The Male Lead Is the Villain, and I'm the Only One Who Knows - Chapter 4

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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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The Male Lead Is the Mastermind, and Only I Know — Chapter 4

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“I’ve brought Holy Water, and I’ve written letters just in case something goes wrong with me…….”
On the day of my entry into the palace, I’d received the carriage’s arrival time in advance, so I’d managed to finish my preparations on schedule. I had contingency plans ready for all sorts of situations, so there didn’t seem to be any major problems.
Knock knock.
“Are you ready? The carriage for the honored guest has arrived.”
“Yes, I’m coming!”
The coachman’s knock rang out just as I grabbed my bags and threw open the door, but—
“What……?”
What on earth was this?
My entire mind came to a halt. An absolutely staggering Golden Jeweled Carriage filled my vision. For a moment, my language faculties abandoned me, and I could only gape at the carriage like an idiot.
Then someone emerged languidly before me. His long silver hair caught the sunlight filtering sparsely between the buildings, gleaming like a ripple on water.
“It is my honor to make your acquaintance, Miss Astel. I am Banel Feist, serving as the Crown Prince’s aide. I have come at his orders to escort you.”
Banel greeted me with flawless etiquette, unmarred by a single redundant gesture, and his was a face I knew well—more than well, actually welcoming.
Whenever Ivhan attended official events, I’d followed along to catch a glimpse of my favorite, and Banel was always there at his side.
“Lord Feist… what is… this?”
“His Highness personally selected this carriage to receive you. It is a new Imperial Year 377 FW model, elegantly designed with the amaryllis motif symbolizing the Crown Prince, and a masterpiece in which the golden mane of the imperial golden lion is rendered in pure gold and topaz.”
Banel launched into an affectionate torrent of praise the moment I asked about the carriage, bursting with pride in his master’s taste. If I hadn’t asked, heaven knows what would have happened.
‘New model or whatever—it’s so disgustingly flashy that everyone’s staring at nothing else!’
Just days ago, I’d already drawn attention from a minor commotion with Ivhan at the gate, and now this blindingly ornate carriage was making it worse.
It was no different than hanging a sign in the middle of a commoner’s neighborhood that read “A noble lives here.”
Sure enough, every eye on the street was fixed on this spot. Well, that’s my quiet life over. Farewell to peace.
“I can’t keep living in this house. I’ll have to go back to the main residence…….”
I muttered quietly, my expression still reeling from the shock, when Banel—catching my words with uncanny precision—smiled gently and tilted his head.
“A wise decision. His Highness has been quite concerned about it.”
“Concerned?”
“Yes, he said it is far too dangerous for a noble young lady to live alone on the outskirts of the Capital.”
At Banel’s words, Ivhan’s remark from a few days prior suddenly surfaced in my mind.
‘But you’ll keep living here?’
His expression when he’d asked had seemed displeased about something. I’d dismissed it as my own misreading at the time, but now…….
‘So he sent this lavish carriage on purpose to make me leave? He dislikes me living here?’
Everywhere people dwell, rumors flourish.
If it became public knowledge that a noblewoman lived here—worse, that she was the woman the Crown Prince had proposed to—it would inevitably put me in danger.
‘Masterminds usually rely on brute strength and lack intelligence, so they end up meeting spectacular ruin, don’t they? So why is Ivhan…….’
In the end, things went exactly as Ivhan wanted. Ever since that disastrous encounter in the forest, everything seemed to proceed according to his wishes, and it felt profoundly unsettling.
I’m the one who was reincarnated, yet somehow I’m being dragged along by him. It’s like……
“Being bewitched by a demon.”
Cough, cough, cough!
The moment my murmur ended, Banel suddenly erupted into violent coughing. His complexion had gone ghastly pale, as though he’d been deeply startled by something.
“Lord Feist! Are you all right?”
“Ah, my apologies. I merely had something catch in my throat.”
Banel quickly composed himself and wiped away cold sweat with a handkerchief. Why on earth did he react like that?
“Please board now.”
As the coachman opened the door, Banel extended his hand to assist me. Even the carriage steps were adorned with pure gold and topaz.
I just wanted to run to the Imperial Palace instead…….
“Could I perhaps go separately?”
At my feeble question, Banel smiled gently.
“Absolutely not.”
Tsk.
The moment I climbed aboard, I drew all the curtains shut. I didn’t want anyone to know I was inside this carriage.
‘Though eventually, once I enter the palace, everyone will learn about it soon enough.’
Even knowing it was inevitable, my head throbbed. If my existence became known to the Mage Association again, I would have no choice but to abandon all my research.
‘Even Leon can’t protect me if the Mage Association moves directly against me. So somehow, I have to manage this myself…….’
Overwhelmed by the helplessness, I pressed my forehead and glanced at Banel sitting across from me. Long silver hair and an ethereal beauty that would drive any devoted fan to their knees—and those eyes, an uncanny blue tinged with silver.
‘He’s overshadowed by Ivhan, but now that I look at him, Banel’s appearance is pretty outlandish itself.’
Banel Feist. He was the eldest son of the Feist Marquessate, and in childhood he’d been so frail that he’d come close to death several times. But at some point he recovered, withdrew from the Magical Academy he’d been attending, and immediately enlisted in the Imperial Knight Order.
Shortly after enlisting, he swept through tournaments and martial competitions, earning recognition of his abilities and rapidly ascending to become the Crown Prince Ivhan’s aide. There’s a saying that one would have to stay awake all night to enumerate his brilliant achievements—such was his competence.
‘Though as a reincarnate I don’t know all the characters, I do remember Banel somewhat since he was Ivhan’s closest confidant.’
Which was precisely why I needed to be cautious. Just as Ivhan wore an angelic face while being the ultimate mastermind, Banel likely helped with Ivhan’s schemes beneath his gentle exterior.
Before that, though, I still had something I needed to do. The carriage had flustered me so much that I hadn’t yet properly greeted him.
“I apologize for the delayed introduction earlier—I was too distracted. I’m Astel, daughter of the Feist Marquessate. Though I doubt you’ve heard my name before….”
“On the contrary, I have.”
“Really? You know of me?”
My eyes widened at Banel’s words. The circle of people who knew me was practically confined to Dayad, my childhood friend, and my own family.
When I looked at him with evident confusion, Banel offered a warm smile and an unexpected explanation.
“Well, you are Leon’s sister, are you not?”
“…My brother spoke of me?”
I’d made it very clear to Leon long ago that he was absolutely never to speak of me outside the house.
Whether fortunate or not, Leon had his own peculiar attachment to his family status, and he kept his mouth firmly shut about anything family-related, likely hoping no one would take an interest in me.
“We were classmates at the Magical Academy. I often heard him muttering about missing his sister… and I remember, just once, he showed me a photograph of you from the Locket Necklace he carried.”
“Ah, so you were classmates with my brother. I never would have guessed he had friends, knowing his personality.”
Banel covered his mouth and let out a soft, amused cough at my bluntly factual remark. The way he held back his words suggested his assessment of Leon was rather similar to mine.
Leon had no friends. Of course, neither did I, but he truly had none at all.
It was hardly surprising—Leon was rigid, narrow-minded, and utterly indifferent to others’ circumstances. His having any friends would have been strange.
“I transferred to the Imperial Knight Order partway through, so we didn’t graduate together, but we still exchange the occasional letter.”
While listening to Banel speak of Leon, I scarcely noticed that we had arrived at the Imperial Palace. As the carriage came to a stop, he descended first and offered me his hand.
“His Highness is waiting in the garden at the Ruby Palace. Allow me to escort you there.”
Taking Banel’s hand and stepping down from the carriage, I found myself immediately surrounded by several attendants, with a handful of knights positioned on either side for my protection. The security was far more stringent than I’d anticipated.
Upon arriving at the garden, I spotted Ivhan seated in a white chair on the garden pavilion, surrounded by an abundance of scarlet spider lilies in full bloom.
‘I was planning to splash him with Holy Water the moment I saw him, but with all these eyes around, that’s hardly feasible.’
Now that I knew the Mastermind’s identity, I had no intention of simply letting matters stand.
‘If the empire falls, I die too. I can’t let that happen—at least not before I perfect my Dimensional Magic.’
I reluctantly set down the small vial of Holy Water hidden in my sleeve, took a deep breath, and slowly approached Ivhan.
For now, I needed to be careful not to fall for the (former) object of my affection’s stunningly handsome, beautiful, radiant, dazzling, exquisite, and utterly mesmerizing face. In the filtered light of midday sun, he was far too dangerous.
“Your Highness, Lady Astel has arrived,” Banel announced.
At his words, Ivhan turned his head from where he sat. Thanks to the warm sunlight, his brilliantly sculpted features seized my vision even more intensely than usual.
His emerald eyes held the fresh shimmer of newly sprouted leaves, his delicate eyelashes—fine as ash tree blossoms—cast an elegant shadow, and his lips, warm with the heat of midday, glowed with a languid vitality.
He was maddeningly beautiful.
‘…This is maddening. I might be the one who needs the Holy Water.’
Barely recovering my wits, I gathered my dress slightly and lowered my head.
“It is an honor to greet the Star of the Empire, the Crown Prince.”
“Lady Astel, welcome. I’ve been waiting for you.”
With the expected pleasantries exchanged, Ivhan gestured to the table laden with desserts, encouraging me to help myself freely.
“Please, eat as much as you’d like. There’s plenty more.”
“Thank you very much.”
Once a maidservant had poured fragrant tea into my cup and withdrawn, Ivhan spoke in a gentle tone.
“Before we begin our conversation, there is something you need to know.”
“Yes, please tell me.”
Whatever he said next, I needed to keep my wits about me and respond carefully. I wouldn’t let these sweet treats—or that devastatingly beautiful face—cloud my judgment.
“I am, in fact, a demon.”
“Yes, I rather gathered that much.”
‘What a delightful jest.’
…Oh.
How many people do you think will attend my funeral?

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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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