Free Web NovelChapter 22: For My Villainess
Now it all made perfect sense.
Aria Reedings only ever loved two people in her entire, tragic life.
The first was that prick Reinhardt, who had completely shattered her heart.
The second was her best friend since childhood—Seraphina, the neglected First Princess and the ultimate, terrifying main antagonist of the entire game. And coincidentally, she was also the exact character Eren admired the most for her ruthless, unhinged brilliance, and the reason why he’s in this world right now.
Eren sighed internally, rubbing the back of his neck. Things on his plate are getting ridiculously big.
But anyway, as a modern gentleman, he stepped forward to open the door for her.
As he was about to open it, Aria subtly leaned closer.
"Tell me, Eren. That tall girl outside who looked at me with such murderous intensity is the rumoured youngest swordmaster, isn’t she? Does she have anything for you?"
Eren let out an irritated groan. "Why does everyone keep asking me that today? Trust me, Lady Aria, she doesn’t like me at all. In fact, her baseline emotion toward me is pure, unadulterated hatred."
"Is that so?" Aria whispered.
Sure enough, when he opened the door, Emma was standing right there like a heavily armed sentinel.
The second they stepped out, her storm-grey eyes locked onto Aria with a fierce, suspicious glare.
Aria savored her hostile reaction. Then, suddenly, she turned back smoothly toward Eren and leaned in to plant a warm, deliberate kiss right on his cheek with her soft lips, leaving a trail of her lipstick on his cheek.
"Thank you for the lovely tea, my dear," Aria announced, her voice loud enough to echo down the quiet hallway. "I shall eagerly await your favorable reply."
With one last mocking glance at the completely frozen tall girl, the blue-haired villainess turned and walked down the corridor with absolute triumph.
Eren stood frozen at the doorway, a hand instinctively rising to touch his damp cheek, while behind him, the air pressure in the corridor violently dropped. He could practically hear the grinding of Emma’s teeth.
"My dear?" she muttered under her breath, the words sounding less like a question and more like a lethal curse.
He slowly turned around with fingers still over the fresh lipstick stain on his cheek, only to see the tanned lady crossing her arms tightly over her chest. Her stormy gaze pinned him with disgust.
"How in the world does a high-born lady of her stature find someone like you attractive? You’re a disgraced troublemaker. A literal stalker, to be exact. Did she lose her vision along with her engagement?"
Eren merely shrugged, offering her a hopeless, insufferable grin.
"What can I say, Captain? Maybe she finally realized that beneath the scandalous reputation, I’m just an incredibly handsome, irresistibly charming gentleman."
That did it.
Emma’s jaw clenched so hard Eren flinched slightly. She took an aggressive step forward, and for a split second he genuinely expected a heavy, five-star muscle-mommy punch.
Instead, she brushed past him without another word.
Emma marched down the corridor, her heavy boots slamming against the floorboards with such immense, terrifying force that Eren wouldn’t have been surprised if she left literal potholes in the duchy’s foundation.
"Oh... okay then," Eren muttered in bewilderment, watching her stiff, angry ponytail whip back and forth as she disappeared around the corner.
He sighed in exhaustion and shook his head, taking a step to his way back to his cosy room.
As he walked down the hallways, his mind drifted to Aria’s proposal.
Her contract engagement was a double-edged sword.
On one hand, it wasn’t a bad deal; on the other, it certainly wasn’t the cozy, lazy, noble retirement plan he had planned.
But the biggest variable in the equation wasn’t the political protection or the Reedings family fortune. It was Princess Seraphina.
If Aria secures the Reedings Dukedom, Seraphina gains huge backing for her faction.
And the whole reason he’s in this fantasy world is that he couldn’t stand her tragic ending in the game. He planned to manipulate the plot from far away from the spotlight. But this proposal forcefully drags him right onto the main stage.
Being engaged to Aria meant his name would instantly become the absolute centerpiece of high-society gossip more than ever. Like imagine they heard a infamous stalker miraculously defended the hopeless fiancée, only for her to hand-deliver a marriage proposal to his doorstep just days later.
His brain felt like it was actively heating up like a grill as he approached the corridor leading to his room.
Just as he thought his day was long enough, he spotted something that made his pace halt.
He saw a red-haired figure carefully and quietly slipping into his room without trying not to get noticed. By her busty figure alone, he could say who that person was.
Inside the room, once the door shut carefully, a relieved, completely un-maid-like smile spread across Mira’s lovely features.
She immediately went to work. Of course, not the maid duty.
She began searching the drawers, chests, and vanity tables. With a clever eye for value, she bypassed the large, flashy ornaments and instead pocketed a handful of small, expensive trinkets that wealthy people wouldn’t even notice going missing.
"Perfect," she muttered victoriously under her breath, slipping things into her bodice. "With this haul, I won’t have to worry about the money for the next two months."
Then the red head turned toward the massive canopy bed. She saw Eren doing something there this morning. He had definitely hidden something valuable under there.
Mira let out a disappointed sigh, tossing her hair back. "Honestly, how easy would it have been if that guy just fell for my charms? If he were still the brainless, desperate loser the rumors claimed, I could have easily trapped him and extorted enough gold coins. Why did he suddenly grow a functioning brain?"
Shaking off her annoyance, she dropped down onto her knees, sticking her butt straight up and began rummaging beneath the bed frame, blindly sweeping her arms around.
"Ugh, where is it?" she complained quietly. "I swear, I thought trapping an infamous stalker would be a walk in the park. The reports never mentioned he’d become so damn unbothered..."
After a few more seconds of desperate clawing, her fingers found something andHer eyes lit up. With a triumphant hum, she dragged out a small wooden box.
She clutched it and held it up like a trophy. A greedy smile formed on her face as she struck a miniature victory pose, feeling exactly like a gambler who had just hit the grand lottery jackpot.
"Wow. That is a pretty good find, honestly."
A relaxed voice made Mira pause.
The blood completely drained from her face, turning her pale white.
She tilted her head upward toward the mattress and saw a handsome man casually hovering over the palm of his hand.
He was looking down at the hot thief like he’s entertained. Like the same amusement one would give to a clumsy puppy playing around with a stolen slipper.
He offered her a tiny, cheerful wave.
"Hello there."
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PS:- I got the contract, guys. Me happy
