Chapter 04
The door flew open.
Aura and Nereus entered, followed by several servants gathering behind them.
“My goodness, Serina! What is all this?! Are you going to keep doing things like this?!”
Aura looked at the wrecked study in shock. Even Nereus, who rarely showed emotion, looked clearly unsettled.
Serina took a step back at their stronger-than-expected reaction. As she did, she stepped on a painting she had placed on the floor.
She looked around the area where she was standing.
It was a complete mess, as if a storm had passed through.
Looking closely, she noticed that the book she had thrown with magic was dented at one corner.
‘…Wow. It really looks like I completely trashed the place.’
Well, that was her intention. It had just turned out bigger than she expected.
As her parents approached her, Serina avoided their gazes.
“I let it go yesterday, but this time I can’t. No matter how upset you are, how could you throw things like this?”
Aura grabbed Serina’s shoulders, her face tightly frowning.
Serina was scared of what would come next, but she took a deep breath and spoke.
“I didn’t want to do this either. But no one listened to what I had to say. This was my way of expressing myself.”
She quickly turned her head away. She looked sulky, but in truth, she was afraid to face her angry parents.
Silence fell heavily over the room. After a moment, Serina carefully opened her mouth again.
“I don’t like Oppa getting engaged… but what I hate even more is that the partner is the Imperial Princess! How can it be anyone else but the Little Villainess?!”
“Serina, calling Her Highness a villainess is unacceptable. Watch your words.”
“That’s what people call her! That’s how the world sees her! Then how can you make her Oppa’s fiancée?”
“Serina! Just because the world says something doesn’t mean it’s right.”
Aura scolded her sharply once more. At that moment, Nereus gently removed Aura’s hands from Serina’s shoulders.
‘Right. Mom might not listen, but I thought Dad would, if I went this far.’
With hopeful eyes, Serina turned to look at Nereus.
“I’ve let your childish behavior slide until now, but this is too much. Serina, I’m disappointed.”
His expression and voice were the same as always, yet they felt different.
The warmth was gone, replaced by coldness.
“You should take responsibility for what you did. Don’t expect help—clean this up yourself. And reflect in your room for the rest of the day.”
‘Dad… is disappointed in me?’
Unlike before, Serina said nothing. She only blinked silently.
“Check whether Serina cleaned everything properly and report back.”
Nereus gestured to the servants. Everyone left, leaving Serina alone. Her face crumpled.
“…Tsk. I know I shouldn’t act like this. But I really hate it. What am I supposed to do?”
She had been prepared to be scolded, but seeing this side of Nereus for the first time made her chest tighten.
“And honestly, I only threw one book… This feels a bit unfair.”
Sigh. Who would’ve known I’d be so talented at staging things?
Grumbling, Serina used magic to clean up the mess.
On her way back after finishing, she kicked the hallway floor in frustration.
That was when she heard voices nearby.
Maron was chatting cheerfully with the other servants.
“I never thought someone worse than the first villainess would appear.”
“Right?! I was sure she was the final boss, but there was someone even more evil!”
“The first one doesn’t even compare to the later one. Honestly, sometimes I even envy villainesses.”
“Well, I guess their freedom is something to envy.”
The word ‘villainess’ caught Serina’s attention.
‘A villainess worse than a villainess?’
If I become worse than the Little Villainess, could I drive her away?
I should go ask what they’re talking about!
‘Huh?’
A small, round head. Hair tied up like cat ears.
Before anyone noticed, Serina had slipped right into the group.
Pfft—Maron failed to hold back her laughter and called out.
“Serina, young lady?”
The servants stepped aside when they noticed her.
Serina gestured for Maron to lean closer. Maron bent down to match her height.
“Hey, what were you just talking about? A villainess worse than a villainess?”
Serina whispered like she was sharing a secret.
“Oh my, you heard that?”
“Yeah. It sounded interesting. Tell me too.”
“It was about romance novels. Villainesses are really popular these days.”
“There are villainesses in romance novels?”
Maron thought for a moment, then made a ‘shh’ gesture.
“If you’re interested, I can lend you one. But you have to keep it a secret from Merrily. I’ll get scolded if she finds out.”
“Of course! Don’t worry! I’m great at keeping secrets. Pinky promise!”
Serina nodded eagerly and held out her pinky. Maron hooked hers with it.
As Maron headed to her room to get the book, she laughed again.
‘I’ve gained a cute romance-novel ally.’
“Since I can’t leave my room all day anyway, I’ll read the novel Maron lent me.”
Serina picked up the romance novel Maron had left on the table and wriggled under the blanket.
“Wow… she really goes that far?”
Each page revealed more exciting developments. It was nothing like the fairy tales she usually read—this was full of excitement.
Before she realized it, Serina had forgotten her original goal, happily munching on caramel as she read.
She was so absorbed that by the time she came back to her senses, the sun had already set.
“Oh! Right. I was supposed to be studying villainesses. I got carried away.”
Serina got up, took out her diary, and drew a mind map so she wouldn’t forget what she had read.
From the big title ‘Villainess,’ small branches spread out across the page.
Even then, there was still plenty of space left.
“I need more reference material.”
“I should borrow more romance novels with villainesses from Maron!”
It’s not because I’m enjoying it. It’s for studying.
I need to understand villainesses properly to act perfectly!
Serina added excuses in her mind.
The next morning.
For some reason, Maron came alone to Serina’s room. Thinking the timing was perfect, Serina hurried over.
“Maron! I already finished the book you recommended yesterday. It was super, super fun. Do you have anything similar I could borrow?”
Holding onto Maron’s skirt with one hand, Serina returned the book with the other.
“Oh my, of course! It seems villainesses suit your taste. I love them too. I’m tired of Cinderella stories. I actually have lots of those novels in my room. If you allow it, I’ll bring them right away!”
Maron chattered excitedly.
Not long after receiving permission, Maron returned carrying a pile of novels.
“This one has several villainesses like the one I lent you yesterday, this one has a villainess as the main character, and this one is…”
She explained each book as she pointed to them.
True to a romance novel fanatic, the books featured many different types of villainesses with no overlap.
Serina stared at the novels with sparkling eyes and responded enthusiastically.
“Thank you, Maron! I’ll read them quickly and return them!”
“There’s no rush. I’ve already read them all.”
Maron giggled at Serina’s reaction, then thought to herself.
‘If the young lady were a romance novel character, she’d probably be a cheerful sunshine heroine.’
After finishing her work, Maron returned to her room.
‘Hmm…’
Serina carefully considered which book to read first.
If the first one was too exciting, the others might not feel interesting anymore.
“I absolutely must not forget today!”
The purpose of reading is to study villainesses!
“Practice like it’s the real thing!”
Serina lightly slapped her cheeks, igniting her determination.
“This is all because you stole what wasn’t yours, don’t you understand?”
Using magic to create temporary props, Serina carefully imitated a villainess bullying the heroine.
That’s how Serina fully immersed herself in reading, placing herself in the role of a villainess.
“Serina has been quiet lately.”
“Maybe it’s time to bring Helia here. Thinking about her being alone in that place worries me.”
Aura recalled her first meeting with Helia.
A few months ago, they finally received the Emperor’s permission to meet her.
Despite being an Imperial Princess, Helia had looked frail and shabby.
Suppressing her shock, Aura greeted her gently.
“Princess Helia. We are close friends of your mother, Irenis. We’ve wanted to meet you.”
“……”
A child who had been forced to hide her name and gender from birth.
The child showed no reaction, like a broken doll.
Silence was the method she had chosen to survive the imperial palace.
‘If only we had come sooner…’
The thought weighed heavily on Aura’s mind.
The child left behind by her beloved friend and younger sister, Irenis.
A child the same age as her own, enduring such suffering.
Guilt and sorrow surged like waves, making her chest ache.
From the next day on, they brought Lakus along so Helia wouldn’t be alone.
“Aura, hello. Thank you for visiting every time. And thank you too, Lakus.”
As Helia spent more time with Lakus, her expressions slowly became richer.
It was a little regrettable that, since Lakus was the only child she could meet, she began to resemble him—but that was fine.
She was becoming brighter.
However, one thing still bothered Aura deeply.
Helia’s circumstances.
Her environment had not improved at all.
So, after discussing it with Nereus, they decided to bring Helia out of the palace under the pretense of an engagement to Lakus.
The Emperor was indifferent to Helia and desired the power of the southern region.
But then, an unexpected obstacle appeared.
“I hate Oppa’s engagement! And the partner is Princess Helia! I absolutely oppose it!”
Serina disliked Lakus’s engagement—and Helia herself.
But they couldn’t reveal that the engagement was fake.
Adult matters were not something a child should bear.
And if the truth leaked, Lakus and Serina could both be put in danger.
The Empress was that kind of person.
That was why they needed to bring Helia here and protect her as soon as possible.
“Oliver, bring Serina here. We can’t delay this any longer.”
Aura gave the order.
