A Painting of the Villainess as a Young Lady

Aileen was a child who had lost her whole family. She’s a child who always had to walk on eggshells. She’s a poor, pitiful child.

There were countless reasons behind Aileen’s circumstances. Violet herself realized the solidified truth that her words, whatever it was that she’d say, were all futile.

“Why don’t you just ignore her, Milady? Don’t give her any attention and pretend that she’s not there.”

“…Do you really think that’ll work, Nanny?”

“Of course. Milady doesn’t need to do anything. I’ll make sure to explain everything to the young masters.”

“…Okay.”

Looking back, Violet recalled that there was a time when someone was on her side.

But she soon gave up trying to remember the face of the nanny who never failed to side with her.

“Violet.”

“…What.”

“That child follows you around because she likes you so much, but you don’t even care about her.”

“Brother Roen, are you talking about that kid?”

“Please, just take care of her even a little.”

It was easy for Violet to treat Aileen as if she was not there.

It was fine at first. She didn’t have to get angry.

But for some reason, Aileen started following Violet around.

“Brother, you too! You like her more than me!”

“…That’s not what I mean.”

Then, this time, she became a bad older sister in a different sense.

One night, Aileen cried and cried all night to the point of losing her voice. All because she wanted to get close to her older sister, but Violet kept ignoring her.

Roen pacified Violet, but did not forget to tell her to get along with Aileen.

Aileen, who was nice and angelic.

And Violet, who was unlike the kids around her age, who was immature, and who was prone to doing such wicked acts.

“Sister, look at this. Aren’t these flowers pretty?”

“…It’s pretty.”

“Brother Cairn picked these flowers for me. But I’ll give some to you, too, Sister.”

“…I don’t need it.”

Aileen approached Violet while pretending to be friendly. Violet thought Aileen was being nothing but abominable.

She hated Aileen. The girl stole her dresses, her jewelry, her food, her family’s love.

Everything.

“You pumpkin! Who the heck are you to bully the angel!”

“I never bullied her.”

“If the angel’s giving it to you, just receive it properly. The angel’s crying now!”

“Why is she an angel? And I’m not a pumpkin.”

“Argh! Just take it! Take all the flowers!”

Sympathy was such a devious thing.

Those flowers were offered to Violet as if they were mere alms for the poor, so she didn’t want to receive them. Even that was a pathetic sight.

So, uselessly, she built up her pride.

She tried to change her circumstances, but the ending was always the same.

Aileen was a pitiful child. Violet was a mean older sister who refused to understand her younger sister.

And, at some point, Violet did not have a single person to lean on anymore.

Her nanny said that she was going back home because of a family problem.

The maids who used to take good care of Violet disappeared some time or another.

The person in charge of Violet’s education made a point to stamp out Violet’s viciousness.

The handmaids, who once doted on Violet very much, now liked Aileen as if it’s been that way forever.

“I wonder why it became like that. I don’t remember how it started, but I just kept my guard up all the time.”

“…I see.”

“It came to a point where I couldn’t even take a step out of my room. But at least I could still ask the maids to bring me some books so I could pass the time… Things like that.”

“……”

“But then I heard that I apparently tore apart a stuffed toy. The stuffed toy that that child cherished a lot.”

One day, while she already had her guard up, she exploded in anger once more because she couldn’t not say anything.

Violet became responsible for something she never did.

Everyone automatically thought that Violet was completely at fault. After all, she hates Aileen.

Violet insisted on her innocence, but nobody believed her.

“You’re even resorting to lies now.”

This was also the first time that Mikhail showed such contempt for Violet.

Violet never tore up Aileen’s stuffed toy. She wasn’t in the position to do so.

While staring at the teddy bear that had been cut up with scissors, she wondered just how much she tried to protest against the injustice being thrown at her.

But still, nobody believed her.

The teddy bear was Mikhail’s first gift to Aileen, so Mikhail was particularly angry about it.

She was being blamed for something she never did. Who in the world wouldn’t feel wronged in this situation?

Violet screamed the whole time. No one sympathized with her.

“That kid can destroy my things, but I can’t destroy hers?”

The same thing happened more times after that.

Violet merely pointed out Aileen’s clumsy etiquette, but at some point, Violet’s actions became interpreted as a one-sided attack against someone who never did anything wrong.

There were so many things that Violet was not responsible for, yet all of them were attributed to her anyway. She was criticized even more.

Being a little grouchy turned into a colossal mistake.

One day, she shouted directly at Aileen, expressing her frustration.

“I really didn’t do it…! You know this!”

What Aileen said in response…

It was one of Violet’s unforgettable memories.

“Sister.”

“Sister, you hate me, right?”

At that moment, the flabbergasted young ducal lady could not say anything back.

For the first time, the quietly smiling girl showed that face.

That innocent, yet at the same time, goosebump-inducing face.