BJ Villainess

Upon arriving at the audience room, Euges sat on the throne without even glancing at Damian, who was kneeling on one knee on the red carpet.

“Damian of the Kapento family greets Your Majesty the Great Emperor.”

Damian’s etiquette was top-notch. As the heir of a ducal family, he wore fine clothes that were incomparable to his days as a commoner, and his polished appearance was certainly striking. He had been the most famous student in Valhalla for his looks alone.

Euges felt his previously good mood sour again, thinking about Theresa’s audacious behavior. He recalled rumors that Theresa had been infatuated with Damian’s looks, following him around everywhere. He definitely needed to eliminate him as planned. That would make things easier.

“Rise.”

With the delayed permission, Damian finally stood up. Then, Euges asked, “I heard that Duchess Kapento has died. Is that right?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” Damian’s expression was not good. His face was pale, and he looked visibly anxious and uneasy, his entire demeanor wrapped in gloom.

Others might think he was reacting that way because of the duchess’s death. But Euges knew better. This reaction was clearly because of Theresa. His sharp instincts told him so.

The chief chamberlain, Bein, spoke up. “Lord Damian of the Kapento family has come today to formally request permission to conduct the duchess’s funeral.”

“Since Damian Kapento is the sole heir of the family, it is only right.”

Though he didn’t know how long he could hold that position.

“Approve his succession formally and proceed with the family inheritance process. Once he receives the temple’s agreement, he can hold the official succession ceremony.”

Despite the seriousness of the matter, the conversation progressed with alarming speed. Euges tossed the decree he had dictated onto a tray, displaying a level of disrespect that was unusual even for an emperor. This was clearly intentional, meant to convey disdain.

Bein picked up the tray and approached Damian, unconsciously sighing. Disrespect was a form of checking one’s opponent, using power to dismiss someone who posed a threat. Damian, with his dazzling youth and promising talent, was undoubtedly a threat as a rival.

When Bein presented the tray, Damian picked up the decree with flawless movements. The moment for wrapping up this audience with appropriate words was approaching.

Damian spoke first. “Pardon me, Your Majesty. May I inquire about wife’s well-being?”

Euges’s lips slowly curled into a smile, though his eyes remained cold. “Wife?” His voice had a sharp edge, closer to an interrogation than a question.

Realizing his mistake, Damian quickly added, “

, I meant Lady Theresa Squire. I am used to calling her wife… My apologies.”

Disgusting. His downcast eyes and anxious expression revealed his lowly intentions. This was no mistake but a provocation. A childish and low-level provocation that made the responder look even more foolish. Even knowing this, why did he not want to lose?

Euges responded to the provocation at the same level. “Theresa is resting well in my bedroom. She must be tired from all she did as my wife in the dungeon.”

The cracks in Damian’s façade grew wider.

“

, Theresa mentioned she had something to tell you. Since her private parlor has just been tidied, you can talk there.”

Speaking like an immature twenty-something, Euges felt immensely pleased. Age doesn’t always bring wisdom, after all. Seeing Damian’s upset expression was incredibly satisfying. But Damian was a formidable opponent.

“Indeed. I am deeply grateful that Your Majesty is taking such good care of her.” His overstepping gratitude, without proper qualification, made Euges’s smile twisted. In contrast, Damian’s smile was as fresh as a summer forest bathed in sunlight.

“Then, may I see Theresa now? In her private parlor, alone.”

* * *

I frowned as I checked the private palace. This place was decorated in a way that would clearly be suitable for a female noble. Moreover, it had an attached bedroom, and according to the courtier, it was meant for me to use.

“When did they prepare all this?”

There was no way such a space had existed in the Sun Palace before. It must have been newly arranged because of me.

“So, from the beginning, he never intended to send me home.”

Ding!

[The Constellation ‘Pure Child’ has sponsored 1,000,000 coins.]

[This is your home now :D]

“I’ll decline. I don’t want to be the head of a household, let alone an empress. I don’t want to be someone who has to lead and take responsibility for others.”

It’s much more enjoyable to just spend my life doing what I love alone.

Ding!

[The Constellation ‘Selfish Individual Who Ruins the Country’ has sponsored 1,000,000 coins.]

[These days, people always look for what’s convenient for them. They have no sense of community!]

Ding!

[The Constellation ‘Born From Theresa’s Heart’ has sponsored 1,000,000 coins.]

[For someone who hates taking responsibility, Theresa sacrifices too much for this world ^^;; I’d like to see a more selfish Theresa.]

The evaluations of others about me felt strangely unfamiliar.

I don’t think I’m special. On the contrary, I initially made selfish choices for myself. I moved into the dormitory because home was uncomfortable, and I opened the doors of paradise every time I wanted to escape this world. Isn’t that enough evasion?

Today, too, I had guessed that signing numerous agreements meant there was no way I could leave the imperial palace. So, I planned to handle my business while staying here.

I stared into space, lost in thought.

Opening the Gate of Paradise had become a somewhat habitual action, something done out of necessity. Life felt like hell. The fact that I had to be loved was suffocating. I wanted to escape. I feared others’ gazes. I couldn’t handle what was happening here. So, I needed paradise.

But what about now? Does this world still feel like hell to me? No. It doesn’t.

The large, clean, spacious house with a yard in the middle of Seoul, where I lived as Shin Jiwoo, was hell. In contrast, this place, where demons appeared, and dungeons swallowed people, was closer to heaven. The person I am in this world is undoubtedly a new being with a different personality from Shin Jiwoo.

In < God’s Play>, I was no longer someone afraid of others’ gazes. I wasn’t afraid of the influence others had on me, and I willingly sacrificed myself to save others. How can I define this state?

Yes. I loved this world.

This was now my world, and it was where my home was. I didn’t want to leave. That conviction settled perfectly within me.

Missing out on the bonus for a blank was a pity.

While lost in thought, the door to the parlor opened, and Damian appeared.

With a face on the verge of tears, Damian approached and hugged me tightly. “I was going mad, Madam. Please… don’t ever enter the dungeon again.”

“I’m fine. Nothing happened.”

“…Liar.” His voice, muffled as he buried his head against me, was somber. “Madam is a liar.”

The grip of his embrace grew stronger. “Do you love the emperor?”

“It’s not like that.”

“But he loves you.” He murmured that he wanted to kill him.

I checked Damian’s character information.

▼

[Damian West]

Age: 22

Height: 187 cm

Birthday: January 31

st

Likes: Toys, cooking, sports

Dislike: Nobility

Likeability: ❤️❤️❤️❤️🤍

▲

Nothing had changed. It was the same information I knew about Damian.

The Damian in the dungeon and the Damian in reality shared many similarities, but there were differences.

After closing the character information window, I forcibly pulled away from the clingy Damian. “Damian, I have something to ask.”

Damian, his expression dark and stained with emotions, silently stared at me. “Are you the leader of the Stigmata?”