Chapter 2
Three days had already passed.
‘Still can’t go back today either.’
When she opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was the lavish chandelier.
That familiar wave of despair washed over her once again.
Why did I come back?
I saw the ending.
So why did I possess her again?
Her head throbbed painfully.
A terrible sense of foreboding crept in—like she might be stuck here for good.
“…System.”
Katrina called out the system window on impulse.
But—
[Error]
“…Ha!”
Are you kidding me?
It was bad enough that she had been thrown back into the game, but now even the system wouldn’t respond.
She had already completed the villainess ending. What more did they want from her?
And to top it off…
‘I did horrible things just to get back!’
An adopted nobody of the Abiche family.
The worst villainess in history.
She’d earned every awful title imaginable in her desperate attempt to return.
Katrina had frequently been given strange “quests.” She had only followed what the system told her to do.
The results spoke for themselves.
There wasn’t a single good rumor surrounding her.
Some said that if you crossed Katrina Abiche, you’d disappear without a trace.
That she seduced men and women alike, toying with them until they broke.
Was there anyone in the empire with a reputation as infamous as hers?
But the most notorious rumors were the ones involving the main characters.
That she’d tried to poison the heroine.
That the scheming villainess pinned her crimes on the male lead.
That she’d done unspeakable things to make the crown prince hers.
‘Half of those are lies, but still…’
So why did I wake up again?
The pain she’d felt before dying had been beyond words. Katrina had endured everything just to get back.
But now…
She had possessed Katrina again—three years after she had collapsed and died.
“Damn system!”
Fury surged through her again.
“Send me back!”
She shouted in frustration, but nothing changed.
Knock knock.
Just then, a knock came from the door.
“…Miss, may I come in?”
It was one of the maids assigned to Katrina.
“…Come in.”
First, stay calm.
Yelling wouldn’t solve anything.
“The Duke left a message for you.”
“…My father?”
Three days had passed since she woke up, and this was the first time he had acknowledged her.
What could he possibly want now?
The maid hesitated under Katrina’s sharp gaze before speaking carefully.
“He said… you will soon be sent to a monastery.”
What?
“…He told me to make sure you’re aware.”
A monastery…?
That’s exile.
Once you go there, you never come back.
It was how noble families discarded their useless children. And the lower your standing, the harsher the monastery life.
So, they were throwing her away now.
…Unbelievable.
“And… you have a visitor.”
…A visitor?
Someone came to see me?
That can’t be good.
“His Eminence, the Cardinal, has arrived.”
…Who did she just say?
Lucifer Orléans.
He was the most insane man Katrina had ever met.
And one of the male leads in the game.
In fact, he was arguably the most twisted of them all.
While other male leads were drunk on privilege, Lucifer was…
“That boy we saw last time. I didn’t like him. The way he looked at you was weird.”
“Was it?”
“So I threw him into the river. I did good, right?”
“…What?”
He was flat-out unhinged.
Still, there was a time when they hadn’t been enemies. Which meant, now that they were, it was going to be a serious problem.
…And unfortunately, Katrina had made Lucifer her enemy.
Because he betrayed her.
Katrina opened the drawing room door.
The man in the snow-white priest’s robe turned to look at her.
Hair as white as snow, eyes red as blood.
He looked like a being blessed with divinity.
His pale, flawless skin glowed faintly in the sunlight.
“It’s been a while, Katrina.”
That sunny smile greeted her warmly.
Why the hell is he here?
…No. Now that she thought about it, she could guess why.
Katrina smoothed her expression, trying not to grimace.
“…Lucifer.”
“That’s right. You have no idea how much I missed hearing you say my name.”
His lips curved up in that familiar mischievous smile.
“I was so happy when I heard you’d woken up.”
“…”
“I was worried you might never wake up…”
His eyes even turned a little red, like he might cry.
But to Katrina, they were crocodile tears at best.
Lucifer wasn’t someone who’d be happy about her survival. He’d be more likely to laugh at her misfortune.
“…What are you doing here?”
She asked cautiously, half on guard.
There was only one reason Lucifer would visit her under these circumstances.
“Is that all you have to say to me?”
“To be exact, we don’t have anything to say to each other.”
“Oh dear, Katrina.”
Lucifer squinted one eye dramatically.
“I admit, our relationship hasn’t been the best.”
“Then don’t come see me.”
“But we’ll be seeing a lot of each other soon. Let’s not be awkward.”
…Seeing a lot of each other?
She had a bad feeling it had something to do with the monastery.
But why would she be seeing him often?
Surely, he wasn’t based at the same monastery?
“The Duke said he’s sending you to a monastery, didn’t he?”
No way—
“So I requested they transfer you to my diocese.”
You’ve got to be kidding me.
Her worst fear had come true.
Cardinal Lucifer.
No one knew why a man like him ever became a priest.
Anyway, if her custody was handed over to the temple…
“Aren’t we friends, after all?”
She was going straight to hell.
“Of course, I know Katrina hates me. It’s painful to say that out loud.”
“…”
“But even so, I should look after you, shouldn’t I?”
Lucifer leisurely studied the shock frozen on Katrina’s face.
She had goosebumps.
To her, it sounded like a clear declaration that he was going to torment her.
“There’s no one else for you but me, right, Katrina?”
Unbelievable.
“I’ll be back to pick you up soon, my love.”
If her luck was bad, she’d be stuck with this lunatic.
That was the sound of her life falling apart.
“Ugh, seriously…”
She was going to lose her mind.
She had to live in this world again?
She had already endured over ten years here!
‘No.’
She wasn’t going to endure it this time.
Back then, she had endured it to go home—to reach the ending.
But not anymore.
“System.”
[System]
Then, it happened.
The system window that had remained unresponsive finally appeared.
Katrina gasped and instinctively reached out into the air.
[System]
An unknown error has occurred.
Player Han Seoryeong: obtain the Wishing Stone to return.
The screen began glitching again with static.
‘…Did it say Wishing Stone?’
After three days of silence, the system had finally told her how to get back.
Katrina stared at the spot where the window had disappeared.
‘If I get the Wishing Stone… I can go back.’
She knew exactly where it was.
It was in the house of the Duke of Rockfenheim.
The family of the man she betrayed.
Katrina was momentarily rattled, but then made up her mind.
‘I have to go back.’
She moved immediately.
As she headed toward the estate’s front entrance, everyone’s eyes turned to her.
Katrina, miraculously revived after three years, was quite the spectacle.
“You there.”
She called out to a nearby servant.
“Bring a carriage. I’m going out.”
She wasn’t completely out of options.
There was exactly one other way.
Something she hadn’t dared try before…
But now, it was all she had.
She was going to act boldly.
“What are you doing?”
“Um, well…”
The servant fidgeted, glancing at Katrina nervously.
“I was told you need permission before going out.”
“…What?”
What did he just say?
I can’t even go out on my own?
“…Who told you that?”
“I did.”
A voice came from behind her.
Of course.
Damian Abiche. It had to be you.
