The Crazy Villainess in This Area Is Me

She grew up lonely without a mother or father all her life. Although Duke Gracie gave her plenty of affection, her longing for her parents was one thing. With the addition of her physical illness, her loneliness slowly gnawed away her mind.

While suffering from physical and mental illness, Bella soon lost consciousness. Then, in her disconnected consciousness, she had a long dream. In her dream, there was no pain or suffering. She roamed freely through her dreams, feeling happy and liberated.

How much time has passed like that? By the time she felt like so much time had passed, Bella could meet the people she had missed so much. Her mother died giving birth to her, and her father died in an accident not long after she was born. They were exactly what they looked like in the portrait. Did she miss them so much that they came to her dream?

She smiled broadly at the haze-like welcome. But strangely enough, next to them was someone she had never seen before. It was a woman with silver hair and very beautiful emerald eyes. She couldn’t hear what she was saying, but she could clearly see the shape of her mouth. ‘Please take care of me’.

What on earth is she asking for? As she wondered, Bella’s eyes brightened. After months of sleeping, she had finally regained consciousness.

“Uumm…”

And before her eyes was Lobelia, somehow resembling someone.

Bella immediately took Lobelia, who had a personality that wasn’t easy to determine her original status and her lifesaver, into her heart. She didn’t know why, but strangely, she felt attached to her from the beginning. She wanted to be friendly and get closer.

After that, Lobelia cured all her illnesses, even though she got hurt from doing that. In return, Lobelia asked the duke to adopt her. But Bella didn’t care what she wanted from them. She didn’t know what her grandfather was thinking when he accepted Lobelia. Still, if she was going to end up in the same family tree, she really wanted them to be like a sister. So, with a pure heart, she offered Lobelia to bathe together. At that time, a jewel pendant with a somewhat familiar color and shape caught her eye.

“That…?”

She could recognize it immediately as the pendant that had been on her father’s wrist, something she remembered only from his portrait.

“Father’s…?”

Her curious gaze turned to Lobelia, who was already in the bath and enjoying the bath. Lobelia might not recognize it because she lived as a commoner, but this blue gem was no ordinary gem.

It’s a gem called ‘hauyne,’ a rare stone found very rarely and emitting fluorescence. Finding such a clear blue color was difficult, even in sapphire. It had an enormous value if it was over 1 carat like this one. It was surprising in itself that a commoner would own a pendant with such a precious jewel.

“No way…?”

From then on, Bella began to have doubts. No matter how much Lobelia saved her life, her grandfather’s actions in putting a strange woman in his genealogy at once were incomprehensible. But what if that pendant really belongs to her father and Lobelia is a woman related to her father? If her assumption was true, all her doubts would have disappeared.  

“…I need to find out.”

From then on, while Bella maintained her closeness to Lobelia, she kept an eye on the seal ring owned by Duke Gracie. With that alone, she would be able to tell whether Gracie’s blood was flowing in Lobelia or not. Unfortunately, the seal ring was kept on Duke Gracie’s finger even when he was sleeping, so it was impossible to steal it. She thought she should check it out if she got the chance.

Accidentally, Bella witnessed the love affair between Frinel and Lobelia. It wouldn’t have mattered if it was just an ordinary nobleman. Whether Lobelia is an adopted child or not, countless people will want to marry her just because of her family name, Gracie.

However, Frinel was different. Although his current political position wasn’t very good due to the power of the empress, he was still a member of the imperial family. Moreover, Gracie’s family relationship with the emperor and empress wasn’t very good due to various issues. For political reasons, it would definitely be best not to marry Frinel, as Lobelia’s status could be put at risk.

Both of them were very precious people to Bella. She definitely didn’t want them to get hurt. Her worries overwhelmed her, so she took a deep breath and tried calming her pounding heart.

At that moment, Duke Gracie entered the room as if he wanted to ask something. Bella truly hoped that Lobelia, who saved her life, would be happy. So she asked bluntly, without even thinking about it. This was the moment to face the truth.

“Tell me, please.”

“Bella.”

“The pendant that Robelia has.”

Bella’s blue eyes trembled weakly like waves on the lake.

“It belongs to my father.”

“…Bella.”

Duke Gracie frowned slightly as if he was embarrassed.

She continued her words. “I won’t be surprised if Lobelia’s pendant was just sapphire, but it’s hauyne. Something as small as a fingernail can buy you a house, but it’s even 1 carat.”

“I don’t know how Lobelia got it,”

“And my father’s pendant in the portrait is also a hauyne.” Bella cut him off resolutely and walked closer to Duke Gracie.

“Grandpa.” Then, holding his hand tightly, she said earnestly, “Grandpa knows something.”

“Bella. My dear.”

“I think Frinel and Lobelia have feelings for each other. I don’t want to be anxious. I want both of them to be happy.”

“His Royal Highness… and Lobelia?” Duke Gracie’s eyes narrowed to the side.

It was then.

“…Excuse me.” Lobelia, whose face turned red, burst open the door. She couldn’t just listen anymore.

“Lobelia…!”

“I’m sorry. I don’t want to hide and eavesdrop.”

She walked proudly into the room. Then she stood between Bella and Duke Gracie, looked straight at Bella, and opened her mouth again. “First of all, Fri… No, His Royal Highness and I aren’t in that kind of relationship, Bella.”

“Yes…?”

“There is a deeper situation here. More than that…”

Bright emerald eyes rolled slowly toward him.

“Tell me, please.”

Lobelia removed the pendant from her necklace, which hung on her wrist instead of her exposed neck. Then she held it in front of Duke Gracie’s face.

“Who does this pendant belong to?”

Anxiety filled his face in an instant.

“

…” Duke Gracie sighed deeply.  The eyes of both women looking at him were hoping for the truth.

He sat down on the sofa, pressing his tired eyelids. Then he gestured towards them as if to tell them to sit down.

Bella and Robelia looked at each other and awkwardly sat side by side in front of him. Duke Gracie rang the bell and asked the butler for tea and light refreshments. Soon, flower tea and small cookies were set out in front of them.

Bella stared blankly at the suddenly prepared tea and cookies, but then she couldn’t stand the silence and began to speak. “…Grandpa.”

“Don’t urge me, Bella.” He cut off his words firmly.

Duke Gracie tilted his teacup solemnly as if he was thinking deeply about something. Then he sipped the hot tea in silence for a long time.

“Lobelia.”

After some time had passed, his mouth opened again.

“Do you remember…what I said someday?”

“Are you talking about…my encounter with Duke is fate?”

“That’s right.”

Duke smiled faintly and put the teacup down on the table.

“Fate is truly amazing. When I found you lying by the river…”

His eyes slowly turned to the blue pendant in her hand.

“I haven’t even seen your pendant.”

A bitter smile lingered around his mouth for a long time and disappeared. Duke Gracie went on.

“It’s just…a mysterious light led me, and all I did was try to help this mysterious, pitiful woman.”

Recalling the first time he found Lobelia, he added slowly. “Lobelia, when you showed your holy power… Only then did I see your pendant. And I recognized it at a glance. That it belongs to my son. No, that’s…”

Duke Gracie’s eyes became moist.

“It belonged to Duchess Gracie for generations.”

“…Pardon?”

“Wait, that means…?”

Lobelia and Bella had the same expression and waited for him to open his mouth again.

“Right. Let me tell you the conclusion.”

Duke Gracie frowned slightly as if in pain but tried to answer their questions calmly.

“Lobelia.”

And soon, Lobelia and Bella could hear the truth they had been waiting for.

“You are my granddaughter. Not an adopted granddaughter… You’re really my granddaughter, who inherits the blood of Gracie.”

Lobelia’s mouth slowly opened at the astonishing truth.