The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen

Chapter 44: Two Guests (2)

The dining table was finally serving its purpose after a long time.

Since Yuria's last visit, the table had been gathering dust, but now it was in use again.

From the kitchen, I looked at those sitting at the table.

Olivia had an indifferent expression on her face.

Hanna, who became the youngest aura user in the empire.

And Malik, the patriarch of the restaurant industry… no, the firstborn son of the Histania family, all notable figures from the empire, were sitting at the humble dining table, sipping hot tea.

Savoring the fragrance of black tea, Hanna looked towards me with a small smile.

"This time it's not green tea?"

"I thought you might come, Hanna, so I decided to spend a bit."

Hanna smiled at my diplomatic response.

"Really? I was hoping to surprise you."

It seemed to be a joke suited to Hanna’s taste.

Hanna carefully observed her teacup.

With a subtle smile, she touched the handle of the cup and murmured to herself.

"The green tea was… also tasty."

Seizing the moment, I rummaged around and took out a tin of cheap green tea from the cupboard.

The cheap green tea that Olivia and I had tried in vain to finish had not seen the light of day since we started drinking tea made with craftsmanship. I had hoped to get rid of it with this opportunity.

I showed Hanna the tin of green tea made of steel.

"Would you like some?"

Olivia, noticing my hidden intention to get rid of leftovers, commented.

"Ricardo, dealing with leftovers is bad."

"These aren't leftovers. I'm simply offering tea that suits the taste."

"…That's still dealing with leftovers."

Olivia was being obtuse.

Hanna awkwardly shook her head, declining. While I regretted missing this chance to get rid of it and suggested she take it home, thanks to Olivia’s confession of conscience, I did not succeed.

Frustrated, I told Olivia.

"Then, tomorrow's snack will be green tea and biscuits."

"Dealing with leftovers is bad."

"It's fine. Sometimes the homeowner needs to take care of the leftovers."

"Well…"

Olivia looked towards Hanna hopefully.

"You eat it."

And she pushed the green tea towards Hanna.

Hanna declined.

She said the green tea I made was tasty, or something like that.

With a reluctant heart, I put the green tea back in the cupboard.

Dinner preparations were quickly made.

Tonight's menu was tteokbokki.

A humble dish to serve to guests, but it was Hanna’s special request wrapped in bundles of gifts, so I had to make it.

It was what Hanna wanted.

And also the menu for tonight.

Nevertheless, I couldn't help feeling nervous about presenting a new dish in front of a giant in the culinary industry.

Malik had been watching me cook with his arms crossed for some time now.

His attitude reminded me of a certain cooking show from a past life. I was half-expecting him to say "Chef, could you come down here for a moment?" which made it hard for me to concentrate on my cooking.

"Hm… You're rather good."

Malik gave a brief review as he watched my adept handling of the ingredients.

I couldn't decide whether to take it as a compliment or to tell this guest to stop critiquing and just sit down.

Curious about the developing dish, Malik asked.

"What are you cooking?"

"Ah, is this your first time, Malik?"

Malik nodded.

The only ones who had tried tteokbokki at this estate were Olivia and Hanna.

Come to think of it, Malik had never eaten tteokbokki before. He needed an explanation of the dish. Just when I was about to explain, I heard Hanna’s sharp voice from the chair.

"Just shut up and eat."

"…Sure."

Malik couldn’t stand up against Hanna.

The last time I saw them, Malik was desperately chasing after Hanna, but it seemed much had changed in their relationship.

I wonder if my advice from last time had helped, as the two seemed to be on better terms now, fitting the image of siblings.

Bickering.

"What are you doing at someone else’s house?"

"It's an occupational habit…"

"Occupation? Aren't you a knight, brother?"

"That’s… right…! A Royal Knight."

"Then behave like one and sit still, please."

Or not?

It seemed he might be thoroughly committed to his professional spirit as an entrepreneur…

Anyway, it's good to see them getting along.

Just that the relationship between Olivia and Malik was a bit worrying.

Since a moment ago, Olivia had been eyeing Malik with her arms crossed. She was clearly displeased with this uninvited guest’s presence.

Their relationship started on a rocky note.

"Who are you?"

"…You?"

"Yeah, you."

"Then who are you?"

"I am the owner of this house."

"Ah… so you are the infamous villainess Olivia?"

"…Wanna fight?"

Olivia glared at Malik.

And Malik glared back at her.

The atmosphere between the two was quite suffocating.

When their hostile stares crossed, Hanna poked Malik's side forcefully.

"…Don’t be annoying."

Hanna had become the boss of Malik.

She seemed much changed. The gloominess due to her insecurity about the sword had vanished, replaced by confidence and assertiveness. Her current demeanor seemed quite appealing.

When the tteokbokki was ready, I put on oven mitts.

Seeing this, Olivia said.

"Since Ricardo is hurt, Malik, you carry it over."

Malik glared at Olivia, but compelled by another sharp nudge to the ribs from Hanna, he walked over to the kitchen.

***

The pot was quickly emptied.

Malik, who had been curiously examining the food, dropped all manners of nobility and greedily cleared his plate, while Hanna, sweating profusely, muttered ‘That's the taste!' and rapidly emptied her dish.

"My dinner…"

Olivia, holding a fork and staring despairingly at the pot, was on the verge of tears, muttering ‘I can’t… No…'

Perhaps because Hanna and Malik were knights, they possessed outstanding talent for eating. Their enjoyment was so evident, I felt glad watching them, as if they would have been successful food bloggers in a past life.

Of course, Olivia’s expression soured.

"At least eat less, you pigs…!"

"…"

"…"

"Don't ignore me!"

As the pot was nearly empty,

I cautiously decided to interrupt their meal.

The question I hadn't asked earlier.

‘Why did you come here?'

I hadn't had the chance to ask earlier, but now that there was a moment, I decided to inquire.

"So, what brings you to our estate?"

It didn't seem like they had come for a visit, nor did it seem they came just for a meal.

I pointedly asked Malik, as I had a hunch.

"With all these gifts wrapped up, it seems like you've come for another reason. Isn't that right, Malik?"

Malik, who had been jabbing at his rice cake with a fork, flinched at the shoulder. He then gave a slight shake of his head and wiped his mouth before responding.

"It's not like the last time with the mantis… I mean, Pascal-related matters. I came to express my gratitude."

As I thought. It seemed he was here because of the potion I had sent.

I had sent a sword to Hanna and a potion to Malik via parcel. It must be a visit to say thanks. I pretended not to know.

I believe humility requires one to feign ignorance. That way, I might get a meal coupon for the Forest Friend and some pocket money as a bonus.

I looked at Malik with an expression that said I knew nothing.

"Gratitude?"

Malik, as if having read my mind, let out a wry laugh.

"Yes, gratitude… sometimes it's definitely faster to show rather than tell."

Malik put down his fork and clenched his fist.

A faint aura of pale brown shone around him.

Tiny and insignificant, yet unmistakably aura.

Malik gave a charming smile, sending a provocative glance my way. I'm not fond of a man's smile enough to want to punch him in the face.

Out of respect for a water benefactor, I should refrain from any aggression.

The weight of being the head of the household forced me to unclench my fist.

Malik spoke to me, his expression suggesting a decade-long congestion had cleared.

"Thanks to the potion you gifted, I was able to transcend my limits."

I hid my ulterior motives behind my response to Malik’s words and shook my head.

"Ah… what help could I have possibly given? It was all Malik's hard work, wasn't it?"

Malik nodded without a second's hesitation.

"That's definitely true."

On one hand, Malik's assessment was accurate.

If one could awaken the aura simply by possessing a potion, then who in the world would fail to awaken? If nobility had enough money, they would all be using aura and flying around. Considering that the previous youngest aura user before Hanna was just an ordinary commoner, it would have been nearly impossible to achieve aura through doping.

Aware of this fact, Malik discarded any semblance of modesty in his acknowledgment.

But still, it was annoying nonetheless.

Malik wore a look of profound gratitude.

"After that day, I had an epiphany."

"Is your epiphany about my excellent swordsmanship?" I asked.

"Do you not know modesty?"

"Isn’t it the truth?"

Malik clicked his tongue with an annoyed expression and continued.

"Anyway, that battle made me realize my shortcomings. I was too sold on the idea of being one of the ‘chosen' and failed to take care of those around me."

Malik reached out to hold Hanna's hand.

Seemed like a sudden surge of familial affection.

Hanna frowned and slapped Malik's hand away, then said something to him that she often used on her brother.

"What are you talking about, that's disgusting."

They truly seemed like siblings.

Malik told several stories.

Apologizing to Hanna.

Getting beaten to a pulp at the Royal Academy.

Proudly stating that he begged for Hanna’s forgiveness despite being hit with scabbards, auras, even getting beaten like a dog in front of people.

He came across as quite insane.

Olivia felt the same way.

"A lunatic."

She left the same review as I did.

Anyway, Malik said he had an epiphany in that process.

That he awakened his aura thanks to it. Hanna thanked us for the gift of the treasured sword and came to our estate for that reason.

Summarizing his story, Malik pointed at the gifts piled up next to the table.

Dolls. Flowers. Accessories. And…

"Wow..?"

Even the dining coupons for Olivia's favorite, the Forest Friend.

Olivia's eyes widened at the sight of the dining coupons in Malik's hand.

"Ricardo dining coupons. As many as… ten!"

Olivia was beaming with the brightest smile I had seen today.

I ducked my head and whispered in Olivia’s ear.

"That's the restaurant owner."

"The owner?"

"Yes… the Forest Friend."

Olivia looked at me as if to ask why I was only telling her now.

She gave Malik a look of disbelief, then turned to me with a questioning gaze as if asking if this made any sense. I responded to her by nodding.

Olivia whispered in my ear.

"The family that thinks of nothing but swords?"

"Yes."

"A dumb brute who only understands swords?"

I nodded again.

"Is that the person you mentioned? The one who gave a lot of money?"

"Yes."

"…Did I make a mistake?"

Olivia was silent.

Then she awkwardly extended her hand towards Malik.

"Then… please take care of me."

Malik answered coldly.

"It’s too late."

Olivia reacted as if she'd lost the world.

*

As the night grew late, the Histania siblings decided to stay overnight at the estate.

It was an overnight stay arranged through Olivia's efforts to curry favor and my suggestion.

Hanna went to Olivia's room with her, while Malik and I sat in the dining room drinking tea.

"Sigh…"

As Malik cooled his hot tea, he thanked me for the dinner.

"Thank you for the meal. It was my first time trying that food, but it was really delicious."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it."

After a short silence, Malik spoke with a serious expression.

"So, I was thinking of adding that tteokbokki dish to our restaurant's menu…"

I swallowed hard.

"What?"

Malik continued, saying that he didn’t only want the recipe, he proposed that we go into business together, and was confident that the dish would be successful.

"I won't leave you feeling shortchanged; let's do it at a 70-30 split. Let's conquer the restaurant industry of the entire continent together," he said, and to Malik who seemed to have set an unusual goal, I said,

"Malik."

"Why, don't you like it? Then how about 60-40… I can't go any higher than that."

Malik seemed to have a natural talent for this line of work, perhaps even more so than with the sword. Of course, he was also good with a sword… but that.

His talent in the restaurant business was remarkable.

"Weren't your dreams about becoming a leader of the knight order?"

Malik clamped his mouth shut.

After the business talk, Malik took out a single piece of paper from his pocket.

"If you give the recipe it's a 70-30 deal. I'll manage the operations, and you handle the development. No complaints, right?"

"Yes. You handle the bothersome stuff, Malik."

"…Annoying. Well, let's conclude this conversation here and discuss this paper. I'm sure it's the thing you're most curious about."

Malik unfolded the paper on the table.

A blueprint with two large wheels attached to each side of a chair was sprawled out on the table.

"I read the letter you sent. The writing was serious, though I had to call an expert in ancient languages to resolve that… it was terrible. The writing. Anyways, when I looked at the drawing, it was clear that it is indeed an incredible invention."

With a question mark over his head, Malik asked,

"What did you say the name of this chair was?"

I told Malik,

"It's called a wheelchair."