The Villainess Intends to Have It All - Chapter 48

Erina’s golden eyes flashed coldly.

“That can’t be. I’m just waiting. Waiting for them to lose their tenuous grip on everything.”

The time Erina gave her uncle’s family was not to pack their belongings.

What she gave them was a tiny sliver of hope to grasp onto.

The unfulfilled hope they gave young Erina right up until her marriage.

Erina gave them time, intending to shatter it all once she felt they had grasped that futile hope.

To destroy it all the moment they thought they had it in their hands, just as they had done to her.

“My goodness…”

Haila gasped, covering her mouth.

“You two are truly a match made in heaven!”

“Pardon?”

“You’re already taking after the Marquis. Even if your relationship is different, it’s all the same.”

Erina was flustered by Haila referring to her and Sandes as lovers.

“Ah, no!”

Haila was taken aback by Erina’s strong denial.

“Hm? Why not?”

Erina’s face flushed bright red.

Hesitating for a moment, Erina waved her hand in denial.

“No. That kind of relationship…”

“Hmm, I don’t think the Marquis would feel that way.”

Erina averted her gaze from Haila’s meaningful smile.

On the day of the carriage incident, Sandes had lingered in Erina’s embrace for a long time.

After leaving her arms, Sandes had gazed at Erina with an unfathomable look.

His scorching eyes fixed on her, his touch tender enough to melt, seemed to whisper his heart through his entire being.

Erina could not possibly misunderstand Sandes’ feelings.

She, too, could not deny that she was drawn to him like a magnet.

But Erina was still afraid.

In the original story, Sandes had boldly approached Rose, only to turn away without hesitation as soon as he obtained the mana stone mine, as if he had no further use for her.

She feared that he would one day change his mind and turn his back on her, just as he had in the original story, despite so ardently revealing his heart.

Perhaps sensing the underlying fear in Erina’s heart, Sandes ultimately remained silent that day.

Erina moved hastily, as if fleeing.

Haila quietly laughed at the peculiar gap Erina left behind and followed.

As they entered the office, Sandes and Shimilden greeted the two.

As if they had been waiting, the table on one side of the office was filled with refreshments and documents.

Following Shimilden’s guidance, they took their seats, and Sandes sat across from them.

Haila left the office, saying she would go process the bracelet Erina had entrusted to her, while Shimilden stood quietly to the side.

Sandes slid some of the documents towards Erina.

Unlike other times when he would first inquire about her well-being upon meeting, Sandes first addressed official matters.

“The mana stones have begun circulating in the market. As stated in the contract, the profits will be deposited into the Asilium Bank under Erina’s name. The provided documents detail the distribution of the mana stones.”

Sandes’ demeanor towards Erina was strictly businesslike.

Erina, who had been nervous about meeting him, felt unreasonably sullen upon realizing she had worried for nothing.

Whether aware of Erina’s feelings or not, Sandes continued speaking without pause.

“The price of the mana stones has been set the same as historical mana stone prices. It may be adjusted later if the quantity released increases.”

“Yes.”

After responding to his words, Erina was startled by her own inexplicably sharp tone.

She was confused, not knowing what she was angry about or what was bothering her.

But one thing was certain.

She was disappointed that he had taken a step back to observe.

It was extremely contradictory and selfish.

She had distanced herself from him, yet she was upset by the distance between her and Sandes.

“For the time being, distribution to other kingdoms is not planned until the market stabilizes within the empire.”

His ruthless flipping through the documents felt heartless.

Erina wished for his brusque voice to turn sweet like before, for his expressionless gaze to become thick as honey.

Erina could not understand herself for that desperate wish.

Why did she keep trying to distance herself from him as he approached?

“Do you have any questions?”

Sandes, who had been speaking while looking at the documents, lifted his head and asked when Erina remained silent.

The moment Erina’s eyes met Sandes’, all the worries that had confused her were shaken by a fleeting thought.

Why was she afraid he would be like the original story when she had twisted it so much?

While yearning for his heart so.

Erina, who had barely maintained her composure, finally crumbled.

His eyes widened in surprise at her completely disarrayed expression.

Erina abruptly stood up from her seat and gathered the documents.

“I will review the documents if I have any questions.”

Quickly spitting out her words, Erina hurriedly left the office.

A momentary silence fell over the office due to her sudden disappearance.

“Did you two have a fight?”

Shimilden approached him with a bewildered face and asked.

Sandes set down the documents he had been holding, covered his mouth, then ran his hand down his face.

“Ha.”

Shimilden thought Sandes was sighing and was about to offer consolation, but he was dumbfounded and took a step back upon seeing the smile on his face.

“Hahaha.”

Leaning back in his chair, Sandes let out a laugh, his face filled with a bright smile.

“Your Highness, could it be… that you’ve lost your mind after fighting with the Viscountess?”

As if not even hearing Shimilden’s worried words, Sandes simply rejoiced like a child.

Sandes knew that Erina was aware of his feelings, yet she feared something unknown to him.

Whenever he thought they had grown closer and approached her even more, she would step back with a frightened face.

At first, he thought she was wary of men because the memory of being rejected by Peiron was too strong.

But she did not reject his carefully approaching touch.

From that, Sandes could tell.

Erina was afraid of his feelings.

Although he could not understand what lay at the root of that fear, Sandes had no choice but to wait for her to break out of the shell she had built around herself.

Thinking that the one with deeper feelings had to wait, he had kept his distance, hoping she would not feel burdened.

Sandes had expected it would take a very long time for Erina to open the door herself and approach him.

But today, upon seeing Erina, it seemed his expectation was wrong.

Her crumbled expression, her eyes filled with resentment towards him, were so adorable.

When she was leaving the office, he had almost grabbed her and embraced her, whispering words of love.

Everything about Erina was so pretty and beautiful that the relentless self-control people had marveled at seemed to vanish.

“I feel like I’m going crazy.”

No, he was definitely crazy.

Seeing how he was blinded by her and could not think of anything else, he wondered if he had lost his mind, as Shimilden said.

Strangely, laughter kept escaping him.

Shimilden was startled and jumped at the sight of Sandes covering his face with both hands and laughing foolishly.

“I must call a doctor!”

Shimilden, shocked, disappeared from the office, but Sandes’ soft laughter continued to echo through the room.

Although the founding festival and all of Erina’s celebratory banquets had ended, the imperial palace remained busy.

It was the first time the Pope of the Kamkarash Temple and the Grand Sage of the Meltias Tower had visited the imperial palace on a day other than the enthronement ceremony.

Arriving at the imperial palace and meeting with the Pope and the Grand Sage through Enzo’s arrangement, Erina could not hide her astonishment.

She had expected to be well-received as the owner of the mana stone mine, but she had never imagined it would be to this extent.

“It is an honor to meet you. I am Raharta Mezem Pricelona, the first servant of the goddess Pricelona. Although lacking, I serve as the Pope of the Kamkarash Temple, the only remaining glory of the goddess.”

The man with an impressive large build and stunning golden hair cascading down to his shoulders quickly approached Erina and greeted her.

Raharta’s pristine white priestly robes beautifully complemented the exquisite gold embroidery symbolizing the Pope.

Standing there with his lustrous golden eyes sparkling, he appeared slightly younger than Erina.

Erina was flustered by Raharta’s demeanor, which resembled a younger brother welcoming a long-awaited older sister, and responded a beat late.

“The honor is mine, Your Holiness. I am Erina Bril Medelia, the owner of the mana stone mine.”

“Oh, please feel free to simply call me Raharta.”

“How could I address Your Holiness by name…”

“If the one chosen by God does not call me by name, then who will!”

Erina was not the only one taken aback. Enzo, who had been seated first, also had a dumbfounded expression.

The Pope Enzo had seen at the enthronement ceremony was cold and expressionless, like a doll.

He had an unapproachable demeanor, making it difficult to even mention other topics.

Yet, it was questionable whether the Pope he had seen then and the one treating Erina now were the same person, as the difference was stark.

Enzo’s astonishment did not end with Raharta.

“It is an honor to meet you like this. I am Tarshan Rokan, humbly called the Grand Sage of the Meltias Tower despite my lacking wisdom.”

The man with an impressive giant physique, better suited for a mercenary than a Grand Sage based on appearance alone.

Tarshan had short, night-sky black hair and straight brown eyes like a sturdy tree.

Just like Raharta, Tarshan was gazing at Erina with shining eyes.

“The honor is mine, Grand Sage.”

“Please call me by my name as well.”

Although his gaze seemed serious, he resembled an immature older brother wanting to be called by name even more than Raharta.

Erina found it difficult to gather her wits in the face of the two men’s inexplicable excessive goodwill.

The flustered Erina sought help by looking at Enzo, but Enzo seemed no different from her.

Faced with the two men’s sparkling eyes, eagerly awaiting to be called by name, Erina was at a loss for words.