I Regress if the Villainess Dies! Chapter 17: Chapter 16 Miri(4)

Read chapter 17 of I Regress if the Villainess Dies! by Yuzai_Rearu on NovelPedia.

The next day, Xian sparred with Serika once again. He didn’t have much difficulty this time and was able to return several blows. Of course, if he really wanted to, he could probably land a hit if he became desperate enough. He waited for an opportunity until Carmillia and Lucinelle left the training grounds. “Is it fun to beat me up?” Xian had been observing and thinking about what to say to Serika, only to end up asking that question. Bringing up the chief maid right away might turn his chances for the worse. “Yeah. Your arrogant face contorting like that looks so funny I can’t get enough of it.” She said dismissively with a smirk. Xian noticed the small fang peeking from each side of her teeth. 'Ah, she’s that type, huh? Is she a tsundere too?' With his vast knowledge of heroines, he instantly categorized Serika’s typical archetype. “You mean you like my face?” So he said something that will likely return a typical reaction he expects. “Wha—! That’s not it! No! What are you even saying!” Her strikes hardened for a moment, but Xian endured them and tried to push back. “Why are you overreacting? I’m kidding. Don’t tell me…” “Just try running your mouth again! I’m gonna rip it off!” Serika snarled, her cheeks faintly flushed and her eyes burning. 'Woah! That’s really intense.' Instead of feeling intimidated, her reaction made him smile. Despite her increased aggression, the pain from her blows had already become irrelevant to him. “You know, I noticed something strange the other day.” “Tsk. I didn’t think you’d be the chatty type.” She complained, but she didn’t tell him to stop. “I remember seeing the chief maid meeting the coachman before he got replaced.” Xian didn’t actually know if that was true, but it sounded plausible enough. If no one could go back in time to confirm it, then it might as well be the truth. “What?” Serika stared at him in disbelief, clearly finding the claim absurd. Yet even as she reacted, her mind had already begun forming the conclusion Xian wanted. Rather than stating his suspicions outright, it was better to guide her into realizing that something suspicious was happening around the chief maid. “I kind of forgot to tell anyone. And no one seemed cautious enough to care.” “Why are you only saying this now?” “Because I didn’t think anyone would believe me.” It was a lie. Moris probably would have. But that didn’t matter. Xian only needed to push Serika into believing him. “But the head butler…” It seemed Serika had the same thought. “The head butler would only move with evidence. And I recall the two of them being quite close.” As far as he knew, Carmillia and the swordmaiden duo hadn’t stayed in this estate for long. When it came to knowing the relationships between servants and their superiors, they were no better than him, who had arrived later. “I could tell him. But at most, he would reprimand me and become suspicious of the chief maid. With her companion recently caught and even killed, there’s no way she would act suspiciously while under Moris’s watch, right?” “That… surprisingly makes sense.” Serika’s eyes narrowed slightly, unable to disprove what she had just heard. 'I know, right? Even I’m surprised I can come up with lies like this.' Xian was truly stretching the limits of the sensible nonsense he could spew. “But why are you only telling me?” Now came the tricky part, where he needed to convince Serika to discreetly capture the chief maid. “Team up with me, Serika.” Xian deliberately called her name. “Hmph… Add ma’am to that.” That remark went straight through one ear and out the other as he continued. “With the two of us, we can overpower her. As for the justification, I saw her carefully hiding something wrapped in parchment.” Xian met her eyes. “I think she’s plotting something.” Their spar continued, the sounds of their weapons striking each other echoing through the training grounds. For a while, Serika didn’t respond. 'Is she not convinced?' Xian was already beginning to consider