The Sad Love Story of a Certain Evil Woman -2-
The blue window whispered into Olivia's ear in a voice devoid of emotion.
-You didn't know back then.
-You had no idea why your butler left.
You just thought he quit because he was in a bad mood, and that he'd come back someday.
-The thought that Ricardo had left your side because of the black magic's aftereffects never even crossed your mind. Back then, you...
-...were a fool.
-Both you and your butler were.
The blue window's voice held no emotion. Yet despite its flat tone—like that of a cold woman's voice—it somehow seemed laced with sorrow. Strangely enough.
-Time flows on.
-You went to the academy as usual and still loved Mikhail.
You were lost in his looks, carrying on that foolish one-sided crush.
-You gave Mikhail expensive gifts you'd never once given your butler, and with Ricardo no longer there to stop you, you rampaged freely.
-Of course, as time passed, your relationships fell apart.
-The absence of your ever-present butler didn't feel dangerous to you.
-You even felt liberated and happy about it. He had always been your inhibitor, just a nuisance in your eyes.
-Who are you to stop me? you thought, especially since even your parents didn't hold you back.
-Sometimes, you missed him. When Mikhail snapped at you harshly, or when everyone turned their backs and hurled abuse, you longed for the butler who used to comfort you.
-Deep down, you believed Ricardo would come back. You couldn't imagine him abandoning the time you'd spent together, your friendship... or your money.
-But contrary to what you thought, Ricardo's absence dragged on.
-Your daily life grew heavier by the day.
-No one was left by your side. There hadn't been anyone to begin with, but without your butler, your loneliness started to fester.
-You were in peril.
-Tempted to dig out that black magic book again.
[Perspective shifts.]
-You get to peek into the life of Ricardo, who left you.
-Six months after he submitted his resignation. You witness the life of Ricardo after leaving you, Olivia.
-You...
The blue window's voice trembled as it spoke. For the first time, it revealed emotion—not cold detachment, but a quiver like a deep-seated resentment leaking from the heart.
-...regret it.
*
Cough! The moment her eyes opened, what greeted Olivia was the red blood trickling from Ricardo's mouth. With harsh coughs, crimson splatters sprayed across the room, staining the white pillow and blankets, spreading into vivid scarlet.
Cough... cough...!Hah... hah... The coughing wouldn't stop. Even after what felt like an eternity—long enough that it should have eased—the rasping breaths that scraped like knives against skin persisted. Clutching his chest, Ricardo let out ragged gasps, his groans intensifying as his face twisted in agony.
Painkillers... where are the painkillers?
Olivia's eyes snapped open to the sight of Ricardo lying on a shabby bed. More wretched than the tiny room in the mansion where he'd lived, his pathetic figure struck her heart with pity.
"You said you were doing well..." Olivia's voice trembled as she spoke to him. "You said you'd live comfortably off the money you'd saved...!"
There was no sign of the life he'd talked about—opening a shop in some quiet rural neighborhood. Far from peaceful, his appearance seemed to shun happiness altogether. It wasn't the picture she'd imagined.
"What the hell is this, you idiot...!"
Olivia stared at him with quivering eyes. Even after hearing he'd lost to the black magic, her heart had held firm. She had wavered a little, but she'd believed he'd overcome it. After six months, he'd triumph proudly, she'd thought. But the sight before her now shattered that faith. A fierce wind howled through her heart, her fleeting hope sloshing like waves in a storm.
-Ricardo couldn't overcome the black magic.
"I know. I know that already." Olivia's heart burned away at the woman's silent voice echoing in her ears.
-He took on the full backlash of the black magic that should have been yours, bearing it entirely on himself.
So you wouldn't suffer even a little, he used his ability Limit Break and poured it all onto you.
"But... he's healthy now, right...?"
-It's not different.
-If Ricardo's luck had been bad back then, the sight you're seeing now would have become reality.
-Should we call it bad luck?
-Ricardo's lifespan now has less than four months left.
-That's why he bid you farewell with his resignation.
The blue window spoke matter-of-factly. Calling it good luck. Its dry tone stabbed Olivia's chest like an awl, leaving her to stare at Ricardo with hollow eyes.
"Don't talk nonsense... Ricardo's strong! He won't lose to something like this..." Olivia spat her rage at the blue window once more, insisting he wasn't weak. But as always, it ignored her.
Four months. That's how much time Ricardo had left, it said. Even in this illusory space where nothing could happen in reality, the blue window's death sentence rang more terrifying in Olivia's ears than a deer's cry at midnight.
"That won't happen." Olivia shook her head. She wanted to deny it. But images of Ricardo's face flashed through her mind like a lantern show. In all the visions she'd seen so far, she'd never witnessed a future where he died. She'd seen ones where he grieved her death or got hurt, but never one where she could never see his face again.
He always smiled brightly. He always stood by her side. That bright smile lingered in her mind. Even though she'd see him once the hallucination ended. Olivia was afraid. Her head filled with negative thoughts of never seeing him again, tears welling up.
It was just a world of illusion, but the words that she might never see Ricardo again terrified her more than anything.
Her clearing eyes began to reflect Ricardo lying on the bed. He looked gaunt. Dark circles ringed his eyes, his breaths were ragged. The muscles that had filled his body remained, but they lacked their former majesty. Propped up on the bed, he gazed at the ceiling with weary eyes. His heaving chest struggled for air, and as excruciating pain hit, his eyelids fluttered.
Olivia reached out a trembling hand toward him, but...
[Observer perspective.]
Hah... hah...This medicine isn't working anymore either. Damn, it was expensive... fuck.
Ricardo tossed the vial in his hand under the bed and shook his head. The exhausted sight of him shoving white pills into his mouth weighed heavily on Olivia's heart.
I wonder if she's doing okay.
He swallowed the pills, frowning as the words slipped out. Olivia didn't need to guess who he was worried about—it was obviously her.
With my body like this, I can't even go see her.
A glimpse of Ricardo's body emerged from under the covers. Shirtless, covered in wounds, Olivia swallowed dryly.
Even I find it gross.
The scars starting from his right hand looked even more horrific than when she'd snuck a peek in the closet. Necrotic skin had spread across his upper body, reaching his nape, strangling his life. The bedsheets were filthy with pus and blood oozing from his body. Olivia couldn't bear to look up.
Is this because of me?
As she stared blankly at Ricardo, a drop of water hit a cup. He began to move to get off the bed, propping himself with his hands, sighing in pain as he slowly reached for the wooden wheelchair beside it. No cushion, just plain wood—a pitiful thing. Olivia reached out with trembling steps to push it for him, but...
[Observer perspective.]
One. Two... three...!Hng...!
Thud!
Haha...
Ricardo was laughing. Staring blankly at his unresponsive legs, then sighing deeply at the ceiling—yet the smile never left his lips. Olivia's face twisted at his laughter.
You idiot...
He looked so foolish, alone in that empty, lonely room. Unlike her, who always had him by her side, seeing him isolated like this filled her with pity. And guilt crashed in too.
While her eyes brimmed with sorrow, Ricardo's low voice pierced her heart coldly.
Well, this is a relief, I guess. At least she doesn't have to see me like this.
He didn't lament his fate. He just...
But... I do miss her. Miss Olivia.
...kept smiling.
I'm glad it's me who's suffering.
[Perspective shifts.]
[Side Story 3: "The Sad Love Story of a Certain Evil Woman" - Chapter 2. "I'm Embarrassed of You" begins.]
-In this story, Yuria comes to hate you.