Translator: Nox

The Baddest Villainess Is Back

Chapter 25

“……Daughter, must you really go?”

Cherti Bellion asked as he watched Roselyn, who sat opposite him, calmly tilting her teacup.

“Yes. It’s already been announced.”

Roselyn provided an explanation along with her answer, responding to a question she had already answered more than ten times.

Several days had passed since the banquet at the Imperial Palace ended….

On the final day of the banquet, it was announced that she would be departing for Kaluta as a diplomat.

Now, her position as an envoy to Kaluta was irreversible.

“Truly?”

“Yes.”

By the eleventh time he asked, her sincerity had naturally worn thin.

Eventually, she just gave a half-hearted nod whether he asked or not.

At any rate, there were only three days left until departure.

Before leaving for Kaluta, Roselyn had one task remaining.

She had to attend an auction held today.

An underground auction that sold everything from precious gems to rare beastmen and even humans. This auction was hosted by none other than Makruksa.

However, the core of Makruksa did not reveal itself easily.

This auction house also operated as a cell-based organization, much like Makruksa itself; while one could identify the venue, it was impossible to discover the true sponsors or the ‘King’ of Makruksa.

Of course, Roselyn wasn't attending the auction to find the King.

She didn't even intend to actually bid on anything.

Using the VIP ticket Marquis Gerren had provided, she planned to attend the ‘pre-viewing’ held before the auction officially began.

A place where one could see the goods before they went up for bid.

Since this granted the right to purchase items privately beforehand, one had no choice but to pay whatever price they demanded.

The prices were usually set at five to ten times the starting bid of the auction.

‘Money isn’t an issue since Marquis Gerren gave me a blank check.’

Roselyn was no champion of justice, so she felt no grand mission to abolish such black markets.

Besides, there was only one thing Roselyn was looking for.

Seeing Roselyn’s composed face, Cherti let out a short sigh.

Ever since the day she had disappeared into the library at the Imperial Palace without a word, Cherti had refused to leave Roselyn’s side for a while.

Roselyn recalled the look on Cherti Bellion’s face that day—how disheveled and frantic he had been after searching for her.

The father who had pulled her into an embrace the moment he saw her, whispering that he thought she had disappeared again, had looked quite unstable.

It was to the point that, following that day, he had moved out of the basement and relocated his room next to hers.

That wasn't all.

He visited her room to have breakfast in the morning, lunch in the afternoon, and dinner in the evening.

When Roselyn irritably suggested that he might as well work here if he was going to be like that, her father simply replied, “I understand,” and the very next day, he set up a small office in a corner of her room.

The result was this current situation, where he asked her if she was really going at every possible moment.

Roselyn pressed a hand to her forehead and exhaled a sigh.

“Roselyn, then at least take this with you.”

Cherti’s voice pulled Roselyn from her thoughts.

He pulled something from his waist and held it out to her.

“……A dagger?”

It was a dagger encased in a leather sheath.

Roselyn’s eyes widened slightly.

As she drew the blade slightly from the sheath, Cherti’s shoulders gave a small flinch.

Unlike a typical silver blade, the dagger he gave her had a faint violet hue shimmering across the metal; it was rugged yet featured exquisite craftsmanship.

‘……This is.’

It was a dagger Roselyn recognized.

A dagger that, originally, would have belonged to Lady Carmel.

“I made it myself.”

“……You made this, Father?”

Roselyn asked back, slightly surprised.

It was something Lady Carmel used to carry around boastfully.

She knew her father had given it to her, but she had never imagined that he had forged it himself.

At Roselyn’s question, he looked somewhat proud yet awkward, averting his gaze slightly as he continued.

“Yes. I forged it by infusing my Abyss into the molten metal of a special mineral.”

Cherti said.

‘So this is an Abyss Weapon.’

A dangerous weapon developed by her father, which had allowed the organization known as ‘Makruksa’ to emerge into the world.

It was the secret information her father had lost to Lady Carmel, after which Makruksa proceeded to spirit away the Abyss Weapon technicians from the Ducal House.

These were the decisive reasons why the Bellion Ducal House had faltered so drastically.

Roselyn gripped the remarkably light dagger and gave it a small downward swing.

It was light, the grip was excellent, and it felt easy to move with.

As if it had been tailored to her hand from the very beginning.

“……It’s easy to hold. Usually, daggers are made for men, so they’re a bit too thick and large for me to grip.”

She offered a brief assessment.

A subtle silence settled between them.

Wondering if she had misspoken, she replayed her words in her head while looking at Cherti.

“……Of course it is, since I made it with the intention of giving it to you.”

“…….”

Roselyn’s eyes widened slightly at his words.

“For the record, it’s not something I just picked up somewhere, or a cheap thing I thought of while walking down the street.”

His voice, hurriedly adding the explanation, sounded somewhat urgent.

‘He made it for me?’

It was truly unexpected.

Her lips parted to speak, then pressed firmly shut again.

“It’s nothing strange…… anyway, with a mineral I happened to discover recently……”

Cherti’s voice trailed off into a low murmur.

“……But perhaps it doesn't suit a young lady.”

When Roselyn remained silent, Cherti, who had been watching her cautiously, added sheepishly.

“If you don’t care for it, you can just return it or throw it away. I’m not usually very good at giving these kinds of gifts……”

He stammered through his explanation before slowly furrowing his brows.

“I felt like I only ever gave you flowers, so I just wanted to try giving you something else…… Perhaps it was uncalled for.”

After all, she would be accompanied by escort knights.

Watching Cherti begin to mumble excuses while digging himself into a hole again, Roselyn let out a soft laugh.

“No, I like this better than flowers.”

Roselyn said, slowly raising the blade to catch the sunlight streaming through the window.

In the light, she could see the clean finish and the pristine blade without a single air bubble.

“Being protected by someone isn't really my style. Thank you.”

Cherti’s eyes widened slightly at Roselyn’s words.

A faint smile touched his lips.

“……Is that so. Still, it would be better if you never have a reason to use it.”

“When did you start making this?”

Roselyn asked.

‘Was it since I rejected the flowers before?’

Cherti glanced at Roselyn before speaking.

“About three and a half years ago.”

“……Pardon?”

“I discovered the mineral about five years ago, but processing it wasn't easy, so I struggled with it for a while.”

Cherti explained.

However, Roselyn wasn't really listening.

‘……It’s been three and a half years?’

“Of course, it’s absolutely not because I was lacking or foolish, but because the mineral itself was incredibly hard and difficult to work with.”

The voice adding the clarification felt distant.

‘Then that dagger, too……’

The dagger Lady Carmel had carried in the original world…….

Roselyn felt her fingertips turn ice cold.

‘No, in that world, it might not have been mine.’

Roselyn thought.

‘It might have been intended for Lady Carmel from the start, not me.’

Roselyn thought as she slowly lowered the dagger.

As she examined it closely, she noticed a small engraving on the blade.

Rose

The flowing cursive script looked as if Cherti had engraved it himself, closely resembling his handwriting.

Thump.

In an instant, her heart dropped to the floor.