A Fairy Tales For The Villains

 ‘I wish there was a way to show the silly expressions of the two fellows looking back at me.’ It was a scene worth remembering. Well, speaking formally to them was a little awkward for me too. It seemed obvious that both of them had lost their will to fight, so I turned around and left the library. ‘Eiishh, what, don’t be so presumptuous? All right, I get it. We have a master-servant relationship. As you say, I won’t even look at you.’ With a bitter heart, I returned to the upper floor and burrowed into Estelle’s side. The stars in the night sky seen through the ceiling seemed to laugh at me today. ‘Ughhh you bad brat! How can a person change that much? Give me back my little Duke who used to leave dessert for me when we were kids!’ Although my heart was shattered with sadness and self-pity, on the other hand, I was slightly happy that Venya took my side. Well, we even did the laundry together! Looking back, it seemed that Venya had also changed quite a bit. In the past, I would never have thought of having anything but discussions with him. *  *  * Winter was approaching. The cool air touched my skin. It was lucky if  I was sweating after boiling water on the stove and washing Estelle every morning. Even though my body was going to cool down quickly after washing. “Can’t I wash later? It’s cold!” “It’s colder in the evening. I heated up the water, so it’ll get warm soon.” “Then I’ll just wash up tomorrow. No one is going to see us anyway!” As the temperature got cooler, Estelle procrastinated more often. As she said, there was no one watching anyway, so she might not have to be as neat as she was when we were outside. I’d be more comfortable with that too. “What do you mean no one’s watching? I’m here, and so are your brothers! Come on, let’s end it quickly. You should also trim your nails.” But I was adamant. Aside from the fact that cleanliness was the top priority as she was a sickly child, it was because I thought that if I started letting go once I was trapped inside, there would be no end to it. Even if it was in a narrow hideout where there was nowhere to go or to meet anyone other than the four of us, natural noble dignity should not be lost. ‘It may be vanity, but once she starts to get lazy in here, there would be no solution. It would be an instant before she ends up messy, lethargic, and slowly wandering around looking helpless. I can never let that happen.’ Memories of my previous life played a major role in solidifying those thoughts. The orphanage that hazily came to mind… It was ironic that in some ways, this place was no different from there. “Good morning, Sasha.” “…Good morning. I think I need to change the kerosene.” As the weather got colder, the small kerosene stove became indispensable. At first, he said it was more cumbersome to learn how to turn on the stove, but Venya, who usually rinsed himself in cold water, even changed kerosene himself. After the hard labor of heating water and washing one after another, everyone became very hungry. Considering our poor meals, it was the right feeling. “I have a good idea. You heat food with a stove. Then maybe it’ll be worth eating.” Venya was muttering and slicing cold pancakes; his hair was long enough to cover his ears and the nape of his neck. It was the same with Lettis, sitting next to him. Estelle and I had long hair already so there wasn’t much difference, but it was clear that their hair was poorly managed. ‘Ugh. At this rate, their hair would grow as long as Samson’s*, gain superpowers, and then break out of this place in an instant… Woah, what kind of delusion was that?’ “We need to save kerosene. It’s going to get colder soon, so I can’t use it.” “Really? Damn it, shall we heat food with a candlestick?” ‘…Tch tch tch, our poor second Young Master! How did you come to be in a position to worry about all that?’ My heart hurt again. Anyway, despite the previous night’s altercation, Venya was behaving very normally. On the other hand, Lettis was still blunt and was surrounded by a murderous atmosphere, so it was very awkward. I tried to talk to him, but soon changed my mind and focused on eating. Then Estelle, who was sipping a glass of juice with Mr. Wendy (that rabbit doll) sitting on her lap, declared abruptly. “I don’t want to be here on Christmas Day! What if everyone forgot we were here? What if I don’t get any Christmas presents?” I almost dropped my fork. Strangely enough, Estelle had not complained for a while. It may be that her face didn’t show it, but she seemed to be fed up with our captivity. It has been said that man is an adaptable animal. Recalling the memories of my previous life at the orphanage, the new children learned in a short time that their wishes would not come true no matter how hard they tried, and they quickly became apathetic like the others. It was probably for a similar reason that Estelle didn’t complain about wanting to get out of here any longer. Nevertheless, we spent a little over two months here. It was still too early to completely extinguish hope. A futile hope that there might be some news soon, that they won’t leave us here until midwinter comes… “Who said that? That we’ll stay here until then?” I flinched unwittingly at the question that sounded haggard and sharp. When I looked at him, I saw Lettis staring this way with a somewhat cynical look on his face. More precisely, he was staring at me. ‘Hang on, this somehow…’ “Who said that?” ‘What’s up with this guy? Why are you staring at me while asking Estelle that question?’ At Lettis’ unfathomable, intense voice, Estelle frowned and looked at me. I was suddenly in a psychologically difficult situation where I received the hot gaze of two siblings at the same time. ‘No, hey…’ “Sasha. Don’t whisper nonsense to my sister.” ‘Pardon? What did you say?’ I was literally dumbfounded and lost my mind. It was Estelle who answered instead of me, as I  was completely stunned. “Brother, Sasha doesn’t say useless things to me. I’m the one always begging her to tell me interesting stories.” “An interesting story? We lived happily here for a long time. Something like that?” “It’s not like that…” “Stop acting like a child! How old are you to ask for old stories holding a doll like that? You’re not a baby anymore, are you going to stick to a maid even when we go to Pzeya? Do you want to be bullied in social gatherings?” It was Estelle’s turn to be stunned. If it hadn’t been for the majestic sound of a fork being put down at just the right moment, my helpless baby sister would probably have burst into tears. ‘It’s a secret, but I almost cried too.’ “Hyung, Why don’t you stop?” Venya’s face was unusually stiff as he coldly interrupted. An empty smirk appeared on Lettis’ face as he looked at his younger brother. Both brothers looked extremely unfamiliar. “Do you want to take her side again?” “What if I do?” “Do you like her? The Young Master who fell in love with a maid, is that what you want? Like Estelle, you’re gonna ask her to sing you a lullaby and wash you—” Smack!! Bam!!! “Kyaaaaaa!!” Estelle screamed and clung to me. I was half screaming, too. Everything happened in a flash. Venya literally punched his brother’s face without questioning or arguing, and Lettis fell off his chair. So early in the morning, the noisy brothers’ war began. “Brotheeeeer!!!” “Venya! Don’t do that, both of you, stop it!” Even if I screamed and cried, there was no way I could reach the ears of those who had already been blinded. Venya was first to the punch, but Lettis, who was beaten with his guard down by his younger brother, was also formidable. The plates on the table fell to the floor and shattered, and the chairs rolled almost as if flying. The two figures were intertwined, tossing and turning, and hurling inscrutable abuse at each other. “Apologize right now!!!” “You do it!!!” ‘Oh, my God! What kind of disgrace is this in front of their sick sister!’ As I approached, attempting to intervene between the two of them, Venya, who was strangling Lettis, slipped backward and crashed into the wall. Everything seemed to be in slow motion. Lettis moved instantly to take advantage of that opportunity, raised his leg and kicked Venya with all his might! Well, to be exact, he tried but, Bang!! “Sasha!” I heard Estelle crying and shouting. I, too, wanted to scream, but only a stupid moan issued from my half-open mouth. Suddenly my whole body ached, and I felt like my head was dyed white. ‘Oh god, what the hell was my karma to make me roll like this in my past and present life? What?!’ “Sa, Sasha?” “Sasha!?” Frozen momentarily, the brothers came to their senses. I felt Venya urgently wrapping his arms around me. Never in my life did I think I’d end up being beaten for this guy. Ughhh. “Sasha, are you alright?! Hyung, are you insane?!” “N, no. I didn’t do it on purpose- ” “Do you call that an excuse?!” I gasped for breath and lifted my head. Devastated by shock and fear, the three siblings’ faces were truly worth seeing. It was hard for me to speak because my stomach was throbbing from the kick, but I did my best to squeeze the words out. “It’s- ah, I’m fine so stop… stop fighting!” Silence fell for a moment. As the two brothers looked at me blankly with indescribable expressions, Estelle, who was gasping for breath, burst into tears. “Lettis is so mean! I hate you, brother! I hate you the most in the world! How could you do that to Sasha?! What did Sasha do wrong!? Why do you complain so much when you can’t even do what Sasha does?! Who would think it’s good to stay here?! I want to go out, too! I don’t want to be here either! But I’m holding it in! Even though I may stay here until I become a granny, waaaaahhh! Maybe I might end up being a complete fool when I leave here, but I’m barely holding it in! You stupid idiot, jerk brother!!” She was indeed my beloved baby sister…! Tears of emotion welled up and at the same time, I had to bite my lip hard to keep myself from smiling despite the situation.   Gina’s Corner: *Samson was a biblical figure, who possessed enormous strength. But, if his long hair were cut, he would lose his strength due to breaking his vow. And yes, Delilah came into the scene, seduced him, and cut his hair. He lived like a war slave (I think) but then asked God for strength to kill his enemies and he died along with them. My heart ached while doing this. I hate seeing them fight. And I think Sasha is one of the best MC of all time.