Chapter 17

As Mary walked down the night road, her heart was more turbulent than ever before.

Confusion, agitation, and frustration with her own arrogance...

"...This is the worst, me."

Muttering to no one in particular, Mary pressed her hand to her forehead. At this hour, few people were out, and the security guards stationed at regular intervals showed no sign of noticing her distress. Even if her face was pale and her gaze was wandering in agitation, they all remained focused on their duties, looking into the darkness.

...She had been arrogant, Mary berated herself.

She remembered the contents of the fan disk. She knew that the villainess Mary was not there, that Adi could end up with Alicia, and that all the routes led to the Albert family's downfall. She knew that Adi would be free to stay in this place, while she would be exiled to a distant land. It was clear if she thought about it, or rather, it had been in her memory since the first day of school.

Yet, why did she think that even if the Albert family fell and she was exiled to the north, even if it was an inconvenient land, and even if she was locked away in a strict boarding school...

...It wouldn't be so bad as long as she was with Adi.

Why was she thinking such things?

"I hate myself, treating him like he's mine... Just like a villainess..."

Laughing softly at her own arrogance, Mary lightly slapped her cheek. She needed to get rid of her arrogant thoughts. She would be exiled to the north alone, while he would be free to stay here.

It was only natural, and surely it was for the best. Adi would be released from his role as a servant and start doing what he wanted. Whether or not he ended up with Alicia, it was much better than being defined by the family he was born into.

Yes, she understood that. She knew it.

But why was she feeling so choked up and on the verge of tears?

Unprocessed emotions swirled within her, and Mary stumbled back to the mansion, her steps unsteady, and reached for the door of her room... when she suddenly heard footsteps from behind and turned around.

There, running towards her from the end of the corridor, was Adi, whom she had just been talking to a moment ago.

"Adi, what's wrong?"

"I've been thinking a lot..."

Adi, who had been running very fast, was panting heavily. Tilted her head, Mary said, "Can't it wait until tomorrow?" and went into her room. She knew it was a cold attitude, but she didn't want to talk to Adi right now. They had never had a conversation like this before, so she hoped he would understand tonight.

"Miss...!"

"Goodnight, Adi. We can talk tomorrow."

Deliberately covering his attempt to stop her with a goodnight greeting, she tried to close the door...

"Please listen to me!"

Adi's voice trembled as he slipped his hand into the small gap and forcefully held the door. The door wouldn't budge no matter how hard she tried to pull it. His unusually forceful attitude made Mary even more confused, and she weakly called his name, looking up at him. His serious eyes were fixed on her. Even though she had seen this look countless times, tonight his rust-colored eyes seemed to pierce her heart.

"A, Adi...?"

"I don't care what the Adi in the game does with anyone. Even if the Albert family falls, I will follow you. Whether it's the northern land or an isolated island, your side is my place!"

His voice echoed in the silent corridor. They stared at each other until the echo faded, and finally, Mary averted her gaze in a hurry.

"S, so... Thank you, Adi. I'm very happy."

Overwhelmed by his intensity, Mary placed her hand on his, which was holding the door. His hand was rough and calloused, while hers was slender and pale. The stark contrast made her wonder, "When did Adi's hands become so manly?" They had been together since childhood, but she had only just noticed this now. Perhaps it was because they had been together too much.

"Let's work hard from tomorrow. We have the goal of the family's downfall, after all."

"...Yes, that's right."

Releasing the door, Adi bowed and said, "Goodnight, Miss." Mary responded in kind and slowly closed the door.

The silence of the room and the cold air caressed her skin. Mary stumbled across the room and collapsed onto the bed by the window. The coldness of the bedding was refreshing. Normally, she would warm the bedding before going to bed, but today, the coldness felt so pleasant that she didn't even bother to change into her nightgown or get under the covers, and simply closed her eyes.

Her mind was a whirl of thoughts.

Important matters mixed with trivial ones, and her priorities began to unravel. She had been planning to say something to Alicia tomorrow, but she couldn't remember what it was. The image of Patrick hugging Alicia and her looking up at him happily floated in her mind, and irrelevant thoughts kept appearing and disappearing. The happy couple. What story did the fan disk have for them? She couldn't even remember that. Adi had said he didn't care about the game's story. She agreed. As long as she could achieve the 'downfall,' she would be satisfied.

But was it right to involve Adi in that 'downfall'? Their master-servant relationship would end with the Albert family's downfall, so was it fair to drag him to a distant, remote place?

No, in the 'future of downfall' she had envisioned, he was always there.

Then why, why now, why did she realize this? Because of the fan disk, but Adi...

"Ah, my head is getting fuzzy..."

Sighing, Mary buried her face in the pillow.