Disqualified as a Villainess - Chapter 58

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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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#58.

Octavia in her pristine white gown, Ortega in his shabby attire—anyone could see they’d just emerged from something unseemly.
“Octavia, how far do you intend to degrade yourself? Why have you changed so strangely?”
Prince Dominic began pressing her with a face caught between indignation and concern.
“It’s obvious that he’s the one who’s degraded, so why are you only worried about the strange part?”
Logan, with his wrists bound in front of him and his shirt unbuttoned enough to expose his collarbones, wore a bewildered expression.
He’d been tied up with ribbons spouting some nonsense about infinite energy spinning in superconductivity, and his clothes had been stripped off under the guise of physical response testing.
Just as he was beginning to sense something amiss and feel a creeping sense of danger, the Prince had arrived.
“Duke Ortega, what is your relationship with her?”
“Ah, a client and service provider relationship?”
To anyone’s eyes, the Duke was the one being served, the one providing the service.
Octavia wore an expression of utter exasperation.
‘I was never even his girlfriend, so why does he keep acting like a clingy ex? Did some original male lead cliché activate—the one where he regrets seeing the villainess change?’
Seeing Octavia’s expression of grinding frustration, Logan tilted his chin toward the Prince.
“But.”
His voice, which had been light with jest moments before, suddenly dropped to a chilling tone.
“Whatever our relationship is, what business is that of yours? You’re asking questions the Admiral should be asking.”
His eyes narrowed coldly.
At this, Prince Dominic’s gaze flared with ferocity.
“Duke, this hardly seems the time to be so bold.”
“I’m bolder than someone who’s already moved on to another woman.”
He played the role of a minor antagonist perfectly—the kind who talks back to the male lead in the original story.
Readers had reacted with ‘How dare a Duke speak so to a Prince?’, but Logan’s essential authority transcended his title—he was a prince of a foreign kingdom, while Duke was merely a rank.
Logan was the direct prince of Lux Kingdom, one of the six kingdoms, and had inherited the dukedom that his older brother received upon marrying the Crown Princess.
He treated Dekima Crown Princess, his brother’s wife, with deference befitting family hierarchy, yet he still spoke his mind freely.
This was precisely why Octavia had asked Logan to help persuade the Crown Princess.
Logan gazed at Octavia with a seductive smile playing at his eyes.
“Octavia, come back in. We need to finish what we were doing.”
Octavia, who had flinched at his languid voice, instantly donned a composed smile as if nothing had happened.
“Your Highness, this is normal. What’s strange is clinging desperately to someone who won’t even look your way when you’re someone who lacks for nothing—acting like a fool.”
The Prince simply watched her speak in that even, measured tone, saying nothing. He looked like someone denying reality because he hated seeing his blind faith shattered.
‘He took kindness for granted and lived enjoying it, and now that it’s gone, he feels the loss.’
They say you don’t feed a fish you’ve already caught, but it’s another matter entirely when that fish tries to escape.
“I’d appreciate it if you didn’t come barging in like this next time.”
Octavia, who had been glaring at the Prince, entered the Research Laboratory and shut the door with a resounding bang.
‘The original Octavia must have given him genuine devotion. Seeing how that man clings to her absence—whether it’s the money or the emptiness—proves it.’
She was foolish and a pushover, that much was true, but she didn’t want to mock him for it. There was nothing wrong with dedicating yourself to someone you loved.
“Hey, chasing what’s running away is human nature. The reward system is built that way from the start.”
Logan’s voice carried a weary sigh—not the comforting or empathetic type.
“I’m just saying, since you don’t seem intent on getting caught—there are bastards who destroy their opponents to excuse themselves by claiming they never had what they wanted rather than admitting it wasn’t worth having. I’m talking about those with inflated pride but fragile self-worth.”
Logan had already freed his hands from the ability-suppressing ribbon and was fastening his shirt. Since he possessed the ability to alter phase
(*the state, position, and flow of matter and energy)
the suppression was essentially meaningless, but he’d simply played along.
“From a man’s perspective, I’d say Prince Dominic strikes me as exactly that type.”
“What’s your reasoning? Not that I’m defending him.”
“If he were purely ambitious, he’d have his sights set on the Imperial Collateral Line’s princess and more. Yet he only entangles himself with those he deems beneath him. You’re a wealthy merchant’s daughter but still a commoner, and Clorelaine or whatever is a fallen noble.”
Logan quickly added, worried Octavia might take offense.
“That doesn’t mean you or that woman are inferior beings. I was describing the thinking of truly inferior people. Though admittedly, your personality is thoroughly wrecked.”
Rather than seeming bothered, Octavia appeared intrigued, and he stroked his sharp jawline thoughtfully.
“Whether it’s the influence of relying on his mistress instead of his cold-blooded elitist biological mother, or if he’s inherited the king’s tendency to be moved by pitiful women.”
He was speaking of Lady Roxan, who served as both the official mistress and the true power behind the throne.
Lady Roxan, currently absent as she attended to the dying king’s needs, hailed from a fallen noble house.
‘A mistress may dominate an era, but she’s a fleeting existence that vanishes with the king’s death….’
Yet Lady Roxan not only escaped execution but, following the Regent’s death after the Chaos Gate incident, assumed the role of queen mother and wielded influence across society and politics.
She served as Prince Dominic’s emotional supporter and, from the protagonist’s perspective, was a force for good.
Octavia had always considered the possibility that she was a hidden mastermind.
‘The Ludovisi Family would naturally be a thorn in her side too.’
Which is why Octavia, who planned to prevent the catastrophe and strengthen the Regent’s faction, laughed brightly.
“A splendid logical progression with cognitive scientific analysis, observation, comparison, motive inference, and even social acumen. Though I deduct points for the humor about your wrecked personality—eight out of ten.”
“Why are you talking like an Academy professor?”
Logan, looking embarrassed, raised one hand wrapped in deep black mana.
“Anyway, is this new weapon something special? The synchronization feels different.”
The mana coiling around his wrist rose and split into two streams above his hand, transforming into sharp twin blades in a claw configuration connected to a gauntlet.
“Of course. Do you know how much money went into making this? It won’t break before the warranty expires.”
Octavia spoke with arrogant confidence, crossing her arms.
“So won’t you volunteer for my massive experimental field—the ‘Western Border mission’—and fulfill your duty as a complimentary test subject? I need immediate feedback for my research.”
“I was planning to volunteer anyway.”
Logan tilted his head and added,
“The missions have been so brutal lately, I could use a break.”
‘Damn, I should’ve charged him. That’s worth tens of billions at minimum.’
Octavia sighed with a smile on her face.

***

In the Imperial Palace of Liken, the capital of the Lucifer Empire.
A tall man lay languidly on an ornate golden sofa, his face obscured by an open book.
Kelsedny Admiral sat across from him, whiskey glass in hand.
“Mmm.”
The man stretched lazily and pushed himself upright with a rustling sound, paying no mind as the book covering his face tumbled to the floor.
His loosely buttoned shirt and formal trousers gave him the appearance of a charming wastrel at first glance, but the black eyes characteristic of the direct imperial bloodline held the composure and arrogance of a ruler.
This carefree nobleman was none other than Arseno van Decart, the Emperor himself.
Due to the nature of his exceptional magical power manifesting in his hair and eyes, he possessed an unusual coloring—half platinum blonde, half jet black.
His build and features resembled those of his younger brother, the military man, but his aura was entirely different.
“You’re still drinking quite heavily, Keldi.”
His voice was languid and devoid of energy.
“That’s not it.”
The Admiral, who spoke informally to his brother outside of official settings, replied.
He recalled that he hadn’t been drinking much lately.
“Is it because you’re separated from your lover? I told you to keep watch over that woman, but I didn’t expect you to watch so closely.”
“That’s not it either. It’s merely a strategic relationship.”
Though he had indeed been drinking more since returning to the capital, he didn’t believe it had anything to do with being physically separated from Octavia.
The Admiral, suddenly uncomfortable, set down his whiskey glass and changed the subject.
“Is there no need to report information about the Western Border of Acedia Kingdom?”
Unlike the Kingdom, which had determined it to be a lower-tier Chaos Realm omen, the Empire’s intelligence analysis suggested that a Class-1 disaster-level Chaos Gate could potentially open.
“Rather than interfering in every little matter, our role is to observe as they solve their own problems. Like a child who speaks of freedom despite lacking the ability to be independent.”
It was akin to not rescuing a deer being devoured by a lion, following the principle of not defying nature’s order.
For this reason, empires commonly employed a method of governance where they watched passively, then extended their hand to nations crying for salvation on the brink of destruction, thereby taming them.
Should they refuse even this, they were simply left to perish naturally.
“Besides, we’re not completely disregarding them either. The Kingdom has the Saint of Mercury and you, after all.”
Of course, the Admiral also held the position that the Kingdom must solve this on its own.
Though the Ludovisi Family had become entangled in the border defense plan, Octavia was a commoner and would have no reason to go directly to the Western Border mission.

After concluding my conversation with the Emperor, I returned to my chamber and was suddenly struck by an unsettling sensation. I squeezed my eyes shut.
Merely recalling her name was enough to set my body stirring.
“Damn.”
Had that madman’s personality somehow taken root in my lower instincts?
I wondered if I’d awakened to carnal desire, yet upon returning to the Capital, I’d felt no stirring whatsoever from the countless temptations that came my way.
‘Is this what happens after merely days apart?’
The headaches that had subsided began to resurface, accompanied by a sensation of my mana coiling chaotically within me.
Reluctant as I was to admit it, I could only diagnose that it stemmed from Octavia’s absence by my side.
‘What would become of me if she were to vanish from this world?’
A sense of crisis gripped me.

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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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