RYL Chapter 01

Chapter 01

Outside the slightly open terrace door, a couple was gasping for breath as they whispered sweet things to each other.

I leisurely sipped my wine while watching their steamy affair—something you wouldn’t normally get to see even if you paid for it.

So this is what they call outdoor play?

How frustrating. How long are they just going to kiss? Why not just take it all off already?

Finally, the man buried his face in the woman’s neck and pulled down the strap of her dress from her shoulder.

Oh? Is it finally starting?

I licked my lips in amusement.

The woman clung to him, too busy moaning to care that her upper body was now exposed. She grabbed the man’s face, pressing their lips together with a blissful expression.

At first, the man stiffened at her aggressive approach, but soon, he closed his eyes.

He looked like a male version of the goddess Aphrodite—perfectly sculpted features, golden hair that shone like silk, deep blue eyes filled with longing, playful yet sensual lips, a sharp nose, and a strong jawline.

Any woman would fall for him at first sight.

Well, except for one small detail…

That “Aphrodite” passionately kissing a woman right now was actually my fiancé.

This should be enough, right?

After enjoying the show for a while, I casually pushed open the terrace doors.

The woman, who was already half-undressed, let out a sharp scream and quickly covered her chest.

Meanwhile, my so-called fiancé remained completely unfazed.

He simply ran a hand through his hair and looked at me, his expression full of annoyance.

“Claire, shouldn’t you at least knock before entering the terrace?”

His sensual lips curved into a smirk.

“No one wants to be caught in such an intimate moment, you know?”

He looked down at me coldly, as if I were nothing more than an inconvenience.

He probably expected me to cry or get angry.

Oh, right—I should mention that I am Claire von Devonshire, the fiancée of Mathieu von Laurentino, the infamous playboy duke’s son.

But there was something he had overlooked.

The real Claire—the one who had been pathetically in love with him since childhood—was not me.

So, there was no reason for me to feel hurt by his ridiculous behavior.

I leisurely looked him up and down and at his unbuttoned shirt and his exposed, well-toned chest.

His brow furrowed in irritation at my gaze, which only made me smile.

“Oh? Did I interrupt something? Don’t mind me, go ahead and continue. Ignoring me is what you do best, isn’t it?”

“What…?”

He let out a breath, stunned by my calm response.

And just then—

A sharp voice called out from behind me.

“Oh my! What is going on here? Isn’t that Duke Laurentino’s son with the daughter of the Viscount of Helsing?”

As soon as that voice rang out, people began gathering around the terrace.

The half-dressed woman—Viscount Helsing’s daughter—turned bright red and looked utterly mortified.

Meanwhile, Mathieu remained relaxed, as if he had nothing to be embarrassed about.

Then, another voice called out from the garden below.

“Oh my goodness! Look at that! The duke’s son got caught cheating on his fiancée! I knew this would happen sooner or later!”

Dozens of aristocrats, eager for gossip, turned their attention toward the terrace.

Even the trees surrounding it couldn’t shield Mathieu from their judgmental stares.

The woman who had been clinging to him moments ago was now covering her face with her dress, overwhelmed with shame.

Only then did Mathieu’s expression darken.

“Even if he’s a duke’s son, getting caught in an affair like this means a broken engagement is inevitable. There’s no way the Laurentino family will let this slide.”

A silver-haired woman whispered to the ladies around her, and they all nodded in agreement.

It was as if they had planned this together.

For the first time, Mathieu clenched his jaw in frustration.

I smiled sweetly.

“Well, that settles it. We’re officially breaking off our engagement, Mathieu. With all these witnesses, even your family can’t object now.”

His brow twitched in confusion.

He was probably wondering if I was the same fiancée who used to look at him with foolish adoration.

I met his piercing blue eyes without hesitation and gave him a graceful smile.

“This is what you wanted, isn’t it? You should be happy.”

I turned to leave, but then I paused.

I had forgotten something.

I raised my wine glass—

And poured it right onto his face.

“Consider this a toast to our breakup.”

The deep red wine dripped down his chiseled features, past his sharp jaw, and onto his bare chest.

He slowly opened his eyes, glaring at me with murderous intent.

“Claire…!”

His wet face and furious expression were strangely seductive—too bad he was nothing more than a worthless piece of trash.

No, a worthless, good-looking piece of trash.

He let out a low growl, clearly unused to being humiliated like this.

I smirked and tilted my head.

“As your former fiancée, I think I’m entitled to at least this much, don’t you?”

With that, I turned on my heel and walked away without a second thought.

As I passed through the crowd, a black-haired woman caught my eye.

She met my gaze and winked.

From the garden below, the silver-haired woman gave me a thumbs-up.

A grin spread across my lips.

Without their help, breaking off my engagement with the infamous Mathieu von Laurentino would have been impossible.

Why did they help me?

Well, that’s a long story…

It all started about three weeks ago—

***

“I was the pitiful fiancée who died mysteriously after pathetically chasing after a womanizer. Haha!”

I broke the awkward silence with a self-deprecating laugh.

“What a terrible body to be reincarnated into, right?”

The black-haired woman sitting across from me—after exchanging glances with the silver-haired girl—spoke up in a bored tone.

“I’m the maid who served the villain… and then died of overexertion.”

“Wow…”

I couldn’t help but be impressed.

Someone had it worse than me?

Her name was Lilianne, if I remembered correctly.

Our gazes shifted to the silver-haired girl sitting quietly between us.

She hesitated for a moment before mumbling:

“I… I’m the male lead’s terminally ill first love.”

“Oh…”

“Damn…”

Sabrina and I both let out sympathetic sighs at the same time.

Her face turned red, looking like she was about to cry.

“I have less than a year left… What should I do…?”

Her tragic fate was essential to the male lead’s story—only after her death would his character development begin.

Honestly, we were all screwed.

I was supposed to die in the background.

Sabrina existed just to highlight the villain’s “strength.”

And Lilianne—the silver-haired girl—was doomed to die in order to make the male lead’s story more dramatic.

Why did we have to reincarnate into these roles?!

At that moment, I had a thought.

Maybe… we were meant to meet.

Ironically, our friendship had started because I muttered “I could go for some fried chicken” in a café—something these two unexpectedly understood.

But instead of being excited to meet fellow reincarnators, we soon realized that we had all landed in terrible roles.

It was infuriating.

That’s when an idea struck me.

“Since we’re all doomed anyway… why don’t we just live however we want?”

Both women stared at me, confused.

I hesitated for a moment but then clenched my fist with determination.

“Our lives are already a mess! Let’s do whatever we want!”

Lilianne and Sabrina exchanged glances.

Then—

Lilianne, the shyest of us, slowly raised her hand.

“I’m in.”

“Alright! If I’m going to die anyway, I’d rather live how I want before I die!”

Sabrina shouted with determination, and Lilianne, who had been lost in thought, simply shrugged.

“Works for me. Honestly, I was probably going to drop dead from overwork before dying in bed with that crazy villain anyway.”

And just like that, the three of us joined forces, just like sworn brothers in a legendary pact.

The first step in our ‘living however we want’ plan?

Breaking off my engagement with that cheating scumbag!