I Became the Villain Alpha's Omega (BL)

Chapter 345: A Name Called Wina

"What did I ever do to her for her to want to kill me?!" Iryna demanded, her voice a harsh, low whisper that carried perfectly across the rug. "Seriously, Gillian! Am I really that terrible of a guest? Did I look at her wrong? Did I breathe her air?"

Marielle and Elios had been long gone from the room, but before they left with others, Gillian had made sure to give them both a quiet, earnest word of thanks for stepping up and keeping her company when he was called away.

The moment they had privacy, Gillian didn’t waste any time. He walked Iryna through everything he knew, leaving nothing out. Starting from the moment he stepped out of her room, he recounted every conversation, every decision, and every discovery in the exact order they had happened, all the way to his audience with the king and Gillian’s decision to go down and examine the maid’s body himself.

Gillian walked over to the armchair positioned near the small wooden table. He sank deeply into the soft, thick cushions, letting out a long, quiet exhale as he leaned his forearms on his knees and tilted his head up to look at her with a tired but completely focused expression.

"I don’t know what to tell you," Gillian said dryly, rubbing the back of his neck where the muscle had gone stiff. "People rarely need a personal grievance when politics are involved. But let’s start with the basics. Do you even know the maid?"

Iryna stopped her sudden pacing, her brow furrowing deeply. She pressed two fingers against her temples, her mind instantly diving into a frantic search through every single person she had crossed paths with since arriving.

She searched her memory as best she could, desperately trying to recall for anyone, absolutely anyone, bearing the name Wina that she might have casually met or spoken to during her stay.

"Wina... Wina... Wina..." she muttered under her breath, repeating the name like a chant that might suddenly spark a memory. She shook her head, her shoulders dropping in frustration. "Which one even is she? Gillian, there are too many maids in this place. Half of them don’t even look at me when they pass by, and the other half look like they’re trying to disappear into the wall. A name like that could belong to five different girls alone."

Gillian exhaled a slow breath, his mind reverting back to the cold details he had observed when he stood over the body earlier. He closed his eyes for a split second, visualizing the exact layout of the room and the body in it.

"Alright, let’s look at the physical facts," Gillian said, opening his eyes and gesturing with his hands to measure out the space. "Think about the details. From what I saw when I checked the body, she had distinct, dull brown hair, not the dark chestnut common one, but lighter, almost like sun-bleached straw at the ends. And her height..." He paused, looking Iryna up and down with a critical eye. "She was probably well around your height. Maybe a fraction of an inch shorter, but close enough that if she wore a cloak, you could easily mistake her silhouette for yours from behind."

Iryna started pacing again. She tried to wreck her brain, digging through every encounter she had experienced since arriving at in Auzelian. She walked back and forth, her eyes tracking the patterns on the rug as she desperately tried to attach a face to the physical description. But the memory simply wasn’t there. It remained a blank, frustrating void.

"Let’s assume I do know her," Iryna said, stopping to look at Gillian, her arms crossing over her chest. "Maybe she’s included among the ones who have been explicitly assigned to me while I’ve been staying here. The staff rotating is smaller, at least. But even then, I don’t remember ever fighting with someone. I haven’t yelled at the maids, I haven’t complained about the food..." A sudden, faint smile touched the corners of her lips, a brief flash of genuine amusement breaking through her stress. "...well, aside from Marielle, of course."

She let out a soft, dry chuckle, the memory of their chaotic dynamic briefly warming her expression. "But that doesn’t count. We all know how that went."

Gillian brought his hands together, producing a sharp, loud clap that echoed through the small room.

"Focus," he said flatly, his expression remained perfectly blank as he stared her down. "We do not have the time to reminisce about the great fight that completely wrecked the Duke’s garden. The rosebushes still haven’t recovered, and neither has the head gardener’s sanity. Keep your mind on the dead maidin the forest."

Iryna’s smile slowly faded, giving way to a solemn expression. She let out a small sigh and nodded, leaning against the edge of the heavy wardrobe. "Right. Sorry."

Gillian leaned back in his chair, his eyes fixed on the dark windowpane across the room. His thoughts turned over one possibility after another, dismissing each that failed to fit the facts.

"Look, if you don’t recognize her, then we have to consider the alternative," Gillian said, his voice turning low and serious. "I personally think the maid was just a puppet. A disposable tool. The real master behind this is probably sitting back in their home right now, completely clean, just waiting to watch everything fall apart. They gave her the weapon, gave her the hours, and let her do the dirty work."

He shifted his weight, his brow knitting together. "Or... maybe is it possible they didn’t even target you at all. Is it possible they just missed their actual target? From the look of it, the maid had no intention of killing you."

Iryna rubbed her face with both hands. Though she had barely left her bed, the conversation had left her utterly drained. Her eyes burned, and her thoughts felt sluggish, rolling through her mind like thick mud.

"It’s already this late," Iryna muttered, her voice dropping into a tired, defeated sigh. "I actually can’t really think straight right now. My brain is completely fried. There’s no better way to end the night with a pounding head than trying to make sense of a culprit’s motives."

She gave herself a long stretch before glancing over at Gillian. A thought that had been lingering in her mind since before Gillian had returned to her room.

"Brother..." Iryna called out softly.

Her brother shifted in the armchair, his eyes lifting to meet hers at the sudden change in her tone.

"Actually," Iryna said, Her expression grew unusually serious as she met his gaze. "There’s something I need to tell you."