A Painting of the Villainess as a Young Lady

Chapter 9

Why. Why have you presented me with this hell? Why must I die underwater, not given any chance to breathe?

As Violet asked this, she smiled. The words that lay between the lines were dreadfully sharp.

While Yeon Ha-yoon sympathized with Violet, she thought that Violet was foolish. Even so, she still had to admit that Violet had no choice but to be as vicious as she was.

“It would be best to stop this discussion here. Please go back, Your Grace.”

There was a smile on Violet’s lips as she said this to the duke.

And, there was a frown upon the duke’s face as he caught a glimpse at his daughter’s resentment.

He replied,

“…I’ll visit you again soon.”

No, you don’t have to come. Violet thought so as she dabbed her lips with a handkerchief, staring at the duke’s retreating back.

At last, the maids were once again at ease the moment the duke left. The atmosphere just now had been so heavy that they could only now release the breaths they had been holding.

No one saw the duke off as he left the annex.

* * *

A week after Violet had started staying at the annex, the servants realized that the young noble lady, who they were serving, had changed.

She was not just acting. She no longer punished the servants for every little thing she found fault in.

She just slept her days away, and you wouldn’t even know if she was there or not. Besides that, she was not eating properly.

Did the noble lady change after the shock of inhaling all that water into her lungs?

Two sides were in constant disagreement—the first side being those who saw Mikhail visit Violet and yell at her like that, and those who didn’t.

Still, despite all the differing opinions, they all agreed on one thing: after she had practically died and was brought back to life, the noble lady had changed.

And their assumption was correct. Violet had regained her past life’s memories that very day, and subsequently, her personality shifted, and she now took pleasure in a life of peace.

She thought that it was worth living in this way for the very perk of not needing to see the people she did not want to see.

She would have only been faced with those that wouldn’t change, no matter how much she strived for it, or no matter how much she clamored for it. So, after running away from all that, things changed little by little.

For a week straight, Violet’s time was used solely for sleeping. The worst of it was one time when she slept for seventeen hours.

The only one who worried over Violet and tried to serve her food constantly was her personal maid, Mary.

She slept in a hard, lousy bed that couldn’t even compare to the bed she had in her room in the main mansion, she wore rough, out-of-fashion clothes, and she ate dishes made with ingredients that were slightly less fresh.

Even so, she did not care about anything. Violet was content with her present life.

Wasn’t this enough?

Rather than living as a person so immersed in splendor and extravagance, she didn’t have to live that kind of life.

In the end, no matter what it is that you’re doing with your life, if you’re happy and content with what you have right now, then what’s the point in troubling yourself with other things?

While looking out a window, rays of sunlight streaming through, Yeon Ha-yoon laughed.

In novels, if there was someone who was in the same circumstances as her, wouldn’t they usually vow to get revenge?

As she thought about the novels that she often read in her previous life, Violet rose to her feet.

Usually, after regressing, the answer would be revenge. Or, perhaps after being hurt or betrayed by family members or a significant other, the answer, too, was revenge.

It would be great if all situations could change so dramatically.

Violet renounced any and all thoughts of getting revenge.

She did not know the future because she was not a regressor. She had not been directly murdered either, so she had no intention to kill anyone at all.

After she weighed all her options in the palm of her hand, there was nothing left to consider.

Violet did not have any wherewithal to do anything else.

All she wanted to do was to live quietly like this. Without much stress, just a quiet and calm life…

In front of her door, she saw that there was some food left for her there by someone who was concerned about her health.

For as long as it had stayed there, the dish’s original warmth had already left the plate, however, Violet did not care.

She brought the cold bread back to her spot next to the window. As she stared outside once more, nibbling on that piece of bread, the sudden sound of footsteps could be heard.

“M-Milady! Lady Violet!”

“Yes?”

“Milady, the items you requested have arrived!”

For the first time in a long while, a spirited look graced Violet’s expression.

The news pertained to the arrival of the art materials that she had requested.

Violet headed towards the studio at once.

* * *

The room that was reserved to be Violet’s studio was now filled with all sorts of art materials. From canvases to even shiny paint made by grinding gemstones.

As she felt the softness of one brush with her fingertips, Violet marveled at the sight before her.

At just one glance, it’s obvious that these were all very expensive luxury goods. She was confined right now, but she had to wonder—was a duke’s daughter not allowed to use cheap things?

Or perhaps it was just to preserve the dignity of those people.

“Uwah, all of these are art materials?”

Staring at the hundreds of art materials, Mary chattered on like that. The young maid had only heard rumors about Violet, so she was not so frightened to talk to the ducal lady. Rather, perhaps it’s because the ducal lady was calmer than she was expecting that she was more forthcoming.

With the sheer number of art materials presented before her, it was enough that Violet was rendered speechless, so what more with a commoner maid.

After confirming that there truly were a hundred different shades of purple paint, Violet smiled softly and started organizing the tools.

“Can you organize all the paint by color and type, Mary?”

“Y-Yes?”

“Just sort them by oils, watercolors and… Oh, you might not know anything about this. Just go ahead and sort them by color. And with your strength, don’t organize the heavy materials by yourself.”

“Yes!”

After checking the items, Violet yawned and went on her way back to her room.

It was just the start of the day, and yet she was still so sleepy.