The Villain Wants to Live a Quiet Life

As I returned alone, a quiet atmosphere greeted me.

Emilia was tasting food alongside a woman presumed to be her mother. Rather than eating enjoyably, she seemed to be picking at the food out of politeness.

‘Does she have no appetite?’

Perhaps the food doesn’t suit her taste. Either way, it’s not a pleasant situation.

“I’ll go finish my conversation with Count Carl. We can have a drink later. I’ll leave my daughter in your care.”

“Understood, Lord Stefan.”

I had tried to avoid being seen with Emilia in public as much as possible, but… it couldn’t be helped now.

Like it or not, this would attract attention from others.

But I couldn’t refuse after being entrusted by Lord Stefan.

Moreover, the eldest daughter of the Bayemühren family had come all this way. I should act as a proper young master.

“Lady Bayemühren, may I interrupt for a moment?”

“Young Master Ludwig, by all means.”

Apart from a brief greeting earlier, I hadn’t exchanged words with Emilia’s mother, so I politely inserted myself between the two.

In contrast to Emilia’s eyes greeting, the beautiful matron returned my greeting courteously with a warm tone.

This was Emilia’s mother and Lord Stefan’s partner, the lady of the Bayemühren house – Julia Bayemühren.

“Please feel free to address me casually.”

“Then, may I call you Ludwig?”

Despite being around the same age as my mother, her attitude was very polite.

It must be her natural disposition. I have seen similar people since coming here.

People who don’t speak casually even to those lower in rank or younger, always maintaining respect. She was exactly like that.

“Shall I call you by your name too? It might be confusing when I’m with my daughter.”

“Please do, Lady Julia.”

I quickly agreed as it wasn’t an unreasonable request.

I don’t think there would be any confusion with the Bayemühren surname since the titles used are different, but…

“By the way, where is Lady Aiphretz? I wanted to have a chat with her.”

“Mother should be over there. I’ll guide you.”

“I’m fine, please look after my daughter for a moment. She’s been looking for you…”

“M-Mother!”

Surprisingly, I didn’t know Emilia could raise her voice like this.

Of course, there were scenes where she burst out in anger in the original work, but seeing it in person was quite fresh. It wasn’t this bad earlier.

If anything, I’m honored that she was looking for me. It’s likely just politeness, but it doesn’t make me feel bad.

Lady Julia immediately greeted me and withdrew, accompanied by the maid beside her.

I wondered if she had any connection with my mother, but I didn’t think much of it.

“Emilia, is the food to your liking?”

“Huh? Oh, yes. I’m embarrassed to say I’ve even overeaten a bit.”

“Is that so? I’m glad.”

She must be saying this thinking I hadn’t been watching from afar.

I couldn’t accuse her of lying even if she was trying to be considerate of me. Rather, here I should… ah, maybe that’s not right.

I thought about showing off my cooking skills a bit, assuming Emilia’s tastes were the same as in the original work, but I decided against it.

I don’t know her stomach situation, and suddenly offering to cook might make her feel burdened.

“Excuse me, are you Lady Bayemühren?”

As I was busy pondering, a man suddenly appeared between us.

I had been worried about running into Georg all day, so I quickly turned my head, but the man standing there looked completely different from the Georg I had seen in the illustrations.

“It’s an honor to meet you. I am Wilhelm, the eldest son of the Rahethofen family.”

‘What?’

Wait. What did he just say? The eldest son of the Rahethofen family, Wilhelm? Could it be the Wilhelm I know?

The older brother of Georg and a supporting character who dies at the age of 19 due to his schemes, thereby losing his position as head of the family.

In the original work, there’s a phrase comparing the two: if Georg is a villain who hides his true nature, Wilhelm is a villain who does not.

That’s why readers were sure that the outcome would have been terrible regardless of whose hands the Rahethofen family fell into.

Of course, unlike Georg who went overboard and knew no bounds, Wilhelm was a person who knew when to bow his head accordingly.

Wilhelm greeted Emilia calmly, completely ignoring me standing next to her.

A blatant disregard, but it didn’t hurt my pride. In fact, the disregard was so clean that I hardly felt anything.

The problem, if any, was that Emilia’s eyes didn’t look too good.

“Nice to meet you, Young Master Rahethofen. Have you any more to say?”

“…Pardon?”

Her tone was so sharp it felt as if a keen sword was speaking.

Wilhelm, perhaps wondering if he had misheard, asked back, now unable to maintain the cool smile he had been wearing.

“Were you going to act as if you didn’t notice Ludwig standing next to me and therefore not greet him as well?

“W-Well…”

Emilia, unlike her usual self, had one hand on her hip and was glaring at him with a crooked attitude.

This is bad. It seems her mood has soured considerably.

I appreciate her standing up for me being ignored, but I don’t want to cause unnecessary commotion.

Above all, I didn’t want her mood to worsen further. Maybe I should pretend not to notice and let the situation pass.

“We met earlier, Young Master Rahethofen. I didn’t expect to see you again so soon.”

I stepped forward with a friendly smile and extended my hand to him.

Wilhelm looked at me and my outstretched hand alternately with wide eyes. Eventually, seeming to have grasped the situation just now, he hurriedly nodded and shook my hand.

“Y-Yes, Young Master Aiphretz… I apologize for my rudeness just now.”

“It’s fine. It’s burdensome to receive greetings twice in one day. If anything, I’m sorry for not informing you earlier and ruining the atmosphere.”

Only then did Emilia relax her cold gaze and cautiously approach my side, asking if we had already exchanged greetings.

We hadn’t, but I had to lie to defuse the situation. I didn’t care what happened to that guy, but I didn’t want to see Emilia angry.

If he’s not a fool, he must have felt a blow to his pride, ending up indebted to someone he had tried to ignore.

Sometimes it’s better to let things slide like this rather than answering insult with insult.

“That’s right. I’m sorry I didn’t mention it earlier, Emilia.”

“…No, it’s my fault for jumping to conclusions and being rude.”

Emilia withdrew obediently, though her eyes still looked at me suspiciously. Those eyes, as if she’s peering into my thoughts, are sending chills down my spine.

She seemed to accept my words, but in the end, she didn’t offer a separate apology to Wilhelm.

I hadn’t expected her to apologize anyway since it was just a story I made up. If she had tried to apologize, I would have smoothed things over.

“I’ll take my leave now, as I’ve ruined the atmosphere due to my mistake.”

Fortunately, it seems he knows his limits.

Wilhelm bowed his head, offering both a greeting and an apology before returning to his place.

Even though I had prevented the situation from worsening, it wouldn’t have ended well if he had stayed longer. It would be more troublesome if the lie was exposed after staying too long.

Perhaps this shows he has some basic intelligence befitting the eldest son of a count’s family.

– Grip.

“Emilia?”

While I was watching Wilhelm retreat, Emilia suddenly pressed both her hands around my forearm.

If she had something to say, she would have grabbed my sleeve or poked me instead.

Confused by this unexpected action, I called her name softly, and Emilia looked up at me with a sullen expression.

“Just this once.”

“Pardon?”

“Ludwig, I held back because of your face. But there won’t be a second time.”

Could it be that she noticed my lie?

It’s not like she had been by my side the whole time, and I thought there was little reason for suspicion given the circumstances… Or does she mean she could have pushed harder but showed leniency?

Emilia didn’t add anything more. However, her pouting lips clearly showed that her mood wasn’t entirely good.

Well, this is troublesome. Is there anything I can do to improve her mood?

The garden comes to mind, but I can’t just drag her out again. It must be even darker outside now than before.

“It seems I’ve made many mistakes with you today, Emilia. I’m sorry.”

“Do you really think you’ve done wrong?”

“Of course.”

In the end, if her mood has worsened, then I must have done something wrong. Although I feel a bit unfair… I think this is within an acceptable range.

Emilia fell into thought at my straightforward answer, as if pondering something. She even let out a sigh while rolling her eyes, making the atmosphere feel unusual.

Then, after looking around at the tables and people arranged in the hall, she opened her mouth as if a brilliant idea had struck her, clapping her hands.

“Then, would you share some wine with me? I think that would improve my mood.”

“Wine… you say?”

“Yes. I’d like to drink with just the two of us, if possible.”

You can’t even handle alcohol well, what’s with this sudden desire to drink?

My stomach churned again as she boldly demanded a drinking session, when in the original work she had passed out after just three glasses of wine.

What on earth is this woman thinking?

translator’s corner

i prefer grape juice ;w;