Villainess Reborn: SEASON ONE

59

Tatiana woke up with a throbbing pain in her head.

She rolled out of bed with no energy, and her body felt heavy and sluggish for some reason. She had never felt a sickness like this before. Her stomach grumbles like there's a monster that wants to claw its way out, and her head hurts so much like someone is permanently squeezing it.

When she passed by a mirror, her face looked like a mess. She had dark bags under her eyes and her hair was fluffier than ever, it was like she had wrestled with someone or something. She doesn't remember a thing from last night. All she knows is that she drank a sweet-scented juice that tasted a little bit spicy, and it tasted so good she could not stop and that's when she blacked out.

First, she changed clothes and tied her hair into a loose braid. She walked down the stairs to look for something to drink when a group of children ran into her.

"We're sorry, Mistress!" one of the kids said. It was the eldest of them all, the one that was the same age as Elliot. "say good morning to the mistress"

"Good morning, Mistress!" the younger children followed. They were carrying books and toys and looked like they had just gotten out of their room.

"Good morning," Tatiana greeted them sweetly and walked with them together, "did you already eat your breakfast?"

"We already ate, Miss. There was still food leftover from last night and Emma gave us milk to drink."

"You only ate leftovers?"

"It was still fresh and delicious. And Emma, along with the others looked like they were sick so we wanted them to rest."

Tatiana realized what they were talking about, and it answered the question that had been on her mind since she woke up. She passed by the study hall and saw Loyd and Faye sleeping side-by-side on the floor inside the toddler's playpen. The toddlers drew on their faces using pens and climbed and toppled over them like they were an obstacle course.

Tatiana sighed and went straight to the kitchen to see Emma resting her head on the table and groaning. It looked like she was right and the people in the mansion were hungover from last night, and, of course, she was too.

She thought that the peach juice was suspicious, but it turned out that it was wine and she was drunk last night. She picked up the glass and a pitcher of water to soothe her dry throat, and once she gobbled the water, she felt so much better than when she woke up.

"Emma," she called, but Emma only groaned in reply. She suddenly jerked up, her eyes widening, and her hands flew to her mouth and she ran towards the bathroom. The sound of throwing up shook the mansion, and even Faye and Loyd gagged at the sound.

"Emma, you okay?" one of the children asked. She was holding a stuffed bunny while knocking on the bathroom door with a worried expression.

"She's fine, sweetheart. She just—" Tatiana could not find the right words, "she's just having some difficulties."

Even when her head was still throbbing in pain, she slightly pushed the little child and guided her to where the rest of the group was. The inside of the mansion still reeked of alcohol and haunted memories of the unknown things she did while she was drunk.

'I did not mess up, did I?' she thought. Suddenly, the anxiety started to grow in her chest and she decided that she needed some fresh air so she went outside.

The sun was already high up in the sky but the air was slightly cold. The sound of leaves bristling in the air was refreshing and the color of the whole place was aesthetic to the eyes. She closed her eyes and inhaled the air when she heard the clashing of swords.

On her right were Bjorn and Morgan, doing training. Bjorn repeatedly attacked Morgan until Morgan was cornered and his sword was eventually knocked out of his hand. The captain really is merciless when it comes to training, Tatiana already experienced that firsthand.

"That's why you don't drink when you can't handle training the next day," Bjorn told him, "now get up."

Morgan was obviously not feeling well. He was also hungover like the others, but as a knight, it's his responsibility to drink but still be able to fight. The world looked like it was closing in on him, and he ended up lying on the pile of dried leaves and staring at the sky.

"Get up, Morgan," Bjorn demanded, swaying his sword from side to side. Energy is piled up inside of him. Sparring and training with just one knight won't do the job. Every day he spars with at least twenty to twenty-five skilled knights before getting done.

Tatiana winced at them before turning away. She thinks that it's better to not be involved in their business. She looked around and the children were cleaning up the dried leaves and giggling while hiding under them. She smiled and her heart felt warm. This is the dream she was talking about.

However, she noticed that the gates were slightly open and a kid was walking near the road. Her brows furrowed and she immediately followed the kid. It was dangerous for them to go out since it was a road and there might be nobles who hired people to do something bad to the kids.

"Hey!" she shouted after the kid when she got out of the gates. From a distance, she saw the small kid's back facing a bush, and looked like he was talking to it. She observed it at first, but then she saw a pair of shoes.

"Child!" she called and the boy faced her. She moved cautiously forward, her eyes never leaving the pair of shoes that were behind the bush. "Come here."

"Mr. wanted to ask about you!" the kid happily exclaimed, but Tatiana was not giving in any chance.

The shoes shuffled and her heart skipped a beat. She immediately darted towards the kid, carried him, and ran towards the gate, hearing footsteps following them.

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END