The villainess will survive!

Part 57: House arrest

"Get your hands off me. I will walk myself to see with my own eyes." 

I shook off their hands and walked faster so that they had to pick up their pace too. 

It was important to make the fact clear that I would not lose grace right now, not ever. 

But Ivy was poisoned? Right after I had left her in that healthy state?

This timing wasn't a coincidence, and everybody knew it too. 

Obviously I had the biggest motives to poison her, possibly killing her. 

I could immediately tell that a swarm of people had gathered, and pushed through the crowd to reach the center of attention. 

Ivy was laying down on the grass, eyes half-closed but clearly conscious. 

She was paler than snow, and was sweating profusely. 

This wasn't acting, and she was clearly suffering in pain. 

If this wasn't poison, then what was it?

                                                                    ***

Just as I was about to measure for her heartbeat, a guard stopped me. 

But this time I didn't fight against them holding my arm so I couldn't touch Ivy. 

Everybody glared at me like they knew I was the witch who had poisoned Ivy, and the guards as well. 

Touching Ivy in this situation would only make everything worse for me. 

Although even if the guards holding my arms behind my back and pushing me to leave, I would not budge until Nurse Molly came by. 

Ivy may be my enemy, but if she died right here the situation I was in would simply get worse. 

She would probably give a testimony  where I handed her the water bottle and she started feeling dizzy. 

However, that would be better than if she were dead and we had to rely on the witnesses that didn't like me very much. 

They probably detested me because of the power I held and that I was the fiance of the Crown Prince, someone who possessed a face anybody would fall for. 

Having Ivy alive would keep their mouths in check in case of contradiction of testimonies. 

To my surprise, it was the High Priest who arrived first to the scene. 

"Please, move aside. Especially you, Lady Villinie." 

I bowed my head in appreciation that he had bothered to call me formally and stepped back. 

I spotted the very priest who handed me the water bottle tailing behind the High Priest, and immediately furrowed my brows at him. 

Although this scenario wasn't the perfect time to call him out, so I left Ivy in the High Priest's care. 

But the way he was holding his head down struck me as suspicious. 

Was he trying to cower behind the High Priest, as if he had protection of sort?

That alone was suspicious, but he looked worried about me glaring at him so I allowed the guards to drag me away from the scene. 

I didn't say a single word as they escorted me to my room, and then told me this, "We are still investigating this poisoning, and in the meantime, you will wait in your room." 

Obediently walking into my room, I closed the door but didn't hear their footsteps leaving. 

'So they were going to guard my door from day to night? In the girls dorm?'

'Which meant I couldn't leave here unless I', I looked at the closed window, 'jumped outside of that.' 

But they were obviously going to check on me from time to time, so I wouldn't risk it. 

Although I could make an illusion in my place if I wanted to, why would I need to go outside? 

All I could do is wait here and see the results after a few days. 

                                                                         ***

Maids were allowed to come in and go out, to bring me food and fresh clothes. 

I asked them to give me a book or something, and they returned with a packet of things to keep me entertained. 

A newspaper and a stack of fantasy and romance books, as if I were a teen girl like any other my age. 

I let out a mocking laughter quietly at their choice. 

Although noble girls my age would read these imaginary fairytale-related themes, I no longer believed in such things. 

After all, I was transported as a villainess in an otome game world. 

What use would I have for magical made up plots and romantic love-at-first-time storybooks?

Having no interest this big pile of books, I turned my eyes to the neatly folded newspaper. 

Since I was going to spend the next who-knows how much days in here, I might as well use the newspaper they were going to send daily as a format to know whats happening out in the world. 

The front headline was filled with unoriginal but surprising news, such as any other copies from other dates would. 

I turned the page after finishing the first page, and continued down the list of news. 

A few concerning line of words immediately caught my eye after reading for a while. 

A few names were written down, and that they were dead after their injuries being treated at a certain hospital. 

Due to this incident, the country cut half of the funds to this specific hospital to give more to the temple who actually lowered the amount of deaths. 

Now, why were the country funds for the hospital cut? 

Usually the governments gave funds depending on the patients treated per months. 

But around a total of 30 patients submitted to this hospital died due to horrible treatment, for this month and the one before it. 

My question was, 'Why? Did they do a change of staff to reckless amateurs?' 

And the most mysterious thing was, that, none of these patients had dire situations. 

No, they weren't suffering from a terrible disease or a large wound. 

They were described as rather small, ones that bled for a bit but without proper treatment, could cause a small infection. 

The records of these patients showed that most of them came to the hospital to get these wounds sewed up. 

An interesting thing was that these wounds wouldn't stop by themselves, so they came to this one hospital. 

But why weren't there any patients coming in other hospitals?

Why only this area, and why were there so many cases of the same situation?

My head clicked, and immediately knew what had caused this strange phenomenon. 

The unanswered questions left were who would do this, and why?