Chapter 7

“Haah……”

After returning home, Rodi placed the turquoise jewelry box on the table with an exhausted look on her face.

What a ridiculous ordeal I had to go through over this one little thing.

Simone really was persistent.

I suppose it was fitting for her, though. She kept trying to return the jewelry box to Yuvar no matter what.

At the same time, that very “good” side of Simone was the reason Rodi did not particularly like her character.

It’s not that I dislike kind people.

But Simone’s version of “kindness” was similar to the efforts Yoonseo had made in the past as a “good” daughter.

Putting others before herself.

Suppressing her own hopes for the sake of someone else’s wishes.

Simone was like a mirror, resembling her in many ways.

Is this self-loathing……?

Rodi gave a faint chuckle.

Whether the reason she disliked Simone was self-loathing or something else did not matter.

I’m a villainess, after all.

There was no chance she would ever become close to Simone.

More importantly, Rikens’s attitude is bothering me.

He had acted almost as though he knew something about her.

Even after searching through Rodi’s memories, I couldn’t find any special connection between her and Rikens.

It was truly strange.

I was planning to sell the house to Rikens after Yuvar.

It would be troublesome if her plans suddenly had to change.

It should be…… fine, right?

After going over the memories from before her possession several times in her mind to make sure, she let out a long sigh.

Yuvar will be arriving in this village soon. For now, I should focus on him.

Rodi approached the table and turned the turquoise jewelry box over.

On the bottom was a faint rectangular seam. It was designed in such a way that it would be impossible to notice without looking very closely.

She slipped the tip of her fingernail into the gap.

According to the game, this bottom panel should definitely come off……

Click.

The rectangular bottom panel came loose, revealing a small hidden compartment.

What a great design for hiding jewelry.

Rodi did not know who the craftsman who made this jewelry box was, but one thing was certain—the person had loved keeping secrets.

Rodi stared into the small compartment beneath the box.

Inside was a faded note.

Found it.

The jewelry box itself was important, but this note was a hundred times more important.

This note was the key to Yuvar’s route in the game.

She had lost count of how many times she had reloaded her save because she could not find this one little note.

It’s not like I particularly want to pursue Yuvar……

For now, she had no intention of stealing the male protagonists away from Simone or anything like that.

Love is such a hassle.

Besides, she knew all too well how stubbornly the male protagonists clung to someone once they fell in love.

All I want is to become rich and live a peaceful life.

And this was an essential item for selling the house right away.

Rodi carefully unfolded the note.

Rustle―

There was only a short message written on it.

After slowly reading the sentence, Rodi let out a relieved sigh.

With this, Yuvar’s hostility toward me should lessen a little.

And she was going to sell the house to him.

“Hehehe……”

The landlord is a god, and I will definitely become a god!

Rodi carefully put the jewelry box away with the wicked laugh that had become a habit of hers.

✦ ✦ ✦

A few days later, a luxurious carriage came to a stop in Lagro Village.

A delicate crescent-moon emblem was carved into the ivory-colored carriage.

A handsome middle-aged man stepped out and said,

“There’s simply no talking to you. Why are you always nagging so much?”

A young man stepped down after him and immediately shot back without backing down.

“I’ll return those words to you, Father. You’re the one who’s impossible to reason with.”

The two men looked wealthy, and they were both exceptionally handsome, naturally drawing the attention of those around them.

But neither paid any attention to the stares as they continued arguing.

“Why are you so reluctant to come here?”

The young man let out a long sigh.

“I carefully selected only the finest luxury resorts for you, Father. And yet, you rejected every single one and insisted on coming all the way to this countryside……”

“What am I supposed to do when none of those places meet my standards?”

“If there’s something you want, I can prepare everything to your exact specifications.”

“Something I want……”

The middle-aged man wore a complicated expression.

“Perhaps you won’t be able to accommodate it.”

The young man frowned.

“You never tell me exactly what you want, and then you keep saying things like that. Of course I’m frustrated.”

“That’s because someone with a heart as dried up as yours obviously wouldn’t understand.”

“I’ll return that remark as well. I doubt I’m as cold-hearted as you are, Father.”

“Hmph. You never lose an argument, do you?”

The father, Noien, looked around.

A peaceful village stretched out before his eyes.

“More importantly, why were you so reluctant to come here?”

“I don’t remember being frightened. I simply didn’t want to come because I know who lives in this area.”

“Who?”

The young man, Yuvar, frowned and casually muttered,

“There’s a wicked villainess here.”

“A villainess?”

Noien snorted.

“You’re speaking rather childishly for someone like you.”

Yuvar shook his head.

“You don’t know, Father. You have no idea how vicious that woman is……”

Noien sneered.

“What? Did you confess your feelings and get rejected?”

Yuvar shuddered and immediately looked horrified.

“Please don’t say something so terrible. That woman doesn’t have even the slightest romantic interest in me.”

He added seriously,

“She’s truly the worst kind of woman. She makes everyone around her miserable.”

“What foolish nonsense. There’s no such thing as a villainess in this world.”

“It’s true. You must have heard the rumors at least once in the Imperial Capital, Father. The second daughter of the Evant Ducal House—”

“Unlike you, I don’t listen to the words of fools, so I don’t know. And as I just said, there is no such thing as a ‘villainess’ in this world.”

“Why are you so opposed to the word ‘villainess’? I’ve never seen anyone as evil as that woman.”

Suddenly, Noien looked at his son seriously.

“Yuvar, there is no absolute good or evil in this world.”

“……”

“Humanity’s concepts of good and evil are relative. Someone who is the worst person in one person’s eyes may be the best person in someone else’s.”

Yuvar objected.

“That’s nothing but sophistry. There are certainly evil people in this world.”

“Perhaps there are. But I’m skeptical that the woman you’re talking about is truly evil.”

As though there was no point arguing with him, Yuvar shook his head.

“Honestly, Father……”

“People sometimes make judgments about others far too casually and foolishly.”

Noien gazed into the distance as though lost in thought.

“They don’t care at all about what that person keeps inside. They simply condemn them because they refuse to behave according to their own preferences.”

“……”

“In high society, everyone agrees with that assessment.”

“That’s exactly why I’m saying this. High society is where you made your judgment about that woman, and it is particularly prone to that sort of behavior.”

“……”

“When you look at someone, don’t let yourself be swayed by what everyone else says. Judge them accurately with your own eyes.”

He turned to look at his son.

“Yuvar, think about it a little more deeply.”

Noien’s gaze was extremely serious.

“Isn’t it possible that you also defined that woman as a ‘villainess’ simply because she refused to behave according to your preferences?”

“……”

Yuvar could think of no proper response, so he remained silent.

✦ ✦ ✦

Trickle……

Meanwhile, the wicked villainess Rodi was watering the flowers in her garden.

Grow well.

She wanted the flowers in her garden to remain as beautiful and vibrant as they were now.

If they do……

Noien would never be able to simply pass this place by.

After finishing watering the flowers, Rodi went inside and checked her outfit.

Neat.

Unlike before, she had removed her heavy makeup and was now dressed neatly and modestly.

The reason was simple. She was trying to sell a house, and it would be difficult to trust a homeowner who dressed suspiciously.

Isn’t trust the foundation of every transaction?

It should be about time……

Rodi carried a small wooden chair into the garden.

Then she began reading a novel with a green cover that she had purchased from the village bookstore.

“……”

About an hour after she had settled down in the garden to read, she heard footsteps beyond the low wall, followed by a muttered sigh.

“That useless brat. He always thinks he’s the only one who’s grown up……”

Rustle, rustle.

A gentle breeze carried the fragrant scent of the flowers blooming throughout the garden over the wall.

This scent……?

Noien, who had been walking past the red-brick house, stopped without realizing it.

I haven’t seen these flowers in a long time.

As he approached the wall, he caught sight of the flowers blooming brightly, their petals glistening with water.

“Ah…… As I thought, these flowers are……”

“Lisianthus.”

A young woman who had been reading in the garden approached him.

She was a beautiful woman with violet hair and cool, upturned eyes.

She smiled sweetly and asked,

“Are you interested in these flowers?”

At the same time, Rodi stared intently at Noien’s system window.

[Name: Noien
Age: 49
Weakness: Guilt over his deceased wife, ??, ??]