The Villain Wants to Live a Quiet Life

In the end, I couldn’t sleep properly last night. My head was full of thoughts about Emilia.

Ah, not in that sense, of course.

Even as I was washing up and getting ready, my mind was in turmoil. The biggest question was why Emilia had come to the Aiphretz house.

In the original story, she receives a prophecy upon becoming an adult concerning her fate.

“Find the person connected by a silver thread. They will overturn your fate.” Later on, she meets the protagonist and becomes interested in him.

“But… why?”

Unlike me, who hasn’t had my birthday and become an adult yet, Emilia has had her coming-of-age ceremony already.

Though not exact, it should be around this time when she should have received the prophecy and met the protagonist Vistenbach, then stayed with his family for about 3 months.

The original story didn’t explain the reason in detail, but many speculated it was to confirm the prophecy.

Anyway, the important point is that according to the original story, she shouldn’t be visiting the Aiphretz house at this time.

‘It’s complicated.’

Did I confuse the timeline of the original story with the current one? 

But that doesn’t seem right, as my coming-of-age ceremony is in 3 weeks.

My birthday is April 28th. Emilia’s birthday, slightly earlier than mine, should have been February 17th according to the setting.

No, something is definitely off. If things are flowing as in the original story, Emilia should be at the Vistenbach house right now.

“I knew everything wouldn’t go exactly as in the original story, but…”

It’s been 12 years since I came to this world. During that time, I’ve noticed some differences from the original story.

For example, my father, Carl Aiphretz, who was supposed to have one eye in the original setting, has both eyes intact here.

There were also other minor differences in various details.

But even considering that, yesterday’s events were hard to understand.

This is the time when the main heroine and protagonist of the original story are supposed to meet. How could such a major event just be skipped?

“Ah, this is driving me crazy.”

Emilia’s personality also felt a bit different. In the original story, she was so reluctant to open up to others that it took nearly a month for her to call the very protagonist by name.

But there were no hints as to why she was like that.

I did enter this world while reading an ongoing work that hadn’t concluded yet, so there might be some unknown backstory.

“I should eat first. My thoughts are getting more complicated, maybe because I’m hungry.”

Although it’s been 12 years since I stopped being Korean, I still believe in the power of a good meal.

Even though it’s hard to get rice-based food here, and most meals consist of bread, meat, and fish.

As I left my room and headed to the dining hall, a servant in loose clothing greeted me.

She’s a woman who has been working for the Aiphretz family for quite some time.

She manages all aspects of guest reception and is one of the few people I feel comfortable with.

“Young master, you’re awake.”

“Good morning, Meryl. Breakfast?”

In a normal noble family, this question would mean “What’s for breakfast?”

But in this Aiphretz household, my question had a slightly different meaning.

“I had bread and soup.”

“You ate lightly. Will that be enough?”

“Yes. If I eat too much, it becomes difficult to perform my duties.”

I see. As expected of a veteran, she has her own routine.

When I asked her to guide me to the dining hall, Meryl immediately stood in front of me and bowed her head.

I suppose that means she’s ready to guide me now. I’m still not quite used to these customs.

“What about Emilia?”

“You are already calling her by name?”

“It turned out that way.”

It looks like her eyes might pop out from surprise.

I wondered if it was really that surprising, but after thinking about it, I should be the one more surprised. To think I’d be on a first-name basis with Emilia after just one day.

It might be more an expression of gratitude for escorting her rather than a sign of closeness.

If I try to get too close thinking otherwise, who knows what sort of trouble I might face.

After all, in the original story, Emilia was honed just as she was beautiful and noble.

“Lady Bayemühren is already waiting in the dining hall. She said she’d wait to dine with you, young master.”

“What?”

You should have told me that earlier.

A guest from another noble family is waiting in the dining hall, and you didn’t inform me, the young master?

Meryl isn’t that dense, is she?

Seeing my intent through my eyes, Meryl scratched her cheek and began to explain the situation.

“Actually… Lady Bayemühren said there was no need to fetch you straight away. She didn’t want to cause any inconvenience as a guest…”

“Even so…”

It could have been her true feelings, but it might also have been just a polite statement.

Moreover, Emilia did say in the original story, “I hate both waiting and making others wait.”

Despite her pretense, there was a high probability she was quite angry by now.

This is maddening. For now, I can only increase my walking speed as much as possible.

“Y-Young master, there’s no need to hurry so…”

“Of course I need to hurry.”

Trying to muffle my footsteps as much as possible while moving quickly, I arrived at the dining hall and took a deep breath.

This house is ridiculously large. I can only imagine how much trouble the cleaning servants go through.

After telling Meryl she could go back, I took a deep breath and opened the dining hall door forcefully.

The first thing I saw was Emilia leaning against the large window, gazing outside.

Apart from a servant waiting in the corner, no one else was visible.

“Ah, Ludwig. You’re up.”

“I’m sorry for keeping you waiting, Emilia. It’s because I overslept…”

On the contrary, I woke up at my usual time, but I needed an excuse. I tried to give the impression that this wasn’t usual, just for today.

Meanwhile, Emilia looked at me and chuckled.

She seemed to have put on some light makeup, just as when we first met in the reception room, making her look even more radiant.

She appears almost like a flower laughing. I’m seeing all sorts of strange things.

“I didn’t wait long. If anything, I’m sorry for making you rush.”

“Not at all. It’s my fault for making a lady wait. Ah, about the meal…?”

I knew she hadn’t eaten yet, but I asked out of politeness. She shook her head silently with a smile.

I immediately had a servant bring the prepared food.

However, though I expected the food to come out right away, instead I was told they were just starting to prepare the meal because Emilia had made a request earlier.

At this rate, I’ll end up making her wait twice as long.

“Don’t worry about it. I requested it because I wanted to chat with Ludwig a bit more.”

“Chat?”

“Yes. Is that uncomfortable for you?”

Whether it’s uncomfortable or not would depend on the content of the conversation… but I can’t say that outright.

I shook my head, indicating it wasn’t a problem at all, and Emilia burst into laughter again, covering her mouth.

What about me is so funny? Does she feel like she’s watching a clown?

“Ludwig, your expressions are quite amusing.”

“Is that… a compliment?”

“Of course. I wouldn’t put down my friends.”

That’s a relief, but something still bothers me.

A friend, huh? It seems she’s acknowledged me as a friend.

I had regretted that comment I made at dawn yesterday at least a hundred times after returning to bed.

“Until I came to the Aiphretz house yesterday, I was quite anxious.”

“Anxious?”

“I can’t explain in detail… but it’s been sufficiently resolved now. All thanks to Ludwig.”

It feels like I didn’t do anything special, though.

If she says so, I won’t probe further, but there’s still a strange uneasiness lingering.

While continuing our conversation, Emilia kept laughing as if something was very entertaining.

When I was saying something, she would stare at me intently with her misty blue eyes, which were incredibly captivating.

Just as I would come to my senses, wondering if she was observing something, and try to be more careful with what I was doing, she would burst into laughter again.

It was impossible to pinpoint what exactly was making her laugh.

“Ah, the meal has arrived. I lost track of time thanks to Ludwig.”

I also lost track of time admiring Emilia’s face… but that’s not something I can say out loud.

Light dishes suitable for breakfast started coming out one after another.

Even so, the main dish was meat. From what I could see, it appears to be chicken.

“Um… can I use the sauce in this container?”

“Ah.”

Emilia asked me hesitantly, seemingly confused by the saucière.

Come to think of it, in other regions, sauce was served on top of the meat. Serving sauce separately in a saucière was a traditional serving method in the southern region where the Aiphretz family resides.

Worried that it might be inconvenient for her to eat, I eventually had no choice but to get up and approach her side.

“If it’s not too presumptuous, may I assist?”

“Thank you, Ludwig.”

She has such a beautiful smile on her face. She had moved a bit, making space, as if waiting for me to come.

But thinking about it, couldn’t I have just explained verbally? Why did I create extra work for myself?

“Um… Emilia?”

“Yes?”

“Ah, no, it’s nothing.”

Is it just my imagination? I don’t understand why she’s moving closer again after making space. It’s not so complicated that she needs an explanation from up close.

She has quite a figure at 17. I can’t help but flinch every time our bodies touch.

Even as I keep reminding myself not to have any impure thoughts, my male instincts are clouding my mind.

But why has this woman been acting like this since yesterday? It’s making me uncomfortable.

translator’s corner

gonna go be a degenerate now~