The Villain's Ending is Only Death Chapter 41
The woman who had just put down her dessert sneered at my spotlessly clean dishes, which showed no signs of having been touched.
It was a small sound, barely audible to my ears.
Our eyes met. Her eyes, curved into half-moons as if she was about to die of joy, were full of mockery.
'Oh ho... let's give this a try, shall we?'
Before she could leave, I quickly dropped the smallest spoon to the floor.
The marble and metal collided, creating a considerable noise. Naturally, everyone in the restaurant turned their gaze to me.
"Oh, I'm sorry. My hand must have slipped."
"Would you like me to pick it up?"
I apologized dramatically while gesturing to the floor.
Lady Donna remained unperturbed by my sudden action.
It was as if she was saying, 'What can you do about it?' Her demeanor was very familiar.
"Of course. Don't worry about it, Miss."
Lady Donna picked up the second smallest spoon without complaint.
"Then, I hope you have a good time..."
Just as she was about to stand up and say her goodbyes,
I deliberately threw the last spoon to the floor.
The Duke's face and voice instantly turned cold.
"Huh? What are you doing?"
Leonard laughed in disbelief, and Derrick glared at me with his icy blue eyes.
The white text above their heads began to flicker.
Squeak—I loudly pulled my chair and stood up.
"I'm sorry, but I can't eat dessert without a spoon."
"If you're done speaking, I'll go up to my room now."
The Duke's face grew increasingly angry.
"Behaving so rudely at a long-awaited luncheon, what are you doing?"
"I'm just too hungry, Father."
I dramatically clutched my stomach. The Duke and the male leads' brows twitched at my unexpected words.
"I'm as clumsy with cutlery as a three-year-old. I can't eat this kind of food at all."
I looked at the untouched food in front of me with a seemingly innocent expression.
The food, untouched, was still warm. If I left now, it would all go to the staff.
The foolish Penelope must have often starved herself to feed the servants.
"Isn't that right, Lady?"
I smiled innocently and sought Lady Donna's agreement.
Her face turned pale. The confidence and mockery from earlier were completely gone, which was quite amusing.
A cold silence fell over the dining room.
The tiny toy cutlery and the untouched main dishes.
The pristine white plates, untouched by any seasoning, were so clean that it would be hard to do so without any complaints.
I knew exactly where everyone's gaze was fixed.
"I'll go up to my room and ask Emily to bring me a sandwich. Something I can eat with my hands."
"Have a good time, Father, brothers."
This time, no one tried to stop me.
I opened the door, which had closed on its own, and left the dining room. Suddenly, a sense of futility made me laugh.
'They said you'd shoot people with a crossbow and kill them...’
That incredibly wicked villainess had been helplessly suffering just because she couldn't do something as simple as this.
But even so, I couldn't mock such a Penelope.
She had endured the hunger and stayed in that seat until the end, which was pitiful and pathetic.
I went straight to my room, took the book I had been reading from the bookshelf, and sat at my desk.
I had confidently left the dining room, claiming I was hungry, but in fact, I wasn't that hungry.
I was more worried about how my little tantrum might affect the male leads' affection towards me.
'There was no change the last time I checked...'
I was bothered that I hadn't been able to properly read their expressions due to the Duke and Lady Donna.
'They can't possibly lose affection just because I threw a spoon, right?'
'Even if it drops a bit, it's fine.'
After all, they were marked with an X, so a little fluctuation didn't matter.
'As long as it doesn't plummet to the point of death.'
I tried to focus on the book, shaking off my worries. Just then,
Someone knocked on the door and announced themselves.
Since it was Emily, I readily allowed her to enter.
She opened the door and carefully entered with a tray covered by a lid.
I glanced at it, and she placed the tray on my desk and lifted the lid.
There was a steaming soup, a steak, and a sandwich neatly arranged.
I immediately frowned. The steak was plated exactly like the one at the banquet.
"This is new, made at the Duke's request, Miss."
Emily, who seemed to have heard about what happened, added cautiously.
"And this is something the butler insisted you should have..."
A small brown bottle, a digestive aid.
"Never mind. I don't really want to eat it, so take it away."
Fortunately or unfortunately, since I hadn't eaten anything, there was no risk of indigestion.
Emily's face fell at my words.
"But you said you wanted a sandwich. You must be hungry. Please eat, Miss."
"I'm fine. And I already ate."
"You haven't had a proper meal all day. At least have a little..."
"Not just today, but always."
I slammed the book down, irritated.
"Have any of the meals you've brought me been proper noble meals?"
Emily was at a loss, sensing my cold mood.
I knew I was taking out my frustration on her. Emily had always been kind to me within her means.
I didn't have much to complain about the few dishes and desserts. At least I wasn't starving.
But the situation and background of where I, or rather Penelope, was in, made me so frustrated I could scream.
"Take that and leave. I don't even want to see your face right now."
Emily finally left with the tray, looking dejected.
I felt a bit bad for her, but I wasn't really sorry.
I had been suppressing the emotions that had been building up since I left the dining room and now picked up the book again.
But I soon threw it down again.
I stood up abruptly from my desk and flopped onto the bed.
The luxurious and elegant ceiling of the room was visible.
It was ironic that the owner of this room couldn't even get a proper meal, and the room was just a facade.
"Why do I have to go through such a miserable situation here?"
I muttered to myself, unable to understand.
If someone else had been reincarnated into this game, they might have been delighted by the spacious and luxurious room.
But I didn't feel any particular emotion.
The place I lived at the main house was also luxurious and spacious, not inferior to this.
Ironically, despite living in such a beautiful room, I had always worried about what I would eat the next day.
After the second bastard graduated, the bullying at school reached its peak.
Being cut in line and eating last was the norm, and having my tray deliberately knocked over was a common occurrence.
I went the whole day hungry and couldn't eat immediately when I got home.
I didn't attend the cozy family dinners, which everyone else enjoyed.
'What was the point of that pride...’
Thinking about it now, it was a foolish act.
If I was going to endure, I should have at least eaten properly.
Unlike Penelope, who had a maid, I had no one to bring me food.
The helper lady would leave as soon as she finished the dishes.
I would stubbornly hold my empty stomach until the people in that house finished their meals and went to their rooms, then sneak into the kitchen.
I would mix cold rice with leftover soup or pour the remaining side dishes into a large bowl and eat hurriedly.
But even then, there were more times when I couldn't eat a single bite and had to spit it out.
The leftover soup and side dishes were often mixed with vinegar, sugar, salt, pickled fish, and sometimes unknown substances, making them taste terrible.
It was the second bastard's doing.
- You poor thing. That's why you eat like a rat in secret.
He would sometimes watch me in hiding and then jump out, laughing and mocking me.
So I had to suffer from malnutrition and chronic gastritis until I escaped that hell.