A Strange But Effective Villainess Life - Chapter 101

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 101
The Countess of Alcyone intuited that what Kiana desired was to gain command over her, so she could set a trap for Third Empress Dolores.
Dolores had no idea how dangerous a person Kiana truly was. She merely thought of her as a wicked, taciturn villainess who had caught the eye of some slick-looking commoner bastard.
“What I need you to do, Countess, is quite simple. It’s something you’re already very good at. You won’t even need to change your course of action.”
The Countess of Alcyone trembled slightly with fear. Just how many moves ahead was Kiana planning this?
‘It seems Third Empress Dolores has acquired a far too clever adversary.’
The Countess of Alcyone was exceptionally skilled at recognizing the powerful and attaching herself to their side.
She had originally been a lady-in-waiting to the Empress, but after experiencing the Empress for a few months, she quickly transferred her position to Dolores under the pretense of chronic illness. She had seen no hope in the weak Empress.
At the time, everyone had remarked upon seeing the Countess of Alcyone, “She must truly be ill to relinquish her position as lady-in-waiting to Her Majesty the Empress, who bore the legitimate Crown Prince.” But in truth, her judgment had been accurate. Within just a few years, Dolores held sway over not only society but politics as well.
“Princess.”
So she immediately decided to change her allegiance.
“Command me as you wish. I shall obey your orders, Princess.”
“That’s right, as it should be.”
Kiana nodded with evident satisfaction.
“Once you’ve grasped the situation, you should quickly attach yourself to me. Just as you abandoned the Empress and went to Third Empress. Is the second betrayal any harder than the first?”
The Countess of Alcyone fell silent for a moment, uncertain whether this was mockery, and then listened quietly to Kiana’s subsequent instructions.
* * *
I had successfully made the Countess of Alcyone into my chess piece.
‘I hope she’ll follow my instructions to the end without being too troublesome and simply obey as commanded.’
Since she wasn’t perfectly mine, I thought she might often resist or claim she couldn’t do something.
‘Of course, I’m prepared for every such contingency, but it would be nice if things went smoothly.’
In any case, we kindly escorted her to the Alcyone County Estate. Now only Sezare and I remained in the carriage.
“Princess.”
As the carriage began to move, Sezare paused before asking.
“What exactly is the purpose of all this?”
I gazed at Sezare intently.
Throughout all this time, Sezare had never once asked me something like “Why are you doing this?” He had simply stayed by my side with curious eyes and assisted me. So receiving such a question felt strange.
“Well, it’s just…”
I blinked slowly and answered carefully.
“Lord Rodrigo going to prison and House of Purbis facing financial difficulties… that alone isn’t enough for me.”
I hesitated for a moment, wondering how much I should reveal.
Sezare doesn’t know the details of my circumstances. Or rather, no one knows. They only know that House of Purbis has spoken ill of me since childhood. Objectively speaking, that wasn’t enough to warrant the destruction of an entire ducal family.
‘The truth is, before regression, I was more upset that Purbis betrayed Prelai.’
Purbis and Prelai had conducted Onseok Trade together for a long time. But it grated on me that they had contributed to framing that trade as treason. So in this life, I wanted Purbis to suffer the same fate. By their own despicable methods.
I couldn’t be satisfied with merely cutting off their funds and leaving them impoverished. If I simply left them be, they would obviously continue to hound both me and Prelai.
“I want to see House of Purbis properly destroyed.”
I couldn’t speak of regression or anything like that. So I simply decided to become a villainess with an incredibly vindictive streak.
“You might think I’m cruel, repaying them far more than what they deserve.”
Even as I spoke, I thought Sezare might consider me ruthless. But he didn’t seem to think that way at all.
“I don’t believe you’re repaying them excessively.”
I even laughed languidly.
“If the Princess hadn’t stepped in properly, I would have annihilated the entire House of Purbis.”
“Annihilated… the House? You, my Lord?”
“Yes.”
Sezare answered lightly, as if it were nothing.
“All I need do is kill everyone who bears the name Purbis.”
My spine went rigid in that instant. Though his tone was playful, there was something unsettlingly sincere about it. Wait—had this man actually commissioned murders before? He really had done every terrible thing imaginable.
“But the Princess….”
Sezare looked at me and spoke slowly.
“What the Princess is attempting to do… seems to simultaneously destroy House Purbis while, strangely enough, also saving Her Majesty the Empress.”
What? How did he figure that out?
‘He deduced all that just from hearing the instructions I gave the Countess of Alcyone a moment ago?’
I blinked in genuine astonishment. Sezare asked quietly.
“Do you harbor favorable feelings toward Her Majesty the Empress?”
“No.”
The answer came reflexively, honest.
“It’s not that I dislike her either. I simply have no favorable feelings toward anyone. We’ve never been entangled in the first place, after all.”
In truth, I had no connection whatsoever with the Empress.
The Empress was truly a woman who “did nothing,” and precisely because of such a temperament, I understood the Emperor had placed her on the throne. The Emperor believed that becoming entangled in unnecessary political factions and falling under the influence of maternal relatives would be far worse.
For all his coldness, the Emperor cherished the Crown Prince greatly. But did the Empress cherish the Crown Prince?
Of course, there are no parents who don’t love their own children, yet it was somewhat strange that she showed no action whatsoever. At the very least, she might have built some small political foundation for the Crown Prince, or even weakly countered Dolores….
I had certainly seen the Empress when I was young. She was a gaunt, small-framed woman with deep brown hair and deep green eyes. While the mother-child relationship was certain, in a sense, the Crown Prince resembled her not at all.
As I recalled the quiet-natured Empress, Sezare asked again.
“Then is it a political maneuver? Perhaps born from a desire for the Crown Prince’s return?”
The question was unexpectedly persistent. So I answered with sincerity and courtesy.
“It has nothing to do with you, my Lord. Don’t concern yourself.”
Despite my indifferent remark, Sezare merely smiled faintly. And speaking with a gentle smile, he asked.
“Then is all of the Princess’s business concluded now?”
Well, originally I had planned to stop by a jeweler to sell diamonds. But since I’d already sold them to Sezare, I had gained some free time.
“Then I suppose I should have dinner now.”
Sezare smiled gently and extended his hand.
“Actually, I’ve already scouted a restaurant nearby.”
“A… restaurant?”
“Of course. I cannot neglect the Princess’s meals.”
In truth, skipping a single evening meal meant nothing to me, but if I said such a thing, Sezare would only become more insistent. He himself had poor taste perception, yet he always made certain I ate balanced, nourishing meals.
“Very well, let’s go.”
I hoped for some delicious coffee as dessert.
However, the place Sezare took me to was a health food restaurant. I sighed inwardly.
‘Of all things, it looks like I’ll be eating a well-balanced, nutritious meal according to Sezare’s orders here too.’
Just as Sezare was about to order food.
“…Princess? Ah, Lord Rodrigo is here as well.”
We found ourselves face to face with someone entirely unexpected—Avian Risineus, whom I hadn’t seen in quite some time.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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