Bought a Slave and Lost My Innocence.' That book."

"There’s a book like that?"

"Yes. Gomtangi brought it to me."

"Did you finish reading it?"

"No, I fell asleep while reading. I plan to finish it when we get home."

"I’ll throw it away."

"Eek! No! That’s an important part! The heroine and the hero kiss in a cave while it’s raining...!"

-Growl. (Haha.)

For the first time, I felt a twinge of dislike toward Gomtangi.

Covering the Young Lady’s mouth, I fell into thought. What kind of scary story should I tell?

Since the Young Lady, who was terrified of ghosts, had asked for a scary story, I pondered deeply over what to share.

It would be troublesome if it was too frightening.

"Hmm... Can you handle it?"

-Nod. Nod.

"Even if you get scared and ask me to sleep with you, I won’t."

"I don’t like that."

"…?"

"If I get scared, I’ll ask you to sleep with me."

"Understood."

The Young Lady was difficult in many ways.

Listening to the sound of rain, I offered her some options.

"What kind of story would you like to hear? A ghost story from the academy? Or a bathroom ghost story?"

"Hmm... Is there anything scarier?"

"You’re unusually bold today."

"Hehe...! I’m full, so I can’t help it."

The Young Lady smiled as she patted her stomach, full from eating meat.

"I want to hear a story that’s both haunting and sorrowful."

"That’s a tall order. Where would you find a ghost story that’s sorrowful?"

"Ricardo can do it."

"..."

Letting out a deep sigh, I racked my brain. Then, as I gently patted the Young Lady’s head, I began to speak softly.

A story I didn’t know when I had heard but had stayed in my mind.

Honestly, I wasn’t sure if it would be scary.

Carefully, I started telling a story that suited a rainy day.

"Alright... Here we go."

"Yes."

"Gasp!"

"Once upon a time..."

[There was a boy who was hated by everyone.]