I’m the Original Heroine

”Ceasaria looked at Kalypso with envy hidden behind an angelic smile. ” — The Lovable Villainess, Chapter Twenty-Two

. . .

I opened my eyes and looked around. The events of last night were still fresh in my mind. Was I with the Valentine family? I must have been. Although that made no sense, I wasn supposed to meet them until I was a year older. Unless. . .

My useless mother. She didn even know my own age.

I slipped out of the bed, my feet touching the plush carpet. How nice. In comparison to the wooden floorboards, I would have loved to sleep here forever. It would have been nice if I could. Would it be odd to ask? Walking over to the door, I opened it.

Should I go exploring or should I wait for someone to find me?

This definitely wasn a part of my mothers schemes, she would never treat me with such kindness. I could still feel the soot on my body. They hadn bathed me, which made the sense. Although, this grime felt disgusting and I wanted to at least wash my hands. I stared down at them, stained with ash. I had stared that fire.

Had I killed anyone? My mind started to race. I forgot how weak I was. It felt as though I was placed upon a thousand pins.

My body ached and my head was spinning. I felt weak but my throat was parched. I wanted water and there was nothing around me. I stumbled out of the bed, my hands and knees slamming into the ground. Still, I felt weak. I felt dizzy.

The hallway was empty as I continued to walk. Where to? I didn even know. I was so delirious that nothing made sense. I could only continue to walk.

I needed to escape.

I needed to run away. I didn want to be the original female lead. I had become acclimated inside this body. This was my own existence and life, yet seeing the path that stood in front of me terrified me. Perhaps, it was because I had become a child, but acumen seemed to slip away from me.

The previous dissonance that I felt with my body had vanished. I realized that there was no longer a disconnect between the person that I was and the person I had become. All those past memories were hazy, and all the present ones were just as hazy. Everything was a blurry mess. All I knew was the pain, the ever-persistent pain that made me continue to walk.

”Here, ” I whispered, my fingers opening the closet door. A place to rest in peace. The cold wood felt satisfying against my blistering skin. My eyes fluttered shut as I drew my makeshift grave to a shut. It reminded me of a coffin, and despite that, I felt myself fall asleep.

I was lulled asleep by the satisfying feeling of being enveloped in old clothes and hard wood. It was warm and comforting. I hadn even had the luxury of feeling it in this life.

Did it sound pathetic? Trying to gather my thoughts, I remembered that Aramus and Cain had brought me here after I had burned down my house. I wondered if this followed the original novel and if this was inside of the Lovely Villainess. Was I now the villainess that could be loved? I curled into a smaller ball, feeling the fear of abandonment slowly creep up on me.

Had I never been lovable?

. . .

”You lost a child? ” Aramus asked. He was looking at the bed that was emptied. The maids had rushed to find him once they saw that she was gone. Where had she tried to go? Did she run away?

Aramus flicked the end of his cigarette towards the maids who were on their hands and feet, ”Shes a child. She couldn have gone very far. Someone go find her. ” He didn know much about childcare.

”Ill also look for her, ” Cain responded. He was always excited to show off in front of his father.

”You did a good job, yesterday, ” Aramus said patting Cain on the head, ruffling his tresses, ”It must have been hard. ” Despite his cold exterior, he was quite kind to his only son. Cains lips quirked into a smile, soaking in his fathers praise. Despite this, he shoved off his fathers touch, scowling at his ruined hair.

The two of them looked like the spinning image of each other, with sanguine crimson eyes and deep scarlet tresses. ”Did you have to kill them? ” Cain questioned. He seemed quite annoyed not due to the morality of the deaths but rather due to the fact that he needed to clean up after his fathers bloodshed.

Aramus shrugged, but his eyes sharpened, the usual lackadaisical duke was no more, ”They deserved a penalty worse than death. ”

”I was lenient, don you think? ”

”If you say so, Father, ” Cain mumbled, ”Then, you can deal with the paperwork. ”

The Duke blinked, ”You
e going to be the Duke soon. You have to learn h— ”

”I don mean to interrupt, ” A woman quipped, ”But the Young Lady is still missing. ” She was quite beautiful, with straight black hair and sparkling purple eyes. Tall and sharp, her features were equally beautiful, ”I don suppose the two of you will continue to bicker. ”

”Minas right, ” Aramus stated calmly, ”You should look for her. ”

Cain twitched slightly as Mina simply bowed her head. As his fathers secretary and the capable eldest daughter of the Marquise, she was always like this: stoic. Cain sighed, before fixing his lapels and leaving the two of them. Aramus lit up another cigarette much to Minas disdain. Her expression soured but she stood by him.

”You killed them? ” Mina inquired, her voice low.

Aramus didn say anything, tapping the cigarette against the papers. He closed his eyes, and the most powerful man in the Empire, remained quiet as he nodded.

Mina swallowed, ”You didn need to do so. ”

”I promised. ” He opened his eyes to look at hers. Red clashed with black, and for a moment, he would have smiled. ”I don break my promises, Mina. ”

She wanted to say something, but she didn . Instead, she remained silent looking ahead as Aramus continued to smoke his cigarette.