The Baddest Villainess Is Back - Chapter 173
If there was one truth Roxelyn realized during her time in hiding, it was that you should earn money while you have the chance.
No matter how much she earned, it was never enough.
Of course, that was true, but…
“No.”
“…What?”
“I said you can’t leave.”
She hadn’t expected to be confined like this.
Roxelyn, who had shared information with the High Priest and was now feeling better, intended to get some fresh air.
But she hesitated when she saw Zerti Bellion blocking her path with a resolute expression.
“Why?”
“Because I don’t know what you might do.”
“…What would I do? I’m just…”
“If I let you go, who knows when you’ll try to die? You’re always thinking of leaving this place behind.”
At Zerti Bellion’s firm words, Roxelyn paused.
She pointed to the garden.
“I’m just going to the garden…”
“Even the garden has its dangers. Wait until we’ve filled in the pond with sand, cut down all the thorny flowers, and made it safe. Ah, we should chop down the trees too.”
“The world calls that a barren field, not a garden… I think.”
When Roxelyn responded in disbelief, Zerti Bellion hesitated for a moment before shaking his head.
“Is there something you find uncomfortable in your room?”
“No. You serve me three meals a day, bring what I need for two tea times daily, and if I casually mention something I’d like to eat, it’s on the table the next day. There are books, pens, paper, and even friends who visit regularly, along with the sunlight pouring in—it’s almost perfect.”
There were even various chess sets and board games, seasonal fruits, people who came in daily to give massages, and servants who arrived within three seconds of pulling the bell cord.
“Then there’s no need for you to go out.”
Roxelyn hesitated.
“Am I being confined?”
“That sounds a bit harsh. Let’s call it house arrest.”
Zerti Bellion said as he guided Roxelyn back to her bed.
Caught off guard, Roxelyn found herself sitting back on the bed, still in her outdoor clothes, leaning against the headboard.
“…So it is confinement.”
“House arrest.”
Roxelyn glanced around the room.
There were a variety of books, and the bed linens that changed daily smelled warmly of sunlight.
In one corner, a mountain of jewels and gold bars seemed to be piled up, perhaps as a way to cheer her up.
The wardrobe was filled with new dresses and clothes from the Fleur Boutique that had arrived just yesterday.
In fact, until just now, Roxelyn hadn’t even realized she was being imprisoned.
‘It’s so luxurious that I didn’t think it was imprisonment…’
The only kind of imprisonment she remembered involved being tortured in a dungeon, after all.
“Aren’t you angry? I deceived you, Father.”
“…I’m angry at myself. That’s all,” Zerti Bellion replied.
Roxelyn looked at him with a slightly puzzled expression.
“Why?”
“If what you say is true, then I’m a useless, undeserving parent who failed to protect both my daughter in this world or you in that world.”
Zerti Bellion muttered through clenched teeth, burying his face in his hands.
Roxelyn was slightly surprised.
It turned out her father had a better sense of self-awareness than she had thought—though perhaps he had dug himself into a deep pit.
‘If only it weren’t for me…’
Zerti Bellion thought.
If Roxelyn’s words were true, then his daughter was dead.
The Roxelyn in that world had also died. No, in that world, Roxelyn had completely given up on him.
The ironic thing was that if he had been in the same situation, Zerti Bellion would have made the same choice.
He would have been devastated by Roxelyn’s abandonment, wouldn’t have tried to talk to or hold on to her, and would have given up on life in despair.
Telling himself it was enough, that as long as she had found happiness and left, that was all that mattered.
“I would have…”
Zerti Bellion had spent the past week locked away, thinking and thinking, but all he could conclude was that he was trash.
“If it weren’t for you, I would have done the same.”
Zerti Bellion still lacked confidence.
Even when his child was first born, he wasn’t confident he could raise her well. After his wife’s death, he believed he was unworthy rather than incapable.
So, he distanced himself from the child. He distanced himself, thinking it would protect her… but in the end, every choice he made was wrong, and Zerti Bellion ended up killing his child with his own hands.
If Roxelyn hadn’t stepped in this time, he would have followed the same path.
