Chapter 2: 2

It felt a little unfair.

The book was quite popular, so there are probably thousands of people who read it.

But why did it have to be me?

The part I read was not even half of the book.

I was so disappointed at the ending of my favorite character, Villainess no.4, who was found dead in prison, that I just shut the book and stopped reading.

“Why the hell?”

I asked myself that, but no answer came out, and soon the scent of the sleeping candle spread, and my consciousness drifted away. And when I opened my eyes again, I was already at the auction house.

‘Phew, I mean, I guess it’s still better to be villainess number 4….right?’

Villainess No. 4, Shay.

She was the one who clung to the male lead more desperately than anyone else. She hated the original female lead who always stood by the male protagonist.

In the end, she became the villain who remained still while watching the original female lead fall off the cliff.

And so, after witnessing the whole situation, the male protagonist ended up imprisoning villainess no.4.

Then, without even receiving a trial, she faced terrible death.

It was true that villainess no. 4 did a trivial bad thing, however, in reality, she just took the fall for the one who pushed the female lead.

Unfortunately, she stupidly fell into the scheme of villainess no. 1.

The role of Villainess No. 4 had to be the most pitiful because was hated by the other three villainesses as well. Therefore, it was only natural that she had such an ending.

‘And the reason why the villainess no. 4 was hated so much is…’

It was because she was pretty.

She wasn’t just pretty, but absolutely pretty.

The setting of this story is truly anachronistic and old-fashioned. Normally, if someone is pretty, you would want to be close with them… So why do all of the characters want to kill her?

All the villainesses have their charms, but villainess no.4 was particularly a femme fatale character.

I was tongue-tied over and over again while reading the descriptions that emphasized her beauty as extremely fatal.

What a woman. She can seduce any man just by batting her eyelashes. Why is that?

As soon as I thought about it ……. I remembered a sentence that is related to it.

The author used continuous exaggeration several times to appeal that villainess no. 4 was very beautiful. But even though I thought it was ridiculous, I was still quite excited, waiting eagerly to see the appearance of villainess no.4.

And now I can see why villainess no. 4 is treated as someone who is devilishly beautiful.

”This is crazy!”

Before I had a proper conversation with the man who bought me, Archduke Schweiden, I was forced to wash first.

I stood in front of the mirror with water dripping from my head.

And screamed.

“Unnie, take me*!”

*( Original word was 날 가져요 which literally means ‘take me’, but can also mean ‘I’ll be yours’. The line that is often used when you see someone you stan/idolize or a really handsome/beautiful person. It’s something like ‘Marry me, Oppa!’)

Thump.

I hit my forehead on the mirror, which caused it to ache. I couldn’t hide my big smile as I stared at the face in front of me.

Pretty. In common parlance, f*cking pretty.

That’s pretty enough to describe it, um. Well, it’s acceptable.

The red hair that was now free from the dirt was as fresh as rose petals. Fox-like long eyes and lush, pretty eyelashes. White jade skin. Just slightly raising the corners of her mouth makes you want to stare.

That’s how perfect this body is.

I barely managed to grasp my quavering rationality as I looked around my body.

Villainess No. 4 wasn’t a delicate woman, who would break if you tapped her. Instead, she was healthy beauty, like a mare.

It’s the sexy big sister type!

Maybe it’s because I don’t eat much now, but even if this body loses a little weight, it would still display a very sensual figure.

I was convinced it would.

‘Oh my God. This is me. This is me………!’

Humans aren’t always aesthetic-pleasing beings, and so I forgot the situation for a moment and almost cried out a cheer for possessing this body.

Her silver eyes with a bluish tint shone enchantingly. The collarbone, which was one of the most beautiful I had ever seen, was formed with a flat and straight shape as if sculpted.

In addition to her great beauty, she even had the secret lineage belonging to that of the ‘Painting Wizard’, so why is Villainess No. 4 not the heroine?

I sighed for a moment at the world that pushed a weak and innocent woman to be the female lead. If the owner of this body was the female lead, I’m sure the plot would be very interesting and it would be fun without sweet potatoes*!

*(고구마 or sweet potato. These days 고구마 is increasingly used as an adjective or a noun to express the speakers frustrated or impatient feeling about a situation or a person,)

“My Lady, His Highness, the Archduke wants to have a meal with you downstairs.”

At this time, I heard a voice that made my soul, which had escaped far away, return to my body.

It was Theobalt, the butler.

“I see.”

Earlier, the butler had put some indoor clothes, for me to wear, in the closet.

After being calmed down to some extent, I just went out and didn’t speak at all.

After all, the butler is an old man and so I found it difficult to speak informally to him, as the nobles did in the books I had read, because of the k-blood* embedded in my memories.

(* K-blood means Korean blood and what she means is that because of being taught good manners, she almost died while talking informally to an elderly person and the Korean blood in her had automatically made her guilty.)

Plus, I don’t truly know if the real identity of  Villainess No. 4 is actually part of the nobility or not.

If these people were bad guys, the story would be different, but so far, they didn’t do anything suspicious.

At least I had the belief that they wouldn’t do anything to me.

While washing, I stayed alert and tried to sense any movement outside, but I didn’t even hear anyone’s footsteps.

‘This beauty can make men and women go crazy regardless of their age, but seeing that they didn’t…’

The people in this mansion seemed to be people, not dogs.

I flipped my hair back and stepped away from the mirror.

‘It looks like I’ve calmed down a bit now.’

After a while, I went down to the dining room and saw him (the archduke) reading a newspaper.

This world is like a mix of the middle ages where knights ride horses while wielding their swords and a wealthy period where trains already existed.

I stared at the headline of the newspaper he put down.

‘Archduke Schweiden is dating a beautiful woman?’

“It’s Wembu.”

“Wembu?”

“A collection of useless rumors or unconfirmed information.”

Oh, gossips.

He then cut me off with an expression as if he were displeased, so I decided to let it go.

As soon as I sat down, Maynard tramped* in and brought the tableware.

*(walk heavily or noisily. Maynard has a big build that’s why.)

Then he took one glance at my face and disappeared, blushing until his neck.

Oh, good. Innocent. Very innocent.

“Listen. It’s a watery clam soup, so it’ll be easy to swallow.”

“Delicious.”

No, the food really was great. The taste of the soup had a deep, creamy broth that moistens the tongue. Tasting this, I think they call it Clam Chowder, right?

Since it was my first meal since I possessed this body, I barely held back from scarfing it all down at once.

If I ended up with an upset stomach, I’ll just suffer. At least, that much rationality was still with me.

“It would be better to introduce ourselves first. My name is Lacius de Schweiden.”

Around Mid-meal, the silent man suddenly opened his mouth.

Of course, I already knew his name. While reading the book, I always thought that it was a name that fits well with his character.

“Shay.”

I answered a little coyly.

He didn’t point out my mannerless way of speaking. Instead, he gently wiped his mouth with a napkin and asked.

“How did you get caught?”

In response, I almost hit my nose on the plate, so I was able to buy some time before I answered.

‘Uh, so… what was the setting for villainess no. 4 again?’

Villainess no. 4 was born in a small magic bureau called the Edmund Kingdom, with a very rare bloodline known as the “Panting Wizard”.

This power could only be transmitted from the parents to their children and was a magical ability that allows a drawing to become a reality.

So, it was the miracle of 2D becoming 4D. If you drew pictures of hundreds of billions of gautes, it could actually become real money.

Of course, one will quickly find out that money is a counterfeit because of the issuance number printed on each gold coin, so no one actually does such a stupid thing, but from the theoretical point of view, that was the case.

Even so, there are endless things that can be made besides money.

There was no limit to the power of the painting wizards. So naturally there were a lot of powerful people who were aiming for them, that’s why painting wizards desperately hid their identities.

If caught, you will be confined and will be made to constantly paint. Eventually, you’ll end up being forced to have a child. The better ending would be just to bite your tongue and die.

“…… I got caught. I’m a painting wizard.”

After organizing my thoughts, I replied with a low voice. Then Archduke Schweiden nodded his head as if he understood everything.

“You must have been kicked out.”

“I ran to the desert, but I didn’t have any paper or pen.”

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“Oh, there was such a restriction.”

Magic by painting means that there should be paper no matter how cheap it is.

It didn’t matter whether you used a pen, brush, or charcoal. But there should be paper, or cloth or canvas. I would have been killed if I didn’t have those.

I praised myself for making a brilliant summary of the past for Villainess No. 4 and then turned my attention to the fresh salad.

“So you don’t have anywhere to go back to now?”

And when I pulled the whole bowl in front of me, Schweiden asked in a low voice. It was such a subtle tone that I raised my eyebrows and stared at him as if to question, why?

I’m going to run away as soon as I get better, what’s wrong with you?

Scary.

“……”

The sun seeped in through the wide window and lightly touched his blonde hair.

A strange light flashed through his cold blue-gray eyes, then he opened his mouth again.

“If you have nowhere to go, you may stay here for a while.”

Oh, this.

This is a scene from the recollection of Villainess No. 4 in the original.

I searched my memory for his next line and recited it within my mind.

“I want you to testify about the criminals involved in the slave auction house. When the testimony is over, I will send you wherever you want to go.”

It is perfect with a stiff and businesslike tone. It really was exactly like the description from the original.

Lacius’s eyes were cold as if he were dead, which matched his appearance and made him look even more attractive.

But Lacius, whom I saw in person, rather than a description, looked exhausted.

“Well, good. I’ll recover my body then.”

“Okay.”

At the end of the sentence, Lacius hurried out of the dining room.

I could tell he didn’t want to talk to me any longer, but I didn’t feel bad because I know Lacius had a phobia.

The male lead of this work has been stalked for almost his whole life. That’s why he didn’t like it when someone looked at him or talked to him for a long time.

The female protagonist in the original is the only person that such a male protagonist has in his heart.

‘It’s annoying for me to look at your face for a long time, too.’

I waited for the butler, staring blankly at the place where Lacius had left.

“Oh, he went out.”

Soon after, the butler returned with a paper and a pen.

I took it, wrote a brief statement, and asked a subtle question.

“By the way butler, I have a question.”

“Yes?”

“What kind of job makes a lot of money here?”

“What?”

“Money. I want to know the quickest and most non-illegal way to rake in a lot of money.”

The butler’s eyes widened, but I was firm.

I will make a living. I’ve never wanted to be poor even here.

‘I’m going to be rich!’

My whole body, with my fists clenched, was overflowing with determination.

* * *

“…….To become a leader of industry, establish a clothing brand to sell special clothes to noblewomen, or building an entertainment facility is the best way to make the most money. ”

“Money.”

“Yes. She seems to really like money.”

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Even today, the bundle of letters and gifts were slowly burning black in the fireplace.

Lacius looked at them with emotionless eyes as he received Theobalt’s report.

“So what’s your judgment? Do you think she’s reliable?”

“I’m sorry to tell you, but she didn’t walk around during the night looking for your bedroom.”

“What about the hair?”

“I’ve never seen her bend her back. Other than that, she didn’t seem to be particularly interested in your highness. Rather, some money…….”

“She only wants money?”

“Yes. I feel that way.”

If it’s real, then it’s good news.

Maybe this time.

Hope flashed through Lacius’s eyes, which were dead as black as he stared at the awful objects in the fireplace.

“Really, dolls made of hair don’t seem to stop and keep coming.”

“It’s because of the magazines that spread that superstition.”

The dolls made by young ladies, who cut their own hair and stuffed it inside the dolls, spread a terrible smell when it burned.

He didn’t care about what they did, but the superstition was that love would be achieved only when their hair was put together.

And that was three years ago, he can’t believe that’s still being sent to the mansion.

Schweiden does not accept any mail except for those coming directly from the imperial family.

This was the work of wizards who those ladies had personally hired to connect the space and throw it in here.

They don’t know how much violence it is for the recipient.

“It would be better if money could buy a fake relationship. Would 10 billion gautes be enough?”

“I think it will be enough.”

“I hope she won’t fall for me.”

“Test it.”

“Test it you say.”

“Yes, she’s from a foreign country so maybe she won’t be affected by your highness.”

At Theobalt’s suggestion, Lacius quietly pondered with an expressionless face.

Theobalt had a point.

The woman who identified herself as Shay is clearly different from the young ladies he had met so far, but he wasn’t sure.

There used to be women who emphasized that they had no feelings for him. But the results were always the same.

Irrational obsession towards him.

Life is bound to be led by the sun, so it happened naturally.

He had the blood of the sun of god.

Life is mostly driven by light.

Therefore, their family members were born with the fate of being loved by many people. It’s obvious that what it means by ‘people’ is the opposite sex.

Unlike his predecessors, the public interest in him only grew stronger and stronger as the days went by.

After his father passed away and he ascended as the Archduke, it became impossible for him to have a comfortable daily life at all. Perhaps the biggest reason was not getting married quickly.

“I don’t want to get married without love, so I’ve been putting it off, but now it has become a problem.”

“I don’t think it’s wrong.”

Theobalt always took his side attentively even in his self-mocking remarks.

Lacius sighed and nodded his head.

“It wouldn’t be bad to think of this as the last time and try it out.”

“Who knows, we may even find the Madam too.”

“You’re overly optimistic.”

“Even so, it could still be a defense against Princess Crisiona.”

Lacius frowned at the butler’s calm words.

Yes, there was also that problem.

Apart from the Archduchy, Terran’s was one of the two families with the highest nobility.

The Duke’s daughter, Crisiona doesn’t love him, but she was even more of a problem. She was treating him like a decorative trophy.

The princess has argued that it is her right to marry him.

Even if he refuses, it was only for that moment. After all, Lacius has so far just barely prevented himself from going to war whenever that talk of marriage comes up.

However, it was only a stopgap measure, it’s a method that will be obsolete in the future. Because the gentle emperor doesn’t want war anymore.

“Oh. I have something to tell you.”

“What?”

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“The lady is in the bathroom.”

Theobalt winked his one eye. Lacius nodded with a dim look.

‘Although I’m reluctant.’

He couldn’t help it anymore.

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