Chapter 2

“Is Viscount Winston really looking for Prince Arnold?”

“It seems like he’s being chased. Ugh, my heart is still pounding.”

As I grabbed the hem of my dress, Edward stared at me in disbelief.

“You know that you are scarier than him, right?”

At Edward’s words, I rubbed my cheek and glanced at him, but I couldn’t refute.

Countess Edith, whom I possessed, had black hair that shimmered like the stars in the night sky. She also had a mysterious eye colour, which was a mixture between black and blue.

If Countess Edith wore no expression, she might’ve been able to kill a person with her gaze. She was a beautiful woman but had such a scary atmosphere around her. If someone looked at her face, anyone would become enchanted and lose their reason. That’s why her nickname was ‘the devil’.

It was fun living with such a face. In fact, that was the best part of living as the villainess in the novel.

“Wow, you’re the worst.”

“Didn’t you hire me because you like my honesty?”

It wasn’t exactly hiring, it was scouting. It wasn’t long ago that I met Edward.

It was when I went on a business trip to the Ellot Empire and had a difficult time, but Edward, who was also there, settled all legal disputes. He was so wonderful that I scouted him.

I was surprised to learn later that Edward was a renowned genius at the Imperial Academy of our empire. As expected, I had a great eye.

I had always needed an advisor who could point out actions beyond common sense, and Edward was perfect for the role.

“If you weren’t good at your job, you know I could’ve fired you anytime, right?”

I made a slicing gesture on my neck.

When Edward saw it, he covered his face with one hand and sighed.

“Countess, please act more elegantly. I didn’t know that you would be so different from the rumours. Other people told me that you were a dignified villainess.”

What a strange word, elegant villainess?

After I possessed the countess’s body, I recruited my own servants, so I could be sure that they were all my own people. It was great that the countess had no relatives, because that meant I could act however I wanted.

Up until now, I still didn’t know what kind of person Countess Edith was.

“It’s so much fun being known as a villainess. No matter what crazy things I do, no one says anything to me!”

Countess Edith was also known as a crazy bitch in some areas.

“Well, I can’t exactly say your personality was like the rumoured villainess, but…”

As Edward said that, he suddenly lifted his chin and shrugged his shoulders.

“When I see you acting like this, I think I get why you were rumoured to be such a person.”

I laughed at Edward’s words.

‘See, I fit the role of villainess so well!’

*** 

What sin did I commit in my previous life that I possessed the villainess in a novel?

I was only guilty of working hard. However, not only did I die from overwork, but damn it, I had to live someone else’s life!

Countess Edith became the richest woman in the empire at the age of 22 through heinous deeds. It’s great that I could enjoy her fortune, since becoming someone like her had always been my dream in my past life.

I had all of Countess Edith’s memories. It was as if her memories were mine in the first place, and I could even recall pieces of her memories if I wanted to. Thanks to that, it wasn’t difficult to adjust.

Besides, I had the ability to do her task as the countess. But, I encountered another problem. The royal family in this novel had a secret that was passed among themselves for generations.
Their hearts were made up of mana. Their hearts had healing capabilities, so members of the royal family wouldn’t die easily even if they were seriously injured. They also had superior physical strength and were safe from infectious diseases.

Their hearts were equivalent to 100 mana stones. We could make a simple weapon like a ball of fire with one mana stone, so 100 mana stones could blow up a big city.

It wasn’t only useful for making weapons, it could also make magical items and healing items for ordinary people.

But this excessive power came with a price. Younger children had a hard time because of their hearts, so the royal family took them out and kept them somewhere until they became adults.

In the original story, I remembered that Linus’s heart was hidden in his mother’s tomb. Linus, however, failed to claim back his heart as an adult and ended up being treated as a failure.

Linus acted lowkey and waited for a moment to get revenge on Viscount Winston. But, three years ago, his heart was stolen by Countess Edith, the villainess of the novel.

It must’ve been a ridiculous situation to Linus. That happened when Countess Edith was 22 years old and Linus was 18 years old. I didn’t know how Countess Edith came up with that idea.

When I looked at her memories, it seemed that she got the information about his heart from someone, but she herself didn’t know of his identity. The stolen heart was sold to the Verody Empire, and in return, she received a large sum of money. But in the original story, she was caught and executed.

Damn it. I was a woman who was fated to be executed. I had no intention of letting myself meet that ending, so I decided to work hard to avoid it.

I was repeating my words like a spell, but I was startled by a doctor’s voice.

“Huh, there are no injuries?”

I couldn’t believe his words and repeated them. Then, perhaps because of my terrifying appearance or because of my reputation, he was terrified and stuttered,

“E- Except for the scars on his forehead.”

It was a wound he got because of me. I covered my mouth and coughed in embarrassment.

He looked at me and hurriedly left the room with medical supplies.

I looked at the beautiful man lying on my bed with mixed feelings. Linus, the male lead, was being chased by Viscount Winston.

It looked like he had already been hit in the head before I hit him with my bag. I remembered him waking up and complaining about the pain.

“As expected… I wasn’t mistaken. What are you up to, Countess Edith?”

He said that as soon as he saw me. Did he remember that I was the one who treated him before? At that time, I didn’t think he could even distinguish people.

I would’ve felt guilty if I just left him but because of helping him, I was in a lot of trouble now.

I hope he didn’t realize that I was the one who stole his heart.

“I should’ve left him there.”

Maybe he won’t die because of the novel’s plot.

“Why didn’t I just… gosh.”

“Oh my!”

I heard a rustling sound and was surprised. Linus woke up and was lifting himself up in my bed.

He must’ve been trying to figure out what was happening, but soon, he looked at me with wary eyes. It seemed that he understood the situation.

If I were to compare him to a flower, he would be a lily. It was as if an angel had descended. There was always a brilliant and noble atmosphere around him. I felt like I was hypnotized by his beauty.

“I don’t know why you’re doing me such a funny favor when you’ve tried to assassinate me before.”

“Since I’ve done you a favor, shouldn’t the things that happened before be forgotten?”

What Linus was talking about was the assassination attempt made by the “real” Countess Edith. My statement made him rub his temples. He looked at me in disbelief.

“Did you eat the wrong medicine?”

Well, I thought that I was ridiculous too. But the thing is, why should’ve I been punished for the original Countess Edith’s deeds!

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