Episode 01
Eleanore Vianello was, in every sense, a terrible woman.
“Wicked woman!”
Someone shouted and threw a raw egg at her. The yolk dripped down her black hair.
A villainess.
There was no word that described her better.
She had never been kind, had never done a good deed, and always caused trouble for others.
“Serves you right!”
“How dare you try to poison the Saint!”
“You dying is what this world needs!”
When Eleanore stood on the execution platform, not a single person defended her.
‘Me? A villainess? Why? I only tried to live properly.’
But even as she laid her neck on the cold block, she still didn’t understand what she had done wrong.
“Why… why is this happening…?”
She muttered weakly, a tear slipping down her cheek — something she had never done in front of anyone before.
The crowd only booed louder. No one explained what she had done wrong.
Her entire life had been like that.
She grew up under her uncle, who only saw her as a tool for marriage alliances. At twenty, she was forced to marry a man she didn’t even want.
Her husband, Valter Pertitz, was a silent, busy man.
He never explained anything to her and spent every day outside fighting monsters or criminals.
He didn’t even know how his mother and sister treated Eleanore cruelly while she stayed in the castle during their engagement.
So while everyone praised Valter as a hero, Eleanore could only see him as her enemy.
‘Still, I tried my best!’
When the executioner raised the shining axe, she thought about it again.
She had tried. Despite Valter’s coldness, she tried to fulfill her duties as a wife.
But that effort shattered on their wedding night.
Under the warm candlelight, Eleanore waited, ready to consummate the marriage. But Valter didn’t move at all.
“Duke? Why are you just standing there?”
Valter shook his head with a serious look.
“You hate me, don’t you? I can’t force myself on someone who doesn’t love me. Love should come first between husband and wife.”
To Eleanore, who was raised as a noble, it was absurd.
‘Who does that because they like it? You do it because it’s your duty!’
“But if you wish it, my lord…”
Thinking it might be some kind of romantic play, she added, “I love you.”
Valter’s face twisted with disgust.
Without a word, he turned and walked out.
“Duke…?”
That night, she was left alone in the bridal chamber.
Everyone mocked her as “the duchess abandoned on her wedding night.”
It was humiliating.
“How could you make my son leave his room on his wedding night? Are you some cursed woman?”
“You’re not one of us! Go eat the stale bread you deserve!”
After that, her mother-in-law and sister-in-law treated her even worse.
Having grown up under her harsh uncle, who taught her nothing but vanity, Eleanore didn’t know how to handle them.
So she took out her frustration on her servants.
“What kind of tea is this? Brew it again!”
“Who would wear such an outdated dress? Bring me a new one!”
“This is so frustrating! I can’t take it anymore!”
She thought it was fine — her uncle had always acted that way.
No one ever told her it was wrong.
No one… ever explained anything to her.
“She’s such a horrible woman.”
“To think we have to serve someone like her…”
Her reputation as a villainess grew worse and worse.
Then, on the third year of her marriage, it happened.
“Wife, this is the Saint from the Kingdom of Havih.”
“The Kingdom of Havih? Isn’t that a subjugated nation? Why is their saint here?”
“From today, we will be hosting the Saint in our duchy.”
“What? Why?”
Even though she and Valter had no children yet, he brought another woman into the castle.
“I can’t accept this!”
She protested, but Valter didn’t budge.
He only said, “It’s our duty to care for the Saint.”
“The villainess’s time is over.”
“The Saint is so kind and beautiful. I wish she were our new duchess.”
“Shh! Don’t say that out loud!”
“Why not? It’s not like the duke and duchess love each other anyway.”
Whispers spread that the Saint would replace Eleanore.
“No… no…”
She grew anxious. Three years of marriage and still no consummation, no affection — and her position in the castle was fading fast.
“If I fail this marriage and go back to my uncle… he’ll beat me again…”
Then, one day, a mysterious traveler appeared — exactly one year after the Saint moved in.
“My lady, such a beautiful face should not carry so much worry.”
“Well, actually…”
The stranger spoke sweetly, and soon Eleanore poured out all her troubles.
“I see. Then this will solve your problem,” the traveler said, handing her a small vial.
“If you pour this into the Saint’s tea, everything will be over.”
But… isn’t this poison?”
“Then go ahead and return to your uncle and live like a caged animal again.”
That night, Eleanore stared at the vial without sleeping.
‘No… even if no one told me what’s right or wrong, I know hurting someone is bad.’
At dawn, she picked up the vial, planning to throw it away—
“You wicked woman! You tried to poison the Saint!”
Just then, knights of the fallen Havih Kingdom burst in.
“Your Majesty, show the Empire’s justice!”
They took her to trial. The Emperor sentenced her to death without hesitation.
And now—
In the center of the Pertitz Duchy’s plaza—
“I didn’t poison her! I only had the vial!”
Eleanore screamed desperately, but the people’s faces were cold.
“Just having poison proves you’re guilty! You’ve brought nothing but suffering to everyone here!”
“Everything you’ve done, every cruel act — that’s why you’re here today!”
Her eyes trembled.
‘All my actions… were wrong? But no one ever…’
Before she could finish,
Whish!
The executioner’s axe came down.
And then—
Ding!
A cheerful sound rang out.
[Fail to repent, and you’ll die!]
[You have been selected as a test user for a new system.]
[Starting the Redemption System.]
[Success Reward: Happy Ending]
[Failure Penalty: Eternal Death
[Complete quests and earn your redemption.]
‘What… is this?’
At the moment of death, she didn’t understand a thing, but she nodded anyway.
Ding!
[Your life will restart from the saved point.]
Another cheerful sound.
And then—
Eleanore opened her eyes under a familiar ceiling.
