Even if the Villain's Daughter Regresses

The woman who had been telling the story suddenly burst out laughing.

 

“It’s true that I’m what humans call a witch.”

“…….”

“Burning me alive won’t make God blink an eye.”

 

Laila swallowed dryly. Her throat moved involuntarily.

 

‘We’re doomed.’

 

The person in front of them was more than just a crazy woman.

A witch.

Just now, the woman had called herself a witch.

 

‘What do we do?’

 

Fight the witch? Could they even fight her?

…Could they win?

 

‘We can’t get out of here safely without a fight, can we?’

 

Their opponent, the self-proclaimed witch, clearly had no intention of letting Laila and Sion leave quietly.

…She was probably planning to kill them.

That’s why she was casually sharing her story without being asked.

 

‘Now that we know too much, she’ll probably say she’s going to kill us.’

 

As expected, the witch, who resembled a dried rose, declared,

 

“Well, now that you know so much about me, I have no choice but to let you die in here.”

 

I knew it!

Even though the situation was unfolding as predicted, it couldn’t have felt worse. Laila clenched her teeth and shouted,

 

“Wait a minute!”

“Why? Are you going to leave a last will?”

“…Not a will, but I have questions.”

 

Why did this feel so familiar? Ignoring the strange sensation, Laila continued speaking.

 

“Why did you work as a maid on the Marquis’s estate?”

“No particular reason. I do a lot of different jobs. Being a maid is just one of them when I feel like it.”

“Angela was a fake name, right? Was her face fake, too, and this is your real face now?”

“The face I was born with isn’t this one. But I like this face the best.”

“Where were you before coming to the Marquis’s territory?”

“The Whet territory. It was an unpleasant place. It rained often.”

“What was your name and job while you were there?”

“You’re asking more and more useless questions, child.”

“…I’ll ask a different question. How many witches like you are there in this world?”

“That’s a secret. Well, to be precise, I don’t really know.”

“Okay, I see. Um, and…”

 

Laila’s eyes darted around before she quickly spoke.

 

“You know Vilhel and the butler, right? Did you make them that way on purpose?”

“Make them what way?”

“They’ve lost their minds.”

“Haha, that’s right. That was intentional. It’s fun, isn’t it?”

 

Oh, poor Vilhel. She didn’t feel so sorry for the butler.

 

“I see. It was fun for you. Uh, one more thing…”

“I’ve answered many of your questions, so can I ask you now?”

 

Laila quickly responded to the witch’s suggestion.

 

“Yes, go ahead.”

“Did you find a way out?”

“…….”

“It seems you’ve stalled for long enough.”

 

Laila squeezed her eyes shut, then opened them again.

She noticed.

She was right. Laila had been stalling for time. 

She was trying to search for a way out of this place.

Sion had taken on that role. Before starting her barrage of questions, Laila had tapped Sion’s back meaningfully.

 

‘She’s figured out my intention, yet she’s still calm…’

 

Naturally, she imagined bad thoughts. Is there no way to get out of here without defeating her?

At that moment, Sion turned and whispered in Laila’s ear.

 

“The fourth perfume from the left, on the bottom shelf of the right wall.”

 

Laila quickly shifted her gaze. As Sion described, there was a shelf attached to the wall, with various perfumes displayed in each section.

 

“The yellow bottle.”

 

After saying this, Sion added,

 

“Break it open.”

“…Will that get us out of here?”

“Maybe. It’s just a hunch.”

 

Laila nodded slightly in understanding.

She suddenly remembered how Sion had been wary of this place even before they entered.

 

‘I should have just turned back then.’

 

Regret washed over her, but it was too late. Besides, she hadn’t known anything at the time, so even if Sion had said they should leave because he had a bad feeling, she wouldn’t have listened.

 

‘Next time, I’ll ask Sion how he feels about a place before we enter.’

 

While Laila was making her belated resolution, the woman watching Laila and Sion seemed to sense something strange and raised an eyebrow.

 

“What are you two plotting?”

“We were discussing our last will.”

“Really? Could you please let me hear it? I’m curious.”

 

Just after saying that, the woman slightly furrowed her brows as her gaze landed on Sion.

 

“But can you talk?”

“Yes.”

 

Sion responded promptly. The woman then gaped in surprise before letting out a bitter laugh.

 

“…So, I didn’t mishear you earlier, when you first came in here.”

“…….”

“What? You’ve been deceiving everyone in the Marquis’s estate for years?”

“…….”

“I even got fooled! Goodness, you little trickster.”

“Stop babbling and go ahead; you said you were going to kill me, right? Do it.”

“You’re mistaken. I said I would kill both of you.”

“Same thing.”

 

Sion left out the part where he wouldn’t let anyone lay a finger on Laila until he drew his last breath.

He charged at the woman without further words. The woman, anticipating Sion’s attack, raised her hand to counter without a hint of surprise or alarm.

Boom!

 

“……!”

 

It was Laila who was startled. Why did it sound like the air was exploding when Sion’s drawn sword clashed with the woman’s bare hand?

 

‘No, this isn’t the time to be distracted.’

 

Sion kept swinging his sword at the opponent, regardless of whether his attacks were blocked.

While Sion held the opponent’s attention, Laila moved swiftly.

She briefly considered sneaking, but decided to sprint instead.

Luckily, the worst that could happen was that she crashed into the transparent wall before reaching the shelf.

 

‘the yellow one!’

 

Laila had her eyes set on just one thing from the start. As she reached the shelf, she accurately grabbed the yellow perfume bottle that Sion had mentioned.

Got it. Laila inadvertently thought at that moment.

 

“…Laila!”

 

Barely recognizing the voice calling her name, she felt a strong force pulling her back.

Laila was helplessly dragged and collided with a solid body. And then.

 

“……Sion?”

 

Sitting on the floor, Laila blinks rapidly.

Her shaky gaze quickly took in the situation. The broken perfume bottle. Her fallen body. Sion protecting her.

Blood staining Sion’s clothes…

Blood. As Laila stared blankly at the crimson stain, a sharp voice cut through the air.

 

“Damn it! Damn it! That little brat!”

 

Only then did Laila look past Sion at their opponent. The opponent appeared to have a severe injury to her left hand.

The situation started to make sense in Laila’s mind.

She reached the shelf and grabbed the perfume bottle. The opponent aimed for her. Sion wounded the opponent and protected her.

In the process, Sion was injured.

As soon as she pieced it together, her mind went blank again.

Because his clothes obscured the wound, she couldn’t see how badly Sion had been hurt.

However, even at this moment, the amount of blood staining his clothes was unusually extensive.

 

“Si…?”

“Go now.”

“What?”

“The door will open. Hurry.”

 

Sion’s breathing was erratic. Laila quickly noticed this fact. His condition was severe enough to be clearly visible.

Sion’s face was pale. Without hesitation, Laila asked,

 

“What about you?”

“If we go together, we won’t outrun that.”

“B, but, but…….”

 

At that moment, a scream cut through the air, like a seizure.

 

“He’s not an ordinary kid, is he? Yes! I’ll kill you both, bone by bone, as you wish!”

“Go.”

 

Sion whispered firmly, pushing Laila away, getting up, and turning around.

Then, in the next moment, a loud, ear-piercing noise echoed.

Bang!

It wasn’t the sound of bursting air. Instead, consecutive noises of something colliding and exploding assaulted their ears.

Laila watched Sion block the attack with his sword despite his injuries, then struggled to stand up.

Barely turning her back to Sion, she bit her lip and ran toward the door.