Chapter 2
- I May Be a Villainess, But I Want to Live
I stepped carefully into the room.
Click.
As I closed the door behind me and turned around, a neatly arranged room greeted my eyes.
And in the middle of it—
A young man was crouched like a beast, waiting to pounce.
It was Lucian.
…Damn, he’s already awake.
I forced down the sigh that threatened to escape.
I had planned to quickly check his injuries while he was unconscious and leave.
But now, that plan was ruined.
The moment he spotted me, the corner of his lips twisted.
“You’re the woman who ordered them to knock me out earlier.”
Lucian snapped, then tried to approach me.
But he couldn’t get far.
Clank!
The chain connected to the bed rattled loudly, restraining his body.
Fierce anger burned in his blue eyes.
“…What the hell is this?”
Clank, clank —!
Unable to contain his frustration, he violently shook his bound wrists.
But there was no sign of the restraints loosening.
Eventually, Lucian gave up and leaned back against the bed, biting his lip.
“Who are you people, and why have you imprisoned me?”
Was it because of his rising anger?
His voice, tinged with a metallic edge, dropped dangerously low.
“Who ordered you to pull something this bold?”
“…”
“Do you really think you’ll survive after kidnapping the Duke of Kaleid?”
Lucian demanded harshly.
I looked at him expressionlessly, then answered bluntly.
“Your cousin.”
For a moment, Lucian’s eyes widened.
A chilling silence fell.
“……”
“……”
I calmly met his gaze.
“You asked who ordered this, didn’t you?”
“…That—”
“The one who ordered it was your cousin.”
At my flat reply, shock spread across Lucian’s face once again.
I clicked my tongue inwardly.
Well, for someone who just came of age, this is a bit too much truth to handle.
In this empire, adulthood begins at eighteen.
And Lucian had only turned eighteen a few days ago.
Anyway, the story went like this:
The Kaleid ducal family was one of the most prestigious houses in the empire.
But tragedy struck when the previous duke and duchess died in an unexpected accident.
For Lucian, who suddenly lost both parents, an older cousin—someone who had always been close to the family—became his guardian.
At first, the agreement was simple:
The cousin would temporarily act as head of the house until Lucian came of age, then return the title.
But—
That cousin betrayed him.
Everything was handled so thoroughly that, on the surface, it appeared Lucian had gone abroad for recuperation.
In reality, he had been imprisoned in this boarding school the entire time.
Meanwhile, the original Elje had been steadily piling up her sins…
Like the empty-headed villainess she was, she vented her stress by tormenting Lucian relentlessly.
Honestly, even if Lucian had been brought here, he was still the sole head of the ducal family.
Yet she abused him without ever considering retaliation or consequences.
From a storytelling perspective, it almost felt unrealistic—
But then again—
The original Elje existed purely to stir up conflict, so it’s not like the author cared much about logic.
Anyway, back to the story.
After enduring countless hardships, Lucian eventually awakened a transcendent power passed down only through the direct bloodline of the ducal family.
With that power, he destroyed half of this boarding school and escaped.
Then he discovered the truth—
That even the death of his parents had been his cousin’s scheme.
And he carried out his revenge thoroughly.
After that, the one who saved Lucian—whose body and mind had been completely broken—was the female lead.
…And from there, things spiraled into extreme obsession, but anyway.
I glanced at Lucian from the corner of my eye.
He looked utterly lost, as if the ground beneath his feet had collapsed.
After a long silence—
Lucian let out a cold scoff.
“Don’t spout nonsense.”
But that scoff wasn’t born from confidence.
It was closer to a bluff to hide his anxiety.
“My brother would never do that.”
“Your Grace.”
“Who sent you? Who told you to try and drive a wedge between us?!”
The dignity he had been clinging to as the Duke of Kaleid was gone.
Now, he looked like nothing more than a shaken young man.
His deep blue eyes trembled desperately.
“You think I’d fall for something like that?!”
Well, it made sense that he wouldn’t believe me.
To Lucian, his cousin was someone who had replaced the parents he lost.
But—
“Do you know where you are?”
Since I didn’t have the luxury to listen to him ramble on—
After all, my own life as a villainess wasn’t exactly headed for a happy ending either—
I shook my head and cut him off.
“This is the Rosenkreuz Boarding School.”
Lucian froze instantly.
I asked quietly,
“You already know what kind of place this is, don’t you?”
A boarding school no one ever leaves once they enter.
A place where inconvenient people—too troublesome to keep, yet too troublesome to kill—are hidden away.
The nobles all knew about it yet chose to remain silent.
Because to them, this place was a necessary evil.
And that wasn’t all.
Even the owner of this place was dangerous.
Dante Dessa von Oppenheimer.
He was Male Lead #3—the man the original Elje obsessively clung to.
And the one who had conquered the empire’s underworld after a long and bloody struggle.
At that, realization dawned on Lucian’s face.
“Then you must be… Lady Lepherian.”
“That’s right.”
I nodded calmly.
Lucian could no longer hide his despair.
That reaction was only natural.
Elje Lepherian—
The lover of the Oppenheimer Marquis and the woman acting as the manager of the Rosenkreuz Boarding School in his place.
My very existence proved that this place was truly Rosenkreuz.
“For your information, only a handful of people here know that you’re being held in this school.”
“Then that means…”
“It means you were brought here in complete secrecy.”
…Ha.
Lucian let out a hollow laugh, covering his forehead.
“Your Grace.”
I tried to say something to the devastated Lucian—
“Don’t call me that.”
He glared at me with sharp, venomous eyes.
…Yeah, he’s definitely not in the mood to talk right now.
Still, judging by his condition, he didn’t seem seriously injured.
After quickly scanning him from head to toe, I gave a small nod.
“I’ll take my leave for today.”
“……”
“But please remember one thing.”
I finished calmly.
“I’m on your side.”
At that, even in his anger, Lucian looked at me like I was absurd.
“Get some rest.”
With a bright smile directed at him—
I left the solitary room.
* * *
I’m on your side.
I repeated the words I had said to Lucian as I slowly walked down the hallway.
Well, I did plan to gradually win him over in ways that suited me—
But that statement itself was completely sincere.
Because—
Lucian is the most important person when it comes to escaping this place.
Dante wants this boarding school—which lays golden eggs—to run quietly and safely.
That’s why he had installed countless layers of security, almost obsessively.
An ordinary person could never break through them.
Yes—someone like me.
But that also meant—
Someone with male lead “plot armor” like Lucian could eventually break through.
That’s why I needed him.
My plan was simple:
Form a good relationship with Lucian, and when he eventually escapes—
Escape with him.
…Of course, there was also the fact that he was the male lead who would one day tear me apart, so I needed to stay on his good side.
So the role I chose was the following:
The only person willing to help Lucian.
Just then—
“Lady Elje!”
A sharp voice filled with hostility called out to me.
I frowned and turned around.
A middle-aged man with a snake-like, sinister appearance was glaring at me.
Victor.
Like me, he was one of only two managers of this boarding school.
And true to the story, he was someone who absolutely despised “Villainess Elje.”
He stomped up to me and growled as if threatening me.
“Could you please behave yourself for even a single day? How dare you meet the Duke of Kaleid without my permission?!”
…Well, would you look at that?
